Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1893-03-25

WASHINGTON, ID. c., March Ell
has been discovered to-day that one OF.
the most important rulings ever made
I In the admipietrAtlons OF Pension mat
ters has remained unpromulgated. so
far as the pubic knows. for more than
| five months and that this decision re-,
verses a ruling under which fully two
million dollars have been wrongfully
paid out, as II would appear. The facts
are so important as 10 require state
ment at length.
1t is learned that on September 2sth
last Assistant Secretary Bussey made q
pension decision, heretofore unpuollsh-
ed. which radically changed the prac-
tice OF the department as the disposition
OF accrued pensions in certain cases,
and established a new and important
rule as To imbursemen OF Expenses for
last sickness and burial" under Sec
tion AIS Revised Statutes. Hitherto
! IL has been uniformly held that
under Sections 1852, 3,692 4.702
and 4,7l0 OF the Revised Stat
utes minor grandchildren OF
a deceased soldier. who at the date OF
his death was either pensi0ner. or
lawful claimant for invalid pension,
could hold a pensionable stains as min
ors OF the the soldier. so far as 10 re-
ceive his accrued pension In case OF his
death and the death OF the parent OF
the children, thereby constructing the
words OF the law ANY person entitled
TO pension" 10 apply not only 10 the.
soldier but TO his wlrow, his children,
dependent brothers and sisters, or de-
pendent parents.
In his decision the Assistant Secreta.
ry says that the Tords OF the act, "any
pensieper" and ''any person entitled TO
pensl0E," evidently msHnt theSame.
character or class OF persons-peIAER
who had incurred disabilities I'M
military serYlce-the only differend
! ing that the first words quoted az "a
a person 10 whom q pension has aired
been granted, while the woISy
secondly secondly quoted apply
TO the same sort Of person 10
whom a pension has not been granted.
but who, under the law, 10 "entitled TO
pension, having an application there-
for pending" based upon "woU' 4, in-
Jury or disease, which under th' condI-
tions and limitations OF such sections
| "a, G92 and 4,693) would have entitled
him to an invalid pension, had he been
disabled" and, furthermore II Is obvi-
Gus that the after quoted words
"any pensioner and any person en-
titled 10 pension having an
application therefor pending" refer ex-
clusively 70 person OF the masculine
gender, inasmoch as the accrued pen.
sion, for the disposal OF which the Sec
ton provides, must be the accrued PEN
sion that shall result from the death"
OF "such person as MAJ leave a widow
who shall be entitlud % his accrued
pension" or "lf there Is 40 widosy. {" y
may leave child or children "under
sixteen years Of age" who, by reason Of
the widows death, shall take the ac-
crued pension that would otherwise go
to the widow during her widowhood.
The assistant secretary holds that ac-
crued pensions canno be lawfully paid
70 grandchildren.
As 10 reimbursement for "last sick
ness and burial" the Assistant Secre-
tary concludes that while only the
widow or minor child Of the deceased
soldier can take the accrued pension.
the only person for which the expenses
OF last sickness and burial can be al
lowed Is the soldier himself.
From the date OF and under the au-
thority Of an opinion by Sdiei-
tor General Phillips, rendered
August l6, 1876, until now, last sick
ness and burial expenses have been al
lowed in all cases where the deceaAd
was an impecunious pensioner or enttA
tied to pension, whether soldier. MI
nor children, grandchildren or depend
ent parents.
I.isstated that fully two million dol
lars have been wrobgfuVy paid 70 claim
ants under the Phillips opinion a. rein-
bursements for last sickness and burial
Expenses, for which section 47is OF the
4 xoyfsad statutes did mot uFOylde.