Nevada County picayune. (Prescott, Nev. County, Ark.) 1885-1???, 1891-02-26
PENSION PROFLIGACY.

manding thorough overhauling of
the pension rolls. In a leading edi-
torial article this morning, entitled
1.-The Feeling About Pensions it
points out that there has been much
change in public opinion regarding
the pension business during the past
year, and that "there are thousands
Of voters who were heartily in favor
year ago Of liberal measures for the
benefit of Union veterans, but who
are now inclined to look with distrust
upon measures heretofore enacted
as well as now proposed, feeling that
the business may have gone too far
for the public good" 1t admits the
inpossibility Of meeting this distrust
with strong and unqualified denial
indeed, it declares that facts have
come to light which have "gone far
to impair public confidence in the
care, impartiality and efficacy Of the
service, and to increase the impress
sion that fraudulent claims may have
been granted in many cases through
the unscrupulous influence of
agents.
The Tribune considers the stua-
ton SO serious that there is danger
''lest the public willingness to meet
the proper claims of honest pension
ers may be impaired, if not destroy
ed, by the feeling that the system
has become a machine for the plum
dering Of the country In order to
assure the payment of pensions even
to those who are the most deserving,
it is necessary that there shall be an
investigation as to chow far the rolls
of recipients of public money have
been swelled, whether of late or in
years gone by, whether by collusion,
by fraud, by neglect or by cunning
and dishonesty, which the best otii-
cials could not detect, with names
which have no right to be there. "
The Tribune, therefore, concludes
that ''if the present Congress desires
to do the best thing possible for
Union veterans, it will set on foot an
inquiry which will clear the pension
rolls, as far as possible, of names
fraudulently added, and re-establish
public confidence in the fidelity OF
the service and in the real merit OF
the great body of pensioners.
Scarcely any former officer of the
Union army" says the Tribune,
has not become cognizant of pen
sion claims which he knew ought
never to have been considered, but
which have been established through
false swearing or fraud of some
kind" The correctness of this
opinion cannot be questioned. Oc'
casionally a writer for the press who
served in the army bears witness al
to his own observation in this re
spect. The editor of the Portland
Oregonian, for example, who was il
a Vermont regiment, has declared
that he knows Of his own knowledg,
that 'since the passage of the arrears
of pension act, about every shirt ant
utterly worthless veteran of his bri
gade has been a successful applicant
for a pension. He told of awagon
er who had lost his leg by tumblinl
off his team while hopelessly drunk
but whs got pension on the pie;
that he had lost it in action with tn,
enemy; Of another man who swor,
to having received injuries in a bat
tie when in point of fact he was no
present at all; and OF several who
shot off their fingers in order to es
cape from service, and then haC
their names placed on the rolls a
though the wounds had been honora
bly, incurred.
1t is not an exageration TO say
that there must be tens of thousands
of such shirks and frauds drawing
pensions. The Tribune says trul
that there is widespread feelin,
that thorough rurging Of the rolls
would lesson materially the charge!
which the government has to meet. ,
But il is not simply question o
saving the money out of which The
Treasury is thus swndled. Tn,
spectacle of worthless fellow draw
ing regular income from the gov
ernment, to which he has not tn,
shadow of claim, has most de
moralizing effect upon the communi
ty in which he lives, and it would be-
a great service to the cause Of gooC
| ,pnralu IL tho raunalo could ha 90