Navy: The available records indicate that aproximately 1,400 Navy and Marine officers and men participated in the expedition. Of this number, 13 were killed and 43 were wounded.

Army: The official records show that the China Relief Expedition began June 20, 1900, and ended May 12, 1901, and 5,000 Army troops were engaged therein; 33 were killed in action, and 18 died of wounds. Mr. BOYKIN. Without objection, they will be placed in the record at this point.

(The letters referred to follow :)

Hon. Roy W. WIER,

House of Representatives.

DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY,

OFFICE OF THE ADJUTANT GENERAL,
Washington 25, D. C., March 30, 1951.

DEAR MR. WIER: I have received your communication of March 21, 1951, requesting certain information concerning the Boxer Rebellion.

The official records show that the China Relief Expedition (Boxer Rebellion) began June 20, 1900, and ended May 12, 1901; that 5,000 Regular Army troops were engaged therein; that 33 were killed in action and 18 died of wounds.

This Department has no information concerning the number of enemy dead or wounded in that expedition.

As the subject of naval personnel engaged in said expedition is a matter pertaining to the Chief of Naval Personnel, Department of the Navy, Washington 25, D. C., your communication has been referred to that office for consideration. Sincerely yours,

WM. E. BERGIN,
Major General, United States Army,

Acting the Adjutant General.

Hon. Roy W. WIER,

DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY,

BUREAU OF NAVAL PERSONNEL, Washington 25, D. C., April 9, 1951.

House of Representatives, Washington, D. C.

MY DEAR MR. WIER: This is in reply to your letter of March 21, 1951, which was referred to this Bureau of the Department of the Navy for reply to that part pertaining to Navy and Marine Corps personnel participating in the Boxer Rebellion.

The available records indicate that approximately 1,400 Navy and Marine Corps officers and men participated in the expedition. Of this number, 13 were killed and 43 were wounded.

This Department has no information concerning the number of enemy dead and wounded in this campaign.

I trust that this information satisfactorily answers your inquiry.
By direction of Chief of Naval Personnel :
Sincerely yours,

D. H. PUGH,

Commander, United States Navy, Director, Liaison and Public Information.

Mr. KYLE. With reference to the Boxer Rebellion, there has never been any question about it, but when these reports came up it was completely ignored, just as they ignore the fact that the Congress provided for the veterans of the Indian hostilities-peacetime hostilities.

Mr. Chairman, I do not think it is neecssary for me to take up any more of the committee's time. I want to make this statement, Mr. Chairman, in conclusion. You heard able testimony from authors of the resolution. Many members of the committee are thoroughly familiar with this. I know the Chair is very familiar with the history of this legislation. Time is of the essence, gentlemen.

If we cannot get this legislation very soon, I do not think it will do much good. There will be so many to have gone to their reward. In the last Congress this subcommittee under the chairmanship of the gentleman from Washington, Mr. Mack, reported a similar measure favorably and the full committee reported it unanimously, but we lost it in the Rules Committee.

Mr. Chairman, I hope that this subcommittee will not only report this resolution, but that the full committee will instruct the chairman to call it up under the privilege pension rule, on the floor, to rush this legislation through the House.

With those remarks, Mr. Chairman, I think I shall conclude.

Mr. BOYKIN. Thank you very much, Mr. Kyle. You made a splendid statement.

Mr. KYLE. Thank you.

ADDITIONAL STATEMENT OF JACK KYLE, NATIONAL LEGISLATIVE REPRESENTATIVE, THE 1902-14 PHILIPPINE COMMAND COMMITTEE

Mr. KYLE. Mr. Chairman, I would now like to discuss the all-important cost element in connection with the Moro resolution, so-called. In this connection I point out that the full Committee on Veterans' Affairs, in 1953, found the estimated first-year cost of a similar measure to be $789,000. That was 2 years ago. The committee also found the average age of the group to be 78 years. So, using the committee's 1953 figures, let us now estimate future costs and the total expenditures incident to enactment of the resolution. In 1953 the committee estimated that 500 veterans and 300 widows would benefit by the enactment of such legislation, and, as the committee pointed out at that time, "the death rate is rapid for his group." Then, today, perhaps the first-year cost would not exceed $700,000. Naturally the cost must decrease from year to year, and after about 15 years, the annual cost should be practically nil. A liberal estimate would be that the total cost to the Government for all years would not exceed $5,500,000.

