The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1912-01-18
DEMOCRATIC PENSION STEAL
WHAT COULD BE DONE WITH
$50, OOO, 900.

Since the Democratic Hoo0c VI
REPRESENTATIVES vas elected and be-
gan TO legislate IL has been guilty OF
many acts OF cheap politics which
have not succeeded in fooling even
: the average voter in any quarter OF
the country.
The first thing they did was TO in
troduce resolutions appointing COM
mittees of investigation to investi-
gate every branch of the Government
service and appropriated large sums
of money to pay the expenses or
these Investigating or smelling
committees, as the press generally
called them. it soon became clear
to every one that the purpose
of these committees was to use
the time Of Democratic members OF
Congress, who were being paid sal
airy for their services, to begin an In
yestigation to try to nose around and
unearth material for the use OF the
Democratic party in the next cam
paign, and that besides large
amount of public money was being
appropriated and used to pay the ex-
penses OF these Investigations.
Up to date, not a single one OF
these committees have found any evil
dence of corruption or mismanage-
ment which could be used by the
Democratic party in the next cam
paign. In spite of this fact, these
same committees are now asking
Congress to pass resolutions to au-
thorize them to continue their inves-
legations and to appropriate more
money to pay the expenses of their
political Investigations.
At the beginning Of this session Of
Congress, the Democratic leaders,
realizing that they had not secured
any campaign material through the
efforts of these political smelling
committees" and probably would not,
set about to devise new ways to man
ufacture campaign material at public
expense The big thing that they hit
upon early in this session was to pre-
pare and introduce and pass through
the House a pension bill appropriate
ing $75,OOO,OOO of the peoples taxes
to swell. the pensions of Northern
soldiers, and to include in the list Of
beneficiaries of this big political graft
not only the soldiers who fought but
thousands and tens of thousands of
those who in one way or another were
tagged on to the Union army, who
were never in battle, but who never
powder during the whole war.
This bill was rushed through the
and it is noticeable that when it was
being passed that Mr.. Champ Clark,
the leading candidates for the Demo-
cratic nomination for the Presidency,
did the unusual thing of rising in his
seat as Speaker and asking that his
name should be called so that he
could vote, and that he voted in ia
vor of this SIS 100000 pension steal
"a steal for which no Union soldier
who ever actually fought on the
Northern side has ever asked. 1t is
clear that Speaker Clark took this
action in order to strengthen himself
with the Northern soldiers so as to
make himself the most available
dency.
The only ground on which the
Southern Democrats who voted for
this pension steal can justify them
selves as even playing good politics.
is that the Southern Confederate SOL
diers will vote the Democratic tick
ct, no matter what their leaders do,
and that they can boldly take $751;
100000 of the peoples taxes and use
it as a Democratic campaign fund,
with the hope Of buying the Northern
soldier vote, in order to secure the
Presidency for their party, and thus
provide offices for an army of Demo-
cratic politicians.
Congressman Gudger, Of North
s Carolina, who voted along with
Speaker Clark for this pension steal,
has published card explaining and
defending his vote, in which he says: