A Law in Aid of and in Addition to the Regulations of the Governor for the Permanent Establishment of the Militia of the Mississippi Territory.
ALL FREE MALE INHABITANTS between the age of sixteen and fifty, the officers of civil government appointed by the President and Senate of the United States, or commissioned by the Governor, ministers of religious societies, that are or may be established, and regularly educated practicing physicians, only excepted, shall be liable to, and perform military duty, and be divided agreeably to the order of the commander-in-chief into corps of horse and foot, and formed in the following manner:
Sixty-four rank and file shall form a company of infantry or riflemen, or a troop of horse.
To each company of infantry or riflemen there should be appointed a captain, lieutenant, and ensign, four sergeants, four corporals, a drummer and a lifer.
To a troop of horse, one captain, one lieutenant, and one cornet, four sergeants, four corporals and one trumpeter.
The whole militia of the Territory shall, until the commander-in-chiel may otherwise direct, be formed into two legions, and bear the name of the counties to which they shall respectively appertain, so soon as such shall be erected and laid off.
A lieutenant-colonel shall command each legion, and there may be appointed such other field officers as the commander-in-chief may deem necessary.
There shall also be appointed to each legion an adjutant and a quartermaster, afid whenever the commander-in-chief shall believe it essential to the well ordering of the militia of this Territory, he may appoint an adjutant-general, with the rank of a major or lieutenant-colonel.
Each and every horseman shall furnish himself with a sword, one pistol, twelve rounds of cartridges, three flints, a prin'1ing wire, small portmanteau, and such other arms and accoutrements as the commander-in-chief may direct.
Every militia man who is enrolled for service on foot, shall furnish himself with a musket and bayonet, cartridge box and thirty rounds of cartridges, or. rifle and tomahawk, powder horn and bullet pouch, with one pound of powder and four pounds of bullets, six flints, priming wires, brushes and knapsacks.
And every person enrolled in this militia who shall be found deficient upon any muster day. in the arms, ammunition and accoutrements, or any of them, herein ordered to be furnished, shall, after a reasonable time given in the judgment of the legionary commandants (not exceeding six months) to enable him to procure the same, at each and every time of default be fined the sum of three dollars.
The officers shall be armed and accoutred as the privates, with the addition of swords only for the infantry.
Upon the second Saturday of each and every month officers commanding companies are to assemble and parade their men at such time and place as they may deem best adapted for their general convenience, and there diligently exercise them for the space of two hours, in marching, wheeling, firing with good aim, and the use of the bayonets for the infantry
There shall be four field days in each and every year, to be named by the commander-in-chief, or the commandants of legions under his order, upon which the respective commands that can in his judgment, with any convenience be assembled, must be exercised as legionary corps.
If any person enrolled in the militia shall refuse or neglect to appear upon the regular stated muster or field days, after being informed by a commissioned or non-commissioned officer of the time and place of parade, or shall refuse to do his duty when appearing, he shall be fined in the sum of three dollars for each default, except in case of absence and when he shall render a sufficient excuse to his captain.
If any commissioned, non-commissioned officer or private shall cause or promote any disorder upon the regular stated muster or field days, so as to impede or prevent the military exercises which may be ordered, he shall be tried by a court martial, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined in a sum not exceeding ten dollars.
All fines are to be collected by a warrant of distress from the captain or senior officer of a company, directed to any one of the sergeants, who is to levy upon the goods or chattels of the defaulter, and after advertising the same for five days, if the fine is not then paid, he shall proceed to sell at public vendue to the highest bidder so much of the effects as will answer the fine, and one dollar for his own use, returning the overplus, if any there be, to the party who owned the property so destrainCd, and the fine levied shall by the officer from whom the warrant issued be paid into the county treasury for the use of the legions, and to be appropriated in such way and manner as the field officers, or a majority of them, shall direct, with the approbation' of the commander-in-chief.
Upon any invasion of this Territory, or the appearance thereof, or domestic disturbances actually existing or apprehended, the commanderin-chief, or commandants of counties, in pressing emergencies where the commander-in-chief cannot seasonably be resorted to, are authorized to make such detachments for guards, patrols and other military duty as the public exigencies may in his or their opinion require (provided that in all cases where detachments are ordered by commandants of legions, report thereof shall be made without delay to the commander-in-chief), and in case of refusal to appear and perform duty under such authority, or disobedience or neglect of orders in time of service, the defaulter shall be deemed guilty of cowardice, and be heard, tried and sentenced by a court martial.
All officers shall be attentive to the forming, disciplining, parading and commanding their respective corps, and to such other duties as shall respectively bind them by this law, and by the orders from time to time to be given by the commander-in-chief or other of their superior officers.
If any officer shall be guilty of a breach of this law, or in any respect violate or neglect his duty he shall be heard, tried and sentenced by a court martial.
A court martial shall not consist of more than nine members, nor less than three, whereof one at least shall have rank superior to a lieutenant.
Courts martial may be appointed by the commander-in-chief or the commandants of legions, but the commander-in-chief only shall have the power of approving and carrying into effecct sentences of courts martial whereby the punishment shall be capital or an officer cashiered; and the commander-in-chief is authorized and empowered to remit fines that may be inflicted, where it shall appear from the oaths of two credible witnesses that the person fined is unable to pay the same without great distress to himself or family.
The free male inhabitants above the age of fifty shall arm and accoutre themselves either as ca;alry, or those who serve on foot (at their own option), but they shall not be liable to military service except in cases of actual invasion and under the immediate direction of the commanderin-chief.
The foregoing is hereby declared to be a law of the Mississippi Territory, this twenty-eighth day of February, Anno Domini one thousand seven hundred and ninety-nine. In testimony of which' we have undersigned our names and caused the public seal to be thereunto affixed.
Winthrop Sargent, Peter Bryan Bruin, Daniel Tilton.