16. Before making a purchase by oral agreement the officer will inform himself concerning prevailing prices by inquiry among principal dealers in his locality.— A. R., 567.

Open purchases for the military service on or near an Indian reservation will be made as far as practicable from the Indians, when fair and reasonable rates, not exceeding the market prices in the locality, can be obtained.—A. R., 568.

17. An officer of the Quartermaster's Department who makes a purchase of supplies, or an engagement of services not personal, after public notice of less than ten days, or an officer of any department (except the Medical Department) who makes a purchase of supplies or engagement of services under paragraph 14, will transmit with his monthly money accounts, to the head of the bureau to which the matter pertains, a report setting forth in detail the quantity, price, name of seller, etc., of the supplies so purchased, or the nature of the services so engaged, and the reasons for the mode adopted in each case. The head of the bureau will submit these reports to the Secretary of War.-See A. R., 569.

A. R., 571 to 578, in relation to bonds of disbursing officers, bidders, and contractors, will be referred to generally by a reference to paragraphs in the Regulations.

18. All contracts will be executed in quintuplicate. One is for the contractor, one for the contracting officer, one for the Auditor for the War Department, one for the head of the bureau to which the contract pertains, and one for the Returns Office of the Interior Department.-A. R., 554.

19. Upon receipt of the contract in quintuplicate at the proper bureau it will be examined, and, if found correct, approved. Should any illegality be discovered, it will be submitted to the Secretary of War.-4. R., 555.

20. The copy intended for the Returns Office will be sent thereto by the officer making and signing the same, as soon as possible after the contract has been made and approved, and within thirty days, together with all bids, offers, and proposals made by persons to obtain the contract, and with a copy of the advertisement; all of which will be fastened together by a ribbon and seal, and numbered in regular order, with the affidavit of the contracting officer appended in the following form: I do solemnly swear that the copy of contract hereto annexed is an exact copy of a contract made by me personally with ; that I made the same fairly, without any benefit or advantage to myself, or allowing any such benefit or advantage corruptly to the said or any other person; and that the papers accompanying include all those relating to the said contract, as required by the statute in such case made and provided.

-A. R., 556.

21. In case of a purchase made by an officer of the Quartermaster's or Subsistence Department after public notice of ten days or more, the copy intended for the Auditor for the War Department must be accompanied by a copy of the advertisement, a certificate of the contracting officer as to the time and manner of its publication, and his certificate that the award was made to the lowest responsible bidder for the best and most suitable article.-A. R., 557.

22. All papers relating to or affecting the performance of any contract will finally be transmitted to the bureau of the War Department to which the contract pertains, except as provided in paragraph 704.—A. R., 558.

MARKING SUPPLIES BY CONTRACTORS.

23. Contractors furnishing supplies will mark and distinguish them with their names and with such other designations as shall be directed by the purchasing officer.-4. R., 570.

CONTRACTORS' BONDS.

24. Bonds for the faithful performance of contracts for supplies or service will be required in the following cases:

1. When the consideration is $3,000 or more, whatever may be the length of time required for the full performance of the contract.

2. When the consideration is over $250 but less than $3,000 and the contract can not be fully performed within thirty days from its date.

Bonds may be exacted or, in the discretion of the respective chiefs of bureaus concerned, waived in the following cases:

1. When the consideration is less than $3,000 and the contract is to be fully performed within thirty days from its date.

2. When the consideration is not more than $250, whatever may be the length of time required for full performance.

3. When the contract is for furnishing meals to recruits and recruiting parties. The amount of penalty in a contractor's bond will be fixed by the contracting officer, and will not be less than one-tenth nor more than the full amount of the consideration of the contract.

Nothing in this paragraph is to be construed as authorizing the waiving of bonds required under paragraph 565.—A. R., 559; see A. R., 559–565.

PURCHASE OF SUPPLIES AND ENGAGEMENT OF SERVICES.

GENERAL PROVISIONS.

25. No contract or purchase on behalf of the United States shall be made, unless the same is authorized by law, or is under an appropriation adequate to its fulfillment, except for clothing, subsistence, forage, fuel, quarters, or transportation, which, however, shall not exceed the necessities of the current year. (R. S., 3732.) No officer of the United States shall accept voluntary service for the Government or employ personal service in excess of that authorized by law, except in case of emergency involving loss of life or destruction of property. (Act approved May 1, 1884.)-A. R., 515.

26. The labor of troops or Government employees, or Government means of transportation, will not be used to enable contractors to fulfill contracts, except in cases of manifest necessity, and then only on the written authority of the proper commander. Full deduction will be made for Government services when rendered.A. R., 516.

27. Articles of foreign production or manufacture for the service of the United States will not be purchased abroad for importation without special authority from the Secretary of War.-A. R., 517.

28. Supplies, and services not personal, required in the various departments of the Army will be procured where they can be had cheapest, quality and cost of transportation in the case of supplies being considered:

1. After public notice inviting proposals for thirty days or more, or for ten days or more but less than thirty days, or for less than ten days, according to the needs of the service.

