The National tribune., 1911-01-05

| Then II turns about and attacks the
whole pension system. calls 1t be
| stowaf of charity and creates the i'm
preston that the whole system is taint
| ed with fraud. In this it departs wide
| ly from the truth. Not more than fou
per cent of the soldiers were desert
| ers, a smaller percentage than we fine
| in the Regular Army in time of peace
and the frauds perpetrated by those
/ who were not soldiers or by soldiers oi
| by both classes is n much less percent
| age. Yet the Worlds Work makes such
Haunting display of these that it dis
credits the whole army OF veterans. 1
says it does not charge the Pension
Department with fraud, yet publishe!
on its title page picture of the Pen
sion Department as the door thru
which the perpetrators of the frauds o
which it complains carry out theil
plunder. 1t multiplies the evil of g
small pei Icentage who are wrongdoers
to enable it to cast obloquy upon the
whole pension system and upon the
old veterans who saved the Nations
life.
Its charge that the pensions paid the
old soldiers are given as a charity is
an insult of the grossest character. II
is false accusation, mixed with 4
large measure of malevolence. It says
in its article that the true veteran sol
diers do rot get half that they ought 70
have. If this is true, it is not charity
The soldiers of all our wars have been
granted pensions, not as n charity, but
in part payment of a debt the Nation
can never pay. Washington was given
higher pay, high honors, the highest
office in the gift of the Nation. and
thousands of acres of land. not as a
charity, but as a grateful tribute of the
Nation for his services. So, too, Gen
Grant was made the recipient of higher
salaries, higher rank and was made
President of the Nation and his widow
granted a large pension. not as 4 char
ity, but as q high tribute of the Ma
tons regard for his inestimabIe SER
vices. So, too. the rank and file of the
civil war. whose splendid services en-
abled Grant to win his great victories
are deserving the Nations gratitude
and honor, and the bestowal of these is
no more a charity than was their be-
stowal upon Grant and Washington
And yet the Worlds Work in its article
speaks of these civil war veterans as
applicants for National charity" Men
who write thus of the soldiers who
saved the Nations life are men who
would have let the Nation have gone
to the international pawn shop before
they would have struck a blow for it's
safety.
1t is n shameful thing to. complain
that the amount paid for the civil war
soldiers pensions is a burden. Our
Revolutionary fathers, who were poor,
paid heavier pensions by far, consider
ing their ability, and for our Nation
now, when but a few comparatively of
the old soldiers are left, and when it is
the richest Nation under the sun, to
make such whimper, would be dis
grace to the American name. The civil
war soldier wore his life upon his sleeve
thru the bloodiest war in modern his
tory, brought illustrious honor to the
American name. gave three and four
years of the best of his life to save the
Nations life, asked no honors, received
but pittancc of pay, endured hard
ship, exposure and disease, and faced
death upon the battlefield that the Ma
tion might live, saved the Nations life
and saved the Union and liberty for
the world. Yet to-day the COnfeder-
ate soldier, who thrust the war upon
Us and cost us the loss of life of half a
million brave American boys, was par
doned when the war closed. His lands.
which he had forfeited; his life, which
he had forfeited: his political rights.
which he had forfeited. were all given
back to him. and to-day the only diff
ference the Nation makes between Him
and the Union veteran who saved the
Nations life is that the onion veteran
gets pension, and for receiving tIris
the Worlds Work says he is an object
of charity. .-. -r
The Union soldier has in some re-
spects been treated unfairly. The ear
lier enlisted soldier was paid in green
backs instead OF being paid in gold and
silver as DromiSCd; his bounty for en-
liStment vas withheld till his discharge;
he was given only 500 bounty. while
those who enlisted two years later were
paid $500. besides local bountfes This
was owing to the exigC Gcies of the war
and We made no complaint OF it, We
would willingly have fought without
pay or bounty If it had been necessary.
But when after the war the bondholder,
who had bought Government bonds
with greenbacks. was paid the face" OF
them in gold. the veterans asked that
their pay and bounty be equafized, they
were turned down.
And when we come to balance the
books it should be remembered that
the soldier by his exposure and hard
ships ard privations and nervous strain
drew heavily upon his. natural vigor
and shortened his life, and this should
be placed to his credit as claim upon
the Government. When we look back
over the years since the war and see
how soon nearly all the prominent Gen
erals passed away this drain upon their
lives is made strikingly apparent. As
additional testimony I may mention the
Iacl tlat Il comparison made some 70
years ago between the Government rec
ordS and the expectancy of" life as
given by the actuary tables of life in
surance companies showed that the
average soldiers life was shortened 10
years by the war. This indicates how
much the soldier gave towards saving
the Nations life. And If perchance he
is not now as vigorous as he should be.
let the Nation remember his splendid
services and sacrifices
i am not an apologist for any fraud
or for any deserter. ! never asked for
pension. I never received pension
till II was given me on account of age,
when near my three score and 10. I
volunteered in April, 1861, and served
three years and a half at the front all
the time, and had all the fighting /
wanted. And what I complain of in
the attack of the Worlds Work upon
the pension system is that it casts a
slur upon the whole system, and sets
forth all pensioners as subjects of char
ity. / never had occasion to help but
one soldier to get a pension, and he
deserved II, and l never refused to help
but one, and he did not deserve it. |,
therefore. am making no defense of
myself or my record. but simply reply
ing to an unjust article to clear the
p@nsioner of the stigma that has been
cast upon him.. O., A. Campbell,
Lieutenant 5th Iowa, Bellefontaine, o.
Franklin and Wife Honored.
There is little old Quaker cemetery
at the corner of Fifth and Arch streets.
Philadelphia, right in the center of tho