Southern confederacy. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1861-1865, March 31, 1863, Image 2

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SOUTHED fsT O ON IT T5 X> ID Tf A. O- V - ^ oathrtis £vfflrfcfi6$f({j ■iSO- Vf. ADAIR, J HENLY SMITH, EDITORS ASP PROPMXTVB8. tt,C. SMITH. M.D J.B.0AKD0ZO ATLANTA, GEORGIA: TUKDAY, MAR -11 31, 1863. Governor Browa'i Hcifigi ** the Legfa- Ivure CakV«Md cm cUc SStU U«- < h by Prod am Alton. The excellent message of the Governor has the fault of all hi* State papers; it is too long: and on this account and the great press upon our column*, we are compelled to cut it down by striking out some of the less important portions of it. . Executive Department, 1 Mh.ledoevii.le, March 25th, J863. J To the Senate and House of Bepreseutativee : 1 h .ve ttit it my da y to convene you at an earlier day than that tiled for your meeting when you adjourned. n o * o *■.■# • In December test we pasted an act prohibiting the cultivation of more than three acre* ui cot ton to the haml this year, which virtu»lly legat ees and invites it* production to that <giant.— I cm now fully satisfied, if the quantity oi laud mentioned in that act is planted in Georgia and each othtr cotton State, the resuft w ilt be our euojugaiion by hunger nnd the utter ruin oi the CmtidiTBCy. Hence l have n ItH my duty, he fore the crop ia piutitcd, to cull you together, and Kcomuicnd.the pisssse ol un act that will make it highly penal'for any one to cultivate exceed ing cr,e*tuur'h tf an acre to the Hand. The enemy has overrun, and now holla a large part ol the most productive lands in the Confederacy. As our limits are circumscribed and contracted, many ol the loyal prop e of the sections in the possession of the enemy retire to tbe interior, and the number of persona to be supported Irom Ibe products ol Ihn lands in our porseinn is greatly*»creased, while the an.a ol productive lands Irom which tbe support must come is al moat daily diminished. Most ot the white la borers ol the country are now in the army, and new levies are constantly being made from those who remain. As these enter the military ser vice oar fields arc left uncultivated, while the women and children are anil in our mind, und must be tupplied. The result is. that the coun try and army are mainly dt pendent upon Blave labor lor a support. At the present prices of all the necessaries oi Hie, it is impossible for the women and child'en to support themselves, in my opinion, it will take every actn of land, ■nd every day’s productive labor which we can command this year to make our necessary sup port; and he who employs any portion of his lands arid labor in the production of cotton, to bacco, or any other products that-wilf not bus tain life, to that i stent endangers the tucccss of our cause. The present prices of cotton make the temptation to pbmi it very strong, and tho planter will quiet his conscience by the reflec tion that the Legislature has aitthoruid him to plant three acies to tht-.'hand, and will plant his best land, p ace ail his manures, upon it, and make it tho object ot his especial care and at tention. There is now cotton enough in the C«nte tcracy to clothe our people lor several years and there ia no reason why we should plant more than is actually necessary to keep seed. * a * * ■ * As the war Is now prosecuted by Ihe tin coin Government f.-r the avowed purpose .of abolishing slavery, no class of our people has so much at rtako as ear slaveholders, whq ure generally our chief planters. Tiiey mb dependent i-.pon our wniie laborers,in-lha fmmy i "*uu, It RUn^TTaia army of while labo rers and their families aro dependent upon the slave owners for a support, while thu* en gaged. Tbe obligation is mutual and recip rocal, and neither party baa the right to dis regard it. The conduct of cur planters last year was moat patriotio am praiseworthy, and has saved cur cause for the present, but tbe temp tations held oat to the avarioious are rnuob greater this year, owing to the high prices of collon in the market; and I consider legisla tion absolutely neo?s*tvry to restrain those who would hazard all for gain. * * t a Al the present lime, mcney will not buy bread, in a Urge section of our own State, at a reasonable prior. This is caused partly by tho .severe drought ot lost'rummer, but 1- prob&bly owing, in a great degree, to the fr et that the lands in that section of the Slate are cultivated almost entirely by -white labor, acd most of that labor now 'being ia the ar my, the laiid* lie idle,-and the women and children are destitute cf bread. * * * * Let not the people of the cotton leciiocs of the State, where there is labor to cultivate all the lands, risk the chances of similar, or worse distress snot her year, lest consequences ensue whioa may cost mem not only their cot ton crops, but all tha: they have, and all'that they expect to have iu future. Wo otu never be conquered by ihe arms of th» enemy. We may bo by hanger, i; wo negleot to husband all the resources for the supply of provisions, Which a kt.d Providence has placed within our reAOh. Attempt to c. nocal it as we ma'Jp, the fact Is undeniable, that tho great question in this revolution is now a question ot bread. Che army must b» ted, a ad their families at home supported, or >he tut of liberty will soon set in darkness acid blood, und th*voice of freedom will be forever hushed in the si lanes of despotism. *hb Law Adamr distilleries. Experience has shown that tho law against the distillation of grain into ardent spirits