The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1857-01-01

Towards the close of the year 1882, and after
al hostlities had finally ceased, the unessiness
and complaints of the army were renewed, and |
became extreme-with what reason, the follow
ing extracts from Marshall, vol. 4, p. $40, will |
serve to show:
"In 1882" (late in autumn,) "while the Gen. !
eral" (Washington) "declared, in confidential
letter to the Secretary of War, his conviction
of the alacrity with which they 1.-THE army would
retire into private life, could they be placed in
asituation eligible as that they had left to enter
the service" he added: Yet, / cannot help
fearing the result of the measure, when / see
such number of men, goaded by thousand
sungs OF reflection on the past, and of antici-
patlons on the future, about to be turned into
the world, soured by penury, and what they re-
gard as the ingratitude of the public, involved
IN debts, and without one farthing to carry them
home, after having spent the flower of their
days, and many of them their patrimonies, in
establishing the Freedom and independence of
their country, and having suffered everything
winch human nature is capable of enduring on
tals side OF death; | repeat it, when l reflect
onthese irritable circumstances, unattended with
one thing to soothe their feelings or brighten the
'sleomy prospect, l cannot help experimenting
taa S train of evils will follow Of very stious
anu ulsresslng nature
Early in the wear Iisa
nj III fha
army, asking to have the half;pay for life, which
Congress had promised them, " comnauted to
Jt0e gears full pay, all at once" This petition
was signed by only part of the officers of the
army. In consequence of this petition, Con-
gress then passed the SO called "cODlpromtse or
communication resOlUe" of the 22d March, 1888 !;
the provisions of which resolve they made i'm
perative and binding upon ALL the officers of
the army, if but majority of them assented to
the same; and, as majority did afterwards as
sent to them, it consequently became, by this
act of Congress, binding upon them all. But
the minority of those officers would never con.
sent to avail themselves of the provisions of
law so mdnJeStty urDuSt. They denied the
justice OF Congress, in the abrogation of all
their former promises and former laws, at such
time. They denied the right and also the
po'oer Of a teaC or even of the majority of those
officers to absolve that Congress from all the
solemn and repeated promises and vows which
they had made of halfpay for life, on certain
conditions, to all.
This communication" 80 called, Congress
resolved should now be paid, not IN specie, but
only IN CERTIFICATES the promises to pay
of future day-which certificates, thus mex.
orably forced upon them, many of those officers
could only regard as the consummation of all
tyranny and wrong, and as identical and kin
dred with all the other paper money which that
Congress had made in such prodigious guam
tity; all which they had repudiated so late.
Most of those toil-worn and veteran defend
ers being very poor, and all impoverished by
the war, were compelled to sell their certif-
Gates, which, as tradition and all history inform
US, they mostly and eventually did, for ouly one
eighth part of their nominal value, or for no
more than " two and six pence on the pound"
and thus they actually realized but a Title more
than one single gears Aa!fpay IN all.
1t is stated by Marshall (vol. 4, o. 1851
that Among the most distinguished members
"a the Federal Legislature were persons sim
cerely &sposed to do ample justice to the cred
lt0rS general, and to that class, in particular.
whose claims were founded on military service.
Dut tnere were many who viewed the army with
z. leaaous eye, who Acknowledged fbe; y,a-:t-
with unwiilingness, and ingoluntariI. s,'ra,.aI
their repugnancs 70 g faithful onse, eael of+sA
puosic e1Teegouife.as. = E.
The condition of Congress al that inc seems
70 have been equally precarioua With what it
mad been on previous occasion, when they
passed the resolves of October Il, 1850, grant
ing half pay to those officers for life, as before
mentioned, and as stated by Marshall, vol. /
p. $50, which | again quote, as equally appli-
cable in regard to these communication oertif-
Gates or resolves of 22d March, 1888. These
also stood on the mere faith of a Government
possessing no funds which would enable it to
fulfil its engagements; from acquisitions alone
to be made on sovereign States were the sup
plies to be drawn which should satisfy these
meritorous creditors" And again he says
" The transportation OF the army was extreme.
and almost universal" And again MARSHALL
states, vol. p. $50, speaking of the army
" Soured by their past sufferings, their present
wants, and their gloomy prospects, and zxaa.
perated by the neglect with which thew bel,aved
themselves to be treGteu, and of the iniust;ca
supposed TO De meditated n~ca.inst them. the III
temper OF re army was almost universal. and
seemed to require but slight impulse to give
1t activity. Again he says vol. 4, that 1t was
deemed unsafe to disband the army all at once.
and they were sent of, therefore mostly in
small detachments, and many were sent home
on furlougb,'
1t will be observed that the Hon. Mr.. Broom.
of Penn, as chairman of the Committee of the
House on Revolutionary Claims, in his report
dated April 4, 1856, at page 7, and in reference
to section | of the House bill, proposes, as an
to strike out the words descendants
or ttaeaL descendants dc, and to insert in their
stead the following words: " Thaf all claims
'ohich shall be alloICed under the first and fffh |
sections 81 t.ss act, shall be paid TO the officer If
attce; and, IF he be dead, to his ,cid0w and |
children equally; and If there be no ioidoso |
hrin9, then to has child, children, or grand
children, de-" Now, obviously, the above |
SO called, if adopted by the House, /
as he proposed, is manifestly most unjust and |
partial in its operation, inasmuch as it proposes
and after the lapse of nearly three generations,
to conhne the benefit of the proposed provision |
ia he hi
children, and to cut off all other descendants.
1t will be found, on examination, that the
average ages Of the officers who entered the |
American army in l775, who we're Of the higher |
grades, or with the rank Of Colonel or ahnvA
that grade, that their ages would average AZ
years at the close of the war, in 1888. Conse- |
quently, if any of this class were now living |
the ages of each must average lie years-there
fore, all the widows, and nearly all the children
and also the grandchildren of this class must, by
this time, be dead. 1t is the orphans of the
fourth generation of the children of the grand
children who are chiefly, if not alone, at this
day, the petitioners to Congress, as the only liv
ing descendants Of all this class Of officers of
the higher grades, as before mentioned, that |
the amendment of Mr.. Broom is calculated III
justly to cut off entire from any share or iu-
heritance in this provision. In order that the |
children and grandchildren of this class, if any
such be living at this late day, may, as the only
and favored recipients, inherit all or, in case |
these be all Dead that then all the benefits of |
this provision may thus far be secured and |
saved, for the benefit, and only, Of the Treasury
of the United States.
The Constitution OF the United States Of !
America was Cd =
pee