The New York herald. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1920-1924, 1920-10-31
VOTE AGAINST
SOLDIER BONUS,
SAYS COMPTON
Organizer of American Le-
giOn Says Plan Disgraces
Organization.
TIME FOR 1T is PAST
Sees Admiration and Re
spect of the Public Sue
ceeded by LOathing.
POLITICIANS ARE BLAMED
Stigma Of Mercenary Sins and
Practices Said to Be At
tached to Legion.
TIME FOR 1T rs PAST
POLITICIANS ARE BLAMED

Declaring that the American Legion
by it's advocacy of bonus issue to
former service men is not sticking to
it's constitutional provision that it keep
clear of politics, George Brokaw
Compton, one of the drafters of that
constitution and who resigned last
April as New York county chairman
adopted nationally, issued statement
yesterday, pointing out why voters
should vote mo" on proposition No.
on Tuesday. This provides for s45.-
000, 900 bond issue by the State to pro-
vide bonus for ex-service men who
entered the ranks from New York.
Mr.. Compton's statement in part
follows
1.-THE welfare of the general public,
not alone the welfare of the ex-service
men as a class, is bound up in the bonus
question, and the keynote of it's solution
should be the greatest good to the great
est number. 1t will be unfortunate II
individuals allow their honest convictions
and their judgment on the merits of the
question to be overcome by sentiment.
"a generous bonus would have served
a useful and proper purpose as an emer-
gency provision at the time of demobili-
zation. That emergency has long since
passed and in nine cases out of ten the
individual need has passed The bonus
has lost it's original character entirely.
Asks for Specific Gases.
1.-THE advocates of blanket bonuses for
all, regardless Of individual needs due to
service, speak of the serious needs Of
the ex-service men and of the number of
them out of employment. but do not
attempt to give figures even to prove
that larger percentage of the same
men are in serious need or out of en-
p'oyment now than before they entered
the service. They argue that because
those who stayed at home. whether for
reasons discreditable to themselves or
not received wages much higher than
army pay. the comparative disadvantage
Of the ex-service man ought to be re-
moved by adjusted compensation. which
implies that only money counts and that
there are no other compensations to his
credit.
They point out that the war ma de
several thousand new millionnaires, that
millions of dollars were wasted, that
these things ought not to have been. and
therefore that they ought to have
blanket bonuses. regardless of the prin-
cple involved but the get even spirit
Is always to be deplored and one wrong
has never justified another and never
will And some, fortunately only a few.
want to be compensated because they
were dragged into service involuntarily.
ut should be remembered that the dis
sbled and the widows and orphans of the
lead ought first to be cared for and that
we'll toward 81 900. 900 900 n year is rea-
sonably required for that purpose at the
present time. The ex-service man would
like to have a bonus in cash. No doubt
he could make good use OF 1t. but there
are the millions Of clerks, professional
workers, school teachers and others who
also would like to have such n sum and
who possibly need II more.
HE knows that he would not take
anything In the gift Of man for his ex-
periences and for the privilege OF having
taken part in the making of the worlds
greatest piece of history, He knows. too
that everything worth while in life costs
something ana that when the debt is
liquidated the worthwhlleness vanishes.
Critfcfses Selfish View.
mo one will critcise an individual
for voting for or against any candidate
or any proposition on any ground that
may seem to him to be sufficient, but
nothing could be more sreprehensble
than for a body of ex-service men TO
demand legislation for the selfish inter-
est OF its own members as a class and
to seek TO enforce the demand by re-
qulring it's own members, regardless of
their own convictions and out of n false
sense of loyalty. and urging tho public,
to vote for or against candidate for
public office solely because of his atti-
tude on a proposal that would benefit
them alone as distinguished from the
rest of the people. The sooner this
sort of organized political activity is
rebuked at the polls the better.
"a few months ago people regarded
the Legion with admiration, respect and
confident hope. To-day II Is looked
upon as n group banded together to
got as much for themselves out of the
Government as they can. The aglta-
ton for bonuses has not developed out
Of spontaneous desire on the part of