Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1865-03-13

understand it. "
The Act of the Sd March, 1868, had pre-
seribed mode by which the number of
men due from the several States, and the
Districts Of the several States, should be
ascertained /; and that mode required, not
simple count but a consideration of the
period of serVice of menpreviously furnish ,
ed. Congress used the s5ord number in the
I'd section of the amendatory Act, under.
standing that the mode ofcoHnt prescribed
In the original Act would be preserved.
There are many. evidepces upon the face
of the amendstory Act which show that it
was not the intention of Congress to change
the mode of count prescribed in the origi-
nal Act.
The amended Act docs not undertake to
say how the quota of State or District is
| to be ascertained. In -ascertaiuing what
number is due from State or District, the
President must pursue the mode prescribed
in the 18th section of The original Act-he
must take into consideration the period of
service; and yet, under the construction
insis;ed upon, when he comes to euualize
the draft as authorized to do by the
amended Act, in the Dlstricts, he must be
controlled by simple nuhbers. 1t cannot
be that Congress intended one mode of count
for the States and Districts, and different
and wholly inconsistent one for the Sub
divisions Of Districts. Inextrioable con-
fusion would result.
From the language used IN various parts
of the ameDdatory act, it is evident that
Congress did not intend to disturb the mode
of count prescribed in the original act, For
instance, in the 9th section of the amenda.
tory act, it is said. that the town, ward, or
township shall be credited By his services,
and in the Elh section, f''the period for
which he shall have been enlisted" and
''the period for which he ehall have been
drafted" all going to chow that time of
service was held to be an element in the
count. -
Ncr do think that the argument in favor
of the repeati1 aided by the language Of the
1st section of the act, entitled "An act fur.
ther TO regulate and provide for the calling
out the national Forces" approved 4rh Ju.
~, 1864. The act says, that "auy such
volunteer, or in case of draft. as hereinatter
provided, any substitute, shsll be credited
to the town." &c. Congress meant that
the credit should be given according to the
mode of couut prescribed in the act Of Sd
March, 1S63.ss
The whole purpose of the ID section of
the smendstory act was to enable the
President to equalizs the draft in the sew
of count in ascertaiuirg the quotas OF the
several States and districisr and another
mode for equalizing the districts. Besides,
it is hardly to be considered that Congress
would thus incidentally strike from SO i'm
portant statute feature SO prom inent
and equitable. 10
l an, therefore, of the opinion that the
mode of ascertaiuing and assigning to
States and districts their respe give quotas,
as prescribed in the 18th section of the act
of the Sd July, 1863, is not repealed, and
that the same mode must be pursued in
equalizing the draft among the sub divls-
ions of each district.
Next comes the question, what is the
mode of count prescribed 10 the lash Sec
ton of the act of I'd March, 1868
1t is very plain that Congress regarded
that r consideration of the period of service
would change the rule from a merely nu.
merical one Some credit was to be given
for the period of service as we'll as for the
man. Congress has fixed various periods
of service, and States and districts, and
fractions of districts, had furnished men
for those periods of service. Now how is
the credit to be giVen2
Before proceeding o answer the question,
it may be proper to state, that it is insisted
that the words. ''period of time" and "time
of SERVICE" as used in the 18th section of
the act of March 3, 1868, mean something
different from term Of SeTUlce 1t seems to me
that the phrases mean one and the same
thing. When the word term is used in
reference to time, it is, according to the lex
icographers, very nearly the synonym OF
period. The difference betwixt them, if any,
Is too uncertain and sbadowy to believe
that Congress meant by the use of one,
something different from what is understood
by, the other. But the words period and
term, both occur in after parts of the acts
now under consideration. In the 18Th
section of the act of 1868, the term of
service is spoken of, aud the term of re
enlistment, whilst in the 7th section
of the amended act, it is the period for
which he shall have enlisted, and theperiod
! for which be shall have been drafted. Thus
it will be perceived, that upon the very
face of these acts, Congress used these
words as meaning the same thing. 1t hap
| pens too in the act, thai neither word may
be used and yet the same idea intended. as
in the 8 section of the amended act, where
the language is ''shall be credited by his
services."g v--F
q Regar ding then "period of service" and
''term of SERVICE" as meaning the same
thing, any argument predicaled upon a
difference must be disregarded. Aud thus
we are brought back to the question, bow
is the credit to be given? Must the credit
be for the time of actual service, or the
period of enlistment
thiuk that Congress intended by the
words "period of setvice," to give credit
for the time of his enlistment. When a
man eplists in the service of the Govern
ment for one, two or three years. his SER
vices are due to the Government for that
period, and during that period his servi-
cOs are Withdrawn from the Industrial pur-
suits of life. The act speaks as though
the services Of each man, and yet, lii lauy
period or time is taken, other than the
| tarm of enlistment. by snma auatan nt ava.