or prevent any officer or other person charged with the execution of any
warrant or process issued under the provisions of this act, or any
person or persons lawfully assisting him or them, from arresting any
person for whose apprehension such warrant or process may have been
issued; or shall rescue, or attempt to rescue, such person from the
custody of the officer, other person or persons, or those lawfully
assisting, as aforesaid, when so arrested, pursuant to the authority
herein given and declared; or shall aid, abet or assist any person so
arrested as aforesaid, directly or indirectly, to escape from the
custody of the officer or other persons legally authorized, as
aforesaid, or shall harbor or conceal any person for whom a warrant or
process shall have been issued as aforesaid, so as to prevent his
discovery and arrest after notice of knowledge of the fact that a
warrant has been issued for the apprehension of such person, shall for
either of said offences be subject to a fine not exceeding one thousand
dollars, and imprisonment not exceeding six months, by indictment before
the district court of the United States for the district in which said
offence may have been committed, or before the proper court of criminal
jurisdiction, if committed within any one of the organized Territories
of the United States.
Sec. 8. That the district attorneys, the marshals, their deputies, and the
clerks of the said district and territorial courts, shall be paid for
their services the like fees as may be allowed to them for similar
services in other cases; and in all cases where the proceedings are
before a Commissioner he shall be entitled to a fee of ten dollars in
full for his services in each case, inclusive of all services incident
to such arrest and examination. The person or persons authorized to
execute the process to be issued by such Commissioners for the arrest of
offenders against the provisions of this act, shall be entitled to a fee
of five dollars for each person he or they may arrest and take before
any such Commissioner, as aforesaid, with such other fees as may be
deemed reasonable by such Commissioner for such other additional
services as may be necessarily performed by him or them--such as
attending at the examination, keeping the prisoner in custody, and
providing food and lodgings during his detention and until the final
determination of such Commissioner, and in general for performing such
other duties as may be required in the premises, such fees to be made up
in conformity with the fees usually charged by the officers of the court
of justice, within the proper district or county, as near as
practicable, and paid out of the Treasury of the United States, on the
certificate of the district within which the arrest is made, and to be
recoverable from the defendant as part of the judgment in case of
conviction.
Sec. 9. That whenever the President of the United States shall have reason
to believe that offences have been or are likely to be committed against
the provisions of this act within any judicial district, it shall be
lawful for him, in his discretion, to direct the judge, marshal and
district attorney of such district to attend at such place within the
district and for such time as he may designate, for the purpose of the
more speedy arrest and trial of persons charged with the violation of
this act; and it shall be the duty of every judge or other officer, when
any such requisition shall be received by him, to attend at the place
and for the time therein designated.
Sec. 10. That it shall be lawful for the President of the United States, or
such persons as he may empower for that purpose, to employ such part of
the land or naval forces of the United States, or of the militia, as
shall be necessary to prevent the violation and enforce the due
execution of this act.
Sec. 11. That upon all questions of law arising in any cause under the
provisions of this act, a final appeal may be taken to the supreme court
of the United States.
FREEDMEN'S BUREAU BILL,
AS AMENDED AND APPROVED BY THE XXXIXTH CONGRESS.
An act to continue in force and to amend "An act to establish a
Bureau for the Relief of Freedmen and Refugees," and for other
purposes.
_Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United
States of America in Congress assembled_, That the act to establish a
Bureau for the Relief of Freedmen and Refugees, approved March third,
eighteen hundred and sixty-five, shall continue in force for the term of
two years from and after the passage of this act.
Sec. 2. _And be it further enacted_, That the supervision and care of said
bureau shall extend to all loyal refugees and freedmen, so far as the
same shall be necessary to enable them as speedily as practicable to
become self-supporting citizens of the United States, and to aid them in
making the freedom conferred by proclamation of the commander-in-chief,
by emancipation under the laws of States, and by constitutional
amendment, available to them and beneficial to the republic.
Sec. 3. _And be it further enacted_, That the President shall, by and with
the advice and consent of the Senate, appoint two assistant
commissioners in addition to those authorized by the act to which this
is an amendment, who shall give like bonds and receive the same annual
salary provided in said act, and each of the assistant commissioners of
the bureau shall have charge of one district containing such refugees or
freedmen, to be assigned him by the Commissioner, with the approval of
the President. And the Commissioner shall, under the direction of the
President, and so far as the same shall be, in his judgment, necessary
for the efficient and economical administration of the affairs of the
bureau, appoint such agents, clerks, and assistants as maybe required
for the proper conduct of the bureau. Military officers or enlisted men
may be detailed for service and assigned to duty under this act; and the
President may, if in his judgment safe and judicious so to do, detail
from the army all the officers and agents of this bureau; but no officer
so assigned shall have increase of pay or allowances. Each agent or
clerk, not heretofore authorized by law, not being a military officer,
shall have an annual salary of not less than five hundred dollars, nor
more than twelve hundred dollars, according to the service required of
him. And it shall be the duty of the Commissioner, when it can be done
consistently with public interest, to appoint, as assistant
commissioners, agents, and clerks, such men as have proved their loyalty
by faithful service in the armies of the Union during the rebellion. And
all persons appointed to service under this act and the act to which
this is an amendment shall be so far deemed in the military service of
the United States as to be under the military jurisdiction, and entitled
to the military protection of the government while in discharge of the
duties of their office.