needs amendment Font information re adied from different p.iits cf the State. I am satisfied that a large portion oA*he poiatoe crop, most of tbe dried fruit, and a consider able portion of the molasses in the State, hava been and ate being distilled. Under pretence of distilling these articles, it 1; also •aid that quantities of corn are being used by distillers, who keep their doors closed, and refuse to admit visitors, who might testify against them. In other sections, it is said, they arerturning their stills iu open violati on of the law, and no one has the nerve to with stand and -prostate them. To arrest those evils, I recommend that the law be so changed as to make it highly penal during the war for aoy one, ia addition to the present prohibi tion, t > distil potatoes, dried fruit, -or molas ses, without &lieen9e; and that every person who keeps Lis distillery , locked and refuses to admit visitors, day or night, when admis sion is asked, shall be held primiaJatis gnLty of a violation of the law And that every Person who.runs his distillery ,without a h cense shall be presumed to Le guilty of dis tilling grain; or other artiele, prohibited, and the burden of proof shall rest upon him to show the contrary. * * * * **•* I* has been impessible for the Inferior Courts of some of the c-unties, under my in structions, to fiud a person who wiil take the contract to m s ke the quantity of spirituous uqunrs cr alcohol necessary fdr medicinal umk, at the prices fixed by the statute. And as it is a violation of the law for a person dis tilling under »- lieecss to sell for more than ‘the prices fixed by tbe statute, 1 recommend such change as will authorize the lowest re sponsible bidder to be licensed, at such price ns may be agreed on between him and the Court, for the supply necessary for fho coun ty ; tbe quantity recommended by the Court to be subject to the approval of the Governor, before ho issues the license. transportation or provisions. Bo great is the scarcity of provision* in the Cherokee country, that it is'impossible* to subsist the soldiers’ families much longer without the transportation of corn from South western Georgia. The rolling stock upou tbe Southwestern, and the Macon and Western Railroads, is not sufficient to carry forward the corn and to do the work required by the Confederate Government. Surrounded by tbpse difficulties, I have thought it best to di rect the Superintendent of tbe State Road to put one oi his best trains upon the roads to Son(bwestern Georgia, for the transportation of corn to supply brood to those who must otherwise suffer. 1 shall be obliged to con tinue this policy till the emergency is passed, though l mav not bs able to carry over the State Road all Govorhment freight offered as prctnplly as 1 could wish. I feel It to be my highest duty to so usa the property of tbe Srate as to provent, if possible, suffering ou the part of the poor, or the families of sol dier* for want or broad. .! SALARIES (Ho next recommends an increase of the salaries of the Judges of tbe Superior oourts ] THB BKW COOK. (He next complains that John II. Seals has failed to comply with bis contract to furnish the new code aad recommends some action to compel him to fulfill bis obligation.] . small pox. be && The physicians’ bills sent to this Department by tho Interior Courts of many of the counties, lor attention to persons afflicted with small pox have, in my opinion, been to (exorbitant that 1 have refused to pay them. There ate several instances of phyiscians who have made out bills against the State lor one or two months’ atten tion to small pox cases, amounting to larger sums than they would, I suppose, be atft* to make by one or two years practice. • e * e • * IMPRESSMENT OF NEOBOSS. It will be remembered that Brig. Geo. Mercer made a requisition upon the Stale, while you were last in session, for 2500 negroes for sixty days, to work on the fortifications around Savan nah, and that the Governor was authorized by the action tf the General Assembly to fill the requisition A call was afterwards made by authority of Gen. Beauregard, for the 300 ne groes to w. rk on the obstru itioit* of the Alta maha river, which requisition was also filled. Many ol the negroes sent to Savannah have not yet been discharged, because, in the opinion of the.military anthorities there, the emergency was such as to make i< a military necessity to retain them. New and additional fortifications have been projected, and iu one seems to know when they will be completed. It is now requir ed, that the negroes remain ninety days longer . or, if they are discharged, that their places be supplied immediately by a new levy. The upper and western portions ol ihe State have not furnished their qnota. If a new im pressment is made as the law now stands it must bo from these sections. Tito warm season is commencing, and the negroes of there parts of the State are not accustomed to ’.he elmate ol Savannah. Much sickness and many deaths thus! therefore be expected among them. Again, the crop is now being planted, and ii»» matter ot great Importance .that as iin'r '-^T IHifilffffr In this state of the case, I respectfully tuk that the General Assemby, by joint resolu tion, or otherwise, give dir ctions, at an ear ly a day as possible, as to the best mode of furnishing the labor to complete the fortifioa- tioos. It will also be proper tba> some just modc’f ascertaining tbe value'ani compen sating the owners for the negroes who hiv e died iu the servico, and the still larger num ber who may die during the summer season, be preset ibed by law. MILITIA LAW. (He recommend* that the militia law. be so altered a* to allow all vacancies in militia of- cers below the grade of General to be filled by election to bo ordered by the next high estin command, and elections tor Lieutenants to be ordered by Captains. Also the repeal J* the law allowing a commutation tax in lieu of military service.] RIGHTS OF THB CHURCHES. (He asks for a repeal-of 1876th section cf the code, which prohibits any “church, socie ty or other body granting license to any slave or free person of color to preach or exhort or otherwise effioiate in church matters.’