The weekly North-Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 186?-1869, 1867-10-02
OFFICE us. DIsTR1oT ATTORNEY.


of the Goth of August, relative to the ia
bilitv OF a person to prosecution who was
o Public Register during the war ana
after the close. of the same, accepted the Of
fee of Collector of Internal Revenue, and
took the /. test OATH of July End, 1852,
shall avail myself of the public press, IN or
der to embrace in one letter, answers to
MANY enquiries of a similar character: s
The only portion of the oath having any
bearing on this case of Register and the nu-
merous other enquiries OF a similar import,
is as follows: za6g5s .s
az. A. B., do solemnlE swear that ! have
never voluntarily borne arms against the
United States; that have voluntarily given
no aid, counsel, countensnce orencouragement
to persons engaged id armed hostility there
to and that have neither sought nor acT
cepted nor attempted to exercise the funcr
tions of any office whatever under any au-
thority or pretended authority in hostility to
the Urited States" at ss
In order to arrive at the true construction
of this oath, we must look to the intent OF
Congress- In its enactment, the then condl-
ton of the country the evils complained
of, and the remedy. intended to beiap-
piled. s.. e,s .si5 ,ssii l.sg al ~,
Rebels, claiming the right to secede, but
involved the country in terrible lebelllon
which was suppressed only by the, sacrlhce
of hundreds of thousands OLIVES, and thous-
ands of millions of treasure, Traitors hlllng
many of the offices of the United States, who
had taken an oath to "bears true faith and
allegiancen to the same, either encouraged
or took ND arms in aid of the rebellion.
Congress was determined that thereafter
all such disloyal persons, who stood ready
to undermine and destroy the Government
should be excluded from Office, and the
same should be filed with true and devoted
friends of the Union, who could be trusted
word, the purpose of the oath was to secure
the service in office OF true and loyal men,
and to exclude dislnyal men. s.ssi..
The term, Office, used in this oath is In
tended to mean and embrace such offices as
were made use OF as instruments to aid the
rebellion. The Office of Register was no such
office. The duties of its incumbent were
not to aid rebellion, but to authenticate
and preserve the instruments of title to
property. This officer derived his appoint
ment and authority from the county court
tribunal not created to aid the rebellion,
but which has been in existence in North
Carolina for century. Its duties were
to suppress and punish crime to preserve
the peace, redress wrongs, award justice,
and administer the public charities of the
county, so as to protect its. poor from star
walton. If the court aided the rebellion,
it did that for which it was not created, and
the Public Register derived none of 'his'au-
thorlty from any such aid, nor was his Office
an instrument TO aid the rebellit,n.s nmany
of these cases. parties accepted sor held such
Offices as Register, Clerk, &C., for the pur-
porse of preventing themselves from being
forced by CONSUMPTION into the rebel army;
thus weakening instead of strengthening the
rebel force. Therefore public Register is
not excluded from taking said oath, unless
he gave aid to the rebellion outside of his
Office Al'
The officers intended to be excluded by
this clause of said oath, were such as held
their appointments from the Confederate
Government OF rom such other power or au-
thority as was created to .@aid the .rebel-
ion," or which by the general use of its
functions, could be truly charged with act
ing in g hostility to the United Statesn
1t is sometimes urged that the taking of
the Confederate oath by such officers as
Public Registers, Clerks, Constables, DC, ex-
cludes such persons from taking the . test
OATH on the ground that twas giving aid
or encouragement to the rebellion. This is
not necessarily so. 1t depends on the intent
!. with which it was taken. 4" Aid OF encour-
agement" to the rebellion must have been
voluntarily and intentionally rendered, to
exclude person. 1t is conceded by all that
one who was conscripted into the rebel ar
my and fought against the Union is not ex-
cluded, while one who volunteered to do the
same thing is excluded Why this distinct
ion? Because the aid rendered. by the one
was not voluntary, while that rendered by
the other was voluntary. So of one who
was conscripted and furnished substitute,
or took contract to furnish supplies for the
Rebel army, in order to protect himself
:, from being compelled to take up arms
against the Union.a Such person can, in my
opinion, take the oath, because what he did
was not done with heintent to " aid the re
bellion,n but was done under coercion, to
save himself from having to fight against the
Union. IS 1-s'g-s
So of one who accepted or retained the
Office of Register, Clerk of Court, Consta-
BILE, or other such office, to keep from fight
ing against the Union, or to prevent some
violent "war man. from getting the Office,
:. who would exercise its functions to Cypress
Union men and to force persons into the re-
bel army. Such person thus accepting of
flee under such circumstances and taking
the Confederate oath, is not thereby, exclu-
ded from taking the TIT test oath,n because it
was not voluntarily done with the intent
" to aid or encourage the ,rebellion." But
such person was compelled to take the office
and the Confederate oath, toeJor be forced
into the rebellion, or suffer rebel to fill the
office who would force him and his friends
into the army. y. sss,s 4 -.
But taking of the Confederate oath, if
done with the intent to g encourage the re-
bellion," would in my opinion, exclude such
person from taking the g test oath.n How
are we to know the intent Of the party q
Simply by his conduct and other ssoyert
acts" during the war. Every mans neigh
bors knew his status, whether he was Union
man or a secessionist El9a q
Ii a Union man.. he is not presumed to
have taken the oath with the intent to aid in
destroying the Union, which was the .obiect
of his affections; while ifaa secessionist. it
is an equally strong presumption that he
!, took the oath with. the intent to |" counte-
Z nance or aid" in destroying the Union, which
was the object of his hatred. ~ b 90
No one will deny that where one yolunta.
rily aided the rebellion by volunteering into
-, the rebel army, or voluntarily furnished sup.
plies to the army, that he is excluded from
taking the s test oath y while if the same
thing was done by one who was known to
sbe'a friend to the Union, to- save himself
from beinglforced into the rebel army, he
snot excluded from taking the g test oath y
The righr to take The, g test OATH mainly