274 



CONGKE8S, U. S. 



history, Congress has assumed the responsibil- 

 ity of passing laws for the purpose of bring- 

 ing soldiers into the field. This bill proposes 

 to surrender that right now and forever, and 

 to confer upon the President of the United 

 States more power than belongs to any despot 

 in Europe or anywhere else. I ask gentlemen 

 to look at the second and fourth sections of this 

 bill, and to pause before they cast their vote for 

 either. As has been well said by the senator 

 from Virginia, they strike down every right 

 pertaining to the States. In some of the States 

 we have in our militia those who do not belong 

 to the militia in other States. In some of the 

 States you have the negro in your militia ; in 

 others you have not. Under the operation of 

 this bill the President of the United States has 

 the absolute power to take every man into the 

 service who may differ with him in political 

 sentiment and political views. He is to make 

 the regulations ; he is to make the law. He may 

 take, upon the other hand, that class of peo- 

 ple whom we do not believe to be capable 

 of fighting battles or maintaining the civil 

 government. 



" Mr. President, when I look at the measures 

 that are proposed here,' when I see the deep in- 

 terest that is felt in the section of the country 

 from which I come, I cannot forbear saying to 

 the Senate of the United States, and to the 

 country, if you pass this bill, if you pass the 

 bill you had under consideration the other day 

 to appropriate money to purchase slaves, and 

 the bill to bring into your armies, side by side 

 with our white race, an inferior race, the 

 negro, I fear you will plunge the country into 

 civil war. I ask you to consider ; I ask you to 

 reflect. I will not discuss the question of 

 whether this feeling so deep and fearful is right 

 or wrong. I know it exists, and as legislators 

 it is our duty to treat of facts as they are. It 

 is our duty to remember that our fellow citi- 

 zens have passions which may dethrone reason, 

 and sometimes cause them to act precipitately 

 and hastily. God knows I do not wish to aug- 

 ment this, feeling, already excited enough. I 

 have a right to call upon the American Senate 

 to forbear before passing acts that may involve 

 us in further trouble, in disaster, and, it may 

 be, in civil war. Whenever you have called on 

 that section of the country for volunteers you 

 have got them. Whenever you have asked for 

 them they have come. If in other sections of the 

 country they have not come as promptly as they 

 have from that, is there nothing less than to 

 give absolute, extreme, dangerous power to the 

 President to fill up your army ? " 



Mr. Wilson, of Massachusetts, then explained 

 the bill : " The Government has the power to 

 organize the militia and to arm the militia, and, 

 in the exercise of that power, the Congress of 

 the United States has enacted that all persons 

 between eighteen and forty-five, not exempted 

 by law, shall be enrolled. Congress, at the 

 last session, enacted that the President of the 

 United States should make the needful rules 



and regulations, whenever it was necessary to 

 make them. Now, this bill simply provides 

 that the President shall have the power to 

 make the needful rules and regulations for en- 

 rolling the militia of the country, and for draft- 

 ing the militia. It does not take away from 

 the States the power to appoint the officers ; it 

 does not give the President of the United States 

 the power to appoint the officers ; it does not 

 take away from the States the power to train 

 the militia when organized and when enrolled; 

 it does not take away from the States the 

 power to train the militia according to the laws 

 and regulations prescribed by the Congress of 

 the United States. I do not see, sir, that it 

 trenches in any way upon the provisions of the 

 Constitution ; but it is an important provision, 

 giving the President of the United States dur- 

 ing this rebellion the authority to make the 

 needful rules and regulations for the enroll- 

 ment of the militia, and for the drafting of the 

 militia. 



" Objection is made to the fourth section, 

 which provides that persons when drafted shall 

 be considered as in the service of the United 

 States. I think it a very important provision. 

 When either a volunteer or a drafted militia- 

 man is mustered into the service of the United 

 States, he is under the rules and articles of 

 war. Now, this section simply provides that 

 the rules and articles of war, which apply to a 

 person who is mustered into the service of the 

 United States, shall apply to a man when he is 

 drafted into the service of the United States ; 

 and after being drafted, it is provided that he 

 may be examined and discharged for physical 

 disability; and if found incapable of bearing 

 arms, of course he will be discharged. The bill 

 also provides that any person drafted may sup- 

 ply a substitute, and then he shall be exempted 

 during the war. But it is important that when 

 persons are drafted into the service of the 

 United States, they shall be placed under the 

 rules and articles of war just as much as though 

 they were mustered into the service of the 

 United States. It is a fact, it is a sad one, but 

 it is nevertheless true, that in some localities 

 where men were drafted, not one fifth of those 

 men were ever mustered into the service of the 

 United States, but absented themselves. There 

 was no mode to reach them, and the draft was 

 substantially broken up in that way." 



Mr. Bayard, of Delaware, in reply said: 

 " Sir, there is, in my view, a difference betweer. 

 the army and navy of the United States and tho 

 militia of the United States. I think the Con- 

 stitution makes a difference. It gives you the 

 power to raise and support armies, with a lim- 

 itation as to the appropriations ; but the mili- 

 tia are the forces of the States as States. Tho 

 Constitution gives you power to call then:, 

 forth for the service of the United States ii. 

 two cases ; but it does not give you the con- 

 trol, nor does it intend to give you the control 

 of the militia of the States in the same manner 

 that you have of the army and navy. You 



