There are 7 cards filed under his name in M347, Unfiled Papers, etc. I only searched there on a hunch and found this record. This is rather unusual to find additional papers such as these in addition to those in his Compiled Service Record file. For information, some of these cards are from microfilm of the opposite side of a document, these contain brief information for filing.

The initial 'B' found in the upper left corner is for filing purposes and indicates the first initial of his surname, 'B' for Beard.

The second line of the form is for the purpose of listing his rank and unit identification.

The term "conscript", is, in modern terms, a draftee. This was most likely given by him to endear him to the Yankees indicating he was forced to serve, did not voluntarily enlist. The "unassigned" would indicate that he did not provide a unit ID.

Again, he must have been rounded up by a Federal patrol where he was then living, could not provide proper identification, and was therefore arrested until they could establish his trustworthiness. This being about a year after he had been released from prison in Illinois. In those days, communication between government entities hardly existed and proof of his previous prison release on oath of allegiance could not be verified.

I can offer only the explanation that having deserted and given early oath to the US, he would have not found it healthy to be among Confederate supporters and friends back home.

Here is some information on the development of these service records:

Compiled Military Service Records (CMSR)

Each volunteer soldier has one Compiled Military Service Record (CMSR) for each regiment in which he served. An index is available online at the Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System website or on microfilm at selected NARA facilities and large genealogical research libraries. The CMSR contains basic information about the soldier's military career, and it is the first source the researcher should consult. The CMSR is an envelope (a jacket) containing one or more cards. These cards typically indicate that the soldier was present or absent during a certain period of time. Other cards may indicate the date of enlistment and discharge, amount of bounty paid him, and other information such as wounds received during battle or hospitalization for injury or illness. The soldier's place of birth may be indicated; if foreign born, only the country of birth is stated. The CMSR may contain an internal jacket for so-called "personal papers" of various kinds. These may include a copy of the soldier's enlistment paper, papers relating to his capture and release as a prisoner of war, or a statement that he had no personal property with him when he died. Note, however, that the CMSR rarely indicates battles in which a soldier fought; that information must be derived from other sources.

A CMSR is as complete as the surviving records of an individual soldier or his unit. The War Department compiled the CMSRs from the original muster rolls and other records some years after the war to permit more rapid and efficient checking of military and medical records in connection with claims for pensions and other veterans' benefits. The abstracts were so carefully prepared that it is rarely necessary to consult the original muster rolls and other records from which they were made. When the War Department created CMSRs at the turn of the century, information from company muster rolls, regimental returns, descriptive books, hospital rolls, and other records was copied verbatim onto cards. A separate card was prepared each time an individual name appeared on a document. These cards were all numbered on the back, and these numbers were entered onto the outside jacket containing the cards. The numbers on the jacket correspond with the numbers on the cards within the jacket. These numbers were used by the War Department only for control purposes while the CMSRs were being created; the numbers do not refer to other records regarding a veteran nor are they useful for reference purposes today.
http://www.archives.gov/genealogy/military/civil-war/index.html#confed

In regard to M347, Unfiled Papers and Slips Belonging to Confederate Service Records

This microfilm publications reproduces an extensive series of papers that the War Department accumulated to interfile with the regular series of compiled service records of Confederate soldiers, but never interfiled. The records are arranged alphabetically by surname and her are cross-referenced for names that appear in the records under more than one spelling. Often names that sound alike are grouped together. It may be necessary, therefore, to search for a name under the various ways in which it could have been entered.

It must be noted that many CW documents were close to 8-1/2 x 11 inches, They may have been folded in half, then in thirds so that they could fit in pigeon hole desk filing cabinets. One of these thirds would containing brief data on the contents. Constant folding over time, wore away corners causing holes, tears, to exist, ink blurred or ran. Thus causing later day missreadings, transcriptional errors, etc.

At the National Archives these individual soldier CSRs are filed in heavy duty, envelopes, sightly larger than legal size. Nominally, you are only allowed to view these records on microfilm, unless you can convince a clerk that the microfilm record to too faint to read. Then, you can see the actual documents in the second floor reading room. We are indebted to Footnote for providing modern internet access. However, in many cases they are too faint to read. Therefore, obtaining hard copies through the service provided by this message board is hard to beat and also preferred for permanent records.