PHILIPPINE UPRISINGS AND CAMPAIGNS AFTER JULY 4, 1902, AND PRIOR TO JANUARY 1, 1914 TUESDAY, MARCH 20, 1945 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, Washington, D. C. The committee met at 10:30 a. m., the Honorable Frank W. Boykin presiding. Mr. BOYKIN. We will come to order, gentlemen. The chairman could not be here. He asked me to pinch-hit for him. He is ill and had to return home to Detroit. He has prepared a statement, as he always does. I will read it. It is his, and not mine, but I am for it: The purpose of this meeting is to hold hearings on H. R. 128, a bill identical to H. R. 4099 of the last Congress, which was vetoed by the President on December 8, 1944. You have before you on the table a copy of the bill of this Congress, as well as the reports of the Secretary of War and the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs, together with the veto message of the President and hearings on H. R. 4099 of the last Congress. We will not have General Hines with us this morning, but he will be with us when we resume hearings. If the committee members have no objection I would like the testimony we receive to come from only the officers of recognized veterans' organizations and I have previously asked them to present testimony in the form of rebuttals to the objections raised by the President and General Hines to this legislation. We have been holding hearings on this subject matter for several Congresses last past, and it is my opinion that it is very worthy legislation. Frankly, I do not agree with the objections set forth in the veto message and the reports of the Secretary of War and the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs. This legislation covers service between 1902 and 1913 involving actual hostilities in certain Provinces and on certain islands, which service was in reality a continuation of the Philippine Insurrection, for which the War Department issued a campaign medal, and as pointed out here on prior occasions, there was much fighting in the areas mentioned during those years. General Shaw has described in detail to this committee on several occasions the service of our troops out there. He served as a lieutenant under General Pershing, who was a captain at that time. For the purpose of the record, I will insert herein a copy of the bill, as well as the reports of the Secretary of War and the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs and the veto message of the President on H. R. 4099 of last Congress. We will hear as many of the witnesses as possible this morning. (The documents referred to are as follows:) [H. R. 128, 79th Cong., 1st sess.] A BILL To extend the period of the Philippine Insurrection so as to include active service with the United States military or naval forces engaged in hostilities in the Moro Province, including Mindanao, or in the islands of Samar and Leyte, between July 5, 1902, and December 31, 1913 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That for the purposes of Public Law Numbered 2, Seventy-third Congress, March 20, 1933, and Veterans Regulations, as amended, or laws reenacted by Public Law Numbered 269, Seventy-fourth Congress, August 13, 1935, as amended, the Philippine Insurrection shall be deemed to have ended July 4, 1902: Provided, That where there was active service with the United States military or naval forces engaged in the hostilities in the Moro Province, including Mindanao, or in the islands of Samar and Leyte, the date herein stated shall extend to December 31, 1913. PENSIONS-PHILIPPINE UPRISINGS AND CAMPAIGNS FROM JULY 5, 1902, TO DECEMBER 31, 1913 Hon. JOHN LESINSKI, WAR DEPARTMENT, Washington, March 3, 1945. Chairman, Committee on Invalid Pensions, House of Representatives. DEAR MR. LESINSKI: The War Department is opposed to the enactment of H. R. 128, Seventy-ninth Congress, a bill to extend the period of the Philippine Insurrection so as to include active service with the United States military or naval forces engaged in hostilities in the Moro Province, including Mindanao, or in the islands of Samar and Leyte, between July 5, 1902, and December 31, 1913. The purpose of the proposed legislation is to extend under certain circumstances the period of the Philippine Insurrection to December 31, 1913, so as to confer benefits based upon war service on persons who served in the United States military or naval forces engaged in hostilities in the Moro Province, including Mindanao and the islands of Samar and Leyte, between July 5, 1902, and December 31, 1913. If the proposed legislation were enacted such persons and their dependents would become entitled to service pensions and other benefits on a parity with persons who served in the Spanish-American War, Boxer Rebellion, or the Philippine Insurrection prior to July 5, 1902. By proclamation of the President dated July 4, 1902, the Philippine Insurrection was declared to be at an end except in territory occupied by the Moro tribes. By Act No. 787 (June 1, 1903) the Philippine Commission provided for the establishment of civil government in the Moro Province, effective July 15, 1903. The Commission's designation of that date for the establishment of