Other pension acts were approved, of course, but those given above are some of the outstanding ones.

Benefits under these measures were affected by enactment of the so-called Economy Act on March 20, 1933, but subsequent legislation has remedied, to some degree, the wrongs done by that act.

The following table gives the number of deceased veterans whose dependents were receiving monetary benefits, by wars, at the end of the fiscal year, as shown:

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 1936, there was paid by the United States Veterans' Administration on account of deceased veterans the folllowing amounts:

That the American Legion insists upon "Government protection" for the dependents of deceased World War veterans, and has insisted since its national convention of 1930, as reflected in the adoption of its resolutions on this subject, is by no means a novel proposition. This Nation has for more than a century recognized the equity and justice of this request. In fact, when the House Committee on World War Veterans' Legislation reported the bill H. R. 17116 on February 18, 1931, it stated, among other things: * your committee felt that as the parents of men who served during the World War reach the age of 65 they should have a right to look to the Government for some support where they are unable to support themselves."

Today the average age of the parents of deceased World War veterans is perhaps more than 65 years of age. An unnamed Legion official, quoted in the New York Times of October 15, 1936, placed the age of these parents at about 70, pointing out they cannot work and most of them have believed all along the checks would continue so long as they lived.

The Legion feels this proposition of extending Government protection is of the greatest importance to World War veterans. Widows and orphans of Spanish War veterans receive death pensions regardless of service connection and it is only just that World War widows and orphans be accorded similar treatment at the hands of the Government.

(H. R. 1539 is as follows:)

[H. R. 1539, 75th Cong., 1st sess.]

A BILL To amend the Act approved June 28, 1934, to compensate widows and children of persons who died while receiving monetary benefits for disabilities directly incurred in or aggravated by active military or naval service in the World War

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That Public Law Numbered 484 of the Seventythird Congress, approved June 28, 1934, as amended, be, and the same is hereby, amended to read as follows:

"That the surviving widow, child, or children of any honorably discharged person who entered the service prior to November 12, 1918, or if the person was serving with the United States military forces in Russia before April 2, 1920, and served ninety days or more during the World War, or who, having served less than ninety days, was discharged for disability in the service in line of duty, dies, or has died from a disease or disability not service-connected, shall, upon filing application and such proofs in the Veterans' Administration as the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs may prescribe, be entitled to receive compensation: Provided, That the provisions of this Act shall not apply to any person during any year following a year for which such person was not entitled to exemption from the payment of a Federal income tax.

"SEC. 2. That the monthly rates of compensation shall be as follows: Widow but no child, $22; widow and one child, $30 (with $4 for each additional child); no widow but one child, $15; no widow but two children, $22 (equally divided); no widow but three children, $30 (equally divided) (with $3 for each additional child, total amount to be equally divided).

"The total compensation payable under this paragraph shall not exceed $56. Where such benefits would otherwise exceed $56, the amount of $56 may be apportioned as the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs may prescribe.

"SEC. 3. That as used in this Act

"(a) The term 'person who entered the service' shall mean a person, whether male or female, and whether commissioned, enlisted, enrolled, or drafted, who was finally accepted for active service in the military or naval forces of the United States, members of training camps authorized by law, and such other persons heretofore recognized by statute or Veterans' Regulations as being eligible for World War service connection for disability;

"(b) The term 'widow' shall mean a person who was married to the veteran prior to July 3, 1931, or having married a veteran has lived with him for a period of three years next preceding the veteran's death or having married a veteran has surviving issue of said veteran, and who has not remarried;

"(c) The term 'child' shall mean a person unmarried and under the age of eighteen years, unless prior to reaching the age of eighteen the child becomes or has become permanently incapable of self-support by reason of mental or physical defect, who is a legitimate child, a child legally adopted, a stepchild if a member of the man's household, an illegitimate child, but, as to the father only, if acknowledged in writing signed by him or if he has been judicially ordered or decreed to contribute to such child's support or has been judicially decreed to be the putative father of such child: Provided, That the payment of compensation shall be continued after the age of eighteen years and until completion of education or training (but not after such child reaches the age of twenty-one years), to any child who is or may hereafter be pursuing a course of instruction at a school, college, academy, seminary, technical institute, or university, particularly designated by him and approved by the Administrator, which shall have agreed to report to the Administrator the termination of attendance of such child, and if any such institution of learning fails to make such report promptly the approval shall be withdrawn.

