Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1921-10-31

lngS.
needed by the army and navy. to the
bureau: creation of a chaplain corps for
service in hospitals and training CEN
ters; provision Of cemeteries at soi-
der hospitals for interment Of vet.
eran dead: Standardization of training,
permitting the applicant to select as
far as possible his own vocation; ex-
tension of existing insurance to $4,000
and extension of insurance and COM
pensation privilege to Americans who
served in allied forces
s No Private Institutions
Cancellation of contracts with state.
municipal and private hospitals which
were not in existence April /. 1917.
and with all similar institutions which
after inspection are found unsuitable,
was recommended as one administrative
reform. others under this head includ7
ing:
Issuance of rules and regulations
for the maintenance of order and dis
cipline: frequent and thorough in
spection of hospitals and tfaining cen
ters: elimination of politics. from ap-
pointments: establishment of addition
al vocational centers at institutions
where mental and tubercular patients
are under treatment.
To July !. 1921. there had been $780,.
900 applications for vocational train
ing, the committee found. adding that
although we are approaching the third
anniversary of the armistiee." only
$3.50 have been rehabilitated.
1t is with deep regret" the commit
tee said. that we acknowledge this
melancholy fact
I.,1,- I
without pay out of a total of 96,913
eligibles. and only $1,000 with pay out
of 159. 300 eligibles, the report said,
the committee finding that "a vast ma
jority' of those eligible ARE unable or
unwilling to train because of their in
ability to support themselves without
pay" About one-half of those train
ing are in schools, colleges or uni
yersities many receiving better edu-
catonal opportunities than they other
wise could have obtained it was =.
clared
Urge More Pay to Students
Many veterans. the committee
charged delay rehabilitation because
usually the sum of the maintenance pay
and the wage considerably exceeds the
wage they could earn upon rehablhta-
ton
Special reference was made to con-
ditions which the committee found at
the Pascagoula. Miss, aud the Nauvoo,
His. training centers, but the report
declared a repetition of these unfor-
tunate e., ,riences" would be pre-
vented by requiring the completion of
training centers before the men are
admitted for training.
Pointing out that only 1900 Of the
5000 employees in the bureau in July
last were former service men. the
committee declared it was unable to
eliminates against former service
men" and suggested the immediate
cutting down of the large force of
employees in Washington"
The committee said the government
had failed to obtain results commen-
surate with the large expenditures"
in rehabilitation work and express be-
lief that knowledge of the govern
ment's failure prevented men from
seeking hospital treatment until too
late, and stream of dying patients
be. ond the possibility of cure is in
part the result"
THE time has come, the committee
declared to decrease the number of
contract hospitals. which it finds
were the cause of Just complaints"
In many cases. the report said. con
tracts were sought by private agencies
inspired by the hope of large
profits The peak of the load" in
hospital needs will not be reached
until 1927, the Investigators believed.
Should Dust Politics.
I'VE feel it necessary to emphasize
as strongly as possible the absolute
necessity Of expending money appro-
priated by congress for the hospital
ization of former service r,en without
reference to insistent but ill-advised
local demands. political interference.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT of existing government
agencies or agitation of local groups
IT any kind Whatsoever the COM
mittee declared.
.Abominable conditions have existed
in various hospitals which could have
been avoided and which shuold be
avoided in the future the report
continues. The need of new hospitals
S too clear for argument"
The committee criticized the policy
which dealt with compensation claims
rs purely medical problem, and de-
.lares many applicants have been un-
'airly and unjustly rated, others have
had their compensations reduced
without Just cause. and some are re-
.eiving more compensation than they
should. The system has been wholly
unjust and unfair, the
committee declared, cannot be too
strongly condemned and should 10.
eive spectal attention By congresA
careful re-ekaminati0n q aM d.