He reiterated his desire that provision should be made "for those who,
having served their country long and well, are reduced to destitution
and dependence," but he did not think that the bill was a proper means
of attaining that object. On the 19th of February, the House committee
on pensions submitted an elaborate report on the veto in which they
recited the history of the bill and the reasons actuating the committee.
Extracts from Cleveland's messages were quoted, and the committee
declared that, in "hearty accord with these views of the President and
largely in accordance with his suggestions, they framed a bill which
they then thought, and still continue to think, will best accomplish the
ends proposed." A motion to pass the bill over the veto on the 24th of
February received 175 votes to 125, but two-thirds not having voted in
the affirmative the bill failed to pass. The Republicans voted solidly
in support of the bill, together with a large group of Democrats.
The negative vote came wholly from the Democratic side. Such a fiasco
amounted to a demonstration of the lack of intelligent leadership.
If the President and his party in Congress were cooperating for the
furtherance of the same objects, as both averred, it was discreditable
all around that there should have been such a complete misunderstanding
as to the procedure.

Meanwhile, the President was making a unique record by his vetoes.
During the period of ninety-six years, from the foundation of the
Government down to the beginning of Cleveland's administration, the
entire number of veto messages was 132. In four years, Cleveland sent
in 301 veto messages, and in addition he practically vetoed 109 bills
by inaction. Of 2042 private pension bills passed by Congress, 1518
were approved and 284 became laws by lapse of time without approval. The
positive results of the President's activity were thus inconsiderable,
unless incidentally he had managed to correct the system which he had
opposed. That claim, indeed, was made in his behalf when "The Nation"
mentioned "the arrest of the pension craze" as a "positive achievement
of the first order.'" But far from being arrested, "the pension craze"
was made the more furious, and it soon advanced to extremes unknown
before.*

* March 19, 1887.

The Democratic politicians naturally viewed with dismay the approach
of the national election of 1888. Any one could see that the party was
drifting on to the rocks a