47TH CONGRESS, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. f MIS. DOO. 1st Session. .No. 24. IIOM E F101 DISABLIl)D VOLUJIN'TIEERt SOLlDIER1S. ANNUAL REPO T OF 1'IlE: BOARD OF MANAGERS OF THE NATIONAL HOME FOR DISABLED VOLUNTEER SOLDIERS FOR T1HE FISCAL YEAR ENDIING JUNE 30, 1881. JANUARY 11, 1882.-IRead twice, referred to the Cominitteo on Military Affairs and ordered to bo printed. THIE NATIONAL HOME FOR DISABLED VOLUNTEER SOLDIERS. MANAGERS. TilE PRIEIDE)NT OF THlE UNITED STATES; TIIE CIIIEF JUSTICE; TlE SECIiETARY OF WAR--EX Offiiics. General WIr.LIAM3lB.FRANKALN, President, Hart. Col. JoHN A. MARTIN, Atchison, Kans. ford, Conu. O6* 0 19X.8 a.j. 1)AVID C. FIvrLTN, Hudson, Wis. Col. LEONARD A. HARRIs, First Vice-President, General JONR LOVF, Indianapolis, Ind. Cincinnati, Ohio. General JOIHN M. PALMER, S)prInFfleld, Ill. General RICHARD COULTER, Second Vice-Presi- General CHAIILES W. ROIERTS, Bangor, Mo. (lent, Greensburg, Pa. General [MARTIN T. MCMAHON, Secretary, 93 Nas- sau street, New York City. Letter of transmittal of General Wiilliam B. Franklin. HARTFORD, CONN., December 7, 1881. SIR: I transmit'with this the report of the Board of Managers ot the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1881. Respectfully, yours, W. B. FRANKLIN, President Board of Managers, National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers. Hon. J. W. KEIFER, Speaker of the Hlouse of Representatives, Washington, D. 0. 2 lHONME FOR DISABLED VOLINTEER SOLDIERS. ANNUAL REPIORT O"FTl'E IOAII)OFA1 MANAGERS OF TIlE NATIONAL HOME FOR I )SABILE. VOILUNTEEI;I SOLDIIERS, FOR1 'T'IlE YEAR ENI)ING JUNE w(), Hsl.I To the honorable the Senate (d HJouse of Rlepresent(atiCes oJ the United States inl Congress assembledd : The )Board of Managers of tlle Nationall Iome for I)isabled Volunteer Jol(lierls, ill contfobirity to lawr sublmits the following report of' the insti- tutions for tlhe fiscal year ending Julle 30, 1881. Since tlhe last annual report, which was ilade( in January, 1881, the board las lostat fithfil andI eff(icient member by deatlh-John Love, of Indiana. Congress by tle act of March 3, 1881, appointed George B. Mclellian, of New Jersey, to fill the vacancy. On March 4, 1881, two otller vacancies were made and filled, viz: those of thle I'resident of tile United States and the Secretary of War. During the last fiscal year the .board has heldl lquarterly sessions, 1and has performed( the usual dutie: of visiting the branches of tlle HIome, attending to the discipline and needs of the institution, regulating its expen(litlre, estimating for its Wants, land auditing its accounts. It is its opinion that tlie discipline is good, that lrolpel andl econoni- cal care has been taken of tlhe inmates, and tllat the money appropriated by Congress lias been honestly exlen(led land accounted for. Thle increase in the number of inmates during the past year hlas been 483, or about 7 per cent., being less than it has been in any previous year. This fact shows that tle numnberl of' inmates on the existing basis of admission has arrived nearly at its nmximum, as the deathl-rate must increase in a greater ratio froll year to year. At a meeting of the Board of Managers leld in March last, the presi- dent andl( secretary were directed to represent to Congress tile iact that, under the laws regulating admissions to the Home, the board has no au- thority to admit soldiers who were not disabled during their term of service; that there are man5 soldiers who have been disabled since the war, and are incapable of earning a living; that in milany cases the con- dition of this class is peculiarly distressing, as they are not entitled to pensions and consequently have no means of support; and that in tle opinion of the board the time is near at hand, if it has not already ar- rived, when the laws regulating admission to the Home should be so modified as to give the Board of Managers discretionary power to admit worthy destitute disabled soldie6i'rs hose (disabilities cannot be traced to or were not incurred (during their term of service. TlhiMs matter is presented to Congress for such action as may seem to it to be wise and proper. Every member of thle Board of Managers hlas been obliged to refuse amlllission to deserving cases of soldiers entirely disabled, whose disability has been Ihastened or perhaps entirely incur- red from e.l)osure during tile war, the facts of' which cannot b)e traced back, or from poverty produced by thle destruction of their business caused by their enlistments, or who have been thrown on tile world in a destitute condition w\lenl too old( to SUl)l)ortthe1melves, on account of tlhe deatl or poverty of those upon whom they have hitherto depended for sppIl)ort. Under existing law tliese imenl are not entitled to admission to the Home, yet a 1iman wlho receives a pension for any wound, however insig- nificant, is entitled to all of the benefits of the Home, HOME FOR DISABLED VOLUNTEER fOLDIERS. 