PAY AND ALLOWANCES

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 224, 10 June 1918, Page 7

PAY AND ALLOWANCES

THE UNITED STATES' SCHEME

FURTHER DETAILS

In-Saturday's issue an article appeared under tho above- heading, quoting -Professor Lindsay in tho American "lie--I'iiiw ol Reviews'' for April on tho subject of tho. United States legislation concerning soldiers' pay, allowances, and pensions. Mr. B. A. Armstrong, president of tho Second Division .League, chums that we havo overlooked the fact that Professor Lindsay quotes tho American benefits as being under three great divisions: (1) Allotments of ipay and separation allowances; (2) "payment by tliu Government of compensation and indemnities for death or disability resulting from personal injury suffered or disease contracted in tfce line of duty, and not due to wilful misconduct, bv any commissioned officer or any enlisted .man or member of the Nurse Corps (iemale); (3) a provision for cheap insurance which commissioned officers, enlisted men, or members of the Nurse Corps (female) may take voluntarily as an added protection." In summing up at tho conclusion of Saturday's article tho following passage appeared: "It has to be remembered, too, that while in New Zealand the State has made provision for a straight-out pension scheme for disabled soldiers and dependants, the American soldier in case of death or disablement has-, out of his soldier's pay, mado substantial provision •for his dependants by means of tho system, of State insurance." Mr. Armstrong points out that this, as shown by Professor Lindsay's divisions, is "an added protection" to the State compensation or pension scheme under division (2). In further proof of this he calk attention to Professor Lindsay's statement that "Tho voluntary insurance, which is Teally supplemental to tho main protection the Government provides, has attracted tho chief attention thus far." Mr Armstrong has handed us tho following quotation from an article by Dudley Harmon in tha American "Ladies' .Homo Journal," showing what the main Government protection is:— "The wives of soldiers killed in this war are receiving from their Government fixed monthly payments as partial compensation for their financial loss. Each widow of a soldier or sailor killed in the line of duty will receive, under the law, a minimum of 25 dollars U's 4s. 2d.) a month; if-there is one child she wall receive 35 dollars (J. 7, ss. IOd.J a mouth; a widow with two children will -receive' 47 dollars 50 c«nts. (,£9 17s. lid.) a month, with an. increase of 5 dollars a mouth for each additional child.

"These sums are going to be paid to all widows of enlisted men resulting from this war as long as the widows remain unmarried. A widow's allowance from tho Government ceases as soon as sho marries again. Allowances for children will be paid until they reach tho age of JS years; the Governmo-it assumes that they will then bo competent to provide lor themselves.

"Similar provision is made in both the military and naval service of the United States, and iu the cases of oflicers as well as enlisted men. Payments ranging in amounts from 35 dollars to 75 dollars (=£ls 12s. GcL) a mouth are provided for, depending upon the sizeof tho family, in the event of physical disability.

"These allowances will continue throughout the period' of tho man's disability; for life, if tho disability exists so'long. Tho man so unfortunate as to lose both feet, both hands, or both eyes will receive from ttie Government, as long as he may live, the cum of 100 dollars (X2O Mis. Sd.) a month, whether he be a bachelor or mal'iiied man.''

This, Mr. Armstrong points out, is a brief survey of the "main protection" referred to by Professor Lindsay in his division (2'i, and to which the State insurance schemo is supplementary. This means- that in addition to getting their fixed Government 'pensions, widowa cr disabled soldiers m.ny in addition secure the benefits of tho insurance schemo Inpayments of what appears a ridiculously small sum from the soldier's pay. Tho following further extracts from Mr. Harmen's article will illustrate this:—

"Perhaps the boldest venture ihe Government made in providing protection for the wives and children, of soldiers,and sailors was in selling them life ihs-ur-ance at rates which tho. insurance companies could not possibly offer.

"Practically speaking, as soon as a man puts on the uniform of the United States to-day he is 'thereby debarred from insuring his life with any one o ; the insurance companies. The companies nro ready to insure hii? life, but can do it only at rates that .aro prohibitive to alt except those with considerable means other than am. onlist?d man's pay;

"In cither -words, the Government, in culling the average man into service, destroys liis inscrability.

"It restores that insurability by not only making it possiblo for each. man. to insuro his lifo upon entry into the Forvico of the TJnitcd States, but at rales jowev than tie commercial companies can offer even in peace time. The rate being charged men. in the military and naval service to-day ranges from 7.80 dollars a year for. each 1000 dollars' worth of insurance (,£l-12s. Gel. a year for .£209 worth of insurance) at the age of 21, to 3.&1- dollars (£2 Is.) a year at j

the ago of 11. Tho lowest rale- tlio commercial companies could oiler to soldiers in our first year of war was approximately 58 dollars a thousand. "'J. ho Government can soil at tho low rate by bearing all the administrative expenses, by eliminating nil selling and advertising expense, and by making no extra charge based on the extra hazards of war service.

"At those'low rates, even the man with only a private's pay, and with half ol that deducted as an allotment to wife and children, can afford to buy the maximum amouut of Government life insurance allowed by law—lo,ooo dollars' worth (.£2OBO worth). So far the averago amount'of Government insurance per man has been about 8000 dollars, or very near the maximum. "Tho policies under this Government insurance will be payable in the event of either death or total permanent disability of the insured. In the event ui death payment will be mado tn :h<-. widow or children or other bencftciuy in monthly instalments extending jvsr a period of 20 years. A policy of liiCl dollars means that in caso the insured dies, his beneficiary will receive 5.f,i 'hilars each month for 20 years. A 10,000 policy would bring the beneficiary 57.50 dollars (.£ll 10s. 7d.) a month for lie samo period. "The 6ame sum will be paid to insured men in the event of their total disability, without loss of life, with the exception that 6uch payments will continue for life, should they live longer than 20 years."

"It will be seen from this," said Mr. Armstrong, "that for a payment of is. lid. per day a soldier of -11 years of age in tho United States Army can secure for himself and his dependants, over and above the ordinary military pensions, an insurance for which will he paid to his dependants if lie is killed, or to himself if incapacitated, in instalments of ,£l2 a month for twenty years, eoualling a total payment of .£2875. This would mean that a soldier's widow with two children. could receive (including military pension) *C 5 os. lid. per week, while a soldier, in case of total disability, would, with his pension, receive the sum of £8 per week. The concluding paragraph of the article by Professor Lindsay that was quoted in Saturday's issuo runs as under:—

"A strong fighting army and navy will be the stronger from a sense of security and. social solidarity which they realise is thrown about those thoy leave behind. In creating this sense of security and social solidarity, not only socinl a»encies, clubs, fraternal societies, churches, and charitable organisations, but every individual citizen may have an important part, and thus become a vital, factor in sustaining the morale, the peace (-f mind, and the fighting efficiency of t.nosa at the front."