The National tribune., 1902-10-30
pension properly commenced from the last.

|
named date.
Repeated motions for reconsideration
on the same grounds, in the absence o
new and material evidence, will not b
considered by the Department, and car
has been taken in this particular case il
order, that an apparently honest and earn
est claimant may see that if he has bee
wronSed the fault is not with the Burea
or this Department, but if fault there be
it is in the law, which has been carefull
observed in his case.
''The motion for reconsideration is over
ruled
MARRIAGE LNIITATION-ACT OF
MARCH 3, 1S99.-In the general lay
pension case of the widow Of Chester NJ
Briggs the Pension Bureau held the widow
not entitled. ''having married the soldie
subsequent to the passage of the act o
March 3. 1899" The decision on appea
says ASST Sec'y Campbell, Sept. 13
1902:
THAT part of the fourth proviso of salt
act directly bearing OH this issue is as fol
lows:
"'That hereafter no pension under an!
law of the United States shall be granted
sailor, officer, naval or military. marine
marine officer, or any other male person
entitled to a pension under any law of tn,
United States, unless it shall be proved
and established that the marriage of sucf
widow to tie soldier, sailor, officer, marine
or other person on account of whose ser
vice the pension is asked was duly ant
legally contracted and entered into priol
to the passage of this act, or unless sucf
wife shall have lived and cohabited will
such soldier. sailor, officer, marine, marine
officer. or other person continuously from
the date of the marriage to the date of his
death, or unless the marriage shall take
place hereafter and priof to or during the
military or naval service of the soldier
sailor, officer, marine, or other person on
account of whose service the pension is
asked or claimed
'"The only widow who is required by
said proviso to have lived and cohabited
with her husband continuously from the
date of their marriage to the date of his
death in order to establish her pensiOnable
status is one whose marriage occurred on
or subsequent to March 3, 1899, and sub
sequent to his last military or naval SER
vice, he not having served in the war be-
tween the United States and the Kingdom
of Spain.
claimant was married to soldier June Il.
1899, and lived and cobabitated with him
continuously from the date of their said
marriage to the date of his death, Jan. 3,
1900.
'In view of these facts the Department
is of the opinion that the rejection of the
claim on the ground that claimant married
the soldier subsequent to the passage of
the act of March 3, 1899, was error.
''Said action appealed from is according
ly reversed"
DIVISION OF PENSION-ACT OF
MARCH 3, fS99.-In the case of
Josephine Medley against John A. Med
ley for division of pension, the pensioner
appealed from the action of the Pension
Bureau allowing part of his pension to his
wife. The decision says asst Sec'y
Campbell, Sept 16, 1902:
Pensioners only contention is that his
said wife deserted him without cause.
Claimant denies desertion and charges
pensioner with desertion.
"1n her application she based her claim
for One-half her husbands pension solely
upon the ground that he was an inmate
Of the State Soldiers and Sailors Home
at Quincy, ILL.,, and that she was a wo-
man of good moral character and in neces-
sitous circumstances.
''The evidence in the case shows that
at the date of filing her said application
pensioner was and still is an inmate of
the State Soldiers and Sailors Home at
Quincy, Ill.
''Where wife bases her application for
division of her husbands pension on the
sole ground that he is an inmate of
State Home for soldiers and sailors, the
question of desertion is not involved, and
the rejection of such claim under the
desertion complained of has not existed
for six months is error.
1T appears that former application
Df claimant was filed March 20, 1901, in
which the only allegations upon which she
based her claim for division of her hus.
,and's pension were that he was AN in
nate of the Soldiers Home at Quincy, ILL.,
md that she was a woman of good moral
character and in necessitous circum-
stances.
"None of these allegations were denied
BY pensioner, and the United States Pen
sion Agent at Chicago, ILL.,, certified April
l6, 1901, that pensioner was at date of
his last payment, April II, 1901, at Sol.
liers and Sailors Home, Quincy, Iii.
''The Superintendent of the Home testi-
fes that pensioner has been continuously
4 member of said Home since May 16,
1900
mo question of desertion was involved
IN that case, yet the Bureau, on May "a,
1901, rejected her said claim on the ground
that 'desertion complained of has not ex-
sted for period of six months
'The result of said Bureau action of
May "a, 1901, has been to unjustly de-
prive claimant of her legal right con-
ferred by the second proviso of the act of
March 3, 1899, and also to mislead pen
;ioner as to his defense. He has filed testi-
mony tending to show that his wife de-
serted him and he has based his appeal
upon that ground; whereas desertion is i'm
under the second and third pro-
visos of said act, as the wife's right to
one-half her husbands pension in both
said second and third provisos is granted
to her in case her husband becomes an
inmate of State or National Home, she
being woman of good moral character
and in necessitous circumstances, and not
IN inmate of said Home or q similar in
''Claimant did not appeal rom the Bu-
reau rejection of her first application, but
iled q second application based upon the
same allegation as the first, and ON the
same state Of facts shown under her first
application which was rejected, and with
lion was allowed.
'.1'he later action appears to be justi-
fed by the facts as disclosed by the evil
lence and the same is affirmed.
while there is no appeal from the re-
lection of claimants first application, for
reasons already stated, said action was
clearly error, and the Department of its
own motion, hereby reverses the same.
''I'he papers in the case are herewith
returned and further action should be
taken to correct the error of said first
adjudication of May "a, 1901"
Reunion of the 66th Ohio
This years Reunion of the 55th Ohio was
held at Bellevue, with large attendance Of
survivors of this famous organization. The
Lira. Of III nch nf