G. E. P. PREFACE. Commissions by brevet have lost much of their value in this country; indeed, it is now only in the case of an assignment to duty by the President according to "brevet rank," that the brevet takes practical effect. This has been the result of legislation, which has deprived this kind of military appointment of the powers and privileges which, by the common law military, attached to it. It has also, as a consequence of its indiscriminate bestowal, ceased to be a distinguishing mark of honor; nevertheless, the subject is not without its interest, even to us. It is, of course, possible that the brevet may hereafter be re-vitalized, but, independently of this consideration, it has become a subject of historical interest. In England, the brevet has been known since. the days of William the Third, and has formed so important an ingredient in the military organization, that it is impossible to arrive at a correct understanding of the military institutions of that country, unless familiar with its precise position and effect. It has there largely affected the whole system of promotion, and has been made the subject of several parliamentary inquiries. With us, it was resorted to in the early days of the Revolution, and from that time to this, has had a place in our history; it is, therefore, as a matter of historical interest that the subject seems to claim attention. Regarding it in this light, I have embodied in these pages, and arranged chronologically, all the matter which |