[1] Shurtleff was nominated by President Benjamin Harrison on July 17, 1890, to the Board of General Appraisers, to a new seat created by 26 Stat.
His service terminated on May 12, 1899, due to his removal from office by President William McKinley.
[1] In early 1899, Shurtleff received a request from the Treasury Department to resign from the Board, but declined to do so.
[2] On May 3, 1899, President McKinley wrote Shurtleff, informing him that he was being removed from office, effective upon the appointment and qualification of his successor, which occurred on May 12, 1899.
In the case Shurtleff vs. United States the Supreme Court ruled that barring a specific prohibition in the statute creating an office, the President of the United States may remove any officer without cause, thus denying Shurtleff's petition.