Randolph County journal. [volume] (Winchester, Indiana) 1864-1865, 1864-01-01
TIE CONFISCATION OF REBEL
PROPERTY.

The fear of confisca,ion Of pzop-
erty is now most relied upon y the
rebel leaders to nerve the southern
people 20 action under their present
dlscouragcmcntS. They tell them
that not only will the negroes all be
freed, but the entire property OF the
Sotth will pass into Yankee hands,
it the government succeeds. This
idea OF course has great effect. The
chivalry dread the loss of property
quite as much as the loss OF power
and social position. We should be
glad to believe that these fears are
to lie realized. II Judge Under
woods Interpretation OF the coniis-
cation law and It's constitutional
lin itationS can be maintained, the
rebel leaders may be pretty gener-
ally punished bv the loss OF their
property In lands as well as in
-laves. The real estate OF the South
IS in few hands, aud the large ma
jority Of the property holders have
been actively and earnestly engaged
il the re1elliona> Contiscation OF
their property during the remaining
portion OF their lives will he but a
small punishment, and the govern
ment will realize lit e or nothing
from the sale of the incomes Of the
forfeited estates. Indeed confisca-
4 ton TO the extent which the con
stitution has been supposed to allow
does not pay costs. 1t will inillct
temporary inconvenience upon the
rebels and their families, wherever
it can be enforced, iut the govern
ment will realize no considerable
mount OF revenue from it.
the loyal people OF the country
feel th1t those " ho have made war
upon the nation ought to be forced
to pay the expense OF their own sub
jugation. II there is no real and
radical contiscation of the property
OF re1el<, the loyal people oil the
country vii have TO ray the cost OF
the war, for the South will be i'm
poverished and have no means OF
paying much for some years TO
come. The war will leave upon
the country the burden of a debt OF
two thousand millions of dollars,
more or less. Must the loyal states
pay this debt, or the larger part OF
it? Most certainly il any means
can be devised by which those who
have brought this calamity upon us
can be compelled to pay the cost,
it will satisfy the popular s-nse OF
Justice, and it Will be wholly and
absolutely right in itself. The val
ue of the cultivated lands in the
now inSurgent states was estimated
in the census of 1880 at something
over eight hundred millions. 1t Is
now considerably larger. Nearly
all this land is owned by men who
can be convicted of treason. But
suppose only half these lands are
thas forfeited at least five hundred
millions Of dollars might be real
lied by their sale, and the other
property OF rebels confisca;ed should
yield an equal amount. Thus one
half the war debt might be extin-
guIshed at once, or very nearly that
amount.
Another advantage Of this radi-
cal confiscation will be the more
rapid social regeneration OF the
South. This is certain to come IN
time; the causes are already at
work, and the arToga.: planters are
to sive way to industrious farm
ers the great plantations are to be
cat up into farms, and an intelligent
la5oring population to supersede
the degraded and servile working