Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1864-12-03
Saturday mOrDlng. December ..
wE:h4ve received communication from

WR:haye received q communication from
member of the I'D West Virginia Cavalry
regiment, in reference to the delay which
has attended and is attending the muster
ing out and paying of of the greater part
of that regiment. We understand from the
communication that the remnants Of seven
companies Of the regiment are now here,
awaiting muster-out and pay, the other
three companies having already been paid
and sent to their homes. Il certainly ts
great misfortune both to the men them
selves and to the service that soldiers
whose times have long expired should be
kept sitting around on the curb stones and
steps of the Custom House aud other ren-
dezvouses, awaiting their dues. They nat.
urAlIy become detected and acrimonious
and criminative, and impart their own
sense of injustice to all their friends, who
see them thus trified with aud disappointed.
We know not whose fault 1t is that SOL
diers entitled to their discharge and pay
are thus delayed and annoyed, but it is ey-
ident to every passer by that there is rep.
rehensible dilatoriness somewhere. The
communication to which we refer recites
that the companies of the regiment de-
tanned were mustered into the service du-
ring the months of September and octo-
Der, and few in November. 1851, and
consequently the last Of them are detained
nearly month over their time, and the
most of them three months. During this
overtime of course the regiment has been
of little or no service to the government,
and the sole thought of the men from day
to day has been to discuss the prospects
of speedy -,uster-out. It would seem
as if long before this those who organize
and perfect the regulations of the service
should have hit upon some plan for facil~
itating the exit of men entitled to their
discharge. 1t must be apparent to such
persons that prOmptuess in this respect is
no less q sound policy than in any other
business relation with mankind. 1t is
true policy for government officers 10 con.
scientifically so shape and execute the de-
tails of the service as TO husband and not
ALLEVIATE the cordial feeling of all persons
going out of the army. Not q little of our
success In re enlistiug depends upon pre-
serving such n feeling.
The men TO whom We have immediate
reference In this notice complain TO us that
owing to their inability to get their pay,
they are compelled to sell their vouchers
at g discount in order to obtain the money
needed by them. Tuis is all wrong and
impolitic. And it leads us to a general OBJ
seryation about the way matters have been
going on in this department as regards the
creditors of the government. If we are to
believe all we hear it would seem as it this
Military Departments absolutely not down
on the books of the Quarter Master Gener-
ais office at all. We are told that the Quar-
termasters here have been compelled from
time to time to go into bank for accommo-
dations in order to get money to pay their
employees and thus keep them together
Their acquisitions have been duly made in
all proper red tape form, but no money has
responded to their call. And this has been
the case for months, and still We believe
that the rsquisitiOus are to- very large sx.
tent uumet. How long this behind hand
policy is to continue no one seems able to
say. 1t is certain that the policy is bad
one, and that in the long run 1t is anything
else than economical. Prompt payments
here aud elsewhere would induce active
competition and low rates on the part Of
those WHO contract In any way with the
agents of the War Department, but the OPP
posite policy tends to drive off the best
class of business men and let in those who
expect to make their money by iIlegitima-
cies of some sort. -t-
We intend these remarks to be an answer
to great many inquiries and communica-
ions of various kinds which have been on
our ale for weeks. We can not spend the
time to write private answers. We pre-
sumo that ere long there viii be a disen-
tauglement of the affairs of this depart
msnt, and that the flow of greenbacks into
1t will then once more commence.
IAN no believer IN ghosts of any kind.
The old Union and the old Constitution
are both deAd-dead forever, except in go