-’ The Governor thinks this a question for the Church of the Living God-and not the Legis lature to decide. ] STATE INDORSEMENT OF CONFEDERATE DEBT. I transmit herewith copies of resolutions passed by the Legislatures of tbe S-atQ3 of Alabama, South Carolina, Mississippi and Florida, proposing, upon different plans, the indorsement of the debt of the Confederacy by the States. No one can doubt the patri otic motive whioh have prompted this action of our sister States. Bat as this is a ques tion of great magnitude, involving important principles, and as our action in the premises must bo followed by consequences seriously affecting the cre iit of the State, present and prospective, it is our duty to examine it for ourselves, nnd not to be controlled by the de cision and action of others If the proposed indorsement will have e effect of arraying tho capital of the ornate/ difficulty tn deterndkfcg ..what -will act’on. Suppose the whole debt of the Confederacy to have reached one HHion of dollars, as it probably will have done by the time the States havo all noted upon this proposition. It is not probable that capitalists, as a mat ter of choice, would prefer to credit our Gov ernment with a larger debt than this hanging over it. But having already, invested this en ormous sum, if they feel that their only hope of payment rests upon the success and per manent establishment-of the Confederacy, and.it becomes necessary to invest another b llion to establish the Government and avoid the loss of tbe sum already invested, interest will prompt them to stfied by the Government, sustain its credit, and make further advance if they have means. 'Btii suppose at thb pe riod, all the State* indorse'the whole dbbt, or each indorses its proportion of it, what effcot will this havo upon the mind cf theca titnlist?. If prior to tho act be lobbed only to the Con federacy forpayment, add having now obtain ed the legal, as we it. a'S moral obligation of tho individual States to pay, he Is satisfied that this eeo ires the debt,- bi3 intarostSn the permanent snooeas of the Confederacy cease*, and he look* in future : to-the States for pay ment. If after this the old Union should be reconstructed, and the States of our Confed eracy should return', and’ become members of it, the capitalists is not left to look to a Con federacy no longer in exUtonco for payment, nor to rely on the moral obligation of the States to assume and pay the debt, but he rests upon tbe solemn legal indorsement of the iadititfu al States,- which would bo as binding upon them in one Confederacy as in another. Tbe capitalists having, thus obtained the solemn indorsement of the States for a snm as largo as they oould reasonably be expeoud to pay, would naturally desire to prevent an increas ed liability, on the part of their debtors, the States, which would weaken their, ability to pay, and might in luture, oaase tbe people to throw off the whole harden, on aoaouat tf its accumulated weight. Snowing, ia other words, that it is possible to increase debt to an amount so enormous as to drive a people to repudiation, they might prefer to take their uhanees of payment of one billion of dollars of State debt in the old Confeieraoy, rather than of two billions in the new. Hence it would be t eir interest to oppose the ap propriation ot the second billion of dollars, to prosecute the warfep-the establishment-of the Confederacy, and to advocate a reconstruc tion for tbe purpose- cf securing an early peace, and cf slopping farther expenditure, that they may save wnat is already' owiug to them. The rivers of Wood whioh hays beeii draWn from the veins of our fathers, brothers, to* bands, sons, and other relatives, by the hand of our cruel enemies, form an impassable gulf between u* end our wicked invader* Row cau we again shake hands with them ovdr the stain bodies of our loved tines and again embrace them in traternd relations T Were Georgians to do this, the blood of their brethren, who hkve fallen martyrs to our glorious cause, wotlld ury to them from the ground, and rebuke the riustardtjp dted. duon er than re unite with tho.