Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1863-07-24
About the Draft.

About the Draft.
There is no occasion to discuss here the
reas,ns which led Congress to abandon
reliance upon volunteering, or upon state
militia. as means to supply the national
armies for the Suppression of the rebellion
1t Is sufficient to say that they werc -
wcishty that the "act for enrolling and call
ins out the national forces, and FOR other
purp,s,s, approved March Sd, l'63, under
which the draft now in progress Is made. was
enacted. and that, too, by very great inaiori-
ties. Moreover. it meets the general ap-
prevail Of all persons of intelligence. except
such as are VIGOROUSLY hostile To the Govern
mcnt. and on one ground or another in
sympathy with the rebels. The soldicrr-
those who have nobly volunteered ANA done
hard service for their country soc reasons
enough why the tlrdy, irregular, and Unccr-
tain process Of volunteering should he No
longer relied upon to Gil up the ranks thin
ned by death, disease, wounds and discharge.
If draft If a new thing in this war, it lie no
new thing in the land. Militia drafts were
freely made in the war Of lSl2-l4; and
drafts are often made in other countries.
Moreover, those who enter the service. de-
signated thereto by draft, if they do their
duty, will be held in honor hereafter. equal
" with those who volunteered for bounty
large or small. or for no bounty at all
Moreover the law bears fairly on all en-
Payments and conditions of society. The
exempt from its liabilities, of those of age
and strength to do military service, are very
few indeed. The Vice President OF the Uni
ted Slater. the Heads of Chief Executive
departments of the United States, Judges of
the United States Courts and the Governors
of the several States, are by virtue of their
Office and for obvious reasons. exempt. More
over. for reasons Of humanity a few others Of
the whole community are also exempt. All
Others of military age and strength, members
of Congress, United States and State officers
of all kinds. lawyers. clcrgymen, doctors,
farmers. mechanics day lahorers, clerks, ap-
prcnticcs, students and teachers, rich and
poor alike. all together have their names put
into the whrcl aud ma-t -tand the chances
of tic lot. rs i, as it should he; for the
country il III, country Of us all. We are
all Interested ina it, Fi~cryation. The sue
Co.'S of tic rebellion would be the ruin, the
shame. the degradation If all As all are
not now needed iur the war. the lot is called
upon to decide who snail go: and those
who aic left lchinI mast sec to 1t that they
do i:'ir whole daty at home to support the
government and society in general, amp to
furnish ''Oti. moral AMI material support for
thusc WHO 20 and for the families (where
there alc any which are needy which may he
left lrhind-and must hold themselves ready 1
to take their own places in the ranks if need .
shall arisc hereafter.
Eyil-mindcl persons have stirred up dis
satisfaction in the minds Of many ignorant
and inconsilcratc persons from the provision
in the law that person liable to do military
duty may, if drafted, by paying $500 into
United States Treasury ''for the procuration
of substitute be thereby discharged
from further liability under that draft" 1t
is remarkable that these mischief-makers
scarcely allude to the provision that draft
cd man may hire substitute for himself, on
whatever terms he can make. To object to
hat as an injustice would be too gross for
The answer to that by every
nan not a fool, would be 80 well, what of
hat? If a man cannot without some great
sacrifice do the work assigned him in any
Employment of life, who objects if he pro-
tides at his own expense an equally willing
md able man to take his place. The OBJ
ect of the provision is to protect those of
moderate means constrained to hire substi-
utes, from the liability of having the price by
REGULATING draft-brokers, or needless men of |
cealth, run up to an enormous height. Thus
10 one need pay more than $500, and he /,
nay get substitute for as much less as he I
an. Every considerate and fair minded per- l
on knows that the object of that provision /
Tas not the injury but the benefit of the poor; v
Or by its means many poor man who is not s
RATED but is willing to enter the service,
ill get not only the regular wages, but a I
andsome bounty beside. No doubt more L
no arc of moderate means, or of no means {
all but their daily labor, will be drafted :,
ian of those who are rich, for the plain N
ason that the rich are comparatively few "
any community. But we all know that = =
ere has been no special backwardness on
lie part of persons in easy circumstances to \
,ril their lives for their country. thus far. y y
he blood Of volunteers worth thousands and a,
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