3 There is injustice in this discrilminlation which should, if )possible, be renetldied. A cl1halge ill tile law whicll would permit the Illanatge'rs to atlimiit anily disablle(d destitutesooldlier to the Iloirle would cover tie case. ii tile )olinion oftthelboar4l tiltllinumbl)er of admissions ldue( to such a change would lnot be excessive, built in any event if such a. law were passed, one year's experincl e would determine whether the legislation was wise, or whether the law should be repeaaled. By thle act approved March 3, 1881, the Managers of the Homne are authorized to estimate " for b)uiling iand maintenance alttie Central Branch of a' building or buildings for the safe and proper keeping of the insane." [Since the passage of the act the board lhas made arrange. nients with sundry State instittittons for the safe and proper keeping of the insane " uilder its charge, by wlhicli tie cost to the United States, ill its opinion, will be materially less than it wAouldl be were ta building erected as contemlla)ted by, tile law. It has not, therefore, availed itself of tile authority 'ivren, and no estimate for tie building bas been lade.*] Tlie original organic law of the board authorized the admission of disabled sailors to the Home. This authority was repealed by the amendatory act organizing tile Home, approved. March 21, 1866. By an act apl)roved February 28, 1871, the benefits of the Hlomle were extended to the disabled volunteer soldiers a.Lnd s ilors of tile war of 1812 and of tie Mlexican war. There is no authority for admitting disabled sailors who served through the late war, unless tile sailor originally enlisted as a soldier. The managers have been obligedl to refuse admission hitherto to this class of persons on account of what is evidently an omission in tile law. Their needs, however, are as pressing as those of soldiers, land it is respectfully recommended that an act be passed, of which tile following is suggested as a sketch: Be it enacted, ,'c., That the Board of Manlagers of tlh National H-ome for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers be, and it is hereby, authorized to admit to the National loine disabled sailors who served in the war of the rebellion, on the same conditions as those on which dlisaled soldiers are now admitted to the said Home: Prorided, That this authority shall not apply to such sailors as are now entitled by law to admission, to naval asylums established by act of Congress. The estimate for tie su)l)ort of the IIome for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1883, has been submitted through the proper channel. Its amount is $1,192,088.03, being an increase of $2,882.90 over that of the current fiscal year. The annual cost of keeping each beneficiary is about $180, and the increase in number during the past fiscal year was 483. Should the increase be the same for the current fiscal year, the additional sum required on tile same basis of cost would be $86,940. The board has used all proper endeavor to bring down tile estimate to tle lowest amounilt possible, tand believes tllat the amount asked for is the lowest that will permitt tle proper and economical care of tile beneficiaries. * Since the above was written, official notice lhas been received by tle board tlat tle arrangements which had been made for the care of the insane of the Ionom in tile various State hlospilals cannot longer be carried out. In soIme cases the 1roo'm oc- cupied by them is needed, land in others tle t'act that tlhe illsane of the Home are in the great majority of thle cases incural)le renders them undesirable occupants of the State hospitals. In any event, they are about to Ib thrown back on our hands. For this reason thle president of the b)oardl lias directed that a design and estimate for an insane hospital, to be erected at the Central BranIchl of tle Home near Dayton, Ohio, bo l)reparied for submiission to the board, which, when acted n1pon by tihe board, will l)e respectfully submitted to Congress, in conformity to tle act approved March 3, 1881, for such action as may seem to it proper. 4 HOME FOR DISABLED VOLUNTEER SOLDIERS. The statement of accounts of the acting treasurer for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1881, is appended hereto. All of his expenditures have been audited by the board.