The star of the north. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1849-1866, 1865-01-18
BLOOMSBURY. COLUMBIA COUNTY, PA. WEDNEsDA

cry OF oil has added vastly 10 tie resources
OF the Commonwealth.
have made efforts TO ascertain the value
OF this product durIng the last year bat have
failed ia procuring inform at,on sufficiently
accuarale 10 Justify me ~ estimating its a.
mocnt. 1t Is already vast, aud is rapidly
increasing
The produc tions and manufactures OF the
State have become so diversified and abul-
/ daut lha. some measure shoald be taken
for an accurate ascertaInmeut OF them, so
I III It their extent may be generally known,
and also that Inc necessary taxation may be
inielIigenty imposed. | recommend for
these pun poses the creation OF n Bureau, OF
which the Anditor General and State Treas
I-urer shall be members, and the head OF
which >hai pe a new officer, TO be styie1
Commis>ioner> ot Statistics, or designated
by any other appropriate tile.
The aci OF 25ih August, 1864, providing for
the voting OF soldiers should Ue carefully
examined, with view TO It's amendment,
aud indeed, revision oil oOr who,5 cleo,
ton laws would seem 20 be desirable, with
a view 10 the Two essential objects of The
admission of legal and exclusion OF Illegal
voles at the polls and,2 Faithful and cor
rect returns OF he woes actually poiiei.
communicate herewith the opinion of The
Attorney General on the conflicting returns
TOR the I6ih Congressional DIslrici, which
Will snow some OF the practical dItficuitiss
which arise under the existing sySfem
Without undertaking TO recommend the a
doptIon OF any particular plan, | submit The
whole subject 10 your careful and earnest
consIdera ION in the hope that IN your WIS
dom YOU will be aole TO dsvlSe some meas
nre which will Produce the resnlt 80 esse l.
nal 10 the existence OF Tree governms.ii
mat votes shall be iarlv taken in the first
instance, aud fairly counted aud returned
afterwards.
have endeavored since | came into
office 10 exercise as cautiously a< possible
the powers contidei to the Executive. and
avoid usurping any. shall euIeavor 10 per
sIst in this course 10 the md
A Lew call has been made by the PreSi
dent tor 500 900 men. TINS renders 1t pro-
per that | should invite your attention TO The
evils when have resulted from abuses OF
.tne system Of local oountie which was be-
-gun, IN an emergency, by the voluntary and
generous loyalty ol our ctiZe1s before the
passage by Congress ot-the enrolment act,
ard has since been conilnueG by suadry
acts oI Assembly. The result has been TO
TIE last degree oppressive 10 our ciuZsns
and urprocucuVe OF corresponding benef;'
TO the Government In some counties aud
townships, il Is believed that :he bounty
tax duuag the last year exceeded the ave-
rage Income derived from The land. The
large s1m@ offered m SOM places " the
competition Tor men, have demoraliZsd
many OF our people and tee mos alrociOus
trands connected with the system have he
come common. The men Of some o. tie
poorer counties have been nearly exhausted
by their volunteers being credited To richer
localities paying heavier boun'ies The
svstarD nr4cftr.Si lovya-s thu yDotJfe n . a
army itself. by putting Iuto the ranks men
actuated by merely merceuary-mol aud
wao are tenn pied 10 desert by the facility OF
escaping detection, aud The prospect OF new
gains 10y re-eniIslment, a process winch
they expect 10 be able to repeal an tndefi-
mite number OF times. Or the numbe of
men tor whom bounIies have been palI It
Is believed that not one-lourh have been
/ actually placed 'In.the ranks OF the army,
aud even those who have Joined it, have
probable not on an average received for
their own use oue-hait The bounty paid
tor Ihem. Immense sums have thus been
appropriated by cheats and swindiers, in
many cases believed TO be acrng 10 com
pncuy with agencies oil the Government.
An effJrI made TO prOsecue some of
the par res concerned in such frauds under
the del OF Assembly oil 14jh August last, and
they were bound over by the .Hayor OF This
city, out alter The Witnesses had come here
on the NEE ing o. ihe couri, they disappear
Ell from the public eye. recommsrd The
who'e subject 20 your careful Consideration,
that the system may oe purged OF these
evils.
am officially informed. that the Qnoia nf
this State, uuder the Iecen. call, Is Sc 999
but am not informed OF The principles on
which he draft is 10 pe made
Ii appears from the Presidents proclama
ton that it is made chiefly 10 supply an al
lsged deficiency IN former calls. / am sur
prsed al The amount Jhis large deficiency,
and can only account for The difference be-
tween the number OF men furnished by the
State and The deicIecy alleged 10 exist in
the assignment ot the present quota by the
assumption that the men never reached the
army, although enlisted aud mustered ailer
the payment OF bounties by tn localities 10
which they were supposed to be credued.
Ii is probable that there are very few Coun-
Ties IN the Safe winch have not paid large
bouulies Tor number of meu sufficient 10
fill their former quotas.
Taking the local bounties at the low aver
age OF tour hundred dollars, i, il believed
tha II can be demonstrated that The people
OF Pennsylvania have thus been robbed OF
more Man twelve millions OF dollars daring
the past year. TINS estimate does not in
clnde The money fraudulentIy taken from
men who have actually gone into the ser
vics.
The continuance of these monstrous and
unparalleled abuses cannot be tolerated.
Certainly more men are required 20 aid
our gallant soldiers in The field IN crushing
this rebellion, and every consideration OF
patriotism aud oil regard for our brothers
who are now in the face OF the enemy ,obli-
ges Us TO spare no effort 10 raise the neces-
sary force.
In June last gave letters TO com miuee
OF The prison society OF Philadelphia, re-
guessing that The members of ths commits
tee might be allowed TO visit aud examine
the prisons and poor,honses- ihrnnnhnni