The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1894-03-26
THE BARS LET DOWN
Passage of a Bill of Great In
pOrtance to HOOsiers.
Washington HislOp, of the Indiana
Legion, Granted the Privilege of
Applying for a Pension.
Special to the indianapolis Journal.

Special to the indianapolis Journal.
WASHINGTON, March 25.-At last Con-
gress. or at least one branch Of II, has
given members of the Indiana Legion who
enlisted for service In resisting the Nor
gan raid recognition which will enable
them to apply for pensions. Last Monday
mornings Journal had a Washington
special reviewing the debates in the House
at the pension session a couple Of nights
previous upon the bill to pension Washing
ton Hislop. of the Marengo Light Guards,
a citizen of Dubois county, who was in
jured by a gunshot wound in the head in a
clash between the forces near Salem in
July. 1863. in which the services OF the
HOLSTERS who enlisted to resist Morgan
were fully reviewed from a pensionable
point of view At the pension session of
the House night before last this case was
taken up again, considered and the bill
finally passed.
The Hislop bill simply recognizes the
services of the Hoosiers who enlisted to
resist Morgan's raid as services for the
Union, and those who enlisted and were
actually injured in the service as being
entitled to pensions provided they can
prove their pensionable disability derived
from the service when they make their ap-
plication to the Commissioner of Pensions.
The Hislop bill does not in it's amended
form peremptorily direct the Secretary of
the Interior to place Hislop on the pension
rolls. but it gives him the privilege Of MAX
ing application for a pension, and then If
he proves pensionable disabilities which
grew out of the service he is to receive a
pension ''at rate proportionate to the de-
gree of disability" etc. He must first rove
his disability the same as any other SOL
der. Most of the pension bills passed by
Congress for individuals directs the Secre-
tary of the Interior to place the name upon
the pension rolls subject to the laws which
fix pensions for given disabilities. They re-
quire no proof of disability This one first
requires the applicant to prove disability
incurred in the service. This phraseology
and point is important. 1t does not recog-
nize all of the men who served In the In
diana Legion and the militia companies
which were a part of 1t as being entitled TO
pensions simply because they are paupers
or are suffering penslonable disabilities
such as are recognized by the act Of June,
1880. 1t treats each individual upon the
merits of the case he presents.
But the precedent established in the
House In passing this bill is important to
many thousands of persons in Indiana 1t
pensions. 1t is direct recognition of those
who were not enlisted in the federal ser
vice, but enlisted TO bear if they actually
did not bear, arms in defense of at least a
section OF their country. When a man en-
listed in the federal service and was regu-
larly mustered in and mustered out provid-
ed the day of muster in was sixty days
apart from his muster out, he became en-
titled to the general emoluments which the
federal government has promised TO give
her soldiers and sailors in the late war.
Under the Hislop bill, which will undoubt-
edly pass the Senate, now that IL has
passed the House, because the upper is
more liberal than the lower branch OF Con-
gresS in passing pension bills, there is rea~
son for other members of the Indiana Lee
gion to hope for pensions.
During the discussion of the Hislop bill
the assertion was made by members from
the South that there was law in exist
ence covering the cases Of those who rem
dered service similar TO the members of the
Indiana Legion, and the proposition created
considerable dispute, the members Of the
Indiana delegation contending that the stat
ute was limited and expired. Finally the
Revised Statutes were examined, and the
following provision was found in it:
ANY person not an enlisted soldier In the
army, serving for the time being as a mem
Der of the militia of any State, under orders
of an officer of the United States. who
volunteered for the time being to serve
with any regularly organized military or
naval force of the United States or who
otherwise volunteered and rendered service
in any engagement with rebels or Indians,
disabled in consequence of wounds or in
jury received in the line of duty in such
temporary service. But no claim of a State
militiaman or nonenlisted person on &C
count of disability from wounds or injury
received in battle with rebels or Indians,
while temporarily rendering services, shall
be valid unless prosecuted To a successful
issue prior to the 4th day Of July, 1877"
The above would in its last clause un-
doubtedly cover the cases of the men in
the Indiana Legion were ii not for the fact
that it expired July 4, 1874. The statute,
ii was found, only ran year. and was
intended TO assist If not reward, those who
had rendered faithful service in the de-
Tense of their loyal States and received
pensionable disabilities which were not pro-
vided for by the then existing pension
laws. There is no doubt that had the fact
been known that the above statute had eX-
pired when the act of June, $780, was passed
il would have been revived. The above
law was signed by the President March
8. 1873. and so it is seen that its life was
exactly year.
The adoption by the House of the Wash
ingtOn Hislop bill is valuable TO the men
who served in the Indiana Legion princi-
Dnllv rs q precedent. Specifically, il only