The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-09-18
NEW YORK, SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER IS,
SOUTHERN PENSIONS 4 BURDEN.
Mississippi to Cut Down the Number Of
State Aid Reclplenta,

" Nut AuNh NNt NuDNu9 Oh
State Aid Recipients.
New ORLEANS. Sept. 1.-THE State OF Mis-
sissippi will strike one-third OF the Confcd-
crate veterans from its pension rolls this
year. being unable to pay all Of thom. Other
Southern States have had to do the same, for
the Confederate pension is each year bocom-
Ing more burdensome and intolerable to these
States, as the, Confederate veterans get older
and more OF them become dependent on pri-
vate charity or State aid.
The manner In which State aid or pensions
arc distributed In the South is entirely differ
ent from the pension system Of the Federal
Government. Tho first concession made to
the veterans was to furnish artificial arms
and legs to all crippled Confederates. After a
while. when that donation proved insufficient,
several OF the States established Confederate
homes or camps. where the Veterans who. be-
cause OF their condition. were unable to help
themselves. could be cared for.
Finding this insufficient. as some OF the
veterans had families which they could not
leave, North Carolina set the example Of Civ
ing pensions. Being unable to establish. as
the Federal Government had done. q pension
bureau which would conduct q careful exam
ination into the applications, and fix the PEN
sion In each case. the plan was adopted OF
appropriating a gross sum for pensions-as
much as the State finances could afford for
this purpose. which sum was divided pro rata
among all those Confederate veterans asking
assistance. whose applications were counter
signed by their former commanders or by the
u. c. V. UNITED Confederate Veterans: camps
to which they belonged. These camps were
thus made to do the work Of the Government in
determining whether the applicant was In good
standing and had been honorably discharged
fr3 m the Soppfeierats service.
has had a tRnOenCV to encourage aDDliCatiOna.
and, the number of pensions has Increased SO
rapidly and the per. capita received by each APP
plicant has SO shrunk that the pension Of late
has been Of little assistance to those who re-
ceiyed it. Mississippi. for instance. gives $751;
year the appropriation was, divided among
4.342 ~veterans-a small number as compared
giving each veteran only $17.27 for the year.
This assistance less than a dollar and a half q
WHAT was ass worse W5 Set he u mount oT is steadily; de.
Hf sess 8 E,, as the number Of az, applicants nSaInsrgE grows rSys
T Veterans epSreSS would VI if have eef reeeiSed s SIS S' this year
-alittle over a dollar a m~onth-and $11.U5 next
practical assistance to the men who really need
aid-the, INDECENT veterans-and they are be-
ing gradually starved to death by the enroll
money Is merely. a bonus
The necessity for some reform In this abuse
State Of Mississippi. who has charge Of the dis
tribution Of the Confederate pensions, set to
several counties were notified and urged to
cut down their pension, rolls by leaving on it
striking Of the abie-bodied and those who;
could not present the best papers proving their
in good part and acted on. The county PEN
sion rolls are cGGming into the Auditor lust
reduction in the number of Confederate vet
year. Instead Of there being 5.210 pensioners
have been at the rate the roll has been grow
ing for some time past. there vii be- only
not very much. but still more than he has been
getting Ttthsgr . 10r0s so me , time and d ~ # hoped 9ps dt to stu III
t these1 to whom the the per ID is ABB Absolutely nece s.
sary for their support, The state appropria-
ton will then be sufficient to give them q liv-
The State Of Louisiana by a new c%onstitu-
tion assures 50 u month as the maximum PEN
sion OF a Confederate veteran, but he must be
In INDECENT circumstances and unable to earn
State. for five years. and there are other con-
ditions which render 1t certain that the num-
Very, large. Louisiana formerly provided arti--
fetal legs and arms for crippled Confederates.
B bss this Gsn gFfHisyissitSn has Un Rfsn SSTis ssisSippi, II bd 5Re
ever. Louisiana has created u Board of Pen
sion Commissioners which have only lust been
| Oct. L. All pension claims have to be sub.
mitted to this body and to be examined care
900 a year for pensions: and although the
board has not yet got to work there are LOO
claims pending. 1t has not yet been deter:
mined exactly what the board will do. but 1t
will probably have to follow the example set in
Mississippi and scale the pensions. and It be-
Confederate veteran can hope for is $2o or $50
q year.
have not much to expect in the way, of pension
or relief; and yet although the Southern States
/ are apparently giving very little. the provision
OF a pension for these veterans Is proving u
serious one to them financially. There has
been a disposition to throw the work Of inyessi-
Confederate G. A. r.. but Louisiana has set
the example of abandoning the system and ap-
Stead, probably because the Confederate camps
were too generous and unwilling to turn down
the veterans.