1st Session. 1 No. 535. MELVINA BOTTLES. MARCH 6, 1900.-Ordered to be printed. Mr. BAKER, from the Committee on Pensions, submitted the following REPORT. [To accompany H. R. 3067.] The Committee on Pensions, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 3067) granting an increase of pension to Melvina Bottles, have examined the same and report: The report of the Committee on Invalid Pensions of the House of Representatives is as follows: The soldier named in this bill served as a private in Company E, Twenty-first New Jersey Volunteers, from August 27, 1862, to June 19, 1863, when he was mustered out with his regiment. He never applied for a pension, and died January 20, 1870, of lockjaw, following an injury to the fingers of his hands, which were crushed in a rubber mill on January 6, 1870. Sixteen years after his death his widow, now 56 years of age, applied for a pension under the acts of July 14, 1862, and March 3, 1873, alleging that her husband's death was due to a wound of the shoulder received by him in the Army, which wound was frequently open and discharging. There is no record in the War Department of any wound or disease contracted by the soldier, and the claim was rejected by the Pension Bureau June 6, 1890, upon the ground that the alleged lockjaw causing the death of the soldier was not a result of the wound, but that the fatal disease was more likely to be a result of the injury to the hand. This action of the Pension Bureau was affirmed by Assistant Secretary Reynolds in 1895, and again by Assistant Secretary Davis in 1897. The beneficiary was pensioned in 1891, under the act of June 27, 1890, at $8 per month from August 1, 1890, upon proof of her marriage to the soldier on October 20, 1861; that she had not remarried since his death; that she had no property whatever; was totally blind, and dependent upon an income of $6 per month furnished her by the overseers of the poor for Hamilton Township, New Jersey. A letter filed with your committee from the adjutant-general of New Jersey, and addressed to the Hon. Mr. Loudenslager, of New Jersey, shows that the beneficiary has been totally blind for past eighteen years and is dependent upon others for care and support, and is a very estimable woman and a long and patient sufferer. Your committee recommend that the bill pass. The passage of the bill is recommended after being amended as follows: In line 4 strike out the word "upon" and insert in lieu thereof the word "on." In line 9 strike out the words "the pension which she now receives" and insert in lieu thereof the words "that she is now receiving.' O 1st Session. No. 56. EDWARD L. RUBY. MARCH 6, 1900.-Ordered to be printed. Mr. BAKER, from the Committee on Pensions, submitted the following REPORT. [To accompany S. 1954.] The Committee on Pensions, to whom was referred the bill (S. 1954), granting a pension to Edward L. Ruby, have examined same and report: The bill proposes to grant a pension of $72 per month to Edward L. Ruby, alias Edward Cassall, of Garden City, Kans., late private in Company F, Nineteenth Kansas Volunteer Cavalry, who enlisted October 17, 1868, and was discharged April 18, 1869. This soldier filed his claim for pension May 9, 1892, alleging that while in the service he incurred a rupture of the right groin and contracted rheumatism and catarrh, the latter resulting in deafness. This claim was rejected on the ground of no record of the alleged disabilities. In his original declaration the claimant alleged that his rupture came on gradually as a result of a strain in riding and marching, and that the catarrh and rheumatism were due to exposure in a severe blizzard and freezing snowstorm in the winter of 1868 and 1869. Subsequently he declared that while he thought the primary cause of the rupture was the riding and marching, it became fully developed while lifting logs at Camp Hackbury, Kansas. Supporting his claim for pension, the following evidence is found on file: Comrade David Blanch testifies that he thinks claimant caught cold and afterwards complained of catarrh in his head; is quite certain he complained of catarrh during the latter part of his service; believe he did complain of being ruptured; does not know how it was incurred. Comrade Asdrubal testifies that claimant was injured at Hackbury Camp in December or January; was told by one of his comrades that claimant had been hurt while helping roll a big log; was told the injury was rupture. Comrade Calvin Holmes testifies that he believes that while they were in camp near Fort Sill in the winter of 1868-69 he heard the claimant speak of having a rupture, caused by a horse falling on him. Comrade William H. Riner testifies that in November, 1868, claimant contracted a severe cold, which settled in his head, so he complained; believes there was some defect in his hearing; complained of rupture; always claimed that it was due to a strain while carrying a log. Comrade Thos. Croak testifies that claimant claimed that he was ruptured while getting wood for a fire in November, 1868, at Camp Hackbury; never saw the rupture, just heard him complain; also claimed to have catarrh at the same time, and that it affected his hearing. Comrade Wing Greene testifies that at Camp Hackbury, in the winter of 1868-69, he and claimant and others were carrying a heavy log for firewood, and fell with it; the claimant having hold of the rear end, got more of a jolt than the others, and complained of being hurt in the belly; frequently complained of the hurt after that. Witness can state nothing more definite. Four of his neighbors testify that claimant was lame, and seemed to be affected with catarrh of head and rheumatism. Druggist G. H. De Walters testifies that he sold claimant a truss in 1890; said he incurred a rupture in a Kansas regiment; complained of rheumatism and was lame; noticed he was partially deaf. A medical examination given the claimant at Garden City, Kans., July 20, 1892, shows right inguinal hernia, and post nasal catarrh; is quite deaf in both ears. A medical examination given the claimant February 6, 1895, shows right inguinal hernia, nasal catarrh, discharge from nostrils, impaired hearing of both ears, rheumatism, crepitation in right wrist and in left shoulder, and elbow joint; right leg above knee 14 inches smaller than left, right knee 1 inch larger than left, right calf one-half inch smaller than left, right knee stiffened and can not be straightened by 5 degrees; complains of excessive pain in his legs below knees; scar on outside of right leg, midway between knee and ankle, 1 inches long by 1 inch wide; loss of tissue; complete loss of sight of right eye. The rejection of this claim by the Bureau of Pensions was affirmed by the Secretary of the Interior. As above referred to, this soldier served in the Nineteenth Kansas Cavalry. This organization was with General Custer on the famous winter campaign against the Southern Indians through southwestern Kansas, western Indian Territory, and the Panhandle of Texas in the winter of 1868-69. Ex-Speaker W. D. Street, of the Kansas house of representatives, who was a soldier in the Nineteenth Kansas Cavalry in that memorable campaign, describes the sufferings endured by those comprising the command as follows: The Nineteenth Kansas Volunteer Cavalry and the Seventh United States Regular Cavalry made up the expedition. I have seen other expeditions before and since, but that one is photographed in my mind more vividly than any other. I can see them struggling through the snows and blizzards without food or shelter, enduring privations that made the stoutest hearts quail. The sufferings from cold and hunger made strong men cry like children. But in all this there was no opportunity given for surprises from the enemy. It was they who were surprised to find us charging into their camps in the midst of a terrific and blinding snowstorm. That the Kansas boys, after their horses had starved to death or been abandoned, would attempt to march a thousand miles on foot through an unknown and desert country, and for days without rations, in pursuit of Indians mounted on their hardy ponies to finally overtake and capture them was a surprise not only to the Indians, but to all the military experts of this country. In view of the fact that the soldier served his country faithfully and endured hardships unsurpassed in any service, and which ruined his health, and considering the soldier's unfortunate and helpless condition, your committee believes that this claim is a meritorious one, and the passage of the bill is therefore recommended after being amended as follows: In line 6 strike out the words "who served as" and insert in lieu thereof the word "late." In line 7, after the word "Kansas," insert the word "Volunteer." In line 8 strike out the words "of seventy-two" and insert in lieu thereof the words “at the rate of seventeen." S. Rep. 4 |