The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1923-11-05
PAY WIDOWS OF
VETS" OF 1912
u. s. Still Gives Pensions to
Widows of Men Who Fought
III Years Ago.

in a striking manner by the rolls o
| the government for the War of ISL
and for the Mexican war. There Il
| not q veteran of the War of 1912 alive
| yet it cost the government $1S,010 70
| pensioners of that war during the pas
| year.
| On June 80 last there were 3S wild
| Ows and one dependent daughter o.
| veterans of 1912 on the pension list
| The seventy-fifth anniv ersary of the
| close of the Mexican war was cele
brated on May 80 last, and yet during
the fiscal year 1923 there were 40 vet
Grams and 1876 widows of veterans
who fought in that war receiving
$717, S47 in pensions from the govern
ment.
1t is a curious fact that not one OF
the pensioners of the War of 1912 was
born when the war was concluded
The Oldest is one hundred and four
years old, while the youngest Is sixty
three. One other is over the one hun
dred mark. The rest range between
eighty and one hundred years. The
explanation is thct the veterans mar
ried women much younger than them
selves. In the case of The widow pen
sioner sixty-three years old her hus-
band must have been from forty-five
to f1fty-f1ve years older.
Mexican "Vets" Over Ninety.
All of the veterans of the Mexican
war are over ninety years of age, the
Oldest one being Urban Grandeur Of
San Francisco, who passed the one
hundredth milestone on June 6, 1923.
unique Mexican war case is that of
William Brown of Camden, n. j., who
at the tender age Of eight years enlist
ed in the marine corps and fought
throughout the war.
War is q costly business, not only
from the point of view of actual fight
ing expenses but also that of paying
pensions to the old and disabled vet
Grams and their dependent widows and
children officials of the bureau of
pensions assert. Back in 1877 there
were 232. 104 persons on the pension
rolls of the government, involving an
annual disbursement of $2S, 1S2, S21. II.
This was when the largest number of
War of 1912 and Mexican war pen
sioners were on the rolls. A few years
later Civil war veterans began to take
advantage of the pension privilege
and the expense jumped much higher.
Pensions Total $263, O12 500.
While there are no separate figures |
available as to just what the dis |
were to War of 1912 and |
Mexican war pensioners for those
years, it is known that they figured |
very heavily in the total. In 1885
he pension disbursement amounted to
,65, III ,937.12 with 345,125 persons on
he rolls. From then on it gradually
increased until 1910, when the cost Il
vas 1920, 159, 292, with 624,427 persons
IN the rolls. For 1923 the total amount
# pensions paid out was 263,O12, 800.
lost of this amount, of course, was
aid to Civil war and Spanish war
less than $1,OO0,OO0 of 1T
DING to pensioners of the War of
S12 and Mexican war.
There are no longer any soldiers
Tho actually fought in the War of
80 on the pension rolls, the last one
eing Hiram Cronk, who died in Ava,
7. z, In 1905, at the age Of one hun
red and five. The last soldier pen
oner of the Revolutionary war was
'aniel F. Brakeman, who died at Free :
ON, N. Y, in 1869, at the age of one
Indred and nine years, while the last I
customer of the Revolutionary war I
as Esther s. Damon, widow of Noah, .
anon. who died at Plymouth Union.
t., in 1906, at the age of nfnety-six {
ears. q
$4,000 Widows Pensoned.
All told, approximately $4,000 wild 6
VS. of soldiers of the War of 1912
ere granted service pensions, the G
gh water mark being reached in l.
10, when there were 1877 on the 0
lis.
The original $4,000 widows Of sol n
ers of the War of 1912 who were +
anted pensions had shrunk to only Il
on June 80. Since that time death d
IS claimed one of them, reducing the e
ure to 80. OF the many thousands
veterans and widows of veterans n
the Mexican war who were granted n
nsions only 40 veterans and 1896
dOws of veterans remain. An idea
how fast the number is decreasing | b
n be gained by the figures for the 8
It fiscal year. On June 80, 1922 e
ere were 40 pensioners of the War w w
1912, compared to only 40 one year g,
err. On June 80, 1922, there were a.
81 Mexican war pensioners on the d,
Is, compared to only 1855 one year III
er.
rhe amount paid to pensioners of CT
War of 1912 ranges anywhere from HI
to 500 a month. But most of IL
m receive not over $50 a month Ce
all depends on the extent Of their ~ ~
ability, and the amount necessary ~
insure them proper medical atten- =
H.