The western Democrat. [volume] (Charlotte, N.C.) 1852-1870, 1865-06-13
CoNr1soArIoN UNDER THE AMNESTY PRo-

CONF1SCATION UNDER THE AMNESTY Ro-
cLAMATIoN-Its Very Limited Ertent-The
law of July, 1852, and President Lincoln's proc
lamation consequent thereupon, imposed the
penalty of forfeiture of the entire property, real
and personal, upon every man who should con
tinue, after sixty days, to participate il. or in
any manLer abet, the rebellion. 1t was tren-
chant measure, Of much the same character as
the enactment of the Confederate Congress, ten
months previous, which suote all sorts and dc
scriptions of property belonging to 'alien enc
mies;" that is to say, to friends OF the U mon.
Were this law now to be carried out, it would
make nearly every Southern man and woman
houseless, landless, penniless; for nearly every
Southern man and woman has In some way par
ticipated in the rebellion since that time.
The Amnesty Proclamation Of President
johnson relieves all from this forfeiture, except
Ing those embraced within the fourteen catego-
ries specified. Its practical effect is TO lift the
liability to confscation from nearly every South
ern farm and plantation. Com parafvely few OF
the owners of farms and plantations come within
the range of the designated exceptions. The
men who served in the Confederate Congress,
aud who filled the Confederate Offices, were
mostly lawyers or professional politicians, who
had nothing to Go with agriculture The mill
tary officers above the rank of Colonel were
mostly officers Of the old national army, who
had lived in garrison, and owned little or no
real estate The planters and farmers of the
South almost universally remained at home
without any official connection with the Con-
federate Government. This was 10 accordance
not only with their own habits aod disposition,
! but with the policy of that government;-one
1 Of its chief solcitudes being to secure for its
III Nha U
| one of the exceptions specified which to any ex-
tent touches the planting and farming classes
oftheSouth, is that which excludes from the bene-
fit Of the amnesty all abetters Of the rebellion
vho have taxable property valued at more than
the war, the loss of slave property the disorgan-
nation of the whole labor system, and the uli.
certanties of the future, have so greatly reduced
all of the old agricultural values, that it is safe
to say that not one in one hundred of the pre-
sent landhoders of the South has taxable prop
ety to the amount named in this proclamation.
! There will be then, at most, but comparative
| ly little confscation of Southern lands This
fact, we doubt not will give general satisfac-
tim. The object of the original law was not re-
the property holders of the South would be in.
fu.nced by the fear of ruin to take advantage
of he sixty days grace presented by the Presi-
dents proclamation, and return to their allegi-
ancs. Perhaps some such effect might have
folhwed, had Mcclellan taken Richmond with
in stae two months, as was then expected But
the Southern people could find nothing in his
disasters to assure them Of the ability Of the
government to reestabsh its power. No South
erns man, at that time, however personally at
tached to the old flag, could conclude from our
method of conducting the war, that the rebel
lion. would be overcome; and it is not at all
strange that Southern property holders did not
withdraw flom the rebellion at the time, in pur-
suancs of Presidents Lincoln's call and warning.
-Fep York Times