"Peacetime Patriotism"

Determined, dauntless, unrelenting is the march of the American Legion and other veterans' organizations toward greater and greater Government aid and relief for ex-soldiery. Fortnight ago at Alexandria, Va., National Commander Ralph T. O'Neil outlined the Legion's immediate legislative demands on the next Congress: equality of compensation for veterans of all wars, pensions for widows ($20 per month) and orphans ($6 per month) of World War veterans. Last week at Concord, N. H., Paul Wolman, national commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, announced his organization's program for immediate cash payment of all Bonus certificates at their matured value.

Perceptible within the Hoover Administration last week was a growing resistance to this veterans' pressure. Chairman Will Wood of the House Appropriations Committee railed against the mounting costs of "War Relief." Before the National Red Cross meeting appeared Frank T. Hines, Administrator of Veterans' Affairs, with a bundle of statistics designed to shame veterans out of their demand. He showed that since the first pension bill in 1789 the Federal Government has paid out about 13 billion dollars for veteran relief, of which more than five billions went to World War men. The U. S. he said is now spending about $845,000,000 per year for all veteran relief, of which $699,000,000 goes to participants in the last war. He foresaw a billion-dollar annual outlay before long. Said he:

"Certainly by 1950 at the rate we're now going the disbursements for veteran relief will equal if not exceed the total cost of our expenditures during the World War [$21,850,000,000]. . . . Veterans must manifest a peacetime patriotism in future demands comparable to that which brought them honor in the War if the burden upon the Government is not to become intolerable and reaction impair their cause. If we teach our young men that service to our country means the Government thereafter must reward them irrespective of need, then we are undermining the very foundation of good citizenship."

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