The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1904-03-24
WAR; makes new
PENSION RULING
DECISION OF COMMISSIONER OF
GREAT IMPORTANCE 70
CID SOLDIERS.
Claimants Beyond Above Age Will
Not Be Required to Undergo Ex-
amination-Great Saving Expect
ed Under the Order.


ed Under the Order.
Washington, March 17.-Commissiou.
er Of Pensions Ware, with the APPROX
al OF Secretary Hitchcock, On We'd
nesday promulgated the most import
ant pension ruling that has been is
sued in & long time. 1t directs that
beginning April 13 next. if there is no
contrary evidence and all other IeCai
requirements have been met, claimants
fer pension under the general act of
June p, 1890, who are over c. years
old, shall be considered as disabled
one-half in ability to perform rnanuaI
labor and shall be entitled to Sc
month"; over 60 years, to IS; over 6S
years, to $40, and over To- 81. the
usual allowances at higher rates con-
tinuing for disabilities ether than age
The Commissioners Views.
Commission Ware, just before leaving
for a trip south for his health. sroIe as
follows regarding the order. which he
said would save both the old soldiers ard
:
and time: There has long been in the
bureau rule fixing maximum age limit
at $12 for IS years. This was made DUR
ing Mr.. Cleveland's administration by
Commissioner Lochren, now federal
judge in Minnesota. The G5-year- mint
mum limit has been long while in force
in the bureau, but l an not advised by
cctc Il hcG ir II tiO1r
larry material since i met with general
acquiesence. The act CT congress, which
was passed in the latter part CT January,
1887, and approved by President Cleye-
land, put all the Mexican war veterans
on the pension roll 80 years exactly at
eT the end OF tie Mexican war.
Entitled to Like Treatment.
1T would seem that if % years after
the expiration Of service Mexican war
soldier was entitled TO persiCn at G2
years, and no other requisite f,r draw
ing q pension should exist except
age, that to soldiers Of the civil war V no
fought vastly more and longer, at least
as coed rule ought to apply. The Mex
lean war limit Of 81 years was probably
brought about by the well-knOWn army
limit of G2 years at which officers are &c
tired. There seems to be a general con-
sensus Of opinion that at 62 years the
disabilities of old age have set in. Tie
order could not have been issued earlier.
because it is only row that the 80 years
fixed by the congressional limit has been
reached. The civil war ended April T..
1865, and in enlistments in the loyal
states these who enlisted after that time
are held to have no reasonable service
during the war of the rebellion. Hence
the SO years would expire on the 18th Of
next month, and it is very proper that the
order should be issued fixing the sixty
second year as the minimum age Limit
and the Biblical three score and ten as
the maximum.
Will Save Money and Time.
There is an advantage and saving to
the government in the use of this order,
because every old soldier who has
reached the age of G2 years is able to
prove almost without possibility Of
doubt that he is one-half disabled from
earning his support by manual labor
This being SO, it seems unwise to put
soldier to the expense of time and trans
porttation to go to a place where med
ical board can examine him to find that
fact out, and on the other hand it seems
unnecessary for the government to keep
boards established, and then pay six
dollars for the examination of soldier
when the result of the examination can
be so accurately foretold. am of the
opinion that this order will save the
government good deal of money. Of
the 200, 900 examinations in the last year.
if one-fourth of them were saved it
would make 100000, and perhaps an
equal amount in time and transportation
to the old soldiers, who would have to
go and be examined"