People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1893-03-31
WASHINGTON.
Some News of Interest From the
National Capital.
A Queer Discovery In the Pension Bureau
-ANumber of Political Plums Fall Into
Willing Hands-A New Question to
Occupy the Senate's Attention.
Pension Office Discovery.

WASHINGTON, March 27-It has been discoy.
cred that one OF the most important rulings
ever made in the administration Of pensions
has remained unpromulgated, so far as the
public knows, for more than FIVE months, and
that this decision reverses ruling under which
fully 2, 100000 has been wrongfully paid out as
1t would now appear. The facts are so impor.
tant as to require statement at length II is
learned that on September q last Assistant
Secretary Bussey made a pension decision, here
tofore unpublished which radically changed
the practice Of the department as TO the dispo.
sition Of accrued pensions in certain cases and
established new and important rule as TO re-
disbursement Of expenses, last sickness and
burial, under section AIS revised statutes
Heretofore il has been uniformly held that IN.
der sections 1892 1923 47O2 and ais Of the revised
statutes minor grandchildren Of deceased
soldier, who at the date Of his death was either
a pensioner or lawful claimant for invalid pen.
sion, could hold reasonable status as minors
OF the soldier so far as to receive accrued pen
sion in case Of his death and the death Of the
parent Of the children, thereby constituting the
words OF the law, ANY person entitled to a
pension to apply not only to the soldier, but
to his widow his children, dependent brothers
and sisters, or TO dependent parents
In his decision Assistant Secretary Bussey
says that the words Of the act ANY pension.
er, and ANY person entitled TO a pension,
evidently mean the sBme character or class Of
persons-persons who had incurred disabilities
! in the military service-the only difference be.
ing that the first words quoted apply to a per-
son to whom pension has already been
granted, while the words secondly quoted apply
10 the same sort OF person to whom a pension
has not been granted but who under the law is
entitled 10 pension" having application
therefor pending, based upon wound injury
or disease, which under the conditions and lin
itations of such sections, 1922 and 1893 would
have entitled him TO an invalid pension had he
been disabled. And, furthermore, it is obvious
that the after quoted words ("any pensioner
and any person entitled to pension, having an
application therefor pending'D referred exclu.
sively TO q person Of the masculine
gender, inasmuch as the accrued pen
sion that shall result from the death
Of such person." as may leave a widow
who shall be entitled TO his accrued pension, or
'if there is no widow, may leave child or
| children, under l6 years Of age" who, by rea.
son OF the widows DEATH shall take the accrued
pension that would otherwise go to the widow
during her widowhood The assistant secretary
holds that accrued pensions can be fully paid to
grandchildren
As 10 reimbursement for last sickness and
BURIAL" the assistant secretary concludes that
while only the widow or minor children of the
deceased soldier can take the accrued pension,
the only person TO whom the expenses Of the
last sickness and burial can be allowed is the
soldier himself. From the date Of and under
the authority Of an opinion by Solicitor General
Phillips, rendered August 10, 1876, until now,
last sickness and burial expenses have been
allowed in all cases where the deceased was an
impecunious pensioner or entitled TO a pension
whether soldier minor children, grandchildren
or dependent parents
1t is stated that fully S2,OO1,OO) has been
wrongfully paid to claimants under the Phillips
opinion as reimbursements for last sickness
and burial expenses for which section AIS re-
vised statutes did not provide