The National tribune., 1893-06-08
THE LATEST RULING.
Secretary Smiths Repeal of One of Gen
Raum,s Pension Orders.


Raum's Pension Orders.
The important decision in the pension case
of Charles T. Bennett, Co. F, 18th Ind, in
wolves the repeal of Order 164, passed by Gen.
Raum and approved by Assistant Secretary
Bussey, and a return to the language Of the
statute requiring tho disability, not of service
origin, to be such as to prevent the applicant
from earning support by manual labor.
Secretary Hoke Smith has been considering
the principles involved in this decision for
several weeks, and so important did he deem
it that when it was called to his attention from
the Pension Board Of Appeals be submitted the
question involved to Attorney General Olney
and TO Judge Lochren, the Commissioner of
Pensions both of whom concurred in the
decision.
Comrade Bennett first applied for pension
on July 5, 1886, alleging that while in the
service and in line of duty at Raleigh, n. C.,
about June l. 1865, he was Frustrated by sun
stroke from which resulted disease OF the
head and loss of hearing.
This claim was rejected by the Pension Bu-
reau in 1892, upon the ground that the evil
dence failed to establish the existence of any
disability due to army service, the records
showing no treatment for any disability during
service enlistment, and tho Examining Sur
geons reporting that they found only slight
deafness in both ears, not of sufficient character
to warrant making rating.
This deafness the Examiners reported to be
so slight that the applicant could hear watch
tick in each ear when it was within one-half
inch of EACH From the rejection of his claim
Bennett appealed.
The Secretary affir rms the decision. holding
Bennett not entitled to pension under the gem
eral laws. and then takes up the subsequent al
lowance by the Pension Bureau of a pension of
$l2 month to Bennett, under the dependent
and disability act OF June q, 1890.
Under this act, the Secretary says. it was
necessary that Bennett should be suffering from
a mental or physical disability of a permanent
character, not the result of his own vicious
habits. which incapacitated him for the per-
Torrance of man nal labor in such degree as to
render him unable to earn a support.
Deafness so slight that he could bear a watch
tick one half inch from each ear clearly failed to
come within the requirements of the law.
Such "slight deafness" of necessity, could not
incapacitate for the performance of manual
labor. and yet the claimant was allowed the
largest sum provided for under Section 2 of the
act of June q, 1890.
Incapacity to perform manual labor, to a de-
gree which produces inability to earn sup
port, is the basis of pension under this section
yet the report OF the Medical Referee shows that
the pension was allowed by the Pension Bu-
reau in this case in pursuance of Order No. 164,
and the inability of the applicant to perform
manual labor was not taken into consideration.
The Secretary, commenting on Gen. Raum' s
Order No. 1884, says that the law giving pea
sions for wounds of service origin and the act
of June 81 $780, stand upon an entirely diff
ferent footing, and adds:
"Those incurred during service and in line
of duty are reasonable without regard to
capacity to earn support, and are graded
without reference to this condition. Disabili-
ties resulting from causes other than of service
origin are only pensionable when incapacity to
labor joins with iueapgcity to earn support
and the grades of rating are dependent upon
these two conditions When by Order No. 1874
it was declared that disabilities under the at t
of juno 81, 1890, should be rated as if of service
origin, the very principle which governed the
rating under the act OF June q, 1890. was dis
placed and a rule applicable to different act
was substituted"
Two errors. it is said, were thus committed,
one in awarding for slight deafness not of serv-
ice origin $I2 a month, because that was the
lowest rating for "sight deafness when of
service origin, although the disability act fixed
lower and graduated rate aud intended that
SI2 should be granted only ia severe cases. The
other error was in not taking into considera-
ton the inability of the applicant to perform
manual labor. In a word, the act of June q.
$780, was changed and superseded by Order
No. 164.
Secretary Smith directs the Commissioner
hereafter to conform the practice of his Office
to the law.