The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1899-05-29
VETERANS QUIT THE HOME
Six Hundred Dissatisfied Soldiers at
Milwaukee Demand Discharges.

Milwaukee. May 29.-What threatens
to become a general desertion of the
local soldiers home is now under way.
Six hundred of the inmates have re-
Gently secured discharges on their own
application, until now there are fewer
than 1000 men on the rolls. Dissatis-
faction of the veterans with the man
agement is given as the reason for the
exodus. AS the men have demanded
absolute discharges instead of the fur
loughS frequently taken in the spring,
it is evident that their intention is to
remain away from this institution. 1t
is expected that nearly all will make
application at one of the other national
homes.
According to several of the old sold
iers the veterans are forced to observe
unusually strict regulation, their liberty
is curtailed and efforts are made to
keep their pension money in the insu-
tuition.
The day following the last quarterly
pension payment nearly 500 of the vet
Grams asked Col. Wheeler, governor of
the home, for their discharges. 1t has
been the custom since the establish
ment of this asylum for INDECENT sold
iers for some of the old men to seek
furlOughs during the spring, but not in
such large numbers as applied for their
discharges in the last few weeks In
other years also the men merely sought
furlOughs.
Some of the old soldiers were seen to-
day and all agreed that the men had
cause they were disconnected and were
irritated by irOnclad rules that made
the government wards feel more like
paupers than anything else. One old
wearer of the blue had the following
to say:
No inmate of the home is permitted
to pass out of any one of the several
gates unless he is supplied with a red
card, upon the face of which is printed
a permit to admit the holder to the
privilege of the city. If he goes out
without this pasteboard the matter is
reported to the governor and the man
who breaks the regulation is given 40
days on the dump This means that
he must do certain manual labor for
the term specified.
Some of the men whose red paste
board passes have been revoked have
climbed over the fence and gone into
town, and when they have returned
they have been taken to the guard
house and punished the next day. If
a man breaks over the fence more than
once he is given the gate In other
words, he is dishonorably discharged
from the home and he cannot ever re
turn, unless his application is approved
by the chief of the board of managers in
Washington.
Most of the old soldiers object to the
fact that the governor keeps policemen
at the gates to watch us when we go
out. These police spies are paid by
the home. and the worst is that they
are themselves old soldiers.
1T is generally believed that the rea.-
son that the men are restricted in GO
ing out of the grounds is to force them
to spend their pension money in the
government beer saloon. The board of
managers has esta bliShed a saloon in
the grounds. and, as L understand, the
profits go to keeping up the band and
the library But with the vast amount
of money that is spent in the home sa-
loon, it would seem that the music and
books are pretty expensive luxuries. 1
can say this, that if the rules are not
modified, particularly those which have
relation to the liberty of the inmates,
there will be an immense exodus of vet
Grams from Milwaukee. Most of them
would prefer to live at Fort Leaven-
worth, Kan, Dayton, O., or marion,
Ind