Page:Cambridge Modern History Volume 7.djvu/604

 572 System of recruiting. [i86i-3 1866 the Comptroller was able to report that the national bank system had superseded all the State systems, and that the entire control of the currency of the country was in the hands of the Federal government. Secretary Chase's original idea of establishing "one sound uniform circulation of equal value throughout the country, upon the foundation of national credit, combined with private capital," was thus completely realised. Put in operation and perfected very gradually, it had but little direct effect upon the finances of the war; but the change of systems was thereby rendered much more easy, and created no ap- preciable derangement of the currency. (2) RECRUITING. Such had been the patriotic resolve of the loyal States to put down the rebellion, that within one year after the opening of hostilities con- siderably over half a million volunteers for three years' service were enlisted in the Unionist armies. Under this initial impulse, volunteering was still in active progress throughout the North, when on April 3, 1862, Secretary of War Stanton, becoming impressed with the belief that the armies were large enough to end the war, issued a sweeping order to stop recruiting in all the States. There had been during a few preceding weeks a brilliant succession of Unionist victories, and still more important ones occurred during the few weeks that followed. But in May the tide of success began to turn, and the unwisdom of Stanton's order quickly became apparent. A resumption of enlistments was ordered early in June; but, as the recruiting offices had been closed for two months, the efforts of popular leaders had ceased, and patriotic enthusiasm had been damped to such a degree that, for a while, it only feebly responded to the renewed efforts of the authorities. The total failure of McClellan's Richmond campaign and the second battle of Bull Run greatly deepened public despondency. Under this accumulation of discouragements, the need of speedy reinforcements became so great that resort to a more temporary ex- pedient seemed necessary ; and an order of the President called upon the governors of the loyal States for a draft of 300,000 men from their State militia to serve for a term of nine months. This system of drafting proved, however, totally ineffective ; and, while the drain on the army during the summer was substantially made up through the greatly increased efforts of the governors to fill the quota of 300,000 three-years' volunteers, which they had tendered the President on July 1, it became evident that a more regular and general system of recruiting must be adopted. Accordingly, on March 3, 1863, Congress passed a general conscription law, requiring all citizens between the ages of 20 and 45 to be enrolled in military service and called out by draft, as the exigencies