The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-02-16
A SOLDIERS VIEWS
On Recent Action by Certain Posts of
the Grand Army in Indiana.

To the Editor of the Indianapolis Journal:
In looking over your paper yesterday see
that Massachusetts has fallen into line with
Indiana on one subject / really supposed
the State Of Indiana had q corner on tine
business of bringing into disrepute the
Union soldier and his pension. A Grand
Army post in Massachusetts terms the an
nual meetings of the departments of the
G. A r. the House Of Lords from the
fact that all past commanders of posts
delegates to these meetings under the law
of tho G. a. r., and calls on the coming
national meeting at Cincinnati TO abolish
the House of Lords" adding that the past
commanders are usurpers, etc. venture to
say that not half of the past commanders
attend the department meetings in the va
rious States.
L notice that not long since a post in In
diana passed a resolution asking the gov
eminent to pay all surviving soldiers of the
late war their pension in full at once, based
on their few years of existence. A petition
was circulated to that effect, hoping it
would become contagious. Thank the Lord!
it died a-bQrnin'.
to pay each surviving soldier 81 a day dur
ing his life. Do these comrades want to
bankrupt our Nation? If so, they are on the
right track. We must provide for coast de-
lenses, which will require $10OOW,OO0 to
place our growing navy on q proper footing,
$l0o 600 900 more. We need IS 600 each
year for our militia or national guard, who
now get only 100000 for the various States;
they are the life and safeguard of this coun-
try in case of war, which is liable to come
any day. Then there is our naval militia
for manning our forts on 5000 miles OF coast
line. the lakes, etc. To-day we are depend
ent on other nations for smokeless powder,
and must have plants here to produce 1t. We
need a government plant for manufacture
ing armor plate for our of war. -Four
and they would be completed to-day but for
lack of this. We are dependent on three
private plants, which want $500 per ton for
the armor, when $3.50 per ton will afford a
large profit. Our army in all its branches
needs 5000 men to-day These views are
5000 is not police force even for this
great and growing Nation. We need a fleet
of fifty torpedo boats We can't afford to tie
behind other nations in system and organ
ization When all this is done we have not
point on the Pacific where we can, in case
of war, coal our navy and merchant marine.
This means the Sandwich islands: they
must be ours, and quick, we will lose
the prize, the great entree on the Pacific.
| This will require cash. So you see, COM
rades, we should be just before we are gen.
erous, and SO generous to ourselves, you
know, regardless of all these vast interests
we fought so hard for four years and hope
to hand down intact-yes, improved, not
torn down. That nation of butchers SPAIN
is d menace to our prosperity and anxious
to pillage and burn commerce. or
course, we will, in case of war, learn her
with Spain. will cost US many millions if we
are not ready for business. She has acted
the bully, butcher and braggart long
enough. Look at that Spanish minister just
leaving our shores for maligning our Pres
ident Cabinet and people. He should be
given ninety minutes TO quit and fired OUT
promptly. He has for three years placed
spies among our people, and on his report
we have suffered Il nation at an expense
his so-called filibusters. 1t is evident he will
carry away full details of coast de-
lenses, navy and navy yards for future use,
and yet some of our comrades are about to
impOverish the government if their plans
We're carried out We can't afford 1t.
Another point: A G.. A. II. post in Indiana
this week passed a resolution calling on
President Mckinley to turn out of office as
commissioner Of pensions the Hon. II Clay
Evans and compared him to his predeces-
sor, Lochren, the man who set up nights TO
traduce and impoverish the old soldier. This
is another deadfall for the soldier and his
pension 1t affords our enemies nucleus to
build on against us Can We afford II. L
we all have but we cannot a11ord TO tie
his hands or slap President Mckinley thus.
His holding back increases for one year
from the time of last action, in order TO
push to the front a host of original claims
of men. who in their poverty never have re-
ceved a pension, is. think, good judgment
on his part Let us help him instead of ma
ligning him. There are about 100000 old
claims which he is pushing 10 the front.
scatter So for motto is the greatest
good for the greatest number" Our shad-
OWS are ienSlneliilS, we nave Dul q lew
short wears here to enjoy the fruition of our
hopes and years of exposure and hardship.
Ten years will put an end to regimental re-
unions, and there will remain only brigades
divisions or corps, and those will be few and
far between. Then we will be glad to touch
elbows, waiting for that weird visitor
death-who is now knocking. In the lam
guage of "a great general Many of the ris-
ing generation seem anxious to shake as
and think in the way in their as
pirations for Office" little thinking we made
1t possible for them 10 enjoy this govern
ment and the results of our toll and hard
Ship on the march, battle and skirmish.
n N. BOYDSTGN.
Warsaw, Ind. Feb IA.