The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1862-10-28
TUESDAY MORNING, OCT. 2s. 1862
The Shareholders CONSUMPTION Act
Its Gross Hypocrisy and Deep
ton

ton
The more closely Che act Of the Con-
Federate Congress, exempting certain per-
sons from the operation Of the Conscrip-
tion law, 10 examined, the more plainly
will its iniquity, It's Partially for the
large STAKEHOLDER over the non-slavehold-
er, aud its intense hypocrisy and duplici-
~ be brought 10 view II is the best ex-
position Of the true intention Of the reb-
ell leaders which we have yet had II is
the first fruits Of the Legislation Of that
strange monster Confederacy--that po-
litical anharhcy, whose "chief corner
stone is African slavery" and this fruit,
like the tabled apples Of SOdom, turns to
ashes Of bitterness on the lips. 1t is a
truism in politics that protection and al
legiance go together; but this Conscrip
tion act virtually declares that just in
proportion as citizen is pecuniarily in
terested in this chief cornerstone of the
rebel government, and is slave-owner,
in that proportion his duty Of serving his
government as soldier diminishes.
This war; says the rebel government, is
to preserve slave property; i you o,on no
slaUes, you must 90 into tie ranks, Joa j you
OWn t,oenty slages, you can stay at home.
What a monstrous absurdity and outrage
is this, that Southern mans duty of
defending slavery lessons, in the exact
ratio that his interest in slave property
increases And what is the pretext for
this absurd, inconsistent, and infamous
enactment? Oh, says the rebel Congress,
whose members are all expressly exempted
from military duty, by this same law, we
must preserve the police of the country.
Yes, the ragged herd Of negroes who toll
on the cotton plantatians of JEFF. DAVIS
and TooMBs, must be guarded and saved
at all hazard; these ebony corner stones
in this palace of Egyptian darkness must
be watched over more vigilantly than if
they were blocks of Carrara or Parian
marble, white as drifted snow, and laced
with flaming veins Of virgin gold.
TooMBs must make his cotton crop, for
cotton is king, and the monarch must
continue to reign though the heavens
should fall. Cotton shall be king, and the
wealthy and luxurious slave driver ex-
empt from the bullet, the bayonet, and the
cannon, which send 70 untimely, and,
alas, unhonored graves, thousands and
thousands of young men, and men Of
families, who never owned negro, but
earned an honest living by the labor Of
their own hands, Have not near fifty
thousand Of them gone down TO death on
the fields Of Virginia, poor Virginia, pale
and defowered victim of slave breeding
aristocracy--an do not one hundred
thousand more Of the non holding
whites of the South, manned, legless,
armloss, eyeless, pale and emaciated
wrecks Of humanity, inundated on the
altar of despotism, 20 the Moloch of trea-
son-send up their cries, and shrieks, and
groans TO heaven, within the walls Of the
loaihsome hospitals of Richmond? Yes,
and in sightof those living charnel-hous-
es, the Congress Of the Southern Confede-
racy DEGREES that the luxurious planter,
for whose protection, we are told, this war
is waged, shall not be exposed TO the
tolls and perils of the war; into whose
yawning jaws the iend of CONSUMPTION
drags the non-slaye holders, and small
shareholders Of the South? Almost are
we tempted to ask, with the ancient poet,
why Jove delays to hurl his bolts at the
heads Of these law giyers Of treason and
rebellion. Does your number Of slaves
fall shortof the golden standard Of tosnty
prescribed by this act You can easily
make up the deficiency. DO you own
fifteen slaves? Purchase five more and
you are exempt Do you own eighteen
This is still better, for you can get ex-
emption by buying only two, DO you
own twenty slaves? II so, thrice happy
man, for you are admitted without pafley
into the charmed circle beyond which the
rod of the enrolling officer has no poten-
cy; you are d member Of the southern
nobility; your interest in the preservation
of the peculiar institution is so large,
that you can stay al home and make
your poor neighbors go out to fight your
battles,
Bot the hypocrisy alR eleat which invests
this are is as gross and palpable as its
injustice; for ia order TO gild this rot
ten colin aud assume an air Of impartial
ity, il goes on 60 say that among The cx-