Phenix gazette. [volume] (Alexandria [D.C.]) 1825-1833, 1825-08-11
& this court may attach itself to the

q duotOuS twuu6nt, 10 knowledge OF
what NAV constitute the gist Of my Of
fence and the essence Of the accusation,
in point both Of law and fact, must
proceed by the help of anticipations
and conjectures Of the point of attack,
to defend myself the best may on
every ground.
Though had yielded my conviction,
with such absolute confidence, to the
force and conclusiveness Of the reasons
by which the preliminary exceptions OF
my counsel to the sufficiency OF the Cd
charge and its specifications, had been
sustained, yet should not have been
in the least disconnected, nor, as ina
gined, materially curtailed Of my de-
fence, if such exceptions had been over
ruled by any new and unexpected argu-
ments, which the learning and abilities
enlisted against me might have sug-
gested in answer. fshould, without
regret have given undisputed sway to
the pathological and legal disquisitions,
which were supposed to have furnished
such victorious arguments in favor Of
the charge and specifications excepted
to. But when / found myself assailed
by species Of argumeatuna aa hom'nem,
DEPRESSING into circumstances foreign
to the point in question; and proceed
ing upon the most extraordinary mis-
apprehensions Of my language and con-
duct, and Of the motives inferred from
them, / could not forbear to discharge
myself from the imputations, and dis
claim the differences that might have
resulted from this official and recorded
misconstruction Of my conduct and
motives.
I adhere, with undiminished conf
dence to the propositions Of law, which
have been stated and illustrated by my
counsel, to acquit of any necessity to
answer the I'd charge and its speci6ca-
tions: but before / advert to the grounds
upon which they are either maintained
or contested, must be permitted to
pass very briefly, under review, the
collateral topics of disparagement,
which have been brought in aid OF the
argument against them.
/. AS an evidence Of my disposition
to raise captious and futile objections,
if not OF my want of candor, it has
been stated that complained, on the
frst day ofthe court, ofnot having been
served with copy of the charges and
specifications; and yet, the next day !
produced a copy, with which had
been regularly served, and which differ
ed from that upon which | had been
arraigned only in t,co letters. The fact
is well remembered, that gave, as a
reason for demanding fresh copy OF
the charges and specifications, differ
ence had discovered between the CO.
ny read and that in my possession; and
my written explanation, the next day,
which hope forms part Of the record,
infinitely explains the difference be-
tween the two. Nor is the stated re-
suit Of the minute calculation, which
reduces the variance to mere differ
ence Of t,co letters in the spelling OF a
word, by any means correct or fair
The variance (no matter in how many
letters or words it consisted was in the
date ofone of my letters specified as in
subordinate and disrespectful; the let
tiers were no otherwise specified or
identified than by naked reference to
dates--the one copy Of the specification
gave letter of one date, the other CO.
py omitted that, and gave letter OF a.
mother date; and so the varience con-
sisted not in the difference between the
spelling Of hirtietb and thirteenth, but
in the entire letter, which constituted
one Of the documents Of the charge -
But if it be true, as has been suggested,
that the only office of the Court in this
trial, is to offer Precipitation to another
authority, by which l stand already
condemned upon the strict law and the
fact; how hopeless the task of excul-
patton or excuse, if the spirit, in which
the charges have been instituted, be
consentaneous with that by which they
are prosecuted to judgment. For
here am I charged with litigiousness,
illiberality, and want of candor, in my
objection; because had simply point
ed out an important defect in the pro-
cedure against me, all advantage from
which / had voluntarily waived, and
had even conceded to the prosecution
an election to adopt either or both of the
letters referred to in the two copies Of
the specification; only requiring that
the election should then be dehnitively
made. s
Q. am also represented as having
appealed to the Judge Advocate to
piihdra,c the I'd charge; and even to
have followed up that application with
some intimation sounding in menace:
and it is thought necessary gravely to
sxpound the relative powers & duties
of the Judge Advocate, from which any
discretionary authority, to ,rifhdraD a
charge, is excluded. The only cir
cumstance from which am given to
understand that this attempt to escape
from the prosecution, either by the le-
nity or the fears Of those who were to