The Washington herald., 1921-02-10
YANK BONUS BILL
TOPASS,PENROSE
ASSURES
Leader Announces En-
couraging News After
Talk With Senator.

The soldier bonus bill will pass
Congress this session. Assura nee to
this effect was given the national
legislative committee of the Ameri-
can Legion late yesterday by Sena-
tor Penrose, Chairman Bettman, OF
Ohio, chairman of the committee,
stated last night
l-t--Fhere may be a few-taXstIpn
features of the bill altered Senator
Penrose told US" Bettman said,
but We were given to understand
, by him that the bill in its substance
is satisfactory to Congressional
leaders. 1t is not thought likely
that any of the alternative plans
of compensation will be altered, or
that the scale of amounts will be
changed"
What was most pleasing in the
interview I'VE had with Senator PEN
rose" Bettman continued, was the
! fact that he was clearly of the con-
viction that the stand of the Amer
! lean Legion on the bonus bill, or
adjusted compensation legislation
as it more properly should be
| called, was a patriotic one"
Other members of the American
! Legion committee made no effort to
hide their satisfaction in the out
come of the conferences held with
Congressional leaders yesterday
afternoon.
Encouragement From smoot.
Indications yesterday morning
were that the bonus legislation
would have to be started anew in
the next Congress as little hope had
| been held out to the committee that
| the bill would be passed before
March T. The pending bill passed
the House last summer but is now
resting with the Senate Finance
Committee. Senator Penrose is
chairman of that committee.
| Senator Smoot was another leg
lslator from whom the American n
Legion officials secured encourasInp
news. He stated. according to Pit
man, that the Watson bill provid-
ing for decentralization of the Ru-
reau of War, Risk Insurance, will he
reported out of committee. TT can
be passed by the Senate in an hour
the Senator is quoted as saying.
There is hope also for the Ken.
yon-Fess bill broadening the scopt
of the vocational training act. tn.
committee members were given II
understand. Under this bill tbt
widows and children of men killed
in the service will be enabled tr
take the same training as disabled
veterans and the training also will
be thrown open to Americans WIN
served with any of the allied armies
Says Legion Committees aPacked. :,
i Charges that government bureau
having to do with soldier relief ar,
packing the committees of tn
American Legion with bureau EN-
ployes" were made before the leg
islative committee yesterday b,
/, Abel Davis, of Chicago.
"As a result the work of tn
legion in soldier relief matters 4
! DClHS greatly nanQlcapped, DaVi
continued. At the Cleveland conven
tion the bureaus licked US to
frazzle in all matters relating t
soldier relief and the legion won
dered how 1t was done" he said.
A recommendation that Stat
divisions of the legion refrain from
appointing government bureau EN-
ployes to their committees wa
made by the legion legislative com
mittee after they had heard Davis. .
Several cases of alleged discrimi
L nation against former service me-
will be Investigated by the commit
tee, among them one concerning
: number of naval reservists en-
: ployed in the New York postottict
who were informed that they mus
resign their. positions to go on
, practice cruise with the navy. The
| were told they would be reinstate
: on their return, but this was no
: done. and the committee will as
, the incoming Postmaster General I
see that they are taken back.