2. Without public notice.

Personal services are such as the individual employed or contracted with must perform in person directly under the control and supervision of an officer or agent of the Government, as distinguished from services the performance of which may be delegated by the contractor to others. Bills rendered for such services must contain no charge for material.-4. R., 518.

29. An officer charged with the duty of making a contract or purchase is responsible under the laws and regulations for his action. Permission or orders to make a contract or purchase without inviting competition will not justify the procedure, and will not be given.-A. R., 519.

ADVERTISING FOR PROPOSALS.

30. In cases of large purchases a period of thirty or more days should intervene between date of first publication and of opening proposals. In small purchases, from ten to thirty days should intervene, and when the public exigency (constituting an

emergency) does not permit ten days to intervene, the period should be for as many days as the circumstances will permit. Advertising for proposals by newspapers, in accordance with Article LIV, will be adopted when time permits and the quantity or value of the purchase, or character of the services, in the opinion of the purchasing officer,

will justify the expense. When notice of less than thirty days is given, advertising

by circulars (sent to principal dealers in the localities where the supplies or services are desired, and posted in public places) is permissible. A purchasing officer may advertise by newspapers and circulars at the same time.—A. R., 520; see A. R., 521–524. 31. A proposal by a person who affixes to his signature the word "president,” "secretary," ," "agent," or other designation, without disclosing his principal, is the proposal of the individual. That by a corporation should be signed with the name of the corporation, followed by the signature of the president, secretary, or other person authorized to bind it in the matter. That by a firm should be signed with the firm name by one of the members of the firm. If the signature is that of an officer, attorney, or agent of a corporation, or of an attorney or agent of a firm or individual, and his authority to act on behalf of his principal is not a matter of general notoriety in the locality where the proposals are opened, the officer who opens proposals should, before considering the proposal, satisfy himself that the signer is vested with sufficient authority to represent his principal in the transaction.

32. A contract of a corporation should have the name of the corporation written in the body of the instrument as one of the parties thereto, and should be signed by the officer or person who has been authorized to contract in its behalf, who should sign the corporate name and his own, and affix the corporate seal if there be one. The contracting officer will, in all cases, satisfy himself that the signer has authority to bind the corporation, and will either require from him satisfactory evidence thereof, and file the same with the contract, or will certify on the contract that he has satisfied himself of the signer's authority and has waived this requirement. If evidence be filed with the contract, it should consist of extracts from the articles of incorporation, the by-laws, or the minutes of the board of directors, duly certified by the custodian of such records under the corporate seal (if there be one) showing the signer to be properly vested with authority to bind the corporation.

33. When the principal of the bond is a corporation, a copy of the record of the. selection of the officers executing the bond in its behalf, and a copy of the by-laws or other record of the proceedings of the governing body of the corporation, showing their authority to execute the same, will be attached to the bond, these copies to be certified by the custodian of such records under the seal of the corporation to be correct copies.

APPROPRIATIONS.

34. The fiscal year ends on June 30. The quarters of the fiscal year are as follows: First quarter, July 1 to September 30; second, October 1 to December 31; third, January 1 to March 31; fourth, April 1 to June 30.—A. R., 617.

MONEY ACCOUNTABILITY.

PUBLIC MONEYS.

35. The use of moneys for purposes other than those for which appropriated, liquidation of liabilities of one fiscal year by use of moneys appropriated for another, and expenditures in a fiscal year of any sum in excess of appropriations for that year, or involving the Government in any contract for future payment of money in excess of appropriations, except as authorized by paragraph 515, are prohibited.-A. R., 579.

36. Chiefs of bureaus will see that funds in the hands of a disbursing officer are limited to his requirements for a brief period, and that as much as practicable of public moneys placed to his credit is kept with the Treasurer or an assistant treasurer of the United States. Estimates for funds should state the most convenient places of deposit.

37. Lists of national-bauk depositories, designated for the use of disbursing officers, with the amounts of securities filed by each with the United States Treasurer, will be published from time to time in orders from the Adjutant-General's Office.-A. R., 581.

38. Where there are two or more designated depositories in the same place, credits should be so regulated by each disbursing officer there stationed as to maintain, as far as possible (by deposits, disbursements, and transfers), a proportion between the amount of his credit at each depository and the amount of securities filed by it with the United States Treasurer. Transfers from one depository to another are not authorized, except through the Treasury Department.-A. R., 582.

39. When an officer disburses money in different capacities, his deposits and accounts will be kept distinct, according to the bureaus to which they pertain.— A. R., 583.

40. Public moneys subject to disbursement coming into the hands of an officer from any source must be promptly placed by him to his credit with the Treasurer or an assistant treasurer of the United States, or a duly designated depository, or transferred to a disbursing officer of that branch of the public service to which the money pertains; in either of which cases a receipt will be obtained. Exceptions to this rule are allowed where a disbursing officer has been specially authorized by the Secretary of War to keep in his personal possession, at his own risk, the public moneys which have been intrusted to him for disbursement, and money in hand may be disbursed at once without being placed in depositories if payments are due. The amount of subsistence funds which a commissary may keep in his personal possession, at his own risk, is stated in orders from the War Department.-A. R., 584.

