The sun., 1903-12-08
GEN. WOOD IS RENOMINAYED.
PRESIDENT CONTENDS THERA
WASA RECESS or THE SENATE,
but Did Not Specify whether the Appoint
ment Was Made In tho Recess OF
whether II Was New One-TO Allow
Wood to Draw Ma Jor. Generals Salary

Wood to Draw Ma JOr. Generals Salary
WASHINGTON, Dec. 7.-President Roose'
velt took une expected action to-day IN the
matter Of appointment Of Brig Gen. Wood
to be Major General, and thus raised
most complicated parliamentary point, and
apparently an entirely new one. Every
statesman in Washington has different
key to the riddle. The President trans.
mitted the nomination OF Wood to the
| Senate without specifying whether ths
appointment will be one that had been
made in the recess or whether 1t will be
a new one. 1t was in effect new appoint'
ment, and. having been received after the
| Senate was In regular session, will be treated
| by that body as a routine nomination,
| not to be effective until confirmed. 30
| far as the Senate in concerned. therefore.
| Gen. Wood at noon to-day returned to
| his former grade Of Brigadier- General
and will remain 30 until his nomination
| to the higher rank ia confirmed.
In order. however, to enable Gen. Wood to
retain the rank and pay of Major-General.
to which he was promoted and appointed
last July, the President constructively held
that there was}a recess between the extraor.
dinary and the regulur sessions Of Congress
at noon to-day. The effectsof such q recess
appointment, if legal. would be to give the
appointee his Office and enable him to draw
his pay until the end OF the ensuing session
of the Senate, when, If the Senate has not
acted upon his nomination, 1t would fall,
when a recess appointment would again
| be legal The President, holding that there
| was a constructive recess at noon to-day.
took the bull by the horns and reappointed
Gen. Wood and the 1877 other officers whose
promotions depend upon his advancement,
and will now leave to the proper law officer
Of the Government the question OF Legality.
The question whether Gen. Wood shall
draw pay as a Ma General after
noon to-day is entirely within the jurisdic-
ton Of the Comptroller OF the Treasury
The question whether Gen. Wood shall
be confirmed as Major-General is en-
tirely within the jurisdiction Of the Senate.
AS the appointment of Gen. Wood to-day
was made during constructive recess,
the Senate was not concerned in 1t, but
only with the confirmation OF the man so
APPOINTED. And the appointment having
been made to the Senate after it had begun
it's regular session, the Senate, theoretically,
must regard the person nominated TO be
waiting for confirmation before assuming
his office.
But in the case of Gen. Wood, whose
, fitness for promotion to ajor-General is
being strongly denied, and who Is now now
= under investigation on charges anecunE
| his CnaIdCteT dflil doihty, VIC tioy
j, decide to have a great deal to say ABOUT
matters that are not theoretically, wltmn
. it's jurisdiction. 1t may decide that the
= Presidents "straddle' Of the question OF
n Constitutional prohibition against the hold,
= ing Of Office by an appQiptee until cQnnrmeo
q by the Senate and It may record ite dissent
to the Presidents action by making the
only protest within its power-that oi
: rejecting the appointment.
= Gen. Wood, however, may act al MAJOR
General and draw increased pay during
the time the Senate is thus engaged IN
deciding his fate unless hia scdets tine
o The view of the War Department is that
the question Of the appointment OF these
| officers to fill what are termed recess va :
:. canciee, has nothing 70 40 WIN ule non. noun
I ! The two actions are considered separately
by the Department. There is no question
in regard to the validity of the nominations,
: but Secretary Root admits that there Is a
1 question as to the authority OF the Presi-
dent in having made recess appointment
of Gen. Wood to be Ma jor- General.
Secretary Root holds that as there Is
constructively an interval between tne az
iournment Of the Senate OF the special
session and the convening of the regular
session the recess appointments heretofore
| made lapsed and left recess vacancies
that have now been filled by recess ap-
pontments. .
Secretary Root took steps to-day, to
bring the matter before the accounting
officers of the Government as soon as posi-
BILE for the purpose OF securing decision;
He had the Paymaster.GeneraI ihsSruoteu t,a 70
referred at once to the Treasury, Depart
, ment. The officials say that the most
interesting legal question relates TO the
standing of the officers promoted anG re-
tired upon the promotion OF Gen. WOOD
The questions to be determined are whether
these officers are on the active list or the
retired list, and whether they are entitled
to the pay of Brigadier Genera abds re.rea req
| some Of the matters to be determined by
the Treasury Department.
Senator Frye's language in ending g the
. | extraordinary session of the Senate ana
convenng the regular session Is regarded
as significant and important as bearing
3, on the question whether there was an
I actual or constructive recess between the
| two sessions. When IL o'clock had arrived
p. President Frye raped with MS gaVei anu
said
4 Senator's: The hour provided by law for
the meeting of the first regular session, OF
the Fifty-eighth Congress having arrived.
! declare the extraordinary session ADJOURNED
without day.
Mr.. Frye's language was framed with
!, extreme care and was uttered slowly and
with precision. He refrained from men
| tioning the Senate either as to convening or
r ad iournment, but specifically referred to
I Congress.
- He brought in the regular session before
mentioning the adjournment of the extra
d session. SO that instead Of adjourning
extra session first and he 6eeh IN oan fac,
overappcd the two sessions second or
two by his carefully delivered announce
ment Immediately following his state
II ment the new session was under way with.
r out the rapping of the gavel, by the delivery
of prayer by the Chaplain.
On the assumption also that the .inh
Intestinal interval" constructively existed
the President again sent to the Senate thf
names Of William D. Crlm, the colorec
4 Collector of Customs at Charleston, s. {.
and the twenty -four postmasters whc
failed of confirmation at the extraordinary
y session, Their tenure OF office under theii
: recess commi,s ions ended with the expira
C ton OF the session at noon to-day, but they
!, can, of course, continue under fresh re
q cess appointment until the end Of the pres
:. ent session, unless i'll the meantime the
y decision Of the Comptroller should be TIM
II there was no recess. In that case the!
n would all go out Of Office at once and couic
q draw no salary from to-day