The miners' express. (Dubuque, Iowa) 1849-1854, 1854-04-19
REMARKS GF SENATOR DODGE.


the efic rncy Of the Army OF the United States.
he following remarks were made BY Mr.
dye.
Mr.. DODGE. of Iowa. MIR President, when
this am, ndment was offered yesterday by the
Senator from indiana. l announced my int-n-
lion to vote for it. | have listened to The dis
cussion which has ensued upon he subject, and
il has only served TO sireI CITIZEN my convic-
tions that the amendment is right, and that the
section increasing the number of cadets to cor
respond with the number of Senators. ought to
be s'r,cken from the bill. Sir, in all that the
Senator from Delaware Mr.. CLAyrosl said
euloyislic of th.' Secretary nf War, fully and
cordially concur | think DO h from education.
practical experience, and administrative talent,
that here has perhaps never been at tie h.ad
III tn. War Department an fhcer who was bet.
.-r qualf d to discharge its important du,ie-
than Is the present Secretary But notwith-
standing my en.ie1 o..6d...ce in hM, and res
p-ct tor his CO nme endatians, must, wh-n
ever pr position ct this character comes up,
be allowed '"judge of i's expedIency aud pro-
pri-,y for myself am pleased To concur 18th
my friends of the Depar,nen, and Of the mil.-
tarv committee when think they are right
not otherwise; and always retain tn privilege
"f hInk'ng for myself, whatever NAV be the
question upon which | AN called to act
that til. ught Senators had quite much I"
d" wi b app''n men as they ought to have,
and INA, the tact, that it was Prop .sed 10 give
us the noIn,naton of cadets, was it's smallest re-
commentator To me-. | stated incid ntally
that we were part of the appoin ing power,
that hrn d,ts we're pr, in"ied I" second
ipuenantc-s, we we called On, in the dis.
charge os our constitutional duties, tn advis.
and consent TO he'r app IN ments, and that
~ l. /, =.
W In them. Bat, sir. n,w iIu nbIy submit TO
the Senate, that the spectacle. which we
present, 10 not m hat in all respects think il
sh ,uld be-. If the exIgencies of the public ser.
v ce call for measure ot this character, to
avoid the imputalion of selhshness, VIII ch do
not charge upon any one, il should have origi-
mated with the peoples representatives The
fact that the section cnnfers upon Senators
the direct appointment Of sixiy-two persons,
who are thus made officers OF the Army, dnes
not look well To me. II has the appearance of
u desire to grasp power Such was my impres.
SION as soon as heard il read and everything
which has since been said in crbate hrs only
served 10 strengthen that convic iction. repeat,
the proposition should have come from the I'M
mediate repre- natives at The people who are
+, paw the taxes hat will be- requiste TO pay the
con>equri expense Of this Ire addition To
ti,- officers, u the rank and 6e of The Army
NV. Nr President, no one has a't,cked the
Wes Point M'l,tuy Academy. Every one
who has referred to that institution has dofe so
in friendly and complimentary terms. We are
not n Nv called on t" p IS upon the merIs OF
the Military Academy. Tie question uefore-us
is thai ot Increasing lis numbers, and to tina,
p mt should the argument br directed; and
surely one his begun tn answer the cogent
objections at~d by the Senator from Michigan,
r Nr CAss1 who is the wel-known, sincrr',
aud able trlend both OF the Military Academy
and Of the Army.
Now. Mr.. President. | have noticed that
whenever here is a proposition TO appropriate.
half Hon d'llars for the Collins am line,
or any Other line, any other magnificent OBJ
iect Of expenditure, We have eu!ogiums upon
steam and its advan'a ges-snch we have t,-
day had upon W-s Point and Its benefits. 1t
will be- time enough for those matters ID br
| hrongh, in o The debate hen they shall be at
r,cke. nr her benefits denied.
Mr. Pres,deni, h.. tendency Of all our leQis
la ion .xcts,; imunaleIal what 1t is we
uader,ake, We are atnos' rtain to overd" it.