civil administration recognized and fixed July 15, 1903, as the formal ending date of the Philippine Insurrection in the Moro Province. The War Department has consistently held that military operations subsequent to July 15, 1903, were not in continuation of that insurrection in the Moro Province. Service pensions (service-connected disability not required) have been authorized only for veterans and the dependents of veterans who have rendered active military or naval service for a specified period in time of war. They have never been authorized on the basis of peacetime service. The military operations in the Moro Province after July 15, 1903, are analogous to military activities in the suppression of Indian uprisings in the past, during times of peace. It is the considered opinion of the War Department that the military operations subsequent to that date were not conducted in time of war. Awards of the Philippine Campaign Medal for service between 1902 and 1913 do not establish any recognition of such service as wartime service. Wartime service is not a necessary prerequisite for the award of campaign or service medals. Authorizations for such medals have scmetimes been specifically predicated upon service other than that in time of war. The proposed statutory extension of the Philippine Insurrection beyond July 15, 1903, would entail highly objectionable consequences in respect to veterans' benefits. It would materially deviate from the sound and longestablished policy of abiding by an official determination as to the ending dates of wars. The door would be open to interminable extensions of wartime status for active service. Such legislation would depart from wartime service as the basis for service pensions. This bill would afford special treatment for a particular group to the exclusion of other groups who may have served in military occupations, expeditions, or campaigns, during peacetime. Such other groups would have a precedent upon which to base demands for similar treatment. The War Department would have no responsibility in the administration of H. R. 128, if enacted, and it is unable to furnish an estimate of the cost of the proposed legislation. PHILIPPINE UPRISINGS AND CAMPAIGNS AFTER JULY 4, 1902, AND PRIOR TO JANUARY 1, 1914 TUESDAY, MARCH 20, 1945 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, Washington, D. C. The committee met at 10:30 a. m., the Honorable Frank W. Boykin presiding. Mr. BOYKIN. We will come to order, gentlemen. The chairman could not be here. He asked me to pinch-hit for him. He is ill and had to return home to Detroit. He has prepared a statement, as he always does. I will read it. It is his, and not mine, but I am for it: The purpose of this meeting is to hold hearings on H. R. 128, a bill identical to H. R. 4099 of the last Congress, which was vetoed by the President on December 8, 1944. You have before you on the table a copy of the bill of this Congress, as well as the reports of the Secretary of War and the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs, together with the veto message of the President and hearings on H. R. 4099 of the last Congress. We will not have General Hines with us this morning, but he will be with us when we resume hearings. If the committee members have no objection I would like the testimony we receive to come from only the officers of recognized veterans' organizations and I have previously asked them to present testimony in the form of rebuttals to the objections raised by the President and General Hines to this legislation. We have been holding hearings on this subject matter for several Congresses last past, and it is my opinion that it is very worthy legislation. Frankly, I do not agree with the objections set forth in the veto message and the reports of the Secretary of War and the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs. This legislation covers service between 1902 and 1913 involving actual hostilities in certain Provinces and on certain islands, which service was in reality a continuation of the Philippine Insurrection, for which the War Department issued a campaign medal, and as pointed out here on prior occasions, there was much fighting in the areas mentioned during those years. General Shaw has described in detail to this committee on several occasions the service of our troops out there. He served as a lieutenant under General Pershing, who was a captain at that time. For the purpose of the record, I will insert herein a copy of the bill, as well as the reports of the Secretary of War and the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs and the veto message of the President on H. R. 4099 of last Congress. We will hear as many of the witnesses as possible this morning. (The documents referred to are as follows:) [H. R. 128, 79th Cong., 1st sess.] A BILL To extend the period of the Philippine Insurrection so as to include active service with the United States military or naval forces engaged in hostilities in the Moro Province, including Mindanao, or in the islands of Samar and Leyte, between July 5, 1902, and December 31, 1913 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That for the purposes of