Executive Order 2655

by President of the United States

Mrs. Mary C. Ritenour, of the District of Columbia, may be appointed to a clerical position in the classified service at a salary not to exceed $900 per annum without regard to the civil service rules.

Mrs. Ritenour was appointed as a printer's assistant in the Bureau of Engraving and Printing in August, 1913, under her maiden name of Mary Carmody, through certification from the civil service register. On April 10, 1915, she was married to Willie H. Ritenour, an employee in the General Land Office, when she resigned her position. On or about April 1, 1917, Mr. Ritenour enlisted as a seaman in the United States Naval Reserves and was assigned to night guard duty at the navy yard, Washington, D. C., and was mortally wounded while in the discharge of such duty on the night of April 11, 1917, through the accidental discharge of a pistol while being relieved from duty through no fault of his own, leaving his widow with one child six months old.

In view of these facts and as Mr. Ritenour was among one of the first to respond to the call of his country on the declaration of War against Germany, the employment of Mrs. Ritenour without examination is considered justified.

Woodrow Wilson.

The White House,

6 July, 1917.