41. A disbursing officer ceasing to act as such and having public funds to his credit in any office or bank will at once inform the Secretary of the Treasury stating what checks drawn against the same are still outstanding and unpaid.—A. R., 585. 42. All amounts of money held at the end of each fiscal year by the Treasurer, an assistant treasurer, or a designated depository, credited to a disbursing officer whose account has remained unchanged, either by deposit or payment, for the space of three years, shall be covered into the Treasury, to be placed to the credit of such officer if it be found that he is entitled to the credit.-A. R., 586.

DISBURSING OFFICERS.

43. No officer disbursing money for the military service, or directing the disbursement thereof, shall be concerned individually, directly or indirectly, in the purchase or sale of any article intended for, used by, or pertaining to the department of the public service in which he is engaged.—A. R., 587.

44. No officer or clerk of a disbursing officer shall be interested in the purchase of any soldier's certificate of pay due, or any other claim against the United States. -A. R., 588.

45. Officers or agents in the military service will not purchase supplies for the Government from any other person in the military service, nor contract with any such person to furnish supplies or service to the Government, nor make any Government purchase or contract in which such person shall be admitted to share or receive benefit.-A. R., 589.

46. If any disbursing officer shall bet at cards or any game of hazard his commanding officer will suspend his functions, require him to turn over all public funds in his keeping, and will immediately report the case to the proper bureau of the War Department. He will also report the case to the department commander, who will at once convene a court-martial for the trial of the officer.—A. R., 590.

47. Every disbursing officer, in opening his first account and before issuing any checks, will furnish the depositary on whom the checks are to be drawn with his official signature, duly verified by some officer whose signature is known to the depositary.-A. R., 591.

48. Disbursing officers will not issue vouchers for unpaid accounts as due bills against the United States, but a certified statement of personal services and of

wages due may be given to a discharged employee who, for want of funds, was not paid at time of discharge.

Disbursing officers will not settle with heirs, executors, or administrators except by authority of the proper bureau of the War Department, and upon accounts that have been duly audited and certified by the proper accounting officers of the Treasury.-A. R., 650–652.

49. An officer is not authorized to insure public money or property, and he will not be allowed credit for any expense paid for the collection of money on checks, except as provided for military attachés serving abroad.—4. R., 593.

TRANSFERS.

50. Public funds will, in general, be transferred as follows: The officer making the transfer will draw his check directing the depositary to place a stated amount to the official credit of the officer named therein. The check will be sent to the depositary and not to the officer in whose favor it is drawn. If it is necessary that the officer to whom the funds are transferred shall receive them without delay, the transferring officer may draw his check and transmit the same direct to the officer requiring them. In either case, invoices of the funds transferred are sent to the receiving officer.-A. R., 594.

51. Funds will not be transferred from one appropriation for the use of another, by borrowing or otherwise.-A. R., 595.

52. The transfer of public funds from the credit of one United States disbursing officer to another by means of a United States disbursing officer's check (paragraph 50) is permissible only on the books of the same office or bank. Transfers of funds pertaining to the military service from one office or bank to another office or bank should be made only by the Secretary of the Treasury, upon the recommendation of the Secretary of War, and then only to like credit-not from one disbursing officer to another.

A balance of appropriation to the credit of a disbursing officer which is no longer needed for disbursement by him, but which it is desired shall be placed to the credit of another officer in a distant depository, should be deposited by the first-mentioned officer to the credit of the Treasurer of the United States, as a repayment to the appropriation, and a requisition should be made by the Secretary of War for the placing by the Treasury Department of an equivalent amount to the credit of the other officer in the distant depository.-Ruling Sec. Treas., April 11 and 18, 1898— 75138 A. G. O.; Cir. 10, A. G. O., 1898.

CHECKS.

In

53. A disbursing officer may draw his check in favor of himself "or bearer" for making payments of amounts not exceeding $20; for making payments at a distance from a depository; or for making payments of fixed salaries due at a certain period, if the check be not drawn more than two days before the salaries become due. all other cases checks will be made payable to "order" or "bearer," and will be drawn only in favor of the persons, firms, or corporations by name, to whom the payments are to be made.-A. R., 596.

54. Each check of a disbursing officer must state on its face the object of the expenditure, and in case of payment to officers or enlisted men the period covered by the payment. Such statements must be brief but clear, as, for instance, "pay," “pay roll," or "payment of troops," adding the post or station; "purchase of subsistence" or of other supplies, naming them; "on contract for construction," mentioning the fortification or other public work for which the payment is made; "payments under $20," etc. Payment is refused on all checks where this requirement is disregarded and report of the fact made to the Treasury.-A. R., 597.

55. Disbursing officers will not pay an account until it is due. In cases of contracts for the performance of service or delivery of articles, payment will not exceed the value of services rendered or articles actually delivered.--A. R., 598.

56. When an original check of a disbursing officer, not exceeding $2,500 in