The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1888-11-08
INSTITUTED him amennter thereof said Post having


waived the payment of admission fee and dues,
and it not appearing that subscription to the Regu
lations and Bylaws was required a condition OF
membership. II follows that his election as Com
mander Of his former Post void.
No 4. A comrade honorably discharged from the
Order and afterward reoining 1t is not entitled to
his past honors, and the Commander-in-Chief has
no authority to restore him thereto.
No. 3. There is no provision in the Rules and
Regulations for changing the locality of a Post
from one town TO another, and the COmmander-in"
Chief has no power to authorize such transfer.
No. 6. A Past Post Commander joining Post of
another Department by transfer is not entitled to
a seat in the Encampment in that Department by
virtue of his past rank.
No. Z. The Adjutant of a Post upon being dis
charged from the Order may properly attest his
own discharge.
No. 8. A comrade holding an unexpired transfer
card Is entitled 10 the cOuntersign 1t does nOtfOiOw
however, that any Post Commander is required as
official duty 10 confer it. The duty OF comforting
the couneTsign is inferred from the fact of mem
bership and the provisions of the Ritual, being
nowhere expressly prescribed. Certainly no Post
Commander violates a prescribed duty IN refusing
to communicate the counterslgn To a comrade not
"a member of his Post. Where necessary, applica-
ton should be made to the Department Commander,
who may act either by himself or by some officer
10 whom the duty may be deputed by him.
No. g. 1t IS not within the province OF the Com
mandeT-n-C Chief TO decide merely speculative
questions which may be submitted for his opinion.
A ruling on the subject of responsibility to their
several Departments of Past Department Com
mandeTs and others who eligible to seats in the
National Incan pment and to what extent they
responsible for obedience to the instructions of
their Departments the subjects coming before
the National Encampment would be mere per-
sonal opinion possessing no official authenticity
and likely to do more harm than good.
The following decisions have been made,
without calling upon the Judge Advocate-Gen-
eral for his opinion:
No 1. The Commander of provisional Depart
ment has the same authority to organize and charter
new Posts that Is possessed by the Commander of q
permanent Department.
No. Q. A Post court-martial can only be convened
by majority vote of the Post and the findings
and sentence thereof must be approved by u ma
iority vote.
No. 8. Neither the Grand Army of the Republic,
nor any of its officers has authority TO interfere
in any manner with the administration of the affairs
of the Womans Relief Corps Acknowledgment
as an auxiliary of the GA r., it is altogether indie
pendent regards the discipline of its members
and the control of its organization.
No 4. 4 Post Communicated cannot legally be
installed until after Dec. 81.
No. 3. In case a Post is transferred from one De-
partment to another, Past Commanders of such
Posts are not entitled to membership in the En-
campment of the Department to which the transfer
Is made merely because such membership was &C
corded by the Department to which it formerly be-
longed The right 10 determine whether Past Post
Commanders shall be members of q Department
Encampment rests solely with such Encampment.
No. g. The suspension of Post Commander
pending his trial upon charges and specifications
by court martial, does not create q vacancy i'm
the office which can be filed by an election Dur
ing the suspension the duties of the Office should
be performed by the Senior Vice Commander.
army, whether voluntarily or involuntarily, is
ineligible TO membership in the Grand Army of the
Republic. If by any means he gains admission to
q Post, this does not make him member. As
the fact of his ineligibiity is discovered he
should be dropped from the roll and excluded from
the meetings. No action of the Post is necessary;
but the fact appearing, his election and muster
simply void.
No. s. Certain members of Dushane Post. No. 8,
Department of Maryland who had paid all dues
ana against whom no charges had been preferred,
duly asked for transfer cards on the evening of
Aug. p, 1857 The cards were not issued that even
ing, but statement was made and signed by the
Quartermaser showing the payment of all dues.
On the same evening these comrades were duly
mustered as members of another Post Before the
cards were filed up. certain charges were pre-
ferred against the applicants; whereupon the Post
Commander refused to sign the cards or to recog-
ME their membership in the new Post. Held that
the cards should have been issued, and that these
comrades should have been reported as lost by
transfer, and that their muster into q Post
authorized and constituted them members thereof
No. g. The Commander-in-C Chief has power to
authorize the holding OF Department Encamp-
ment after the time fixed by the Rules and Re2u-
lations
No TO- There is no such thing as honorary mem
bership in the Grand Army of the Republic.
No. ii. la Upon ballot for the election of
Post Commander. two more ballots were cast than
there were comrades present such ballot was
void and was properly declared. 10 At this
election, by invitation Of the Post Commander, the
Commander of another Post presided. This
irregular, but lii the absence of objection made at
he time, did not invahdate the election.
NO. T. BY vote of Il yeas against 81 nays q Post
rdered that all nominations for officers should be
made before any ballots were taken, aud that after
nominations closed, ballots cast for officers
not previously nominated, should not be counted.
An opportunity was then given to present the name
Of any candidate for whom any conrade desired TO
vote for either of the offices to be filled No point
OF order was made such as TO call for "a decision
from the Post Commander. Two comrades cast
their ballots for eomrade not previously named,
but their ballots were not counted because of the
adoption of the foregoing motion. Held that un-
bo yainp inn, ~ he tyxo
ballots did not invalidate the election.
No. IS. The authority of a Department Com
mander TO organize Posts within his jurisdiction is
exclusive. The Commander of another Depart
ment cannot lawfully establish q Post therein.
No. IA. The Rules and Regulations do not in
terms require that recruit should actually be
mustered within three months after written notice
OF his election. He is required to present himself
for muster within three months after such notice,
but there are no words of exclusion which prohibit
his muster after the expiration of that period Such
muster is therefore void for that reason alone
No. Is. The quarterly returns OF Post may be
legally ana properly made and transmitted before
the end OF the quarter. In fact, it is the proper
practice to do this at the close of the last meeting
of the quarter
No. L. member of Co E, First Regiment of
Organized Employees of the QuarternRster's De-
.'artment, Washington, d. q, is not eligible to
membership in the q A. r., such organization not
being State regiment" nor mustered into the
military service of the United States.
No. IL. a comrade cannot retain his membership
in one Post and also become charter member of
another. lie cannot be a member OF two Posts at
the same time.
No. 49, A Post court martial duly ordered to try
an accused comrade upon charges and specifica-
tions, was dissolved by vote of the Post upon the
request of the Judge Advocate, who gave as his
reason for the request, that it seemed TO be inn
possible for the couFt-martial to convene with
quorum" The Commander ruled that this action
was. in effect, abandonment of the charges and
declined TO appoint another court and IN this rul-
ing was sustained by the Post In the absence of
anything showing contrary intcHtion. held that
the charges and specifications were dismissed.
No. 10. The refusal of a Department Commander
TO order Department court-maTal for the trial of
charges and specifications will not be reversed by
the Communicating Chief. except in cases where it
clearly appears that he has msiudged the law or
the facts, has been actuated by improper
motives.
No. 90 (a) A comrade who has been dropped
from the roll for payment of dues is no longer
member of the Order and is therefore not subject
to discipline as such. He can only be restored to
membership by twothirds vote of his Post ID
The fact that charges pending against a COM
rade, does not preclude the Post from dropping
him from the roll for non-payment of dues, in a
case where such dropping would otherwise be
proper.
Happy Days.
TChicuqo TTibune1