The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1922-04-28

pSOplC VI cSoSA
ly commend the stand of the Junior
senator, because we believe the peo-
pie of South Carolina have a correct
conception of the duties of a soldier,
of his rights and of the rights of the
country, and that the people are
"~tolerably" honest.
The people of this country ap-
plauded the patriotism of the SOL
diers who first went to the front IN
the great war only just now happily
ended. And it was from patriotism
that most of the earlier soldiers went,
we believe. We deny the right of a
crowd of gratuity-seekers and of a
crowd who want something for moth
ing, and who would like to live in
whole or in part at the expense of
the government, without having in a
great many cases suffered any hard
ships, and without in most cases hav-
ing even smelled powder, we say we
deny the right of these people, of
this kind of soldiers, to take from
the other more patriotic soldiers the
love and gratitude Of the country
which is rightly theirs. This they do
by their incessant demands.
1t is true that during the war there
was all kinds of petty graft as well
as good big stealing. But two wrongs
never made a right. If Mr.. McAdoo,
or Mr.. anybody else was responsible
for railroad employees who stayed
at home, or for a man with a hammer
and saw, who was neither an engi-
neer nor a carpenter, getting eight
and ten dollars a day, we say that we
should take it out on Mr.. McAdoo,
or the somebody else, and not un-
dertake to bankrupt the country and
impose on the people all kinds of
taxes and burdens, when the country
is already over-burdened. We rather
suspect that some of those who are
talking about Mr.. McAdoo paying
such large wages are inclined now to
recall the fact more with the expec-
tation that they will get something
themselves by the same route rather
than to have the country again stamp
with its disapproval the name in
which the war was handled by those
in charge. Perhaps some will even
want Mr.. McAdoo for president a few
months hence.
What we should learn from the
mistakes made is not to make more
mistakes, but that, hereafter when
the country is again at war and GER
tain classes of laborers are kept at
home, or put on government work,
they should labor at the prices paid
soldiers or get their guns.
1t looks very much like the polite
Iians in the senate, democrats and
republicans alike, who want to get
reelected r going to put some kind
of bonus legislation through. When
they do it will be accompanied by a
sales tax, or some other kind of tax,
which finally the people Will pay,
whereby the people may learn that
whereas formerly men fought for
their country, now they fight for the
country and a little money, and then
maybe a little more from time to
time.
The Press and Banner believes that
every ex-service man who received
wounds and injuries .incapacitating
him to labor in whole or in part, as a
result of his service, should be made
as nearly whole as maybe. They
should be given the power to earn a
living and to prosper in life as others
may. But for the soldier who went
to the war and returned uninjured,
it seems to US that he might live for
awhile enjoying the gratitude of his
country rather than undertake now
to make a raid on the treasury when
the country is still staggering under
a tremendous load.
Why may not the bonus-hunters
find employment and go to work any
way? They did so after the War Be-
tween the States; they have done so