Richmond daily times. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1853, 1852-04-12
REMARKS OF MR.. SEGAR,

III 0od s great name, Whene er he bids thee go.
-
REMARKS OF MR.. .SEGAR,
OF ELIZABETH CITY,
In replyt to the Structures Of the Richmond IVhig
on the Report Of the Washington Monument
Committee, made in the House Of Delegates,
april 18th, 1852.
Mr.. SEGAR said: ask leave of the House to
make brief personal explanation
Some weeks since, had the honor of being ap-
pointed Chairman ola Committee of this Hou se
which was charged with certain Investigations in
regard to the Washington Monument You will
lecollect, Mr.. Speaker, that I asked at the time
to be excused from service that Committee;
but was not excused, and proceeded, as ia duty
bound to discharge to the best of my humble abil-
ity, the duties assigned me. And after most la
borious session of more than three weeks, the
Committee made report accompanied by vou-
mlnous mass of testimony, and numerous docu-
ments relating to the subject, which were sub
mitted as part of their report.
Very soon afterthe report was handed in to the
House, before the testimony accompanying it had
been printed and before, Of course, it could be-
known to any except the members of the Com
mittee what the character of that testimony was,
and whether or not the report was borne out by
the sestlmony, most extraordinary assault was
made by certain press in this city upon the Com
mittee, collectively, and upon myself individually,
which it is my bounden duty to notice.
L regret MIR. Speaker, most unfeignedly regret,
the necessity imposed upon me- of discharging
this most unpleasant duty. But sir, owe it to this
House, OF whose committee was. a member, /
owe it to the Committee of which was the Chair
man and organ; lowe it to the respected constitu-
ency of whom | am the honored representative on
this floor and who would hold unworthy of
their trust it | did not repel the offensive impu-
tatlons OF the press have referred to; and | owe
1t to myselfand my own good name, not to permit
this most unprovoked and outrageous assault to
pass unnoticed.
| refer to certain editorials, contained in the
Richmond Wing of the 29th and 31st insts, to
some portions of which l ask the attention of the
House, while I make upon them some explanato-
ny comments; and, first, to the following
There bit little room therefore, for tuN and COM
plete justice to the commonwealth There mag be that
justtce-ce do not say there has not deebat ruth
cation commenced every mhere proclaming that there
nothing IN 1-that it acos mere quarrel betsceen Rand
and Gay cannot g2Ue assent to the report and
sumo responsibility tora"
Now, Notwithstanding the obvious attempt at
shuf11ing here made, the charge is distinctly as
serted that the organization of the committee
four to one, of which four, myself one--was
such that full and complete Justice could not
be done the Commonwealth" Well, sir, if this
wholesale imputation upon the committee is true,
the fault les first, upon the people who have sent
to this body men who cannot do the Common
wealth justice and, secondly, the responsibility
rests upon you, Mr.. Speaker, for selecting
better men for this committee. You should not
have placed upon it my veteran friend from Rock
ingham, Mr. Martz, and my distinguished young
friend from Cupeper, Mr.. Barbour, and my wor-
thy friend before me, Mr.. Dunn, and my humble
self. No. sir: you should have selected men, if
you could have found them here, who would make
Iron ort x,,lo +Lo foot
another and then you might have hit the tastes
of the Richmond Wing
But most fortunately for the repudiated four,
and most unfortunately for the position taken by
the Whig it makes an admission which is fatal
to the charge it prefers. 1t comedies that there
was one honest man in the committee-one, at
least, who could do the Commonwealth Justice, to
wit my worthy friend from Wheeling Mr.. Rus
sell. Now it so happens that that gentleman is
as fully committed to the conclusions ofthe report
any other member OF the committee. | know,
sir there has been studied effort to separate the
gentleman from Wheeling from the rest of the
committee. In the editorial of the 29th inst, he
is made the one to the four and in that ofthe 3lst
instant, it is said that he /" had nothing to do
with the preparation of the Report"
There was in otherwords, a manifest attempt to
concentrate upon me the odium of what it chose
to regard an odious report But the Wing can
not lay % this attering junction. to itself. 1t is
due to myself to state that before preparing the
report | sought special conference, by special
appointment, with my Wing colleague from
Wheeling, and had full understanding with him
to the basis Of the report. | sought that con-
ference with him because | felt an abiding conf
dence that his legal acumen, cool and discrlmina-
mating Judgment, even temper, and high sense OF
right would guide me Alright as to the basis of the
report AT this conference, that basis agreed
on, and the report was prepared accordingly by
me, not by my individual notions or on my indi-
vidual responsibility, but as the organ of the COM
mittee. After it was prepared, it was read te the
gentleman from Wheeling, altered in some par
tculars not materially efiectng It's general charac
ter and went to the House with his appreciation,
well that of the rest ofthe committee. think,
therefore, that that member OF the committee
whom the Whigadniits to be an honest man,
cured in the report, the Wing ought to be salts
fed on its own ground, that justice has been done
the Commonwealth, and that it ought not to have
made all the fuss it has about this most contempt
ible affair.
And now, sir, to that portion of the para
graph which is personal to myself, and which
charges that before the investigation commenced,
the " Chairman (mysetO oaS ecerg ,ehere prociai-
ming that there aoas aotiiag Ia II, Gnd htt Il aoa5
a mere quarrel Ineeea Rand and Gay"
have only to say that the statement is utterly
untrue. 1t is false in every sentence, line, word
and syllable. | shall not undertake TO shy that