H. R. 2140 Mr. O'TOOLE. We will take up H. R. 2140 next. It was introduced by Mr. Green, of Pennsylvania, who I do not believe is present. (The bill referred to follows:) [H. R. 2140, 81st Cong., 1st sess.] A BILL To amend the Act entitled "An Act to provide for the recognition of the services of the civilian officials and employees, citizens of the United States, engaged in and about the construction of the Panama Canal," approved May 29, 1944 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That section of the Act of May 29, 1944, as amended, entitled "An Act to provide for the recognition of the services of the civilian officials and employees, citizens of the United States, engaged in and about the construction of the Panama Canal", is amended by striking out "who was his wife living with him at least one year of his service on the Isthmus of Panama during said construction", wherever it appears in such section, and inserting in lieu thereof the following: "who was his wife on or before March 31, 1914." Mr. O'TOOLE. Mr. Burdick. STATEMENT OF B. F. BURDICK, CHIEF OF OFFICE AND GENERAL PURCHASING OFFICER, THE PANAMA CANAL Mr. BURDICK. Mr. Chairman, I have no prepared statement on this bill. Public Law 319, Seventy-eighth Congress, approved May 29, 1944, provided for the payment of an annuity to employees of the Isthmian Canal Commission or Panama Railroad Company on the Isthmus of Panama during the period of the construction of the Panama Canal between May 4, 1904, and March 31, 1914. The act provided also for the payment of the annuity to the widow of an employee who would have been entitled to receive the annuity had he been alive on the date when the act took effect, and to the widow of an annuitant dying after he received an annuity payment. In either case, as originally enacted, the act required that the widow must have lived with the employee as his wife during at least one year of his service on the Isthmus of Panama during the construction period. The pending bill, H. R. 2140, would amend section 4 so as to extend the annuity benefits to a person who was the wife of a deceased employee on or before March 31, 1914, and to eliminate the requirements that she must have been the wife of a deceased employee who was living with him at least one year of his service on the Isthmus of Panama during said construction. The Panama Canal has consistently favored legislation conferring reasonable special benefits on persons for their Canal construction service. However, the Canal has no direct interest in such legislation, which concerns the past services of persons nearly all of whom are no longer in the employ of the Government and the extent to which such services should be rewarded by providing annuities for such persons or their widows is, of course, properly a matter for determination by the Congress. The Panama Canal has no information as to how many persons would be affected by the pending legislation. I might say, Mr. Chairman, that our report, which was prepared for the signature of the Secretary of the Army, has been cleared by the Bureau of the Budget for submission to the Committee and will come along probably within the next day or two to your Committee. That carries the advice that the Director of the Bureau of the Budget has advised that the enactment of the proposed legislation would not be in accord with the program of the President. Thank you. Mr. O'TOOLE. Are there any questions? Thank you. (The following letters were subsequently furnished for the record:) Hon. S. O. BLAND, DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY, Washington, D. C., April 5, 1949. Chairman, Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, House of Representatives, Washington, D. C. DEAR MR. BLAND: Further reference is made to your request for comment on bill H. R. 2140, to amend the act entitled "An act to provide for the recognition of the services of the civilian officials and employees, citizens of the United States, engaged in and about the construction of the Panama Canal," approved May 29, 1944. The following is quoted from a statement of the Governor of the Panama Canal with respect to the proposed legislation: "The act of May 29, 1944 (ch. 214, 58 Stat. 257), as amended by Public Law 619, Seventy-ninth Congress, approved August 7, 1946, grants annuities to persons who were employed by the Isthmian Canal Commission or the Panama Railroad Company on the Isthmus of Panama during the period of construction of the Panama Canal between May 4, 1904, and March 31, 1914, and who were citizens of the United States during such service or became citizens of the United States through naturalization on or before December 7, 1941. Section 4 of that act extends the annuity benefits in certain cases to a surviving widow of such a former employee provided she lived with him at least 1 year of such construction service on the Isthmus. "The subject bill (H. R. 2140) would amend said section 4 so as to extend the annuity benefits to a person who was the wife of such a deceased employee on or before March 31, 1914, and to eliminate the requirement that she must have been the wife of a deceased employee who was living with him at least 1 year of his service on the Isthmus of Panama during said construction. "The Panama Canal has consistently favored legislation conferring reasonable special benefits on persons for their Canal construction service. However, the Canal has no