"SEC. 4. That payment shall be effective from the date of enactment of this Act in all cases where application under Public Law Numbered 484, Seventythird Congress, is on file in the Veterans' Administration prior to the date of enactment of this Act and in all other cases payment shall be made from the date the application of the widow, child, or children, in the form prescribed by the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs, is filed in the Veterans' Administration: Provided, That a claim for pension or compensation under Public Law Numbered 2, Seventy-third Congress, and the Veterans' Regulations, or Public Law Numbered 141, Seventy-third Congress, on account of death of a veteran from serviceconnected disability shall be accepted as a claim for benefits under this Act.

"SEC. 5. This Act may be cited as the World War Widows' and Dependent Children's Act, 1936."

Colonel TAYLOR. There is one other bill left, that is for the extension of the so-called 5-year term insurance and we are, of course, hopeful that this committee will take it up some time during its deliberations. The CHAIRMAN. Let me say, on that point, Colonel Taylor, I have already appointed a subcommittee to go into that, and they will do that this week.

Mr.

Colonel TAYLOR. Now, this question of widows and orphans we have before this committee and have had before it since 1931. Chairman, you will recall that in 1931 you held hearings on the widows' and orphans' bill, which was favorably reported to the House. A rule was requested from the Rules Committee, which was not granted, so that ended 1931.

In 1932, the so-called Rankin bill was favorably reported by the committee. On May 2 of that year, it passed the House by a vote of 316 to 16. It went over to the Senate and no action was had.

In 1933, there was no action had, although the bill was again presented, and in 1934 the bill was again presented; and as a result of our request for the care of all widows and orphans, you considered the widows and orphans of service-connected disabled men, disabled veterans, and in Public 484 you provided that $22 should be paid to a widow, with $6 to a child of those service-connected veterans who died from any disability whatever.

In 1935, nothing was done, although it was presented; and in 1936, you again went back to the service-connected veteran and under Public 848 you extended the $22 a month for the 30 percent service connected man to the presumptive service-connected man; and now, again, in 1937, we are before this committee on this same proposal.

The CHAIRMAN. What they call the Rankin widows' and orphans' bill in 1932, was introduced and passed when the disability allowance bill was in effect. Since that time, the disability allowance bill has been amended, as we all know, by the so-called economy bill, and a great many of those men who were on the roll at that time are now off. When the bill was reported from the committee, it included the dependent parents, but the Speaker of the House declined to recognize meI could not get a rule and the Speaker of the House declined to recognize me to press it under the suspension rule, unless we did it with an amendment, striking out the dependent parent. As you pointed out a while ago, the bill was passed by 316 to 16 in the House, but it never was voted on in the Senate.

Now, we have, at this time, the dependent-parents problem on our hands more acute than before, because in the spring-beginning, we will say, in April, the insurance payments to the Gold Star Mothers and to the Gold Star Fathers-I suppose that is what you would term them-will begin to expire, and our first duty, as I see it, is to them; and I would like, Colonel, as you discuss this, while you are discussing this proposition, to also cover that phase of the situation.

Colonel TAYLOR. Well, Mr. Chairman, in 1937, this year, there will be 3,679 of those insurance policies upon which the last of the 240 payments will be paid.

The CHAIRMAN. How many did you say?

Colonel TAYLOR. Three thousand six hundred and seventy-nine, and in the calendar year 1938 there will be 88, 728; and in 1939 there will be 14,805. That is a serious proposition for the moment. That is the monthly payments of insurance.

The CHAIRMAN. Will they decline after 1938?

Colonel TAYLOR. Yes; very much so. And there are in those, widows, too, you must understand.

Mrs. ROGERS. Do you know how many?

Colonel TAYLOR. Yes; I know exactly how many. I am putting that right in the record.

The CHAIRMAN. You mean there is that many insurance cases? Colonel TAYLOR. I mean war-risk insurance, the 240 payments of $57.50 a month, which mature by reason of death that came as a result of a man's war activities.

The CHAIRMAN. This is the number that will expire?

Colonel TAYLOR. That is the number that will pay out the last of the 240 payments.

The CHAIRMAN. That covers widows, mothers, fathers, and children? Colonel TAYLOR. Children, parents, sisters and brothers, and aunts and uncles, and estates, and everything else. I am putting that in the record, Mrs. Rogers, which will be exact, so far as the widows and orphans are concerned. There is no question about it, that these people who have been drawing this $57.50 a month, when the checks have been coming every month regularly by the mailman-and now, suddenly, they will stop. There are other people in the same neighborhood who will be drawing what is known as pension checks, they will continue. There is no explanation for these beneficiaries, the recipients, whose living has been pretty well arranged on the receipt of these checks, each month-and I mean by that rent and the grocery bill-and now they will stop.

