Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1864-12-07

the owners or stllls may PuDipiy VIC inno-
cent, in that, they are deprived Of the priv
ilege Of using them for the distillation of
fruit in its season. When the stills are
seized under warrant, there. can be no fur
ther use Of them till after trial and'acqnittal.
The provision ofthe Law limiting price
at which the Government may contract for
spirituous liquors for medicinal purposes to
three dollars per gallon; should be repeal
ed, and to meet the faotuation in prices, he
should be authorized to make contracts ct
the lowest practical rates. There is unquss.
tionably demand for spirituons liquors for
medicinal purposes, which, under existing
laws, the State has been. unable to supply.
I bad regarded the Acts against distillation
as not allowing even the Confederate Gov
ernment to carry on distiHsries within the
limits Of this State, except under contract
by its officials, as agents Of the State. But
under recent opinion of the Attorney
General, have Withdrawn the Objections
which had made. The matter is now sub.
mitted for your consideration. 81
x frecommend thatsthe sum appropriated
for the relief of soldiers families be largely
increased say to two or two and half mil
lion of dollars annually. From all I can
learn, the sum now appropriated is entirely
inadequate. The two per cent. tax in kind
not ,unfrequently takes from the families Of
soldiers in the field portion Of their sup
plies, when they have not more than enough
for their own consumption after paying the
Confederate tifhs. In such cases, they;
could far better afford to pay tax in mon.
ey raised from their other resources,
and would do it cheerfully. It's question.
able if this provision of the law has operated
we'll, and I submit for your consideration
whether it would not.besbetter to increase
the appropriation. and require the Boards
Of Relief, instead of distributing money, to
purchase and distribute the supplies them
selves. In this connection, I suggest that
an Act should be passed requiring the rail-
road companies, in this State promptly to
transport all supplies purchased by the
Boards of Relief for the use of soldiers
families.
The operation of the Acts upon the SUBJ
ject of supplying labor for coast defences is,
I am sorry to say, not satisfactory. Upon
an examination of the Act, it will be seen
that the Governor is required to s'call for
suoh labor as may be demanded by the Con-
federate military authorities" One fourth
of the road hands ofeach division would
furnish largely over the number called for
monthly by the Commanding General Of
the Department, which is from $500 to
5000. L therefore adopted that as the
proportion to be furnished from each divis-
ion, and persisted In it for nearly eighteen
months, with the hope that the Acts might
be enforced and the requisite amount of Ia
Dor secured. In this I was disappointed.
No division has furnished near its quota
under such calls, and during the past sum-
mcr the acquisitions from the Confederate
General for an increased number of labo-
rers became 80 urgent that I felt it my duty
to authorize the State Agent to increase the
call to one.half, and even that has only Sc
cured from one division the number requir.
ed, as will be seen by his report, accom-
panying this message. The main cause Of
this failure is the omission of the Commis-
sionesr of Roads and the Sheriffs to enforce
the law; and the courts being virtually
closed, they. cannot be compelled to enforce
1T. The burden, therefore, unfortunately
falls upon the patriotic and the willing,
and 1, recommend, if the present scheme is
to be adhered to, that the Governor be au.
thorized, through his agents. to impress for
two months service on the coast the equal
proportion of every slave-owner having more
than one road hand, unless the Courts can
be put in operation and the existing laws
enforced. In this way the delinquents can
be reached, and the burden will not fall
exclusively on the willing and the patriotic.
Two months service, at one time, is recon-
mended, because the hands lose at least one
week in going and returning and in being
organized. Itwould diminish, too, the ex-
pense to the Government. I invite your
attention to the plan submitted by the
State Agent in his annual report, for sup.
plying ga permanent force of labqrers.
am not prepared to express an opinion
upon it, but am sure that the present plan
will never prove satisfactory to the country,
until some reforms have been effected In
the management and treatment Of the slaves
when on the coast. I have endeavored to
accomplish this-and it would seem from
the report of the Agent that there has been
some improvement in these partleulars-
but from information received at this De-
partmslt, there Is still much room for it.
Under the Act, the Executive has no check
upon the Confederate authorities. He has
no authority under the Act except to call
for the labor, and in the event of the de.
tention of the negroes beyond one month,
to demand their return, unless in his opin.
ion the emergency requires further deten.
tion. This detention has been fruitful
source of dissatisfaction to the owners but
it must be borne in mind that the Act it
self provides, "that each levy, under the
call, shall serve for one month, and until
relieved in turn by the next levy" During
the past summer, however, I prevailed upon
Gen. Jones, then commanding this Depart.
ment, to have the laborers therefrom dis.
charged at the end Of the month. !