The National tribune., 1893-02-23
CONGRESS.
q 10 y
The Debate on tile Pension "Amcnd-
qEa3e
MEMS"

| Believing that our readers are interested in
the discussion of the pension appropriation bill
| in the House much more than in other mat
tiers before Congress. we have made a very full
report on the debate to the exclusion of other
| Congressional proceedings.
TUESDAY. FEB. IA.
Mr. Morse Mass, r., who served as pri-
vate in Co. A, 4th Mass, in speaking against
the proposed changes in pension legislation,
said:
| Mr. Chairman, 1 have read of a certain Athennn
| orator who, when he was about 10 declaim in pub
| lie. was Ia the habit of putting up prayer to his
| heather gods THAT what he might say might be to
| the purpose" Now. never attempt to spenk
| upon important n question MS that now pending
but what feel like putting in prayer not 20 the
| heather gods of mythology, but to the one living
and true God. that what may say may be TO the
purpose"
Mr. ',inan, I listened at,entively TO The speec,
| of my. ague from Massachusetts Mr. O'Neill.
1t was patriotic speech, but submit that IL was
entirely out Of harmony with the unpatrioiic, pro-
visions of this bill. My colleague extoled Massa-
clusetts, he recited her grand deeds. he read the
u,,erances Of her great Republican war Governor.
| Andrew. He did we'll
There is no State in the Union so kind TO her
soldiers to her poor insane and even criminals as
| Massachusetts. She Is, and always has BEEN q
Administration an Endorsement of %. 900 votes Mt
the election, and elected 10 Republican Con-
|
ernor only by accident and confusion of names.
which lost to the Republican candidate several
thousand votes intended for him.
| know not what the future may have In store
| with our changing population aud immigration,
but the past of Massachusetts is at leas, secure
My colleague said that this bill and his position
were unpopular l will bear witness to the fact
that he told the exact truth then. especially with
reference to Massachusetts, who believes in re-
deeming to the fullest extent the written promise
which he quoted from her great war Governor.
| Andrew.
My colleague as well as the gentleman from
| Pennsylvania Mr.. MuichlerI rung the changes on
the alleged fact that thousands OF soldiers having
| no disability were drawing pensions. and the gem
| tleman from Missouri tMr. Tarsneyl went 80 far as
to say that tens of thousands of soldiers viii
| lans. rascais and scoundrels. and were drawing
pensions frauduIe1iy from the Government.
| submit that these wholesale charges OF fraud
| and corruption against Union soldiers without
shadow Of truth. No man who has not disa-
biity is entitled 10 "a pension under the existing
| law. The Pension Bureau has field officers whose
| duty II is TO hunt down frauds upon the Pension
| Bureau, and to cancel pensions of those who are
not entitled 10 them, or TO reduce them where they
are excessive.
| deny and resent the wholesale charges Of cor
rnption and fraud made upon Union soldiers by
| the gentleman from Missouri Mr.. Tarsneyl
/ remember during the 5lst Congress to have
heard that gentleman make speech upon The bill
to pension survivors OF the prisoners of Anderson.
| vile. in which he described that place sort Of
| q second class hotel.
| / am not prepared TO deny that there are no
| fraudulent pensions obtained, that there are
soldiers drawing pensions 10 which they not
entitled, i'm excess Of Tie amount to which they
are entitled, and ] will 90 as far a. any gentleman
on this floor in eliminating any such from the pen
| sion rolls of the United States.
But this measure now under consideration goes
entirely beyond any such purpose as this, and cuts
down the pension roll OF the country one.tbrd or
one half
My home at Canton. Mass. is n town of $500 in
| labiiants / know every soldier in that town; l
| served with many OF them in the army A num-
| Der Of them draw pensions, and cannot recall
single not entitled TO AID deserving pension,
At
other towns. And / repeat that these wholesale
charges Of fraud made against Union soldiers are
unjust and untrue
| Mr.. Chairman. I oppose the abolsbing OF the
| United States Pension Agencies as contemplated
| by this bill In the four years that have been
| member OF this House ] have heard frequent and
| bitter complaint OF inequality and injustice in the
| distribution of Government clerkshps among the
several States Of the Union And have heard fire.
| quent and bitter complaint that these cicrkshps
were largely given to the inhabitants Of the Dis
trict of Columbia and to the people of the States
| Immediately adjoining.
