, 1862-06-13


The tax hill ont Of the way for the time |
being, the House condscation bill must next
command the attention Of the Senate, and this
time be decided one way or the other.
The rebel Congress have enacted two
conhscat1on laws during the brief period
in which they have played at the science Of
government, and what is more to the purpose,
they have executed them. I managed to OBJ
tain copies Of these acts at Norfolk two or
three weeks ago, and presums q brief synop-
sis Of their contents will not be uninteresting
to the readers Of the TRIBUNE at this juno
ture.
The first one (approved August 80, 1861
declares ssthat all and every, the lands, tene-
ments and hereditaments, goods and chatte1s,
rights and credits, within these Confederate
States, and every right and interest therein
held, owned, possessed or enjoyed, by or for |
any alien enemy since the 21st day of May, /
1861, be, and the same are hereby sequestrated |
by the Confederate States Of America, and
shall be held for the full indemnity Of any true
and loyal citizen OF resident Of the Confederate
States, or other person aiding said Confederate |
States, e. e., Northern traltors,) in the prose-
eeution Of the present war between the Con-
federate States and the United States Of
America, and for which he may suffer any loss
or injury under the act Of The United States to
which this act is retaliatery, or Under any
other act Of the United States, Or Of any State
| thereof, authorizing the seizure, condemnation
/ or coniscation Of the property Of citizens or
| residents Of the Confederate States, or other
| persons aiding said Confederate States, and the
same shall be seized and disposed OF as pro-
I 7ided in this act'' The pretense Of retaliation
here made is based upon the act Of the extra
session of Congress, con6scating property
used for insurreetionary purposes, namely:
forts, ships, firearms, munitions Of war, and
negro slaves employed in the service Of the
the confscation Of every conceivable thing
owned by citizen Of the loyal States in ths
South, including real estate.
The citizens q Delaware, Maryland, Ken
lucky, Missouri, the District Of Columbia,
New Mexico, Arizona, and the Indian Terri
| tory south OF Kansas, are excepted frum the
provisions Of the act. The third section
makes it the duty Of every attorney, ageut,
former partner, trustee OF other person hold
ing or controlling the property Of such alien
enemy to giye full Information thereof to the
public receiver, under penalty OF fine OF
| 5000, and imprisonment six months, and
shall be further liable to be sued BY said Con
| federatc States and subjected to pay double
the alien enemy held By him or subject to his
/ ! control" The remainder Of the act pre-
I | scribe6 the method Of ascertaining, condemn
= ing and selling the property Of loyal citizens
| and resting their titles respectively in the
S rebel purchasers.
L The second act seems to have been adopted
q a short time before the rebel congress sd
= journed. It is published in the Richmond
= Enquirer Of March 81, 1862. It amends ths
d previons one sweeping, the proceeds Of tn
# ate treasury, instead Of paying it to their owl
- despol1ed citizens. It drops, for the mos
| part, the word sequcstration, and adopts con
1jscation instead. It provides additional pen
| alties for the failure Of agents or debtors Q
f. northern citizens to dlyulge and pay over tn
l. sums held or owed, and it alters some Of tn
- machinery Of selling, and depositing the fund
l. realized from sales.
J. That the stringent and merciIess provision
,r Of these acts have been fully enforced every
body knows. The rebel Journals have boast
o. ted that $500, 600 600 had been or would be st
Is cured by them. The declaration or lnslnus
ID ton that the measures were retaliatory; tia
"a they were provoked and justified by anythln
II if we can place them On footing Of eqnalit
Or with the United States as I nation,) is lii
H. They hare exercised the power Of conf5c
y, ton in the most summary and unsparlng N a
v ner. Yet, when it is proposed to exercise II
he same power in behalf of loyal citizens again:
er protested traitors, there are class Of persor
Ia in Congress who argue against the expediene
'e Of employing it. More than half Of Mr. Cox
ey ans speech On Judge Trumbun's bill was
rc- this eharacter-a sober, serious argume1 u
~ ~ tic loyal portion of the country the ye
g. thing that has been done By rebels against u
He said it would be the occasion Of feuds, al
hates, and heart-burniugss, md bad blood, a
lacerated feelings-as though the only fe'
,ot ipgs ft to be laccrated were those Of log
4as white men on the one hand and loyal hla
aI men on the other.
