The Topeka state journal., 1897-03-27
FIGHT FOR PENSION OFFICE
Charlie Curtis Convincing Letter Ad-
dressed to Secretary Bliss.

Washington, March 27-Representa-
tive Curtis of Kansas has addressed
letter to the secretary of the interior
presenting strong arguments why the
Topeka pension agency should not be
remov ed to ST. Louis. He shows con-
clusively that the government will be
money out by making the removal, and
expresses the hope that Secre etary Bliss
viii revoke the order of his predeces-
sor. He says:
THE first claim is that some s105,-
675-37 will be saved in clerk hire, but
this cannot be possible. 1T will take
just as many clerks to pay the pen
sioners now on the rolls at the Topeka
agency, after the rolls are taken to St
Louis, it does now. The truth is,
instead of saving $105, ,675.37 in clerkhire,
it will cost the government at least
SIT, ,O30 extra for the rewriting of the
different agent roll books, made neces-
sary by the consolidation. That is, all
of the $4,000 names of pensioners (ex-
cept the 104 600 on the rolls of the Col
urnbus agency and the %, 900 on the
rolls of the San Francisco agency
must be rewritten and compared. This
would cost the government at least
$117 ,020, and then the pension rolls in
the office of the auditor for the interior
department of the United States treas
ury must be rewritten and compared,
which will cost at least $3.50, 900, making
a total of 1927, ,030.
pense which seems to have been over
looked if these agencies are consoli-
dated. At the various agencies, save
Columbus and San Francisco, there are
843. 600 pensioners, who are paid four
times a year, making 3,372, 900 payments
in the aggregate per year. A record
of all such payments by checks, which
have been made during the past TWEEN
ty-five years, is still on file in the vari-
Gus agencies, in the shape of duplicate
receipts. check stubs and orders of pen
sion bureau to inScribe the names of
pensioners on the rolls of the agencies,
amounting in the aggregate to many
millions of documents. All of these
papers must be taken from the musty
tiles, packed in proper order and trans
ferred to their new destination, there
to be unpacked and refiled. The same
is true of blank vouchers and envelopes.
The expense of transporting roll books.
old files, agency supplies, old furniture
and the purchase of new furniture and
346 new roll books will cost not less
than $50, 600.
''They promise to save 1850 in rent. 1
do not believe there is room in the
public building a st. Louis to accom-
modate the business of the Des Moines
and Topeka agencies, and more room
would be needed. The government pays
SO, 900 a year rent for the New York
agency To consolidate Buffalo would
necessitate the renting Of additional
rooms in New York. To take the Knox
vile and Louisville agencies out of
the public buildings and consolidate
them with the Washington agency,
which is now in a rented building,
would require more than double the
amount of room now occupied. I sub
nit that the additional rent for build
savings in rentals at Buffalo, Detroit.
would more than offset the promised
savings in rentals a t uffalO, Detroit,
Milwaukee and Topeka.
But, instead Of saving $161. .407.99, as
is promised in the order, you will find,
upon careful computation, that there is
an extra expense of over 1851, 600. If
yon deduct $4,000 salaries of
the nine pension agents, you
will have net expense OF
over 1921, 900 if you carry out the order.
1t would be a great injustice to the
old soldiers of the country TO carry out
this order for it would cause delay in
sending out their checks and there will
be no end of complaint.
There is another thing which I hope
you will not overlook, and that is that
there is not dollar appropriated
which can properly be used to carry out
this order.
There are other reasons why the To-
peka, Kan, agency should not be re-
moved. First, it is, taking all things
into consideration, centrally located,
and the pensioners are better accom-
modated by the office being located at
Topeka than they could be from the
office being located al St. Louis Sec
ond Kansas is the great soldier state
of the Union. She furnished more men
to defend the flag from 1861 to 1865, ac-
cording to her population, than any
other state, and she ranks seventh in
lot