F. 667. See, also, 8 C. J. S. 564, p. 1507. It would appear, therefore, that the discharge constitutes a legal defense to any action on the note by the Commercial Investment Trust, Incorporated, and may now or hereafter successfully be pleaded against an action thereon by the United States, because it is well settled that an assignee of a chose in action takes the same subject to all defenses against it in the hands of the assignor at the time of the assignment. The North Chicago Rolling Mill Company v. The St. Louis Ore and Steel Com pany, 152 U. S. 596; Williams v. Neeley, 134 F. 1; Andresen v. Thomp son, 52 F. (2d) 642; Page on the Law of Contracts, section 2269.

However, a discharge in bankruptcy does not extinguish the debt. Federal National Bank v. Koppel, et al., 253 Mass. 157, 148 N. E. 379; Robinson v. Exchange National Bank of Tulsa, Okla., 28 F. Supp. 244, 249. It does afford the bankrupt a complete legal defense to an action brought to recover such debt, but in order to avail himself of it as a defense it is necessary for him to plead the discharge in any such action. In re Weisberg, 253 F. 833. The moral obligation to pay the debt remains, and since the discharge is personal to the bankrupt, it may be waived by him whenever he sees fit. 8 C. J. S. 559, p. 1491.

It is difficult to comprehend a situation in which the moral obligation to pay a debt could be greater than where an employee files a voluntary petition in bankruptcy and includes in the schedule of liabilities an obligation which he knows his employer eventually will be called upon to pay and then, subsequent to bankruptcy proceedings disclosing no assets for distribution to creditors, he is continued in his employment by that same employer. That precisely is the situation here. It would seem that occasions should be rare in which employees of the United States Government will not feel it a bounden duty aside from any legal obligation to make whole a loss which they have directly caused the Government to suffer-especially where the employee continues to depend for his livelihood upon Government employment; and, in such rare instances, it would appear advisable in the interest of efficient and sound administration of Government affairs that officials of the department in which the person is currently employed be informed of the situation so as to enable them to decide whether it would be in the interest of the United States to permit that type of employee to continue in the service.

Accordingly, while, on the present record, there would appear no authority to take any action in respect of Mr. Kessler's retirement fund with a view to setting off the amount of the Government's loss in this transaction against moneys to be paid from such fund at some future date, it is suggested that steps be taken to secure the written consent of Mr. Kessler to such a set-off thereby waiving the defense of the discharge in bankruptcy so far as it applies to this obligation,

In the event of a refusal on the part of the employee to give such assent, or otherwise recompense the Government for its loss, the matter should be brought to the attention of the Post Office Department— where Kessler is employed-for such administrative action as may be deemed proper under the circumstances.

(B-28710)

PAY-ADDITIONAL-AIDES

A major general of the Regular Army holding the temporary rank of lieutenant general under the provisions of section 127a of the National Defense Act, as amended, is, while holding such temporary rank, entitled to the three aides authorized for a major general by section 1098, Revised Statutes, so that a lieutenant of the Army assigned to duty as an aide to such lieutenant general is entitled to the additional pay provided for aides by section 1261, Revised Statutes, as amended.

Assistant Comptroller General Elliott to Lt. Col. Carl Witcher, U. S. Army, October 9, 1942:

There has been received by indorsement of September 3, 1942, your letter of August 19, 1942, as follows:

1. Attached hereto is a voucher in favor of 1st Lt. William W. Naramore, Jr., M. I.-Res., in the amount of $1.11 covering additional pay for aide-de-camp to Lt. General Lesley J. McNair, U. S. Army for the period July 29 to July 31, 1942 which has been presented to the undersigned, a disbursing officer, for payment.

2. The records of this office show that 1st Lt. William W. Naramore reported for duty on July 29, 1942 as aide to Lt. General Lesley J. McNair by par. 5, S. O. 113, Hdqrs. A. G. F., Washington, D. C. 7/29/42.

3. The undersigned is in doubt as to whether or not an aide to a Lt. General is entitled to the additional pay and your decision is respectfully requested as to whether the payment of the voucher is authorized.

Paragraph 5, Special Orders No. 113, Headquarters Army Ground Forces, Washington, D. C., July 29, 1942, provides as follows:

5. 1st Lt. William W. Naramore, Jr. 0345529 MI, is reld fr asgmt and duty with Ground G-2 Section, and is announced as Aide-de-Camp to Lt. Gen. Lesley J. McNair 01891 USA.

