The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 39, July 1935 - April, 1936 Page: 62

Southwestern Historical Quarterly

chase treasury notes should be issued & sold which the Govern-
ment might pay in Cotton at 6 sterling per lb instead of 8 as
provided in the first bill. The bill to pay provost marshalls was
lost. A bill to increase the Genl staff was reported & another at
night-both passed & I voted against both. In secret session a
bill was passed to conscribe all citizens of the U. S. in the C. S.
who do not leave before 1st July. I voted for this. Also a bill
from the Q. M. Committee to provide for the appointment of a
commissioner to investigate accounts where suspicion of fraud
may exist etc. I voted for this, too. Garnett from Military
Committee reported a bill authorizing the war department to
purchase real estate. I did not get in in time to vote for this.
Rather think I should voted against it. Do not like the idea of
the Confederate Govt. buying land. I think it can lease enough.
(In secret session, too, a bill was passed appropriating more
money-$20,000,000 I think, to buy steamers abroad.) At night
a bill from Mil. Com. was passed giving pay to all soldiers ac-
tually received into service even though not regularly mustered
in. The exemption bill came up again. I tried to amend by
adding after the word slaves "who are working hands"-failed.
I voted for the amendment of Smith of N.C.275 to make owners
pay $500 for the person exempt, then voted against the House
amendment to the Senate amendment-which, however, was
adopted on final vote-i.e. I voted against the Senate bill as
amended by the House amendment.276 A bill from Com. on
Ways & Means was passed increasing pay of female employees
in the Treasury from $75 to $100 per month. I voted for it.
Just three years today since my dear Mother died. They have been
three years of storms and tempests in the political world. How
much of agitation and sorrow she has escaped! Oh how often I
"'Smith of North Carolina (M. C.)-W. N. H.; July 20, 1861-1865.
m"Exemption bill--Exemption to conscription was overdone at first, and
violations to conscription laws were many. Conscription by the Confed-
erate Government was opposed by certain Southern statesmen on the
ground that the theory was antagonistic to States' Rights. The con-
scription bill of April 21, 1862, was followed by a bill exempting many
classes of officials and employees. October 11, 1862, one white overseer
for every twenty slaves was exempt by law, but restrictions of other
sorts were made. Pressure was exerted to avoid conscription and eva-
sion was frequent. The result was that only those were declared ex-
empt finally whom the Governors of the States thought were indis-
pensable to the government of the respective States.