-e seeking to enslave u*, and tinder the name of Union witb them, become, with our posterity, hewers- of wood and drawers of water for them, let submit, with more than Roman firmness, to tbe devastation of onr fields, and, need be, the. extermination of our race — But let us do no. act hastily, whioh, how ever patriotio the motives, may toad to array a powerful class iu onr midst agSinaLtbe Goo- rftgsrruasiy iwkia dr t •*_ G against the Confederacy, and in favor of a f o - construction of the old Union, however lauda ble the motive, the act would re most unfor tunate. credit of all tbe State* to an equality, with out regard to the manner in whioh they have managed their financial affairs, or the amount of debt now owed by each, it would be a grass injustice to those States which have conducted their affairs so well as to incur but liuie debt, and have maintained their credit at the highest point. Confederate debt, by the States, can only be productive of temporary appreciation of Con- lederate credit, without permanent benefit, and must be followed by serious injury to tho credit of the States, the policy is unwis* and should not be adopted. Let us consider whether these would not be the legitimate effects of tbe proposed in dorsement. At preseat almost eveTy capitalist in the country is the creditor of tha Confederate Government, and is directly interested In maintaining Us existence, and sustaining its credit. I speak not of individuals, but capi- iv. i* ^rneraliy selfish, and controlled cure by interest than patriotism. When we have a-c-rt&ined what will be the interest of the c^pitaliits, we may generally havo cat little mntgBief’w. maintain her reserved rights, and if need be, res ruin the Coatedetate (government within the limits assigned it'by the constitutional, compact to which- she is a party, she should stand -y it, confined wit ft inits oonfiitutioaai 1 mi - *iih tt-it unyielding dernfinstlon '’-'to sis ia it at evety hazard, a* well against the injuries inflicted by the injudion'tu action of impiudeht friends, : as against the thrusts of domestic enemies, dr the hero a lean assaults of foreign foes. The future happiness of her posterity is flrnily linked with the Obnfedera cy. Thousands of her sons have nobly dm molated their lives upon its altars, and the tens of thousands who survive should see to it that no rude hand is uplifted against it, that no false policy undermines its foundations, and that no usurpers destroy tbo. beautiful symmetry of its magnificent.structure. We should not only sustain tho Oonfedera cy at all hazards, but we should also sustain the administration/ ’ We. may differ from, it on constitutional questions, or questions, of polioy. Such is the nature' or the human mind, and such, the variety-of human iitiel lect, that no' two-honest men were ever fully agreed in every sentiment.. A* long as freo- dom of thought and freedom of speech, exists, we should have the independence io'txpre s our dissent Irom .what we consider the errors of our. rulers,' and they should halve the nia'g hanimity to tolerate the difference. But while we contend earnestly ior.-what we can sider sound principles, we should do no aat whioh can seriously emhafrasa'the adminis tration in the prosecution of the war. Ia my judgment the proposed indorsement would, in the end, array a clay; of capitalist! against the Government which would amount to sari ons embarrassment, Agaiu, it cannot be denied, that some of ths States have managed tbeir financial affairs bet ter than others. Homo have submitted to the neccessary burdens of taxation, and met their liabilities as they were incurred, while others have added much of them to their debts. Heuce, the debts of some are much larger, In proportion to their re»ourdes, than the debts oi others. The consequence is that the credit ol the State that has the greatest resoucea and the least debt, is worth most in the market. But suppose ait- the States indorse the immense debt of the Confed eracy, what is the result! As each 'State has its own individual indebtedness, and would then »d'a legal liability tor the debt of authority for men, money or other assistance, and that she is over ready to comply with every constitutional obligation. Having shown, I trust, to your satisfaction, that the proposed indoraonisnt w-rald p’aoe the interest of the capitalists cf the country in tho scato against hazarding farther appro priations for the establishment -of the Con federacy ; that it would be produotivo of in jury to the credit of the individual States, and of injustice as between tho Stato* them selves; I now prcceoi to inquire whether, if we waive these obj-iction*, H could be pro ductive of thejtermanent benefits to Confeder- tea credit olaimed by its advocates. - Before, proceeding, however, it is proper that l remark, that the advocate i of indorse ment are not agreed among themselves, and that two plan* are proposed. One proposi- tion contains a goneral indorsement of tho whole d^btof the Confederacy by the several States’, each to be liable in proportion to its representative weight in Congress. The other—whioa may, l believe, properly be designated the South Carolina proposi tions—proposes the indorsement of $500,- 000,000 bf the bonds hereafter to bo issued by the’ Confederacy, eaoh State indorsing its proportion of the bonds, on the basis of its relative representative -weight in Congress. The laltor proposition is, to i»y mind, tho less objectionable of ths twb, as it does not hold out the temptation aiovo mentioned to capitalists, to whom the present debt is owing, to favor the reconstruction of the old . Union, to proven*, an increase of debt,frr maintain the fmther existonoe of the con federacy ■ The advantages claimed for both proposi tions aro, I believe, substantially tho same. Tho chief of whioh Is, that tho proposed in- dorsemont would reassure the confidence of capital in ’Confederate credit., and cause its investment iu the bonds of the- Confederacy, in'amounts sufficient to fund all Treasury notes issued in redundancy of healthy circulation, end thus voduoe the circulation to an amount only necessary to meet tbe legitimate com mercial demand for currency. This looks well on paper, and might work well in practice, if there were enough surplus capital in the Confedoraoy to convort hun dred dollar bills into