The Washington union. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1857-1859, 1858-04-30

We shall publish IN efew days the report Of the
minority u Tho cesahistss which was appointed by
the HOUSE 6s iyestg,tas NE facts II THE sale,
Tho report ensnsass from Mr.. Faulknss and Mr..
Burnett. he dka1ocFafc members Of DE. committee.
and is one Of the ahssA and most thorosshly Oonclu
sive srxuansnts that we have ever seen any sub
ject The readers Of il will enjoyit no less for the
completeness Of the vindication which il makes Of
the sale IN question than for It's cogsncy aud ability
a. place Of dialsctics. Nconcludes BY recommend
ing the following resolution for the adoption of the
House M, M u
R~ss That tbs recent sass Of the military
on Of Fss Smelling having bean nede by the Secretary
a a nndm IA direction Of The PEssidspt Of the Uni
ted Gtt IN stet oQnformiy 70 lay; and the evidence
reported by tho select committee having failed to exhibit
70 ns - an Il - a. q A. ssssy Of any,
Of the oceB agents of the government concerned In
~ spes 49, ~ sxhjhit cay fhcA On oircnAnes which
should maks the I'D sale propss susc& Ter Tie opin
lon and 4pW a ~ Hones, 10 Il ordersd at tho COM
mitteelv tlphasna npm tho furthsr ccnsidsmtion Of
The ~ tAat the report Of subcommittee be laid
iup0A ~ AeeA %sssugtf las fssS 9dt b, hrlfi 9H
~ wv ayahaAhsd b our congregational proceedings
fdx 1for " hst the resolutions which are recon-
msnded BY the three republican mambers who COM
stup tho majority of the conimittse, and who have
controlled ia action throughout its protracted sit
tings. UndsE their management the investigation
has been secret and purts, II has lasted nearly
Ssa mnnths. A great number Of Witnesses have
been sxasninsd and the widest possible latitude Of
inquiry exercised. II turns ont now that the object
of The najoriy Of thu committee has been partisan
and political from the beginning. The end aimed
at has been political capital. and not justice and
the truth. They have conducted their &c pa,te and
secret examination with the aim of attacking the adj
minstration and the Secretary of War. That officer
whose conduct has been thus assailed, for four
months by secret conclave in the dark behind his
back has not been called upon for any statement of
the reasons which governed him in making this
sale. The committee were ordered to investigate
facts and they pass by the fountain source Of infor
nation The first public notification the Secretary
of War has had Of their Judgment upon his official
action has been their report to e House Of string
Of resolutions assang his sosioa, each imbody-
ing a feeble stump speech in it's belly, each one
founded upon gross sequaur in logic, and each
one based upon false allegation of fact The result
of four months Of secret partisan malevolent inves
tigaton has been string Of resolutions announcing
propositions to no Of which would any lawyer
in the country Of reputation and character degn to
put his individual name. They are only such reso
lutions as cabal Of partisans would club together
inn reckless partisan spirit to promugate for reck
less partisan purposes. at
When this sale was first assaulted, it was on the
ground that it had been made by private contract
and not BY public cutlery; and that it brought
grossly inadequate price. It will have been seen
from the resolutions Of the blacrepublican members
Of the committee that these are not now the grounds
Of assault The assaiants have failed to establish
their rstcharge and they have found it necessary to
resort TO others. The five others that are Eumped
up in the Ave resolutions Of the majority of the COM
ittee ars too silly for examination. That the sale
was without authority Of FLAW; that it was fault for
the Secretary Of War to differ in opinion with his
predecessor, Composing there difference, which
is denied;) that the, commissioners were incom-
petent; that the sale was injudiciously and negli
gently made that agent for the sale Of one tract
of land which not sold, vitated the sale of an
other tract by becoming one Of it's purchasers -
these the present grounds Of assault set forth
in the puerilc resolutions of the opposition members
of the committee. SO far as they are founded on allie
cations of fact, they are unsustaiped by proof; so
far IS they involve logical conclusions they are be-
meath criticism. They can be safely left to their
own selfrefutafon. We recur to the original
grounds Of assault upon this sale; the grounds
which originally taken by the black-republcan
newspapers, which have brains, distinguished
from those taken by the blsck-repubcan committee
men, who have no brains.
The leading complaint Of the opposition papers
against tho sale was founded on the alleged mad
eqpacx of The price obtained. Upon that point
thry-two Witnesses testissd before the committee,
the great majority Of whom were summoned at the
instance Of the prosecution. OF these thiry-two
twenty-five tssttGsd list the property had brought
its full price, or else more than it was worth. The
other seven testified that in their opinion it was
worth more than II brought The opinion Of these
seven was, when probed found to rest on the idea
that the site was favorable for town or city and
that the government Of the United States might have
realized speculative prices from the property if it
had converted It into bubble town scheme.
got up fourishing New Blimmersville ON
paper, and then made sale by town lots instead
Of by the plain old farmers pau Of by the acre.
The idea of town speculation il Of itself fatal to
the allegation that the price obtained inadequate
The government of the United States not speou-
lctn~ H.. I.~. HIN