The age-herald., 1902-04-01
Washington Day by Day

Washington. March 31.-(SpeciaD-In Alabama there are S672 United States pensioners and they receive annually from the government $495,92 not counting the two or three new Alabama names amongst the 216 which the House Jf Rep resentatives added by special bills passed within a few hours on Friday afternoon.
 During the progress of this last ex- traordinary rapid unanimous consent" legislation, it remained for South Car olina Democrat, Mir. Talbert. to manfully defend President Roosevelt against at tacks from within the Republican party on account of the Presidents veto of certain bills to remove the disgrace of desertion from some Federal soldiers in the war between the States. Mir. Talbert spoke wisely, justly and eloquently in the Presidents defense. In one of his messages the President referred to the intended beneficiary of the vetoed bill as a 'scoundrel," and this, with other viz orous Rooseveltian language has caused a great deal of discussion. The members of the military committees of the two houses of Congress are said to be 'indig- nant," claiming that the Presidents strictures are reflections upon them, since they investigated the merits of the bills in question and are themselves re- sponsible One Republican Congressman is quoted as reminding MT. Roosevelt !. that 'the President is not the whole thing in legislation" All of which is di- verting.
 'What is the use of passing bills we know the President will veto?" one Re- publican plaintively asked the House when one of the ''desertion'' bills was up The House couldn't answer and so laid the bill aside. So there is an end to that kind of legislation so long as MT. Roosevelt is President, and happy rid dance, too!
 Two hundred and sixteen private pen sion bills passed in a few hours and every bill to grant a pension to some man whose claim had been rejected by statutory law! President Cleveland vetoed over eight hundred such bills during one or two sessions of Congress. and doubtless did right.
 Two million and quarter claims for pensions have been filed in the pension bureau, about one half of which have been allowed. Nearly three billion dollars have been paid on account of pensions since 1865, and the outlay now is about three million dollars a week, or five hun dred thousand dollars every day, Sun days excepted, equalling the wages of an army of five hundred thousand laborers each earning a dollar a day.
 In the states which constituted the Con- federacy, not counting Maryland, West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, Missouri and Arkansas, called "border states, there are now 26,Oo0 Federal pensioners drawing s, 033, 300 a year, out of grand total of $144, coo, 900. In Virginia there are nearly 10000, drawing S1, 1926, 900; North Car olina 4O0O, with s523,O0O; South Carolina, 1S46, with S254, GOO; Georgia, 3753, with S4S3, GOO; Florida, 5000, with $415,O Mississippi AGO, with 649, 600; Louisiana, 6OO0. with 1885, 900; Texas, s2SO, with s1,os0,0Oo. In the "border states" socalled there are 1S7,- 1 900 pensioners, drawing ST, ,62S,00o.
 
 During the past four years, scarcely a day passed, certainly not week, that Washington specials did not announce the retirement" resignation" or Ire moval' of Commissioner of Pensions H. 1 c. Evans of Tennessee, and now, at last | after all these years of making copy, l MT. Evans has of his own accord offered l his, actual resignation to the President If the newspapers will keep up their guessing about me indefinitely they are certain to guess right in the long run, for 1 do not expect to remain forever at the head of the pension bureau" MT. Evans was quoted as saying some years ago; and l so it is now in order for some estimable correspondents in Washington to say, T 1 told you SOL
 The best opinion here is entirely to the effect that MT. Evans has demonstrated himself to have been the most capable and praiseworthy commissioner of pen. sions since the establishment of that of l flee. He has brought to his difficult duties a larger and more just mind than any | of his predecessors, and he Is the only one of all the commissioners who has dis I played any grasp of statesmanship. In | deed he is held to be one of the strongest l and most high-mnded men who has beer | in any government position here for many years, very few of even the cabinet of | ficers having been his equal. He had the | courage to obey the law and to refuse tc dishonor the pension rolls by placing or them the names of persons who were not justly entitled to pensions-he refused tt violate his oath by padding the rolls a the bidding of pension sharks, some O. whom have grown very wealthy upor money which the nation meant for heroes | only.
 | Within two or three hundred feet O the room in which these observations ar' being written, there is large business block six stories high, fronting on on of the greatest streets of Washington and worth, with the land it occupies, prob ably $500. 900, which was built, it is said out of the profits one man made as pension attorney. He Is said to have ac cumulated a million dollars. There are to day twenty thousand pension attorneys most of whom are doubtless good citizen, and honest men; but there are 1t is be lieved widely, many rasca1s amongs | them, just as there are rascals in ever, walk of life.
 All men hold in honor and reverenc, the brave soldiers who fought in the wal