In this era of multi-billion-dollar foreign-aid appropriations, certainly an insignificant $5,500,000 would not become an unbearable financial burden to the Government. We have spent more tax money on Operation Reindeer-buying Christmas presents for foreign peoples all around the globe. Why, Mr. Chairman, an insignificant $5,500,000 wouldn't have paid FOA's transportation bill last year. It is not enough to pay for the war medals and decorations we have bought for our former enemies, nor would it pay the interest on those worthless German Government bonds-held by American speculators-which were paid off at full face value with FAO money.

Mr. Chairman, since World War II, the cost of foreign aid and foreign operations has been more than $80 billion-and the end isn't in sight-which is more than twice the amount expended for all veteran benefits since our beginning as a Nation. While we were showering the foreign world with Christmas presents at the taxpayers' expense many of the old Moro-Leyte-Samar veterans were living off private charity or dying in poverty. Gentlemen, in all fairness, does that not border on a national disgrace?

To those who would ask, "Where is the money coming from?" I would respectfully answer:

"Gentlemen, if you can't find $5,500,000 for this worthy purpose anywhere else, then please shave that amount off the impending multi-billion-dollar foreign-aid appropriation."

I know that the prophets of gloom and doom are sending up flares to stampede the Congress into headlong political irresponsibility. They assert that the national economy is confronted with the proposition of caring for 21 million living veterans, whereas, in round numbers there are but 3,500,000 individuals, including widows and orphans, on the Veterans' Administration rolls. That is but a mere 2 percent of our total population. It is less than 17 percent of all living veterans, and the 21 million living veterans represent but 12 percent of the total population. (These figures and percentages, of course, do not include trainees.) Apparently these prophets of gloom and doom have overlooked the national experiences with reference to veteran benefits. History shows that as a new war group is placed on a new roll, older groups have all but expired.

Example: As the veterans of World War II and the related Korean "peacetime police action" were being placed on a new roll, the Civil War group had ali but vanished. Within another 20 years expenditures on account of the War with Spain will have diminished to the vanishing point, and the World War I beneficiaries will have expired some 30 years before those of our latest, or Korean, conflict.

But I submit, Mr. Chairman, that there are not 21 million living veterans. Too many individual veterans are counted twice, and even three times. We are given total by war, whereas, it is a matter of common knowledge that literally thousands of veterans served in two wars. Some actually served in three. Who does not know that many World War II veterans were drafted for service in the Korean "peacetime police action"? Many World War I veterans served in World War II, and a goodly number-a very heavy percentage of living Spanish-American War veterans served in World War I. Now here's one for the book: Several thousand-I do not have the figure-individuals who served after the Korean cease-fire have technical war-veteran status although they enlisted after the cease-fire. And although the Moro-Leyte-Samar veterans limit their petition to the date of the last engagement in the island or province in which they served, they have absolutely no war-veteran status. They are not eligible for Government hospitalization, medical care, domiciliary care, a burial allowance or so much as a flag for their casket.

The COUNSEL. Mr. Chairman, that concludes the list of witnesses. The Veterans' Administration representatives were here, but inasmuch as reports were inserted in the record, they were excused at your suggestion.

Mr. BOYKIN. Thank you.

We will adjourn. The hearings are completed.

It is good to have you all with us. Any time we can be of any service, just let us know.

(Whereupon, at 11:30 a. m., Friday, April 22, 1955, the subcommittee adjourned, subject to call.)

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