Section 1098, Revised Statutes, provides:

Each major general shall have three aids, who may be selected by him from captains or lieutenants of the Army, and each brigadier-general shall have two aids, who may be selected by him from lieutenants of the Army.

Section 1261, Revised Statutes, as amended by the act of May 11, 1908, 35 Stat. 108, as codified 10 U. S. Code 692, provides:

Aides shall receive pay in addition to the pay of their rank, as follows: Aide to major general, $200 a year; and aide to brigadier general, $150 a year.

Section 127a of the National Defense Act, as amended by section 20, act of June 15, 1933, 48 Stat. 161, and by section 101, act of September 9, 1940, 54 Stat. 875, provides as follows:

In time of war or national emergency determined by the President, any officer of the Regular Army may be appointed to higher temporary grade without vacating his permanent appointment. In time of war any officer of the Regular Army appointed to higher temporary grade, and all other persons appointed,

as officers, shall be appointed and commissioned in the Army of the United States. Such appointments in grades below that of brigadier general shall be made by the President alone, and general officers by and with the advice and consent of the Senate: Provided, That an appointment, other than that of a member of the Regular Army made in time of war, shall continue until six months after its termination, and an officer appointed in time of war shall be entitled to be relieved from active Federal service within six months after its termination if he makes application therefor.

Paragraph 2, Special Orders No. 143, War Department, June 20, 1941, provides:

Announcement is made of the temporary appointment on 20, June, 1941, of Major General Lesley J. McNair (0-1891), United States Army, to the grade of lieutenant general, Army of the United States, with rank from 9 June, 1941, under the provisions of section 127a, National Defense Act, as amended by an act of Congress approved 9 September, 1940.

According to the provisions of section 127a of the National Defense ' Act, as amended, an officer of the Regular Army holds the higher temporary grade to which appointed in time of war without vacating his permanent appointment, to which he reverts upon relinquishing the higher rank. Special Orders No. 143 quoted above, shows that Major General Lesley J. McNair was temporarily appointed a lieutenant general in accordance with the provisions of section 127a of the National Defense Act, as amended. The law provides for aidesde-camp to a major general and states that they shall receive in addition to the pay of their rank the sum of $200 a year. It is provided under section 241, Title 34, U. S. Code that vice admirals of the Navy shall rank with lieutenant generals of the Army. It was held in decision, of this office of August 26, 1930, A-33026, as follows:

Vice-Admiral Leigh, however, holds the rank of vice-admiral merely by virtue of his designation to the command of a division of the Battle Fleet in accordance with Section 18, act May 22, 1917, 40 Stat. 89 (entitled to pay and allowances of rear-admiral, upper half, and to money allowance of $500 per annum while so serving in the higher grade of vice-admiral. Section 8, act June 10, 1922, 42 Stat. 629) and under those circumstances, notwithstanding he temporarily holds the rank of vice-admiral, in view of his "regular rank” of rear-admiral, lower half, additional pay is authorized at $150 per annum to not to exceed two officers (the number allowed to a brigadier general of the Army) of the rank of lieutenant or lieutenant (junior grade) regularly assigned to duty as aides on his personal staff provided all the other requisite conditions are met.

In view of the circumstances in this case, notwithstanding Lieutenant General McNair temporarily holds rank as such, in view of his regular rank of major general, additional pay is authorized at $200 per year to the officer regularly assigned to duty as aide on his personal staff. Accordingly, you are authorized to pay the voucher, which is returned herewith, if otherwise correct.

(B-29193)

COMPENSATION-WITHIN-GRADE PROMOTIONS-EFFECTIVE DATE Under the within-grade salary-advancement statute of August 1, 1941, which contemplates a mandatory within-grade promotion effective at the beginning

of the quarter following the quarter during which all of the conditions specified in the statute become fixed and accrued, an employee, previously ineligible for such a within-grade promotion by reason of having attained the maximum salary of his grade, who was appointed to a new position in a different grade at the minimum salary thereof on July 1, 1942, and who met all conditions of the statute on that date, is not entitled to a withingrade promotion until the beginning of the following quarter, October 1,

1942

Comptroller General Warren to the Postmaster General, October 10, 1942: I have your letter of September 23, 1942, as follows:

A decision is requested on the following:

An employee of the Post Office Department serving in Grade CAF-13 was promoted to the maximum of that grade effective June 16, 1939. On July 1, 1942, he was promoted to a new position in Grade CAF-14 at $6500 per annum.

Is this employee, whose current efficiency rating is "Very Good" and who has not had an equivalent increase in compensation from any source for more than thirty months of continuous service, entitled to a promotion on July 1, 1942, to $6750 per annum?

