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WRITINGS OF 5AM HOUSTON, 1856
though they had not innate principle enough to discern right from wrong, and to pursue the right in preference to tolerating the wrong. I wish it distinctly understood, as the allusion was directed particularly to myself, that no outward influence has operated on me to direct me towards the course which I have taken, and which I am determined, with my humble abilities, to maintain upon this floor, and before this nation, in vindicating men who have been relentlessly stricken down, regardless of their rights as officers and as citizens of the United States. Sir, I will refer to some remarks of mine on a former occa- sion-not for the purpose of sustaining myself in the assurance which I have given, but for explanation, and to show the reason why my mind, as early as November 23d last, had arrived at the conclusion which it now maintains. On an occasion when it was fit that I should address my fellow-citizens in reference to the subject now before the Senate,-alluding to the Administration and its component parts, and particularly to the Secretary of the Navy, [Mr. Dobbin,] I said: [Houston quotes from his speech in Austin, November 23, 1855. 2 ] Sir, this shows that I needed no prompting, after my arrival in Washington city, and that no influences were exerted upon me; but that it was the prompting of my own heart, from a knowl- edge of the individuals who had been stricken down, which guided my action. It will not be considered egotistical when I refer to days past, as they form a portion of the history of the country, and when the reference is not made for the purpose of complimenting my- self; but it is to me a subject of gratulation and delight, that I had an instrumentality in placing in his proud position in the service one of the distinguished officers of the Navy. In 1825, when a Representative from the State of Tennessee, I obtained a midshipman's warrant for Matthew F. Maury/ who then en- tered the Navy. I have watched his career since with paternal solicitude. I have gloried in his prosperity; and his distinctions I have always considered as 1·eflecting honor upon myself, while the nation was honored by his achievements; and though they were not on the quarter-deck where scuppers run blood, he has built his name high in the niche of fame. It will not be obscured by the action of this mysterious board, who have reviewed his conduct. They may strike him off, and embarrass his prospects
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