subject to military duty; that is, all married persons between thirty-five and forty-five who fulfilled the required conditions. The law provided that the second class should not be called out in any district until the first class was exhausted. This classification increased and complicated the duties of the Bureau, and had the effect of making those belonging to the second class indifferent to the operations of the law and the filling of quotas by volunteers, they bering practically exempt from draft. The amendment, passed February 24, 1864, a abolishing the classification and consolidating all into one and the same class, resulted therefore in benefit to the service.

Considering all the circumstances attending the subject of enrollment in this country, I think, while it is the best basis for raising troops that could be found, there is no degree of efficiency and integrity on the part of those instructed with the administration of the present law that can secure a perfect enrollment or one as nearly perfect as it should be for an equal distribution of the burden of military service in a great and protracted war. If the late war had continued so long as to render more calls for troops necessary the correctness of this statement would have become apparent. In anticipation of such a necessity, previous to the meeting of the last Congress, amendments as follows were prepared by me, but were not adopted:

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That it shall be the duty of each male resident of the United States, over eighteen years of age, within thirty days from such date as may be announced by the Secretary of War, to have his name enrolled on the enrolment list of the sub-district in which he resides, unless, upon application to the Board of Enrollment of the district, it shall appear that such person is not liable to enrollment under the acts approved march three, eighteen hundred and sixty-three, for enrolling and calling out the national forces, and as amended by the act approved February twenty-four, eighteen hundred and sixty-four, in which case he shall be furnished with a certificate of his non-liability to enrollment, signed by the members of the Board of Enrollment, setting forth therein the reasons why he is exempt from the performance of military duty; and any person liable to enrolment who shall hereafter change his place of residence shall notify the provost- marshal of the district of his removal, and shall, within thirty days, file with the Board of Enrollment of the district to which he has removed his certificate of enrollment in the sub-district where he last resided, whereupon such Board of Enrollment shall proceed to enroll him and furnish him with a certificate of his enrollment in the sub-district where he last resided, whereupon such Board of Enrollment shall proceed to enroll him an furnish him with a certificate of his enrollment. And every male resident over eighteen years of age shall, within thirty days after becoming liable to enrollment, either on account of arriving at proper age, declaring an intention to become a citizen of the United States, or other cause, apply to the provost-marshal of the district in which he resides and procure his proper enrollment.

SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That any person who shall refuse or neglect to comply with the provisions of the foregoing section, or who shall cause, procure, or shall willfully attempt to procure an incorrect or improper enrollment of himself or any other person, either by misstating his or their name, age, occupation, or residence, or by committing any act with intent to secure a false enrollment of himself, or any other person, such person so offending, on being convicted thereof by a military commission, shall pay a fine of not less than two hundred nor more than one thousand dollars, and be enlisted and mustered into service as a soldier, to serve for the period for which the draft is made, if on examination he be found fit for service; if unfit, then he shall be imprisoned not to exceed one year nor less than three months. One-half of the fine herein prescribed to the paid to the informer and the other to the credit of the draft and substitute fund.

SEC 3. And be it further enacted, That any person who shall procure himself to be enrolled as of a sub-district other than his true residence shall not, in the event of his being drafted, be exempt on the ground of non-residence, but if found fit for duty shall be held to personal service, and credited on the quota of the subdistrict in which he resides; nor will the fact that he is erroneously enrolled exempt him from enrollment and draft in the sub-district of his residence.

a See Appendix, Doc. 35.