The Texas Republican. [volume] (Marshall, Tex.) 1849-1869, 1863-03-26

next crop fall short by reason OF MOI
being properly cultivated, will moi
the poor suffer 7 will not the army
suffer- will not everybody suffer
There ought TO be but two classes
concluded Mr., 1.-THE fighting class
and the producing class. The safet,
Of the country lay in two fncts-ouI
heroic fighting white men and excel
lent class OF black laborers, who, il
properly managed, could continue
TO support the armies in the field. II,
admitted there were great abuses un
der operations Of the existing law
but they were not confined to thi.
clause. lie was informed that in one
county OF his Stale, forty able.bodied
men were appointed to justices
Offices that had been vacant for the
last ten year He wanted to pre-
vent all abuses, but was not willing
to sacrifice the entire law because
the abuses existed.
Mr.. Sims, of Kentucky, contonded
that there were enough able-bodied
men over 40 TO oversee all the ne
grocs in the land. He regarded the
provisions Of the bill exempting
overseers as class legislation in favor
of the rich. and mentioned cases
where rich planters had divided their
plantations into several farms in order
to make their sons ovorseers, and
thus exempt them from military ser.
vice. He was in favor of increasing
the army at all hazards Every avaia.
BILE man must be brought out There
was no reason to doubt the fidelity OF
the slaves They did not need over.
scers under i5 years to manage them,
aud make their labor productive. The
question appeared to him to be about
this Whether a man who had ten
negroes should lee allowed an over.
seer, and poor man, with wife and
ten children, who lived on one Of bis
farms. should go to war and leave no.
body at home to take care Of his iami-
10 He would support no measure
which was so maniiestly unjust.
Mr. WiGFALL, "a usual, reverted to
first principles. Congress should not
presume to legislate so AZ to interfere
with the domestic police arrangements
of the several States, as any bill
would which took from them the
force necessary 70 preserve the peace
and good order Of their society
The principle upon which he based
his action with reference to exemp-
tons was that every man should be
in the army who was not more ser
viccablc to the Coniedcracy out of it.
The idea that the Senate would legis.
late on any other basis, for class
or for the individual. was proposter.
Gus But no matter VIVA, the Senate
did, there would be found plenty of
men to oppose suppose the provis'
ion had not been made, why, immed.
atcly the cry would have been raised
10y demagognes that the poor man
was to be dragged from his home,
and no one left to protect what little
property he had from being stolen
and his family murdered by the rich
mans negroes, The war was not
one in which the interests of the rich
OF those of the poor were exclusively
involved, 1t was not "A question of
property but one OF liberty.
Mr. Bow, of Miss, said there had
been a shameful abuse of the law, but
there had also been shameful abuse
Of other laws. The outcry Of the
people WAS not against the law, but
against its administration. He
spoke of numerous planters in his
State whose action in The permisis
was shameful
Mr.. SPARROW said the existing law
had no reference to the 'nen in the
army, and did not detail any from it.
Mr. BsowS said they got oht some
how. He proceeded to examine other
portions of the existing law which he
thought worked tar more hardship
and injustice There were thousands
of able ablc.hodied men in the civil
Offices ard quartcmastcr and ON
missary departments whose places
could be supplied 10y the numerous
men over a. years Of age, who had
been thrown out OF business, la yers,
merchants, &c, far more competent
than the supercilious aud arrogant
pets aud iayoritcs now IN the depart
Il