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passage of this

act.

Sec. 2. ibid.

To date from 998. That such brevet commissions as may be issued under the provisions of this act shall bear date only from Date of heroic the passage of this act: Provided, however, that the date of the particular heroic act for which the officer is promoted shall appear in his commission. Sec. 2, ibid.

service.

Brevet rank to be strictly honor

ary.

Sec. 3, ibid.

Assignment to duty, etc.; when made.

Mar. 3, 1883, v.

22, p. 457.

Effect of as

signment.

Apr. 16, 1818, c.

999. That brevet rank shall be considered strictly honorary, and shall confer no privilege of precedence or command not already provided for in the statutes which embody the rules and articles governing the Army of the United States. Sec. 3, ibid.

1000. That officers of the Army shall only be assigned to duty or command according to their brevet rank when actually engaged in hostilities. Act of March 3, 1883 (22 Stat. L., 457).

1001. Officers may be assigned to duty or command ac64, 8.1,v. 3. p.427; cording to their brevet rank by special assignment of the Mar.3, 1869, 124, President; and brevet rank shall not entitle an officer to Sec. 1211, R. S. precedence or command except when so assigned.

8. 7, v. 15, p. 318.

Uniform of actual rank to be

worn.

1002. No officer shall be entitled, on account of having been brevetted, to wear, while on duty, any uniform other July 15, 1870, c. than that of his actual rank.

C.

294, s. 16, v. 16, p.

319. Sec. 1212, R.S.

To be ad

dressed in orders

1003. No officer shall be addressed in orders or official by title of actual communications by any title other than that of his actual

rank.

Ibid.

wear uniform of

teer rank.

C.

299, s. 34, v. 14, p. 337.

Sec. 1226, R. S.

rank.

UNIFORM OF HIGHEST VOLUNTEER RANK.、

Officers may 1004. All officers who have served during the rebellion as highest volun- Volunteers in the Army of the United States, and have been July 28, 1866, c. honorably mustered out of the volunteer service, shall be entitled to bear the official title, and, upon occasions of ceremony, to wear the uniform of the highest grade they have held, by brevet or other commissions, in the volunteer service. The highest volunteer rank which has been held by officers of the Regular Army shall be entered, with their names respectively, upon the Army Register. But these privileges shall not entitle any officer to command, pay, or emoluments.

Foreign decorations not to be

worn.

Sec. 2, Jan. 31,

FOREIGN DECORATIONS.

1005. That no decoration, or other thing, the acceptance of which is authorized by this act, and no decoration here 1881, v. 21, p. 80. tofore accepted, or which may hereafter be accepted, by consent of Congress, by any officer of the United States, from any foreign government, shall be publicly shown or exposed upon the person of the officer so receiving the same. Sec. 2, act of January 31, 1881 (21 Stat. L., 80).

etc., how ten

Sec. 3, ibid.

1006. That hereafter any present, decoration, or other Decorations, thing, which shall be conferred or presented by any foreign dered. government to any officer of the United States, civil, naval, or military, shall be tendered through the Department of State, and not to the individual in person, but such present, decoration, or other thing shall not be delivered by the Department of State unless so authorized by act of Congress. Sec. 3, ibid.

MEDALS OF HONOR.

Medals

honor.

of

S. 6, Mar. 3,

1863, v. 12, p. 751.

J. R. 51, May 2,

1896, v. 29, p. 473.

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knot, and rib

1007. That the President cause to be struck, from the dies recently prepared at the United States Mint for that purpose, "medals of honor" additional to those authorized by the act (resolution) of July 12, 1862, and present the same to such officers, noncommissioned officers, and privates as have most distinguished, or may hereafter most distinguish themselves in action.' Sec. 6, act of March 3, 1863. That the Secretary of War be, and he is hereby, authorized to issue to any person to whom a medal of honor has been awarded, or may hereafter be awarded, under the provisions of the joint resolution approved July twelfth, eighteen hundred and sixty-two, and the act approved March third, eighteen hundred and sixty-three, a rosette or knot to be Rosette, or worn in lieu of the medal, and a ribbon to be worn with bon. the medal; said rosette, or knot, and ribbon to be each of a pattern to be prescribed and established by the President of the United States, and any appropriation that may hereafter be available for the contingent expenses of the War Department is hereby made available for the purposes of this act: Provided, That whenever a ribbon issued under New ribbon. the provisions of this act shall have been lost, destroyed, or rendered unfit for use, without fault or neglect on the part of the person to whom it is issued, the Secretary of War shall cause a new ribbon to be issued to such person without charge therefor. Joint Resolution No. 51, May 2, 1896 (29 Stat. L., 473).

CERTIFICATES OF MERIT.

Certificate of

Mar. 3, 1847, c.

186; Aug. 4, 1854,

C.

1008. That when any enlisted man of the Army shall merit. have distinguished himself in the service the President 61, s. 17, v. 9, D. may, at the recommendation of the commanding officer of c. 247, 3, 3, v. 10, the regiment or the chief of the corps to which such enlisted man belongs, grant him a certificate of merit. of March 29, 1892 (27 Stat. L., 12). A certificate of merit

Act

1This provision was not embraced in the Revised Statutes. Medals of honor will be awarded by the President to officers and men who most distinguish themselves in action. (Par. 177, A. R., 1895.)

