284 



CONGRESS, U. S. 



cretion of the executive to make it a million or 

 half a million, a thousand or a hundred men ? 

 This bill gives him the right to force into his 

 service every militia man in the twenty-three 

 States and Territories." 



Mr. Thomas, of Massachusetts: "I under- 

 stand, if the question is addressed to me, that 

 the law already existing fixes the number of 

 persons who may be called into the army of 

 the United States, and that this bill simply pro- 

 vides for the mode of putting men into the 

 army." 



Mr. Wickliffe : " Then, for the public safety, 

 obey the Constitution, and let that be inserted 

 in the bill. Let Congress retain some power 

 over the army. Say that the number to be 

 raised shall not exceed any number now au- 

 thorized by law. Do not leave it open to the 

 discretion of the President. Do not leave it 

 open to misconceptions. When this Congress 

 at the called session authorized the acceptance 

 of five hundred thousand volunteers, the Gov- 

 ernment claimed, under the provisions of an- 

 other law, a right to accept an additional half 

 million. This I thought, and still think, was 

 a great error. Let this law fix the number of 

 men to be taken. Let it say that in calling 

 these men into service, the army shall not ex- 

 ceed that now allowed by law. Then we will 

 understand what army we have and what army 

 \ve must pay. But as this bill now stands, 

 there is no restriction as to numbers. The 

 President is authorized, without limit as to 

 number, by a bill which passed this House, to 

 enroll the whole three million negroes that 

 may be caught in the South, and the slaves of 

 citizens of other States; and I suppose the 

 gentleman from Massachusetts will not agree 

 that they shall constitute a part of the white 

 army heretofore organized. 



" This bill, Mr. Speaker, is drawn and in- 

 tended to leave it to the discretion of the Pres- 

 ident to call on all the citizens of the United 

 States, at his will or pleasure, for two years, 

 or for three years, or during the war, without 

 any restriction as to numbers, place them un- 

 der military law in the army, and to place the 

 whole population left in the States under mar- 

 tial law, denying to them the freeman's writ, 

 the habeas corpus. It is a surrender by Con- 

 gress of the sovereignty of the States and the 

 liberty of the citizen. Besides that, it puts 

 under his exclusive control every militiaman 

 in every State, leaving none for its own self- 

 defence. Under this law, your provost-mar- 

 shals may go to the State of New York, the 

 State of Pennsylvania, or the State of Ken- 

 tucky, and enroll every man in those States 

 between the ages of eighteen and forty-five, 

 leaving the States themselves without any mili- 

 tia for defence against invasion or insurrection. 

 The moment they are enrolled, this bill de- 

 poses the State authority over its own mili- 

 tia." 



Mr. Stevens, of Pennsylvania, followed in 

 support of the bill : " This bill is objected to 



for various reasons. One of them is that it is 

 unconstitutional, inasmuch as the militia of the 

 nation are to be officered by the Governors of 

 the States. Sir, it is enough to say that this 

 bill provides for no calling out of the militia. 

 This bill establishes what is called a national 

 force. Now the militia of a State are under 

 the regulation of the authorities of that State, 

 and they have a right to say how they shall be 

 disciplined, and how they shall be armed, and 

 when they are called as militia into the service 

 of the United States, they shall be officered by 

 the Governors of the States* 



" This, therefore, being in no sense of the 

 word a militia force, but a national force, 

 as declared by this bill, none of the provis- 

 sions of the Constitution referred to should 

 stand in its way, because the provision of 

 the Constitution is that Congress shall raise 

 armies. This is a mode of raising armies. The 

 provision for calling out the militia for certain 

 purposes is an entirely distinct and separate 

 provision of power. I have said now all I de- 

 sire upon that point. 



" Now, sir, I say that this bill, in its main 

 features, is a beneficent, a benevolent bill. At 

 present we know that there are no exemptions 

 when men are called into service, except those 

 that refer to the ability of the party to serve. 

 That operates very harshly upon many men, 

 who are obliged to leave at their homes wid- 

 owed mothers and aged fathers who are de- 

 pendent on them for support. They are draft- 

 ed, and they are obliged to go, leaving their 

 relatives in this condition. All these cases are 

 provided for by this bill, and I have seen 

 enough in the late draft in Pennsylvania to 

 know that its provisions will afford great relief 

 to a large class of persons. This bill exempts 

 from military duty the only son of a widow 

 dependent upon him for support. That is a 

 beneficent provision, which does not now ex- 

 ist in the law. This bill also provides that the 

 only son of aged and infirm parents, who are 

 dependent upon his labor for their support, shall 

 be exempt a most benevolent provision. It 

 also provides that where there are two or more 

 sons of such parents, and they are drafted, the 

 father, or if he be dead, the mother, may elect 

 which of the sons shall be exempt, It exempts 

 also the brother of a family of children under 

 twelve years of age, and who are dependent 

 upon him for support. This embraces a very 

 large number of very worthy people, while 

 there is no law now in existence that affords 

 them relief. If this bill had no other benefi- 

 cent feature in it than this, that would be 

 enough to commend, it to my favorable consid- 

 eration, and I should vote for it. I will not 

 enumerate the other beneficent provisions of 

 the bill. I leave that to others. 



" There are two amendments which I desiro 

 to have made in this bill, and which I shall 

 offer under the privilege which has been grant- 

 ed for amendments, in case no. other gentleman 

 offers them. The bill provides that a person 



