Semi-weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1853-18??, 1865-02-24
AN OFFICER.
For the Standard

For the Standard.
Who are to be Exempted from Home Guard
duty on account of DisabiIity..and who are
TO Exempt them3
Mr.. EDIToK:-We regret to see that the Legisla-
ture in re-organizing the guard for home defence
has not thought proper to make some specific regu-
latlons with regard to this matter. There has been
much complaint against the Confederate govern
ment and justly too We think, as to the mannsr in
which it has exercised this power. But in our
opinion there has not been half the ground for COM
pIalnt against the Confederate, as there has been
against the State government And We do not
say this merely for the purpose of finding fault,
but Tor the purpose Of calling attention to what wo
consider an error in order that it may be corrected.
BY the first act Of Assembly, organizing the
guard for home defence, ratified 7th day July 1868
there is no provision made for dischargng any one OH
account Of disability. But the Governor WAS al
lowed by said act to make further exemptions for
special reasons. And under this act the govern
fnent adopted the system Of forwarding physicians
certificates Of disease which not to operate as
discharge until they received both the Surgeon
and Adjutent Generals approval. This system was
Gonti4ued until about the close of the year, when
the Legislature passed another act ansndatary of
The first, ratified 18th December 1868, authorizing
the General Assembly, by and with the consent of
the Governor to appoint examining boards OF phys-
Clans, so rs not to exceed those in the State who
were to visit the various counties Of the State and
TO examine all persons claiming exemptions on &C
count of disability, and to give discharges to all
whom they considered entitled to the same This
board consequently visited the various parts of tue
State performing their duty they thought.
But what was the result of all this 1t amount.
ed 10 this. Every man who failed to get dis
charge before this board either went to Raleigh to
the Surgeon General with Doctors certificate in
his pocket got some else to go for him II he
had money enough to de!ray his expenses there
and back. And some OF them may have been DIS
appointed, but we do not know Of one who was,
while We know quite number who applied. And
the effect of. this was TO throw the State boards
into utter contempt with the people, and to render
them entirely worthless But the third act ID re-
laton to the Guard for home defence, ratified 23rd
day December, 1854 provided for district boards;
but before it was put into operation, the Attn or
last act was passed. and ratified on the 7lh day OF
February, 1860 repeating the act of December 1861,
and making No provisions for any exemptions
whatever on account Of disability. This legislation
to US seems singular and not easily understood, and
the question arises. Are there to be no more ex-
cnpis from home guard service on acouDt OF dlsa-
bIlity-Ur if there are to bo any such exemptions,
who is to make them? Are those who have been
exempt heretofore still to be exempt? or If not all
of them, then what part Of them? Those exempted
under the first acts by certificates of physicians
with the Surgeon and Adjutant Generals approval
or those exempted by the State boaIdS-or those
who have been exempted by the Surgeon General
over the State boards? And if all these are ex-
emptcd there to be any more exempted? We
hope this matter Oi exemption may 6c settled upon
some fixed rule which will operate equally and
Justly upon all. DAVE.