allowed from the date when first shown in a ratable degree under the then existing schedule to get a rerating and arrearages of from $1 to $2 per month from date of discharge, if claim was filed prior to July 1, 1880, or from date of filing in those filed on or subsequent to July 1, 1880, to the date when under the former schedule and practice of the office the disability was shown in a ratable degree by a medical examination.

These glaring inequalities and discriminations, due to the mischievous practices of the Republican administration, have been corrected by the Democratic Secretary and Commissioner as far as possible in the brief period they have been in power by Order 257, above referred to. Another vicious practice, which seems to have been devised for the benefit of pension attorneys exclusively, was the issuance of a certain kind of certificate called “supplementary certificate,” which often had the effect of giving the attorney two fees when the amount allowed the claimant was scarcely sufficient to pay these fees.

And another was the allowance of certain restorations for disabilities shown to have long since eeased to exist, and still another, the Bureau informing the claimant that the disability for which he claims did not exist, but others did, for which he was required to send up an application, upon which pension was promptly allowed.

"SYMPATHETIC AFFIDAVITS."

Sympathetic affidavits are responsible for much of the evil that has arisen in the administration of the pension laws. These machine affidavits, written by the claimant or his attorney, have been placed before comrades or neighbors who oftentimes, without reading them, signed them and they were filed in pension claims. This evil has been corrected by Commissioner Lochren's Order No. 229, which requires that affiants shall have personal knowledge of the matters to which they testify in accordance with law.

LARGE APPROPRIATIONS FOR PENSIONS.

The Appropriations Committee of the Fifty-second Congress appropriated in all $323,800,437. During the fiscal year ending June 30, 1894, 76,946 claims were filed under all laws, and 80,213 claims were allowed. At the close of business June 30, 1894, 619,027 claims of all classes were pending, and the total number of pensioners on the rolls was 969,544. Of these 375,084 are invalids under the new law, and 362,274 under the old.

In 1891, the first year after the passage of the act of June 27, 1890, under Order 164, 138,216 names were added to the rolls; the next year there was an increase of 61,692; the next year there was a remarkable falling off, and only 89,944, less than half the number of the preceding year, were added to the rolls. If this ratio were continued it is apparent that the number added to the rolls will in a short while not greatly exceed the number dropped on account of death and other causes. has been heretofore stated, after the rescinding of Order 164 by the Weike decision of January 7, 1893, under the Republican administration, allowances fell from 78 3-10 per cent of all claims examined to 33 per cent, less than half the rate at which they were allowed immediately prior thereto.

As

During the last administration, after the passage of the act of June 27, 1890, word was passed round that at least 1,000 certificates a day must be turned out, leaving out of consideration a large number of other cases which must be handled—rejected or otherwise passed upon.

Some idea may be gleaned of the manner in which medical and legal opinions and decisions were rendered in cases which in some instances involve thousands of dollars, from the fact that a single examiner passed upon 2,400 cases in a single month, giving an average of less than four minutes to each case. The impossibility of rendering intelligent decisions at such a rate is evident, when it is reflected that the examiner is supposed to carefully read the application for pension, the evidence bearing upon it, closely scrutinize the certificate of physical examination, and after carefully weighing the testimony make up his judgment and endorse the same upon the face brief.

When Commissioner Lochren assumed charge of the Pension Bureau, it was soon apparent to him that under this "thousand-a-day" pressure, the requirements of the law were being ignored, and thousands of cases allowed which, when they were being considered, contained but three papers-claimant's application, his own statement of the case; what is known in office nomenclature as the " 'canary-slip," containing the date of his entering the service and leaving it merely, not saying anything about whether he was honorably or dishonorably discharged, either by sentence of court-martial or desertion; and the certificate of physical examination. Upon these three papers alone tens of thousands of names were put upon the rolls with no right to be there, and under pretense of law the revenues of the Government were given away.

An idea of the mischief wrought by these skeleton "canary-slips" may be obtained from an examination of the case of certificate No. 680,869. The first "canaryslip" report in this case gave 95 days' service. The second, a full report, gave 30 days' service only. The soldier was pensioned on the first report at $12 per month, and this is but one of a large number of the same character. The first canaryslip" reports of the War Department indicated that the fifth and sixth Delaware regiments served from November, 1862, to August, 1863. Quite a large number of claims were allowed to these persons. April 8, 1891, the War Department, however, informed this bureau, in a general letter, that none of the men of the fifth and sixth Delaware volunteers served 90 days during the war of the rebellion, inasmuch as General Schenk did not call them into actual service prior to June, 1863.

