Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 2.djvu/398



, or other officer mustering, to the department of war, as speedily as the distance of the place will admit.

Article 14. Every officer who shall be convicted, before a general court martial, of having signed a false certificate, relating to the absence of either officer or private soldier, or relative to his or their pay, shall be cashiered.

Article 15. Every officer who shall knowingly make a false muster of man or horse, and every officer or commissary of musters, who shall willingly sign, direct, or allow the signing of muster rolls, wherein such false muster is contained, shall, upon proof made thereof by two witnesses, before a general court martial, be cashiered, and shall be thereby utterly disabled to have or hold any office or employment in the service of the United States.

Article 16. Any commissary of musters, or other officer, who shall be convicted of having taken money or other thing, by way of gratification, on mustering any regiment, troop or company, or on signing muster rolls, shall be displaced from his office, and shall be thereby utterly disabled to have, or hold any office or employment in the service of the United States.

Article 17. Any officer who shall presume to muster a person as a soldier, who is not a soldier, shall be deemed guilty of having made a false muster, and shall suffer accordingly.

Article 18. Every officer who shall knowingly make a false return to the department of war, or to any of his superior officers, authorized to call for such returns, of the state of the regiment, troop or company, or garrison under his command; or of the arms, ammunition, clothing or other stores thereunto belonging, shall, on conviction thereof before a court martial be cashiered.

Article 19. The commanding officer of every regiment, troop or independent company, or garrison of the United States, shall, in the beginning of every month, remit, through the proper channels, to the department of war, an exact return of the regiment, troop, independent company, or garrison, under his command, specifying the names of the officers then absent from their posts, with the reasons for, and the time of their absence. And any officer who shall be convicted of having, through neglect or design, omitted sending such returns, shall be punished according to the nature of his crime by the judgment of a general court martial.

Article 20. All officers and soldiers, who have received pay, or have been duly enlisted in the service of the United States, and shall be convicted of having deserted the same, shall suffer death, or such other punishment as by sentence of a court martial shall be inflicted.

Article 21. Any non-commissioned officer or soldier, who shall, without leave from his commanding officer, absent himself from his troop, company, or detachment, shall, upon being convicted thereof, be punished according to the nature of his offence, at the discretion of a court martial.

Article 22. No non-commissioned officer or soldier shall enlist himself in any other regiment, troop, or company, without a regular discharge from the regiment, troop, or company, in which he last served, on the penalty of being reputed a deserter, and suffering accordingly. And in case any officer shall knowingly receive and entertain such non-commissioned officer or soldier, or shall not, after his being discovered to be a deserter, immediately confine him and give notice thereof to the corps in which he last served, the said officer shall, by a court martial, be cashiered.

Article 23. Any officer or soldier who shall be convicted of having advised or persuaded any other officer or soldier to desert the service of