Show dismissal of fiffi officers cers m in the military Kili tary and HaaF service 1 jrade tt dar sea I 1 march 28 1865 1863 J ita F r JT 11 stanfort Se secretary cretai y of war mar I 1 pon the bill entitled an act to ic the dismissal of officers in n the military and naval service now nov li pending ending in tile senate and red by you hotl for my consideration I 1 have the hank to ta submit the following followed observations tio is ifs here follows a p particular ar statement of the character cliar acter or of the b bill 11 mf M holt then as follows aiom the foundation of the govern ment the Pies president ident has been in the of summarily dismissing officers in the land and naval service the power todo to do so seems to inhere in him under the constitution aa as commander iri chiff of the army and navy his hi S action in this respect lias has been attended by no oppression or abuses and its strict legal ity cann oabe contested the exercise xv r i ciso therefore 0 f t this hi s authority since the outbreak of the rebellion lids has nothing in it that savors of usurpation or innovation or that should eold cx x cite it alarm y that the lodgment of such a power in the commander in i of our army is necessary to pre its discipline the experience of 0 our ur military men would generally attest the necessity jiff is most manifest and pressing in the cascoa an army of volunteers suddenly withdrawn frota from the pursuits of civil life and impatient of those restraints stra ints without which military forces in tha ali field fic must soon boon degenoa ate into to a mob the government of such in an army often calls for punishments punishment cioe 8 av cio cie than those which h aie ie tardily inflicted agli the slow process ss of a military trial tl I 1 tile the authority jo to suspend without pay or emolument Jor for a limited period is as given by the bill would prove a in mp st ailt inadequate substitute lor for tile the power of dismissal in the emergencies of mili daiy life and especially especial y duding a period of active hostilities the interests of the service often not no t only that officers shall be instant d their places shall ile be immediately supplied this thi is bill makes such supply impracticable blo in fil 0 ease case of delinquent and suspended officers offic cis ceis because it contemplates lo 10 no vacancy va it is ia well known time til m 0 of war tile convening of a chur ourt martial for S i wt I 1 un the ton ten days 41 ll tUh diwi ellk s 1 luca by tins bill in would not hot 4 in in a avery balge lal ge number of cases bo be poss possible i 1 I 1 serious detriment imea to tile the sol sei vice vicc I 1 asa there could be no go thial without an t 11 arl auchst est of tile offic officer br should lie think proper to avoid such armost as lie might do by flight or other otherwise wise lie he could under this bill bo be summarily dismissed only for haying having bean abacut for twenty days without leave 1 of whatever other crimo crime lie he may llave have been 0 guilty had such a law existed when general twi twigs twiggs 0 gs traitorously surrendered his hig department to tile gobels instead of 0 f being di dishonorably y dismissed for treachery t to 0 his coun coull arys flag ll 11 as lie ho was by tile aiesi pi esi dent lie would though in arms n against 0 ainest the hie Govern government inept have b D aon continued on the army arm ito register 41 S te x 11 unless it had to hin simply ply for abson absence 0 litlo without lea leave e ly r the T 11 number of dismissals which ila yate PI the begin beginning nin 11 1 hi 1 ar 1 a of th thwarts 1 to wal waris 18 nd targe tp e all al I 1 C circumstances C ini of tile sol adored the government lias has acted upon the in 11 wy ekes furnished at the file m moment adv mistakes have some cases occur occurred in ili every instance however howego where it lias has been alleged that waon giong had been abben done the case 1 las as been con carefully 6 io ic 0 and tira p pi lofs and testimonials e aed acied tn in behalf of tho efti or well consi doid and it is believed that it has haq rarely I 1 happened I 1 app e n e d that codrea con conclusion calusio n h has aist no not been finally reached these le ic examinations have constituted one of tile most laborious duties of this office and I 1 can bear testimony mony to the patience and partiality with which they have been conducted to the restoration of these officers through h the instrumentality of a court martial marti al as proposed by the bill several eral seemingly insuperable obstacles present themselves 1 their places after dismissal were in almost every instance filled by appointments legally and properly made how is it possible to lestric them to positions not vacant built bu t which are fully occupied by others 2 the regiments regiment in which n man any y I 1 of these officers belonged have been disbanded in reference to this class liow would it bo be practicable to enforce the provisions of this bill 3 these officers are now as much out of the service as if they had never belan belonged P ad to it and this by force of orders in in every respect regular and legal A revocation of these orders of tile the Pies president ident would certainly reinstate tile officers in cases where the vacancies remain unfilled but is it competent for congress to make such revocation I 1 think clearly not 4 tha ardeis being and the officers being out of the service they can only bo be ic le stored by reappointment under the constitution hol however vever the larger part of these appointments point ments must be made by the governors of the states and the remain der by the Pies president ident Is there any principle or precedent abid justify if in an attempt to iO exercise of the president find and Gover governors ilois by substituting foi such presidential and gubernatorial action the simple decla ratio n of a 3 general court martial 5 the government could not investigate vesti gate through courts martial tile eds of cases which this bill would bring up for trial wit without holit such a draft upon the offic pIs of the army needed f for or aci active v fie field d servi service cc as must greatly impair the efficiency odthe ofa alie campaign now about to opan in every part of the theat roof of the war to aliis should be added tile the fact the witnesses to tile transactions to be examined into are arc doubtless many of them dead an and d others so se scattered ly by the fortunes of the war as to be unavailable a condition ondi tion of things which would render it impossible to accept the action ti cn of the ill 0 courts martial sitting in iii judgment on these officers office r many of them long past as satisfactory or reliable all of which is respectfully submit ted J HOLT judge advocate general |