SPECIAL CASES.

One of the most crying abuses of the Tanner-Raum regime was the making of claims "special" at the behest of claim agents and politicians. It meant the taking up of a case out of its turn, regardless of the date of filing, discriminating against all other cases, delaying meritorious claims, and very often it meant allowing them upon very meagre evidence if the pressure behind them was strong enough. It was a notorious fact that during the Republican administration a claim agent, who had placed the Commissioner of Pensions under financial obligations, had no less than 50 of such cases called up and made special in a single day, and the private secretary of this Commissioner had a rubber special stamp made, the better to accommodate this. obliging attorney. When this private secretary was turned out of office there were found in his desk no less than 2,000 reference slips of the pension attorney heretofore referred to, all of which had been marked "special," the intention being to rush those 2,000 cases through the office in an irregular and unlawful manner,

From July 1, 1890, to July 1, 1892, during which a record of these cases was kept, Raum had 13,578 of these cases made special. The feeling was general that

certain persons could get pensions by irregular means, while others with meritorious claims had to wait. So bold had they become that the Republican pension agent at Topeka, Kansas, said in a campaign speech, at a meeting of old soldiers in the fall of 1892, that "if they (the soldiers) voted the Populist ticket they would lose their pensions, and they ought to do so."

PENSION OEFICE CLERKS RERATING THEIR OWN PENSIONS.

Pension office clerks rerated their own pensions, and Commissioner Lochren, on assuming the duties of his position, discovered that many of the employees of the bureau, whose pensions were increased and rerated by their fellow-clerks during Corporal Tanner's regime, and without any warrant of law, had never had their pensions reduced, and the orders requiring such reduction were pigeon-holed by Tanner and Raum.

So great was the scandal caused by this collusion that many of the clerks who had no political "pull" were dismissed " upon consideration appertaining to a correct public service," and Hiram Smith, Jr., Republican first deputy commissioner, who had his own pension rerated in violation of law, resigned "in compliance with request."

WHOLESALE FRAUDS.

First in point of numbers come what are known as the W. Bowen Moore cases, Buffalo, New York. It has been shown that many of the affidavits filed by him were not sworn to and others were materially added to. About 6,000 of his cases have been submitted for investigation. Out of 229 of these cases 137 declarations were filed which are entirely invalid; 87 affidavits were found false in fact; 456 false in execution and in fact; 527 false in execution, making a total of 1,070 false and fraudulent papers. $10,498 would be due up to date on the inva.id declarations in pending claims. $19,415 have been paid out to date on illegal declarations, and $13,169 paid out in claims shown to be wholly without merit. $22,495 have been saved from claims which would have been allowed, had not the investigation been instituted, and $2,263 in illegal tees have been collected by Moore in claims in which he was the attorney. This gives a total of $66,577, which has been illegally paid out in consequence of these frauds.

Second, New Mexico cases. About 1,700 of these cases are under investigation. One Marcellino, notary public and pension attorney, manufactured claimants as well as evidence to support claims. He forged signatures and endorsements to checks and vouchers, converted the money to his own use, plead guilty on 27 counts, and is now undergoing a seven years' sentence. Out of 240 of these New Mexico claims, ten were found to be deserters, 44 were never on the muster rolls, eight had no service, two were never discharged, one was cashiered, making 65 in all, and 43 per cent showed treat.nent in the service for venereal disease. The amount of actual saving in these New Mexican cases is $1,130,259.06, and the future annual saving will exceed another million.

Third, Indian Territory cases. About 1,400 have been referred for investigation. In these cases an untutored child of the forest (a Creek Indian) Thomas Deer, by manufacturing declarations and affidavits by the wholesale, defrauded the Government of the United States out of tens of thousands of dollars.

Fourth, Van Leuven of Iowa cases.

About 1,200 in number. It was part of

Van Leuven's plan to corrupt boards of examining surgeons, and he was able to have such examinations and ratings as he desired, and even had the original certificates of the examining board submitted to him before they were sent to the Pension Bureau.

Fifth, Norfolk, Va., cases, of which there are about 550, filed mostly by W. R. Drury, at present serving a term of imprisonment, and who manufactured alike claimants, declarations and evidence. In 167 of his cases recommended to be dropped from the roll there were paid to the pensioners under the act of June 27, 1890, the sum of $54,074.43, and the future saving will be about $343,260.39. Including all cases in which Drury figured it is estimated that the Government has been robbed to the extent of at least $650,000.

