The National tribune., 1898-01-13
PENSION POINTERS.
Inquiries Answered and Sug-
~ gestions Made.

| tAll communications for this column should
| tc accompanied by the true name and correct
address of tho inquirer. The reply. however,
| viii be marked as may he desired. No attention.
iriu be gfrcn to anonymous inquiries. IL no re-
! ply is printed within three weeks. write again
H. W., ,.Winkle GA fraudulent" pen
sion would lie one granted to someone
! having no lawful title thereto as when a
! person obtained a pension by impersonating
someone else, or By perlured or forged
| testimony. Another form of fraud would
/ he the concealment OF matters which, II
| known to the Pension Bureau, would de-
| feat the claim. A mistake of fact in the
| allowance of Il pension would arise when
! it was apparent from the papers in the
case that the claimant was not entitled;
as when the War Department records
! showed clearly that claimant for pen
sion did not serve so days. and yet, by
mistake, the claim was allowed.
Subscriber, MiddlctOwn, Md.-1n the pen
sion appropriation act dated July Is, 1879,
is the following: provided, That the re-
| port of such Examining Surgeons, when
filed in the Pension Office, shall be open
! TO the examination and inspection OF the
claimant or his attorney, under such
reasonable rules and regulations as the
Secretary of the Inter or may provide.
A. H., EIlcnvil!e, N. Your statement
of your case is not sufficiently complete to
permit Oh lnteluEcnC auVlCe.
o. Nc, Auburn, n. Y.-lt is held that the
'Open and notorious adulterous cohabita-
ton" of a widow-pensiOner terminates her
pension from the commencement OF Such
COhabitatiOn, irrespective of subsequent
reform, unless such reformation occurred
, before Aug. Z, 1882.
A. NJ, Richmond, Ind.-After the pas
sage of a special pension act by both
Houses OF Congress, a formal application
for pension must be filed in the Pension
Bureau if none has been previously filed.
! The power of attorney embodied IN the APP
plication will carry fee to the attorney OF
! record.
NJ. X c.. Marshall. Mich.-A widow
| would be entitled to pension under the gen
eral law, without regard to date OF marriage
to the soldier, if his death can be shown to
| be due to the service. If .his death can
not be shown to he due to the service, she
would be entitled under the act Of June27,
| 1890 if pensiOnably dependent" and if
married before June 27, 1890, the rate under
| the general law, if the widow was married
| before March 10, 1886, is Sl2 per month.
! The rate under the act OF 1880 is So per
month
j.. r., Cross Fork, Pa-Thc legal wife of
a soldier at the time Of his death is pen
! Sionable as his widow, without regard 10
! ther having been separated and without
regard 10 their differences. The other
! questions you ask relate to matters upon
! WHICH tfilS cO!umn cannot uIloeItdhe W
/ give advice.
| p H. W., Fremont, Neb.-An enlisted
man was, in general, entitled to cOmmuta-
! ton of ratiOns for the entire EeriOd he was
properly absent under Il furlough. The
original furIOugh is usually required in col :
| lecting such claim. Apply to the Com
missary General of Subsistence, u S. A,
Washington, ID. c.
Subscriber, National Military Home,
Ind.-It is impracticable to give the infor-
nation you request The official number
of n pension claim in the Pension Bureau
has nothing to do with determining when
it's turn will come.
G. z. K, Leesbu O.-WI,at you have
! reference to occurs in the act of March 3,
1865, as follows "Sec. II. And be it
further enacted, That the bounty of 500
provided by present laws to be paid TO the
heirs of volunteers killed in battle, shall
be extended to the widow, if living, or if
she be dead, to the children, Of any vol:ln-
teer who shall have been or may be killed
in the service, whether he shall have
enlisted for two years Or for less periodiGf
time" The widows and children Of Regu-
lars, drafted men and substitutes do not
come within this provision. . Killed is
construed as died.
G. S. NJ, Axtell, Kans.-A substitute is
regarded as . volunteer under the pen
sion laws, but not under the bounty laws.
| If Il substitute becomes entitled to pen
person in whose place he entered the ser
vice.
j. w. b., Smithville, GA widow draw
ing pension on account of second hus-
band is at liberty to apply for and obtain
pension on account of her first husband up
TO the date Of her remarrage, but she can
only 90 this ii the first husbands death
can be shown to be due to The service.
| Her not being entitled to pension on
account OF her secOni husband does not
affect her title on account OF the first. one
| way or the other. She cannot in any event
draw on account CT her first husband for
any period subsequent to the date OF her
| marriage to the second husband Claims
i for invalid pension under the act of June
p, 1870, are frequently rejected on the
| ground OF no reasonable degree of dis
ability, notwithstanding that the medical
| examination was apparently favorable; but
| this rs not so common as 1t was under the
! last Administration. Tire ed tor Of this
column has recently examined case in
! which the claimant, under act of 1899 is
rated 2e-l8 on his medical examination;
yet his claim is rejected, and the rejection
| sustained on appeal, on the ground that
the claimant is not ratabiy disabled under
the act of 1890. AS rule, evidence other
than the report of the medical examination
! is not considered OF any weight in deter
mining the question of Iatable disability
under the act of 1880.
L. ". ltduSely, Suo.-I ne ACT OF Aug.
%, 1891, provides: That hereaf er, in
addition to the officers now authorized to
administer Oaths in such cases. fourth
class postmaSte:s of the United States are
hereby required, empowered, and author
lied TO administer any and all Oaths re-
quired to be made 10y pensioners and tn cir
Witnesses in the execution of their
vouchers with like effect and force as
officers having seal; and such post
master shall af1ix the stamp of his office
to his signature to such vouchers, and he
is authorized TO charge and receive for each
voucher not exceeding IS cents. to he paid
by the Tensioner."
ID. G. H., Corpus Christi, Texan officer
is entitled to- the total rate" of his rank
under the general pension law only in case
, he is regarded as totally" disabled by the
dsa bilities covered by his pension certifi-
cate; SiS disability should entitle soldier
pensioned as Captain under the general
law to the total rate of $50.
G.. \. w, Elmira, n. "a great many
claims for increase OF pension have beer
filed in the Pension Bureau during the pas
J year, and The delay in issuing orders fol
| medical examination in such claims is
probably chargcable to that fact. The
Commissioner Of Pensions has issued an
order that claims for increase will not be
cons idcred within one year after "a previous
adjudication, whether allowance or reec
/ ton.
J. +. T., Bangor, Me.-The New England
Senator whom you quote probably did mo-
realize or did not know that if widow were
barred from pension il not married TO the sol
I Iafp 70 L.