Richmond daily register. (Richmond, Madison County, Ky.) 1917-1978, 1920-02-18
CONGRESS HAS DONE
NOTHING FOR LEGION
Ex-Service Men Are Said To Be
Preparing ITO Go To Mat"
For A Just Reward

Washington, D. C. Feb. 17-It be-
gins to look as though the five mill
lion men who served with the colors
Huring the war and the Republican
leaders have declared their stand of
for finish fight on the bonus OF,
compensation question. The majority
leaders have de clared their stand of
no compensation for this Congress and
nothing but party caucus can over
turn them before they come to the
mat with the soldiers. Indications
that former service men over the
country have put the present Con-
lgress down as faithless and ineifici-
ept and that they intend going after
the "scalp" of those responsible for
the party policy are coming in from
various sections of the country.
The complaint Of the former service
men is that after year of waiting
and trusting in the pledges of the
present Congress they now under
stand that the present body of law
makers are unwilling to make a COM
pensation adjustment in any form at
this time. At a special conference of
the Republican leaders held within the
last few days it was decided that the
men would be told they must wait be-
| fore relief or adjustment will be given
them.
| In the meantime, the American Lee
gion representing some million and a
| half organized former service men,
through it's executive committee, has
called on Congress to keep the faith
it pledged the men during last sum-
mer and fall and has. stated it's be-
lief that a fifty dollar bond should be
given every man who served honor
ably during the war for every month
of service as compensation to meet
the extreme living cost created large
ly by the unusual high compensa-
tions paid civilians during
the war. In it's resolution the exc
cutive committee called especial at
tention to the fact that the Ameri-
can Legion in its November conven-
ton in Minneapolis cleft with conf
dence the discharge Of this obligation
to Congress-" and in it's next article
declares that mo definite action lock-
ing to such compensation has yet been
taken by Congress-"
70
resolution, point to the fact thai the
Congressional leaders gave them to
understand last summer there would
be no soldier compensation legisla-
ton until after the American Legion
convention, so that Congress might
have the advantage of knowing what
the majority of the organized service
men wanted. They further allude to
the assurances given them by certain
Republican leaders at the time of the
convention that they could with con-
gress without specifying any fixed
adjustment. Now apparently they are
convinced that Congress has broken
f. III with them and some of the men
are convinced that certain willy mem
bers of Congress have purposely
schemed them into corner where
they Can afford to neglect them.
The demand among the yet unor
ganized men who served in the ranks
is said to be even more insistent than
that of the members of the several
soldier organizations. Proof of the
pressure behind such legislation is
seen in the fact that about 80 bills
have been introduced in the House
looking toward compensation in some
form. 1t is evident that the Republi-
can leaders will have fight on their
hands even among members of thicr
own party who have introduced some
of these bills in response to the in
fluence of home sentiment.
Dann&NrEU nc no DE- ODENI,D