92      MEDICAL    PURVEYING   DEPARTMENT  OF  U.  S.  ARMY. 
5th.  When  appointed,  each  Medical  Storekeeper  will  be  required  to 
give  a  bond  in  the  amount  of  $40,000,  before  he  shall  be  allowed  to  enter 
on  the  performance  of  his  duties. 
Soon  after  their  appointment,  four  of  the  Medical  Storekeepeers 
"were  assigned  to  duty  as  Medical  Purveyors,  and  two  of  them 
still  occupy  that  position,  out  of  the  five  remaining  in  the  corps. 
The  relative  duties  of  Medical  Purveyors  and  Storekeepers  will 
appear  from  the  following  extracts  from  official  orders. 
"  Medical  Purveyors  are  charged,  under  the  direction  of  the  Surgeon 
General,  with  the  selection  and  purchase  of  all  medical  and  hospital  sup- 
plies for  the  Army.  In  all  cases  of  emergency  they  may  provide  such 
additional  accommodation  for  the  sick  and  wounded  of  the  Army,  and 
may  transport  such  medical  and  hospital  supplies,  as  circumstances  may 
render  necessary.  In  all  cases  of  emergency  they  shall  promptly  issue 
supplies  on  special  requisitions  made  directly  upon  them,  and  such  special 
requisitions  shall  consist  simply  of  a  list  of  the  articles  and  quantities  re- 
quired, and  be  dated  and  signed  by  the  Medical  Officer  who  makes  the 
requisition.  The  nature  of  the  emergency  must  be  stated,  otherwise  the 
requisition  will  be  referred  to  the  Medical  Director. 
Except  in  the  u  cases  of  emergency,"  referred  to  in  the  preceding  para- 
graph, Medical  Purveyors  and  Medical  Storekeepers  will  issue  medical 
and  hospital  supplies  only  on  the  order  of  the  Surgeon  General,  the  As- 
sistant Surgeon  General,  or  a  Medical  Director. 
Medical  Storekeepers  are  charged,  under  the  direction  of  the  Surgeon 
General  and  Medical  Purveyors,  with  the  storing  and  safe-keeping  of 
medical  and  hospital  supplies,  and  with  the  duties  of  receiving,  issuing, 
and  accounting  for  the  same,  according  to  regulations. 
Medical  Purveyors  and  Medical  Storekeepers  will  be  held  responsible 
that  the  medical  and  hospital  supplies  issued  or  transferred  by  them,  are 
well  packed  ;  that  each  article  is  designated  by  the  name  of  the  maker  or 
vender ;  and  that  each  package  is  legibly  and  correctly  marked  with  the 
address  of  the  officer  for  whom  it  is  intended,  and  with  its  weight  and 
contents,  whether  medicines,  hospital  stores,  instruments,  dressings,  books 
and  stationery,  bedding,  clothing,  or  furniture  and  appliances. 
Medical  Purveyors  and  Medical  Storekeepers  will  give  bonds  in  such 
sums  as  the  Secretary  of  War  may  require,  with  security  to  be  approved 
by  him.  Medical  Officers,  temporarily  assigned  to  duty  as  Acting  Medi- 
cal Purveyors,  are  not  required  to  give  bonds." 
Besides  procuring  and  issuing  medical  supplies,  Medical  Pur- 
veyors are  disbursing  officers ;  being  charged  with  the  payment 
of  accounts  against  the  Medical  Department,  and  also  of  contract 
Surgeons,  and  the  civilians  employed  in  hospitals  as  cooks  and 
nurses.   The  principal  purveying  depots  of  the  army  are  located 
