The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1903-09-28
ASK ROOSEVELT
TO DECLARE HIMSELF
Grand Army Wants Him to ADJ
vocate SIP Pension in
His Message.

President Roosevelt will be asked to
advocate, in his message to the COM
ing congress, the giving of pension
of $12 a month to every civil war vet
eran over 81 years of age who can
show an honorable discharge, or to the
widow Of a veteran If she married him
before July 1, 1890.
This request will go to the president
in the form Of a petition made up of
formal records of the adoption by
Grand Army posts of a resolution
passed unanimously by the national
convention Of the Grand Army at its
recent session in San Francisco, and
which is now before the posts Of st.
Paul. and of every other city in the
country, having been sent out for.
simultaneous action.
Many times before efforts at con-
certed action on pension legislation
nave peen made by the Grand Army"
SAID Grand Army man yesterday in
discussing the movement, sbut never
before has a measure come from the
national body with unanimous indorse-
ment and to which so little objection
could be found by the posts as the
present resolution. 1t is true that when
the subject was before the national
oody at San Francisco some members
or the committee to which 1t was re-
this report found little favor. and when
IL came to a vote the majority report
was adopted unanimously. The minor
ily resolution proposed to advocate the
giving to privateS and commissioned
omcers the pay they were receiving AT
the time OF discharge. This presented
TOO great inequality between the PEN
sion OF the private and the officer. and
the convention promptly frowned It
down.
Is Put in Few Words.
The resolution now before the posts
mere, and which will be acted upon-
ana beyond doubt adopted-is very
DrIeI, going directly to the point in as
rev words as possible, without prelim-
mary Whereases or argument The
veterans assume that the president and
the public is now fully aware of the
claims of the old soldier to considera
tlon, and the matter is simply a call
TO abolish the red tape with which paw
ment OF an obligation to the men who
saved the, Union has so long been at
tehoeQ and give to every veteran who
served ninety days or longer a pension
OF S12 month on the simple show
Ing OF his honorable discharge.
Would Abolish Examiners ard Ae.nts
This, you see, would work a reyol,1-
tlon In the pension business. 1t would
cut out entirely the examining boards
now maintained. In every civ and
would abolish the pension claim agents
ana all other Intermediates that have
come in for slice of the veterans
money 1t would also greatly reduce
the clerical force of the pension bureau.
Tor it would simplify the pension dis
tributlon to the mere matter of check
Ing out the money.
1f.
pension fund would 1t require? SWELL.
you can figure it approximately. There.
are IN round numbers 100000 veterans
receiving So month, 100, 900 receiving
$40, and $4,000 getting Sc. The num-
Der receiving greater sums is .compar-
at1Vely small. To bring these three
grades up to level rate of S12 would
mean an increase of 81 ,450, 900 a month.
The pensioner now receiving more
than $12 month, of course, would not
be affected by the new law. 1t simply
means $l2 as q minimum-an acknoWl-
edgement from the American people
that every man who did honorable
service in the defense of the Union Ia
entitled to this support from the pub
lie funds, without being subjected to
red tape and clubbing.
The law Of 1890 greatly relieved
the veteran in making his claim for a
pension. Before that he had to have
a hospital record'-that is, be able
to show that illness or wounds in serv-
Ice disabled him to such an extent that
he had to receive hospital care-and
this record was difficult for many de-
serving ones to trace back to from. the
evidence demanded. Since the law of
1890 took effect the veteran has been
taken as. the examining board found
him, and if his physical condition. in
the boards opinion, entitled him to
a pension his claim was favorabIy in
dorsed-and went down to the cir
cumlocution office at Washington to
take its place on the red tape reel.
Puts 1t Up to the President.
President Roosevelt. you know. has
OFTEN shown his interest in the old SOL
der since he took the presidential
chair. In about every address he has
made he has spoken in appreciation of
the nations defenders and the debt of
gratitude that is due them, so we feel
that there never was a more favorable
time for appealing to the head of the
government to ask for us this consid-
Grafton. 1t Is expected that the re-
ports of the action Of posts all over
the country will reach him by the
time he begins to frame his message
to congress, and 1t will be up to him to
take stand on the proposition"