Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-09-07

Iion of the Grand Army is not complied
with. The feeling among Grand Army men
Is so intense that they will be likely to
make their influence felt in order to force
compliance in the future If their demands
are acceded to, and the pension roll is
swelled to the two hundred million mark,
there are other voters outside the Grand
Army who are likely to be heard from.
Special Committees Report.
The report of the special committee of the
pension bureau was long that it was
necessary to send it back to the committee
In order that the demands for greater lib
erality in the Interpretation of the pension
law should be embodied briefly in a set of
resolutions suitable for adoption today.
These resolutions We're presented to the
encampment this morning. Among other
things they demand the rehabilitation Of
order 164, and the changing of the rule in
regard to pensions for widows.
Order 1Si has been a bone of contention
ever since it was issued. 1t was first pro-
mulgated by Raum when commissioner of
pensions in September 1890. 1t was based
on the law Of June y of that year The
order allowed claimants for pensions to
group a number of small disabilities so as
to make them pensionabe, although pen
sion could not have been secured any
single disability. The effect of this order
was to grant immense number of PEN
sions to men who could not otherwise have
received them. Under its influence the PEN
In 1898. two months before the Harrison
administration went out. Gen. BUssey. then
assistant secretary of the interior. decided
that order 1f4 was Illegal. and that d sin
gle disability was necessary in order 10
cure i pension. Early in the Cleveland ad-
ministration Judge Lachran, commissioner
Of pensions. applied Gen. Bussey's decision
to the conduct of his Office. Every one re-
members how the Grand Army at the time
protested against this action. They claim
cd that the order had been issued ilnme-
dately after the law of 1890 had been en-
acted and while its intention was fresh in
the mind of every one Those who ap
proved Gen. Bussey's decision claimed that
without II the country would have been
bankrupted by the demands of the pension
roll.
Next Important Demand.
The next most important demand of the
resolutions is in regard to pensions of wild
ows of soldiers. The pension bureau has
declined 10 consider widow as dependent
If she has an income of IS a month or more.
The Grand Army demands that this amount
be raised to $40 per month. The report of
the committee received the approval of
every one, and even those few who went
into the enCampmCut with the idea that
action of the kind that has been taken is
injudicious and who proposed to oppose it,
soon determined to confine their efforts 10
preventing a denuEciation of Commissioner
Evans personal for his administration.
Comrade Patrick II. Coney, pension at
torney and delegate, attempted to place
resolution before the encamDment re-
Guasting the President to remove CommIs-
sIonCr Evans from Office.
All over the hall the retort, NO, no. no..
was heard. The motion was not offered
and Commissioner Evans not again re-
ferreu to in the debate But so str, ng was
the sentiment in favor of the committees s
report. and so near the break ng po mt :. as
the desire en- the part of the IN re ra { a.
delegates to personally drag Commits oner
Evans out over the Goals. lAat t.s.s norI.4. =
his warmest friends were h ping that the
resolutions might be extremely radical on
the subject of liberaity IN the granting of
pensions because, If they We're not, they
feared the encampment would mend tn m
and in so doing embody in them an attack
on Mr.. Evans personally. They wanted
resolutions strong enough to go through
without an amendment, because after the
exhibition OF yesterday they felt but little
confidence In their ability to stem the tide
If it should gain headway.
Evans Takes II CoolIy
While this storm is at this height Com
missioner Evans is here moving about
among his Grand Army comrades usual.
The sessions Of the encampment are
secret to all except Grand Army men. Mr..
Evans has not been inside the encampment
hall. and 1T is not likely that he will go
there. He is apparently as free from worry
over the situation here as If he were at
tending picnic. He has Claimed all along
that he had nothing to do with making the
pension law. and that his business was
solely to interpret it impartially He de-
clares that he has done this. Those who
know him best have idea that he will
change his attitude on pension matters be-
cause of pressure brought to bear on him
They recall the fact that he did not seek
the pension office, and that he fully realized
the difficulties that would meet him there
when he accepted the position at the re-
quest of President Mckinley.
Shaw for COmmander-in-Chie
The first act of the encampment this
morning was to elect Shaw of New York
coulmander-in-chief and Irwin Robbins of
Indiana senior vice commander of the