The Washington times., 1911-02-15
CIVIL AND MILITARY PEN.
SION SYSTEMS.

Gen. Daniel E. Sickles, in open letter
to- Congress and the President, urges
the passage of the long impending bill
for retirement of surviving officers of
the civil war, at the retired pay of their
rank. This would cost about $4,000
600 year, in addition to present pen
sions, or $3,OOO,OOO in addition to the
pension system which will be in effect
if the Sulloway bill passes. The Sullo-
way bill adds about $45 100000 a year
to present pensions, which are about
Sl45,OOOOOO.
General Sickles urges that surviving
officers of the volunteer army are en-
titled to retired pay of their rank, and
that it is discrimination against them
to Scny this.
80 it is-if the pensions are to be
regarded as PAY for the services they
rendered their country.
There has always been a certain
satisfaction in regarding the pensions
as something more than this. If the
pension is merely PAY for services
rendered, then the country, paying it,
is released from any obligation of
gratitude and respect for the men who
wore the blue. They carried muskets
as other men carry hods, they fought
as other men dig coal.
Il is not easy quite to agree with
General SickIes. Nobody doubts that
every surviving soldier ought to have
q pension if he needs it; but we think
few will assent that, if he doesn't
need it, he ought to have it because he
earned it.
When the nation sets about seriously
to pay for patriotism it will be put
ting patriotism on a commercial plane.
1t cannot do that in safety.
In this matter of the Governments
obligations to those who serve it, more
sentiment and less sentimentality
would be a good thing Everybody
would approve legislation that would
absolutely assure that no surviving
Soldier should remain in want But,
in order that the needy might be re-
lieVed, why distribute largess to the
pprfent?
The Sulloway bill is said to be fated
to a veto, if it pass. President Taft
will draw strongly on his resources of
sincerity and honesty, if he vetoes this
measure. But he will deserve well of .
people who prefer honesty to sham.
There are now over 100000 surviving
veterans of the civil war on the pension
rolls. No man knows how many of .
them need the pensions they draw, but
everybody knows that many of them
do ,not. 1t is proposed to increase
the pensions of those who need and
those who do not need alike.
The volunteer officers retirement
bill would affect about $1,000 surviv-
ing officers of the civil war, giving
them retired pay of the ranks they
held when discharged, without regard
to their needs or deserts.
There are just about equal numbers
of people in the grand army of civil
war survivors, and in the civil service
of the country. The very mention of
pensions and retirement for the sur
Vivors of the civil service army arouses
violent opposition. Yet the very same
man who denounces the civil pension
list and the civil pension idea, will
turn around in his swivel chair and
vote loud AYE" for an addition of
S45OOO,0OO to the civil war pension
list. .'
He does not know how much of that
money will 60 to people who need it.
He knows much will go to those who
do not need it.
He knows that if civil pension list
were established no pension would be
given to anybody who had not. earned