St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-09-25
PENSION STATISTICS.
The Commissioners Annual Re-
port Is Interesting.


WASHINGTON, Sept. 24.-The annual
report of the commissioner of pensions
on the operations of that bureau during
the fiscal year ending June 80, 1891, has
been submitted to the secretary of the
interior. 1t shows that Monday there
! were GIG 100 pensioners borne upon the
J rolls, being 1926 more than at the
close of the previous fiscal year. The
| pensioners are classified as follows:
| Widows and daughters of Revolution
airy soldiers, %; army invalid pension
| ers, 413, 597; army widows, minor chill
dren, etc. 1OS, 5S7; navy invalid pen
sioners, ), 449; navy widows, minor chill
dren, etc. 2,56S; survivors Of the war
of 1912. 2S4; widows of soldiers of the
war of 1912, 1880: survivors of the MeXi-
| can war. 16,379; widows of Mexican war,
6,976. Under act of June 81, 1890, army
| invalid pensioners, 81, 1876; army wild
owS, minor children, etc, l., 209 navy
| invalid pensioners, 1876: navy widows,
| minor children, etc, ,436. During the
! fiscal year first payments were made
upon 131. 100 original claims, requiring
| $31, 391,539 for payment. During the
| year first payments were made upon
O., 532 original claims more than those
| of the year previous at an aggregate
] cost Of 81, 037. 1902 less. There were 222,-
| 521 first payments of every description,
requiring S3S, 552, PA, being $50, 592 less
| than was required for the first pay
ments made during the last fiscal year.
| The average value OF first payments
made during the year ended June 80,
1891, was S23q.33, and the average value
of first payments on claims allowed un-
! der the act of June 81, 1890. was SIPS.
| The average value of first payments
| for the preceding year was S485.11,
| being reduction III the average first
| payments for the year 1891, as COM
! pared with the fiscal year 1880, of
! S246.3S. The average annual value of
each pension on the roll under the act
of June 81, 1890, was 1921.
At the close of the fiscal year, IS, ia
| pensioners were unpaid for want of
| time, and they were entitled TO receive
! 81, $50, 243, which will be paid out of the
| appropriations for the fiscal year begin
ming July l, 1901; and there remained
! in the hands of pension agents at the
close of the fiscal year the sum of lib
$50. This amount added to 3,607, 1873 of
| the pension appropriation not drawn
! from the treasury aggregated 1890, 9S3
| Of the appropriation which was not eX-
| pended. There will be deficiency in
! the appropriation for the payment of
| fees and expenses of examining sur
! geOns Of about 100000. The total
! amount of money disbursed on account
| of pensions, expenses. ETC., during the
! fiscal year was $l18, 54S, $50 as compared
with $l06. 493. $50 diSbursed during the
preceding fiscal year.
During the past fiscal year there were
issued 50 original andduplicate military
land warrants for $500 acres of land. OF
| land. OF the i2,402 soldiers to whom
certificates were issued under the
! general law, 1,37l were to persons who
| had served period of six months and
under, while ], JOB were to those soldiers
who had served for period Of seven
! months and over. and the largest num-
| Der of certificates issued to soldiers of
| particular length of time was 9O5 to
| those who served thirty-four months,
| and SIS to those who served thirty-siX
months. The remarkable fact is dis
! closed that fifty certificates We're issued
| to men who served from 16I to 476
! months. During the year 2O,525 pen
| sioners were dropped from the role for
various causes, but of this number 49,
225 were dropped by reason of death
The report says the work of the mail
| ing division evidences the magnitude of
| the work eff the pension Office. During
| the year the bureau received l54 ,S17
| communications from members of CON
| gress; 1, 10, $50 letters of inquiry in re-
! gard to pension claims from claimants
and their attorneys and friends: $3.50
! 100 pieces of mail matter were received
| during the year, and 1926. 491 letters,
! circulars and cards were sent out from
the bureau. The commissioner recon-
mends that higher rate of pension than
$50 per month be given pensioners who,
while not constantly incapacitated for
performing manual labor. yetreQuired
periodical assistance. He believes $50
per month would be a just rate for such
pensions.
The loss to the pension rolls by the
decease of widows and dependent moth
ers and fathers WIS at the rate of 50 per
LOCO in 1891. 1t is estimated that of the
soldiers who served the country during
the late war 1.O04.65S were killed iii bat
tie or died during and since the war.
On June 80 last 124. $50 OF these deceased
s9l'tiers were represented Oh the pen
sioa rolls by their widows or other de-
| pendents. There are about l.21S. 7OT
soldiers of the Union now living, ana Of