Now here is a proposition 10 abolish the United
! States Pension Agencies and the large number OF
clerkships connected Herewith. scattered 49,
widely-separated States Of the Union, and perpetu
atc the inequality implanted Of by bringing all of
these additional clerkshps 10 the City of Washing
I ton
| II seems to me rs though this proposition
serious error, and that the committee has acted in
great haste, without proper investigation OF Tho
| effect. / should have supposed that had they
| wanted to know the facts they would have taken
| the testimony of the Agents themselves.
| There can be no saving Of expense by the pro-
posed change, except possibly the saving OF the sal
aries Of the IS Agents at 81 600 each For if the pen
siOncrs TO be paid nj the Treasury an increase
in The clerical force there, equal to that of all the
! Agencies combined. will he necessary. If such
clerks to be paid sufficient TO live in Washing
ton their salaries will have to be larger than those
now paid by the Pension Agents at the different
| Agencies scattered throughout the Union.
There is no doubt TINT these clerks are far more
poorly paid than almost other class of Govern
| mcnt clerks
| / think that the poor pensioners will be largely
| the sufferers by this change. II cannot be that
| their interests have been considered very care
| fully.
The New England Pension Agent ut Boston.
Mass. Hon. VIM. H. Osborne, writes me:
We pay our whole roll OF %. 900 pensioners, on
| an average, in about three weeks time, when
! probably, il paid by the Treasury, IL would take
three months. That means intense suffering to the
| AS il is they are not paid rapidly enough to
save some of them from going without the necessn-
! ries of life.
"Tle people at large do not know how poor tile
| great of these pensioners are and how
| seriously any delay in the payment of their PEN
! THE December payment began Monday
| On the night previous over 800 pensioners. men
and women spent their entire night in and about
| this bu lding, TO be on hand when office
| opened on Monday morning at $780, poor were
| they. and so sorey in need OF their little pt,ance"
| Then once more. the Pension Agencies have long
| since become bureaus of information 10 the pen
| soners and their friends. Thousands of personal
! interviews are held in these Agencies annually.
/
| with the Pension Agent, and gets necessary in
| formation. If this were conduced by mail it
| would result in vast correspondence and delay
dcnouBce the proposition to abolish the United
States Pension Agencies great injustice to the
| soldiers and their widows. and to the wideysep
| rated States in which these Agencies are located
| for the reasons that have partly set forth.
| The claim that IL is measure OF economy be-
| lieve to be entirely fallacious. do not believe
| there is place the face OF the earth where
there is as little work done for a dollar, and with
| as short hours Of work as In this city of Washing
| ton.
| The employees Of the Departments here saunter
| in ut 9 o'clock in the morning aud out again at
| that.
| This Administration is in no way responsible for
this condition of affairs; 1t Is a practice Of long
| standing.
| In the different States where these Agencies are
now located, different hours OF work and differ
| ent standard for a days work prevail.
| The employees required to work the fall eight
| hours and at payingOf time as seen by the letter
| quoted above from the Boston Pension Agent the
Office is open from half past In the morning until
| late nj night.
| There is no adequate compensation TO the Gov
| eminent and to the people In the saving OF the
| men will have to be employed rs Superintendent
| in Washington, with change OF name. and posi-
| bly, some reduction of salary
| ] most earnestly hope that this proposition will
| be stricken out of the bill
| Mr.. Chairman. am very much opposed to the
proposed amendment to this BILL the one which
takes pensions away from soldiers widows mar
ried later than 1870. The statistics show that the
average age of the soldiers OF the Union army was