Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-07-19

as the enemy was especially liberal
in this respect a competition develop
ed that led Washington at one time
to fear the loss of his army unless the
congress was more generous. The
states gave bounties of varying values
J Virginia and New York voting lands,
but in 1889 there came a crisis when
Washington had to offer 5000 each to
retain his veterans and finally, in
order to demobilize his army in 1888,
persuaded the continental congress to
give the officers a bonus equivalent
to five years full pay.
Washington himself. by the way. was
a beneficiary of the land grants to
soldiers of the French and Indian war.
Lord Dunmore of Virginia was au-
thorized to offer bounties of land to
all officers and soldiers who had served
in this war, the grants ranging from
5000 acres for field officers to 5000
acres to captains, 200 acres to sub
~alterns or staff officers and 50 acres
to privates. Washington secured pat
ents in his own and other officers
names for $1,000 acres, of which his
own share was $4,000.
These grants were much larger than
those promised officers and privates
of the Revolutionary war. when col
onels we're given 800 acres. majors 400,
captains 500. lieutenants 200 and non
commissioned officers and enlisted men
100, while major generals received
LOO acres and brigadiers $50 acres.
Four thousand square miles or 2.5O0.-
600 acres. including some II counties
in northern Ohio, were set aside to
take care of these grants.
Four million acres of bounty lands
were given to the soldiers of the War
of 1912, while to survivors Of the
Mexican and Indian wars 5S.652.45O
acres of the public domain were dis
tributed under 530.2O3 warrants. Then
came the Civil war and under the
Act of 1853, land scrip. worth S1.o5
per acre, was distributed for 100000
acres.
Bounty Jumping a Business
All volunteers in the northern army
during the Civil war received cash
bounties. cities and states competing
government. while many individuals
hired substitutes to take their places
at the front. By 1865. owing to the
magnitude of the war and the diff
Guilty Of getting recruits. the gatuities
which a volunteer could gather in
amounted to as much as 81 800. and
bounty jumping" had become a BUSH
ness. A man would enlist in one place
under one name, hurry to the front.
collect his bounty. desert and then go
to another locality and repeat the per-
Torrance under another name. Aside
from what the government paid out. il
is estimated that local and state boun-
ties in this war amounted to more than
So. OO0. 600.
When we come to the matter of pen
sions. which are deferred bounties or
bonuses. it is found that prior to the
world Val the government had disburs-
ed n grand total of S5,220.93J.3a3 in
addition to establishing and maintain
ing soldiers homes. The number of
soldiers and sailors in the several wars
covered by this expenditure was: Rev
dictionary war. 1S4. OBS; War of 1872.
$50. $50; Mexican war. Sis; Indian
wars. 1898; Civil war. 2.213.363:
Spanish war. $4,000: Philippines and
China. 146. 151: total. 1904, 993. The
average pension paid to each enlistment
has been 500.
Official records show that 5.O16.S32
men and women participated in the
world war. OF these 4,350.467 were
in the army. $4,000 were in the navy !
and S0.063 were in the marine corps. |
If the pensions and bonuses which will
eventually 60 to this great fighting
force average substantially the same
as the pension payments for other
wars it is apparent that the total bill
will aggregate something like fifty bill
lions of dollars.
That pensions are conducive to long
evity may be doubted. but it is a fact.
nom the less that pensioners cling to
the rolls a surprisingly long time.
The last survivor of the Revolutionary
war did not die until 1859, and on June
30, 1910. the pension lists still con-
tanned the name Of one daughter of a
Revolutionary soldier. the daughters
having been pensioned by special acts
Of the congress. AT the close of the
fiscal year 1915-1916 there were rs
widows of veterans of the War of 1912
still drawing pensions from the govern
ment. while on the same date there
were 4.29S Mexican war pensioners on
the rolls. 513 of these being survivors
and the others. widows. As for Civil
war veterans and their widows and de-
pendents who are still pensioners. their
name is legion, and the government is
disbursing approximately S240.0N, 600
to them each year.