direct interest in such legislation, which concerns the past services of persons, nearly all of whom are no longer in the employ of the Government, and the extent to which such services should be rewarded by providing annuities for such persons or their widows is of course properly a matter for determination by the Congress. This office has no information as to who or how many persons would be benefited by the subject bill." I concur in the views of the Governor of the Panama Canal. I am advised by the Director of the Bureau of the Budget that the enactment of the proposed legislation would not be in accord with the program of the President. Sincerely yours, KENNETH C. ROYALL, UNITED STATES CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION, Hon. SCHUYLER O. BLAND, Chairman, Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, House of Representatives. DEAR MR. BLAND: Further reference is made to your communication of February 10, 1949, relative to H. R. 2140, a bill to amend the act entitled "An act to provide for the recognition of the services of the civilian officials and employees, citizens of the United States, engaged in and about the construction of the Panama Canal," approved May 29, 1944. The act of May 29, 1944, authorizes the payment of annuity to any citizens of the United States who served three or more years under the Isthmian Canal Commission or the Panama Railroad Company on the Isthmus of Panama during the construction period, May 4, 1904, to March 31, 1914. If such employee is deceased, provision is also made for payment to the undivorced widow of the amount her husband would receive, if living, provided she was his wife living with him on the Isthmus during the construction period for a period of at least 1 year. In case of death of such employee after receiving annuity payments, the annuity is continued to such undivorced widow. The proposal would eliminate the requirement that the widow of the employee must have been his wife living with him on the Isthmus for at least 1 year, and substitute therefor the requirement that the widow have been married to the employee prior to March 31, 1914, the termination date of the construction period. There would be no requirement that the widow had lived on the Isthmus at any time. The act of May 29, 1944, is intended as a measure of reward for the hardships and deprivations suffered by the employees by reason of living conditions existing on the Isthmus during the construction period. Justification for the payment of benefits to widows is found in the fact that these widows shared in these hardships. No such justification can be found in the case of a wife who did not in fact live with her husband-employee under these conditions. In fact, under the terms of the bill, it would not be necessary that the widow have been married to the employee while he was working on the Isthmus, but would include a person entering into marriage with the employee after the termination of his employment on the Isthmus. The Commission recommends adverse action on this bill. The Bureau of the Budget advises that there would be no objection to the presentation of this report to your committee. By direction of the Commission: Very sincerely yours, HARRY B. MITCHELL, President. H. R. 2237 Mr. O'TOOLE. The next bill for consideration is H. R. 2237. (The bill referred to is as follows:) [H. R. 2237, 81st Cong., 1st sess.] A BILL For the relief of Mrs. Mary Wadlow Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That in the administration of the Act entitled "An Act to provide for the recognition of the services of civilian officials and employees, citizens of the United States, engaged in and about the 'construction of the Panama Canal", approved May 29, 1944, Mrs. Mary Wadlow, widow of Benjamin Franklin Wadlow, who was employed as a foreman on the Panama Canal construction project from 1908 to 1912, shall be held and considered to have lived with the said Benjamin Franklin Wadlow as his wife for at least one year of his service on the Isthmus of Panama during the construction of the Panama Canal. Mr. O'TOOLE. Mr. Burdick. STATEMENT OF B. F. BURDICK, CHIEF OF OFFICE AND GENERAL PURCHASING OFFICER, THE PANAMA CANAL Mr. BURDICK. Bill H. R. 2237, for the relief of Mrs. Mary Wadlow, would likewise amend Public Law 319. Benjamin Franklin Wadlow was employed by the Isthmian Canal Commission effective April 2, 1909, and resigned November 19, 1912. The records of the Panama Canal indicate that Mr. Wadlow was unmarried during his employment on the Isthmus, although recent correspondence with Mrs. Mary Wadlow indicates that he was mar ried in the United States following his resignation from the Canal service. As I said a moment ago, this act of May 29, 1944, Public Law 319, authorized the payment of annuities to persons who were employed during the construction period under certain circumstances, and the widow under certain circumstances, one of which is that she must have resided on the Isthmus as his wife during the construction period. Mr. THOMPSON. This woman does not comply with the requirements of the law? Mr. BURDICK. That is correct. Mr. THOMPSON. What is the basis, then, of her request? Why should she be not under the law like other people in the same category? Mr. BURDICK. That, Mr. Thompson, seems to be one of the things that you get on any of these bills when you draw minimum standards. Someone who almost meets the minimum