Weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1858-1865, 1862-04-23
The CONSUMPTION Act.

The COnscription Act.
The Richmond. .Eraminer of the 18th contains
the conscription act, passed in secret session by
Congress; but there is no certainty that the act
as published is entirely correct we await an official
copy, which will probably appear in the Rich
mond papers. The main features of the act as it
appears in the Examiner are as follows: The Pres
ident is authorized to call out and place in the mR-
itary service Of the Confederate States, for three
years, unless the war shall have sooner ended all
white men who are residents of the Confederate
the ages Of eighteen and thirty five
who are not legally exempted from service All Of
the persons aforesaid who are now in the armies of
the Confederacy, and whose term Of service will
expire before the end of the war, shall be continued
in the service for three years from the date Of their
original enlistment unless the war shall have sooner
endeo; the twelve months men to have the right to
and elect their officers but the latter to
be commissioned by the President All under
eighteen and over thirty five, in said armies for
twelve months shall be required to remain three
months, unless their places can be sooner supplied
by conscripts; and all laws and parts of laws pro-
viding for the re-enstment of volunteers and their
organization, are repealed; but companies, battas
ions, squadrons and regiments organized or in pro-
cess of organization by authority from the Secre.
tary of War, if entirely completed within thirty
days, not embracing any now in service, viii be re-
ceived. All persons compreheuded in the act, and
not in service, it shall be lawful for the Presi.
dent to enrol by the agency of State officers, with
the consent of the Governors of States; and if the
Governor Of any State shall refuse such corsert,
then the President shall employ Confederate officers
for the purpose in accordance with rules and regu-
lations to be prescribed by him. Persons when en-
rolled and liable to duty, if they shall wilfully
fuse to obey the call of the President shall he held
to be deserters and punished accordinly. Persons
not liable to duty will be received as substitutes
The foregoing are the material features of this
act. The vote by which it passed the two houses
has not yet been made public Let the people hare
the names Of those who poted for It, 1t is an ex-
traordinary fact that this act which ignores the
rights of the States, and assumes summary and ab-
solute control over some six hundred Thousand of
the militia was debated and passed in secret session.
This act breaks the faith of both the State and
Confederate governments with the twelve months
men, by compelling them to remain two years long
er in the war. 1t also designates the mode Of sp-
pointing the officers which is in direct conflict with
the Confederate Constitutions 1t also provides for
substitutes. There ought to have been exemptions,
even Under SO sweeping law as this; but they
should have been such only were rendered neces.
sary by mental or bodily in6rmity. The idea, fog
example. of of the correspondents Of the Macon
(Ga) Telegraph who advocates conscript;on, that
it will "put the rich and the poor-the noble and
the peasant" as be calls them, ION the same foot.
ing" is not realized "The noble and the peasant!' ~
Are we in Europe or America? The substitute
system, though wrong in theory, may work well,
and has worked well in our volunteer armies; but
when levy is made en- maasse on a certain portion
of our population, it is wrong to put wealth in OK
scale and the compelled and inevitable service of tine
poor man in the other. But we shall not dwell
longer at present on this measure. We regard it as
inexpedient, unnecessary, oppressive, and uncon
stitutonal 1t places the rights of the States anc
the liberties of the people at the feet of the Presi
| dent. If Mr.. Davis were Jackson or Clay, Or
Webster, or q Calhoun, we would not confer sucf
power upon him. Wecan only hope that this meas
ure will not seriously injure the Southern cause
and that good results and not calamtous ones may
flow from it But we enter our protest against it
and if evil comes Of it it shall not be said that
we're the advocate Of, or the apologst for, so mon
strous and dangerous a measure. again VIC ad
monish the people, who are fighting against despo
| tism from without, to look well to the encroach
ments Of power within. The price of liberty is no
only treasure and blood, but sleepless vigilance.