The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-08-17

the justice OF penSiOning DESERT
ers fTpm the military service of
the Southern Confederacy will prob
ably be brought prominently before the
people of North Carolina in the APP
preaching election, deem it important to
place before them the evidence on which
a correct judgment can be founded.
Before entering upon the main question,
1t Is necessary for us to 60 back and
inquire into the relations between a
State and one of its citizens. IN all
the State constitutions up to 1861 allie
glance was expressly or by implication
declared to be due to ones State; the
declaration that Treason against this
State shall consist only in levying war
against it ,adhering to it's enemies, CIV
ing them aid and comfort was inserted
in the constitution of Maine in 1S19 OF
Connecticut in 180S of New York in 1874,
of Indiana in 1851, of Michigan in 1850,
of Iowa in 1856, of Wisconsin in 184S.
of California in 1S49. of Minnesota in
1885, and of Oregon in 1857; and in the
Constitution OF the United States it is
provided that "A person charged in any
State with treason who shall
fee from justice and be found in another
State, shall, on demand of the executive
authority of the State from which he
fed, be delivered IN, to be removed to
the State having jurisdiction of the
crime" Such was the supreme law OF
the land, and it should be remembered
that it has never been repealed
Now let us turn to the records and
condense the history of these deserters
from the Confederate service, their en-
listment in the service of the Northern
States, and Senator Pritchard's efforts
to have them pensioned.
I. In volume w. series ILL.,. of the
War Records It appears that in Febru-
airy. 1865. General Grant objected to the
enlistment of Confederate prisoners in
the Federal armies, and he never con-
scented to their enlistment If bounties
were to be granted them, his reason be-
ing "That the most determined men
against us would be the first to enlist
for the sake of money and would return
with it to their friends
On February %. 1865. resolution was
passed in the House of Representatives
directing the Secretary of War to in
form the House whether any Confederate
prisoners had been received into the
Federal service, how many and whether
they have received bounties." That
officer, thereupon, made a report (Feb-
ruary I'D In which he stated that the
number of Confederate prisoners who
had enlisted In the Federal service were
663 Marylanders at Fort Delaware in
1863, all receiving bounties; 1,4S4 at
Point Lookout in 1864, who were sent to
the northwest to keep Indians in sub
lection; and 1,751 at Rock Island, Ill, in
1864 who were sent to the northwest, re-
ceiving no Federal bounty.
Afterwards Major General Joseph
Hooker, Cincinnati, Ohio" was author
lied March 2, 1861 ito recruit a regi-
ment of volunteer infantry from prison
ers'' in his department ito serve in the
northwest or on the plains and the
order directed that they should receive
no bounties; and on March % Major
General Pope, St. Louis, NO." was au-
thoriZed to recruit from the prisoners
at Camp Douglas and Rock Island, as
he "could not raise but five companies
at Alton"
This is the last reference in this VOL
ume to these enlistments. and the rec
ords show that a large portion of these
men were foreigners who were perhaps
not citizens of any Southern State.
After the authority was granted to
General Pope, it appeahi, from the de-
bate on Senator Pritchards resolution,
that a very large class of Confederate
soldiers who were confined In Northern
prisons enlisted in the service of the
Federal government when. as Senator
Gallinger protested to Senator Pritch-
ard in the debate. sit was known to
every intelligent man that the Confed-
eracy was not to be a success"
IL. In 1899 Senator Pritchard made
an effort to open the door of the PEN
sion office to all these deserters. he
worked session after session" and
three different times the Senate adopt
ed his resolution, but 1t was never voted
on In the House of Representatives.
On February z. 1902, he struggled to
have it tackled on to the pension applo
priation bill, and, which Senator Calm :
ger objected, he threatened to see that
not many pension bills are passed. The
ob1ector then advised him to introduce
a separate measure and try his luck.
He did so. and the Senate agreed to it.
It was to pension all the deserters who
enlisted in the Federal service except
those who enlisted with the understand
ing that they should not be sent South
to fight their own people, but to the
Indian country. That is to say, those
who agreed to assist in waging war
against their own States were to be pen
stoned, but no pensions should be given
to those who, refusing to fight their own
people went to the west to fight In the
Modoc war, which ended in october, 1864,
and in the war with the Cheyennes which,
beginning in November, 1864, was pro-
tracted until 1t cost thirty or forty mill
lions of dollars, were not to be pensioned.
When the resolution reached the House
of Representatives, 1t was amended SO
as to exclude from its benefits all those
Confederate soldiers who enlisted in the
armies of the North after January 1,
1865, and as amended, it was passed by
the Senate and thus Senator Pritchard
failed TO include any but small fraction
of the thousands of men in Western
Carolina and Eastern Tennessee who
lived in caves, slept on the cold ground
in the mountains and endured X manner
of hardshius rather than figl - in what
his resolution calls 1.-THE rebellion and
..were ready to take up arms in defense
of the Northern States when the Union
ny-