The Goodhue volunteer. [volume] (Red Wing, Goodhue County, Minn.) 1861-1864, 1863-03-18

|"A"''' AHuS I"1 tue language Is so pam tlat
there can be but one construction Of it.
"a. The drafted man may pay to such
persons as the Secretary of War may-not
must-authorize to receive it, such sum not
exceeding $500, as the Secretary may de-
termine, for the procurement of such sub
stitute.
81. And thereupon the drafted man fur
nlshlng the substitute or paying the money,
shall be discharged from further liability
under that draft.
1t will be perceived that it is not made
obligatory on the Secretary of War to author
ize' any person to receive the money. He
may DO SO or he may not. Neither is the
conscript obliged to offer it. lie may or
may not, and the former may or may not
accept it; but if he should, then the drafted
man is discharged from liability under that
draft. The Secretary is not obliged to fix
the sum at any particular amount It may
be $500, or 500 or $40.
Again 1t will be perceived that the
language of the law is, that the $500 is for
the procurement of such substitute The
Communication money is not paid into the
Treasury Of the United States at all but
goes directly to such substitute as will
agree to serve in the place Of the drafted
man. The plain meaning of the law is that
every man who is drafted must serve three
years or during the war, unless some other
acceptable man volunteers to take his place
The only exception to the rule is found in
the five exemption clauses in behalf of la.
boring men having poor or helpless relatives
to support.
Suppose draft is made on Illinois, and
the quota for Chicago is 1000 men; we
contend that 1000 men have got to be fur.
nlshed, either by principles or substitutes
The government don't care whether it be
A, B and G. or their substitutes, X, Y and
z, but it must have the exact number called
for, anyhow. II the Secretary Of War au.
thorizes person to receive $500 from a
drafted man. it is for the purpose of paying
some man who steps forward and volunteers
as a substitute. If the Government can
not find the substitute it is not bound to re
ceve the money; and the drafted man must
E 60 or find a substitute. Obviously if the
Substitute shark fails to furnish it's prime.
pal with substitute, the principal must go
The Government substitute officer takes
Iprecisely the same position and response
b!lity as the substitute broker expect, that
he keep down the price to $500 for the
benefit Of those who cannot afford to pay the
exhorbitant rates fixed by the "sharks.'
The object Congress had in view in fixing
the maximum sum at $500, was ten fold:
first, to prevent, as far as possible, "substi-
tute sharks raising up the price so high
that none but the wealthy could afford to
pay it seco ely, to induce as many Of the
soldiers whose terms Of service are expiring,
to reenter the army as possible. Between
now and july next not less than 10000
nine months and two year men will hare
served their time and be discharged. There
are now at home many thousand discharged
soldiers fit for service, who might be indu-
ccd 10 return to the service during the re-
mainder Of the war for a bounty OF three or
sour hundred dollars. These old venlera
are seasoned, toughened ard disciplined.-
They have learned their trade, They
know the business by heart, The Govern
ment would rather have one Of them than
two green conscripts, and so would the
Generals,
Sec. Il. Of the Conscript Act provides
that men who are drafted shall receive the
same pay and bounty as is paid to volun
teers, which is 500 and s13 per month. Or
course the substitute who takes the place
Of the drafted man will get this bounty a.
we'll as the pay. Now, when the Secretary
of War receives $3.50 Communication money.
he will be able to pay the old soldier who
re enters the service as a substitute, the
snug sum Of 800, besides rations, cloth.
ing, and $1,000 month. Looking at the
law in this light, and constituting its mean
ing, as we have done-and it can fairly
bear no other construction, the objection to
the 13,h section will vanish like mist, and
the law will become popular wild, al: loyal
fc'tizens. The Coprerheads would object to
any law, having for its object the putting
down of the rebellion. Their hosti.i:aes is
not to the 18th section, but to every section
Of the act. They wart 10 force d;.uu;,n
peace. TO such vipers our article 10 not I'd
Chinago Tri1vne. m.ts<t..s,
| STEWART. the great dry goods mer.
chant Of New YORK., is said to have
swept the marke.. clean Of some dcs-
lcriptions Of goods. Hi. business IN
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