There is a further possibility if the officer in question was the only one
noted on the list as "Honorable ".
He may have been ill , wounded or otherwise disabled and absent from duty .
Thus the characterization of his circumstances as " Honorable ".
In todays armies , most have a " Morning Report " listing the status of all
assigned troops .
If someone is not present , they would either be accounted for or " missing
" without excuse( Leave ) i.e. "AWOL " or a "Deserter "depending on the
length of unexcused absence and the conditions at the time -- army at war,
unit scheduled for service overseas , etc.
I hope the expanded explanation helped .
To get a better feeling for the customs of the Officer Corps see the
Encyclopedia Brittanica and look up " Officer " --lots of good Historical
background there although
I have not looked to it for my additions to the list as I was once a
commissioned army officer and I am now a wing staff officer in the USAF
Auxiliary .
Joe Greigg
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