In addition to the foregoing, to show the universality of these fraudulent practices, there have been referred for investigation about 300 cases, in which one C. W. Lewis, of Tennessee, has violated many of the pension laws, and who is now serving an extended term in the penitentiary.

About 100 claims filed by T. A. Dunlap, of Nashville, Tenn., in which many írauds have been found, and nearly 800 claims of persons residing in various portions of Louisiana, in which frauds have been discovered. Scarcely a day passe. but that the name of some person is reported to the Bureau as having been guilty of a violation of the penal statutes.

THE REPUBLICAN RECORD.

Under the act of June 27. 1890

Numberless names were put upon the pension roll regardless of the requirement of at least 90 days' service.

Dishonorably discharged soldiers and bounty-jumpers were pensioned.

Many who draw the maximum amount ($12 per month) are earning a living at manual labor as they have always done, and some are rated the richest men in the towns in which they live.

Pension jumpers of both sexes have been allowed two or more pensions.

Under Order 164, inability to perform manual labor was never taken into consideration, and in consequence more than 100,000 pensioners, with no legal right, were put upon the rolls, and the Treasury depleted in the soldier's name.

Many of the least meritorious claims under this act of those who were soldiers only in name were preferred to the crippled heroes whose claims under the general laws remained unsettled. Though only three years in operation more pensioners are receiving $8 or $12 per month under this law than under all former laws. In some cities the number of pensioners under this act is as large as the number who draw under all acts enacted during the previous twenty-five years.

Under the last Admin stration

Republican clerks and officials high in the Pension Bureau rerated their own pensions, filching thousands of dollars from the Treasury.

A Republican Commissioner (Tanner) declared it to be his intention to raid the public Treasury with "steam-shovel and gravel-tra n," and "God help the surplus when he got up steam enough."

Public place in the Pension Office was given for bribe.

Orders 149 and 151, known as the "Completed Files" orders, it was openly charged, were issued at the instance of George E. Lemon, a millionaire Washington claim agent.

All sorts of incongruous ratings grew out of lax procedure and those with like disabilities received different ratings.

Machinery was made accessible to pension attorneys for procuring discharges for men who left their companies and went to Canada during the war.

The Pension Office was used for partisan purposes. It was called upon to help the Republican party to power by granting pensions as fast as possible in doubtful States and districts.

Pensions were promised for votes, and pensioners threatened if they did not vote the Republican ticket.

Cases by the thousand were made special for certain pension attorneys, and often allowed upon insufficient testimony, while no attention was paid to the poor soldiers who were g tting small pensions for wounds or diseases actually incurred in the se vice. Because they had no "pull" they could not get a hearing under Tanner or Raum. In open violation of the law employees of the Pension Office were put upon the track of certain Democratic members of Congress, in order, if possible, to encompass their defeat at the polls.

This is the Republican record.

CONCLUSION.

When the Democratic administration took charge of the Bureau of Pensions it was resolved to inaugurate an era of administrative reform to the end that (1) there shall be equality and not discrimination as to the meritorious soldiers in the measure of the nation's bounty; that their cases, long in the pigeon-holes of the Pension Office under the Republican party's control, shall have been disposed of and the least expensive and most expeditious mode to obtain a certificate vouchsafed them; (2) that the name of every pen ioner on the pension roll to whom pensions should not be granted who have been placed thereon because of fraud, crime, error, or laxity, shall, without hazar ing the just rights of others, be stricken therefrom.

The pension roll was purged, and distinction made between brave men who loyaily served their country and those who skulked.

Corrupt examining boards and attorneys were punished, machine affidavits were put an end to. There will be no more wholesale making of claims special in the interest of a favored pension attorney. Peculation in every form will be put a stop to. The "completed files was discontinued. Claim agents frequently reported cases complete where the necessary evidence had not been filed, retarding the work of the Bureau-one of two things had to be done, either settle claims finally when the agents said they were complete, rejecting those where evidence was lacking, as would be done in a case at law called for tri 1, or abolish the system altogether; the latter course was considered more favorable to the claimant—a salutary reform.

The making out of "statistical cards" has been discontinued, and fifty-two clerks, formerly employed upon this unnecessary work, were put upon the legiti mate work of the office-adjudicating claims.

The "canary-slip" form of report from the War Department has been done away with, and in its stead a proper military history of the soldier must be given. Precedence is no longer given to cases under the act of June 27, 1890, but claims for pension under all laws are settled in their order in accordance with the law and the evidence.

A majority of the cases where the claim has been rejected since the advent of the Democratic administration are cases which were in the office before its advent, and