FORMATION RELATIVE TO ENLISTMENT AND PROMOTION IN THE 
 UNITED STATES COAST GUARD. 
 
 
 TltKAhUKY I>KrAKTMK.ST, 
 
 United States Coaht Gtahd, 
 
 Washington, August 10, 1916. 
 
 
 'I'lio following iufurmution h publiiihod rolutive to cnlutmonl nnd 
 iiiiotiou in the Uuitod Stuteti Coaut Uuurd. 
 
 E. P. Debtiiolt, 
 
 Captain Commandant. 
 
 ily the act of Congrww approved .laniiary 28, 1915, the Rovenue- 
 il«'r S«rvi<'t' and the Lifi'-Saving .Service were conibine<l into the 
 list (iuurd, and tlio titles of the former servie«-s then heranie 
 "lete. All ilutieM previously i>erforined l»y the Kevenue-<\itter 
 1 vicK and the Life-Saving S<Tvic<> are now ]»erfonned by the ("oaMt 
 lurd. Former revenue cutters and foniier life-?iaving statioas are 
 u- called .('oast Guard cutters and Coast Ciuard stations, n-spoc- 
 cly. The officers and men of the two servici-s were transferred to 
 re»)|Minding ptwitions in the Coast Ciuani by the terms of the act. 
 
 ENLISTMENT. 
 
 I he tenn of enlistment for all enlisted men in the Coast Guard h 
 year. Knlistinents are for general scn'ice and not for any 
 Mlruiiir Viwsel or stiltioii. 
 
 \ny mun or boy between the agen of 14 and .};> years, who can pas« 
 
 re«|uired ph>'sictil examination, is eligible for enlistment in the 
 
 list (tuartl. Preference Is given, first, to citizcas of the United 
 
 iU>s; second, to aliens who have dedareil their inlentioas, and 
 
 . to aliens. An alien c*n not .si-rve a sc<ontl enlistment uidess 
 
 lieclarcH his intentions to become a citizeit, or is debarred from 
 ./enship by law. 
 Ihe Coast Ciuard maintains no recruiting oHlccs. Persons desiring 
 
 • •idist on shijw should apply to the commanding or exe<ulive 
 M erx of those shijw; those desiring to eyiisi as surfnien shi>»dd appl.v 
 thi ke«>pers of the stations or the supt'rintendent.s of the districta 
 
 i-emed. Application in person is pn>ferablo to ap)>li<'ution by 
 !er, but in ca.se the applicant is at a considerable distance fn>m the 
 in»st cutt«'r or station, he may nj)])ly by letter. It is not ni'cwwary 
 •^now tlit< name of the officer to whom ap|>licatiftn is made. Lrtlent 
 
 mIiI he address(>d to the "Commanduig Officer" of the ship or the 
 »istrict Superintendent" i>f the district about which infonualion is 
 
 ireil. 'i'hero m no special fonn for application. Letters of applica- 
 n ahoulii be as short aa ])o«uble. at thosamo timegiring nocctseiary 
 
 :r4rii7;i 
 
- DOCUMENIS 
 
 DEPT. 
 information as to age, nativity, fitizciisliip, cxpcTiciicc niul otlior 
 qualifications. 
 
 No record of vacancies in the enlisted force is kept at the Coast 
 Guard Headquarters in Washington. 
 
 QUALIFICATIONS FOR ENLISTMENT. 
 
 No pei-son shall he enlisted without first passing tlie prescrihed phys- 
 ical examination and agreeing to be vaccmated against smallpox and 
 typhoid fever at such times as may be designated by Headquarters. 
 
 No person shall be enlisted who does not read and write some 
 language and readily understand and speak English. 
 
 No person under the age of 21 shall be enlisted without the consent 
 of his father, only surviving parent, or guardian. If the applicant 
 has none of these in the United States he must so certify on the 
 enlistment contract, after which he may be enlisted. 
 
 No person who has been in the mUitary or naval service of the 
 United States or of the several States shall be eidisted imless he 
 produces an honorable discharge or an ordinary discharge with 
 recommendation for reenlistment from each of the services in which 
 he has served, and certifies m writing' that the discharge is or dis- 
 charges are the latest received by him from said services. 
 
