Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1889-08-08
TO wHIrnwAsH rAxNEH.
The Investigating Committee win
shield the Extravnsn nu Pension
p,tnutiAAiOupF.

shield the Extruvngnnu Pension
ComlniissiOurr.
Correspondence New York Times.
WAsHINaToN Aug. Lit is evident that
Corporal Tanner is to be whitewashed by
the Investigating" committee which
Secretary Noble appointed to look into
the rerAting scandals in the pension
office. The work OF preparing the public
for such an outcome of the 'investiga-
tion" Ia well under way, and in dus time
the verdict "not guilty" may be expected.
1t is semi officially given out, for ex-
ample, that the committee has found
nothing whatever Of Sensational char
acter; that while there mas been an in
crease in the number of reratings, it has
been gradual and not very large,
and that really the average rerating
is only from 80 to "a a mouth.
But the most significant indication of the
kind OF report that the committee pro.
poses to make is found in the announce
ment that it has confined its labcrs to
the record made by Commissioner Black
in December, 1885, and that made by
Tanner in May last. The instructions
given by Secretary Noble included an
examination OF the work OF the office for
the last ~ months, but the committee
soon reported to the secretary that it
would take six months or more to DO
this, and 80 the two months mentioned
were selected Whether or not the
preliminary survey Of the situation
pointed TO December and May as the
two best months for the committee's pur.
pUse il not given out. 1t la asserted by
those who have been SO busils engaged III
decryinR General Blacks administration
that As soon as IL WAS known that Cleye-
land had been defeated ths pension com
missioner hegan TO push through sll the
cases he could aud ia which any Of his
personal or party friends were interestei;
that by December he had got the re-
ra.iug and special" mits IN good wotk-
Ing order. December, therefore, would
be u & sod month for the Noble COMMITTEES
| to take up.
the Decentralization in the pension Of
| tice winch mas made It's present m InAge-
msnt Il disgrace 10 President harriaon'a
administration began very soon after
laaner took mold. Il was not until last
month, however, tina. the rerating sean
dial reached suoh proportions that pension
office employees We're themselves alarmed,
aud 1t became jIupossiole to keep tine
matter from the plDlic. Legs than n
month ago 1t bscamo necessary to digmlss
employees for being at that time engaged
IN reiatirg each others pensions, one OF
them receiving his notice within an huur
after receiving his check for the arrears
of pension he had obtsined. 1t was
in June that some body put through in
1--we days handsome rerating fer Senator
Charles +. Henderson without al appii
cation for il appearing on the records
ard without an examination o; the prn.
sioner. 1t was In June and early JulJ
that the practice Of giving es.ch other III.
creased pensions reached its highest de-
yeopmeut among ranuers employees
Bat Secretary Hobis's Investigating
committee takes May for its sample
month OF the Tanner administration
Corporal Tanner and his friends among
the pension attorneys will be badly sur
prised lot if the report of the committe,
does not show that Tanners work in Ma,
is worthy of high commentator in com
parison with Blacks work in December