The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1893-12-20

The Debate More Or Less Personal
Touching the Record of the Recent
Administration of Raum-The Pres
emit Pension Department. the Great
est Of the GOvernment-The Noble
Worl<HIt Is Doing Every Veteran
Entitled 10 a Pension Secure in His
Right.
WASHINGTON, Dec. ia debate
over the pension policy of the present
administration. growing out of an item
in the urgent deficiency appropriation
bill, appropriating 5000, 900 for special ex-
aminers. consumed the entire day in the
house. Under the lead of Mr. Cannon
an assault was made against Mr.. Cleve-
lands pension policy, especially that
portion of it which resulted in the revo-
cation of order 164 and the subsequent
suspension of thousands Of pensioners.
He thought it was time for congress to
examine into the manner in which the
pension Office was being conducted. He
referred to the clause in the presidents
message declaring that every neighbor-
hood had it's fraudulent pensioners. He
reviewed the action of the department
in cutting off thousands of pensioners.
There had been much allegation Of fraud,
he said, but little of it had material
lied on cross-eXaminations. OF the 235
special examiners in the department a
dozen were employed to run down these
alleged fraudulent pensioners. All pen
sions cut off were classed by the COM
missioner TO the credit Of the amount
saved by the Office. One million dollars
of rejected pensions had been classified
as 81, O0O,0 600 saved. Yet after thorough
examination it was found that but $751;
600 had been actually paid out to pen
soners who had procured their pensions
by forgery, perjury or false personaton.
He undertook to say that there was no
more fraud in the administration of the
affairs of the pension office. which dis
bursed annually $1SOOOO0OO. than IN me
adjudication of cases in the courts of
the country.
Concerning Order 1G4.
The Fifty-frst congress appropriated
$780, 900 for pensions. The Fifty-sec-
ond. with the 40 democratic majority
appropriated $16s, 900, 600 to meet the pay
ments on account of pensions. Order
164 was responsible for much of this
magnanimity. Yet the present head of
the pension department, the secretary
of the interior. nov undertook after this
construction of the law had stood for
four years and had been acquiesced in
by a democratic house of representa-
tives to reverse that construction.
"It was an act" said he, shaking his
fist ominously, ''akin to crime"
The infamous ruling of this admins
tration was that men receiving pensions,
whose cases had been proved, were
stricken from the rolls. Look at the
Bennett case, which was known from
one end to the other. If such a ruling
had been made by a republican admin
istration, by Raum or Busy, after the
construction Of the law had stood for
three years and been ratified by con-
gress he would attack it as he attacked
1t now.
That's right" shouted Mr.. Enloe;
"give it to Raum."
"Oh. no." replied Mr.. Cannon; st will
not go for Raum, because in Gods chan
Gerry he is not guilty, and your commits
sioner is"
Comparing the work of Commissioner
Raum and Commissioner Lochren seven
months of the administration of each
showed that Raum issued IA 600 certifi-
Gates and Lochren 1900. In the same
period Raum had rejected $4,000 claims,
Lochren $1,000. Lochren had kept up
with Raum on reflections, but Raum had
beaten him to l on issues.
That's greatly to his credit" shouted
some one on the democratic side.
II do not think So" replied Mr.. Can
non, land I think my Judgment will be
the judgment of history"
Mir. Livingston Replies.
Mr.. Livingston of Georgia replied to
Mr.. Cannon. The appropriation under
discussion, he said, was to provide for
field examiners of the pension office. Mr..
Cannon had not challenged the propriety
or justice of this appropriation. He had
occupied his time in casting a shadow
over the administration of the pension
office and in attacking Secretary Smith
and Commissioner LOchren for revoking
order 164. 4 democrat, North or South.
was always under suspicion when ne
criticised pensions. Secretary Smith was
southern man. but he had not been in
the confederate army. Commissioner
Lochren had been a soldier in the union
army and a gallant one. Mr.. Cleveland
had not been in the army, but he could
assure the house and the country that
istinguished men. Applications We're
scrutiniZed with care, as they should be.
No self-respecting man in the land would
believe that Mr.. Cleveland, Mr.. Smith or
Gen. LOCnren IN DeaIlnS the brush for
fraud was actuated by a desire TO de-
prive honest soldiers of their pensions.
1t was true, however, that this war
against the unworthy and undeserving
soldier would be prosecuted vigorously.
Messrs. Blair, Stone Of Pennsylvania,
Picker, Cannon and Bingham harassed
Mr.. Livingston at every step. He pro-
tested against employing the whole force
of the pension office to rummage for
fraud instead Of adjudicating the hun
dreds OF thousands Of claims that await
action.
MIR. EnIOe Speaks.
Mr.. Enloe Of Tennessee, the old an
tagonist of ex-Commissioner Raum, de-
clared that the pension department under
this administration was the greatest OF
the government. 1t was doing a noble
work He was surprised at the line OF
defense set up on the other side. In the
eye OF the law they Ohe republicans
were accomplices Of fraudulent pension
ers Because the administration was in
vestigating and furnishing these cases OF
fraud how could honest men parade this
before the country as hostility to the
! deserving pensioners2
Mr.. Enloe wanted every soldier in this