The National tribune., 1899-12-28

National Pension COMMITTEES prepared, and
tains the verbal amendments of the act OF
June 27, 1890, which the COMMANDMENT,
Chief and Committee hope will clear UP
the "obscurity" in the Commissioner OF
PENSIONS mind and make the law so plain
that neither he nor any subsequent Com
missioner can find preteXt for not carry
ing it out. We reproduce the bill this
week, with the amendments made by the
Committee in italics.
calendar No, 3.
S. 1477.
A BILL
| In amendment of sections two and three of
an act entitled "An act granting pen
sions to soldiers and sailors who are
incapacitated for the performance of
manual labor, ard providing for PEN
sions to widows, minor children, and
dependent parents" approved June q,
1890.
| Be it enacted by The Senate and House of
Representatives of the United States of
| America IN Congress assembled, That
sections two and three of an act entitled
can act granting pensions to soldiers and
sailors who are lncapacItated for the per
formance of manual labor, and providing
for pensions to widows, minor children,
find dependent parents" be, and the same
are hereby, amended so aS to read as fol-
lows:
SEC. 2. That all persons who served 80
| days or more in the military or naval serv-
| ice of the United States during the lat
war of the rebellion and VINO have been
honorably discharged therefrom, and who
are now or who may hereafter be suffering
from any mental or physical disability
or disabilities Of permanent character,
not the result of their own vicious habits,
| which so intermediates them from the per
| fOrmance of manual labor as 10 render
| them unable to earn a support shall, upon
making due proof of the fact, according to
such rules and regulations as the Secretary
| of the Interior may provide, be placed upon
| the list of invalid pensioners of the United
| States, and he entitled to receive a pen
sion not exceeding S12 per month and not
less than Sc per month, proportloned to the
degree of inability to earn support; and
| in determining such inability each and
| erery intTmlty shall be duty con$ldoTtd,
and the aggregate of the disabilities shoarn be
rated, and such pension shall commence
| from the date of the filing of the appli-
cation in the Bureau of Pensions, after
| the passage of this act, upon proof that the
disability or disabilities then existed, and
shall continue during the existence of the
same: Proaaded, That persons who are
laws, or whose claims are pending IN the
Bureau of Pensions, may, by application
to the Commissioner of Pensions, III such
form as he may prescribe, showing them
selves entitled thereto, receive the benefits
of this act; and nothing herein contained
shall be so construed as to prevent any
pensioner Hereunder from prosecuting his
claim and receiving his pension under
any other general or special act PfOr7ded
hOUerer, That no person shall receive
more than one pension for the same period:
And prorided further, That rank in the
service shall not be considered in appll-
cations filed under this act.
SEC. 3. That if any officer or enlisted
man who served 80 days or more IN the
Army or Navy of the United States during
the late war of the rebellion, and who was
honorably discharged has died, or shall
hereafter die, leaving a widow without
means of support other than her daily
labor, and an income not epcecdiag $3.50
per gear, or minor children under the age
of 16 years, such widow shall, upon
proof of her husbands death, without prov
ing his death to be the result of his army
service, be placed on the pension roll from
the date of the application therefor under
this act, at the rate of IS per month d ring
her widowhoOd, and shall also be pad 81
per month for each child of such officer or
enlisted man under 16 years of age; and in
case of the death or remarriage of the
officer or enlisted man under the age OF l6
years, such pension shall be paid such
child or children until the age of 16: Pro
y1ded, That in case a minor child is ln-
sane, idiotic, or otherwise permanently
physically or mentally helpless. the pen
sion shall continue during the life of said
child, or during the period Of such dis.
ability; and this proviso shall apply to all
pensions heretofore granted or hereafter to
be granted under this or any former statute,
and such pensions shall commence from
the date of application therefor after the
passage of this act: And proaded further,
That said widow shall have married said
soldier prior to the passage of this act"
1t will be seen that the first amendment
is the substitution of "any" for "a" dis
ability, and the next the addition Of the
words cor disabilities" This is intended
to cover the difference in principle between
Orders 164 and 225 and restore the practice
of Commissioner Raum in combining dis
abilities. This is further strengthened by
inserting the word so" before ''incapaci-
tates," and leaving out the words "in such
a degree, adding the important clause be-
ginning, ''and in determining such disabili-
ties
Section 3 is amended by the insertion Of
the words "and an income not exceeding
$3.50 a year"
The Committee has spent a great deal of
earnest thought upon these Amendments.
and believe that they will cover the case.
They have not believed for an instant in
the Commissioners contention that there is
such "obscurity" in the law as to render
such amendments necessary. He has not
believed it himself. for at the last visit of
the committee, and also before the Senate
Committee on Pensions, he said Distinctly
that he was "aggregating disabilities" and
had been doing so right along.
Nor is there any necessity for the amend
ment in regard TO widows incomes. The
limitation was made by Lochren and
Reynolds, and could at any moment have
been unmade by Evans, and certainly by
| the Secretary Of the Interior Mr. Evans
simply could not find any way to do things
that he did not want to do. In order to de-
prive him of this excuse. and prevent any
similar-minded successor doing the same,
the committee has prepared this bill and
asked its passage by Congress.
THERE have been MANY rIImorS Of an