What impresses me most is that those widows 20 years ago and those parents 20 years ago were 20 years younger. I dare say that the parents are around 70 years of age now, certainly over 65; and now, suddenly, this income from the Government ceases. I think that they are under the impression that it is something that is and was going to go on forever. I think it will be a severe shock to them. We have not been able to communicate with them, because we do not know them. I hope that the Veterans' Administration will, a long time ahead, notify them that on such date the last payment of $57.50 will be received.

Now, gentlemen, these insurance checks are for insurance the man took out during the war and paid for, which is $57.50 for 240 months. They are insurance checks that the soldier, himself, paid for.

The CHAIRMAN. Colonel, right on that point, I wonder if there is anyone in the room who can give us the average age of these parents? Captain MILLER. Mr. Chairman, Mrs. Brock, who, sometime ago, supervised, with the War Department, the trip of the Gold Star Mothers to France, told me that they made a very accurate check, and that they averaged 67, and they are, of course older now. The Veterans' Administration advises me that the average age given of the World War veterans' parents group is more than 75 years. The CHAIRMAN. That is 3 years ago?

Colonel TAYLOR. Yes.

The CHAIRMAN. So they will average 70 now.

What is the average age of the World War veterans?

Colonel TAYLOR. 43 to 44.

The CHAIRMAN. 43 or 44 years old; and my impression is that the average parents were more than 25 years older than the average

veteran.

Colonel TAYLOR. Certainly.

The CHAIRMAN. So it seems to me that the average age of these parents would be above 70. It seems to me it would be very important if we could get that information to put it in the record at this point. Colonel TAYLOR. It appears under "Widows and orphans" in the matter I submitted.

The CHAIRMAN. Because it is going to become very important in this attempt to take care of these parents.

Colonel TAYLOR. Of course, in your first bill, it was $15 a month for them.

The CHAIRMAN. Yes, I remember.

Colonel TAYLOR. I said that these insurance policies were all purchased by the veterans. As a matter of fact, some soldiers had no chance to take out insurance, because they were already overseas, and Congress approved a law authorizing several thousand automatic term-insurance policies to the men that were killed or disabled within 120 days after entering the service.

Mrs. ROGERS, Do you remember the date of that?
Colonel TAYLOR. I beg pardon?

Mr. MILLER. October 6, 1917.

Colonel TAYLOR. But then the parents were limited to $25, instead of $57.50.

Now, I am wondering, Mr. Chairman, if this consideration to be given to dependent parents in these circumstances is again included in the bill, whether we shall not be doing exactly what happened in 1932, since it is legislation which they considered should go to the Pensions Committee, and whether we shall find ourselves-whether you, Mr. Chairman, find yourself unable to have consideration of the bill on the floor of the House for the same reason that was advanced in 1932? I mean, from a legislative strategy point of view, that is something you will give careful consideration to.

The CHAIRMAN. I will say this, Colonel Taylor: Speaking for myself, alone, it would not be consistent to add other people to the rolls, especially the dependents of a man whose disabilities were not serviceconnected. It would be wholly inconsistent to continue to increase or put on the rolls the dependents of veterans of the Civil War or Spanish War, without regard to service connection, unless we did. take care of these Gold Star Mothers, who made the supreme sacrifice. So, so far as I am concerned, they are coming first.

Colonel TAYLOR. I was wondering if in this bill you would meet with the same objection from the Speaker of the House.

Mr. CLIFF. The question of dependents' allowances are before this committee, and has been passed on by this committee. Under dependency allowances to old people, the fathers and mothers and other compensation claims are before this committee, and I am just afraid of the offhand suggestion at this time, if you are not going to be up against the question of increasing the dependency allowances to the Gold Star Mothers or Fathers, so far as taking care of this situation is concerned.

The CHAIRMAN. That is one of the problems we are up against. Mrs. ROGERS. It would be better to have them come out with a separate bill, Mr. Chairman.

Colonel TAYLOR. Now, then, Mr. Chairman, I will address myself to H. R. 1539, which is the American Legion bill requesting adequate care for veterans' widows and orphans.