Public Law Numbered 2, Seventy-third Congress, March 20, 1933, and Veterans Regulations, as amended, or laws reenacted by Public Law Numbered 269, Seventy-fourth Congress, August 13, 1935, as amended, the Philippine Insurrection shall be deemed to have The purpose of the bill is to accord recognition to certain military operations in the Moro Province, including Mindanao, or in the islands of Samar and Leyte between July 5, 1902, and December 31, 1913, as a continuation of the Philippine Insurrection for the purposes of Public Law No. 2, Seventy-third Congress, March 20, 1933, and the veterans' regulations, as amended, and laws reenacted by Public Law 269, Seventy-fourth Congress, August 13, 1935, as amended. The effect of such proposal would be to confer a wartime status on persons who served with the United States military or naval forces engaged in hostilities with hostile tribes in the Moro Province after the establishment of civil government therein and against the Pulajanes, a band of religious fanatics or outlaws in northern Mindanao or in the islands of Samar and Leyte, thereby extending to such persons the benefits provided by such laws on a parity with veterans of the Spanish-American War, Philippine Insurrection, or Boxer Rebellion. The Philippine Insurrection was declared to be at an end and peace established in all parts of the Philippine Archipelago except in the territory occupied by the Moro tribes, by the President's proclamation dated July 4, 1902 (32 Stat. 2014). The War Department regards July 15, 1903, as the date of termination of the Philippine Insurrection in the Moro Province which is the date on which Act No. 787 of the Philippine Commission, approved June 1, 1903, took effect, and has held that such military operations as occurred subsequent to the establishment of civil government in the Moro Province on July 15, 1903, should not be regarded as a continuation of the insurrection. For the purposes of laws reenacted by Public Law 269, Seventy-fourth Congress, the Philippine Insurrection is considered to have commended April 12, 1899, the day following exchange of ratifications of the treaty of peace between the United States and the Kingdom of Spain and proclamation_thereof, under which the Philippine Islands were ceded to the United States. For the purposes of Public Law No. 2, Seventy-third Congress, the War with Spain is deemed to have ended upon cessation of hostilities as evidenced by the protocol of agreement between the United States and the Kingdom of Spain embodying the terms agreed upon as a basis for the establishment of peace between the two countries, signed August 12, 1898, and the Philippine Insurrection is deemed to have commenced the day following, or August 13, 1898. In view of the administrative complications which may arise under the laws reenacted by Public Law 269, Seventy-fourth Congress, as amended, by the reference in the proposed bill to the beginning date of the Philippine Insurrection and the possibility that the rights of some whose eligibility has been established under existing laws may be adversely affected, and should favorable consideration be given the bill notwithstanding this report, the suggestion is made that it be amended by striking the following language, lines 7 and 8, on page 1, and continuing on page 2, line 1, "extended from August 13, 1898, to July 4, 1902, both dates inclusive," and substituting therefor the following: "ended July 4, 1902". Service with the United States military or naval forces engaged in hostilities in the Moro Province to July 15, 1903, is recognized as service in the Philippine Insurrection under laws administered by the Veterans' Administration and for the purposes of Public Law No. 2, Seventy-third Congress, and the Veterans Regulations, as amended, veterans and the dependents of veterans who meet the requirements thereof are eligible for the benefits provided thereunder on a parity with other war veterans. Under the laws reenacted by Public Law 269, Seventy-fourth Congress, while service in the Moro Province to July 15, 1903, is also recognized, such service is pensionable service only in cases of veterans, as such laws granting pensions to veterans did not specify the dates of the Spanish-American War, Philippine Insurrection, or Boxer Rebellion, and the ending date of hostilities in the Moro Province as administratively determined is for application. However, the service pension acts reenacted by Public Law 269, Seventy-fourth Congress, granted pensions only to widows and children of veterans who served 90 days during the Spanish-American War, Philippine Insurrection, or Boxer Rebellion, between April 21, 1898, and July 4, 1902, inclusive, and who were honorably discharged therefrom or regardless of length of service were discharged for or died in service of a disability incurred in the service in line of duty. Hence, widows and children of veterans who served between July 5, 1902, and July 15, 1903, in the Moro Province do not enjoy a pensionable status under the laws reenacted by Public Law 269, Seventy-fourth Congress. The proposed legislation would remove this inequality and to that extent the Veterans' Administration is