The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1911-10-16
And Millions of Dollars Will
Be Saved by the New
Plan.

WASHINGTON ID. Co Oct. 10
A saving, estimated at 81, OOO,0
annually os.the pensioners OF the
United States and eventually about
tslsO, 900 a year to the government,
Is contemplated by a slmplided plan
for the payment of pensions with
out vouchers which Commissioner
of pensions = II Davenport submit
ted to the seeTstary Of the interior
in his Annual fbport Just made pub
lie.
During the year .S157, S25 ,1eo was
paid as pensiona decrease OF So
4es. 154, from list year, making the
total amount phid in pensions since
the foundation OF the government
81, % q, 3s1,TSos Thets were 56.4eb
names dropped nom the pension.
rolls and :26,2hO added, leapillE- 2
net loss of % s5 PensioneEs sElle
total number d the end OF the gear
was s92, 09S, the smallest since
1882. Method of economy resulted
in decrease 81 the cost OF admin
istration by s$f4O.546, the amount
being $2.5d7. 1aa. the lowest since
1882.
Commissioner Davenport's plan
which was devised at the request of
Congress and which will require the
passage of a law. would greatly sim
p1ify the methods of paying pensions.
result in the mailing of pension
checks on the date upon which the
pension falls DUE eliminate the
cost to the pen6ioner in large ma
jority of cases of the execution OF
pension vouchers, which varies from
81 to 50 yearly; decrease to con-
siderable, extent the work in draw!
ing and mailing pension checks and
eliminate the sending of 100000
letters yearly through the mails.
saving about $4,000 thereby.
The plan c6ntemplates payment
direct by check mailed to the last
address of th6S peus1oner- Besides
the Endorsement on the back of these
checks the government would re-
quire certificates by the witnesses as
to identity. In a few instances Com
missioner Davenport said vouchers
still would be required.
Commissioner Davenport told Of
his efforts to ascertain the truthful
ness in the press and else
where that the pension roll was
honey-combed with fraud. He sent
held men from pensioner to pen
sioner in the washington agency
and is now doing the same in the
Knoxville agency with view to
probing fraud. Out of a total OF.
47Is1 pensioners seen and queS-
toned only twenty-siX cases OF I'M
proper pensioning were revealed.
The commissioner said he believed
the check system would put an end
to any fraud that may now exist.
The number of soldiers and sailors
on the pension roll at the close OF
the fiscal year was t57O,O5O, depend
ents and widows s21. 642, and army
nurses 4o6. There were 529, s84
survivors OF the Civil war. 1924
having died during the year. 1t Is
believed that only about Twenty-Five
per cent of the estimated 2,213.$66
individuals in the United States ser
vice during the Civil war are now
living, the death rate Of the sur
vivors being now slightly in excess
of six per cent yearly. The average
age Of survivors is now about 10
years.
The last pensioner of the Revolu-
tionary war, MRS. Phoebe Palmeter'
daughter OF Jonathan Weekly. who
served in a New Hampshire com.
pany, died at Brookfeld, N. y
April 2.5, 1911. aged 80 years.
Mrs. britannia w. Kennen, OF
Washington. ID. C., a great grand
daughter OF Martha Washington
and who died during the year, drew
a pension as a widow longer prob
ably than any other person in tho
history OF the pension Office, having
received $50 a month almost 81
years. Mrs. Kennen was the widow
of the captain of the o. S. s. Prince
ton, who was killed FEBRUARY 2s'
1884, by the bursting of cannon
on that vessel. on which OCCASION two
members of President Tyler's cabi-
| net were killed.