be securely pasted to the third fold of the papers to which they belong in the order of their numbers and dates, and care must be taken not to interfere with previous indorsements or receiving-stamp impressions.

Official chan

1659. (1) Every person in the Navy making an official communication of any kind to any superior authority, other than his nels. immediate commanding officer, shall send the same unsealed to his commanding officer, to be by him remarked upon and forwarded.

(2) Officers shall not sign nor forward informal communications, or such as are not prepared in accordance with these instructions. (3) In forwarding letters, the forwarding stamp and indorsement of the superior officer shall be on the back and not on the face.

Informalities.

Forwarding

stamps.

Not official if

(4) No written communication shall be received as official which is not forwarded through the prescribed channels, and with the improperly sent. indorsements of the officers through whom forwarded.

1660. (1) No letter of advice or transmittal shall accompany Letters of adreturns, requisitions, vouchers, and reports on prescribed forms vice, when unwhich are complete in themselves when properly authenticated, and which do not require special explanation.

necessary.

Captain acting

(2) When a ship not attached to a fleet or squadron is alone, the captain shall communicate directly with the Department; if not singly. alone, through the senior officer present.

Certain papers

of staff.

(3) All periodical returns and requisitions (except such as are required to be transmitted by pay officers to the Auditor for the to go to the chief Navy Department and requisitions for supplies from ships within the limits of the United States), and all papers requiring the action of the commander in chief, shall be forwarded by captains to the chief of staff. The latter shall, if necessary, refer them to the officers of the fleet staff concerned, who shall return them, with such remarks as are deemed appropriate, to the chief of staff for transmission by him to the commander in chief for disposition.

(4) When ships of a fleet or squadron are separated from the com- Correspond. mander in chief, all periodical returns and, if information would ence when sepaotherwise be delayed, all reports, shall be sent directly to the rated from comDepartment through the senior officer present. Copies of reports shall be sent to the commander in chief.

(5) Captains of ships shall inform the commander in chief whenever, owing to urgency and to his remoteness, correspondence which would ordinarily pass through him is transmitted direct.

mander in chief.

Ships at navy

1661. (1) When ships are at a navy yard, correspondence in regard to all matters connected with the navy yard, shall be direct yard. with the commandant thereof; and correspondence with the Navy Department, on matters connected with the yard, shall be through the commandant.

yard.

(2) When a ship attached to a fleet or squadron is at a navy yard, Ships of a all required fleet or squadron reports shall be made directly to the squadron at navy commander in chief; and all correspondence with the Navy Department, in matters not connected with the navy yard, shall be through him, except when owing to his absence, it would occasion undue delay; in which case such correspondence shall be through the commandant. (See art. 1660, par. 5.)

Communica

1662. (1) All official communications from the Navy Department, or other superior authority, dealing with any matter of ship's tions relating to duty, will be addressed to the captain, who shall forward them to ship's duty. the heads of the departments concerned for their information and

Communica

guidance. These latter officers shall return the letters to the captain with indorsements showing that their contents have been noted or copied.

The formula, (2) The employment of the general formula, "By direction of the "By direction of Secretary," upon orders or communications, will be discontinued, the Secretary." except by the Judge-Advocate General and the chief clerk of the Department. When it becomes necessary for others in authority, in giving an order or making a communication, to refer to the direction of the Secretary, the reference shall be to a specified authorization. (3) All official correspondence between the Navy Department and tions with other its bureaus or officers with other Executive Departments, except from Executive Deofficers serving temporarily under such departments, and excepting partments. also correspondence in relation to accounts, pensions, or records of service, will be conducted by the Secretary of the Navy. Absence of (4) In the actual absence of the chief of bureau, the communicachief of bureau. tions, orders, bills, requisitions, and papers requiring to be signed by him shall he signed by the acting chief of such bureau, if one shall have been specially appointed by the President; but, if none such shall have been appointed, then by the assistant; or, if there be none, then by the chief clerk of such bureau.

Correspond

officers with other branches.

(5) Official correspondence between officers of the Navy and ence of naval officials of the public service, must be courteous in tone and free from any expressions of a personal nature. Matters involving questions of jurisdiction, or conflict of authority, which can not be reconciled by correspondence between officers, must be referred, by officers of the Navy, to the Navy Department.

ence

Correspond- (6) (a) Commandants of navy yards and stations shall correspond between directly with the bureaus of the Navy Department concerning the commandants work of their commands, subject to the limitations contained in article 1656, paragraph 3.

and bureaus.

(b) All communications from the bureaus relative to matters under the cognizance of the commandant shall be addressed to him, and shall be forwarded by him to the heads of the departments concerned, who shall return them to the commandant with indorsements showing that their contents have been noted or copied. Heads of de- (c) Heads of departments shall address their letters to the commandant, who shall, in case he does not himself decide upon the matter, indorse and forward them to the bureaus concerned. Heads of departments may, however, appeal to the Navy Department from a decision of the commandant.

partments.

