New-York tribune., 1919-06-14
Secretary Lane Writes Letter
Approving Transfer of
Soldier Compensation Di-
vision to Pension Bureau
Urged 1t on President
Head of Interior Department
Told Wilson He Had Full
Working Organization
By Theodore M. Knappen

washington bureau
WASHINGTON, June 13.-Franklin
X. Lane, Secretary Of the Interior, has
come out in favor of the transfer of
the compensation division of the War
Risk Bureau to the Pension Bureau.
In expressing by letter to Senator Nc
Cumber, of North Dakota, his approval
of the latter's bill providing for such a
transfer, Secretary Lane reveals that
he recommended such course to Pres
ldent Wilson a year ago, and that he
repeated this recommendation to Dem
ocratic members Of Congress six
months ago.
Bills similar to Senator McCumber's
have been introduced in the House by
Representative Fuller, of Massachu-
setts, and Fordney, Of Michigan. The
correspondence made public to-day by
Senator McCumber includes a letter
from G. M. Saltzgaber, Commissioner
OF PENSIONS, recommending the change.
The Treasury Department is opposed
to the change, and it now recalled that
the original conception was that the
Bureau of Pensions should handle COM
pensations, but at the suggestion of
Mr.. McAdoo, then Secretary of the
Treasury, not orly compensations. but
soldiers allotments and allowances. as
we'll as soldiers insurance, We're put
into the War Risk Bureau of the Treas
ury Department., which thus engulfed
the greatest new permanent organiza-
ton the war created.
Why Lindsey Was Eliminated
One of the reasons that contributed
to the elimination of Colonel Henry D.
Lindsey as director of the War Risk
bureau was his advocacy of the plan of
transferring compensation to the Pen
sion Bureau
The Treasury Department and the
Department Of the Interior are now
brought into open conflict.
1.-THE Pension Bureau" said Secre-
tary Lane in his letter to the Presi-
dent, "is officered and regulated for
the proper and early disposition of
claims 1t has a field force, the mcm-
bers of which have had years of cxpe-
rience in inquiry into and report upon
CLAIMS. 1t has an arrangement for de-
signing and placing the files of the bu
reau so as to make them readily ac-
cessible.
"1ts various divisions for considering
and adjudicating claims, reviewing
them, enrolling them and paying those
admitted have had many years of ex-
perience and they work expeditiously
and intelligently. They could easily
handle the added work incident to
claims for compensation. The bureau
has the trained force and machinery
necessary for mailing millions of
checks annually with efficiency and
despatch"
Says It's Going Machine
1t was explained to the President
that the Compensation Division organ
izatlon practically duplicated that of
the Pensions Bureau. 1t was also
pointed out that on account of it's long
established system of examining
boards the Pension Bureau had 90
ing machine to deal with cases from
the beginning that was superior to anv
new assemblage Of physicians and sur
geons.
Commissioner Saltzgaber says his
bureau has smaller clerical organiza-
ton now than the compensation di-
vision, and yet it can take on the whole
OF the latter's work with but little en-
largement of the staff, thus indicating
great saving in overhead.
The compensation division is a COM
paratively minor part of the War Risk
Bureau, which employees $4,000 per-
sons altogether, of which less than a
tenth are in the compensation work.
Colonel Cholmondelcy Jones, success
sor to Colonel Lindsey as head of the
War Risk Bureau, is firm believer
IN the essential unity of insurance
compensation, allotments and allow
anccs, and holds that whatever NAV
have been the faults and troubles of
the bureau they did not proceed from
the inclusion of unrelated functions.