289
WRITINGS OF SAM HOUSTON, 1856
reputation was spotless. He had performed as fair a proportion of sea duty, during the time he was in the service, as the chair- man of the board, and more than several other members of the board. There could have been no objection to him on this ground. His moral standing none can impeach-none dare do it. Then what was the reason for his displacement? I presume there must have been some cause. Because he limps? If that was the only cause for removing him, pray has he not performed duty since his leg was broken? I believe he has. Why has he not performed sea duty for the last seven years? Because it was refused to him when he applied for the privilege of performing it. That is the reason of it; and I desire to have it fairly under- stood. They must have had some pretext for it. He has per- formed as fair a proportion of sea duty as the average of officers on the board, and his attainments otherwise are higher. He was like the tall poplar, and must be cut down. He was not only a sailor and a gentleman, but he was a man of science, renowned throughout the world, distinguished by honors which no other citizen had. For this he must be separated from the Navy, and degraded. "Oh!" say the board, "we must be the elite; if we get but one whistle, we will take that. That will do some good. We will trumpet you-you will whistle us; and if you do not, you must take care, Thorburn. We will strike you down in a whistle." I could speak of numbers of others. Take the case of Com- mander Shaw--one of the best looking men I see about Washmg- ton. He looks as though he could himself alone give a broadside to a seventy-four as quickly as it could have been done by Captain Stribling with his undrilled crew. I would just as soon take a chance with him as I would with Stribling, because the inspec- tion showed that before Stribling could bring his guns into action, his vessel might be sunk. Shaw would at least have had two cracks at the enemy before they got nearer. He had an impor- tant command in the West Indies at the time; and he was stricken down-for what? Inefficiency? Of course they could not retire him for anything else than inefficiency! Ringgold, too, one of the most accomplished and scientific offi- cers in the naval service of this or any other country, was also stricken down; and here is Rolando-it is a great mercy he has not been dropped. I should like to know what trumpeting and whistling ought to be done when Rolando shows himself in the streets of Washington city, when marching one hundred men two miles up the beach, and down again, requires a whistle.
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