viii PREFACE.

The bill, as drafted by the committee of the Grand Army of the Republic, passed
both Houses unanimously and was approved by the Governor. The bill, viz., Chapter
134, Acts of 1896, read as follows:

AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR THE COMPLETION OF THE RECORDS OF THE SOLDIERS, SAILORS AND MARINES
ACCREDITED TO THE STATE OF MARYLAND, IN THE LATE ClVIL WAR, AND TO PUBLISH THE
SAMfi, AND TO MAKE A SUITABLE APPROPRIATION THEREFOR.

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Maryland, That the Governor shall, within thirty days
after the passage of this Act, appoint three citizens, of whom the Adjutant-General of the
State shall be one, and the other two of whom shall be representative soldiers who served
in actual warfare as a part of the quota of the State of Maryland in the United States Army
or Navy during- the late Civil War, as Commissioners of the State to carry out the provisions
of this Act, as hereinafter provided, and who shall serve without pay.

Section £ And be it enacted, That it shall be the duty of the said Commissioners under this Act to classify
and compile, from the documents in the Adjutant-General's office, the records of the several
commands, and the individuals thereof, of Maryland soldiers, sailors and marines serving as
a part of the quota of the State of Maryland in the Army and Navy of the United States dur-
ing the late Civil War, and in case of any deficiency in the record of any individual or com-
mand in the Adjutant-General's office, they shall be empowered to complete the said deficient
records from the records of the War and Navy Departments of the United States, for which
purpose the Governor shall, at the request of the said Commissioners, make requisition for the
desired information upon the Secretaries of the said Departments, in accordance with the ex-
isting laws.

Section 3. And be it enacted, That the said Commissioners shall be empowered to employ such clerical aid,
and purchase such stationery as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act, the
same to be paid for from the appropriation hereinafter provided for. They shall also be em-
powered to deposit with the War and Navy Departments of the United States, in accord-
ance with the existing orders of the said Departments, such a sum of money, to be taken from
the appropriation hereinafter provided for, or may be required by the Secretaries of the said
War and Navy Departments, to secure the United States from liability for any expense in-
curred in copying and completing from their records the deficient records of Maryland sol-
diers, sailors and marines, as provided for in Section 2 of this Act.

Section 4. And be it enacted, That the said Commissioners, upon the completion of the said records, shall
be empowered to have printed and bound in two or more volumes, one thousand copies of the
same, together with brief history of each command, to be distributed as follows: 300 copies to
the headquarters of the Department of Maryland, Grand Army of the Republic, for distribu-
tion to the several Grand Army Posts in the State; 2 copies to each public library and
school library in the State; 1 copy to the Adjutant-General of each of the United States for
each State Library; 10 copies to the Congressional Library, at Washington, D. C.; the bal-
ance of the copies to be deposited with the State Librarian, at Annapolis, for distribution as
may be deemed proper by the Adjutant-General of the State.

Section 5. And be it enacted, That the sum of fifteen thousand dollars, or so much thereof as may be neces-
sary, be, and the same is hereby appropriated, to pay for the provisions of this Act; and the
Comptroller of the State, upon proper vouchers approved by the said Commissioners or a
majority of them, shall, from time to time, draw his warrants upon the State Treasurer for
the amounts necessary to pay for clerical aid, for stationery, and for deposit with the War and
Navy Departments at Washington, a guarantee fund, as provided for in Section 2 of this Act,
and also to pay for the printing, binding and distributing of the copies of the said records, as
provided for in Section 4 of this Act.

Section 6. And be it enacted, That the necessary expenses incurred by the said Commissioners in carry-
ing out. the provisions of this Act, not to exceed the sum of one thousand dollars, shall be
paid out of the said appropriated sum of fifteen thousand dollars, and the said Comptroller is
authorized to draw his warrants upon the State Treasurer therefor, upon receiving an item-
ized account of such expenses, verified by the affidavit of the said Commissioners, or any one
of them.

Section 7. And be it enacted, That this Act shall take effect from the date of its passage.

Approved April 2, 1896.

In pursuance of the provisions of this Act, Governor Lowndes appointed a Com-
mission, consisting of General L. Allison Wilmer, Adjutant-General of Maryland; Dr.
James H. Jarrett, late surgeon 7th Regiment Infantry, Maryland Volunteers, and Colonel