In passing upon the questions certified to us by the circuit court, it will be convenient to follow the order in which they have been argued by counsel, rather than that in which the questions are presented by the certificate of division.
The section of the Revised Statutes upon which the indictment is based, creates and describes certain offenses, and expressly denominates them misdemeanors. In the case of U.S. v. Mills, 7 Pet. 138, it was said by this court that 'the general rule is that in indictments for misdemeanors created by statute, it is sufficient to charge the offense in the words of the statute. There is not that technical nicety required as to form which seems to have been adopted and sanctioned by long practice in cases of felony and with respect to some crimes where particular words must be used, and no other words, however synonymous they may seem, can be substituted. But in all cases the offense must be set forth with clearness, and all necessary certainty to apprise the accused of the crime with which he stands charged.'
In the case of U.S. v. Simmons, 96 U.S. 362, it was said by this court, speaking by Mr. Justice HARLAN, that 'when an offense is plainly statutory, it is, 'as a general rule, sufficient in the indictment to charge the defendant with acts coming within the statutory description in the substantial words of the statute, without any further expansion of the matter;' but to this rule there is the qualification, fundamental in the law of criminal procedure, that the accused must be apprised in the indictment with reasonable certainty of the nature of the accusation against him, to the end that he may prepare his defense and plead the judgment as a bar to any subsequent prosecution against him.'
So in the case of U.S. v. Carll, 105 U.S. 611, it was said by Mr. Justice GRAY, speaking for the court, that 'in an indictment upon a statute it is not sufficient to set forth the offense in the words of the statute, unless those words of themselves fully, directly, and expressly, without any uncertainty or ambiguity, set forth all the elements necessary to constitute the offense intended to be punished; and the fact that the statute in question, read in the light of the common law and of other statutes in the like matter, enables the court to infer the intent of the legislature, does not dispense with the necessity of alleging in the indictment all the facts necessary to bring the case within that intent.'
In the case of U.S. v. Pond, 2 Curt. 265, the rule was thus stated by Mr. Justice CURTIS:
'It must be remembered that this is an indictment for a misdemeanor created by the statute, and that in general it is sufficient to describe such an offense in the words of the statute, * * * unless they embrace cases which it was not the intention of the legislature to include within the law. If they do, the indictment should show that this is not one of the cases thus excluded.'
Applying the rules thus laid down to the counts of the indictment, we are to consider whether they sufficiently state an offense under section 5209 of the Revised Statutes.
To describe the offense charged in the first 36 counts of the indictment, section 5209 requires the following averments:
(1) That the accused was the president or other officer of a national banking association, which was carrying on a banking business.
(2) That being such president or other officer, he made in a book, report, or statement of the association, describing it, a false entry, describing it.
(3) That such false entry was made with intent to injure or defraud the association, or to deceive any agent, describing him, appointed to examine the affairs of the association.
(4) Averments of time and place.
An examination of the counts under consideration shows that they contain all these averments pleaded with clearness and reasonable certainty. They must, therefore, be held sufficient, unless some of the objections made to them by counsel for defendant are well taken.