891, v. 26, p. 737; Mar. 29, 1892, v. Sec. 1216, R. S.

p. 575; Feb. 9.

27, p. 12.

Certificate of

merit.

Sec. 1285, R. S,

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Army corps badges.

Public Res. No. 73, v. 15, p. 261. Sec. 1227, R. S.

granted to an enlisted man for distinguished service shall entitle him, from the date of such service, to additional pay at the rate of two dollars per month while he is in the military service, although such service may not be continuous.1 Sec. 2, act of February 9, 1891 (26 Stat. L., 737).

CORPS BADGES AND INSIGNIA OF SOCIETIES.

1009. All persons who have served as officers, non-comJuly 25, 1868, missioned officers, privates, or other enlisted men, in the Regular Army, volunteer or militia forces of the United States, during the war of the rebellion, and have been honorably discharged from the service, or still remain in the same, shall be entitled to wear, on occasions of ceremony, the distinctive Army badge ordered for or adopted by the Army corps and division, respectively, in which they served. Military soci1010. That the distinctive badges adopted by military ety badges may be worn by Army Societies of men who served in the armies and navies of the J. R. No. 50, United States in the war of the Revolution, the war of Sept. 25, 1890, v. 26, p. 681. eighteen hundred and twelve, the Mexican war, and the war of the rebellion respectively, may be worn upon all occasions of ceremony by officers and enlisted men of the Army and Navy of the United States, who are members of said organizations in their own right. Joint resolution No. 50, of September 25, 1890 (26 Stat. L., 681).

and Navy.

Badge of Regu lar Army and

may be worn.

1011. That the distinctive badge adopted by the Regular Navy Union Army and Navy Union of the United States may be worn, J. R. No. 26, in their own right, upon all public occasions of ceremony by officers and enlisted men of the Army and Navy of the United States who are members of said organization. Joint resolution No. 26, of May 11, 1894 (28 Stat. L., 583).

May 11, 1894, v. 28, p. 583.

1 A certificate of merit granted to an enlisted man for distinguished service entitles him, from the date of such service, to additional pay at the rate of $2 per month while in the Army, although such service may not be continuous. (Par. 1370 A. R.,

1881.)

If the soldier be discharged before the certificate is issued, it will be retained in the Adjutant General's Office until called for. when proof of the identity of the applicant will be required. Should he die before receiving his certificate, it will be deposited in the office of the Auditor for the War Department for the benefit of his heirs. (Par. 181, A. R., 1895.)

Section 1285 of the Revised Statutes as amended by section 2 of the act of Febru ary 9, 1891 (26 Stat. L., 737), is retroactive and relates to the date upon which the distinguished service was rendered. (McNamara v. U. S., 28 C. Cls. R., 416.)

CHAPTER XXVIII.

ENLISTED MEN.

ENLISTMENT AND RE-ENLISTMENT.

Par.

1012. General qualifications.

1013. Limit of age.

1014. Enlistment of minors.

1015. Persons not to be enlisted.

1016. The same; citizenship.
1017. The same; deserters, minors,

Par.

1019. Premium for recruit.

1020. Fraudulent enlistment.

1021. Reenlistment.

1022. Additional pay.

1023. Period extended to three
months.

insane or intoxicated per- 1024. Certain discharged soldiers

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1018. Term of enlistment; qualifi- 1025. No pay to be retained. cations for reenlistment.

fications.
Mar. 16, 1802, c.
9, 8. 11, v.2, p. 154;

1012. Recruits enlisting in the Army must be effective General quali and able-bodied men, and between the ages of sixteen and thirty years, at the time of their enlistment.' This limitation as to age shall not apply to soldiers re-enlisting.

162, s. 30, v. 5, p. 260; Feb. 13, 1862, c. 25,
June 21, 1862, Res. 37, v. 12, p. 620; July
21, v. 12, p. 597, Feb. 27, 1893, v. 27, p. 486.

1013. Hereafter, in time of peace, no recruit shall be enlisted in the Army for the first time who is over thirty years of age. Act of February 27, 1893 (27 Stat. L., 486).

*

*

Enlistment is a contract; but it is one of those contracts which changes the
status, and where that is changed no breach of contract destroys the new status or
relieves from the obligations which its existence imposes.
By enlistment
the citizen becomes a soldier. His relations to the State and the public are changed.
He acquires a new status, with correlative rights and duties, and although he may
violate his contract obligations, bis status as a soldier is unchanged. He can not of
his own volition throw off the garments he has once put on, nor can he, the State
not objecting, renounce his relations and destroy his status on the plea that if he
had disclosed truthfully the facts, the other party, the State, would not have entered
into the new relations with him, or permitted him to change his status. (U. S. v.
Grimley, 137 U. S., 147.)

