The Democratic banner. (Mt. Vernon, Ohio) 1898-192?, 1916-06-27

section OF the bill restores to re-
married widows their former pension.
able status, when they again become
widows. Under existing law, when the
widow of civil war veteran remar.
ries, her pension ceases, as it should
but should she again become widow
she cannot be restored to the pension
rolls unless she can prove that her
soldier husband died of disabilities
contracted in the service-a very diff
dier's widow remarries should not pen
alize her from being restored to the
pension rolls. The law should not
penalize marriage and doubly so since
it is to the financial gain of the Gov
ernment. During the period of her re.
married state, the Government is re-
lieved from paying the pension she
otherwise would be entitled to receive
had she not remarked. This is simple
justice to this class of widows. This
bill also restores the pensionable stat
us to remarked widows who may have
received a divorce from a later hus-
band when the cause for divorce is
provisions of Sec. 2, are plain, simple
justice, and, take it, do not require
further elaboration and certainly no
apology.
Section 3 raises the marriage re-
strictions from June q, 1890, to June
27, 1905, or for a period of Is years.
Under the act of June 81, 1890, no wi
dow who married a soldier after that
date Is entitled to a pension. There
was possibly good cause at that time
for this restriction, for it is claimed
young women quite often married old
soldiers largely because of the pros
pect Of securing a pension. Special
acts have been passed for number
of years, for widows who were mar
ried since the passage of the Act of
1890, about 26 years ago. No woman
who married a soldier during the past
II years, or who may hereafter marry
a soldier, will be entitled to pension
No woman who has married soldier
during the past 20 years can be charg.
ed with having married the soldier
with the expectancy of receiving a
pension. The committee believed
therefore, that it was fully warranted
in lifting this restriction for a period
of Is years.
Many complain because the age is
placed at 70 before pension of 500
per month is given, on the grounds
that comparatively few live to OF
beyond the age of 20. Others complain
because the marriage restriction is
not brought down to later date. II
it would cost the Government no more
to place the age limit at 60, and to
raise the marriage limitations to 1915
or to make it $50 per month instead ol
$40, the committee would have been
pleased to report such bill, and | am
sure that Congress would pass it
Each year, however, adds tens OF
thousands of dollars to the pension
cost, which, many believe, is already
very generous. No general law will
mete out strict justice to all, but this
bill will bring relief to thousands OF
deserving widows, and those who are
not beneficiaries will surely not self
ishly begrudge the benefits it will
bring to others because it does not
happen to benefit them. An arbitrary
line must be drawn somewhere, and
l believe the provisions of this bill will
bring, in the aggregate, greater bene
fit to the civil war widows than any
bill which has ever been proposed.
Mr.. Speaker, this bill will make
more happy hearts and homes in this
broad land of ours than any piece ot
legislation that has been or will be
passed by the Gath Congress, and
believe no Congress ever enacted into
law as much wholesome legislation
as the present Congress. My whole
heart has been wrapped up in this bill
If all the members of this great body
could read the thousands of pitiful
pleading letters ] have received dur
ing the past three months from help
less and dependent old women from
every State in the Union, | do not be
lieve there would be vote against the
bill. have, as nearly as possible, an
swered all such letters, whether from
Maine or California, with as much con
sideration as l would from an old wi
dow who lives in my home town.
We are appropriating by the hun
dreds of millions for preparedness, but
to my mind, no equal amount of mon
ey appropriated for preparedness vii
do as much good in the interest o
preparedness as the cost of this bill
which is about half the cost OF bat
tleship Young men will more quickly
enlist in the service Of our country
when they know that should disease
or death overtake them a gratefu