From marine

(d) The routine papers, and the papers referred to in article 990, detachment of a from a marine detachment serving within a navy yard, properly navy yard. addressed to the officer for whom intended, shall be forwarded through the commandant. Duplicates of (7) Flag officers and others on foreign service shall forward to the important papers Navy Department by different conveyances, duplicates and, if necessary, triplicates of all important letters, stating at the top of each copy, in red ink, when and by what conveyance the original was sent.

to be sent.

Translations.

Orders, by whom signed.

Signatures of

(8) Whenever letters or documents in foreign languages are transmitted, they shall be accompanied, if possible, by translations. (9) Commanders in chief, commandants of navy yards, and senior officers present shall themselves sign all orders issued by their authority.

(10) No officer left in command during the temporary absence of officers tempor- a commander in chief or of a commandant of a station shall allow arily in com- himself to be addressed by either of those titles, nor shall he sub

mand.

scribe himself otherwise than by the use of the words "commanding," or as "senior officer present," as the case may be, after the title of his rank.

Officer in com

communications.

(11) All communications, orders, bills, requisitions, and papers which by law or regulation are to be signed, approved, or forwarded mand to sign by the commanding officer of any ship, navy yard, or station, must be actually signed by such officer; and in his absence, by the line officer next in rank and actually in command at the time.

Correspond

(12) Captains of ships shall conduct all correspondence with their commander in chief or with the Navy Department upon all matters ence of captains. relating to their commands. Letters of heads of departments of the ship upon such subjects shall be addressed to the captain, who may, as he deems best, either forward the original with a proper indorsement, keeping a copy of both letter and indorsement, or write a separate letter and retain the original on the ship's files.

(13) All communications to the Navy Department, or other superior authority, relating to the efficiency or the requirements of a command, shall be signed by the commanding officer. (14) All official letters addressed to subordinates on board ship shall be forwarded through the captain.

(15) Official correspondence between subordinate officers of ships, navy yards, or stations, is forbidden.

Correspondence of commanding officers.

Letters ad

dressed to subordinates.

Papers requir

action.

(16) The term "forwarded" may be affixed to such papers as are complete in themselves, and which do not require an expression of ing no official opinion from the office through which they are transmitted. Such papers may be transmitted under the indorsement of an officer of the personal staff, by direction of the commander in chief, the commandant, or the senior officer present.

Papers requir

tion.

(17) All officers through whom communications from subordinates are sent for transmittal to higher authority, shall forward the ing official acsame, if in proper form and language, as soon after their receipt as practicable, and shall invariably state their opinions in writing, by indorsement or otherwise, in relation to every subject so submitted by themselves for decision.

Preservation

ence.

1663. (1) Officers shall enter in proper books, copies of all official letters sent, and file and preserve all official documents received. of correspondThe date of receipt and acknowledgment of every document shall be written on its face. In case of papers bearing indorsements, the receiving stamp shall follow the last indorsement or be on the last indorsement slip.

(2) Letter books, containing copies of all orders given and official Permanent letters written, and the original of all letters received on public records of correspondence. service at each navy yard and shore station, by the commanding officer, shall be kept at such yard or station and preserved. Commanding officers may take copies of all orders or letters sent or received.

(3) The official records of all boards, of temporary offices, and of all ships in commission shall, when completed, be forwarded to the Navy Department.

1664. (1) Copies of orders and instructions issued by a commander in chief afloat, and all his official correspondence of public interest, shall be sent to the Navy Department.

(2) Whenever it becomes necessary for the commander in chief, the commandant of a station, the senior officer present, or the captain of a ship on detached service, to issue an order involving travel, or an order transferring an officer from one ship or duty to

12326-26

Completed records to be sent to Department.

Information

from command

ers in chief.

Copies of orders to officers to be

sent to Bureau of Navigation.

another, a copy of such order shall be forwarded immediately to the Bureau of Navigation by the officer issuing it. (See art. 245.)

Reports of sub- 1665. Reports from the executive and other subordinate officers, or ordinates after from any other person, made to the commanding officer of a ship after a battle, or any important service, shall be forwarded to the Navy Department, and the commanding officer shall retain copies.

battle.

Returns.

Orders to be acknowledged.

Communica

1666. Officers required to make periodical returns and reports must keep themselves supplied with the necessary blanks by application to the proper bureau or officer. In the absence of printed forms, they shall prepare the required returns in manuscript.

1667. (1) All communications received from a superior, except such as require neither action nor reply, shall be immediately acknowledged.

