The daily morning journal and courier., 1898-08-16
"Rspnbllean Imreriallsn.o

We are fallen on strange times when we begin to tell about an empire and 0 republic in the same breath.
 Granting, however that this republic is the greatest nation on earth can 1t govern the earth? That question is one of resources, and their proper ap- plication. We say that the United States is the least adapted of all na- tions to extend it's government over other countries. We are too extended already. Take an illustration. We boast--falsely-th we are free from the excessive military burdens of Eu- ropean countries. Does it astonish you when l call your attention to the fact that the United States spends more money on it's military establishment than any other nation, in the world? Our pension list costs annually $150,0O0,- O0O, twenty three millions more than the annual military expenditures of the German empire. Adding to our pen- sions the money spent upon the army and navy, l think it will be found that
 war costs us annually more than it's cost to any other nation.
 Commissioner Evans reports one mil- lion of pensions and six hundred and forty-siX thousand unadjusted claims for pensions. Notwithstanding the de-
 crease of old pensions by the death of veterans and widows, and the coming of age of children, new pensions grant
 ed in the first year of McKinley's ad- ministration exceed old ones expiring
 by sixty-two thousand
 Now everybody admits that there is
 something absolutely wrong about this pension business. There are not one
 million of persons who have any just
 claim on the rest of us at this distance
 of thirty three years from the close of
 the civil war, for pecuniary assistance
 to relieve suffering resulting from the
 sickness or death of the soldier caused by the casualties of the civil war.
 There are not six hundred and forty-six thousand other persons having just claims on the rest of us for similar pen sions.
 What is the remedy for this evil? | Commissioner Evans has made two | suggestions. CD Deprive the old veter an of the power of new marriage to | confer a pension on the widow, and | upon the minor children of such new | marriage. (2) Find out if the pension | checks especially those which go abroad, are really received by persons
 entitled thereto. Nobody pays any at ! tention to these suggestions, though | they are extremely reasonable.
 Sometime since suggestions were | made that the pension office insert in | the local newspapers full lists of the pensioners, in their several localities. l These suggestions were sensible but 1 ''at once there rose so wild yell" It l was said: Q) If this should result in l scandalous exposures of frauds com | mitted upon the United States or in | scandalous exposures of the absurdities of the pension laws, in their application 1 to individual cases, it would bring the l United States into disrepute among the | nations of the earth. Queer notion, is
 it not? (2) That it was indelicate and | ungenerous for the great United States
 to permit the names of these pensioners l to be known--or to give to the public
 an effective method of getting at the l truth concerning theerighteousness of l these enormous disbursements. If there | were no suspicious about these pensions | the case would be different, but when l 1t is said that there are a million actual pensioners and six hundred and forty- | six thousand of wouid-be pensioners.
 the question of delicate generosity has no place. (0 That the pension office | does not keep an account of the pen- sions by place, but with it's thousands of l clerks that office could easily as it | sends out the pension checks, classify
 the pensioners according to their claim
 ed residences.
 l Bismarck said that "a republic is | government by the nursery" Certain | ly our government is carried on by our
 politicians or political nurses, and by | the respectable and yellow journals
 the nurses generally following on after | the journals have led the way.
 Publicity is the great safeguard against fraud or it's kin, in this coun- | try. Suppose there was furnished to | the public a list of all the pensions In | the city or county of New Haven. | think the local journals would publish | the list. I believe the active reporter
 would find out the truth about the | names on the list. We would know
 whether this list is right or wrong. If | right we should acquiesce, only asking
 that the nation should adopt Quaker
 ism in it's constitution. If wrong, the remedy would be at once applied. \ Only by publicity will this pension | wrong ever be put down. No politician dare touch it. One million of pension
 CTS represent or control one million of l votes Will the journals, respectable or
 yellow or both, take up the matter and l advocate the publishing the names of
 the pensioners in locality lists? If they
 will do so they will confer a greater
 blessing upon the United States than
 when they brought on the war with Spain.
 Also just think that if it had not been for this enormous pension expenditure
 we would have had smokeless powder,
 good rifles for all soldiers. and the greatest navy on earth and if we are to keep on with this pension expenditure,
 we cannot keep up a great army and navy, or become an imperial repub- lic." J.
 ARMY OF THE POTOMAC REUNION l rn,1nior of tl7a krro1v pf tho p0.