Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1912-06-23
But Congress Will Only Give Her $50 a Month De-
 Spite Appeal of Raynor.
A BILL WON FAVOR
But It Was Reconsidered-WidO Oi Presidents Get S520O0 a
 Year.
GBy Roderick Clifford. )


 the controversy in the House and Senate over increased pension for the widow of Read Admiral Winfield Sehley, the hero of Santiago, whose death last winter is said to have left Mrs. Schiey in a condition approah- ing destituticn. The pension oill IS still pending ill the House.
 The customary pension paid by the United States to a widow of a maya. officer of the rank of Rear Admiral is $50.000 month. A bill was in- troduced sometime ago in the Senate by Senator Isador Rayner, of Mary land, provided for the payment to Mrs. Schley of a pension of S5O month This amount was pared down to the customary $50. month by the Senate committee on Pensions but when Senator Rayner called up the bill and made" an eloquent address Ill favor of reiec ing the amendment of the committee, tae Senate restored the bill to it's CT ginal of the com mittee, the sum of $150 month to Mrs. Sehley. Later the unamend- ed bill was passed by unanimous vete. The bill then went to the House where the pension again was reduced to $500o a month by the House G2m- mi,tse.
 The sentiment against the giving of this increased pension in every strong in beth houses and nee the action ot the lower body's committee, the Sen ate objection is again showing itself. Senator McCumber and Senator Hey burn led the fight against the Slao pension in the Senate on the ground that the granting of this unusual amount would be discrimination against the widows of other army and navy officers whose services if less spectacular, were no less heroic than were those of Read Admiral Schley. The same sort of Cbjecsion is raised in the House and in view of the fact that the House is inclined to keep an unusually tight hold upon the purse strings of the treasury ln tn session of the Democratic asceniancy, Mrs. Schley's chances of receiving an increased pension are slim.
 It is admitted that Senator Rayner carried his point and gained the S150 month pension almost entirely oh the strength of his speech. It is sel- dom, indeed in these days, when leg islation is framed and enacted oy al most mechanical processes for sln- gle speech, however eloquent, to el- feet the fa,e of d bill, particularly as regards the expenditure of money But Senator Rayner was speaking 10 a body, in which sat Republican ma jority with tendency toward liberal ity in the bestoWal of the pubic money. No such audience, however awaits the member who will argue tol the increased pension in the House O. Representative and the bill is more than likely to be passed carrying merely a pension of 5000 month
 An interesting feature in connec- ton with the passage of the bill n the Senate is that mole Senators re fused to vote upon the measure at all, than voted for it and an analNsls of the vote plainly shows the attitude of the body cn discrlmlnatlou against large number of officers widows by voting a pension increase to the widow of one.
 Those who voted to reduce Mrs Schley's ,,pension were the stand-pai members of the Old Guard including Senators Root and Ledge, waile those who did not vote at all typified the semimcderate members. Those whc voted in favor of the increase and sue ceeded in passing the bill were the insurgent radicals such as Ashurs and Lea.
 The argument conveyed in this alig' mScs seems to have acted as een- sure upon the actions of the Senate for about a week after the schtey pension episode the widow Of Real Admiral Crowinshield WIS voted the customary pension of $50 mGnth without murmur. about increasing the amount.
 The last large Dill of this character passed by the Congress was one granting a pension of $2,o00 year This was done in 1887 and, in the words of Senator McCumber 'there was too much strong opposition to Il and SC much feeling because of the injustice done all the other officers and the widows of all the ether of- -ficars- in-1he great civil Was that