interest bearing bonds, and'lay'them away as iovestment os fast as all the paper mills in the country oao make the paper, and all the engravers gut print upou it the likeness of a oirculatiug medium aod un army of Goverumcnt c.erks ciu sign those promises to pay. But here lies the diffi culty. Whatever may be the ooufidenco of capitalists in them securities, the country devastated as it is by a destructive war, can hoc yield surplus capital for permanent iu vestment, a* fast a* hundred dollar bills, or thousand dollar bonds, oan be manufactured Prior to the commencement of tho war, the surplus oapital of the South was invested in State Bonds,Bank Stock, Railroad Stock,Bond* of Corporations. &c. Since that -time most ui the surplus kgs been invested in Confederate Bonds; and our people have not now. probably the half of five hundred millions ot dollars that thay can spare, to invest in any securities., how ever dcsiraole. This ii.easure’might afford par rial acd temporary relief, by inducing some capv ital not no v empotyed. to seek ' investment in these bonds. But if the war g- es un, and the government A under tbe necessity of issuing two or three, millions of dollars a dty of its notes, lor the next one, two or three years, it mus be admitted, that we have not tho capital to at’Stirb them a* fast as they si-e issued; -nd tbe indorsement could only cause a temportry suspension .of the depreciation which must fol low our overissues, for the ultimate payment of Mil no adequate provUiou is being* made. t^governmemcoufd/unafhe debt at home. the Confederacy .the Constitution impose* upon | he can probably purchase the svaa property Congress, which ia the power which ereates the with the nlnety-ave dollars which remain u havo assumed' _ „ I the Confederacy, the credit ot each Siate is at once placed below thp credit of the Confederacy; and as each would then be liable foras much as .Again, if the effect will bs lo level the could reasonably be expected ever to piy, ; the credit of the respective States would bo placed, not only at a low point, but very nearly upon a level with each other. This would be injustice to those States which have maintained their credit at the highest, point.- Take for instance our own State. It may be truly remarked, without disparagement to other States, that the debt of Georgia is less in proportion to her re>< sources than that of any. other State in tbe Con *, , w • # OV/UILVB lUBU IUU* UI AUy. u»uw* SH MIV won furthermore, if the indorsement of the, federacy, or indeed, any other upon-the conti )QlCu6rfttfi daht. hr thft I nnnt Th’a /innscnnotirA f« that tipr oretiit i, nent. The conssqaeuce is that her credit is worth a higher premium in the market tban the credit of any other State in ths Confederacy.— Her people are therefore entitled to tbe. benefits of her economy, her wise'manageineut, and her far seeing statesmanship. If she and her other States now indorse the -Confederate debt, her credit ia at oaca Disced upon.a level, with Cons federate credit, if not below it, and very- nearly or quite qpon a level with that of all 'the other States. Ths result is, than. the peopr-e of the other States reap the benefits of her better credit to which the people of Georgia are alone enti ; tied. This would bo injustice to the people of Georgia, and to creditors who. have invested in her securities and are entitled to the benefits o* her superior credit in the market, li.it.is said, her people .should make sacrifices for the cbm" mon cause; I reply, that no. Statehas responded rftore promptly to every oall madeby£ontedsrats tbe l a heavy premium in its favor, after the iodor&e mcnt, baring the calculation upon the fact, that State credit is uow worth a large premium,when compared -with Confederate. To show the fallacy of this conclusion, it is only necessary to inquire why tbe bonds of ins dividual States command this premium. The debts of moat of the Stafes are now small, com pared with tbeir resources and their ability to pay; and capitalists naturally conclude, that in case ot failure of the Confederacy, or ultimate repudiation by it, tbe State would pay the indi vidual indebtedness, resting upon both legal and moral obligation, witb no lurtber legal obligation lb in that theirpeople submit to such taxation as may bo imposed by Congress to raiee tbe money to pay tbe dobt. Georgia’s seven per cent, bonds are sai l to be worth 40 por cent, premium, iu cur* rency, in the market. Why! Because her ic- aonrers are great end her debt is smell. In crease her indebtedness to one hundred millions and her bonds will cease to caromand a premium If we adopt either of the proposed plane, her debt may soon exceed this sum When the Stales have committed themselves to the policy and have indorsed the present Confederate debt, ox have Indorsed $500,000,000, they must extend their endorsements as future exigencies may. in the .opinion' of the government^ require, until they havo endorsed all future issues to be made by tbe government. The advocates of the plan wijl have much stronger reasons lor claiming the extension,when'tbe States ure once commit* ed to the policy, than they now have lor claim ing the first indorsement. It is like a whirlpool from which, when tbe States have once placed themselves within its power, there is no return. When the amount indorsed becomes, os it soon must, an enormous sum, ths effect of tho in dorsement will be to bring down Statu credit, even below Confederate credit, and not to bring up Confederate oredit to the present level of State oredit. It is again sold, that the proposed State indorsement would enable thj Government to negotiate its bonds at a premium, and that there is a sufficiency of foreign oapital to ab sorb aUour'issues. The sufficiency of capi tal in that case is admitted; but the inquiry is, would tbe indorsement induce its invest ment iu these bonds, at a premium, or at per, or eveu near to par? We are engaged in a gigaatio war. Our pons are blockaded . The great powers of Europe refuse even to recognize us ns a Gov ernment. Oar expenditures art enormous which cause our debt to accumulate rapidly’ and we are not oolleoting taxes (sufficient t ’ pay interest; muoh lesido create a sinking funx for the ultimate extinguishment of the prin cipal. Iu this state of things, loretgn card tktUts refuse to invest iu Confederate seeari- ties, and the credit of the individual States is far. below par in fofoiga markets How then is it to be reasonably expected that the indorsement of the Confederate bond* by the States will give them u value in foreign mar kets, wLioh is attached to neither the credit of the Confederacy nor of the individual States f While tbe war and tbe blockade last, and while w» refuse to snbmii. to tax ation sufficient to retire a reasonable propor tion. of our paper issues, it is vain to expect that we ean fund the debt abroad, without tbe most ruinous sacrifice, no matter how often the paper is indorsed by the parties now. morally bound for its payment. Buti; may be said, if ihe States aro uow morally bound fur tha payment of tho debt, and their people are legally bound to submit to the neoessary tax for that purpose, when imposed b/ toe Confederate Government, 'why not indorse tbe bonds and let the States take upon themselves the direct legd obliga tions to pay t To my mind, there are very obvious reasons way it should net be done. ^ While the consttt utional obligation rests upon (he people of the States, to submit to the taxa tion imposed by Gongress, to pay the debts of liability, the sole responsibility of devising the means and assessing ths irxcb necessary to dis charge the obligation. This is as it should bo- The power ii thoiGyvornment that creates the debts should hare resting upon it tho responsi bility of providing-tho moanB fir its payment, and of imposing the taxes lor that put pose which may be necessary. The people then know how to hold their agents to a proper accountability. Suppose, howover, the States indorse th debt, and pledge their individual faith as States, for its piyntent at maturity; and Congress, afraid of its popularity, doss not wish to take the re sponsibility, to.nssess the tax to meet it: What follows t The States, to maintain t heir indlvid -. ual credit, must themselves assess ond collect ths tax. and make the payment. Congressmen, finding that they could in this Way avoid.xn tin* pleasant responsibility and retain their places with'less difficulty, would, after having con tracted the debt, .when pay day came, turn over tho responsibility to the Legislatures or the States. Thus we should have one Government to spend the money and another chnrgablo with the responsibility of fairing it Congress would then occupy very much the position of the rieh man’s prodigal son nt college, who. having no responsibility about footiug the bill at tho em) of the year, feels very little, concern about tho size to which it accumulates. w Again, sad experience has shown us that tl» tendency of onr Gevommont is to consolidation, and that tha central Government is ever ready to usurp ns much undelegated power as tho States will consent to lose. As tho central Government grows stronger, the States grow weaker, and their just rights are disregarded Now, 1 can imagine no one a-et or tbs States that will tend so much.to strengthen the central Gov* eminent, at the expense to them of tho loss oi their -just powers- and tho adoption of rite policy now proposed, which binds thorn individually to provide for the payment of ell tho debts whifih Congress may choose to contract, but may not bo willing ro impose the taxes to pay. Tho con summation of-tbe policy is the complete consol tdationof the Government, making the States the imro burden bearers of the central sope- rior. I may bo mot hurts with tit* remark often made, that*it. is no time near to defend the rights of Slates, or to maintain principles.— State Bights and oonstitutioaai principles atu tho iftine in times of war as In times of peace; and should ..be maintained at all times, and under all oiroumstances. Power once usurp ed, with acquiescence, is never relaxed but at the point of the bayonet; and We should not forgot that rights surrendered in war are never regained in peace, v e should, there fore, do no not tending to destroy the States iu one grand consolidation, uud lay the folia daliou of a central despotism Jtpou their ruin*. Having gtretr some of the reaeona which sitLfy my mind, that the .hopes entertained by the ^advocates of State indoi cement, that tbe adoption of tbeir policy would retire toe excess of tfae currency, aud reduce it to a healthy gonditiou are entirely delusive I may bit asked if there is no remedy for the evil. My opinion,is, that so long as the war is carried on in-its present magnitude, requiring the amount of daily expenditure now made, and the demand ft>r ail the ueoejsaries iif life exceeds ths supply as far a* it now does, there is no complete remedy for tho present evils, of high prices and redundant paper ourrenoy -There is one rente ly, and only one, whioh can mitigate the evil, inspire