requirements and comes very close to complying thinks that the line should have been set a little differently from what it was. Our position with respect to this legislation is the same as it is with respect to the one that we just discussed a moment ago. We have no special interest in and no special recommendation to make with regard to it. It is a matter for Congress to decide. Mr. MILLER. If we reported this bill favorably it would amount to changing the law for the benefit of a particular individual; would it not? Mr. BURDICK. Yes, sir; that would be the effect of it. Mr. MILLER. And then that would perhaps involve a hundred others. Mr. THOMPSON. It just simply lowers the base; that is all. Mr. BURDICK. I would like to say, Mr. Chairman, that our drafted report of this has likewise been cleared by the Bureau of the Budget and will be along to the committee very promptly. That will also carry the advice that the enactment of the proposed legislation would not be in accord with the program of the President. That is all. Mr. MILLER. I have no further questions; thank you. Mr. O'TOOLE. Thank you, Mr. Burdick. Is there anyone else who wishes to appear in opposition to the bill? STATEMENT OF LEWIS H. FISHER, REPRESENTING THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF RETIRED CIVIL EMPLOYEES, WASHINGTON, D. C. Mr. FISHER. Mr. Chairman, and gentlemen of the committee, my name is Lewis H. Fisher, representing the National Association of Retired Civil Employees. We want to support Mr. Burdick's report that these bills—H, R. 2140 and H. R. 2237-seem to be discriminatory in favor of one or two individuals and we think that if there is to be a change in the policy adopted by the Congress in requiring residence on the Isthmus during the construction period of 1 year, there should be a pension for all widows of construction workers and not just pick out a few, as you would have in those cases. I was Chief of the Retirement Division when the basic law was passed in 1944, and a great deal of debate occurred in the Halls of Congress on that question, and they wanted to put it down to 6 months residence and different periods, and they finally decided that there should be a residence of at least 1 year. If that is to be changed, I would like to recommend that all widows of construction workers be given the benefit because Theodore Roosevelt said these widows performed a wonderful service. He said: It is not an easy work. Mighty few things that are worth doing are easy. Sometimes it is rough on the men and just a little rougher on the women. It has pleased me particularly to see, as I have met the wives who have come down here with their husbands, the way in which they have turned in to make the best of everything and to help the men do their work well. He also points out: Whoever you are, if you are doing your duty you are putting your country under an obligation to you just as a soldier who does his work well in a great war puts the country under an obligation to him. I am weighing my words when I say that you, here, who do your work well in bringing to completion this great enterprise, will stand exactly as the soldiers of a few, and only a few, of the most famous armies in all the nations stand in history. This is one of the great works of the world. So we think there is some basis for the pensioning of all these widows as we do for military veterans. Thank you. (The following letters were subsequently furnished for the record :) Hon. S. O. BLAND, DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY, Washington, D. C., April 5, 1949. Chairman, Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, House of Representatives, Washington, D. C. DEAR MR. BLAND: Further reference is made to your request for my views and recommendations on bill H. R. 2237, for the relief of Mrs. Mary Wadlow. The purpose of the bill evidently is to authorize the payment of an annuity to Mrs. Wadlow as an exception to the general provisions of the act of May 29, 1944, by providing that in the administration of that act Mrs. Wadlow shall be held and considered to have lived with Benjamin Franklin Wadlow as his wife for at least 1 year of his service on the Isthmus during the construction of the Panama Canal. The views of the Panama Canal on the bill are set out in a memorandum of the Chief of Office of the Panama Canal, dated March 1, 1949, a copy of which is enclosed. I concur in the views and recommendations of the Governor of the Panama Canal as stated in that memorandum. I am advised by the Director of the Bureau of the Budget that the enactment of the proposed legislation would not be in accord with the program of the President. Sincerely yours, KENNETH C. ROYALL, Secretary of the Army. THE PANAMA CANAL, WASHINGTON OFFICE, Washington, March 1, 1949. Memorandum for the Secretary of the Army: Reference is made to the request of the chairman, Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, House of Representatives, for the comments of the Panama Canal on bill H. R. 2237, for the relief of Mr. Mary Wadlow. The proposed legislation was brought to the attention of the Governor of the Panama Canal, who has made the following statement with respect thereto : "Benjamin Franklin Wadlow was employed by the Isthmian Canal Commission effective April 2, 1909, for service on the Isthmus as a blacksmith, and he resigned effective November 19, 1912. The records of the Panama Canal indicate that |