Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1863-06-04
From the Raleigh Register.
From the Raleigh Register.
Efore Trouble Brewing.
We find the following order in the Raleigh Progress
OF Wednesday
Executive Department. North Caroline, J
AD,UTANT GENERAL'e OFFICE, 7

OF w ednesday.
AD.UTANT GENERAL's OFFICE,
Raleigh, May 2Sth, 1868.
GENERAL ORDER,
T MILITIA OFFICERS ARE ORDERED not to arrest
discharged writ Ra6eas Corpus tried
Jpdge OF the or superior Courts OF TINS the
part of any person. not authorized by the legal order or
DANL, G. FowLE,
Aojutant General.
The inevitable effect of this order if executed will
BE to bring conflict between the conscript officers
and the militia OF the State Judge Pearson, by an
extraordinary decision has laid the groundwork of this
conflict. We say extraordinary, and will give the
reasons for the of the expression. Albeit no lew
YER we presume think that Judge Pearson in his re-
cent decision in the of conscrpt who had fur
nshed a substitute, has Inexperienced the conscrlpt
law and made erroneous decision. The case decid-
ed was this man liable to the CONSUMPTION which
called for men between Is and 35 years of age procur
ed substitute who over 80 years OF age but IN
der 40. When the CONSUMPTION was extended to per-
sons 8 and 40 years OF age the man who pro-
cured the substitute ove35 and under 40 years OF
conscrbed and sued out writ of ha6eGS corpus re-
turnable before Judge Pearson. On the examination
of the case Judge Pearson decided that the suitor
had obtained substitute, he had complied with
the condition of the conscript law, had made q
bona fde tnract for his exemption, and was
therefore exempted and entitled to his discharge from
service. Now, the conscript law looked to the con-
able to do military duty Certain specified exemptions
txcepted between the ages of IL and 40 years OF age
and the CONSUMPTION was to be made oy rules and regu
| laioEs prescribed by the Secretary OF War. These
rues and gulatious then, when prescribed became
part of the law, which is the supreme law OF the aud
and irreversbe by any State tribunal This being the
case it follows that no under As years of age and
subject cOnscrption could by going into service as
substitute, exonerate his employer from the service
when the CONSUMPTION extended as to embrace
men of his the substitutes age because, II such was
the case the Government would lose he service OF
man to whose services it was entitled. Suppose 1--we
hundred liza BILE to the CONSUMPTION OF those between
Is and 30 years had hired each substitute over 80
wears OF age and under as, and the CONSUMPTION had
bee extended to those between Is and 40, las was
done those between Is and as years of age, las
may doDe) is it not manifest that the military
vices of five hundred would be lost to the country
and thus the very end and of the law be to that
tent at naught? And if five hundred could be thus
exempted the principle carried out would exempt
any number-no matter how many hundred or how
many thousand No oman over Is years of age and un-
der As, make contract to act as substitute for
the for another, for the plain reason that he is liza
BILE as principal and cannot act deputy for another
We have seen many advertisements for substitutes and
far memory serves US they generally have spe
CITED that he person Offering substitute must be
over As years of age. Why this condition Surely
because if under As and Is years of age he would
himself be liable conscript and could not act
substitute. Than this, it seems to u.s. nothing be
more plain and manifest. And yet the claim is set
forth that State Judge may set at liberty man who
employed substitute who was himself liable to con-
scrption in other words, employed who could
neither legally mora ly or IN point OF common sense,
become substitute for any man liable to CONSUMPTION
And the Secretary of War is spoken of as 60 but one
of the servants of the Sovereign State of North Caro-
lina" who must be taught that his authority cannot
override that of Judge of the State Now, the Sec
retay of War is simply the executor OF the Conscrpt
Law, which is the law Supreme all the States of
tie Confederacy. He is no more "a servant of the
State of North Carolina than be is the servant" OF
every other State of the Confederacy and it his author
| iy the execution OF the CoDscrlpt Law be
OVERRIDE by the decision of State Judge in North
Carolina, it be OVERRIDE by the decisions of all
the Judges OF all the States composing the COnfed
eracy, Or in other words, the ConscrIpt Law, the
Supreme Law over all the States may, in its Is.
sential features, be nulliftd From the beginning
there has been q seduous effort by certain parties
rate Government Last winter the dominant party in
the Legislature within hairs breath of fragrant
y multiplying the COnecrlpt law, In spite OF all the warn
ngs Of the results which such would produce
From the beginning efforts have been made to render
the Conscrpon hateful in the eyes of the people, and
now we have order stating substantially that
State Judges may nuGfy it. That such " order -
shonld have emsnated from Gov. Vance, must strike
with surprise every fair minded who heard read
his inaugural address In that address, be declared that
the Conscript Law had saved the country, and that
without it cur armies would have been disbanded in
the very crisis of the war; and have been ir
retreVably lost. Who, then, could have expected an
''order" from him, the effect of which, if executed will
either nulfy the Supreme Law of the land or bring
on hostile collision between the militia of Carolina,
and the soldiers OF the Confederate army?
From the Richmond Be ntnel.
The enemy, by simultaneous manifestations at vari-