The National tribune., 1884-10-23
B. F..BUTLER POST AGAIN.

| At last somebody who can explain does ex-
| week:
To THE EDITOR: Noticing the letter from Com
mander Billings, of this Department, in your issue
of Oct. I6, and Your comments on the same, permit
| me to say that if you and those comrades who
| have wondered why the Post (42) in this city is
named after a living soldier would stop and think
| it might occur to them that this Post named
before that Article III of the Rules and Regula-
tions adopted or thought of. This is the fact
for Post 42 organized in 1868 and at that time
no such article existed This is the with other
Posts. No Post in this Department has been named
after any living person since that article was
adopted. Yours, in F., G. and L.,
j. p Manifold,
Member of B. f. Butler Post and j. V. Dept Com.
LOWELL, MASS, Oct. 10.
This clears up the matter so far as the NAM
ing of the Post was concerned.
We have also received the following well
of the Department of Massachusetts,, which
covers the whole ground and ends the contro-
versy so far as the assumed violation of the
organic law of the Order is concerned. Com
mander Billings's letter is valuable contribu-
tion to the history of the Order:
To THE EDITOR: was somewhat surprised on
reading my NATIONAL TRIBUNE of this week to
find yourself among those who assume that this
Department has been guilty of violating Art. III
Chap. I, Rules and Regulations, G. r., and re-
GREETED to find that after quoting the foregoing
article you seemed to regard the charge proven,
for you then ask What reason exists for violating
ooffI, Drda a fn tba
of this Department that the brilliant page which
Massachusetts has contributed to Grand Army his
tory should lift her above the suspicion of having
violated so hagrantly an important provision of our
highest law and the fact that the charge Off
calIy denied ought to have suggested the inquiry
whether such violation really did exist However,
believing you ready to do this Department, your
self and myself full justice in the matter, very
gladly submit in brief the following explanation of
the apparent violation for your columns:
In the early days of the Order there were prae-
tically no restrictions placed by Grand Army law
upon the character of the names which Posts might
adopt and bear They might be names of men or
women of any epoch; of soldier sailor or civilian;
of the dead or living. They might be, as now
names of towns of battles. But owing to the
imperfections which attach to weak human ma
ture or for other sufficient reasons, some Posts
which had been named for living persons soon de-
renee of such eases Rules and Regulations were
amended to debar Posts from adopting the name
of living persons Comrade Beath, an esteemed
Past Commanders Chief, who is good authority
in such matters, says the change made at the
Encampment held in Cincinnati, May 1869. The
Rules and Regulations were certainly thoroughly
revised that year and Art. III was then amended
to provide that not more than one Post in De-
partment shall adopt the same name" But am
of the opinion that the prohibition against naming
for the living made mt the Eneampment held
in Washington, May, $780, for in the report of the
the following paragraphs 1t has been suggested
that all Posts hereafter organized be named from
the list of honored dead, not living comrades and
it is respectfully recommended that this be DONE"
This would seem to imply the absence of a rule
against such procedure at that time The recon-
mendation was adopted and incorporated in the
Rules and the comrades present at that Encamp-
ment will doubtless remember the discussion that
took place on the question of whether the amend
ment was to be regarded retroactive which
was finally negatived.
From all which it will be seen that the Posts in
this Department which bear the distinguished
names of U. s. Grant. Phil. H. Sheridan, Chas.
Devens f. w. Kinks. Clara Barton. ETC., legally
entitled to them The is true of several other
Departments which yet have Posts named for the
living Ii the above statements found by any
Of the comrades not to be in accordance with the