 No person under 14 or over 35 years of age; no insane or intoxicated 
 person; no person known to have committed a crime; no deserter 
 from the Coast Guard, Revenue-Cutter Service, Life-Saving Service, 
 Army, Navy, Marine Corps or the military or naval service of any of 
 the several States, and no person under 5 feet 4 inches in height shall 
 be enlisted. The requirement as to height does not apply to ship's 
 writers, electricians (third class), stewards, cooks and boys, who must 
 be not less than 4 feet 9 inches in height. 
 
 No person shall be enlisted as surf man who is under 18 years of 
 age, who weighs (without clothing) less than 135 pounds or more than 
 205 poimds, or who is not a good swimmer. 
 
 Fraudulent enlistment is jmnishable hy a Coast Guard court. 
 
 PROMOTION. 
 
 The complement of a vessel or station includes such commissioned 
 and warrant oflicers as may be assigned from time to time, together 
 with a specified number of petty officers and other enlisted men. 
 
 PETTY OFFICERS. 
 
 Wlien a vacancy occurs in the grade of petty officer it is filled by 
 ratuig an enUsted man of inferior ratmg as acting petty officer for a 
 probationary period of tln-eo months, which may be extended three 
 months more in case the man is not deemed fully qualified for pro- 
 motion. An acting rating may be revoked at any time. If, at 
 the end of a probationary period, or extension thereof, an acting 
 petty officer is deemed -qaalified for promotion and his commanding 
 
otiiccr or ilistrict HU[MTUiti'ii(lent nTonnuvntlit hiiu fur pruiitotiuii 
 Hi-uii(|Uurt«>rH will isHUi' a |M'ruiaui<nt rating. 
 
 No {MTHoiut ••Xf«'|)t !*hip'i« wriliTH uiui i-lccthciaiw Uhint rlaMi) 
 lihall \h- origiimlly I'lilistt-tl ah actint; p«'tty ollic«TH. No luciitd 
 cxiimiimtioa in hi'KI for ••ulLstim-iil in tin's*' ratiiign, hut applicanth 
 mast pru«lu<u' suiiitfaolory I'vidt-iu*' of thr <|Uiilili<iiiioiis for BUrh 
 ratiiitfH. Shi|)'s wntt-rs miL-.t bv (■oiii|>fti'nt !.t<'iM>j;mph«'r» and typo- 
 writtTH ami matt Im< al)li< to write a t;ooil humi. 
 
 A railio ojM'rator'rt licciut*', comm«'nial, I'Xtra or lir>il p^*'''. i-'«u<'d by 
 tlu' Di'piirtmi'iit of Comiut'rw, will Ik- acwpletl an a wrtilicatr of tt'oh- 
 niiul iiiiiililiiutiiiu fi.r <rili.->tiin'Jit in tin- lowi'st ^radi' uf cli-ctricmu. 
 
 Whi-ni-viT pru»ti('ul)lt', vac4incii'» in tlu' IukIht pra«i«'s of |x'tly 
 i.HiiuT art' fdlfil by advancing jM'tty oIlirorH of lower jjradit*. tliiw 
 providing; a gradual tlow of promotion. 
 
 WARMANT omrEBM. 
 
 The next grade above p«'lty ollicen* Is that of warrant ollicerH. 
 A warrant ollicer w ap|M>inted for life and ean bi« separated from the 
 fierviee only by <leutli, resignation, or dismissal. 'Hie grades of 
 wnrnint odieers in the Coast (iuard are lilled a.H follows: 
 
 .\laiftrr'» mate.--\\\ promotion from lower gratles of warrant 
 ollicers. 
 
 ' liiMiUifoin, ffunufr, nuuhin'mt, and airi>iiiltr. Hy j.r-"'' f 
 
 deserving petty oflieers. 
 
 hifprr. - By promotion of surfmen. 
 
 When there Is uo jx'tty ofliter c|ualitieii for proniotinn t<> ih< ;;nide 
 of i-ariMiiter or maehini>t, lleatlijuarters may auihorize tin- enltst- 
 nient of a comix'tent (>enM>n in a lower rating tlian petty otiicer and 
 ihn<ft hLs immediate rating tus acting carp<'nter or acting inachinLst. 
 
 Warrant ollicers mast Ix- citizens of the Tnite*! States, not lens 
 
 than '2'> nor more than 42 years of age when rated as acting warrant 
 
 otlicerH, and must Ih> de«iiie«l lapable of pa.<<sing tlie required physK-al 
 
 and mental examinations. .Uler Ht-rving a probationary jx-nod of 
 
 six months (which may Ik- extentietl if ex|M'dient) ami In-ing n-com- 
 
 ineiideil for promotion by c«>m|M>tent authority an acting warrant 
 
 ollicer will be examined for promotion, and if he puAM-s he will bo 
 
 apptniited. 
 
 c-<>M.MUwioMt» iirrM-ni.H. 
 