If the answer to this question is in the negative, will you please advise the date on which this employee will be entitled to an automatic promotion under the provisions of Public Law 200-77th Congress.

Subsection (b) of section 7 of the Classification Act, as added by the amendatory act of August 1, 1941, 55 Stat. 613, 614, provides as follows:

All employees compensated on a per annum basis, and occupying permanent positions within the scope of the compensation schedules fixed by this Act, who have not attained the maximum rate of compensation for the grade in which their positions are respectively allocated, shall be advanced in compensation successively to the next higher rate within the grade at the beginning of the next quarter, following the completion of: (1) Each eighteen months of service if such employees are in grades in which the compensation. increments are $60 or $100, or (2) each thirty months of service if such employees are in grades in which the compensation increments are $200 or $250, subject to the following conditions:

(1) That no equivalent increase in compensation from any cause was received during such period, except increase made pursuant to subsection (f) of this section;

(2) That an employee whose rate of compensation is below the middle rate of the grade shall not be advanced unless his current efficiency is good or better than good;

(3) That an employee whose rate of compensation is at or above the middle rate of the grade shall not be advanced unless his current efficiency is better than good;

(4) That the service and conduct of such employee are certified by the head of the department or agency or such official as he may designate as being otherwise satisfactory. [Italics Supplied.]

The statute contemplates a mandatory increase in compensation effective at the beginning of the quarter following the quarter during which each and all of the prerequisite conditions specified by the statute have become fixed and accrued. Of course, prior to the quarter beginning July 1, 1942, there was no question of eligibility for an increase of compensation because the employee had already “attained the maximum rate of compensation [$6,400] for the grade [CAF-13]" in which his position was allocated. It was not until July 1, 1942, when he was promoted to grade CAF-14, at the minimum ($6,500) of that grade, that he had "not attained the maximum rate of the compensation for the grade" in which his then position was allocated, and hav

ing met that part of the statutory requirement (the words just quoted), the statute then operates, and thereby the employee is required to "be advanced in compensation successively to the next higher rate within the grade at the beginning of the next quarter" (italics supplied) after having met the remaining requisites of the statute. The increase which occurred on July 1, 1942-amounting to only $100-was not an "equivalent increase in compensation" to the compensation increments ($200) in the lowest grade in which the employee had served during the previous thirty months. See decision B-28027, dated August 19, 1942, 22 Comp. Gen. 151. Therefore, such increase of $100 would not affect any promotion otherwise due under the statute. See section 1(d) of the President's regulations (Executive Order No. 8882, dated September 3, 1941) implementing the statute. Thus, since it was not until July 1, 1942, that the employee had "not attained the maximum rate of compensation for the grade" of his then position, and since, furthermore, the statute then operated to grant him a mandatory promotion "at the beginning of the next quarter," after meeting, also, the other requirements set forth in the statute, it follows that "the beginning of the next quarter" in this case is October 1, 1942.

Answering your question specifically, you are advised that the employee is not entitled to the automatic increase on July 1, 1942, to $6,750 per annum, but that he would be entitled to such increase on October 1, 1942, if he otherwise met the conditions of the statute regarding efficiency, conduct, etc.

(B-29216)

STATUTORY LIMITATION ON NEWSPAPER AND PERIODICAL PURCHASES-SCOPE OF WORD "PERIODICAL"

A publication in pamphlet form which contains selected opinions, with digests thereof of State and Federal courts, and articles on matters of particular interest to the legal profession may be regarded as a "technical periodical" within the meaning of section 6 of the Independent Offices Appropriation Act, 1943, which, in imposing a limitation of $50 on the amount of an agency's funds appropriated thereby that may be expended for newspapers and periodicals, excepts scientific, technical, trade, or traffic periodicals necessary in the performance of the agency's authorized functions.

The exception of scientific, technical, trade or traffic periodicals necessary in the performance of an agency's authorized functions from the $50 limitation imposed by section 6 of the Independent Offices Appropriation Act, 1943, on the amount of an agency's funds appropriated by said act which may be expended for newspapers and periodicals does not include daily publications which, while containing matters primarily of interest to the legal profession, are published in the form, style, and appearance of newspapers within the commonly accepted meaning of that word, and which are held out by the publishers, and regarded by the courts, as newspapers for the publication of notices required by law or rules of court to be so published.

Comptroller General Warren to the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs, October 13, 1942:

I have your letter of September 26, 1942, as follows:

There are submitted herewith sample copies of the publications described below for your consideration and determination as to whether said publications