3re But there is better prospect Of the p2
ol- sage OF an efficient contlscation bill now th
49, there ever has been before. The moral cf1
-AA' Of the vote in the House has been very 6tro
ep- on tie Senate and I should not be snrpris
the | to find so obstinate an opponent Of the me
m. ure as Judge Collamer finally voting for
W The vote in the House signifies that tie pee
hey few who will not do what their constitute
ion arc determined to hare done, If they can
,;ot out what it is.
.,cn It was my fortune to visit Washington
The at an carly period Of tic session, and TO ri
less some extraordinary facts concerning the SAL
[cht l may say, in passing to notice another pc
49, Institution, that She Jail has successfully vi
Its. stood all the assaults made upou it, aud b
fair to entlast all its defsmers; The penit
tiary Of the District Of Columbia has beau1
as we'll as the jail. There are ninety-six I
that ted States soldiers (yo1unteers} confined
,ss that institution for various terms, rang
had from six months to five years. on the find
that Of courts mariaI-the most Of tt
sich- sent thther ior INC most III
u is nature of a jury trial, without any defe,
FORK and without the right Of appeal ON
from marked down Tor three yeaI6 for tne crlm
ince os.n osoasg - fas>'g iono +op,1' N anmnany
one 1nurderers, burglars and torgers, for speal
some disloyalty to sergeant! Another Is ser
.cfcr. out term for "dcscrtion,'' in company ,
e's' theworst class Of felons, for having oycrst;
his time on 3 certain occasion, when be
obtained leave Of absence to go to BAtiu
to sec young lady to whom he was enga
andi- to be married; and before coming to
tated penitcntiary, he had worn the bau
:.sts chain four months as part Of
lhtcr- sentence, in many instances these cony
orally {so-ca1ed) were sent TO the penitentiary Y
q co1- out any commitment in writins-the lin
,otta Of the court-mariial sent after them = :
i'll act Of the adintant or other func{ionary ha
C new charge OF IT, It must be said in justice
warden Of the penitcntiary that he is
anxious to get lid Of these inmates, aH
this he is seconded by the Secretary O
!. Interior, who holds that the military c.
harles have no right to send persons to the pen
tured IaaTS al ~. at.orhSy Meae, ~ patSe ~ '.
ity Of stay there and serve their terms out, 7ig
It the wrong-whether tic sentences are just @
nrday just. The disagreement will have to b
,f ~ tied By Congress, and it ought to be st
VI . WY without delay. In many cases proba5l
nlttee punishment is nerited, but in Others
d sew is such manifest and outrageous injustice
mro. Congress would be grossly derelict If it 81
fail TO separate the innocent from the {
and correct the harsh treat tmcnt inflicted
INT act brave and loyal men fer the most triyi
cpI to | fenscs-
at act, a painful and hardly credible repor
ances, been in circulation for week or more
did In effect that Gen. Mcclellan has static
prove guard around the White House, o
ountEy | PumunkE, the property Of the rebel c,
great Lee, not permitting the premises ito
on tile tered By anybody, although the build
Il Law, needed for hospitpal for the sick and y
ed soldiers. I was assured yesterday
Western member Of Congress, who ha
returned from the place, that such is I'll
When a representation Of the circum
Mon- was made to Gen. MeC1e}tan, he replie
intro the eureon in charge had not applied t
re- use Of the building, that 1t would acct
date only small number anyhow, al
the soldiers under treatment there wol
2 given, along just as well In tents. Whether Il
1tion OF i:a1F rrIn c,,n,r;or;+r ~ h,nEes az
Tnitei ginia houses, over tents, for the use OF
nd time. | patients, or those undergoing amputat
the sub tolerahly we'll established. If the SUIT
charge is more solicitous to prcser
y,rQptrty Of s Tarricide from contain
e. -oso | than to provide for the comfort OF his
. soldiers, it is very easy to understand
cd, and has rot made reeuisition for the rcsid
the aristocra1ic Col. Lee.
merce be - --,-,--- ------
u report F1toN NE" mGAAC0s