George Shiras, Jr.

“ By a provision in the fifth section of the act of July 15, 1870, no officer promoted upon the retired list 'shall, in consequence of such promotion, be entitled to any increase of pay.'
It can hardly be the intention of counsel to assume that the amount of pay in question in this case should be calculated as though Prof. Roget was retired in 1873, instead of in 1864. The retirement of an officer is a proceeding that can only take place in a prescribed manner, and it is not pretended that such proceeding occurred, with reference to that officer, more than once. ”

“ Ever since the retired list of the navy was established, the pay of a retired officer, as such, has been fixed by statute at a certain per centum of the active service pay of the grade held by such officer at the time of his retirement. His active service pay at that time has always been taken as the basis in ascertaining his future pay, and we are unable to discover in the act in question any design to modify this persistent rule. ”

“ It may therefore be considered that a professor of mathematics, assigned after his retirement to shore duty, would be entitled to the highest pay of his grade while so employed, which would be as well his sea pay as his shore pay. The grade of an officer in the navy is his official station, by which are regulated his powers, duties, any pay. His pay may be further governed by his time of service within a grade, either in fact rendered within the grade, or constructively performed therein through the force of statutes. ”