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8 Lynch vs, United States. and that Congress did net intend to preserve the right and merely withdraw consent to sue the United States?" As Congress took away the contractual right it had no oceasion to provide for with- drawal of the remedy. Moreover, it appears both from the lan- guage of the repealing clause and from the context of §17 that Congress did not aim at the remedy. The clause makes no mention of consent to sue. The consent to sue had been given originally by §405 of the Act of 1917, which, like the later substituted sections, applied to all kinds of insurance, making no specific reference to ‘arly renewable term policies, Obviously, Congress did not in- .cnd to repeal generally the section providing for suits. For in March 1933, most of the policies then outstanding were ‘‘converted’' policies, in no way affected by the Economy Act.'* That Congress sought to take away the right of beneficiaries of yearly renewable term policies and not to withdraw their privilege to sue the United States, appears, also, from an examination of the other provisions of §17. The section reads: **All public laws granting medical or hospital treatment, domi- ciliary care, compensation and other allowances, pensions, dis- ability allowance, or retirement pay to veterans and the dependents of veterans of the Spanish-American War, including the Boxer Rebellion and the Philippine Insurrection, and the World War, or to former members of the military and naval service for injury or disease incurred or aggravated in the line of duty in the mili- tary or naval service (except so far as they relate to persons who served prior to the Spanish-American War and to the dependents ~f such persons, and the retirement of officers and enlisted men the Regular Army, Navy, Marine Corps, or Coast Guard) are nereby repealed, and all laws granting-“or pertaining to yearly re- newable term insurance are hereby repealed, but payments in accordance with such laws shall continue to the last day of the third calendar month following the month durimg which this Act is enaeted.’71* 1%Veteran Regulation No. 8, promulgated March 31, 1933, pursuant to this Act provides: ‘‘¥. Except as stated above [matter not here relevant] no pay- ment may hereafter be made under contracts of yearly renewable term imsur- ance (including automatic insurance} and all pending claima or claims here- after filed for such benefits shall be disallowed, ’’ 14See Note 11. 15The number of ‘‘converted policies in foree June 30, 1933, was 616,069. Administrator of Veterana’ Affairs, Report for 1933, pp. 25, 27. 16The rest of the section is as follows: ‘*The Administration of Veterans’ Affairs under the general direction of the President shall immediately cause to be reviewed all allowed claims undcr ee ee ee, ee —r eh Lynch vs. United States. 9 That section deals principally with the many granta of gratuities to veterans and dependents of veterans. Congress apparently as- sumed that there was no difference between the legal gtatus of BUILT that rr ar Fea aie aideren? these gratuities and the outstanding contracts for yearly renew- able term insurance. It used in respect to both classes of benevo- lences the substantially same phrase. It repealed ‘‘all public laws’’ relating to the several categories of gratuities; and it re- pealed ‘‘all laws granting or petraining to’’ such insurance. _No right to sue the United States on any of these gratuities had been nétad in tha several statutes conferring them : end the richt to gran Luis. JL the OUYULGE Stat he deel cal = akg as WY 2a ae the gratuity might be withdrawn at any time. The dominant in- tention was obviously to abolish rights, not remedies. That Congress intended to take away the right under outstand- ing yearly renewable term policies, and was not concerned with the consent to sue the United States thereon, appears also from the saving clauses in §17. These provide that ‘‘all allowed claims ondar the shoes rofeserca te law)!’ ara ha ad and tha hana under the above referred to laws’ are to be reviewed ana tié oene- fits are to be paid ‘‘where a person is found entitled under this Act’’; and that “‘nothing contained in this section shall interfere the above referred to laws and where a person ig found entitled under this Act, authorize payment or allowance of benefits in accordance with the pro- visions of this Act commencing with first day of the fourth calendar month following the month during which this Act ia enacted and notwithstanding the provisions of section 9 of this Act, no further claim in such cases shall be required. Provided, That nothing contained im thie Section shall interfere with payments heretofore made or hereafter to be made under contracts of yearly renewabie term insurance which have matured prior to the date of the enact- ment of thia Act and under which paymenta have been commenced, or on any judgment heretofore rendered in a court of competent jurisdiction in any suit on a contract of yearly renewable term insurance, or which may hereafter be rendered in any such suit now pending: Provided further, That subject to auch regulations ag the President may prescribe, allowances may be granted for burial and funeral expensea and transportation of bodiea (including preparation of the bodies) of deceased veterans of any war to the places of burial thereof in a sum not to exceed $107 in any one case. ‘*The provisions of this title shall not apply to compenaation or pension {except as to rates, time of entry into active service and special statutory allowances} being paid te veterans disabled, or dependents of veterang who died, as the result of disease or injury directly connected with active military or naval service (without benefit of statutory or regulatory presumption of service connection) pursuant to the provisions of the lawa in effect on the date of enactment of thia Act. The term ‘compensation or pensions’ aa used in this paragraph shall not be construed to include emergeney officer’s retired pay referred to in section 10 of this title. *'