The Opelousas courier., 1893-07-01
The Pension Frauds.

N. 0. States.
Secretary Smiths recent pension de-
cision, which knocks out the celebrated
| Bussy-Raum order No. 1854, has been
heartily applaudNd by the whole coun-
try, and the Secretary is receiving from
the north letters complimentlng him for
the clearness and business of bis deci-
sion. Order 1854 overrode an act of Con-
gress of 1890, because it was the desire
of Raum and Busy to open a free way
for a pension raid on the treasury. The
act of Congress of 1890 granted the right
| of pension for disability incurred since
the close of the war, provided the dlsa-
| ability was of such a character as to pre-
vent the applicant from making a living
by manual labor. 1t was discovered by
| Secretary Smith that under Raum's con-
| struction of the law, as set forth in or
| der 1854 pensions had been granted for
"slight Deafness" and another case
| showed that a man was drawing a pen
sion of $12 a month who had corns on
his feet. Secretary Smiths decision de-
elares such pensions to be illegal, and it
will be the means of reducing the
amount paid annually for pensions fully
$15,O O0, 900 to $780, 10000.
The decision of the Secretary will OF
| course raise a storm among the author
tiles of the Grand Army of the Republic,
and the Republican organs will endeav-
or to make the country believe that ha-
| tired for the Northern soldier prompted
it, but the good sense of the people will
not permit them to be deceived by such
claptrap. They realize that the decision
| has exposed the outrageous manner in
which Raum and Busy aided and abet-
ted the raiding of the treasury and that
| these two men are nothing more than
| common swindlerS who wOnld now be
in Jail had they held office under any
European government and been so I'M
faithful to their trust. Now, that evil
dence has been laid before the Ameri-
can people showing beyond the shadow
of a doubt that gross pension frauds
have been committed, they will demand
more earnestly than ever that the pen
sion list be thoroughly revised and the
names of those not entitled to a pension
stricken from it, and they will expect
Secretary Smith to do this work fear
lessly and Justly. There was a time
when the Democrats in Congress were
afraid that great injury would be done
their party if they raised their voices
against the pension abuses, but since
then there has been a great change in
public sentiment. The people know
that the pension roll to-day is not a roll
of honor, but that it is q disgrace to the
country and to all honorable Union SOL
diers, because as General Black declar-
Ia the other day it has been polluted
with the names of impostors, towards
and deserters. 1t is the duty of the pres
ent administration to purge the roll, and
honest men of all political parties will
applaud the administration when that
duty is discharged to the best of its abil-
ity.
pension Office ehd it is safe to say that
the work of eliminating from the rolls
the deadbeats to whom Raum and Bus
sey under the famous and Infamous or
der No. 1854, grented pensions for the
most trivial reasons wilAoon begin. The
names of these impostors via have to
go no matter how great a clamOr the
Grand Army of the Republic, which has
astonished the entire country by defend
ing the frauds, may see fit to raise, or
how bitterly its high officials may as
sail the character of the men who have
discovered and exposed the manner in
which the government has been swim
died. The roll will be purged until it
Indeed becomes a roll of honor, but not
a single soldier who is entitled to a pen
sion will be dropped.
Secretary Smith has begun the work
we'll. His first decision has aroused the
country to the enormity of the pension
abuses, and commanded the hearty ap-
prevail of the people. Now let him push
his investigation with energy and de-
termination.
An exchange wants the laws so
amended that book agents may be kill
ed from Sept. I'd to October l, spring
poets, March l to July 1, scandal mon
! gers, any time; while the antiquarian
two-penny business man who thinks it
does not pay to advertise may be killed
from Jan 1 to Dec. 81, without ecourse
or any relief from valuation or appraise-
ment laws.