The Washington times., 1912-02-04
TAFT SOON TO URGE
CLERKS PENSION IN
SPECIAL MESSAGE
Booklet Giving Data on
Needed Relief for En-
ployes to Be Issued.

A special message by President Taft
advocating a pension system for Gov
ernment clerks, the publication of a
booklet giving all the facts collected by
the comIhittRe of one hundred ard
special meeting of the committee Will
be early developments in the matter
Of securing relief for aged clerks from
Congress
The message of the President has been
promised and the booklet is In the
hands of the printer. The committee
meeting will be called as soon as Presi"
dent Taft has submitted his views to
Congress.
Part or the subject matter OF the COM
mittee's booklet has been printed, but
much other data then will be set forth
for the first time, according to the
statement of Chairman Chnse of the
committee. Detailed comparison will be
made of the cost OF living here and
abroad ard salaries of Governmental
employees also will be stated. The his
tory of pension systems in foreign
countries, notably in the English colo-
nies III Australasia, will be recited.
Tho substance of tn sse experiments In
Australia and New Zealand has been
printed on Sundays in the Washington
newspapers IN the form OF short essays.
Average Salary Small.
One feature of the booklet will be a
statement of the accounts of clerk
IN a department who supports a family
of three on a salary of 81 200. The dis
bursements of this household are gone
into in minutest detail, and the argu-
ment is made that II is absolutely i'm
possible for any savings to be made
out Of this income. Hence the necessity
of pension. Attention Is called to the
fact that the average salary of a Gov
ernment clerk in Washington is a good
deal less than $1,000.
A bulletin from the committee Of one
hundred this morning argues for a civil
pension system as n natural and essen
tial feature of the civil service law. "It
ia the logical apex or cap-sheaf of the
system" says tho bulletin, "and the
enactment of same provision OF the sort
is only a question Of time. This con-
clrsicn is strongly supported by the
review OF civil pension systems set out
in the committees pamphlet
1t has been impossible to secureNcom-
plete data as to civil pensions paid en-
ployes os private concerns in foreign
countries, but such systems are quite
common. The English railway compa-
nies pay approximation benefits. many
British banks do the saTe, and II Is
believed the custom Is very Common
| among industrial concerns.
Corporation Pensions.
"In the United States a steadily in
creasing number of municipalities, rail-
roads and manufacturing establish
ments pay approximation benefits.
Just how many such systems there are
| cannot be told from any statistics
! which are available, but the total num-
her is probably near 200, and 10 grow
ing. Some of the largest COZ porations
made provision for their own employees
before the year 1899 In that year the
Pennsylvania railroad company first in
auRurated the approximation system
for all its ofticHrs and employees, the
entire expense being borne by the conf
pany. Most of the large railroad sys-
! TENS and many industrial concerns
step has been taken not on philan-
thropic or charitable grounds but be-
cause It works for economy and effl-
cheney, end actually saves money. Or
ganiZations OF working men are innug-
urating the system at their own eX-
| peEse."
The committees booklet makes con-
ports OF the Cabinet officers who
strongly indorsed pension systems at
the first of the, year. Quotations also
are made from the references to the
subject by President Taft in two mes
sages to Congress These excerpts are
| of course, additional to what II Is ex-
pected the President will say in his
lariy with the question OF civil SER
| vice penFiOn