The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1897-07-22
THE STORM RISING AGAIN.

papers assailed the veterans. There was
a reason for this. There was no need OF
attacking them with words when the
Administration was prosecuting and In
juring them every hour of the day in
the most keenly hurtful way.
But with the resumption Of a policy
of liberality and justice comes promptly
the mutterings of the rising of the old
storm of villification. The same papers
are producing long. labored editorials,
Astounding in misstatements and positive
falsehoods, intended to prejudice the
public mind against veterans as class,
and any amelioration of the harsh, bitter
rule of Cleveland against pensioners.
The Philadelphia Record says:
There are thousands of men, some very
rich, who have never lost days income by
reason of anything that happened to them
IN the service, and yet they are drawing
pensions to-day No man ought TO have a
soldiers pension who does not need IT. Con-
slider the magnitude oil this pension burden I.
OF the :, rs, 304 names entered on the mill
tary rolls of our civil war, 349,944 died IN
the service and since the war. OF the sur
viv0rs 80 per cent are enrolled as pensioners.
As time goes on the balance, through in
firmities OF age, will be added to the list.
Sixteen years hence one-third of all the
surviving veterans will still be alive, as
actuaries' tables have il, although they
will average Il years of age. At this rate
it will take $4,000, 100000 TO pay our remain
ing pension contracts.
Here we having rising again the old
familiar bogy of rich men drawing pen
sions, which our enemies worked so in
dustriously years ago. They were at
one time in danger of making it appear
that the pensioners were really the cap
italists of the country, and had their
headquarters in Wall Street. This was
sad mockery Of the well-known facts
in regard to the condition of the men
and women dependent upon the Nations
justice to save them from the pangs of
actual want.
But as a matter of principle, the
amount of property that a man may
have has absolutely nothing to do with
bis right to pension. a pension is a
debt due from the Government for
services rendered and disabilities in
CURED. The financial circumstances of
the person receiving it have no more to
do with its payment than the financial
circumstances Of the bondholder or con-
tractor to whom the Government owes
money. THE NATIONAL TRIBUNE and
the Grand Army of the Republic have
always been infexibly opposed to every
attempt TO place the stigma of pauperism
upon the pensioner. A pension is a
debt, and should be paid precisely as
any other debt.
The Records figures as to the ulti-
mate cost of pensions are worthless.
They are mere assertion, without any
basis of proof
The Wilmington del. Journal has
long leading editorial headed the "Norh
of Public Plumber" which is tissue of
glazing misstatements. For example:
But we must not lose sight of the fact
that the general pension laws are most
liberal and SO is the administration of them,
and always has been.
The man who could write such a
sentence as that 50 soon after the close
Of Cleveland's Administration must
have phenomenal hardihood.
Again:
Upon the death OF the soldier pension is
granted 10 his widow and an extra allow
anee is made 10 her for each child of the
soldier under 16 years of age. After the
death of the widow pension is continued TO
the children until they are 1G years of age.
If there is 10 widow or minor child, then
pension is granted to the dead soldiers de-
pendent mother; at her death ii goes TO his
dependent father, if there be such living; if
not it goes to his dependent brother or
sister.
Read this, and think Of the sicken-
ing struggles that veterans widows have
had TO supply proof that would satisfy
Lochren that their husbands deaths
were due to disabilities received in SER
vice
Still another:
We could cite the cases by the hundreds.
but these serve TO illustrate the abuses OF
our laws.
This is an echo of Cleveland's notori-
Gus SANDER of thousands of neighbor-
hoods, which have their well-known
pension frauds" Cleveland's Admins
tration spent untold hundreds of thou
sands Of dollars trying to prove this
SANDER, and ANONYMOUSLY failed