Sec. 4. _And be it further enacted_, That officers of the Veteran Reserve
Corps or of the volunteer service, now on duty in the Freedmen's Bureau
as assistant commissioners, agents, medical officers, or in other
capacities, whose regiments or corps have been or may hereafter be
mustered out of service, may be retained upon such duty as officers of
said bureau, with the same compensation as is now provided by law for
their respective grades; and the Secretary of War shall have power to
fill vacancies until other officers can be detailed in their places
without detriment to the public service.
Sec. 5. _And be it further enacted_, That the second section of the act to
which this is an amendment shall be deemed to authorize the Secretary of
War to issue such medical stores or other supplies and transportation,
and afford such medical or other aid as may be needful for the purpose
named in said section: _Provided_, That no person shall be deemed
"destitute," "suffering," or "dependent upon the government for
support," within the meaning of this act, who is able to find
employment, and could, by proper industry and exertion, avoid such
destitution, suffering, or dependence.
Sec. 6. Whereas, by the provisions of an act approved February sixth,
eighteen hundred and sixty-three, entitled "An act to amend an act
entitled 'An act for the collection of direct taxes in insurrectionary
districts within the United States, and for other purposes,' approved
June seventh, eighteen hundred and sixty-two," certain lands in the
parishes of Saint Helena and Saint Luke, South Carolina, were bid in by
the United States at public tax sales, and by the limitation of said act
the time of redemption of said lands has expired; and whereas, in
accordance with instructions issued by President Lincoln on the
sixteenth day of September, eighteen hundred and sixty-three, to the
United States direct tax commissioners for South Carolina, certain lands
bid in by the United States in the parish of Saint Helena, in said
State, were in part sold by the said tax commissioners to "heads of
families of the African race," in parcels of not more than twenty acres
to each purchaser; and whereas, under the said instructions, the said
tax commissioners did also set apart as "school farms" certain parcels
of land in said parish, numbered on their plats from one to
thirty-three, inclusive, making an aggregate of six thousand acres, more
or less: _Therefore, be it further enacted_, That the sales made to
"heads of families of the African race," under the instructions of
President Lincoln to the United States direct tax commissioners for
South Carolina, of date of September sixteenth, eighteen hundred and
sixty-three, are hereby confirmed and established; and all leases which
have been made to such "heads of families," by said direct tax
commissioners, shall be changed into certificates of sale in all cases
wherein the lease provides for such substitution; and all the lands now
remaining unsold, which come within the same designation, being eight
thousand acres, more or less, shall be disposed of according to said
instructions.
Sec. 7. _And be it further enacted_, That all other lands bid in by the
United States at tax sales, being thirty-eight thousand acres, more or
less, and now in the hands of the said tax commissioners as the
property of the United States, in the parishes of Saint Helena and
Saint Luke, excepting the "school farms," as specified in the preceding
section, and so much as may be necessary for military and naval purposes
at Hilton Head, Bay Point, and Land's End, and excepting also the city
of Port Royal, on Saint Helena island, and the town of Beaufort, shall
be disposed of in parcels of twenty acres, at one dollar and fifty cents
per acre, to such persons, and to such only, as have acquired and are
now occupying lands under and agreeably to the provisions of General
Sherman's special field order, dated at Savannah, Georgia, January
sixteenth, eighteen hundred and sixty-five, and the remaining lands, if
any, shall be disposed of in like manner to such persons as had acquired
lands agreeably to the said order of General Sherman, but who have been
dispossessed by the restoration of the same to former owners:
_Provided_, That the lands sold in compliance with the provisions of
this and the preceding section shall not be alienated by their
purchasers within six years from and after the passage of this act.
Sec. 8. _And be it farther enacted_, That the "school farms" in the parish
of Saint Helena, South Carolina, shall be sold, subject to any leases of
the same, by the said tax commissioners, at public auction, on or before
the first day of January, eighteen hundred and sixty-seven, at not less
than ten dollars per acre; and the lots in the city of Port Royal, as
laid down by the said tax commissioners, and the lots and houses in the
town of Beaufort, which are still held in like manner, shall be sold at
public auction; and the proceeds of said sales, after paying expenses of
the surveys and sales, shall be invested in United States bonds, the
interest of which shall be appropriated, under the direction of the
Commissioner, to the support of schools, without distinction of color or
race, on the islands in the parishes of Saint Helena and Saint Luke.
