Evening star., 1899-02-03

of absence, they could not be required to
labor on Sundays and legal holidays, hence
why should Sundays and legal holidays be
counted in leaves Of absence.
The intention of Congress must b. gath
cred from the language of the act sought
to be understood. If Congress had intend
ed that intervening Sundays and legal holi-
days should be excluded in the thirty days
lave which may be granted to clerks or
employees it woulG have, no doubt. used
appropriate language to evidence this in
tention. as ii did when il desired to ex-
clude Sundays and legal holidays from the
days on which seven hours of labor is not
required.
4 Case in Point.
Precisely the same question of cOnstruc-
ton in another form raised in this case
was raised and passed upon on December
l3, 1898, in the appeal of William Lamb &
Co. from the disallowance of a part of
their claim for demurrage for detention of
the schooner Rebecca ]. Moulton on Sun
days and legal holidays accruing after the
time allowed for discharging had expired.
The contract for shipment in this case
provided:
Coal to be delivered on wharf at Key
West, or over rail of any United States
ships as may be directed by the senior Off
The government to take discharge of
cargo at the rate of not less than 100 tons
per day, Sundays and legal holidays ex-
cepted. and pay demurrage, if any. at the
rate of eight cents per ton per day
Under the terms of this contract the
vessel should have been released August
s. The vessel was not finally released until
September 23. Six Sundays and one legal
holiday intervened, for which the auditor
refused to allow demurrage. 1t was con-
tended by the claimant that the contract
excepted Sundays and legal holidays from
lay days. but did not except them from
demurrage days after the latter began 10
yhA r.fp 11,tr
demurrage fer intervening Sundays and
legal holidays. contended that as the gov
ernment could not be required to accept
the cargo on Sundays and legal holidays it
could not be considered as having detained
the vessel for such days: also that by a
reasonable construction of the contract
demurrage should only be paid for the
same kind of days as those which were to
be counted against the government as lay
days.
This is only another way of stating the
contention that because a c'crk or cmpiovc
cannot be required to labor on Sundays or
legal holidays, Sundays and legal holidays
should not be counted in leaves of absence,
exemption from labor on those days being
"a specific exemption created by statute
Neither of the contentious of the audi
tor was upheld in the case referred to- be
cause the decided weight of authority was
with the claimant. and he was allowed de-
murrage for all intervening Sundays and
legal holidays. legal holidays and sundays
not having been excepted in the clause pro-
vidng for demm rage.
Without unduly lengthening this de-
cision, l am compelled to decide that when
the head of a department grants thirty
running days to any clerk or erlploye as
annual leave, or thirty running days as SICK
leave, in any one year, he has exhausted
the power conferred upon him to grant
leaves of absence with pay: and that all
days of leave granted by him are neces-
sarily running days. and include any in
tervening Sundays or holidays"