Draft Documents by Gen. Conf. Committee

The Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Jul 11, 1865

Draft Documents.

By Gen. Conf. Committee

THE General Conference of May 17, 1865, considered the matter of "Expense of Draft Documents," and passed the following resolution:

"Whereas, The General Conference Committee have been under the necessity of incurring a considerable expense in preparing and procuring preliminary proofs and documents to enable certain of our brethren to avail themselves of the law in favor of non-combatants, which expense as yet has been but partially met from the avails of said proofs and documents, therefore,

"Resolved, That this Conference hereby request all those for whose personal benefit said expense was incurred; viz., those who were liable to the draft—and all others who are so disposed, to contribute one dollar each for the purpose of defraying the same, and that each of said contributors be entitled to a copy of said documents."

The entire expense includes Eld. Andrew's visit to Washington, the preparing and printing of two pamphlets on the subject, affidavits and lawyer's fees amounting to about $40,—in all amounting to not far from $500. There were about five hundred copies of the documents printed, and only about fifty sets taken. So there is a chance for four hundred and fifty more of our brethren to obtain these valuable documents by sending only one dollar each for them. In so doing they not only get documents which they may need, as the permanent peace of our country is by no means a matter of certainty, but they meet an expense which should fall equally upon all those for whom the expense was incurred.

We shall, therefore, expect that all of our brethren who were liable to military draft, and who, had they been drafted, would have received the benefit of the $300 exemption clause, will at once furnish themselves with the draft documents by paying one dollar each.

GEN. CONF. COMMITTEE.