The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1898-09-10
PENSIONS COST An
ENORMOUS SUA
Annual Report Of Pension Commits.
sioner Evans an Interesting
Document.
The PENSIONERS WILL INCREASE
Evans Says There Is a Lack Of
System in the Depart
ment.
NO UNIFORMITY in RATINGS
Cnuses Much Compinint Among tho
Pensioners, aud the Commits
o UNIFORMITY in RATINGS
Causes Much Complaint Among TIL,
Pensioners, and Ia Commits
stoncr Thinks Very
Justly.

report of Hon. IL. Clay Evans, COM
missioner of pensions, was made pub
lie Saturday.
The commissioner says that the roll
is not only increasing in numbers, but
in value. 1t is believed that it will in
crease from the war of the rebellion,
as there probably are 100000 eS-union
soldiers living who have never had
pensions and it will increase in
amount naturally by reason of in
creased disabilities us provided by
law.
The amounts paid out at the several
agencies for the year OH account of
pensions under the general laws We're
S75,273,3S3, and on account of pensions
under the act of June 27,1s90, SCI $685.
go. The number of pensioners in for
eign countries at the close of the fiscal
year was 1871, having increased 800.
The total amount paid to pensioners
living abroad was 1868, S6a.
Commissioner Evans says there is a
lack of system i'll Ii XEstablished prac-
ice Of this department in securing the
necessary sariginnl and CONTINUED
identification oIstle D~ensioner with
the service, as there Ia also in securing
notices of death, acknowledgement nee.
essary information for dranp;np
from other causeE. pensioners Iiviispl
III foreign countries. AS the hureaushasf
no supervision or criminaljurisdiction'
over such pensioners.
There We're y isurvivorsand oil
widows of the Indian wars and 40 sur
ylvors and SOP widows of the Mexican
war pensioned during the year. There
are surviving five widows and seven
daughters of the American revolution.
One, survivor dead; payable to his
widoW and seven widows of the war
of 1873 We're pensioned during the
year ust closed.
Pension Clui.ns. *
Pension claims pending June 30,
1898, numbered 635,059. The commits
sioner is confident that there ere not
over $4,000 ofthese (invalids and wild
ows) that are genuine original claims.
The others are cases where the claim
ants are already pensioned.
The special examination division
has done good work during the year,
having ~endeavored to do justice to all
claimants, and many just claims have
been admitted that would otherwise
have been rejected.
There is much complaint among
pensioners, says the commissioners
and very inst cause for such by reason
of the lack of uniformity OF ratings
for the same or like disabilities of the
different claimants. This complaint
has always existed and always will,
with Gun present system, and estab-
lished practice, he declares, and it
cannot be remedied without radical
change Of system.
"The practice requires" says the re-
port, that medical examiners shall
make n diagnosis and complete and
accurate pen picture of the disability
or disabilities of the claimant. They
are paid a small percentage for each
examination and detailed report, and
such examination is very often. no
doubt, hurried and superficial. There
fore many test examinations are
made AS an illustration it is stated
the bureau recently found it neces-
sary to cause a test examination to be
made of a pensioner. He was sem be-
fore four medical boards, three mem
bers each, all present. All of these
boards were in the classified service.
Each examined the pensioner under
the same instructions. Each board
made a careful examination and re-
ported the results of their investiga-
tons with the usual care, describing
the pensioners disabilities from their
standpoint. Each board found unani-
mously; no minority report. The re-
suits, summed up briefly, We're: One
board could find no ratable disability;
another found a ratable disability and
estimated it at Sc per month; another
board found disability, carefully de-
scribed, and rated it at SIT per month,
while the other board made equally
as careful examination and estimated
the claimants disabilities as third
grade, $2A per month. Same man,
same conditions, same Instructions
and all within forty-eight hours
These physicians are each and all. ]
am informed, skilled in their practice
in every way reputable practitioners