Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1902-04-02

(Pension for DISABILITY" and Salary for 4
age nor the patriotism to do their
duty in war. They all admit tech
meal desertion, but plead ignorance,
stupidity, sickness, family Affections
and everything except being in Jail,
in extenuation Of their silence for
almost 40 years under the stigma of
desertion. They are obliged to adj
nit that they were sane and cunning
enough to elude the officers until the
statutes of limitations made their
necks safe. They do not claim to be
coming to congress now in order to
have the stigma removed from their
records on account of the disgrace
of it. They are coming here to get
a pathway cleared for them through
the pension office to the Golfers Of
the treasury. am opposed to all
of these fellows; but I am in favor
of helping every honest old soldier
to the aid which the government
owes to him in his decrepitnde.'
LET me tell you that honest old SOL
diers do not need to come to congress
to have their military records correct
ed. They do not know this fact, and very
few members of congress know it. But
the act of congress, approved August
:, 1882, provided that the charge of de-
sertion may be removed from the
record of any old soldier by the Sec
rotary of war, when it is established to
his satisfaction that such soldier had
served faithfully for the term of his
enlistment until May, %, 1865, even
though he was absent from his COM
mand at the time of muster out. He
can also under the same act have his
record corrected by the secretary of
war when it can be shown that he did
not intend to desert, and that he vol
UNFAIRLY returned to his command
after the charge of desertion had been
made. ~
II know that there are exceptional
cases, where soldiers went home with
out having opportunity to 60 back to
their regiments before muster out;
and those cases will always have fair
hearing before the committee on mill
tary affairs. But to show you the aver
age will state that out of upwards Of
1000 bills for the correction of mill
tary records from tho charge of de-
sertion, the committee favorably re-
ported only 80; and some of those were
passed because the sympathy Of the
committee led the members to give the
claimant the benefit of the doubt, ever:
when the doubt of his honor was very
great.
1.-THE inspiration of all these bills
is a desire to get on the pension roll.
Since the close of the civil war this
country has paid So, 600, 900, 900 for pen
sions. No country, no two or three
countries, ever paid so much for pen-
sions for it's defenders. Shall we swell
this stupendous, magnificent sum by
adding to the list of those who receive
the largess Of a grateful people, all
the rogues, skulkers and deserters
who were occasionally in the armies
Of the government during the civil
war? To do SO would be an insult to
every honest soldier, would be unjust
to every pensioner, and an outrage
upon justice. The provisions of the
general laws, when understood, are
ample to afford relief in almost every
case. AS a general statement of prin
ciple it may be broadly said that the
man whose case is not covered by the
extravagantly liberal laws is simply a
deserter and should forever bear tho
brand of the share of his crime.
Mr.. Slayden showed. the writer a
number of cases with the committee
reports: and the evidence against sub.
stantially all of the claimants was un-
answerable. Other members of the
committee on military affairs agreed
that what Mr.. Slayden says covers all
cases. The clerk and assistant clerk
of the committee also substan-
tiated these statements. The pen
sion roll is a roll of honor: and
upon it should appear the names
only of those who were honor
able men, brave men, soldiers who
barred their breasts to the enemy and
suffered for their country.
SMITH D. FRY.