The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1897-12-02
PENSIONS AN IMMENSE PUBLIC ZEN
EFT.


One feature of large pension payments
has never been sufficiently dwelt upon
to arouse public attention to its great
Importance.
"The burden of pensions " is con-
stantly kept before the public by shallow
and unthinking writers, or by those who
have sinister motives for opposing justice
to the soldiers The superfciality of
the one and the animus of the other
are shown by the fact that they never
in any way allude to the other side of
the question, nor make the least effort
to consider whether there may not be
conversations for this expenditure.
This is remarkable when it is remem-
/Dered that it is the only great public
question which is treated in this one
sided manner.
That other side of the question is the
enormous benefit to the country at large
from the periodical distribution of large
sums Of money to every part Of the
Nation.
Were s140,000000 a year equitably
distributed throughout the country by
any other means than the Pension Bu-
reau, writers of economical and statisti-
cal turn of mind could not say too much
in praise of the benefits the public at
large would receive from the trans
action.
For example, Kansas in 1894 had
wheat crop of 35,315,259 bushels, and
the farmers received S15,538,714 for if.
The papers dilated on just how much
good this amount of money would do
the whole country, by going into the
hands of the farmers, who would i'm
mediately expend it for the necessaries
Of life, and so help set the wheels Of
trade everywhere in motion. Yet every
year the Pension Agency at Topeka,
Kan, pays out S15,06S,827, which goes
as directly into the pockets of the people
Of that section, and is Immediately ex-
pended by them for their necessaries.
The great fact that cannot be made
too much Of is that the whole use and
value of money lie in its free circulation.
Money locked up in vaults or stagnated
in banks is of no more Use than coal in
the mine or stone in the quarry. 1t
must be brought out and set to passing
from hand to hand to be Of use to the
country. One SO bill that passes from
one pocket to another several times in
the course of every day is of much more
good to the community than a thousand
stored away for years in safety-deposit
box.
The tendency of money always is to
stagnate in the hands of few who have
passion for boarding. They grab
everything that comes within reach with
eagerness and part with it with reluct.
ance. Bankers are pre-eminently of this
class Their whole bent of mind is to.
ward getting as much money as possible
in their hands, and parting with as little
of it as they can help. They strengthen
their natural tendencies in this direction
by rigorous education in all the ways and
methods Of accomplishing these ends
They look at every dollar in the country
with avaricious longing to get hold of it
and retain it in their grasp. That is The
one great reason why the money power
is so solidly opposed to pensions. Pen
sions keep s140,000,000 a year of tn,
peoples money constantly moving anon.
the people, absolutely out of reach anc
, control of the money power. Were
| not for the pension expenditures $40,
100000 of the money which the Gov
ernment every year collects from th
distillers, the brewers, the tobacco manu-
facturers, the makers of bogus butte,
the importers of Injuries and Of article
that injuriously compete with the PROD
ucts Of our farms and factories would
applied in some way that the none
. power could control 1t would add Il