Washington sentinel. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1853-1856, 1856-01-22

required, by the act, to report to the Secretary
OF the Navy, for the approval or disapproval
of the President This power conferred upon
the Secretary was very large one, it must be
admitted, not the less, but rather the more,
for that reason to be directed and controlled
in its exercise by principles of law and justice.
The discretion with which the act of Congress
invested the Secretary, was legal discretion
and not an arbitrary and irresponsible one
The Hon. Mr.. Mallory, the chairman of the
Committee on Naval Affairs in the Senate,
when he reported the BILL seemed to have been
aware that objection might be taken, that the
powers to be exercised by the board were dis
cretionary and underlined, and, by way of OBJ.
waiting the objection, held the following Ian
guage: In determining, &C." 1t will thus be
seen that, at the time Of the enactment of the
law, it was supposed that the board, notwith-
standing they were TO be selected from "corps
of heightened men," from "corps of honor"
might yet do injustice to some officers, and the
assurance was given to the country that the
action Of the board, conducted under the s,s.
perrision of the Secretary, was still to be 'sub.
ject to the approval or disapproval of the Pres
ident, and, to certain extent of the Senate of
the United States" Under this assurance, and
with the belief that these securities against in
justice would be faithfully enforced, the bill be-
came a law, when, if it had been conceived
that the purpose was to execute it in the man
ner it has been executed, it could not have
commanded the votes Of 1.-THE of the mem
bers of either House of Congress.
The letter Of instructions of the Secretary to
the board of the goth June, 1855, intended to
be performance on his part Of the duty de-
volved upon him by the act, to prescribe regU-
ations for the government of their action, SO
far from guarding the officers of the navy
against injustice by retaining supervisory
control over such action, and taking care that
the same should be subject to the approval or
dsapproval Of the President, or, to any extent
of the Senate of the United States, expressly
by its terms invests said board with full and
uncontrolled discretion over the whole subject
He tells them that the incapacity contemplated
by the act is three fold, physical, mental, and
moral" for although" says the Secretary
Gan officer may possess strong mind and ro-
bust frame, yet, if his moral perception of right
and wrong be so blunted and debased as to
render him unreliable, he could hardly be
ranked as the capable officer, to be entrusted
with the lives of his countrymen and the pro-
perty and honor of his country"s He suggests
to them farther, that an officer is to "blame if
he has become incompetent from neglect of
duty and inattention and Indifference to his
profession as well as from dissipation or i'm
moral indulgences." He beseeches the board
not to allow the cases of officers that he, or his
predecessors, may have ordered on duty, if they
be deemed incompetent by the board, to cause
them 1.-THE members of the board) the slightest
embarrassment. The Secretary says in his
letter of instructions ~ fear misapprehen-
sion may exist in the minds Of some in regard
TO the position before the country of officers
placed on the reserved list with full leave of
absence pay. 1t is no degradation it is rather
a high compliment" By consequence, those
who were dropped from the rolls of the navy
and those retained upon furlough pay were de-
graded. Every officer of the navy or army has
a vested right in his commission, Of which he
connot be rightfully deprived except for cause.
1t is true that the President OF the United
States, Of necessity, has the power to dismiss an
officer at will, but he dismisses him under re.
sponsibility for the act, and if the dismissal be
wanton, arbitrary, and corrupt, the President
may be impeached for it. This is the theory
Of the Government, however impossible it may
be in practice to execute the power of impeach.
meut. But this power of dismissal is inherent
in the Presidential Office, belongs to no other
functionary or authority, and cannot be dele
gated.
Could it have been in the contemplation Of
Congress when the act in question became a
law, and the shield against injustice mentioned
by Mr.. Mallory in his report was supposed to
be thrown around the officers who were to be
subjected TO action under it, that the facts Of
each case upon which the Board based their
recommendations we're not TO be reported TO
the Secretary for the consideration of the
President, that be might decide whether
or not he approved or dsapproved Of the
recommendations Of the Board ? and was It
not the duty Of the Secretary to prescribe such
regulations for the action Of the Board as
would accomplish this resut2 When citizens
Of the Government were to be tried for imu,o.
rally and crime, and subjected to degradation
and deprivation Of vested rights, should not
the Secretary, unless the law prohibited it, in
Difference to the character Of our free institu.
tons, have caused the parties sought to be
affected to be notified Of the charges against
them-to be informed of the proofs, and
allowed an opportunity to be heard. Is not
this the guaranteed right of the citizen in all
cases7 Could it have been in the contempla.
plation Of Congress that the officers Of the
Navy were to be tried upon their morals, for
there may be very wide difference of opinion