Sec. 9. _And be it further enacted_, That the assistant commissioners for
South Carolina and Georgia are hereby authorized to examine all claims
to lands in their respective States which are claimed under the
provisions of General Sherman's special field order, and to give each
person having a valid claim a warrant upon the direct tax commissioners
for South Carolina for twenty acres of land, and the said direct tax
commissioners shall issue to every person, or to his or her heirs, but
in no case to any assigns, presenting such warrant, a lease of twenty
acres of land, as provided for in section 7, for the term of six years;
but at any time thereafter, upon the payment of a sum not exceeding one
dollar and fifty cents per acre, the person holding such lease shall be
entitled to a certificate of sale of said tract of twenty acres from
the direct tax commissioner or such officer as may be authorized to
issue the same; but no warrant shall be held valid longer than two years
after the issue of the same.
Sec. 10. _And be it further enacted_, That the direct tax commissioners for
South Carolina are hereby authorized and required at the earliest day
practicable to survey the lands designated in section 7 into lots of
twenty acres each, with proper metes and bounds distinctly marked, so
that the several tracts shall be convenient in form, and as near as
practicable have an average of fertility and woodland; and the expense
of such surveys shall be paid from the proceeds of the sales of said
lands, or, if sooner required, out of any moneys received for other
lands on these islands, sold by the United States for taxes, and now in
the hands of the direct tax commissioners.
Sec. 11. _And be it further enacted_, That restoration of lands occupied by
freedmen under General Sherman's field order, dated at Savannah,
Georgia, January sixteenth, eighteen hundred and sixty-five, shall not
be made until after the crops of the present year shall have been
gathered by the occupants of said lands, nor until a fair compensation
shall have been made to them by the former owners of such lands or their
legal representatives for all improvements or betterments erected or
constructed thereon, and after due notice of the same being done shall
have been given by the assistant commissioner.
Sec. 12. _And be it further enacted_, That the Commissioner shall have
power to seize, hold, use, lease, or sell all buildings and tenements,
and any lands appertaining to the same, or otherwise, formerly held
under color of title by the late so-called Confederate States, and not
heretofore disposed of by the United States, and any buildings or lands
held in trust for the same by any person or persons, and to use the same
or appropriate the proceeds derived therefrom to the education of the
freed people; and whenever the bureau shall cease to exist, such of said
so-called Confederate States as shall have made provision for the
education of their citizens without distinction of color shall receive
the sum remaining unexpended of such sales or rentals, which shall be
distributed among said States for educational purposes in proportion to
their population.
Sec. 13. _And be it further enacted_, That the Commissioner of this bureau
shall at all times co-operate with private benevolent associations of
citizens in aid of freedmen, and with agents and teachers, duly
accredited and appointed by them, and shall hire or provide by lease
buildings for purposes of education whenever such associations shall,
without cost to the government, provide suitable teachers and means of
instructions; and he shall furnish such protection as may be required
for the safe conduct of such schools.
Sec. 14. _And be it further enacted_, That in every State or district where
the ordinary course of judicial proceedings has been interrupted by the
rebellion, and until the same shall be fully restored, and in every
State or district whose constitutional relations to the government have
been practically discontinued by the rebellion, and until such State
shall have been restored in such relations, and shall be duly
represented in the Congress of the United States, the right to make and
enforce contracts, to sue, be parties, and give evidence, to inherit,
purchase, lease, sell, hold, and convey real and personal property, and
to have full and equal benefit of all laws and proceedings concerning
personal liberty, personal security, and the acquisition, enjoyment, and
disposition of estate, real and personal, including the constitutional
right to bear arms, shall be secured to and enjoyed by all the citizens
of such State or district without respect to race or color, or previous
condition of slavery. And whenever in either of said States or districts
the ordinary course of judicial proceedings has been interrupted by the
rebellion, and until the same shall be fully restored, and until such
State shall have been restored in its constitutional relations to the
government, and shall be duly represented in the Congress of the United
States, the President shall, through the Commissioner and the officers
of the bureau, and under such rules and regulations as the President,
through the Secretary of War, shall prescribe, extend military
protection and have military jurisdiction over all cases and questions
concerning the free enjoyment of such immunities and rights, and no
penalty or punishment for any violation of law shall be imposed or
permitted because of race or color, or previous condition of slavery,
other or greater than the penalty or punishment to which white persons
may be liable by law for the like offence. But the jurisdiction
conferred by this section upon the officers of the bureau shall not
exist in any State where the ordinary course of judicial proceedings has
not been interrupted by the rebellion, and shall cease in every State
when the courts of the State and of the United States are not disturbed
in the peaceable course of justice, and after such State shall be fully
restored in its constitutional relations to the government, and shall be
duly represented in the Congress of the United States.
