The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1901-03-24

Washington that has a CORE
spondenee with the general public as
large as that cf the United States pen
sion bureau, presided over by H. Clay
Evans. In the last fiscal year there
We're 1,012,796 letters received by that
bureau, of which 536.S51 We're .miscel-
laneous letters" and during the same
period 1883, $50 letters were written By
the small army of clerks employed
there for that purpose. The correspond
ents are among "au sorts and condi-
lions of men, and live not only in this
country, but all over the world. There
are now pensioners living in the Co
more islands, Isle of Man. Malta, Mau-
ritus, Portuguese East Africa, Sierra
Leone and St Helena, to say nothing
of the larger and more populous coun-
tries and islands of the seas; and there
are 4S7,l04 claims still pending
Most of the correspondents have the
vaguest IDEAS of the working methods
of the pension bureau. There are null
titndes who send volumes of iIlegible
manuscript overlooking with ardent de-
ScrlpTlOnS OF their own glorious deeds
upon the fields of battle-neglectin
however, to enclose a scrap OF evidence
in support thereof. The office regret
ting its inability to accept the unsup-
ported statements of these heroes, po-
litely calls on them for the necessary
evidence, and continues to call with
undated politeness until such testi-
mOny is all collected or the applicants
cease from troubling.
OFTEN the applicants aim their re-
quests directly at President Mckinley
which betrays the belief that the presi-
dent has discovered the necessity of
advertising in this age of business
competition:
Mr.. William Mckinley dear Sir:
turned By reading one of your ad-
vertisement that my one that Taught
in the YanNie Armie that you would
sind thin Pension Well sir l Taught
in the Arnie years and 1 got shot
one time in the Armie but l did not
stop fighting But 3 days & i Whit
Fighting on VIII not try to tell you
all the Places that we wint to but
VIII tell YOU some of thin to let you
know no that l shore was in the Armie
dear sir you can look on your Book &
find my name. Well Whin [ left home
wint down to Servaner George &
left THAR and Wint down to Borfert Of
South CarlinaS & went from THAR to
Jonesfer and from THAR to Role, and
thain we capped Johnson if make nc
mistake it is Bin so long that cant
remember ever little thing & after we
capted him we whit to Richmon Yer
jenias and from THAR we wint in camp
etweenf1leXander and Washeton. We
left thaifand got on the train and wint
down to the ohio r and got on the Boat
and wintf to louisvill Kintockie and
whfn they all musted out I was not
there i was sick that day and had bin
for 1 weak so that is ali have to say
in this letter so rite soon and help me
II YOU pleas no it is in your Power -
Many persons regard the pension Of
2 Of hr1r oF inf
established in the interests of the en-
tire human race The following letter
from the Hoosier state illustrates this
fact:
Sir would thank you ever so
much II you would please tell me if a
colored man named Tom Smith is Iiv-
ing or dead and if you know where he
resides if living. Ans right away
The extraordinary concern displayed
by some of the correspondents est their
nelghbors should stray from the path
OF righteousness is worthy of a better
cause One of these jealous workers
sent this complaint OF a certain ap-
plicant for pension in his vicinity:
I let YOU know that Mr.. --
that has but in for benchen is not in
titell for it. he is Joust as Veal as
emmy own of Gus and if he gets benchen
then hall Milwaukee can get it"
Shortly afterward the same writer
advised the Office thus, regarding the
same claimant
81 have to let YOU know that mister
- - has but in for Benchen and
is getting examined to Day he is
Joust as helthy as l am. He bOrdet
by Gus and I know what he is he is TO
lacey to do anney thing and is Nothing
but a Dramb. he tolt me that he hat
TO eat 2 bOunts of Cradles yesterday
becaus he WAR getting examined to
Day. If NOR explomashing or if you
wount to know NOR let me know.
.truley -"
Here is remarkable specimen of
the same kind, manifesting q SurpriS-
ingly intimate acquaintance with his
neighbours affairs on the part of it's
author:
Sir Jantlemans i will let YOU know
that - is getting to mulch pen
sion he is fully a we'll man he can walk
and run for three or six miles and
carry a load on his back he knows
about the time when yOuenS would
come examine him then when he sees
younS coming he junt into bed and
squealed like a hog and got his oman
to fan him the while youns was there
to see him, as soon as youns went away
he junt out of bed and went to his
work and he is a well man up to this
day
1t is fortunate that the man who in
scribed the two following complaints,
both referring to the same pensioner,
leans toward brevity in his style. for
the effort required TO decipher such an
amazing combination of bad spelling
with poor penmanship and a supreme
disregard of punctuation and capital
letters. is a sufficient trial to the most
experienced clerk;
THE COmishner at Washington to
the Penshin Dep
4 think - - is Drawing
of q Unleigal BhenShine l believe he has
bin a adnanrassisten (aiding and as
sisting) the wild caters in their villa
lions of the government Laws"
THE Conishner of the Phenshion we
! think - - is d Drawing of an I'M
legal PEenshion he sed that he wood
! help the Wild Caters out of their WI
ASTON if it COsted him all he Had and
all he Could get and we wish to Let
you all know that he said this is true
/ i Can Proove this and when we Came
/ to the test we can Proove more than
| that
Yours Trula
Another worthy citizen. resigned but
/ cheerful in the consciousness Of faith
/ fully performing a duty. gives abund-
ant evidence that certain lawless char
] acters in his vicinity are receiving. pen
/ sions for disabilities not contracted in
, t17e military service He asserts that