The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1922-03-13
IMMENSE SUM PAID IN
PENSIONS BY UNCLE SAM
After Cost OF Wars Revived by Dis.
cussion over Soldier Bonus
Measure.

Burlington, March 12. William
.D. Hassett, for some time a member
of the Free Press staff and in recent
years connected with various news
services In Washington, is the author
of the following article which appear
cd in the Washington Post
Now that President Harding has
charged Congress with responsibility
for finding funds with which to H.
nance a soldier bonus, with the alter
native OF deferring passage of the
measure Of the revenues necessary
are not in sight It perhaps would en-
tighten members of the House ways
and means committee TO study the pen
sion disbursement Of the United
States.
From the foundation OF the govern
ment or 1890, to be exact-until
June 30 last Uncle Sam had paid to
pensioners OF all classes on account
of all wars the stupendous sum OF
Sc, 0S9 $50, 6,5377l, of which aggregate
OF course. the greater amount has
gone to civil war veterans and de
pendents. This latter class Of bene
ficiaries of the federal treasury have
received to date S5,749030 ,45507
When one remembers that there
we're approximately R,060000 mist
ments on the union side during the
war between the states, one may gain
some idea OF the proportions which
the pension list will ultimately reach
,a A arfu M ~ fff4fr ma Ion
in the World WARM the army, navy
and marine corps OF 100000 men
the official total supplied by the wal
department
crux or Ca ms Later
The responsibility OF government
of the government of the United
States to pension its war veterans
is not ordinarily assuemd until a
score OF years after the close Of the
conflict The demands for Spanisl
war pensions are just now becoming
acute. as in the case OF civil war vet
erans they did in the middle eighties
OF the last century, continuing to thi.
very day.
The youth of America who werC
drafted for service in the World War
ranging in ages from one and twenty
to thirty-one are still in the prime Of
their earning capacity. This state
ment embraces only the physically
sound and able bodied The wounded
and disabled are being cared for Will
generosity which could not bC
matched in the history of warfare
Whatever the decision to be reach
ed by Congress regarding the bonus
il is a foregone conclusion that 9
score Of years hence, II not earlier
the United States viii face the prob
lem OF providing pensions for the sur
vivors OF its conscript army OF almost
) .000.00 men. The pension respOnsi
bilities, once they are assumed by tn,
United States as inevitably they
must be- will be increased by tn
care that must be bestowed upon thu
dependents of war veterans widows
and orphans--chiely widows.
Multiplication Of Widows
A striking instance of this i;
found in the case OF the last reyolu
tionary war pens.oner-Mrs Esthc
Damon. of Pownal, VT. who died II
1906, a full 1870 years after the sign
II ing of the Declaration of Independ
ence and the ushering in of the wa
Of the revolution.
Mrs. Damon, as a sprite of a cir
Ihad married an old man and collect
ed the pension suppl ed by Uncl,
Sam. Her case is typical of thous
ands of civil war pensioners an,
prophetic of other thousands o
eases likely to arise in the future,
Regardless OF what Congress ma.
decide concerning cash bonus ul
timately a pension system viii be sc
up for the care OF the veterans o
the Word War. An examination o
the records of the United States pen
sion Office shows that war widow