Sec. 15. _And be it further enacted_, That all officers, agents, and
employes of this bureau, before entering upon the duties of their
office, shall take the oath prescribed in the first section of the act
to which this is an amendment; and all acts or parts of acts
inconsistent with the provisions of this act are hereby repealed.
SCHUYLER COLFAX,
_Speaker of the House of Representatives_.
LAFAYETTE S. FOSTER,
_President of Senate pro tempore_.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES UNITED STATES,
_July_ 16, 1866.
The President of the United States having returned to the House of
Representatives, in which it originated, the bill entitled "An act to
continue in force and to amend 'An act to establish a Bureau for the
Relief of Freedmen and Refugees,' and for other purposes," with his
objections thereto, the House of Representatives proceeded, in pursuance
of the Constitution to reconsider the same; and
_Resolved_, That the said bill pass, two-thirds of the House of
Representatives agreeing to pass the same.
Attest: EDWARD MCPHERSON,
_Clerk House of Representatives of the United States._
IN SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES,
_July 16, 1866._
The Senate having proceeded, in pursuance of the Constitution, to
reconsider the bill entitled "An act to continue in force and to amend
'An act to establish a Bureau for the Relief of Freedmen and Refugees,'
and for other purposes," returned to the House of Representatives by the
President of the United States, with his objections, and sent by the
House of Representatives to the Senate with the message of the President
returning the bill--
_Resolved_, That the bill do pass, two-thirds of the Senate agreeing to
pass the same.
Attest: J.W. FORNEY,
_Secretary of the Senate of the United States._
PROVOST MARSHAL-GENERAL'S REPORT.
SHOWING THE NUMBER OF MEN ENLISTED, NUMBER OF KILLED, WOUNDED, AND
DEATHS FROM DISEASE, DURING THE REBELLION.
WASHINGTON, D.C., Friday, April 27, 1866.
The following is a condensed summary of the results of the operations of
this bureau, from its organization to the close of the war.
1. By means of a full and exact enrollment of all persons liable to
conscription, under the law of March 3 and its amendments, a complete
exhibit of the military resources of the loyal States, in men, was made,
showing an aggregate number of 2,254,063, not including 1,000,516
soldiers actually under arms, when hostilities ceased.
2. One million one hundred and twenty thousand six hundred and
twenty-one men were raised, at an average cost (on account of
recruitment exclusive of bounties,) of $9.84 per man, while the cost of
recruiting of 1,356,593 raised prior to the organization of the Bureau
was $34.01 per man. A saving of over seventy cents on the dollar in the
cost of raising troops was thus effected under this Bureau,
notwithstanding the increase in the price of subsistence,
transportation, rents, &c., during the last two years of the war. (Item:
The number above given does not embrace the naval credits allowed under
the eighth section of the act of July 4, 1864, nor credits for drafted
men who paid commutation, the recruits for the regular army, nor the
credits allowed by the Adjutant-General subsequent to May 25, 1865, for
men raised prior to that date.)
3. Seventy-six thousand five hundred and twenty-six deserters were
arrested and returned to the army. The vigilance and energy of the
officers of the Bureau, in this line of the business, put an effectual
check to the wide-spread evil of desertion, which, at one time, impaired
so seriously the numerical strength and efficiency of the army.
4. The quotas of men furnished by the various parts of the country were
equalized, and a proportionate share of military service secured from
each, thus removing the very serious inequality of recruitment, which
had arisen during the first two years of the war, and which, when the
bureau was organized, had become an almost insuperable obstacle to the
further progress of raising troops.
5. Records were completed showing minutely the physical condition of
1,014,776 of the men examined, and tables of great scientific and
professional value have been compiled from this data.
6. The casualties in the entire military force of the nation during the
war of the rebellion, as shown by the official muster-rolls and monthly
returns, have been compiled with, in part, this result:
KILLED IN ACTION OR DIED OF WOUNDS WHILE IN SERVICE.
Commissioned officers 5,221
Enlisted men 90,868
DIED FROM DISEASE OR ACCIDENT.
Commissioned officers 2,321
Enlisted men 182,329
--------
Total loss in service 280,739
These figures have been carefully compiled from the complete official
file of muster-rolls and monthly returns, but yet entire accuracy is not
claimed for them, as errors and omissions to some extent doubtless
prevailed in the rolls and returns. Deaths (from wounds or disease
contracted in service) which occurred after the men left the army are
not included in these figures.
7. The system of recruitment established by the Bureau, under the laws
of Congress, if permanently adopted, (with such improvement as
experience may suggest,) will be capable of maintaining the numerical
strength and improving the character of the army in time of peace, or of
promptly and economically rendering available the National forces to any
required extent in time of war.
THE UNITED STATES ARMY DURING THE GREAT CIVIL WAR OF 1861-65.
The following statement shows the number of men furnished by each State: