DESCRIPTIO PERSONAE. Description of the person. In wills, it frequently happens, that the word heir is used as a descriptio personae; it is then a sufficient designation of the person.

DESCRIPTION. A written account of the state and condition of personal property, titles, papers, and the like. It is a kind of inventory¹, (q. v.) but is more particular in ascertaining² the exact condition of the property, and is without any appraisement³ of it.

2. When goods are found in the possession of a person accused of stealing them, a description ought to be made of them. Merl. Rep. h. t.

3. A description is less perfect than a definition. (q. v.) It gives some knowledge of the accidents and qualities of a thing; for example, plants, fruits, andanimals, are described by their shape, bulk, color, and the like accidents. Ayl. Pand. 60.

4. Description may also be of a person, as description of a legatee. 1 Roper on Leg. chap. 2.

DESERTER. One who abandons his post; as, a soldier who abandons the public service without leave; or a sailor who abandons a ship when he has engaged to serve.

DESERTION, crim. law. An offence which consists in the abandonment of the public service, in the army or navy, without leave.

2. The Act of March 16, 1802, s. 19, enacts⁴, that if any non-commissioned officer, musician, or private, shall desert the service of the United Staies, he shall, in addition to the penalties mentioned in the rules and articles of war, be liable to serve for and during such period as shall, with the time he may have served previous to his desertion, amount to the full term of his enlistment⁵; and such soldier shall and may be tried by a court-martial, and punished, although the term of his enlistment may have elapsed previous to his being apprehended⁶ or tried.

3. By the articles of war, it is enacted⁷, that "any non-commissioned officer or soldier who shall, without leave from his commanding officer, absent himself from his troop, company, or detachment, shall, upon being convicted thereof, be punished, according to the nature of his offence, at the discretion⁸ of a court-martial." Art. 21.

4. By the articles for the government of the navy, art. 16, it is enacted, that "if any person in the navy shall desert to an enemy, or rebel, he shall suffer death;" and by art. 17, "if any person in the navy shall desert, or shall entice⁹ others to desert, he shall suffer death, or such other punishmemt as a court-martial shall adjudge."