Evening star., 1937-05-29
Hard Road for Veteran
With Claim in Congress-

To the Editor Of The Star:
I read with interest the letter in The
Star of May 20, 1887, by Mr.. Mike Chet-
kovich, on Injustice .by Congress to
Disabled War Veterans.
If the powers that be in the War De-
partment or in the Veterans Bureau
turn thumbs down upon a disability
claim, his only recourse as a rule is suit
at law, or relief through an act Of Con-
gress. Unless one Is able to employ a
high-priced lawyer who will really fight
the case, 1t Is useless to enter suit. With
the Regular Army, at any rate, unless
military court has exceeded its jurisdic-
ton, the civil courts have no power to
review Its proceedings, and as a rule
Army officials are slick enough to make
their deals look so good on the surface
that they can win out on some techni-
cality, without the merits of such case
ever being placed before the court. The
same applies to Veterans Bureau rulings.
When 1t comes to relief by Congress,
the going is even tougher for the veteran.
First he must have member OF Con-
gress sufficiently interested to introduce
bill for his relief. Usually then the
War Department or the Veterans Bu-
reau counters with an adverse report
which Is work of art in making things
seem as they are not in fact It is tough
work for the veteran to convince a COM
mittee that truth is on his side in face
OF these slick adverse reports. Usually
he never even gets hearing in face #
such an adverse departmental report.
II he does, one adverse member of a
military committee can kill his bill. Sup
pose he gets out of committee with
favorable report and on the calendar.
Any member can object when the bill
comes up for vote, and he can continue
to object every time such bill comes I'D
for vote until the Congress is ended.
You pass one house: then you have to go
through the same mill in the other. You
pass both houses and your bill goes to
the White House. The chances are
thousand to one the President receives
cunningly written whiteWash report
from the department.; he never sees the
committee report, and unless you have
overwhelming political support to 60 to
the White House and put up real fight,
you receive the veto ak and all your
hard work is for naught.
II you are glutton for punishment
you may persuade your Congressman to
introduce new bill for your relief, and
the chances are overwhelming that the
committee will pigeonhole it: what is the
use of taking up time with bill doomed
to veto even If 1t passes?
speak from much experience. Eight
military committees of Congress are
unanimous In their verdict that I am
the victim of an unjust and illegal dis
charge as an officer of the Army, when
in law and in fact should be in line of
duty retired.
In 1922 Congress enacted mandatory
law ordering my restoration to the Army
as OF date of illegal discharge, May S,
1917, and this was signed and approved
by President Harding over War Depart
ment veto efforts.
Nevertheless. in face Of Judge advocate
general and Supreme Court decisions
that all such laws are absolutely manda-
tory. the War Department made the
specious plea that the same was mot
mandatory" and refused to obey the law.
I am still on the outside looking in, and
will continue so to be until I become
affluent enough to fight the case to
finish before the Supreme Court.
So sadly say to Mr.. Chetkovich and
to all other disabled war veterans whose
cases have merit, and who may feel Con-
gress ought to afford them relief: Try
your luck If you will but he not discour-
aged If the road is long and hard with
perchance an unjust and Cnwarranted
veto ak at the end of the road. know
how members Of Congress feel about it.
They are squareshooters and they want
to accord justice to their fellow citizens,
but they feel it wastes time and energy
to enact relief legislation for war veter-
ans just to feed the veto hopper, when
our President would rather favor molc
funds for say the c. c. C. than he would
for disabled war veterans who went
through hell and then some on the bat
tleflelds of France
j. B. H. WARING, M. D..
United States Army Retired.
Wilmington, Ohio.