in accord with its provisions. In The military operations in the Moro Province after the establishment of civil government therein, in which United States military or naval forces participated, or in Mindanao or the islands of Samar and Leyte, between July 16, 1903, and December 31, 1913, inclusive, are no different from other campaigns or expeditions in which the military or naval forces of the United States have been engaged throughout the course of the Nation's history, notably, encounters with hostile Puerto Ricans in the year 1905, the Cuban pacification from 1906 to 1909, the Vera Cruz expedition and punitive expedition into Mexico from 1914 to 1917, the occupation of the Dominican Republic from 1916 to 1924, among others. addition, there were disturbances and uprisings between 1925 and 1939 in which the Navy and Marine Corps participated. Enactment of the proposed legislation would serve as a precedent for demands for similar legislation on behalf of veterans of the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps who served in such other campaigns or occupations, including those veterans of the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps who enlisted after November 11, 1918, and rendered no service in World War I prior to cessation of hostilities. Persons who served on or after April 6, 1917, and before July 2, 1921, had a pensionable status under the World War Veterans' Act, 1924, as amended, but for the purposes of Public Law No. 2, Seventy-third Congress, and the Veterans Regulations, as amended, only those veterans who served between April 6, 1917, and November 11, 1918, except where there was service in the military forces of the United States in Russia prior to April 2, 1920, are considered to have had wartime service. Those who served after November 11, 1918, and prior to July 2, 1921, except with the military forces in Russia, and who had no prior service between April 6, 1917, and November 11, 1918, are deemed to have served during peacetime for the purposes of such law and regulations. Such service could similarly be construed, as was done under the World War Veterans' Act, 1924, as amended, as service during a continuation of World War I. Under part II of Veterans Regulation No. 1 (a), as amended, the rates of pension for peacetime service are approximately 75 percent of those provided for wartime service. However, provision was made in paragraph I (c), part II of the regulation, for payment of pension at wartime rates if the disability or death resulted from injury received in line of duty in actual combat in a military expedition or military occupation. This provision was intended to place those veterans of the Regular Establishment who suffered disabilities in actual combat during military expeditions or occupations necessitated to quell uprisings or disturbances during time of peace on a parity with war veterans. This paragraph was further liberalized by Public Law 359, Seventy-seventh Congress, December 19, 1941, so as to permit payment of pension at wartime rates to veterans and the dependents of veterans entitled to pension under part II of Veterans Regulation No. 1 (a), as amended, or the general pension law where the disability or death resulted from injury or disease received in line of duty (1) as a direct result of armed conflict, or (2) while engaged in extrahazardous service, including such service under conditions simulating war, or (3) while the United States is engaged in war. Hence, members of the Regular Establishment who served in military or naval campaigns or expeditions other than during a war period as now defined in part I of Veterans Regulation No. 1 (a), and who incurred disabilities under the conditions stated, are entitled to pension at wartime rates, including the dependents of those who died as the result of such disabilities. The proposed legislation would provide no increase in monetary benefits under Public Law No. 2, Seventy-third Congress, and the Veterans Regulations, as amended, upon those who served in the areas mentioned who are suffering from disabilities incurred in such service as the result of armed conflict, or under extrahazardous conditions, or upon the dependents of those who died as the result of disabilities incurred under such conditions. It would, however, extend the general pension law, as reenacted, so as to provide pensions for veterans who incurred disability in active military or naval service engaged in hostilities in Mindanao and in the islands of Samar and Leyte between July 16, 1903, and December 31, 1913, and to the dependents of veterans who served in the Moro Province, including Mindanao or the islands of Samar and Leyte between July 5, 1902, and December 31, 1913, and who died of service-connected disabilities, and by virtue of Public Law No. 359, Seventy-seventh Congress, supra, since such service would be considered wartime service, the wartime rates would be payable if higher. Service pensions (service-connected disability not required) have never been authorized except for veterans and the widows and children of veterans who rendered active military or naval service for a specified period in time of war. 77077-45-2 |