The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-10-25
NOTRAVEL PAY ALLOWED
AN ACT OF CONGRESS RESPONSIBLE
FOR THIS CONDITION.
Senator Fairbanks and Governor
Mount Wire Washington for n
Special Order.

Camp Mount yesterday a result of the
| telegram received by Colonel May from the
secretary of war stating that no travel
money will be allowed to any soldiers except
the recruits. This means that the men of the
d-and-fifty-seventh, the One
hundred-and-fifty- and the One-hun-
dred-and-fifty-ninth regiments will be out
of pocket about $14,0O0 Colonel May sent
the telegram asking for the travel pay al
lowance Saturday night. The following is
the text of the reply: Replying to your
telegram of Oct. %, the men are entitled
by law to travel pay only to place of en-
rollment, as shown in muster-in rolls"
The cause of the difficulty which now con-
fronts the soldiers is not generally known,
and blame has been given to the wrong per-
sons. 1t is true that while the men were
actually enrolled at their home towns the
rolls say, Enrolled at Indianapolis But
the cause of this was not an oversight of
the mastering officer, but instructions
issued by the War Department. The fol-
lowing is a copy of an order received
May II:
United States Mastering Office, Indian
apolis-Secretary of war decided that in the
column on the mastering roll headed
Joined for duty and enrolled the date and
place, when and where the man Joined his
should be given. If this date and place has
not bcen stated on the rolls you should,
If practicable, make the necessary change.
If impracticable the desired information
should be set forth on separate sheet and
securely attached to roll.
III. G. CORBIN, Adjutant General
In the order it does not say that the mus
tering roll should be headed Joined 70:
duty and enrolled, at the place where he
joined his company. but where he Joined his
battalion or regiment. In each case this
was at Indianapolis. 1t is also true that
back of the order by the War Department
there was an act OF Congress passed near
April 26 Captains, mastering officers and
War Department only obeyed the instruc-
tions of Congress: Later in the season,
probably in July, there was modification
of the original order and the men were en-
rolled where they joined their companies.
Hence the One -hundred-and -sixtyfirSt Reg :
ment will receive its travel pay without
question 1t must also be remembered that
the first regiments were brought to Indian
apolis by the State and rendered to the
general government from here. On the
other hand tie recruits were rendered to
the United es service at their home
towns. Thfs>gl nishes an additional reason
why the men were enrolled at this city. The
order making the change in the place of
enrolment was general order No. rs and
reads: Pay and allowance of officers and
men commence from the date of muster
after they have been called into service by
the proclamation of the State"
There is not particle of doubt, however.
that the War Department has fully intended
that the men of every regiment shall receive
pay to their homes. The blanks show that
the place of enrolment is not regarded as
the place where the men joined their regi-
ments, but where they joined their COM
panles Only form is in the way of OBJ
tanning the travel pay to which every SOL
der is justly entitled Neither men nor
officers, therefore, are prepared to give UP
substantial sum whichzis justly theirs.
1t must be remembered that the amount
In question is not simply car fare. That,
with the reduced rates. would be compare :
lively small. But the allowance is about
cents a mile. To this is added day s
For commissioned officers the amount would
be from six to ten times this sum. The
fiftS-seventh Regimerf NAV he taken as AN an
example. Angola is .l02 miles from Indian
apolis. This would give to each private
$685. For the company 1928 is a close esti-
mate. For the entire regiment the amount
would not differ much from $1,000. These
figures take into account that about twenty
An estimate for the Northumberland fifty
eighth Regiment places the amount at
$500. The One-hundred-an d-fifty ninth
would receive about $500.
There are two. ways by which the money
can be obtained First, if the muster-in
rolls could be obtained from the authorities
at Washington the place of enrolment, as
named, could be changed The legality of
this, however, is doubtful: The second way
is to secure a special order from the War
Department. Influence has already been
brought to bear upon the general govern
ment. Governor Mount sent an urgent tele-
gram yesterday calling attention to the
had foreseen the trouble while yet in Que
bee. and had written to Washington con-
corning 1T. Yesterday he also sent a tele-
gram to the department calling attention to
immediate action. Most of the officers feel
that favorable response will be obtained.
The dates for the mastering out of the reg
iments We're slightly changed yesterday. The
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES fty-seventh will be dis
charged Nov. l. and the One-hundred and
ifty-eighth Nov. A.. The Twenty-eghth Bat
terry and the signal corps will be mustered
out tomorrow.
The papers of the battery and signal corps
will be examined to-day by Lieutenants
Robert H. Carpenter, B. d. L. Glazebrook
and G. o. Spurgeon. The details to examine
the accounts of the battalions of the One
hundred-and- fifty-seventh Regiment are as
follows First battalion. Major Aubrey l..
Huffman. Captain w Gilbert. Lieutenants
w. ii. Dennison, Jacob l.. Ochs: John G.
Noel; second battalion, Captains Joseph r..
Graves. John c. Capron. .Lieutenants H. Il.
Ferd, William w. Lankenaw, August c.
gerald, Captain B. r. Clemens, Leutenants
Collins, w. S. McLoud, p A. Thompson.
Work progressed rapidly yesterday: The
! surgeons examined IA men. The ordnance
hind in their accounts for the One-hundred-
! aTd-fifty-Seventh Regiment.