con fidence in the stability of the debt, and in duce the investment or. surplus capital of the people of other Governments, as well as our own, iu Confederate bonds. That remedy is taxation by Congress, sufficient to pay the in terest upon the whole debt, iu gadd or its sonic reasonable time. Convince capitalists everywhere that this is the settled policy of the Government, and that our people arc rta- dy to submit to it, and make all the.aaorittoes nece sary to carry it out, and Confederate aa- eurities will be sought after in the market, and mes* of onr excess of circnlalioaTuode-i, Without the question being onee aske-l, weth er State indorsements have been-written upon the bonds. In place of the indorsement ot the bun-la of the Confederacy by the States, l, there fore, reoommend aa our response to be made to the propositions of our sister States, and as tho Georgia policy in which their w.t-epera- Uon is respectfully asked, the passage of: a joint resolution by the General Assembly, ur* ing the Congress of the Confederate States, in view of the full magnitude of the crisis, to route-up with nerve and firmness to the die charge of its duty, by tbe’assessment of a tax adequate to tho purpose* above mentioned ; and pledging the people of Georgia to a prompt and cheerful payment of tbeir pro por tiou of it. If this be done, I have no misgiv log* about the result. The good, common, practical aen--.u of the people, which is seldom properly appreciate t by politicians, has al- ready grasped the question. Tab petplc un demand it-. Every practical, business ntan knows that-paper promises, wiih paper in dorsemettts, cau never sustain our oredit, as long as we appropriate and draw hundreds of millions of dollars annually from the Trea«a ry, and return nothing to it. No matter how many expedients we may try, wo shall be constantly driven back to tho same point, - Government has but one way of raising money to reduce its indebtedness, and that is by tax ation, direct or indirect. And as ou ; r ports are.blockaded, so that we cannotmise money by indirect taxation upon imports, we have bo alternative left but dlreot taxation. A? long as wo attempt to conduct this war,'aud maintain our armies- upon paper promises alone, we must expect to endure 'all'the evil* ot depreciated credit, inflated currency, and high price*. European Governments aro already hjnvinced by the gallant aeeds of our arms, that we can never be conquered as long as wa can keep aud oiainiaia those armies j but they, very well un derstand, that tho financial question underlies, and ts the foundation upon which the whole structure is built. Thus far our policy has been suoh, os to afford them but little evidence, that this is with us a aura foundation. Whenever we iiavetfpnvinced them that We aro prepared to make the sacrifices necessary to establish a safe and permanent financial system, we may expect both recognition and credit. Till we hive done this, we cannot reasonably expect e.ither. Again, we loan almost nothing by submit tiog to the taxation necessary to pay the in terest and create a. sinking fund upon the gold hasis. Whenever this be omes the set tied policy of tha Government the deprecia tion i* very nearly stopped, and the currency left in our hands is worth almost or quite as muoh as ail we bad was worth before the tax To illustrate: Tha meqhaui; has one hundred dollars of Gonfederate Treasury note* He wishes to purchase a good cow sad calf, and he finds ft will take the whole sum to pay for •*•}•M’-fri 6 them. The currency is still depreciating, and "" at the end of the next three months it may take one hundred and twenty-five dollars to make the purchase-' A’- this point; suppose the Govjnment asses*ca a tax of five per cent- to establish the polioy above indicated, and he is required to pay five dollars of bis hundred to tbe ooUeotor. The efftorof this is to absorb that much of the over issue, ond to give confidence in the ultimate redemption of the whole. This will at ouoa stop tho dec.ine fa the value of the notes, andjn&y cause thiia to appreciate. The consequence will be, that his hand* after payment of the tax. la a word, by paying back pill of'(he reduuiant' earronoy into the Trearurv, »«•'*»<p the Jo- predation of its value, and leave the balance " in circulation worth as much .to. the pufeh-wo of property as the the whole wae'worih before “ tho tax Was paid fiat ititppofee tbe tax Ui be burdensome, ond to absorb* Urge propirtioh cf oar burplu- moomr, is this a reason why it should not be collected ? We mus st.lnnt to burdens, and make bcuvy tiicritijes to *us- tain the Government, maintain our credit, and supp'ri our ortm.i-, *>r * i we .posae-s mast go down together iu a ov-aU, ami in volve us and our post vri<v in uviuiuoo ruin. Before closing my inusrk* upon this subject, I beg laeve to express my !i,m /unviciion that, the policy advocatrd by «>••«•, of assuming the Confederate tax. w hen assess <1 and ai-liuj/u to to the debt of tbe State, instead «>t cef.ectin-> it, h88 already been carried an fir «s *, isi slates' ntsnahip or tho exigcr-cei* <>t the times will per mit. It ia simply shift tug the bunion from one shoulder to auothcr. Or, in other words, it »•»' an attempt, in m other form, to conduct tSie war ~upoa papet, without its costing us any thing.