Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1863-12-24
THURSDAY, DECEMBER "a, 1868.
THE ENROLMENT LAW.

THE ENROLMENT LAW
In referring some days ago to the different sug-
gestions that have been made in regard to the ex-
pediency of amending the enrolment act passed
by the last Congress, and especially Of repeating
the three hundred dollar Communication clause"
we intimated that the Report of the Secretary OF
War might, by its recommendation or its statistical
data, shed some light onthe questions raised under
this head In that report the Secretary refers to
the subject in the following terms
The operation Of the act of Congress for enrolling and
calling out the national forces exhibited in the
panying report Of the Provost Marshal General At the
time that law enacted it was known to be very i'm
perfect many intelligent persons considering lis execution
wholly impraccable. while few dared to hope for any
important benefit The law has been enforced in twelve
States 1t has brought from these States fifty thousand
sodiers and has raise fund Of over ten millions for pro-
curing substitutes With all it's mperectons tis demon
strated that the act be made efficient for
recruiting armies and calling out the national forces
The principal mperfectOns and the required amendments
will be submitted to Congress through the appropriate
committees. The most mpoi tant to be considered 10
what is called the three hundred dollar communication
This feature of the act has been much discussed and
posing opinions nearly balanced to the operation
and effect of this provision While some CLAIM TIT it 10
oppressive upon poor and avors the rich others
tend that it places rich and poor equal footing and
enables the poor to obtain exemption from military
duty for within the reach Of every Without
undertaking to reconcile decide between these c0nfct
ing opinions it is certain that this clause of exemption
it stands occasions delay in calling out the military force
The drafted is exempted, ct the end of long
ceeding by the payment OF sum OF money Supposlng
that to be adequate for procuring substitute,
siderable time unavodably eapses before competent
clause shall remain bs stricken cut requires the early
attention OF Congress- The fund of ten millions raised by
the act ss commutatitn money is deposited with the
United States Assistant Treasurers and s being applied
to procuring substitutes by the payment of bountes and
premiums"
The number of soldiers obtained by the draft
already had under the act amounts to "about
$4,000 men" The exact sum paid unGer the
Communication clause" was Sl0,518,000, repre-
senting $4,000 soldiers. Thus it appears that out
of draft calling for 100000 men, only $4,000
recruits were obtained in men, and in money repre-
senting men to be procured by the Government.
1t follows, therefore, the supposition that the
draft mad been exhaustively applied, that 364, $40
men escaped its operations under other provisions OF
the act than that above indicated For, if fifty per
cent. in addition to the number of men demanded
had been every where drawn, the whole number of
names actually drawn would have numbered45O, 600.
Aud, by subtracting from this sum the number OF
recruits obtained and the number who paid their
Communication fee, we have remainder of 364 ,94O,
representing the persons who were exempted under
various clauses Of the enrt llment act. And while
it is known that in point of fact the draft was not
"exhaustiyely applied" having been enforced in
only twelve States, it is none the less easy to dis
cern, 10 the light of the facts revealed by these
proximate statistics, that the great "eaks in this
i Al rrrh.c ia U
indicated.
Among the causes of exemption allowed by the
act as it now stands are aieiage, unsutableness OF
age, maintenance of dpendant parents, non
residencs, physical ard mental disability, and
others. 1t is under iflese heads, coupled with the
evasion of many vho have shirked their obligation
after being drayo that must look for the source
of the large secit in the results Of the last draft
And we hs/e every reason to believe that some of
these alaks" in the law have been in a very con-
siderable degree stopped by the late regulations of
the vfoyost Marshal General, allowing persons to
supear before an appropriate board in advance Of
he draft, and have their names stricken from the
enrollmcnt list for good and sufficient shown.
In this way the lists are pruned Of the redun-
dances which have heretofore impaired the efh-
ciency Of the law and we have every reason to ex-
pect that the next draft, even without any change
being made in the law it stands, will yield
much larger return than the last in both men and
money. The Provost Marshal General states this
fact in the following extract from his recent report
to the Secretary Of War. He says:
The enrolment Of the forces of the Uoited States
cesssrily il cuded aliens ard persons disqualified for
ous reasoDs Tor military duty, because the enrolling officer
not author zed to omit any between the ages
twenty and foryfve The draft made from the lists
ihus composed; hence. many persons drafted were
cus-d tbus rendering the proportion Of those who were
held small compared with those exempted This re-
suit would have been avoided ami larger proportion
troops would have been secured If the law had required
the correcting OF the enrolment previous to the draft bu
this would have delayed the draft"
THE OFFICIAL VOTE OF OHIO.
The official returns OF the October election were can