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WRITINGS OF 5AM HOUSTON, 1856
acknowledged that injustice was done to individuals; but who are to be the beneficiaries of this acknowledgment? Adopt the proposition of the Naval Committee, and it is a matter of favor- it is confided to executive discretion. Think you, then, that it would extend to all who have been injured and who seek redress? Men of irreproachable and spotless character-men who were never delinquent for a moment in the discharge of their duties, and always met every requisition made upon them, have been disrated by this board, and are here asking for redress. I say it is your duty to give it to them. Well, sir, is it disrespect to the Committee on Naval Affairs to say that a special committee shall be created for the purpose of making an impartial examinaton into the facts of the case of each officer whose memorial has been presented to the Senate? No, sir; it is not disrespectful. I should be disposed to think that the gentlemen of the Naval Committee would feel a delicacy in tak- ing cognizance of any matters connected with the subject, inas- much as they have already expressed their opinions. They have made an elaborate report, invoking every possible aid, direct and collateral, to their support; and they have quoted a succession of reports of the Secretary of the Navy, from the time of Mr. Ban- croft down to the present day, speeches made in the House of Representatives, former reports made to the Congress of the United States, opinions of committees, and everything else calcu- lated to sustain the position of the board, but nothing that would show the injustice which had been done to individuals-nothing giving any assurance that they had impartially investigated the subject. My desire is, that it shall be impartially looked into. Why? because I have a judgment to form, and I wish to have that judgment enlightened. I wish to hear the whole case. We have heard the advocates of the board; let us hear the advocates of the memorialists. Let us compare the statements on both sides- those favorable to the board and those adverse to it-with the array of facts that can be presented on either side. That is what I desire. This can be accomplished through a select committee. For the purpose of more perfectly understanding this subject, and obtaining all the information possible, I had the honor of introducing into the Senate, some days ago, a resolution calling for the proceedings of a court-martial which grew out of the action of the board, and in which some ill-feeling had been mani- fested. I was anxious to have the information brought before the Senate, not because I was acquainted with it, and believed it calculated to create a prejudice against the board, but because I
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