from
Bouvier's Law Dictionary, Revised 6th Ed (1856)
OBEDIENCE. The performance of a command.
2. Officers who obey the command of their superiors, having
jurisdiction of the subject-matter, are not responsible for their acts. A
sheriff may therefore justify a trespass under an execution, when the court
has jurisdiction, although irregularly issued. 3 Chit. Pr. 75; Ham. N. P.
48.
3. A child, an apprentice, a pupil, a mariner, and a soldier, owe
respectively obedience to the lawful commands of the parent, the master, the
teacher, the captain of the ship, and the military officer having command;
and in case of disobedience, submission may be enforced by correction.
(q.v.)