he fhall by his commanding officer, if an officer, be put in arreft; if a non-commiffioned officer or foldier, be imprifoned till he fhall be either tried by a court martial, or fhall be lawfully discharged by proper authority.

Art. 42. No officer or foldier who fhall be put in arreft, or imprisonment, fhall continue in his confinement more than eight days, or till fuch time as a court-martial can be conveniently alfembled.

Art. 43. No officer commanding a guard, or provoft marshal, shall refuse to receive or keep any prisoner committed to his charge, by an officer belonging to the continental forces; which officer fhall at the fame time deliver an account in writing, figned by himself, of the crime with which the faid prifoner is charged.

Art. 44. No officer commanding a guard, or provoft marshal, fhall prefume to release any prifoner committed to his charge, without proper authority for fo doing; nor fhall he suffer any prifoner. to escape, on the penalty of being punished for it, by the fentence of a general court-martial

Art 45. Every officer or provoft marshal, to whose charge prifoners fhall be committed, is hereby required, within twenty-four hours after fuch commitment, or as foon as he fhall be relieved from his guard, to give in writing to the colonel of the regiment to whom the prifoner belongs (where the prifoner is confined upon the guard belonging to the faid regiment, and that his offence only relates to the neglect of duty in his own corps,) or to the commander

P

commander in chief, their names, their crimes, and the names of the officers who committed them, on the penalty of being punished for his disobedience or neglect, at the difcretion of a general courts martial.

Art. 46. And if any officer under arrest shall leave his confinement before he is fet at liberty by the officer who confined him, or by a fuperior power, he fhall be cafhiered for it.

Art. 47. Whatfoever commiffioned officer shall be convicted before a general court-martial, of behaving in a fcandalous infamous manner, fuch as is unbecoming the character of an officer and a gentleman, fhall be discharged from the fervice.

Art. 48. All officers, conductors, gunners, matroffes, drivers, or any other perfons whatfoever, receiving pay or hire, in the fervice of the continental artillery, fhall be governed by the aforefaid rules and articles, and fhall be subject to be tried by courts-martial, in like manner with the officers and foldiers of the continental troops,

Art. 49. For differences arifing among themfelves, or in matters relating folely to their own corps, the courts-martial may be compofed of their own officers; but where a number fufficient of fuch officers cannot be affembled, or in matters wherein other corps are interested, the officers of artillery fhall fit in courts-martial, with the officers of the other corps.

Art. 50. All crimes not capital, and all diforders and neglects, which officers and foldiers may

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be guilty of, to the prejudice of good order and military difcipline, though not mentioned in the articles of war, are to be taken cognizance of by a general or regimental court-martial, according to the nature and degree of the offence, and be punished at their difcretion.

Art. 51. That no perfons shall be sentenced by a court-martial to fuffer death, except in the cafes expressly mentioned in the foregoing articles; nor fhall any punishment be inflicted at the difcretion of a court-martial, other than degrading, cashiering, drumming out of the army, whipping not exceeding 39 lafhes, fine not exceeding two months pay of the offender, imprisonment not exceeding one month.

Art. 52. The field officers of each and every regiment are to appoint fome fuitable perfon belonging to fuch regiment, to receive all fuch fines as may arife within the fame, for any breach of any of the foregoing articles, and fhall direct the fame to be carefully and properly applied to the relief of fuch fick, wounded, or neceffitous foldiers, as belong to fuch regiment; and fuch perfon fhall account with fuch officer for all fines received, and the application thereof.

Art. 53. All members fitting in courts-martial fhall be worn by the Prefident of faid courts, which Prefident fhall himself be fworn by the officer in faid court next in rank :-The oath to be administered previous to their proceeding to the trial of any offender, in form following, viz.

"You A. B. fwear that you will well and truly try, and impartially determine the cause of the prifoner now to be tried, according to the rules for regulating the Continental Army. So help you

God."

Art. 54. All perfons called to give evidence, in any cafe, before a court-martial, who fhall refufe to give evidence, fhall be punished for fuch refusal, at the difcretion of fuch court-martial. The oath to be administered in the following form, viz.

"You fwear the evidence you fhall give in the cafe now, in hearing, fhall be the truth, the whole truth, and_nothing but the truth. So help you God.”

Art. 55. Every officer commanding a regiment, troop, or company, fhall, upon notice given to him by the commiffary of the mufters, or from one of his deputies, affemble the regiment, troop, or company under his command, in the next convenient place for their being mustered.

Art. 56. Every colonel or other field officer, or officer commanding any corps, to which there is no field officer, and actually refiding with it, may give forloughs to non-commiffioned officers and foldiers, in fuch numbers, and for fo long a time, as he fhall judge to be moft confiftent with the good of the fervice; but no non-commiffioned officer or foldier fhall, by leave of his captain, or inferior officer, commanding the troop or company (his field officer not being prefent) be abfent above twenty days in fix months, nor fhall more

than

than two private men be abfent at the fame time from their troop or company, excepting fome extraordinary occafion fhall require it, of which occafion the field officer prefent with, and commanding the regiment or independant corps, is to be judge.

Art. 57. At every mufter the commanding officer of each regiment, troop, or company, then prefent, fhall give to the commiffary of mufters certificates figned by himself, fignifying how long fuch officers, non-commiffioned officers, and foldiers, who fhall not appear at the said muster, have been abfent, and the reafon of their abfence; which reafons, and the time of abfence, shall be inserted in the mufter rolls, oppofite to the refpective names of fuch abfentees: The faid certificates fhall, together with the mufter rolls, be by the faid commiffary transmitted to the General, and to this or any future Congrefs of the United Colonies, or Committee appointed thereby, within twenty days next after fuch mufter being taken; on failure whereof, the commiffary fo offending, fhall be difcharged from the fervice.

Art. 58. Every officer who fhall be convicted before a general court-martial of having figned a falfe certificate, relating to the abfence of either officers, non-commiffioned officer, or private foldier, fhall be cashiered.

Art. 59. Every officer who fhall knowingly make a falfe mufter of man or horfe, and every officer or commiffary, who fhall willingly fign, direct,

or