General orders. No. 224

GENERAL ORDERS, WAR DEPARTMENT,
ADJUTANT GENERAL'S OFFICE,
No. 224. Washington, July 6, 1864.

The following Act of Congress is published for the information
and government of all concerned :—

[Pusiic.—No. 196.]
AN ACT further to regulate and provide for the enrolling and calling

out the national forces, and for other purposes.
_ Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of

the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the Presi- —

dent of the United States may, at his discretion, at any time here-
after, call for any number of men as volunteers, for the respective
terms of one, two, and three years for military service; and any
such volunteer, or, in case of draft, as hereinafter provided, any
substitute, shall be credited to the town, township, ward of a city,
precinet, or election district, or of a county not so subdivided,
towards the quota of which he may have volunteered or engaged as
a substitute; and every volunteer who is accepted and mustered
into the service for a term of one year, unless sooner discharged,
shall receive, and be paid by the United States, a bounty of one
hundred dollars; and if for a term of two years, unless sooner dis-
charged, a bounty of two hundred dollars; and if for a term of
three years, unless sooner discharged, a bounty of three hundred
dollars ; one-third of which bounty shall be paid to the soldier at
the time of his being mustered into the service, one-third at the ex-
piration of one-half of his term of service, and one-third at the
expiration of his term of service. And in ease of his death while
in service, the residue of his bounty unpaid shall be paid to his

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widow, if he shall have left a widow; if not, to his children, or if
there be none, to his mother, if she be a widow.

Sec, 2. And be it further enacted, That in case the quota, or any
part thereof, of any town, township, ward of a city, precinct, or
election district, or of any county not so subdivided, shall not be
filled within the space of fifty days after such call, then the Presi-
dent shall immediately order a draft for one year to fill such quota,
or any part thereof, which may be unfilled ; and in case of any such
draft, no payment of money shall be accepted or received by the
Government as commutation to release any enrolled or rei man
from ae sonal obligation to perform military service.

Sec. 3. And be it further enacted, That it shall be lawful for he
executive of any of the States to send recruiting agents into any of
the States declared to be in rebellion, except the States of Arkansas,
Tennessee, and Louisiana, to recruit volunteers under any call
under the provisions of this act, who shall be credited to the State,
and to the respective subdivisions thereof, which may procure the
enlistment. ° CA,

Sec. 4. And be it further enacted, That drafted men, substitutes,
and volunteers, when mustered in, shall be organized into, of as-
signed to regiments, batteries, or other organizations of their own
States, and, as far as practicable, shall, when assigned, be permitted
to select their own regiments, batteries, or other organizations from
among those of their respective States which at the time of. —
ment may not be filled to their maximum number.

Sec. 5. And be it further enacted, That the twentieth section of
the act entitled ‘‘ An act to amend an act entitled an act for enrolling
and calling out the national forces, and for other purposes,’’ ap-
proved. February twenty-four, eighteen hundred and sixty-four, shall
be construed to mean that the Secretary of War shall discharge
minors under the age of eighteen years under the circumstances and’
on the conditions prescribed in said section ; and heréafter, if any
officer of the United States shall knowingly enlist or muster into the
military service any person under the age of sixteen years, with or
without the consent .of his parent or guardian, such person so! en-)
listed or recruited shall be immediately discharged upon repayment
of all bounties received: and such recruiting or mustering officer
who shall knowingly enlist any person under sixteen years of age,
shall be dismissed the service, with forfeiture of all pay and allow-.

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ances, and shall be subject to Sack farther punishment asa court
martial may direct.

‘Sec. 6. And be it further enacted, That. section three,’ of an act
entitled ‘‘ An act to amend an act entitled an act for’ enrolling and
calling out the national forces, and for other purpdses,*’ approved
February twenty-four, eighteen hundred and sixty-four, be, and the
same is hereby amended, so as to authorize and direct -district pro-
vost marshals, under.the direction of the Provost Marshal General,
to make a draft for one hundred per centum in addition to the num-
ber required to ‘fill the quota of any district as provided by said
section. ie

Sec. 7. And be it further enacted, That instead of een i pay,
all drafted persons reporting at the place of rendezvous shall be
allowed transportation from their places of residence ; and persons
discharged at the place of rendezvous shall be allowed transportation
to their places of residence.

Sec. 8: And be it further enacted, "That all persons in the naval
service of the United States who have entered said service during
the present rebellion, who have not been credited to the quota of
any town, district, ward, or State, by reason of their being in said
service and not enrolled prior to February twenty-fourth, eighteen
hundred and sixty-four, shall be enrolled and credited to the quotas
of the town, ward, district, or State, in which they respectively re-
side, upon satisfactory proof of their residence made to the Secretary
of War.

Sec. 9. And be it further enacted, That if any person duly drafted
shall be absent from home in prosecution of his usual business, the
provost marshal of the district shall cause him to be duly notified as
soon as may be, and he shall not be deemed a deserter, nor liable as
such, until notice has been given to him, and reasonable time allowed
for him to return and report to the provost marshal of his district ;
but such absence shall not otherwise affect his liability under this act. _

Sec. 10. And be it further enacted, That nothing contained in
this act shall be construed to alter or in any way affect the provisions
of the seventeenth section of an act, approved February twenty-
fourth, eighteen hundred and sixty-four, entitled ‘‘ An act to amend
an act entitled an act for enrolling and calling out the national
forces and for other purposes,’’ approved March third, eighteen
hundred and sixty-three.

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Sec. 11. And be it further enacted, That nothing contained in
this act shall be construed to alter or change the provisions of exist-
ing laws relative to permitting persons liable to military service to
furnish substitutes. Ls

Approved July 4, 1864.
By ORDER OF THE SECRETARY OF WAR:

E. D. TOWNSEND,
Assistant Adjutant General.

OFFICIAL:

Assistant Adjutant General.