The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1897-11-11
COMMISSIONER
OF PENSIONS
Report of Operations for Year
Ended June 80. 1897.
BUREAU OF PENSIONS,

SIR have the honor to submit the fol-
| lowing report of the operations of the Bureau
of Pensions for the fiscal year ended June
80, 1897:
| There were added to the rolls during the
| year the names of so 101 new pensioners, and
there were restored to the rolls 1871 pen
| sioners who had been previously dropped, a
| total of 81 OH.
| During the same period the losses to the
roll were 81. $50 by death, ,074 by remar-
riage of widows and mothers, 1.S45 by legal
limitation (mnors), 1858 for failure to claim
pension for three years, and $3.50 for other
causes, an aggregate of Al, 1872.
The whole number of pensioners on the
rolls June 80, 1897 was 976, Ola. The net
gain over the previous year was 1886. 1t
will thus be seen that the pension-roll has
not yet begun to show any diminutiOn
though it has been anticipated by my prede
cessors in office that such would be the fact
During the year 81, 454 pension certificates
were issued, of which number 80, l01 were
original allowances and the balance were re-
issues, increases, reservations, renewals, etc
OF this number II, 81 certificates of various
classes were held in this Bureau until July !,
1897; and they consequently do not enter,
in any manner, into the tables which accom-
pany this report in so far as the information
afforded thereby has been obtained from the
records of the pension agencies.
During the same period rs, 234 claims of
various classes were disallowed. This num-
Der. however, does not include claims which
were made for higher rates of pension.
The amount disbursed for pensions by the
Pension Agents during the year WAS $780,,
799, 242. II, and the amount disbursed by
Treasury settlements was $50, AIS. % a total
of $139, $40, 71z35. This exceeds the amount
disbursed during the fiscal year 1896 by the
sum Of Sl.5S4, 1918. If the Ia, 81 certifi-
Gates which, as before stated, were held in
this Bureau until July !, 1897, had been
mailed to the Pension Agents during the fiscal
year, they would have required first pay
ments amounting to s., 191, 694.63 besides
the additional annual value, which would
also have been charge upon the appropria-
ton Said amount, added to the amount
actually disbursed, makes an aggregate of
$14l, 800, 936.75 The appropriation for the
payment of pensions for the fiscal year 1897
was only $4,000, 900.
The average annual value of each pension
at the close of the year was Sl33. II. The
average annual value of each pension under
the general law was 1852 Oh, while the aver
age annual value of each pension under the
act of June u, 1890, was $10925 The az
gregate annual value of all pensions at the
close of the year was 1929, 795, 42S. This
amount of course, excludes the annual value
of the cases which were held in this Bureau
until July / , 1897
During the year "A original and duplicate
bounty land claims were admitted, and 14J
original claims of this character were re-
jected.
PENSION AGENCIES.
On Feb. 6, 1897, an Executive order was
issued reducing by consolidation the number
of pension agencies from Is to 8, from and
after Sept. /, 1897. This order provides
that the agencies at Augusta and Concord
shall be consolidated with the agency
at Boston; the agency at Buffalo with the
New York City agency; the agency at Pitts
burg with the agency at Philadelphia; the
agencies at Knoxville and Louisville with
the agency at Washington the agency at
Detroit with the agency at Indianapolis; the
agency at Milwaukee with the agency at
Chicago, and that the agency at Topeka,
Kan, be removed to st. Louis, Mo-, and the
agency at Des Mones, Iowa, be consolidated
with the agency at st. Louis.
The Executive order was based, first, upon
a contemplated plan for saving to the Gov
eminent about 100000 per annum, and,
gress approved March %, 1896 abolishing
personal payments and requiring all pen
sioners to be paid by mail also that the
effect of this legislation has been to greatly
lessen the labor of pension agencies and
facilitate the payment of pensions; that the
successful operation of the law has now been
thoroughly demonstrated, and that under its
PROVISIONS and IN consequence thereof the
number OF pension agencies can be materially
reduced without any inconvenience whatever
to the pensioners.
After careful investigation, found that
the agencies proposed to be thus abolished
were the least expensive as to clerk hire and
other expenses; i'll other words it was pro-
posed to abolish the agencies that were the
more cheaply managed and transfer them to
the agencies where rents were high and clerk
hire much higher than at the points they pro-
posed to abolish | was confident there
would be considerable increase in the cost
OF the agencies "a proposed to be Consolidated
The increased cost in clerk hire would more
than offset the saving of the salaries of the
nine Pension Agents. 1t would have cost
probably $500 900 to consolidate the agency
records and make the necessary transfers of
the agencies for which there is no apprOpri-
alton available. l accordingly recommended
the suspension of the Executive order in ques-
ton.
/ am still of the opinion that the reduction
and consolidation of the pension agencies,
at this time is not only unnecessary, but in
expedient that the disruption of business in
the pension agencies, the business for the In
terror Department, and the general inconven-
fence of the service would more than offset the
anticipated saving to the Government
therefore recommend that the Executive
order Of July ii, 1897, suspending the opera
ton of the order of Feb. 6, 1897, consolidating
pension agencies, be continued indefinitely.
RENTS AT PENSION AGENCIES.
The rents per annum paid at pension
agencies during the fiscal year 1897 were as
follows:
Buffalo, N Y. s. 92S
Delfoil, Mlch.... Az
Indianapolis, ina. 2,501
milwaukee,, w Is =, ~
New York, n. Observation-Disclosures. lOGO0
San francisco Gal. 1872
Topeka, IL 1850
Washington, ID. C......... 1850
Very shortly after ! assumed charge of the
Bureau my attention was attracted to the
amounts being thus paid for rents, and, in
the belief that in n number of cases they were |
excessive, | instituted careful inquiry at all |
of the points named, with view to ascer-
tanning whether equally desirable quarters |
I l.. IL. A.