The Savannah morning news., 1904-02-06


Politics is responsible for the greater
part of the pension burden which the
people are now carrying, and it is safe
to say that politics is behind the serv-
ice pension bill. This bin makes it's
appearance just when it will be of the
greatest benefit to the Republican par
ty. 1t isn't probable that that party
intends to pass the bill at this session
of Congress. 1t may be reported fav-
orably in one house at this session.
Then the impression will be conveyed
in the campaign speeches of the Re-
publicans that if those who would be
benefited by the bill want 1t passed
they must work for and cast their
votes for the presidential ticket of the
Republican party.
To put the case a little differently,
the treasury of the United States is to
be drawn on for $1,000, 900 a year, for
many years, to keep the Republican
party in power. 1t would seem as If
the people would rise up in their might
and condemn the party that would thus
burden the people for its own benefit.
A careful estimate has been made
of the size of the burden which this
bill would impose upon the people.
This estimate is that it would be about
$60,000,000 the first year, and that in
all it would be more than $500, 1000, 900.
Very few of the men who would get
a service pension were ever engaged
in battle. The most of them probably
enlisted during the last days of the
Civil War, when it was certain that
the war was practically over. They
enlisted for a short term, and the
most of them, in all probability, never
expected to have to go to the front.
AS a matter of fact thousands of them
never reached the scene of hostilities.
These are the men who, according
to this service bill, are to be saddled
upon the people. 1t is probable that
not one in ten of them is in need of
assistance from the government. Many
doubtless are in comfortable circum-
stances, some of them probably having
more of this worlds goods than they
have any need for. Some of them, of
course, are poor, but it isn't the duty
of the government to give assistance
to it's citizens who are poor.
All of these men were we'll paid for
the service they rendered. They were
given bounties, some of them very
large ones. The thought of getting pen
sions never entered their minds until
the politicians and pension attorneys
began agitating the question of PEN
sions for them.
This country, with the record which
it has for liberality in the matter of
pensions, will hardly dare engage
in another war, because of the
danger of bankruptcy. There has been
paid out now for Civil War pensions
pretty near as much as that war cost
the North, and it is practically certain
that in the course of time the pensions
which will be paid on account of the
Spanish American War will greatly ex-
coed the cost of that war. If European
countries were half as liberal as this
country in the matter of pensions they
would have been bankrupted long ago.
Is there not courage and patriotism
enough in either house of Congress to
defeat this service pension bill? Are
congressman so anxious about their own
reflections that they are afraid to
speak out against it? The people who
will have to furnish the money for the
pensions ought to call mass meetings
and pass resolutions to the effect that
they will prevent the reelection of any
one who votes for the bill.