Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1904-03-24
ROOSEVELT, TIE LAwMAKER.
From the New YORK world

There has been an impression that we are
to elect president next November. It is
mistake. Unless Mr.. Roosevelt be totally
at sea regarding the nature of his Office we
are to elect a czar.
| No other sort Of potentate-not even the
mikado or the German emperor, each Of
whom is hampered by constitution and a
parliament would venture to assume such
sweeping Legislative powers as have been
assumed by the Rough Rider in the white
house in enacting by his sole will that ser
vice-pension law which congress itself has
never dared to pass.
That the president has exercised the law
making power is self-evident. Congress has
passed a number of pension laws. When
it has meant service and age to give claim
to pension, as in the case of veterans of
the war of 1912 and of the Mexican war, it
has said so distinctly. When it provided
in the department. pension act Of 1890 that
veterans of the civil war should be pension
able for disability from any cause, not a
single member imagined that the mere
chronological fact of reaching the age of
sixty-two could ever be held to constitute
such disability The Grand Army itself,
with its microscopic eye for pension possi-
bilities, has always taken it for granted
that its service pension millennium would
have to come through congress. if at all.
If this measure were sane, prudent and
in every way desirable, Mr. Rooseyelt's
reckless usurpation of power in throwing
open the doors of the treasury without
authority Of law would still be startling
assault on our institutions But the scheme
itself is as vicious as the manner of its ac-
complishment Our gigantic popularity
and party campaign pay roll is already a
scandal. 1t contained 999, 443 names last
June and has since been run up to over
million. Before the new service pension
initiation it was costing about $40, 100000
a year. 1t has cost from the beginning over
three billion dollars. Talk about European
socialism. militarism and imperialism
what are they to this colossal financial mer-
ger of past wars and present politics?
We have for military pensions twice as
much as the three great military powers of
Europe France, Germany and Russia,
combined. They keep over two million
men under arms in time of peace; they
have all been engaged in great wars since
we have and they all have to care for SOL
diers disabled from year to year in their
vast regular armies; yet France spends only
$2S, 900, 900 year in pensions, Russia $22,
100000 and Germany $4,000, 600. We
pay more in pensions on account of war
that ended thirty-nine years ago than
France spends for maintaining an army Of
$50, 600 men to-day.
Fli ysaF ghs cfyis VA ended Ne were
paying S., 52s. 15s for pensions. Ten years
later the figures had climbed to 500, 6S3, =
l1l6. In another decade the bill was $65, =
693, 706. Ten years later still it had
mounted to S140, 959, 1861. It has remained
in that neighborhood ever since. One year
it reached $152, 155, 342. Nobody can
tell what it will be under the new Roose-
welt service pension decree.
This subsidized patriotism is an insult to
American love of country. 1t implies that
of all the nations of the world ours is the
only one whose people will not fight for it
except on a cash basis. While Japan is
displaying an example of self-sacrifcing
patriotism we are offering the spectacle of a
patriotism measured by the pay roll.
Our pension system is distinctly socia-
listic-it is only step from old age pen
sions for everybody. When the supply of
old soldiers is exhausted does anybody
suppose that the demands for pensions will
cease? They are talking of pensioning the
teamsters now, and as long as there are
politicians like Roosevelt to barter the pub
lie welfare for votes there will always be
new and ever new classes of pensioners to
go on the subsidy roll.
If Andrew johnson had committed a
breach Of the constitution one-tenth as flag
rant as that just perpetrated by his success
sor in the accidental occupancy of the white
house in his mad hunt for delegates, his
impeachment would not have failed by one
vote in the senate
Proper Treatment Of Pneumonia.