Case Name: KELLY'S CASE. Thomas W. Kelly, appellee, v. The United States, appellants
Court: Supreme Court of the United States
Jurisdiction: United States
Decision Date: 1874
Citations: 8 Ct. Cl. 110
Docket Number: 
Parties: KELLY'S CASE. Thomas W. Kelly, appellee, v. The United States, appellants.
Judges: 
Reporter: United States Court of Claims Reports
Volume: 8
Pages: 110–112

Head Matter:
KELLY'S CASE. Thomas W. Kelly, appellee, v. The United States, appellants.
(5 Court of Claims R., p. 476; 15 Wallace R., p. 34.)
On the defendamos Appeal.
A soldier charged with desertion is restored to duty without trial, by order of the commander of a military department, upon condition that he malee good the time lost by desertion. The soldier complies with the condition, and is honorably discharged. The Treasury Department refuses to pay his bou/nty,wldchby the terms of his enlistment is to be paid on his being honorably discharged, because of Ms desertion appearing on the rolls. The Court of Claims overrules the defense. Judgment for the claimant. The defendants appeal.
The honorable discharge of a soldier is a formal final judgment passed by the Government upon his entire military record, and an authoritative ■ declaration that he left the service in a status of honor. As such, it relieves Mm from a charge of desertion appearing on the rolls, and removes every impediment in the way of the payment of bounty.
The Reporters' statement of the case:
The following are the facts found by the court below:
1st. The claimant, Thomas W. Kelly, enlisted in the United States Army as a private soldier February 12,1864, at Detroit, Michigan, to serve three years, and was assigned to Company D, Nineteenth United States Infantry. He served as a soldier until the 3d day of October, 1865, when he deserted.
2d. On the 19th day of April, 1866, Major-General Reynolds, of the Army, then commanding the Military Department of Arkansas, issued the following order:
[“ Special Orders No. 76. — Extract.]
“ Headquarters Department oe Arkansas,
“ Little Boclc, Arkansas, April 19,1866.
“ 4. Upon the recommendation of his regimental commander, Private Thomas W. Kelly, Company D, First Battalion, Nineteenth United States Infantry, charged with desertion, is hereby restored to duty without trial, with the condition that he make good the time lost by his desertion, viz, from October 3, 1885, to December 11,1865.
“By command oí Major-General J. J. Reynolds.
(Signed) “ CHAS. B. HOWE,
, “ Captain, Assistant Adjutant-General.”
3d. Pursuant to the foregoing order the claimant was restored to duty without trial, and made good the time lost by his desertion, viz, from October 3,1865, to December 11,1865, by serving as a soldier during that period.
4th. The claimant completed the full term of his enlistment exclusive of the time lost by desertion, and was discharged by reason of the expiration of his term of service, at Fort Gibson, April 20,1867, and was furnished with a certificate by the mustering-offleer of the United States military service at that point, in the usual form given to soldiers when honorably discharged the service.
5th. Prior to the time of claimant’s desertion, he had been paid $175 of the bounty of $400 promised him by the terms of his enlistment, but was paid no further sum on said bounty.
Mr. Assistant Attorney-General Hill for the United States, appellants.
Messrs. CMpman & Hosmer for the claimant, appellee.

Opinion:
Mr. Chief Justice Chase
delivered the opinion of the court:
This is an appeal from a judgment of the Court of Claims in favor of the appellee for an unpaid balance of bounty-money.
The claim was denied by the pay department on the ground that the bounty had been forfeited by desertion. The facts as found by the court were, that the petitioner had deserted, but was restored to duty by order of his department commander without trial, on condition that he make good the time lost— about two months; that he complied with the condition and was honorably discharged' at the expiration of his term of service.
We do not think that, under these circumstances, the bounty was forfeited. The able lawyer who fills at present the post ox Judge Advocate-General, in a case similar to the present, held that " the honorable discharge of the deserter was a formal final judgment passed by the Government upon the entire military record of the soldier, and an authoritative declaration by it that he had left the service in a status of honor; that, as such, it dispensed altogether with the supposed necessity that the soldier must obtain bounty by removal, by order, of the charge of desertion from the rolls, and amounted of itself to the removal of any charge or impediment in the way of his receiving bounty."
With this opinion we entirely concur. , The judgment of the Court of Claims is affirmed.