Our law not defining enlistment, nor designating what proceeding, or proceedings,
shall or may constitute an enlistment, it may be said, in general, that any act or acts
which indicate an undertaking, on the part of a person legally competent to do so, to
render military service to the United States for the term required by existing law,
and an acceptance of such service on the part of the Government, may ordinarily bo
regarded as legal evidence of a contract of enlistment between the parties, and as
equivalent to a formal agreement where no such agreement has been had. The forty-
seventh article of war practically makes the receipt of pay by a party as a soldier
evidence of an enlistment on his part, estopping him from denying his military
capacity when sought to be made amenable as a deserter. The continued rendering
of service, which is accepted, may constitute an enlistment. But enlistments in our
Army are now almost invariably evidenced by a formal writing and engagement
under oath. (Dig. J. A. G., 384, par. 1.) See also In re McDonald, 1 Lowell, 100.
Any male citizen of the United States, or person who has legally declared his
intention to become a citizen, if above the age of twenty-one and under the age of
thirty years, able-bodied, free from disease, of good character and temperate habits,
may be enlisted under the restrictions contained in this article. In regard to age or
citizenship this regulation shall not apply to soldiers who have served honestly and
faithfully a previous enlistment in the Army. (Par. 823, A. R., 1895.)

Mar. 3, 1815, c. 79,

8. 7, v. 3, p. 221; July 5, 1838, c. s. 2, v. 12, p. 339; 17, 1862, c. 200, s. Sec. 1116, R. S.

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Enlistment of

minors.

162, s. 1, v. 17, p. 117.

1014. No person under the age of twenty-one years shall May 15, 1872, c. be enlisted or mustered into the military service of the United States without the written consent of his parents or guardians: Provided, That such minor has such parents or guardians entitled to his custody and control.

Sec. 1117, R. S.

Persons not to

be enlisted.

1015. No minor under the age of sixteen years, no insane Mar. 2, 1833, c or intoxicated person, no deserter from the military service July 4, 1864. c. of the United States, and no person who has been con2:37,853,186 victed of a felony shall be enlisted or mustered into the

68, s. 6, v.4, p. 647;

380; Mar.

c. 79, s. 18, v. 13, p.

490; Feb. 27, 1877 military service. Sec. 1118, R. S.

c. 69, v. 19, p. 242. citi

The same; zenship.

Enlistment of minors prohibit

ed.

3 Art. War.

Term of enlistment.

1016. In time of peace no person (except an Indian) who is not a citizen of the United States, or who has not made legal declaration of his intention to become a citizen of the United States, or who can not speak, read, and write the English language, or who is over thirty years of age, shall be enlisted for the first enlistment in the Army. Sec. 2, act of August 1, 1894 (28 Stat. L., 215).

1017. Every officer who knowingly enlists or musters into the military service any minor over the age of sixteen years without the written consent of his parents or guardians, or any minor under the age of sixteen years, or any insane or intoxicated persons, or any deserter from the military or naval service of the United States, or any person who has been convicted of any infamous criminal offense, shall, upon conviction, be dismissed from the service, or suffer such other punishment as a court-martial may direct. Third Article of War.

1018. That hereafter all enlistments in the Army shall Qualifications be for the term of three years, and no soldier shall be for reenlist again enlisted in the Army whose service during his last 1894, v. 28, p. 216. preceding term of enlistment has not been honest and faithful.2

ment.

Sec. 2, Aug. 1,

1 Sections 1116, 1117, and 1118, Revised Statutes, providing that deserters, convicted felons, insane, or intoxicated persons, and certain minors shall not be enlisted are regarded as directory only, and not as making necessarily void such enlistments, but as rendering them voidable merely, at the option of the Government. In cases of such enlistments, except of course where the party, by reason of mental deraugement or drunkenness was without the legal capacity to contract, the Government may elect to hold the soldier to service, subject to any application for discharge which may be addressed by himself or his parent, etc., either to the Secretary of War or to a United States court. Ibid., 385, par. 3. See, also, U. S. v. Grimley, 137 U.S., 147, cited in note to paragraph 1012, supra.

The enlistment contract of a minor is void when the recruit is under 16, with or without the consent of the parent. In re Lawler, 40 F. R., 233. It is not void, but voidable only, as to minors between 16 and 21. U. S. v. Morrissey, 137 U. S., 157. It is not voidable at the instance of the minor. Ibid. It is voidable at the instance of the parent or guardian. Com. v. Blake, 8 Phil., 523; Turner v. Wright, 5 ibid., 296; Menges v. Camac, 1 Serg. and R., 87; Henderson v. Wright, ibid., 299; Seavey e. Seymour, 3 Cliff, 439; In re Cosenow, 37 F. R., 668; In re Hearn, 32 ibid., 141; In re Davison. 21 ibid., 618; U. S. v. Wagner, 24 ibid., 135; In re Dohrendorf, 40 F. R., 148; In re Spencer, ibid., 149; In re Lawler, ibid, 233; In re Wall 8 ibid., 85.

A minor's contract of enlistment is voidable, not void, and is not so voidable at the instance of the minor. If, after enlistment, he commits an offense, is actually arrested, and in course of trial before the contract is duly avoided, he may be tried and punished. (In re Wall, 8 Fed. Rep., 85; see also Barrett v. Hopkins, 7 ibid., 312.) The contract of enlistment is an entirety. If service for any portion of the time

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