The Richmond palladium. (Richmond, Ind.) 1906-1907, 1907-01-27
Senator kirkman to Present
Measure in Interest of
Members of 161St.
FAILED TO GET FULL PAY
COLLECTION AGENCY GOT TWEN-
TY-FIvE PER CENT OF THE SOL
DIERS' MONEY-oTHER LEGIS-
lATIVE NEWS.
(By Demas S. Coe.)

Indianapolis. Ind. Jan. o6.-Rich-
mond boys, who were members OF
Company F., 161st Indiana regiment in
the Spanish-American war, will be in
terested in learning of bill which
Senator Kirkman will introduce Mon
day or Tuesday in the upper branch
of the general assembly.
The measure is drawn for the relief
which was under command of Col. w.
N Durbin. Last summer, it will be
remembered the members of the reg
iment received back pay for services
rendered, it having been discovered
that this regiment was the only one
from Indiana in the Spanish-American
pay from the date of enlistment up to
the day the regiment was mustered
out Instead, the pay of the 161st
iated from the day of being mustered
in, which was some weeks after en-
1istment.
Claim Sustained.
The claim against the government
for pay covering the period between
enlistment and actual mastering into
the service, was sustained and the
money was paid. 1t developed aft
erward, however, that the State of
Indiana had entered into a contract
with professional government claim
experts to- recover the amount due
the 161st and for this service these
claim agents received 25 per cent OF
the entire amount secured for the In
diana soldiers In other words they
received 20 cents on each and every
dollar that a member of the 161st re-
ceived. Senator Kirkman's bill seeks
to rectify what through inadvertance
was a gross injustice. The money
due from the government should have
been paid the members of the regi-
ment without any "scalping" and
since the close of the transaction the
feeling has been growing that the
state of Indiana had no moral right,
if it did have legal authority to enter
into such a contract
Uncle Sam Was willing.
The government would have made
the payment upon being presented
with evidence that such was due. and
it did not take professional agents 10
convey the information. Senator
Kirkman's bill is to provide for the
reimbursement of the boys of the
161st The. measure calls for an ap-
preparation of $1,000 to meet the
emergency which is declared exists.
If Richmond member of the regi-
ment received $40 last summer, he
will now get SO addtional--a % per
cent dividend The bill may be
expected to meet with opposition as
all measures carrying appropriations
do, but many members of the senate
as well as the house will stand for 1t. /
x X *
This will be a big week in the legis- /
Iature. The senate has piled up bus /
mss during the past five or six days
and has prepared many measures for
the consideration of the house. The /
o-cent railroad fare will be passed in
some form or other by the senate this
week. it having been reported for pas
sage by the committee on Friday. The
81 900 license bill which was advanc- I
ed to engrossment this week, will be
called up on third reading and pas
sage Monday afternoon or Tuesday
morning There likely will be anoth-
er fight made to reduce the amount
that the school fund shall receive. AS
it now stands, the bill gives the
school fund $500. 1t would not sur
prise anybody. however, if the senate
made an equal division between
school fund and town or city corpora
tion-$500 each.
House is Doubtful.
The house will view the bill late in
the week. What the house will do
remains TO be seen. Many sena-
tors hopes and ambitions TO have
law labeled with his name have been
shattered by the house. The body is
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