The daily morning journal and courier., 1899-09-08
COLONEL SHAW CHOSEN.
Elected Commanders of G. A. K. by Ac. ClRmattOn After Rnssieur Withdrew.


 Army of the Republic, Judge Leo Ras-
 sieur of St. Louis, Mo, withdrew as a l candidate for the office of commander
 in-chief Judge Rassieur, in a speech that aroused unbounded enthusiasm among the delegates, declined to op- | pose Colonel Albert D. Shaw of l Watertown, N. r., and requested that 1 the vote of the encampment be given
 to Colonel Shaw. As he took his seat
 after withdrawing from the contest, | he was cheered to the echo and cries | of "Rassieur for 1900' were heard in all parts of the Grand Opera house. Acting on the suggestion of Judge | Rassieur, the encampment elected | Colonel Shaw by accalamaton. The delegates then proceeded to make nominations for the office of senior vice commander and the name of Irv- | ing Robbins of Indiana was presented. At this point, the business of the en- campment was interrupted by the ar rival of a delegation representing the Woman's Relief corps, the Army Nurses and Sons of Veterans, and a brief re- ception was held. About the same time, printed copies of the pension com mittee's report were distributed among the delegates.
 After the visiting delegations had left the election of the remaining
 officers was taken up.
 Irving Robbins of Indianapolis was elected senior vice commander-in-
 chief, and M. Minton of Louisville, Ky,
 was chosen junior vice commander.
 William II. Baker of Lynn, Mass, was elected surgeon general. Jacob l..
 Grimm of Maryland was elected chap lain-in-chief.
 The report of the pensions committee, which was yesterday recommtted, with instructions to the committee to em- body therein the desires of the encamp- ment relative to the administration of the pension laws, was again presented and adopted unanimously,
 The report was accompanied by reso- lutions drafted by the committee, and the encampment at once adopted them unanimously. They were as follows:
 We respectfully direct attention to section All of the Revised Statutes of the United States, which reads as fol- lows; "The commissioner of pensions shall perform, under the direction of the secretary of the interior such du- ties in the execution of pension and bounty laws as may be prescribed by the president"
 Resolved, That this encampment re- spectfully represents to the president it's earnest conviction that rule 225, now in practical effect in the adjudication of claims for pensions, under section of the act of June 27, 1890, in the pension bureau works grave injustice to wor- thy eX-soldiers and ex-sailors, and we express the hope that you will find it consistent with your duties as an execu- tive officer to abrogate this rule, and re-establish the principle as defined in rule 164. Under the operation of rule 164, formulated and put into effect soon after the passage of this act, unques- tionably responsive to public sentiment, and based upon sound legal proposi- tions, in a word the simple expression of the letter and the spirit of the law four hundred thousand names were added to the pension roll of the repub- lie, and to which no objection was heard for years after its promulgation.
 Resolved, That this encampment re- spectfully represents that the practice in the pension bureau in barring widow claimants who have ar income of $96 a year, is not warranted by the terms of the law, and we warmly endorse the of the commissioners of pensions to successive secretaries of the interior that the llmitaton be in creased to $250 year.
 Resolved That the commander-in- chief appoint a committee of five com rades to present to the president cer- tified copy of the action of this na- tional encampment, with an expression of our earnest desire for justice only to our disabled comrades, and the widows and orphans of our dead under the let ter and spirit of the law.
 Resolved, That this committee is hereby authorized and directed in the event that it is determined that relief may not be accorded by the admnIs- atiVe officers of the government to present to congress request for the of the law in such form as to make certain the true intent of the | statute as we believe it can be construed | as herein presented
 The report was signed by R. B. | Brown. J, w. Burst, John Palmer, and | Charles Clark Adams The committee, as suggested in the report, was ap- | pointed, consisting of the four signers | )f the report together with General | Daniel E. Sickles of New York
 Later in the afternoon a motion was made to return to the south flags cap .ured during the war. This was killed, | IS was also a motion to admit sons of | he veterans to the G. A. R. Shortly | before adjournment Adjutant General | Thomas J. Stewart of Pennsylvania was 'eappointed. The newly elected officers were installed. General Louis Wagner if this city past commanders n-chief, the ceremonies, after which he encampment adjourned sine die.
 FELL IN A FIT ON THE GREEN.
 Thomas Lynch, young man who ives on Day street, fell in a fit near he pump on the central green about 10 o'clock last night A large crowd gath red around him, and there was consid- ,rable excitement until it was found hat the illness was not serious. Lynch 1