The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1922-04-14
5000 CLAIMS ARE
STILL PENDING
STATE BONUS BOARD SO FAR
HAS ADJUSTED ABOUT Fl 900
CLAIMS.

Yankton, April 14.-South Da-
kota's bonus job is drawing along
into its final and probably its most
difficult stages. Although more
than half the ex-service men of the
state have been paid, and more than
half the $6,000,000 fund has been
/ distributed, the remaining claims,
or good share of them, will cause
the state bonus board more exhaus-
tive investigation and barren labor
than all the ones gone before, In the
opinion of Fred B. Ray, executive
J officer
The job of boiling down" has
/ been a difficult one quickly done,
but the cleaning up process promises
to resuire the full time limit given
by the law. That is June 30, 1928.
For the hard nuts to crack" are still
/ to be cracked.
/ Not a single claim has yet been
/ formally rejected, Col. Ray said. but
some are going to be, and he esti-
mates the number at 5000. Up to
week ago about $4,000 claims had
4 DGGH TtttlNcu, VI Whith GLsVVV tA&<s
been paid. leaving around 5000 on
hand unpaid. OF these 5000 prob
ably 5000 are irregular and doubt
ful of payment. If all claims were
in the work might be cleaned up
promptly as soon as all had been
thoroughly investigated. 1t would
be a matter of payment or rejection,
! depending on whether or not they
complied with the requirements laid
down in the law. But the claims
are not all in.
New bonus applications are COM
ing in at the rate of about 10 day,
sometimes more, sometimes less. Ii
is surprising, Col. Ray said. how
many men have not yet learned
South Dakota is paying a bonus.
They are finding it out every day.
Some of them seem to have their
ewes on Washington and get the fed
eral and state bonus propositions
mixed
Then there are some who have
waited to see no wwatchful the
board was going to be. So far, the
board hasn't had to back-step on q
bad precedent. 1t is a job wnere
every precedent. every ruling, mas
got to "hold water"
i To start indiscriminate paying OF
claims would exhaust the $6,OOO,00O
i'm a few days. There is enough
money to pay all bona-fide claims
and no more.
The board has all sorts OF UNIQUE
experiences, Col. Ray said. So far II
its work it has found claims filed by
176 conscientious Objectors fellows
who didn't want to go and fight To-
Uncle but have no scruples agains
sharing in any bonus money. And the
funny part of it is, these l7s mel
forgot entirely to mention in tneh
applications for bonus that they OBJ
iected to going to war. 1t was al
oversight on their part which tn'
board thoughtfully brought to then
attention. Investigation revealed
the facts.
And it is investigation that is alb
solutely necessary on all claims
' which come | nthe doubtful class
I But because a claim requires inves
. tigation is no indication that 1t vii
. be rejected; it may be as good a.
= the best. only some of the facts no
d made clear. And 1t is the duty o
!. the board to know that every mai
: paid is clearly entitled to his money
4 There can be no guesswork or takini
a for granted.
Il Some of South Dakota's borde
counties, too, supposed to be sparse
ly settled, have uncovered surpris
ingly large number of former sol
diers. The bonus board has foun'
more alleged residents than the cen
/ sus taken could.
And that means more investlga
: ton. The residence qualification
y causes the most difficulty. Col. Ra
i said. though now that the war de
: partment has shut down on furnish
: ing information to the state tner
b is added difficulty in tracing Tn
military records Of some OF the al
plicants. Moving around OF som
claimants causes some delay. MOT
than 1000 letters to men, askin
about their claims are unanswered.
u Through all the maze of dfficu
ties the work is progressing with r.
It markable speed, and it is done wit
g such businesslike efficiency and sue
e insistence on accuracy that othe
!, states are watching and inquirinl
! with intent to copy. Commendatio
# of the work of the board has com
e from many quarters.