The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1917-09-19
Soldiers and Sailors
Insurance Measure Is
''Best War BiH''- Clark
Washington Correspondent of Age Herald Gives Brief Outline
of This Plan Whereby United States Government is Plan
ming to Care For Dependents of Fighting Men, With
out Recourse to Graft Ridden Pension System
Now in Vogue
Now in Vogue
BY LEO II. SACK

BY LEO
Washington, September 1s.-Within
less than a month provided the Senate
folldws President Wilson'S suggestion
for quick action there will be on the
statute books of the nation what Champ
Clark terms the best war bill" The
anee bill which passed the House by a
unanimous vote. The measure is now
before the Senate, and leaders of that
body are very hopeful that it will be
approved without delay so that its
benefits will be available to the coun-
try's more than 100000 soldiers and
sailors before the Christmas holidays.
Once the law is on the books of the
country many heartache of the soldier
over there and the wife left behind will
be eliminated for it seeks to make ii
clear to the man who is giving his
all for his country that his country Is
not without proper measure of ap-
probation.
EFFECTS ALL FIGHTERS
The proposed law affects every man
in the army and navy, every wife and
child Of soldier or sailor or marine.
1t means that the United States gov
eminent will send a pay check to every
dependent wife and child or parent left
behind and that IL the breadwinner is
disabled or dies in the service there will
be comfortable compensation await
ing the family-an that no further action
is necessary There will be no necessity
for pension attorneys or claim agents
about what should have been provided
when the Congress passed the selective
draft law.
DOES FOUR THINGS
This insurance bill does four things:
/. 1t sets up new government bu-
reau in the treasury department to take
care of administering the proposed new
law.
2. 1t declares that certain amount
of money shall be taken from the pay
of every enlisted man in the army and
navy and shall be paid over to his de-
pendent family; and if this amount IL
not sufficient the government supple
ments the pay to the family by a scten-
tifically graduated series of payments
based on the number of dependents.
3. 1t provides a scientific and equit-
able series of payments to dependent
families in case of disability or death
based on the size of the family.
A. 1t provides for insurance policies t
be taken out by men In the service at
the rate of IS per thousand, with maxi
mum policy of $4,000. This rate of IS is
about one-sixth the rate proposed fol
insuring soldiers and sailors by private
companies. The insurance feature Is no,
compulsory.
A soldier or sailor with a family, the
law provides. must give his wife at least
SIS a month. If his family is so large
that his army pay does not cover Its
needs, the United States government
takes care of it with a family allow.
ance, not over $50 a month.
FAMILY ALLOWANCE
Here is the family allowance sched-
ule:
If there be wife, but no child, SIS;
wife and one child, SIS; wife ana two
children, $3.50 with SIS month add.
tional for each additional child.
If there be no wife but one child
IS; no wife and two children, $1250;
three children. $40; four children, $50
with SIS a month additional for each
additional child
Schedules for dependent parents al
S10 nd Ire
brother or sister. the schedule allows
SIS for each department 1t should be
remembered. however. that the only
really compulsory allotments under
the family allowance section are to
wives and children. the latter until
reaching the age of IS. This compul-
sorry allotment may be set aside if
the wife declares she does not need
help: The insurance bureau will is
sue regulations to cover every pos
sible case.
Take a typical case:
TYPICAL CASE
private gets ssS for service
abroad. If he has wife and two chill
dren he must allot to them at least
SIS out of his pay. The government
supplements this by giving the fam
lily $32.50 more which makes the fam
lily income $3.50. The father can al
lot as much more of his pay as he
pleases. but he must allot at least SIS
Should there be. another child the gov
eminent will pay another SIS.
If that man should have a father
or a mother dependent on him. to
whom he has been accustomed to give
say, SIS a month. he can secure an
allotment from the government of $1u
more by giving up another SIS Of his
pay.
Thus, a private with wife. three
children and a mother actually de
pendent upon him, by giving UP $40 a
IL 1T. 1T ant