The Military ACADEMY IS now doing well, and
for on, say. listen to the wis counsel ot .he
rxp-rl'n ed 5 naior tr IN NJ CHI gan, ard let its
"rsauizati n aon.. Increase the pay of its
C ,defs. : hl' Is shown Ia be Necessary, but
d +, no. iucret-t. tleT uuuper. The result of he
pr srd Increase. ifii should prevail, ILL., in an
Snnent deg e., be t'teyive III the minds o
| The people those preJndices against this ms itu-
lion VIII ch s,ed in the mii.cs of the people
IL examine into its nature aud "rganizaion, aud
| the vi inc pl, upnn which its appoin ments are
made; and the more they d. so, the more, in
mJ judgment, will they become dissatisfied
whit. The number hich can be appointed
will be so iew. compared With the applicants
that disccnlpDt will be excI,ed all the coun.
Try, which will show itself in variety of forms
MT now iInagined, and will ultimately lead TO
the over brow If the institution. That will be
the effect Of it, fear
The Senator from Maryland Mr.. PEARcE
made an attack upon the President "t the
United States for the manner in which he had
exc rcIsed the right to designate the "ten cadets
app nte "at large" lhink he charged that
it was calculated To rear or support military
| ar,st"rrlcy How differently d. ff,.reni per-
| sni.s view tn. same act rega rded the PfesI.
dent course in the selection If the ten cadets,
To which that Senator refers, as an act of sheer
justice The sous nf persons whose lives have
been spent in the service of Their country, !
ia ,prard o h.. with ms m,er from the lher
'Iou - sro,n Oma. CMr CoKwIs wb<n 500"
a.ter the commence tn.'nt of the presrh' session
he wal I'd upoA the Presde mt 10 rrcominrnd a
youin from his dis rict. l hid ike duty TO
perform f,r consiuento oi IN NJ. Inc frrsi.
den, canddly, and a. once, informed ns that
be could n i appsint either of the younr Men
whose names we presented t. hun, and f'r TIE
reason tim, he had made up his mind 10 select
The ten" fiom among The sons "f those ofhc-
.rs who ID lost their lives III the service u lac
country lie remark. rha the representative
from zach C,narr>si"nal district had the srlrc-
tien Of cadet, tha they rarely, if ever nom'
nat- d The son nt an officer, Tor thu JASON that
they seldom rem,in sufficiently long in any
place t, give them any cla,nsup'n III inr NIB T.
lie saii. h- ihonght The ten appointment
were given tn bin th,t he might have an "p-
portuniy To appoint son- of the sons oi th"sr
officers of ihr Army who had iall, n in ba tie
and " iiusa p,or and widowed inoihers were SOIL,
citing him to do so, or The sous "t officers, "h"
# living, have from their situation and circnn-
stances no local hab,taion or political Influence
Nr. Corwin and mys IF at once agreed that he
was right, although his decision excluded our
constituents We could not, in our hearts,
think that those whom we presented, deserved
preference ovrT UlsPri"g s~s- -.,A,. M
Worth, Martin, Scott, Mcintosh, Hooe, and
host OF others who have passed the greater par
# their lives n the confines ut the Republic,
and wthnu, he limits of congressional districts
"r political influ .nc.s-p-rsons he bare mem
tion Of whose names causes the recollrc'i OF
their heroic d -sds tn ruth back upon the mem
nry of.v ry Am-rican men VIII .: bodies were
scared all over up n our battle hrlds, from the
war %, 1912 To hi, nt Nj .xico The cnnduc
OF HI prrs,den' in providing for the childien VI
some of ,h- officers To whnrn allud- meets the
ap rob,t, n bath Of my heas and heart.
MIR PEAKCE. AN nol willing I" have il
| supposed thai i,i-nded innlake an attack upon
| the President. | mink that disclai,led such
an intention. lneant to assign reason why
| we should not enlarge his patronage Ia ;h's
| respect | had noicrd that all his appoint.
| IN, nis were made from the sons OF military or
naval officers; and thought that it the number
of cadets were incr ased ~ the addition "t
sxty-lwo in the course If tour years, and the
appo nt,nent were not given to Senators, but to
the Executive. Z e probability was that there
W. uld b- to" much Of that sort Of patronage
which, at The present tine. The President has
NJ personal knnwi- dge of the merits AID cai,a-
ri irs nf those vino o.ay be urged upon him fof
thes. PLACES at West Point; he must be govern.
ed, ii her es ne is governed now, by relersnce
to The claims, real OF supposed, OF military men
or by p,Ii,icaIInfluenc-, which will press upon
him, as We knew it does vtry often in every