The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1894-07-23

In February, 1929, he urged upon con-
gress the duty Of an establishment of
this kind. supported by dues from the
soldiers and fines and forfeitures. and
in 1910 Captain Robert Anderson. since
SO famous, outlined a plan. In 1914
General Scott induced the house COM
mittee on military affairs co take the
matter up. and III IS4s. in transmitting
to the secretary of war a draft for $780,
600, part of the tribute levied upon the
City of Mexico. he urged that it be used
for beginning an army asylum The
suggestion was adopted, and on March
3, 1851, the act became law.
An Ideal Home.
Twenty years service entities the vet
eran to a permanent home here. but on
any shorter service he can remain only
SO long as his disability continues. and
so far as can be determined by an in
spection of the rolls not more than half
of those now here may be considered
permanent One sees about the place
quite a number of very young looking
fellows. some of them much younger
looking than their inscribed age, but
inquiry shows that a surprising pro-
portion of these are permanently dis
abled. And what sort of a prospect must
this world present to a man of 25 who
has received his sentence from the sur
geons of chronic disability No wonder
there are suicides
And yet the death rate is not large
In the year last reported there were
1850 on the rolls at the close, of whom
$50 were there at the beginning. There
were 512 admitted during the year and
nearly as many discharged after remain
ing various periods and yet there were
but GA deaths. There is not in all this
region more hcalthful place The high
location. the open gravely subsoil, the
rolling land, splendid drainage and pure
water, together with good food and
ideally perfect buildings, combine to
make it a first class sanitarium.
The Scott Building.
1t was here that Lincoln used to say
that he found the most satisfactory rest
and comfort during his troubled admin
istration. The old homestead building,
known since being ref1tted as the Rob-
ert Anderson building, was the sum-
mer home of Mr.. Lincoln. Mr.. Buchan-
an also occupied it at various times
during his presidency, as also did Mr..
Hayes and Mr. Arthur, and General
Garfield had arranged to occupy it dur
ing the latter part of the season of 1881.
The various buildings are named after
our most famous generals, but the
Scott so far exceeds all the others
that it is the only one to excite the en-
thusiasm of the artist and the architect.
It is indeed a magnificent structure, i'll
the Norman Gothic style, 2511S feet
long and 1913 = feet wide, and construct
ed of white marble. Besides offices,
library and other conyeniences it has
rooms for 40 inmates The chapel is
built of redstone, and Protestant and
Catholic services are regularly main
tanned. It only remains to add in the
statistical line that most of the inmates
receive pensions, and those of the tran
sients are reserved by the managers and
paid to the family of the inmate or to
him in a lump when he leaves, while
those who have no pensions get 81 per
month each for spending money. Liq-
uOrs are of course rigidly excluded,
but tobacco is used in every way known
to man, and immense quantities of it,
should say.
An AIsatian Hero
Walking down the beautifully over
ached avenue from which the capitol is
seen through a long green vista like a
picture on a blue background, / talked
at length with many of the veterans
who sauntered that way or reposed OH
the grass, noted their varying speech
and marveled at the strange vicissitudes
which have brought SO many men from
so many lands together in this harbor
Of battered humanity. They are indeed
of many lands and speak many Ian
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