The National tribune., 1902-07-24
CONSTITUTING TIE ACT or JUNE 27, 1890.

by the recent session of Congress for tht
benefit of Union veterans. 1t is true that
the Joint Resolution constituting the Ac
of June %, 1890, was introduced by Sen
ator PritciIard. but Representative III. Il
Gibson. of Tennessee. who has a larger
number of constituents affected by suci
construction than any other member oi
Congress. took charge of the resolution il
the House, made several important
amendments, including the whole of the
second section. engineered it through tn,
Committee on Invalid Pensions. and tn,
House followed it up in the closing min
utes of the session. until it was signed h,
the President. Had it not been for his
persistent work. 1T would not have be
come a law. ut least at the recent session
As finally passed the Joint Resolution
reads:
JOINT RESOLUTION.
ConstrnIng the Act approved June 81
1880. entitled AN Act granting pen
sions to soldiers and sailors who arc
incapacitated for the performance oi
manual labor. and providing fer pen.
sons to widows. minor children, and
dependent parents
Resolved by the Senate and House of
Representatives of the United States of
America in Congress assembled. That the
Act approved June ~. 1890. entitled IAN
Act granting pensions to soldiers and sail
ors who are incapacitated for the per-
formance of manual labor, and providing
for pensions to widows. minor children.
and dependent parents" is construed and
held to include all persons and the widows
and minor children of all deceased per-
SONS who served for 30 days in the mill
tary or naval service of the United States
during the late war of the rebellion. and
who have been honOrably discharged
therefrom, and section 4716, Revised Stat
utcS> United States. is amended accord
ingly: Provided, however. That the fore
going shall not apply to those who served
in the First. Second. Third. Fourth. Fifth
and Sixth regiments United States Volun-
teer Infantry who had n prior service in
the Confederate army or navy and who
enlisted in said regiments while confined
as prisoners Of war under stipulation
that they were not to be pcnsionable IN
der the laws of the United States. nor to
those who. having had such prior service.
enlisted in the military or naval service
of the United States after the 1st day of
January, 1865.
Sec. . That in the administration OF
the pension laws any enlisted man of the
Army. including regulars, volunteers and
militia. or any appointed or enlisted man
of the Navy or Marine Corps, who was
honorably discharged from the last con-
tract of service entered into by him DUR
ing the late war of the rebellion, shall be
held and considered to have been honor
ably discharged from all similar contracts
of service previously entered into by him
with the United States during said war:
Provided. That such enlisted or appointed
man served not less than six months un-
der said last enlistment or appointment.
that his entire service under said last en-
liStment or appointment was faithful, and
that he did not receive by reason of said
last enlistment or appointment any bOun-
ty or gratnity other than from the United
States in excess of that to which he would
have been entitled if he had continued to
serve faithfully until honorably dis
charged under any contract of service pre-
viousiy entered into by him, either in the
Army. Navy or Marine Corps. during the
war of the rebellion.
There can be no question as to the just
ness of this act. Nearly every regiment
in the Western armies, and a great many
OF those in the Eastern, contained loyal
men and good soldiers who had been con-
first opportunity to escape. and get where
they could fight for the Union. The loyal
regiments of West yirginians, North Car
elinians, Georgians, Floridians, Aiabam-
ians, Tennesseeans, Louisianians, MissOu-
rians. Texans and Arkansans contained
only a portion of the loyal sons of those
States, who usually enlisted in the first
Union regiment that they could reach. As
rule it cost these men much more to be-
come Union soldiers than it did boys in
the North. for they had to brave every
thing of value to men. with the additional
terror of being summarily executed if cap
tured.
1t was never the intention of the franz
ers of the Act of June q, 1890. to exclude
these men from the benefit of its provi-
sions. The question was raised in the
Senate, at the time Of the passage of the
act. and Senator Davis, who had charge
of the bill, stated that in his opinion the
restrictions of Sec. 4716 "were utterly in
applicable to it,
The Act of June q, 1880. was executed
for four years upon the theory that pre-
vious service in the rebel army did not
disqualify claimants under it, as it did
not disqualify them under the other pen
sion laws.
Sept. 6, 1894, the Interior Department
suddenly changed front on this question,
and Secretary Hoke Smith, who had lit
tie love for his old companions who went
over to the Yankees" instructed the Com
missioner of Pensions to deny the claims
and drop from the rolls all those who had
in any way served the COnfederacy, and
assign as a reason therefor Sec. 4116, Re
vised Statutes, which reads as follows:
mo money on account of pension shall
be paid to any person, or to the widow,
children or heirs of any deceased person,
who in any manner voluntarily engaged
in or aided or abetted the late rebellion
against the authority of the United
States"
This section had been long before made
inapplicable to the following classes:
The widows of those who
First. Served in the Revolutionary war
(See act of March ., 1879
Second. Those who served in the WaI
Of 1912 against Great Britain. (See act
Of March 8, 1881
Third. Those who served in the Mexi
can war. (See act of Jan. %, 1881
Fourth. Those who served in the IndiaI
wars. (See act of July 81, 1922
Fifth. Those who served in the Spanish
war. (See net of April 1S, 1901
Sixth. Those who received a pension
able disability in the United States army
(See act Of March 3, 1879
Seventh. Those who incurred Il pen
.ia in h. TTnit