The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1904-09-27
JUDGE. A. B. PARKER'S
LETTER OF ACCEPTANCE,
Continued from Second Page.)


soldiers and sailors long survived the
age Of sixty-two. and passed away
without receiving any pension Skill
ful pension attorneys hunting through
the statute failed to find there pro-
vision giving pension to all who had
reached sixty-two. Many prominent
veterans urged the justice of con-
gressional action giving a service
pension to all veterans. Bills to
that effect were introduced in con-
gress. And not until March of this
year did any one ever claim to have
made the discovery that the president
had power to treat the statute as if
it read that when a claimant had pass
ed the age of sixty-two years he is
necessarily disabled one-half in ability
10 perform manual labor and there
fore entitled to a pension.
The president OF the civil service
commission, Gen. Jno C. Black, for
merly commissioner of pensions and
commander in chief of the
grand army OF the republic
indicated his view of the order when
in recent address he thanked the
president for what he had done, and
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auence that law might be passed to
the same effect Full confidence af-
ter all seems not to have been placed
on the defense of justification. for
it is pleaded in mitigation that a
former democratic president did
something looking in that direction.
Even if it were so-which is not ad-
mitted our present duty would be
none the less plain and imperative
Our people must never tolerate the
citation Of one act of usurpation >of
power as an excuse for an
other. The first may possibly
be due to a mistake; the Sec
ond, being based on the first, cannot
be. In explanation, however, it
should be said that the order relied
on simply provided that the age of
seventy-6ve years should be regarded
as evidence of inability to perform
manual labor. Few men are able
to perform manual labor at that age,
but nearly all men are at sixty-two.
The first order is based on a fact
that experience teaches, the other is
based OF the assertion of that which
is not true as general rule.
The old inquiry, "What are you
going to do about it?" is now stated
in new form. 1t is said by the
administration, in reply to the public
criticism of this order, that "It is
easy to test Our opponents sincerity
in this matter. The order in question
is revocable at the pleasure of the
executive If our opponents come
into power they can revoke this Or
der and announce that they will treat
the veterans of sixty-two and seventy
as presumably in full bodily vigor
and not entitled to pension. Will
they authoritatively state that they
intend to do this? If so, we accept
the issue"
This suggests the suspicion, at
least, that the order was made to
create an issue-that it was suppos-
ed to present strong strategic po-
sition on the battle OF the ballots On
the assumption of that order, as
stated by the administration, is re-
vocablc at the pleasure of the execu-
tive it having been an attempted,
though perhaps unwilling encroach-
ment upon the legislative power, and,
) therefore unwarranted by the consti-
tuition, I accept the challenge and
declare that if elected, |
will revoke that order. But will
60 further and say that that being
done, I will contribute my effort to-
ward the enactment of law to be
passed by both houses Of congress
and approved by the executive that
will give an age pension without ref
erence to disability to the surviving