Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-07-07
BIG TASK COMPLETED
MAKING AN INVENTORY OF
CLAIMS AT PENSION BUREAU.
About $4,000 Have Been Opened,
Jackets" Examined and Con-
tents Noted.

The pension bureau today completed one OF
the largest inventories of stock ever made
in Washington. A large force Of clerks this
afternoon finished the count of all the null
itude of claims pending in the bureau at
the opening of the fiscal year, and the re-
suit will be made known in a few days.
This is the first taking of stock that has
been made in the bureau for two years, the
claims being counted at intervals to enable
the officials to know the exact status Of the
work of the office.
All of the adjudicating divisions of the
bureau were engaged in the work. These
were the eastern western. southern, the
old war and navy and the army divisions.
Messrs Yeager. Blazer and Stauffer of the
bureau were detailed to take general
charge and to see that the count was prop
erly conducted in the various divisions.
The general instructions given by Com
missioner of Pensions Ware directed that
the various classes of pending and rejected
claims be carefully separated and noted
on blanks furnished to those at work on
the count. so as to determine as accurately
as possible the number and character of the
claims pending in the bureau June 30. 1903
and the number of claimants. regarding all
minors in claim one person; also to de-
termfne the number of individual soldiers
represented by the claims found, counting
one soldier for each case. The claims on
account of service prior to the war of the
rebellion. during the war with Span. in the
regular establishment and in the navy have
been counted separately.
The work has been a gigantic task and
mas been In progress since July l. 1t in
volved a multiplicity of detail, and in order
to make the count entirely accurate and
effective Commissioner Ware ordered that
no case should be drawn from the pending
or rejected files or transmitted to re-
cefved by any division after Saturday,
June u, until the count was completed
Leaves of absence pending the completion
of the work were discouraged All the
claims found in the board Of review, the
special examination, law. medical, certifi-
cate, finance and record divisions and in the
rooms of the commissioner, the deputy
commissioners and Chief Clerk Bayley 8
offices were counted and credited to the
adjudication division to which they belong
The chief of the record division. under
special directions, had all applications re-
ceived in his division up to the close of
business last Tuesday. the last day of the
fiscal year, SO assorted that they could be
counted on the following morning and he
has allowed no applications to leave, his
division since.
In connection with the count Commits
sioner Ware directed the securing of infor-
nation as to how many claims of minors
are held up awaiting instructions from the
Secretary or assistant secretary of the in
terror.
The official instructions under which the
"stock-taking'' has proceeded give the pur-
pose or the count as three-fOid. as foflOwS:
To ascertain, first. the number of pending,
rejected and abandoned claims OF all
classes In the pending files of the bureau;
second. the number of live claims and
claimants represented by these clatms
third. the number of soldiers on whose ac
count the claims have been filed.
The claims on account of the war with
Spain and for disabilities incurred in the
regular establishment were counted sepa-
rately. The latter included claims on ac-
count of disability incurred during the en-
lstments in the regular army from July 1,
1865, to April 26, 1898, and claims for dis
ability incurred since July 4, 1902. Some
idea of the magnitude of the work that has
occupied the chief attention of the bureau
for several days may be gained by the fact
that there are somewhere in the neighbor-
hood of 3JOO00 claims pending in the office
and that every one of these cases was
opened all Jackets found in them thor
oughly examined and careful record
made.