Sunday morning globe., 1901-09-29
The pension bureau
Why Commissioner Evans Should
Resign or be Removed.
THE GA. R. COMMANDER
And the Er-COmmandsrs Opinion Vi Henry
Clay Evans-Ths AardshIps and Services
Of tho Veteran Soldier In tho Civil and
Spanish Wars and Why Mr. Evans Does Not
Understand Tho Nature VI these Services.

The election Of Judge Ell Torrance,
of Minneapolis, Mimi, commanderln-
chief of the Grand Army Of the Repub-
lie was a victory for the West. Kan
sas voted unanimously to support Gen
eral Sickles, who withdrew before a
formal ballot was taken, and Kansas
and other Western States elected Judge
Torrance. General stewart, OF Penn
svlyania. was the candidate represent
ing the Evans sentiment. The report
of ex-Commander-in-C Chief General Leo
Rassieur scored the Pension Commits
sioper in plain terms The majority
sentiment was clearly against Evans
remaining in the Pension ONCE. Kan
sas took a prominent part in the pro-
.ceedings of the encampment, as the
State has always done
Judge Torrance is a lawyer by pro
fession. and for more than 80 years
has enjoyed a large practice. He comes
of good patriotic revolutionary stock.
He was a private soldier for nearly
three wears in company A, 9th Penn
svlvapia reserves, and participated in
ali the battles in which his regiment
was engaged, when not disabled by
wounds. At the close Of his three
years enlistment he was honorably
discharged and again entered the serv-
ice as second lieutenant Of company
K of the 1881 Pennsylvania Volunteer
Infantry. In 1864 he was transferred
to the 9th Pennsylvania Volunteer
Infantry and assigned to Baltimore
where he had the honor Of guarding
the body Of President Lincoln when IT
lay in state at Baltimore June II, 1865.
lie was discharged from the service at
the close Of the war.
Judge Torrance is well known in G.
A. r. circles all over the country, hay-
ing served as judge advocate general
twice in his own State and twice as
Judge advocate general to the Com
manders-in.Chief Goblin and Shaw. The
selection places an able and distin-
guished citizen at the head Of the
Grand Army Of the Republic.
The new commanderin-chief, 1t Will
be perceived served three years as a
private soldier and did not receive a
commission until the latter part Of the
war. He is therefore. out OF touch
with the "House of -ords,' or flask
carving maior-generals who have
A. r. for. 10! these many years. And
from this fact we take great comfort.
But the most significant feature Of all
was the defeat Of Pension Commission
er Evans candidate, General Stewart
of Pennsylvania. The retiring com
mander-in.chief, Leo Rassieur, has
been a subscriber to The Sunday Globe
slice it's first issue and CLEANED from its
s.F nn1I Fnnfg Wgif n
which he pulverized the tin god mis-
managing the Pension Bureau. Every
honest exsoldier in the country who
served in front Of the enemy, either In
the Civil or Spanish wars, recognize
in Commissioner Evans an open and
determined enemy who has burned the
bridges behind him, and is undis'
euisedly the obedient servant Of the
Wall Street money sharks and manip
ulators. Mr. Evans was not soldier
himself, from our point of view. No
man was a soldier, in the proper accep
tation Of the term, during the war OF
the rebellion who did not see service
In the field. This service consisted OF
marching, starvation, vermin-covered
bodies the most laborious Of manual
labor in telling trees and building
breastworks cold, hunger, thirst and
exhausting marches and want OF sleeI
constituted the duties Of private and
officer in the ranks--or the rank and
file-of the armies which fought Out
the issues at stake from 1861 to 1865
And none of these did Mr.. Evans sui
fer or endure. He has no more con
Ception OF the hardships which the
surviving ex-soldier conquered thar
Grover Cleveland has who purchased
a substitute to undergo his suiferings!
Mr.. Evans had no money to purchase
a substitute but for the few months OF
his service he located himself in q
comfortable clerical berth and drew
the salary Of two clerks This Mr.
Evans can not deny, inasmuch as the
very officer he served under testified In
these columns, in an interview to thai
fact.
It will be observed that among the
duties of the soldier in the field w
omitted fighting! "ell, strange as 4
may appear to Mr. Evans or Grover
Cleveland, the soldier in the tielC
counted fighting standing up in lint
of battle to get killed, or charging
battery-reHef from his intOlerdbh
NuIU6NlUot anu uAhtlg g-hlut AlAuHo bu
of a hundred didn't care a continenta
whether himself or the rebel shooting
at him was killed or wounded.
wound in our soldering days, Mr.
Evans, sir meant bath, clean linen
something digestible to eat, and, oh
a good long sleep on a bed! We hav
seen, Mr.. Evans, sir, men whom WI
knew to be naturally cowardly, figh
like the devil without fear Of beinl
wounded or killed! They reasoned /
this way. Mr.. Commissioner: III killet
they were relieved from marching
starvation, and lice; II wounded, the
got the Injuries Of bath, bed ant
board: II unscathed in the fight, the,
lived on, to eat mouldy hardtack AM
fat pork, when they could get thes
field luxuries, march on, fell trees
build breastworks and accommodat
more vermin on their emaciated car
casses! The grey backs, Mr.. Evans
which the field soldiers suffered mos
from were not the gallant fellows lei
by Lee Jackson and Johnstone the
were the loyal swarms Of vermin en-
gendered by filth and dirt and mu