The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1893-07-21
PENSION INVESTIGATIONS.
Hvtdsnces % The Leooo neeho4s % ~
publicaa O0elals.

Evsdsncss % tie Lsess MsehsAs q H.
publicaa O0eials.
The inquiries that have been set on
foot with reference TO the pension list
have, from the necessity OF the case
made no great progress; but they arc
already bearing substantial truiI
Nothing else was TO be expected. un'
der Tanner and Raum the bureau was
avowedly run for the purpose OF grant
ing rs many pensions a. possible
From time to time boasts were pub
lished that tho Office was beating all
previous records, and figures submitted
TO dcmonstrate the correctness OF tho
claim. OF course where II was well un-
derstood that the main object was TO
issue ms many certificates Is possible,
there was small hope Of protecting tho
interests Of the government against
fraud. The ingenuity OF the treasury
raiders is so great, their number 90 I'M
mense and their industry SO untiring
that the utmost vigilance on the part
OF officials is not always sufficient TO
head them OF. What, then, must be
the condition of affairs when the offi-
Gals themselves are virtually in league
with the raiders?
| How easy was the task of fraudulent
pensioners and their aiders and abettors
was well illustrated by the result OF the
inquiry as to the pensionfrauds at Nor.
folk, Va, of which some account re-
Gently appeared in the dispatches w.
Il. Drury was q pension claim agent,
and had an Office specially constructed
| l,,1a lafv =
sons occupied the Office with him, and
were convenient for use as witnesses,
as was also one Cherry, who was man
OF all work in the Office. Drury's
nephew, Richardson. q notary public,
also had \ desk in the Office. lie signed
declarations in blank. which Drury
used whenever they were needed. Even
this did not satisfy Drury. for he often
forged Richardson's name, as he did
that of witnesses This sort OF thing
has been going on since 1890. but II was
not discovered until this year. The
government has paid one hundred and
fifty million dollars in cases in which
Drury has figured, and but for the dis
covery would ultimately have paid, &C
cording to the estimates, some six hum
dred and fifty thousand dollars more
It is argued, Of course, that the pen
sion Office was not responsible for
, Drury's frauds, which may be technical
) " true, though it is false in substance
and effect The free and easy mannsa
in which the Office was conducted, tns
avowed eagerness to grant pensions te
: every body who applied, if any pretex'
. for it could be found, were so many in
yitations to claimants and claim agents
I to try their skill il inventiug false pre-
= lenses. Drury had runners out scour
5 ing the country for fraudulent appli
cants The same names constantly re
5 CURED as witnesses, and were Otter
+ signed by Drury himself. The paper
: were suspicious on their face, and II tn
S Office had been conducted with ordinar,
r care to prevent fraud detection woul'
? have come much sooner than it did.
s The case of Drury Is valuable .
y showing what was possible under sucl
l. an admins, ration of the pension ofic
, as that Of Raum. OF course, there
r every reason to believe that his case
q only one of many. His method ma
have been more daring than those Q
e most of the others, but they tended
c the same end. The number Of undo
Ie served pensions obtained by him J
.r trifing compared with the grand tots
a of fraudulent cases And yet there
q already an cutlery that these investigs
Or tons are intended to rob the pension
a. ers of money which rightfully belong
e to them
D. The position Of the pension bureau
n; under its present management, is in
e pregnablc. and must command the al
Is prevail of every honest man not blinde
ct by prejudice or misled bv misnform
s. ton. 1t is simply that every man el
is titled to pension under the laws sha
to have one. and that those who do NJ
&c deserve them shall be stricken from Il
in roll as fast as they can be discovers
cd This is the dictate of simple honesty al
he common sense. The prctcnsc tn
x there is any patriotism in PROMOTE
by fraud is too absurd for serious consi
L. In,1 vro al