 All commi.'wionetl uffio'rs except district i»up«'rintendents and 
 constructors must enter the (\iast (iuard om ciulets. Vacanrieti in 
 the grade of district sujx'rintendent an- IIUimI by promotion of kee|>.'ni 
 of stations. Nacancies in the griwie of constructor are lilletl by the 
 appointment of sp«'cialist» in that line of work. There an- 13 tlLslrict 
 »U|tenntendents and 2 constructors in the Coast liuard. A uncial 
 IMiinphUt U inmuti upon Uu mjuirrmfnU for apinnntmrnt at cadet* 
 and cadtt rmjinttrt. 
 
PRIVILEGES. 
 
 Conditions permitting, an onlistod man may be granted leave of 
 absence on full pay for 15 days each year. In addition, for reen- 
 Ustment immediately after discharge, he is credited with 10 days, 
 making 25 days a year on full pay for aU enlisted men serving con- 
 tinuously for more than one year. Warrant officers may be granted 
 30 days' leave on full pay in one year. 
 
 Permission to go on shore for periods of less than 24 hours may be 
 granted to aU warrant officers and cnHsted men with good records 
 whenever their duties permit, and such shore liberty is not cheeked 
 against their leave. 
 
 A person who has received an honorable discharge is entitled 
 to reenlistment on the day following his discharge in the vacancy 
 caused by his discharge, without regard to age and without physical 
 examination, unless it is evident that he is suffering from a disa- 
 bility not incident to service. 
 
 Each person upon first enlisting in the Coast Guard (provided he 
 has never served in the Revenue-Cutter Service) has credited to 
 his account the sum of $45, and upon each subsequent enlistment 
 the sum of $20 for uniform clothmg, and such amount will be paid 
 to him upon discharge, if he receives an honorable discharge. 
 
 All warrant and petty officers are allowed, in conformity with law, 
 10 per cent increase of the pay of their grades or ratings for every 
 five years' creditable service, such increase not to exceed 40 per cent- 
 In computing longevity pay all service in the Coast Guard, Revenue- 
 Cutter Service, Life-Saving Service, Army, Navy, and Marine Corps 
 shall be included, except service as a cadet or cadet engineer subse- 
 quent to August 24, 1912. 
 
 Warrant officers, petty officers, and other enhstcd men are retired 
 from active service upon reaching the age of 64 years and when foimd 
 by a retiring board to be incapacitated to perform active duty, the 
 incapacity being incident to service. Thej' may also be retired 
 upon their own request after 30 years' service in the Coast Guard, 
 Revenue-Cutter Service, Life-Saving Service, Army, Navj^, and 
 Marine Corps. Retu'ed warrant officers, petty officers, and enlisted 
 men receive 75 per cent of the full pay of their grades or ratings. 
 
 Whenever a warrant officer, petty officer, or other enlisted man 
 on the active list dies by reason of perilous service or any wound 
 or injury received or disease contracted in the line of duty leaving 
 a widow, or a child or children under 16 years of age, or a dependent 
 mother, such widow and child or children and dependent mother 
 shall be entitled to receive, in equal portions, during a perio<l of 
 ' two years, under such regulations as the Secretary of the Treasury 
 may prescribe, the same amount that the husband or father or son 
 would be entitled to receive as pay if he were alive and continued on 
 the roUs: Provided, That if the widow shall remarry at any time 
 
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 during said two years, her portion of Mid amount uhall c«?a««< to be 
 pttid to h»<r from the date of romarriago, but rthall \h- added to the 
 II mount to be paid to the remaining Iw-nfficiariej*, if tht-re by any 
 an«! if any child shall arriv.' at the agi- of 16 y«-ar>» during the Mid 
 two vars, the portion of such chihl shall coa-so to !>«• paid to such 
 rhihi from the date on which such age shall In- attainetl, but it ahall 
 be addi-d to the amount to In' paid to the remainiug beneticiariert, if 
 there be any. 
 
