Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-06-05
ENTITLED TO PAY
MR.. CHRISTIANCY WHO rs AB-
SENT PENDING INVESTIGATION.
The Controller of the Treasury Decides
That to the Legal cent Of an
Office is Due Compensation.

The controller of the treasury has in
formed the Postmaster General that G. A.
c. Christiancy, assistant attorney of the
Post Office Department, is entitled to pay
for leave of absence pending investigation
of his office. Postmaster General Payne
submitted the following communication to
Controller Tracewell.
Gin reply to a communication from Mr..
G. A. c. Christiancy, assistant attorney In
this department, requesting to be relieved
from duty as acting assistant attorney gen.
eral. 1 granted his request and gave him
leave of absence pending an investigation
of the office in which he was employed. AS
he has been absent from duty for thirty
days. the question has arisen whether he
Is entitled to salary for continued leave I'M
der the above order. I will thank you to
advise me at an early date Of your opinion
on the question presented"
The Controllers Decision.
Mr.. Tracewells opinion follows:
ut appears that on April Is, 1903, Mr..
Christiancy, an assistant attorney of the
Post Office Department, who was at the
time acting as assistant attorney general
for the Post Office Department. asked for
an investigation of all his official acts,
and also requested that, pending such in
vestigation, he be relieved from the re-
sponsibility of the conduct Of the latter
office. 1t further appears that on April %,
1903, you informed him that his request
would be granted, and also that he would
be granted leave of absence until further
notice, without stating whether such leave
of absence would be with or without pay.
I'm the case Of Mr. Thomas Q. Munce.
a former chief Of the stamp division in the
Post Office Department. against whom
charges of official misconduct had been
preferred, the Postmaster General direct
ed that he apply for leave of absence with
out pay, pending the investigation Of the
charges, or else be removed. In obedience
to this direction Mr.. Munce made applica-
ton for leave of absence, without pay,
from March IL to June 80, 1897, which was
granted. Subsequently Mr.. Munce contend
ed that his application for such leave was
made under duress, and that he was en-
titled to the compensation OF his office dur
ing the period Of his enforced absence. The
Postmaster General having requested the
controller of the treasury to decide the
question thus presented, 1t was held that
there was nothing in the nature of duress
in the action of the Postmaster General.
and that Mr. Munce, having assented to the
direction of the Postmaster General and
accepted leave of absence without pay, was
thereby precluded from asserting any legal
right to the compensation Of the office for
that period. (Con. Dec, 34)
But the present case may be clearly
distinguished from that case. Mr.. Chris
tinacy was not informed that the leave of
absence granted him would be without pay,
and it therefore cannot properly be held
that in accepting 1t he aSSented to being
absent without pay.
The General Rule Stated.
ut is a general rule of law, subject to
certain statutory and other exceptions, that
as long as an officer legally holds an office
he is entitled to the compensation attached
thereto. The right to the compensation Of
an Office is usually an incident to the legal
title to the office and not to the perform
ance of its duties.
Zone exception to the general rule is
found in the case of Mr. Munce, supra, and
another in that of a special agent to make
allotments to Indians.
There Is also a general exception. Clerks
and departmental employees mentioned in
the act of March 49, 1898 go Statutes, 316),
which provides that the head of any execu-
tive department may grant thirty days
annual leave with pay in any one year to
each clerk or employee" and that in cases
of sickness such leave of absence may be
extended with pay not exceeding thirty
days in any one calendar year. The statute
also prohibits the payment Of salary to
such clerks during absence for a longer
period. In computing the time of annual
leave of absence Sundays and legal holidays
are to be excluded.
You do not expressly state that Mr..
Christiancy has been absent at any prior
I therefore infer that he has not. I there
fore have the honor to advise you that in
such case he is entitled to the salary of
his Office while absent with leave, not to
exceed thirty days, exclusive Of Sundays
and legal holidays"