— Wo have no rigut to turn overall ihe burdens of he present gene atlmto posterity. This would be as contrary injustice nnd sound principles as it would be for Congress to contract the debt and turn over to the Siam govt-rpmenia tho re- • sponribilty H providing the means lor its pays incut. Tho-potioy ia exceedingly unwis- in li i* also; that it causes tne S ate to borrow the present Currency at par, to be p»id back, years hence, with interest, in gold. What prudent mtui would da this, iu tbe imut.-gctueiu ot bss own affairs f Suppose one planter owes another-ten thousand dollars, would he sell properi> nowbi tho present high plies* in currency and pi; tin- deb’, of wnulo ha h^d on to his property, and - pay interest upoatno dobi ti’l the. war is over sud the price or>y«t/thing is again csiimirut upon the gold ba*5B,Rpd iben roll tiye .tin.* much properly to piy ihe same . debt I f< t.« adopted the latter alternative, we dttuld say hv needed a guardian. If we aeree that this policy would bo unwise In. individuals, we must not fo.get that the State is but an assoeiaiion of iu-. dividual*. When upou u questiou.ol this char acter, we havo asc.eriainoJ what would be ^he . interest of a. prudent individual, nr a small num ber of iudivtduls, we have only to cnlafee . the circle, and wo have the interest ot lUe'Siaie. - This is a rule by which i have been guided in the management of the finances of the Slate, find I bfffisvo it tAbp the oajy true and a <cceas- tul one. Our people can now pay ff« 0 m'. Hie ns if dollars in the j>r<<a-nl currency etsier than thau thay can pay one million ia gold, in What are usually called hard times, when property is low and m >ney scarce. It may be said, why not keep our property and leave tbit matter to posterity t Wh j are to be pos terity t Our obildren. F >r wbittware wt« la boring t Oar obildren It', then, onr proper ty is expected to desoeod to our cbiftlrna, why accumulate a debt to hang over it aud descend with it, by borrowing money nt the rate of twenty penis far a dollar, to be paid back by them out of property in gold, dollar ior dol- ler, with interest. I trust this policy will find very few advocates. It is infiaitoly better for ui to submit to all tho taxation, and make all the sacrifices nec essary ts mffibtaio our Government and >ua- taiu our credit, than to permit the enemy if' ovorturu our Government, plunder nur hem os, Insult our wives and our daughter-, confiscate our property, and enslave ouroelve* nud our posterity. We cannot avoid the one rOtoma tive or tho other. Humbly imploring a con tinuation of Divine favor, let us res.ilve to stand in our allotted places, make al! the sac i,«u4 piaut our entire trirei tn God of Israel, who is “a very present help in trouble,” and all will yet be well.- JOSEPH E. BftUWtf Fomsi’t Last Kxploli. - The Chattanooga Rebel thus alltules: to tin* litt© achievement of <Jen. Forrest : This exploit of Thursday was signal. Like most of the achievements of * our mounted men, it evinces, great daring, shrewd foresight and admirable nianage- meat. It comes, to us-pleatan-tly upon the heels of the unlucky trip near Milton. Brentwood is half- way between Nash ville and Franklin. 'An aitaok upon the garr-sou stationed there had to be made by a rtauk movement upon the enemy’s aii vance, the line of which extends as far as Spring Hill. Hence Gen. Forrest penetra ted thirty miles into the heart of liosen- crank’ camp, beat down an important bar ricade, burned a chief causeway, captured a large force and rode away. agaifii with his trophies u> Columbia. No tool of the kind has graced the arny of our .cavalry since the splendid dash of the same great/ ch ef upon Murfreesboro’ last'summer. The consequence will prove more signifi cant th.au the more action now implies. * e vt A-Uvei*tiHefttfetttw. LKPARXMENr OF TENS . ) QtADQCtfcTElTXKS VIlUt.ST I'OfiT. V - Attictm, Ma cftZI, 18CS ) OidscaSi *4 1. AU P-v3sp*-rt» saw >ut Inin tr«»e H<wi arnrstokst. All pe.wonl are itrtd to havo m w ; tunw attoi April lot uroxlso. fly QTlltT r.f O W LEE, Ct-mil's Po*i mill 1 . M ISO fASKS RICK. O N4 amtORFD AJtn FIFTV CASKS -VICK for «»1> by si*r3I-lw SALMONS A SIMMON*. AbttuiUH Slrdtt. *AT5 KSWtSD. IFHS tVii>nnnl wU! t-« p»tdP>rlb.»»pp.'<lit-u.iiir-of X mi b y JoK, if iujRfd la any Jail In tit. St»i«.«« th>t l g*t li<jn 3 m is *b nt VS >«.•* ■•!*. w&Uh* ai,mt 16u prnuil*. dark complexion fir ttlA'A* WeaatsJnF.SAth Inst, ft a.' h«d ui • btoari, i>a- * VS. M WIL ON. Upaitar, t nvty, 9 v, March £3, UC3. m*rJt lu COTXON FOIL SALK. O NR tasSra-i Aud »ix balu of C ttoo at W.*, llHut, a a., for eels, x JUS A MillBl', , S?-A.* ' K;:t.«vHtf,'T< liii. A UUOil 91 .‘DDLS HSoPflU t’L.»fA.Ti'>it . For Sole T uts plftoa U Atimt7 »ifc« Stoni wauj-tri, has > ( at d»ill Loo*a »lto evw tocmt, all n-CMOitj oatl-wiM'sc >. a ti-.rtraU, gti-i, u»o sod xood rarfUvj (UftW on b. Thftis arc 733 a;.r.-s ot I.,n-!, aloat half of ii In • tbe wo-mU, tal heavily umb-ftd. Ths place t* nr* d C wdttion, o’.d h»» b«a weii attend'd md nic ; lj k ,t up. a d hasati f urm : y p laced b.avy it ts T. o:o I, a fair pjr portlua of bottom Is ad on ti.a place, tfi id’. 6' co m oi «b:ob life »b «i- state «f culli ali " Ihi, Is - rar*chariwto l»<ut U'piM C>uf<derile u «l.tn a fodplubifoii u > r*<u>eW.p!lc< For farhx pai- A M EDDIEUaJ,, «t ths Ca H R I'o rt marSitt LOOK HZttK. A H erUre, tnt<}ii/ebt Boy, of tlr e*e o' >4 or Ur yeats, well qa*J ! a-d eft Auiitaet' C-'erk, c-n fl-d. Oft3>-n:bjafp: l.ogattbtro*co mifi.-ti ’*• JfOTICK. Ext* JmoVXD llwnr «l. No. l. r Atlanta, U» . Mato'a v0, ISO* f A LLeoJUttd nmAtftoalQgtheiaJslVMto bs to p.-lvote- •-.p llaf'dt this Her pi al. aro hrr.bj > nit led to repxrmmoiiaitli/• or be r.ported »i dejerten to Heir ‘ ■ H W. jlSi**, ia rf'.jf H A O S, In Charge, / xaaiST-lw