St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-07-04
THE MATTER OF PENSIONS.


In the immediate and pressing atten-
ton which everybody is necessarily
giving to reefing sails and trimming
ship to weather the financial gale other
questions as important ale temporarily
neglected, but the Forum continues to
give to the pension question the treat
ment its prominence and importance
demands. Last month 1t bad two lead
ing articles OH 1t, one on the enormous
expenditure involved, by Congressman
JOIN De WITT WARNER, and the other
on the breach occasioned by the expul-
sion of the Farnham post, written by
Lieut.. FooTE. This month il has the
complete history of the Farnham post
episode, by its commander, JOHN j.
FINN, and Col. LEoSER contributes one
reviewing the development OF the pen
sion mania in the Grand Army.
Commander-in-Chie WEIs9ERT's re-
cent announcement that the contem-
plated appeal to the national encamp-
ment of the Farnham post from his
order of expulsion would not be enter
tanned by that body, directs attention
again to the action of the post which
the national co mmander officially de-
cided to be hostile to the principles of
the organization" Without repeating
the resolutions which we gave some
time ago, they may be summarized, as
i'll the report of the Farnham post COM
mittee in the report given in the Forum,
as favoring pensions only TO those who
were disabled in service, and not to
those of these who do not need them.
The GLOBE would not restrict pen
sions to those only who can trace their
present disabilities to the service. 1t is
not a just basis. Every soldier knows
how difficult it would be to prove at this
interval that his disability had service
origin, and we all know that the class
of soldiers who have this proof accessi-
bic in the hospital records were not
always the best soldiers. So many ma
lingerers avoided duty by shamming sick
and getting into the hospitals to escape
duty, that it came to be considered I'M
soldierly TO go to the hospitals, and men
endured the hardships OF sickness in
camp rather than go.
The GLOBE is strongly in favor of the
present dependent act with the modif-
cation that those shall be excluded from
pensions who are capable of earning
their support in any manner. This
would be but return TO the earlier
principle which restricted pensions to
those whom the Strictest scrutiny
showed stood in need of aid. We believe
that there should be just spch prun-
ing of the lists now as was made in 1920.
Special acts granting pensions should
be repealed and broad provision made
covering all cases where the applicant
is actually in need. Such basis is the
only true and just one, and, were
pensions now denied to those able
to support themselves and grant
ed only to the needy, the amount
given the latter could be made
commensurate with their necessities,
instead of the niggardly allowance now
compelled by the pensions granted
those who do not need them, making
the expenditures so great that the de-
serving cannot have what they deserve.
The key to pension reform lies in draw
ing the line at necessity of the appli-
cant growing out of disabilities, no mat
ter when contracted. The GLOBE has
received for its plan of pension reform
the warm approval of many old soldiers.
1t is happy to have earned the disap-
prOval of a certain other class who are
citizens now as they were soldiers then,
for "N hat there was in it."