Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1899-08-05

TEN TO REMEDY 1T.
Special Washington Correspondence.
WASHINGTON, d. c., August A.
There is excellent ground for the be-
lief that the President will shortly re-
move or transfer Commissioner of
Pensions Evans. The complaints
about the administration of the PEN
sion bureau have become SO numerous
that McKinley's political future is
menaced if he does not comply with
the demand of many old soldiers-and
the pension attorneys-that Evans be
replaced. Whether Evans's removal
would be justified on grounds other
than political expediency depends On
the point of view regarding the pen
sion question. According to the opin-
ion of those who favor liberality in the
construction of the pension laws and
in the issue of pensions. Evans is too
strict and illiberal in his dealings with
pension claimants. Those, however,
who think that the pension roll is al
ready large enough, may take differ
ent view. Evans has simply followed
the politely of the last Cleveland ad-
ministration in restraining the issue of
pensions within certain bounds. He
does this by making it more difficult
for certain classes OF claimants to
prove their claims and by delaying &C
ton as general rule in all cases. 1t
is possible by thus restricting the is
sue of pensions to keep the pension ex-
penditure inside of the congressional
appropriation, and this Evans has
done. Of a deficiency appropriation
of SS,000,000 voted in 1898. Evans
turned back into the treasury over
S3,000,000, and of the pension appro-
priation of S145, 100000 voted for 1899
he has spent but $139, 100000 The
pension appropriation for 1900 is $140,-
100000, so that if Evans's policy Isl
continued the pension expenditures
will not exceed that amount, where as
if the floodgates are opened by the APP
pointment OF liberal and easy-golng
commissioner, as seems probable, the
pension expenditure will at once rise
again.
NO GOOD REASON
exists why pension expenditure should
be materially increased at the present
time, unles the political necessities of
the administration may be so regard
ed. For the last two or three years
pensions have been issued at the rate
of more than $4,000 year, and the
number of pensioners has been in
creasing Nevertheless, since 1895
what is called the annual value OF the
roll, that is, the sumtotal of pensions
paid to regular pensioners, has re-
manned at a pretty constant figure,
never greatly exceeding or falling be-
low $130,000,000. This is due to the
fact that the additions 70 the roll,
though in excess of the number of
losses by death and otherwise, but
during the same year the losses by
death and otherwise, are of approx
imately the same annual value. For
example, there were added to the pen
sion roll during the fiscal year 1898,
64,351 pensioners, but during the same
year the losses by death and otherwise
were 1851, showing a net gain Of
1900, while the annual value of the
roll had grown but $1,175,037. II no
pensions at all had been issued the an
nual value of the roll would have fall
len OFF over $S,000,000. Obviously this
sum sufficed to cover most of the eX-
penditure required for the payment of
pensions issued to new claimants. In
other words the policy Of the pension
bureau amounts practically TO making
a majority of claimants await the
death of pensioners already on the
rolls, whereupon the money so releas-
ed becomes available for the settle
ment of pending claims AS the mere
maintenance of the pension roll at its
present annual value requires the issue
OF thousands of pensions annually,
pensions may be ground out at the
present or even an increasing rate for
years to come without swelling the
pension expenditure, for the new pen
sioners in the main replace old ones
dropped by reason of death or some
other cause.
THE INSULAR COMMISSION.
McKinley's insular commission has
gotten itself into bad odor with the
Catholic press of the country by a re-
commentator in its report on affairs
in Porto Rico that priests and others
who have taken the vow of celibacy
may be permitted to renounce said
VOWS and enter into marriage relations,
the same as other persons" Celibacy
of the clergy being required by the
canon law of the Catholic Church the
recommendation of the insular commits
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