Arizona daily citizen., 1901-09-27
OUR PENSION SYSTEM.

Oh luo hcpupllS' "h'
witholds his name from publica-
ton, writes to The Citizen in mod
crate and respectful criticism OF a
recent discussion of the pension
policy of the government in these
columns. Our Grand Army friend
candidly condemns the introduc
tion of private pension bills IN
Congress and incidentally throws
an interesting light upon the
methods by which the National
Treasury has long been rlundered.
In the first place, he denies that
the Grand Army is responsible for
these scandalous raids upon the
treasury. There are now, he stat
o., Sabout 100000 survivors OF the
nearly 100000 men who enlisted
in the United States Army during
the Civil War. OF the survivors
less than 10000 are members OF
the Grand Army organization.
The Grand Army is responsible
only for pension legislation OF a
general character. ''to the end that
the pension laws may be properly
executed and administered and
carried out in the same liberal
spirit in which they were enact
ed.
At every session oe Congress
private pension bills are introduc-
ed, as many as 10000 bills, accord
ing to our correspondent, being
presented in a single Congress.
The Fifty-Sixth Congress acted
favorabIy upon ] ,36l private pen
sion measures, regardless OF mer-
it in most cases. SO this Grand
Army official states. Political
pull, he asserts, is RESPONSE BILE for
the enactment of such legislation,
and, because of this, worthy ap-
plicants under the general law
without political influence are
often at disadvantages. He fur
ther declares that tho Grand Army
is not responsible for the thou
sands of bills introduced at every
sefsion for the correction OF mill
tary or naval records charging des-
ertion charges, he adds, which
have remained unchallenged for
over 36 years. The power to cor
rect these records in the few
worthy cases which may arise is in
the War Department. Our Grand
Army correspondent recommends
that no case of this kind should
be allowed to reach Congress ex-
cept through the Secretary of
War.
1t is high time for the Grand
Army to put itself on record in the
matter of private pension jobs, and
it has only itself to blame if it is
associated in the public mind with
the disgraceful legislation which
is hurried through Congress at
every session. II the politicians
are solely responsible for these
pension jobs the Grand Army owes
1t to itself to repudiate them and
to discredit their work 1t is to
the interest OF the men who are
entitled to pensions to purge the
rolls Of impostors who have no
claim on the nations bounty and
to place a stigma upon such as en-
JOY pensions because of ''politi-
cal pull" and not because OF serv-
ices rendered to the Government.
The Grand Army, with its mem
bership of 300, GOO, ia held respon-
siblc for the million of pensioners
onlthe rolls. II it knows that the
pension lists have been swelled by
fraud it 10 its duty to protect the
Government against the gross i'm
position which has been praoticed
upon 1t. In doing this 1t would
have an opportunity to strengthen
its own claims and to remove all
suspicion that it has connived at
dishonest raids upon the Treasury
The politicians who secure pen
'sions for unworthy claimants are
the worst foes OF the veterans who
deserve the Government bounty.
The best way to cleanse thepen
sion rolls, 10 TO have the pension
lisls published and the names OF
~ local pensioners conspicuously !
I posted Ia the post Office where the