(2) Communications received by a bureau or office containing intions to be refer- formation a knowledge of which is necessary or would be useful to the Department or to its bureaus or offices, shall be immediately referred accordingly.

red when necessary.

Forms of orders to the service.

Details of orders.

General Orders.

1668. Orders and notices of a general or circular character, except such as are issued by commandants of shore stations, or commanders in chief or commanding officers afloat, to take effect within the limits of their respective commands, will be confined to the following prescribed series, each issue of which shall bear a number, the numbers of each series to be consecutive:

(a) General Orders.

(b) General Court-Martial Orders.

(c) Special Orders.

(d) Departmental Orders.

(e) Navy-Yard Orders.

1669. (1) General Orders shall include all orders of permanent application addressed to the naval service, ceremonial orders, commendations of persons in the service, changes in Navy Department publications, notices of information and of opinions of the Attorney General, statutes, etc.

(2) General Court-Martial Orders shall include court-martial orders embodying the action of the revising authority.

(3) Special Orders shall include orders of temporary application addressed to a part or whole of the naval service, and of such character that after being noted or complied with they may be destroyed.

(4) Departmental Orders are orders governing the personnel of the Department; if they are "starred" they are applicablo also to the navy yards, etc. They emanate from, and will be distributed by, the office of the Secretary of the Navy.

(5) Navy-Yard Orders are orders limited in their scope to the affairs pertaining to navy yards, etc. They emanate from, and will be distributed by, the office of the Secretary of the Navy.

1670. (1) All General Orders, except such as are issued by commandants of shore stations, or commanders in chief, or commanding officers afloat, to take effect within the limits of their respective commands, shall issue from the Secretary's office. After signature by the Secretary they shall be printed, and distribution of the printed copies shall be made by the Bureau of Navigation to commanding officers afloat for all officers under their command, and to commandants of shore stations for all officers borne on the books of the pay officer of the station. The record of all such orders, except General Court-Martial, Departmental, and Navy-Yard Orders, shall be in the Bureau of Navigation.

(2) Commanding officers afloat and ashore, receiving a package of such orders shall acknowledge the receipt thereof to the Bureau of Navigation, and shall be responsible for their proper distribution, as above stated.

(3) Whenever the issue of a general order or notice, or any manual of instructions, drill or routine, is required by the business of any bureau, it shall be the duty of such bureau to bring the matter to the attention of the Department, at the same time submitting a draft of the order, notice, or instruction proposed.

Notices to mar

(4) The above rules shall not apply to coal notices issued by the Bureau of Equipment, nor to notices to mariners, pilot or other iners, and coal charts, or sailing directions, which shall be issued by the hydrographic office.

1671. In the transmission within the United States of official mail matter free of postage, the following rules shall be observed: (a) Officers of the Navy and Marine Corps may send official mail matter between themselves, or to any of the Executive Departments, by using the penalty envelopes.

(b) Official mail matter may be transmitted under cover of the penalty envelopes by officers of the Government to private individuals. (c) Any Department or office, entitled to use them, may inclose the penalty envelope with return address to any person from or through whom official information is desired, the same to be used only to cover such official information.

(d) The name of the Department or proper designation of the office or officer should be printed or written in the upper left-hand corner of the address face of the envelope, and thereunder the words "Official Business," and the penalty clause should be printed or written on the upper right-hand corner.

(e) The indorsements required on the penalty envelope may be printed, stamped, or written.

1672. Official mail matter addressed to foreign countries must be prepaid with postage stamps at the ordinary rates.

1673. (1) The arrival in, and departure from port of every vessel in commission, and other important information which should be known without delay, shall be promptly telegraphed to the Department by the captain, the senior officer present, or, if within the limits of a navy yard or station, by the commandant. The same shall also be telegraphed by the captain to the commander in chief of the squadron to which the vessel is attached.

notices.

Domestic mail.

Foreign mail.

Telegrams.

Address to be

(2) Upon arrival at a foreign port having cable communication with the United States, the senior officer present, or the captain of registered at a single ship will immediately register his name and that of the vessels cable office. or vessel under his command, at the cable office.

Economy in

(3) Telegrams and cable messages sent at Government expense shall be as brief as possible, and be worded so as to be intelligible the use of telewithout the use of punctuation marks. The sender shall sign his graph. surname only, except in cases where initials or rank may be absolutely necessary. The Navy Secret Code shall be used when the information contained in the message should not be generally known, and when its use will reduce the number of words.

Telegrams of

parture.

(4) The arrival of a vessel of the Navy at any port shall be reported by telegraphing her name, which will be interpreted, arrival or deThe has arrived at this port;" the intended departure of a vessel from port shall be reported by telegraphing the name of the port for which she is bound, which will be interpreted, "The vessel under my command is about to sail for Should a flag or