New Britain herald., 1917-08-10

ARMY INSURANCE
 BILL IN CONGRESS

May Have It at $8 a Thousand DEPENDENTS ALLOWANCE Families of Men on Battle Front to
 Receive Allowances According to
 Number and Crcumstances-Pen-
 sions for Wounded Men.
 Washington, Aug. 10.-Authority to make effective the governments pro- gram of insuring the armed forces of the nation was sought of congress to- day in bills introduced in both houses by Senator Simmons and Representa- tive Alexander.
 The proposed legislation was framed to follow plans already an- nounced in general outline and would provide insurance at minimum cost for American soldiers, sailors and ma. rines, the insured mon paying the premiums; family allowances to de- pendents of men in the nations mili- tary or naval service: indemnification for disa bilities and the re-education and rehabilitation, at government ex- pense of injured men.
 A feature not previously announced would make 1t compulsory for off, cers and men to allot minimum of $15 month out of their pay to de- pendent wives and children. The maximum compulsory allotment is half pay. These allotments would be supplemented by family allowances, to be made by the government of from. $5 to $50 a month, according to the circumstances and number of depen- dents.
 To encourage thrift and "better to preserve equality and democracy among the members of our own forces and between them and the Allies" authority is sought to permit the war and navy departments to compel men who do not allot one-half their pay to deposit so much of their half pay as Is not allotted with the government at four per cent interest compounded semi-annually.
 Liberal indemnites for partial and total disability are included in the program, varying from $40 to $75 per month minimum up to $20O month for higher officers. Insurance would be written by the government on the lives of the men at a rate of approx imately $S per thousand in sums of from $1,00O to $10,000, the premiums payable in miscellaneous.
 The cost to the government, as esti- mated by Secretary McAdoo, would approximate the following:
 Family allowances, first year. sl41,- 100000; second year, s190,ooO, OOo
 Death indemnities, first year. $3,- 100000; second year, s22,OoO,oOo.
 Compensation for total disability, first year, s5,25O,000; second year, $35,OOO,00O.
 Compensation for partial disability, first year, s3,2OO,0OO; second year, $21, 100000.
 Insurance against death and dis ability, first year, $23,o00,0o0; second year, SIP, 2,5O0,000.
 Total cost, first year, $176,l5o,0 0oo; second year, $3S0,500,000.
 The total for the two years is thus placed at s556,650,OO0, which MT. Nc Adoo estimates at less than six per cent of the cost to the country of con- ducting the war.
 In it's general features the bill was approved by the advisory committee of insurance representatives sum noned bv Secretary McAdoo to Wash ington July Z.
 "rhev opposed, however. MT. Mc- Adoo advised the president in letter made public with the introductlon or the bills "the grant of any govern meht insurance over and above the condensation, on the ground that the other provisions were liberal enough and might be made more liberal in ways suggested by them. Ihey 1a- yored, over and above compensation the payment by the government or S1OOO in each case of death durlng service or within five years after dis charge of service in lieu Of nsur- anCe.'
 Support of Dependents.
 Children up to Is years or age or if incapable of pursuing 9 substan- tially gainful occupation because Of mental or physical infrmltles then without age limit. And wives of men and officers would be given fam- Nv allowances within the limits des- ignated during the terms of service of the men insured. The amounts would depend on the sex of the fam fly, the allotment made by the hus- band or father out of his pay, ana other circumstances to be determined in each individual case. Other de- pendent relatives would be given al- lowances only in case voluntary allot- ments were made them out of the pay of the man insured.
 The bill does not attempt to cover the methods to be pursued in re-edu- eating and rehabiitating injured men, Two principles, however are recog- nized: The mans obligation to avail himself of such opportunities as the 1 government may provide under pen- slty of loss of compensation during ''any period of unreasonable refusal"