 I'AV «)K WAKKANT OKKH EKM. 
 Tho baso rat«<s of pay of warrant oliicerti in tlio Coa«t Guard aro as 
 follows: 
 
 Miwttrr'n ii»»l«fl, wiuor fu- month.. fl30 
 
 <»lh.ir iiitt,.l.T « iuat.1. do 110 
 
 K- I ■ r- II. ! a •Ml.' k....ii.Ti p«r annum.. 1,000 
 
 l: • r~ i-anx'QX^. uui marhinuu month.. ^'t 
 
 \ . .M do.... 10 
 
 \. kiinnon, caqwnten, and marhiniiti do 60 
 
 In ttddiljon to tho al>ovo, all warrant oflTieoni and acting warrant 
 ofhc'iirH r<>c*ivo commutation of rations at the rate of 30 cont« a day. 
 VuntAiy pan of fttty ofiem and otker mbtUd men. 
 PETTY OrriCKRS. 
 
 oiiw, nm ri I 
 Aartrtanlnu^ 
 QnvMniMiiio' 
 
 fl«r«i1rtan. .~ 
 
 iL«> I «».M 
 MOO > M.OB 
 
 OTBBII BNUrntD MBH. 
 
 I tw i«> I 
 
 luT^. nnt'i,*'.!!!!;!;;;!";;;!;;. r«o 
 
 lloT, M>-nfcl rlHi ■ .... 3\.tO 
 
 Enlisted man who are not aub(iMt«d by the Government reoeire 
 commutation of ration:* of tho rate of 30 cents a day. 
 

 iAttoJ cfuUiliff viiseU of the Coatl Ovard. 
 
 Name. 
 
 Post-omce address. 
 
 Name. 
 
 Post-omce addiees. 
 
 Osslpee 
 
 Portland, Me. 
 Boston, Mass. 
 
 WoodsHole, Mass. 
 
 Baltimore, Md. 
 South Baltimore, Md. 
 Norfolk, Va. 
 Newbern, N. C. 
 Wilmington, N. C. 
 Savannah, Ga. 
 
 Tamnn 
 
 Kej-^W»t^^ria. 
 
 Androscoggin 
 
 tXp.;.^':: 
 
 
 
 IVelloi shli). 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 fsfa^- 
 
 
 
 Algonquin 
 
 
 
 
 Astoria, Oreg. 
 Sao Franolso) Cal 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 For information as to vacancies on any cutter, address the com- 
 manding officer, thus: Commanding Officer, Coast Guard Cutter 
 Osslpee, Portland, Me. 
 
 LIST OF DISTRICTS, UNITED STATES COAST GUARD. 
 
 First District, coasts of Maine and Now Hampsliiro. Address Dis- 
 trict Superintendent, Portsmouth, N. H. 
 
 Second District, coast of Massachusetts. Address District Super- 
 intendent, Provmcetown, Mass. 
 
 Third District, coasts of Khode Island and Fishers Island, N. Y. 
 Address District Superintendent, Wakefield, R. I. 
 
 Fourth District, coast of Long Island. Address District Superin- 
 tendent, Bay Shore, N. Y." 
 
 Fifth District, coast of New Jersey. Address District Superintend- 
 ent, Asbury Park, N. J. 
 
 Sixth District, coast from Cape Henlopen to Cape Charles. Address 
 District Superintendent, Lewes, Del. 
 
 Seventh District, coast from Cape Henry to South CaroUna. 
 Address District Supermtendent, Elizabeth City, N. C. 
 
 Eighth District, coasts of South Carolina, Georgia, and cast coast 
 of Florida. Address District Superintendent, Jacksonville, Fla. 
 
 Ninth District, coast of GuK of Mexico. Address District Super- 
 intendent, Galveston, Tex. 
 
 Tenth District, coasts of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario and station 
 at Louisville, Ky. Address District Superintendent, Buffalo, N. Y. 
 
 Eleventh District, coasts of Lake Huron and Lake Superior. 
 Address District Superintendent, Port Huron, Mich. 
 
 Twelfth District, coast of Lake Michigan. Address District Super- 
 intendent, Grand Haven, Mich. 
 
 Thirteenth District, Pacific coast, including station at Nome, 
 Alaska. Address District Superintendent, San Francisco, Cal. 
 
 For information as to vacancies at any station, address the appro- 
 priate district supiirintondont, thus: District Superintendent, First 
 District Coast Guard, Portsmouth, N. H. 
 
 WASHINGTO.V : GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1916 
 
J2" 
 

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