The Plymouth weekly Democrat. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1860-1869, 1863-08-20
TIE DRAFT AND THE ARMY.
How the Draft Recruits from
AbOIitiOniSm.

IF | were the President exclaimed
Maj. Gen Logan the other day, to an ad-
miring audience at Duquoin. in Illinois.
If | were the President, by the Eternal
l would have soldiers for the army, con-
scription act or no conscription act"
The admiring audience appears to have
applauied this extremely vivid outburst Of
Maj. Gen. Logan's somewhat theatrical
craftsmanship. Admiring audiences are
given to applauding precisely this kind of
thing, which passes with the opcn-mouthed
for energy and decision of character, and
it is hardly worth while to waste much
time either upon Maj. Gen. Logan or his
admirers. 1t is only as the representative
indeed of certain hot and mperious tenn
per which seems to be growing up among
the politicians of the army that Maj Gen.
Logan demands any particular attention
at all.
That the army should desire to see its
own ranks reinforce Is simply natural
Men who have been bearing the burden
and heat Of the day do not and ought not
to, easily acquiesce in the indifference
which leaves them to carry the national
burden alone and SISTED to the end
| But it IS perfectly fair to expect that.
being American citizens. the soldiers the
army will remember that it is q national
and not q personal burden that they are
bearing There would have heen no rea-
son for their presence as an army in the
field at all had there been no constitution
to defend and maintain. There would
be no reason fer their continuance in the
field a an ar.hy we're the hope of main
taining and defending the constitution
abandoned by the people. Denagogues
with and without epaulets are ceaselessly
At work to make the army forget these vi
tal truths; and these men arc doing their
best nov 10 convince the army that those
who oppose the arbitrary enforcement of
/ the conscripticn act are either animated by
4 positive hostility to the government
which they are arrayed TO support, or cor
rup'ed with a criminal indifference to the
~-eifare and the very existence Of the army
Itself.
That the 'conscrption act is examin-
ed and Judged by the most earnest of those
who doubt its expediency, FROM the point
! Of vew Of rs efficiency as means Of sup
plying reinforcements 10 The army. is an
lDea which needs to be impressed upon the
army as we'll as the people.
The advocates OF the system vehement
ly insist ulon the great immediate needs
of'he army. which. as eyallege a draft on
ycan supply in time to save us from fresh
and probably fatal collapse of our efforts.
1t is possible that for political or even for
strategic reasons the sharpness and severi-
ty of these immediate needs may have
been somewhat exaggerated. But it is al
together certain that if they are as sharp,
as severe, and as immediate as they are
represented to be- the conscription thus
far seems very unlikely to supply them.
/ 1t is one thing to enroll men, and an
other thing to draw them by lot, and still
another thing to lead them. SO drawn, to
the wars. As a matter Of men, the most
submissively loyal populations Of the North
seem no better disposed to risk themselves
! in the front Of battle than if there were so
many malignant copperheads.
Abolitionism happening to be, just at
present, the special test of loyalty" the
county Of Pennsy lvania in which Pitts
burg stands, may claim to be especially
and overwhelmingly loyal Pittsburg fatrh-
ermore occupies an exposed position, and it
was only the other day that it was threat
ened by the advance of the whole Confed-
erat army. Yet in the First ward of
Pitttsburg, the following was the result of
the draft:
Names drawn .............'.. ..174
Exempt legally. ................... 90
Exempt by disability. y................ II
Paid $500. -. ................ 10
Furnished substitutes -. ......... 16
] In service. ........... ......... L
i Reported and accepted d.............. Il
Deserters -. az
This gives us twentyeight men as the
reinforcement derived from draft of one
hundred and seyenty four; or little less
! than one in six
If this be accepted as a fair average of
the results Of the draft, the call for three