Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1862-1865, 1863-04-09
The COmmissarY Department.


Itis no doubt Notifying circumstance TO the SecTe
arv Of War that the judicial authority has pronounced
his system of mpressment contrary to the Law OF the
land. Nothing but emergency, says the Judge, WGud
Justify the seizure Of private property for pubic use
and then lust compensation must be given The TACT
hat the order for mpressment written the both Of
December. 1862, and not executed ill tie sd OF March
s excludes the idea Of any emergency and shows that
this system wholly Illegal unequal and oppressive, was
resOrted to for the regular supply of the army Per
h,ps if the Judge had gone further back he might have
found additional evidence Of this design. We know,
we heard of Major Ralia's tables Of averages more
than twelve months ago and believe they were put
il force at different times during the year.
Awriter in the Enquire, some days ago, undertook
to mpeAch the correctness Of Judge Lyons decision,
BY stating, that on the 81 Of March, the Couissary
Gsasral wrote to MAJOR Claiborne that he necessities
Of tAs ssrries are Of seh usry urgent character that
you Nsjor Clai5Orue Gill; lrith0u' DE least delay buy
or impress all the -four in Richmond of certain grades
specified in the letter Of instruction, and at prices
" therein named
This hits the C0u,uissary GsAerai-nOt the Judg",
who Justly based bis decision on the Secrearys order
dated in December and the fact that it does not appear
that enough could not have been bought in March at
the market price But it is this allegation Of the Com
rnissary General in reference to the great urgency for
supplies, TO which We would advert for a moment
BLy tbs necessity, and those fault Is Il!
We do not blame Mr. Seldom. lie Lew in Office
had thousand things to think OF and attend to- and it
WAS natural and reasonable that he should listen to those
who had had charge Of this Department Bot the mis-
chief had been done long before he into Office by
the utter incompetency criminal neglect OF the Com
sary General aud his subordinaes to make any pro-
vion for the army during the coming year. If
correctly informed these wise and patriotic and dsn-
teres ed genteueu deliberately refused various propo
sisions for army supplies Lass Summer aud Fal-sayng
they had made their arrangements for the year. it
would nos seem, that the only arrangement they had
made was to live from hand to mouth by system Of
impressment, under Major Ruins tables Of averages
system the most odious and oppressive, and what if
possible is stn worse, the uncertain, preearOus
and unreliable, that the Nit Of could devise. Ac-
corng to their own statement Of the absolute neces
stiles Of the army this system has already done, what
might have been known in advance reduced the army
70 the point Of starvation. The mPressment system,
regulated by Law may do stle better than Major Ruff
Ems tables Of averages aud arbitrary impressments -
bu that from the nature Of things, must also prove
failure. An army must nave regular anu unllOrm sup
pies, which can never be Obtained by temporary and
OdiOus ezpedients.
The only remedy-ft be not too late for any remedy,
L total and instant change in the Commssary Depart
ment We know nothing Of the head Of that Depart
psnt except BY the deporabe results Of bis admins
tratop. We bear he is a Roman Catholic ankee-a
PsDist.PuritAn-a monstrOus compound and judging
BY bis testimony before the Congressional Committee
considers Major Run greater man than all the saints
in the calendar, the Holy Virgin thrown into the bar
gain His past inefciency whether the result ofncOm
potency or treason so gross aad its effects 50 dsa'
trOus mat nothing paiate it. The star
vaOn Of the army the ruin Of the Cause The country
has held lie breath and witnessed with as much
p1sure could the extinction Of all hopes Of navy
under the auspices of Mr.. Mallory but the same mode
ration cannot be expected At the destruction of the
army. Providence is dOub. on our side-if il
had not been We had survived the present hour
but even its patience may be exhausted or its temper
solred in the presence Of 80 many folies.
We presume Mr. Seldom sees what all the country
sees and what the army feels that the COmmiSsary De-
partment as at present conducted is an insuGerabe
nuisance. It may be painful TO him to apply the
corrective but We mistake his and elevation, if
he does not disregard all personal considerations, when
the ALL Of the Republic is at stake.