Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1908-07-26
MovEMENTs OF OCEAN srrAnnsHrpa.
DECRY 0LD-AGE PENSION BILL
Measure of Liberals is Unpopular
with People IL Aims to
BeneHt.

LONDON, July, %. - Especially - Few
measures designed to work a great social
reform have attracted such unanimously
hostile criticism as the old age pensions
bill which the Liberal government Of Eng
land has announced it's determination to
pass into law. The bill is scorned as an
inadequate makeshift by those whom 1t
is designed to benefit, is damned by the
socialists and the Labor party in Parlia-
ment as Objectionable in many of It's prin-
cipal features, sneered at by the Tories as
an attempt to steal their thunder-for 1t
was the great Unionst leader, Joseph
Chamberlain, who first brought forward
the scheme OF pensions for aged workers
while a great section OF the old-fashioned
liberals condemn it is blow at private
enterprise and dlscouragment to thrift.
Furthermore the great friendly societies,
which are very powerful in this country,
are opposing 1t with their might because
they say that the bill, by It's defects.
would make voluntary provision for old age
not only necessary but detrimental to
the great majority OF the workers.
Briefly the bill proposed to pay $1.25 a
week after January /. 1909, to every person
over seventy years Of age who is not al
ready in receipt of an income of $3.50 a
week, but this was amended in favor OF a
sliding scale providing the following pen
sion A25 to incomes not exceeding 81;
81 to those not exceeding $225; Toe to
those not exceeding $3.50; 5Oc to those not
exceeding $2.75; and 25c to those not ex-
ceeding 50. II this were carried out il
would be a good beginning of a great re-
form, but the fact seems TO be that the
Liberal party has gone off at half cock
and is now regretting its preclpitancy. 1t
promised old age pensions bill, but
when the time came TO meet its engage
ment the funds were wanting 1t tried to
delay but the pressure of the Labor men
and the socialists and the sneers of the
Unionists forced 1t to do something
What It did was to bring forward a meas
ure in which the promises were whitfield
down TO the minimum, and in which all
sorts OF conditions were made the effect
Of which will be to deprive of relief fully
half OF those who would be entitled to a
pension under a generous scheme.
To begin with, the age has been fixed
too high. Mr.. Asquith, the prime Minis
ter, estimates that 1t will cost $780,
900 for the first three months. which is
all he has to provide for out OF this years
budget Next year on the same basis he
will have to find $24,OOOOOO, and so far he
has given no indication of where 1t is COM
ing from. on this basis about $1,000 old
people will receive pensions but 1t is es-
timated that there are in England 1854 900
persons over seventy years OF age who are
In needy circumstances. Then few workers
are able to care for themselves after
siXty-five or even after sixty. There are
2ll6,OO0 needy persons over sixty-five
years in old in England 1t is estimated
that the cost of pensions as proposed to
| all who really need them and who would be
entitled TO them under full scheme would
be about $1JO.OOOOOO year.