The National tribune., 1898-01-13
ATRoCIOUs IN EVERY WAY.

because they suspect there may be few
bad men among them. Because, now
and then, phy.ician,sa lawyer, bank
cashier, or even clergyman goes astray,
the whole body of physicians, lawyers,
cashiers, and clergyhien are not traduced
and maligned. The erring individual
is pointed out, and if possible brought
to Justice. 1t would be denounced as
grossly outrageous to vituperate against
1000 of any profession or class because
it was believed that there was one rascal
among them. But merely because some
callow fedgling writing for a newspaper
suspects that among the million pen
sioners there are some who are not enti-
tied to the pittance of ST. month
because some Northern sneak, who was
too cowardly to 90 to the war, envies the
veterans the meager allowances they
earned by bitter hardship-because
some Southern rebel hates the men who
defeated him-because some bloated
money king writhes at the spectacle of
money being scattered out of his grasp
the whole body of pensioners are de-
nounced as the vilest of the earth.
This is not only atrociously false, but
it is still more wickedly unjust, unpat-
riotic, ungrateful, and antagonistic to
public policy. When the country needs
soldiers it needs them terribly. Young
men are urgently pleaded with to sacri-
flee everything and save the country.
The greatest inducement offered them is
that the country will recognize and APP
preciate their selfsacrifce, and will
honor those who survive.
Therefore, to have the press of the
country break out as it is doing now
into a tornado of defamation of such
men as these-to hold them up before the
rising generation as utterly without prin-
ciple, who only went into the army for the
pay and bounty offered, who shirked and
skulked whenever possible, and could
hardly be driven into battle, is the cruel
est injustice 1t is an unspeakable wrong
to the men who, in their youth, wrecked
themselves to save the country. 1t is
monstrous ingratitude from those who
have prOspered beyond measure on the
fruits of those mems services and sacri-
fees, and it must have frightful effect
upon the rising generation, which may
at any moment be called upon to rescue
the country from like peril. There is
small inducement for any young man
to-day to enlist to help save the country
from any peril which may threaten it,
when he sees those who did so from 1861
to 1865 held up to public scorn as they
are now Every other country in the
world finds it good public policy, if
nothing more, to hold its old soldiers in
highest honor. They are object lessons
in patriotism to the generation upon the
stage of action. The more honor that
is given them the reader will the young
men be to respond to any call that the
Nation may make upon them,
But the debased men who are carry
ing on this wicked attack upon the vet
Grams do not recognize this public duty
They are so mean and malignant that
they are eager to befoul our whole Ma
tional character, to accomplish their
nefarious purposes. The men who put
down the rebellion were the flower Of
American manhood. They were the
very best that our civilization, our in
stitutions, our homes, our churches, and
our schools could do toward developing
the highest type of brave, patriotic, de-
voted, selfsacriicing men. If the men
so produced were of the character that
these degenerate writers now proclaim to
the world they were, then the whole
scheme of American civilization is a
wretched failure, and it would be better
to hand the country back to the Indians,
whose system produced higher types Of
manhood.
Work of the Pension Office.
The report of certificates issued for the