Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-12-19
Power to Make the Order.

/ come now to your power as President to
| make the order of discharge in the manner
| in which it was made. The fourth article
| of War. which contains the statutory direc-
| ton in respect of the discharge of soldiers,
| is as follows:
Art. f. No enlisted man, duly cworn, shall
| be discharged from the service without a
discharge in writing, signed by a field Off
Ger of the regiment to which he belongs, or
! by the commanding officer when no field
officer is present: and no discharge shall be
given to any enlisted man before his term
of service has expired except by order of
| the President, the Secretary of War, the
commanding officer of a department., or by
sentence of general court,martial:
The regulations adopted by the President
| in carrying out this statutory provision are
as follows:
14S Blank forms for discharge and final
statements will be furnished by the military
secretary of the army and will be retained
in the personal custody of company COM
manders. Those for discharge will be of
three classes: For honorable discharge, for
dishOnorable discharge and for discharge
| without honor. They will be used as fol-
lows:
1. The blank for honorable discharge
when the soldiers service has been honest
and faithful in which case he would be
entitled to character at least good"
Where the soldiers conduct has been such
as to warrant his Ie-enlistment, his service
has heen honest and faithful, and he is en-
2. The blank for discharge without honor
when a soldier is discharged: (a) Without
trial, on account Of fraudulent enlistment.
(b) Without trial, on account of having be-
come disqualified for service, physically or
in character, through his own misconduct.
(c) On account of Imprisonment under SEN
tence Of civil court. Cd Where the service
has not been honest and faithful that is,
where tho service does not warrant his re-
enlistment. (e) Where discharge without
honor is specially ordered by the Secretary
of War for any other reason.
3. The blank for dishonorable discharge,
for disI,rporable discharge by sentence Of
a court martial or military commission.
The statutory restriction as to the eligi-
bility OF men presenting themselves for en-
listment is contained in the following
statute:
That hereafter all enlistments in the army
shall be for the term of three years, and
soldier shall be again enlisted in the
army whose service during his last pre-
cedingi tenn of enlistment has not been
honest and faithful. (Sec. q Aug. /. 1894,
% Stat. L, 216.)
This has been construed for years by the
department as follows:
It is within the discretion of the Secretary
OF War to determine, for the purpose Of en-
listment, whether the service of an appli-
cant during his last term of enlistment was
honest and faithful within the meaning Of
this statute-a sound discretion to be exer
cised in view Of all the facts regarding his
service and dese1tion. "Desertion during a
term of erlstlL cnt rendered service during
such term not honest and faithful within
the mt an'ns Of the act Of June 10, 1890 and
for the purposes of that act only. Held,
there core. that tie question whether desc r.
ton constitutes a bar to re-enlistment un
der TIE act of August 1. 1894, is a mattcc to
be determined By the Secretary of Wa
oar. PISS, Dig of Opinions, j. A. GEM
The discharge without honor is not pun
ishment. When soldier is discharged be-
fore or on expiration of service he is en-
titled to a certificate to that effect, but he
Is not entitled to certificate of honorable
discharge (Which is now only given to SOL
diers whose service has been honest and
faithfully If in fact his service has not been
honest and faithful. In such case he has
failed to earn an honorable discharge and
is given discharge which discloses that
fact-a discharge without honor. Not being
discharge by way of punishment for an
offense'' (sec. 1890, r. 81, forfeiture of
travel allowances is not an incident of It..
But when a soldier is discharged without
trial on account of fraudulent enlistment
| or "for disability caused by his own miscon-
duct q. e., without honor'O travel allow
ances are forfeited; in the first case, by rea-
son Of the right Of the government on the
discovery of the frand, to rescind the con-
| tract of enlistment. and thus avoid all I'M
executed obligations under 1t, and in the
second. under the provisions of the army
| appropriation act, approved March 16, 1896.
But a soldier discharged without honor ex-
cept for fraudulent enlistment does not for
| felt clothing money due him at date Of dis
charge. Gig. Opfns ]. A.. Gen. sec. 1922
From the citations above given it follows
that one enlisting In the army is advised,
| first. that the President has the right at
will to terminate the contract Of enlist
ment; second that when the contract of
| enlistment is terminated at will the Pres
| ident may properly show on the discharge
| that the service which has been rendered
| has not been such as to warrant re-enist-
ment and, therefore, is not to be regarded
| as honest and faithful. permitting re-en-
! listment under the statute
Similar in the Navy.
| By reference to the procedure In the navy
set out in the judge advocate generals
| memorandum it will be found that sub
| stantially the same case exists in that
branch OF the service. and while that mat.
/ ter is not so clear with respect to the civil