Daily national Republican., 1863-08-12

0FFICI AL.
III .siu .yy pr.,. WAn DEPARTMENT.
Pnexosr MARSHAL GENERAL's oErnE,
WAsHiHoToH, D. C., August I. 1865.
Giresiss, No. S.,r.,.r ,.t..--.',
d TAs faiowing op,pions Of Colonel Joseph Holt,
Judge Advocate General ofthe Army, are published
'fos Ne Information and guidance OF all oficep Of
this Bureau:
The only son Of aged and innrm parent or rpsrcnts
f--sxsnptioa. '''.l 80 ...'.
isit'' = 81 ia5 aYmton.
The only son af aged and intirm parent or pa
rents 10 not exempt unless his parent or parents
ARE dependent on III isbor ior support. u he 10 In
. condition to support, and does support them
without his personsl labor for that purpose he Is
subject TO dram, because he 10 In 4 condition to
perform military service Without 'dsprivins his
parents OF the support the law designs to TO
them. .Ths parent need not be wholly dependent on
the labor Of their son for support. II they so
dependant for the principal part Of their support,
the right to exemption srises.n
In the case af widow having four sons.
$3.50 LoriNIQN,
W "In the case oI . widow having four sons, three
Of whom are already In the military service, the
fourth is exempt, provided his mother IL dependent
on his labor for support" --'fs
In the case Of widow having two soma, GRs Of
whom is slresdy In the military service.
".' OPINION.
"Iu the case OF widow having two sons one OF
whom 10 already In ths military service, and the
other has been drafted, the latter 10 exempt, A.
'the only son lias,s 10 military duty, In the ssase
OF the Act," ,lrtC9r'ru41T II q.
In the case Of aged or inarm parents having two
or more sons subject 10 military duty.
+ .l Iu OPINION. irH
"In the case OF assd or iaarr' parents having
two or more sons subject TO military duty, election
OF the sons to be exempted must be made before the
draft, and his name should not than appear In the
dsaft boz. one OF only two sons Of such parents
10 already In the military service the other IL
empt, provided his parents are dependent on his
labor for their support" r...,.
OF persons having conscientious scruples In re-
gard to bearing arms. .....,......
OPINION.
"Persons having Oonsoisdtious scrupes In re.
gard to bearing arms are not on that account ex.
smpt. They are not iound 10 the list OF exempted
ciassss, and tbs Aot expressly declares that no
persons but those enumerated In that list shall be
exempt. The Society Of Friends, and others enter.
tanning similar sentimsats II drafted, may lind re-
lief from their seruples In the employment Of sub
stitutes, or In the payment Of the three hundred
dollars"
ofa man whose wife is insane.
OPINION.
any time recover her reason, cannot, In the sense
OF the law, or with any propriety Of language, be
termed motherless childrsn.' The father ofsueh,
though they may be dependent on his labor for
their support, cannot therefore claim exemption
nom the draft. The case IL hard one. and would,
probably, have been provided for had II been fore
seem II is however, the law a. It 10, and not as
1t may be supposed It ought to be- that 10 to be
forced"
"A father having four sons, two OF whom have
died In the military service, also Of
Aged or inhrm parsnts electing which Of two
sons may be exempt
oPIN ON.
"In the case Of = father having four sons, two Of
whom have died In the military service, 1t seems
clear that the rem sining two are not exempt from
dram. Before such exemption can be allowed 1t
must be shown that the father HAS, not has had
two sons In the military service. SO the law Is
written. Congress might well have accepted the
loss of two In the field equivalent to their
continuance in the service, and therefore securing
the same privileges to thsir family, but this has
not been done. To hold otherwise would be not
Interpretation, but legislation.
"In the case Of assd or indrm parents having
two sons subject to military duty, the father. or
II he be dead, the mother may elect which OF them
shall be exempt, The right to this exemption does
not rest upon the parents depe adence on the labor
Of their sons for their support. The law does not
contemplate any such dependence.
JAMES B. FRY,
augIi-if Provost Marshal General