Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1893-09-16
hokE SMITH SCORED.

nearly seven hours continuous session
Thursday the twenty-seventh national
encampment of the Grand Army adj
journed at o'clock p. m. The
pension question furnished the sem
sation of the day. Col Ivan N.
Walker, of this city, the newly elected
senior vice commander and chairman
of the committee having the subject in
charge, read the result of the work of
his committee, which he said embodied
the sentiment of forty resolutions pre-
sented by the best posted men of the
G. A. R.
The report of the pension committee
said:
"Lincoln declared it the duty of the nation to
care for those that had borne the battle and for
| their wives and orphans, After his death
grateful nation met and received the veterans
and showered upon them the plaudlts and hon
ors they had well and hardly earned.
| With profound sorrow and regret we
have to report that all provision for the
| veterans has been changed Thousands
| OF pensions have been stopped with
! out notice and thousands OF pensioners dropped
from the rolls. 1t has been claimed that an ad-
| iudication Of pension settled nothing that the
secretary of the interior and commissioner
| of pensions were invested by law with abso-
lutte power over the pension roll, and that it is
within their legal authority to reopen and re-
| wise pensions allowed by their predecessors
under regulations adopted by them, whenever
| they see fit to change the rules of evidence and
| the scale of ratings, and this in q country OF
| law, where from the infancy of the government
the United States by its organic law is in terms
denied the right to deprive any person of prop
| erty without due process of law.
| I'VE deny that the secretary of the interior
| and the commissioner OF pensions have any
such power; therefore the Grand Army of the
| Republic, in national encampment assembled,
| speaking for the grand army of beloved COM
rades, many of them too poor, too unused,
too broken to unders tand the strong arm
| of the government when administered
with unfriendly hand, scouts and
denies the indiscrimnate charges of universal
fraud because some unworthy survivors may
be found that discredit may be cast upon the
entire all, and this great body of brave and
patriotic citizens stand disgraced before the
country
1--WE demand that there shall be no backward
step in pension legislation or administration,
and that the sacred trust Of those that bore the
burden of the battle shall be sacredly observed
and sacredly administered"
The report concluded with a series OF resolu-
tions declaring that the grand army looked
with solicitude and alarm upon the action of
sthe administration in arbitrarily depriving
the veterans Of an opportunity to be heard in
defense OF the rights solemnly adludged and
confirmed to them; that it declared against
the presumption OF fraud until charges had
full notice and full and complete opportunity to
be heard. An additional resolution declared
that as the commissioner Of pensions by his re-
cent withdrawal OF the obnoxious rulings,
which had been generously condemned, had
virtually acknowledged the 1ncOrreCtneSS or
such rulings. ii was deemed his further duty to
at once res tore to the rolls the thousands Of
pensioners now standing illegally suspended
When Col. Walker had reached that
part of the report relating to the action
of the interior department in suspend
ing pensions under the disability act OF
1890, which provided for granting
gratuities to a list of 800, 900 veterans,
: the voice of the speaker was entirely
drowned in the shouting execra-
, tion of delegates on the head
5 of Secretary Hoke Smith. Members
yelling like mad climbed on chairs,
shook their fists in the air and shouted
their rage at the treatment the old
soldiers had received. For a time the
t convention assumed the aspect of a
, mob of infuriated citizens bent on
wreaking summary vengeance The
| closing sentence of the report
1--WE deem it his further duty to
, at once restore to the rolls the thou
sands of pensioners now standing ille-
3 gally suspended) was followed by an
outburst of cheers. The report was
r unanimously adopted. Many wanted
+ to make the language even stronger
+. and Past Commander in Chief Rea
of Minneapolis, had a resolution
a demanding immediate reinstatement
but it was considered advisable
= by the more polite not to have it in
troduced. Past Commander in Chiet
| n Z i
: the only resolution that went through
y outside of the committees report. Il
!. provided that Commander in Chic
= Adams at once see that action shall bt
: taken in the United States supreme
4 court to test the validity of Secretary
S Smiths order.
i The seventh annual convention o
). the leaders of the w. R. C. met Wednes
day. Mrs. Carrie V. Sheriff, of ALE
3 gheny, Pa, presided. The report shows
y that there is gain of two depart
r ments, tifty-two circles, and an increas,
). of $3.50 in membership The tota
{, membership is over $4,000, with 1,50
honorary members. The total relic
d granted during the year is Ss,7S7, will
a u surplus of over $50 in the treas
uries of the various departments
Twenty-eight states and thirteen de
partments are represented every one o
n which is IN excellent condition. Th
l. treasurer reported as follows: Total re
ceipts. s4. 103. "a; total expenses s., ,47G.
5 81; balance on hand S1,626.S7.
e The Woman's Relief Corps electe,
y the following officers: president
e Sarah c. Mink New York; senior vice
a president, Jennie S. Myerhuff Indian
d apolis; junior vice-president, Amand
r T. Newcombe, Vermont; chaplain
# Harriet X. Bodge, Connecticut; treas
- urer, Armilla A. Cheney, Detroit.
- The ladies of the Grand Army of tn
II Republic elected the following officers
e President, Mrs Amanda j. Withern
d Minnesota; senior vice president, Mrs
d Taylor, Ohio; junior vice president
q Mrs. L. P. Anderson. California; treas
" urer, Mrs. Gordon, Kansas; counselor
Mrs Carrie v Sheriff. pennsvlvaniu