1859, Feb. 1. 1871, March 28. 1874, Dec. 9. Judicial Sales. 1883, March 31, § 4. Revenue PAGE 17 (D.) STATUTES OF THE STATES AND TERRITORIES. Alabama, 1866, Nov. 24. Incorporation, N. O. M. & T. Railroad.... Code § 1930, 1931, 1932. Telegraph Companies. 307 § 3581, 3583, 3586, 3587, 3589, 3500, 3593, 8594. Telegraphs, condemnation of land. 308 1852, § 2024. Code 1867, § 2426, invest ments.. Arkansas, 1853, Jan. 11. Memp. & L. R. Railroad.... Settlers. Settlers 469 614 611 132 133 134 134 614 613 1870, § 221. License tax.... Gen. Stat. ch. 80, art. 3, § 18, sub. 1, p. 633; limitations, Id. Louisiana, 1869, Aug. 19. Drawbridge across Pearl River.. Civil Code § 2412, § 2398, Civil Code, 1870. Husband and Rev. Code, 1870, arts. 126, 127, 128.. Maryland, 1853, May 3. Washington Aqueduct 160 21 69 446 446 647 1872, Jan. 27. Grenada, H. & E. Railroad Co Missouri, 1879, Rev. Stat. § 3518. Amendments... Nebraska, 1881. Compiled Statutes, ch. 26, § 3; ch. 13, § 14; ch. 76, New Jersey, 1864, March 2. Bonds for bounties. 265 712 97 435 New York, 1843, ch. 87. Indians..... § 834, Code Civil Procedure. Evidence.. 107 254 xxviii TABLE OF STATUTES CITED. PAGE Pennsylvania, 1833, April 8. Purdon's Dig. (10 Ed.) 1475 § 10, devises.. 532 1807, April 13. Purdon's Dig. 535, § 15. Ejectment..... 535 Virginia, 1884, ch. 445, §§ 30, 31. 179 (E.) FOREIGN STATUTES. England, 1 & 2, Vic. ch. 10. Judgment liens..... 352 22 & 23, Vie. ch. 35 & 23 & 24 Vic. ch. 38. Investment by trustees.. 466 1862, 25 & 26, Vic. ch. 63 *523 CASES ADJUDGED IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES, AT OCTOBER TERM, 1884. UNITED STATES v. MORTON. APPEAL FROM THE COURT OF CLAIMS. Submitted October 15, 1884.-Decided October 27, 1884. The time of service of a cadet in the Military Academy at West Point, from July 1st, 1865, to June 15th, 1869, is to be regarded as "actual time of service in the army," within the meaning of the acts of February 24th, 1881, and June 30th, 1882, 21 Stat. 346, and 22 Stat. 118, in computing his increase of pay" for each term of five years of service," under § 1262 of the Revised Statutes. Charles Morton was appointed a conditional cadet in the service of the United States on March 6th, 1865, and was admitted as a conditional cadet on July 1st, 1865, into the United States Military Academy at West Point, and received his warrant as a cadet, signed by the Secretary of War, in January, 1866, stating that he had been appointed by the President a cadet of the United States Military Academy, to rank as such from July 1st, 1865. On the 1st of July, 1865, when he was so admitted as a conditional cadet, he entered into an agreement, as required by law, bearing that date, and subscribed and sworn to by him, which stated, that, "having been selected for an appointment as cadet in the Military Academy of the United States," he engaged, with the consent of his father, in the event of his receiving such appointment, that he would "serve VOL. CXII.-1 Argument for Appellant. in the army of the United States" for eight years, unless sooner discharged by competent authority. The instrument embodied also the oath required by the act of July 2d, 1862, 12 Stat. 502, to be thereafter taken and subscribed by every person "elected or appointed to any office of honor or profit under the government of the United States, either in the civil, military, or naval departments of the public service, excepting the President of the United States," "before entering upon the duties of such office, and before being entitled to any of the salary or other emoluments thereof." Part of the oath was, "that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter." He remained at the Academy from July 1st, 1865, until June 15th, 1869, when he was duly graduated therefrom. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the third regiment of cavalry, to date from June 15th, 1869, and thereafter as a first lieutenant in the same regiment, to take effect from September 25th, 1876. He held the latter position down to March 31st, 1883. He faithfully discharged the duties imposed on him by these various appointments, being continuously in the service of the United States, in a military capacity, from July 1st, 1865, to March 31st, 1883. In computing his service pay, he was not allowed credit for the time he was a cadet at West Point as part of his time of service in the army. He brought suit in the Court of Claims, against the United States, in July, 1883, to recover $169.07, as withheld from him in respect of time between February 24th, 1881, and March 31st, 1883, and, on the foregoing facts, that court rendered a judgment in his favor for that amount (see 19 C. Cl. 200), from which the United States appealed. Mr. Solicitor General, in submitting the case on behalf of the appellant, rested upon the opinion of Attorney-General McVeagh, dated May 14th, 1881, under which the Executive Departments acted in rejecting the appellee's claim. In this opinion, among other things, it was said "The question submitted by you is whether the period passed by a cadet at West Point receiving his military and other instruction at that Acad Opinion of the Court. emy is to be computed as 'actual time of service in the army;' and I have no difficulty whatever in answering this question in the negative." Attorney-General Cushing said: "We see by the statute that the internal military organization of the Academy is for the purpose of military instruction. It is not actual service in the army." 7 Opins. Att'ys-General, 333. If it had been the intention of Congress to enact that the period passed by the cadets at West Point should be placed upon the footing of actual service in the army, it would have been perfectly easy to have said so by language incapable of being misunderstood; and it seems to me that it is extremely undesirable to torture the language of Congress in order to find in it, by relation to some other statute, a technical effect, when the apt words to express such an intention readily occur to every unbiased mind. It is very true that the corps of cadets at West Point constitute part of the army, but it does not follow that a cadet pursuing his studies at West Point is in actual service in the army, within the meaning of the clause in the army appropriation bill; and, if Congress at any time desires to add this advantage to those already possessed by the young men who are educated at the public expense at the Military Academy, it will be very easy for it to do so by declaring that the time passed by cadets at the Military or Naval Academy shall be computed as "actual time of service in the army or navy;" but, until language clearly indicative of this meaning is used it would be, in my judgment, very unwise to endeavor to extract it from a clause in the army appropriation bill treating only of the army as in actual service in the ordinary meaning of the phrase. Mr. S. S. Henkle for appellee. MR. JUSTICE BLATCHFORD delivered the opinion of the court. He stated the facts in the foregoing language, and continued: It is provided as follows by § 1262 of the Revised Statutes: "There shall be allowed and paid to each commissioned officer below the rank of brigadier-general . ten per centum of their current yearly pay for each term of five years of ser |