Litchfield enquirer., 1876-08-10
PartiSansnip.

4u0TO uOtOE WdS LuOF0 OlS8TGCcIul oX~ hibition of partisanship than in the re- suit of the long investigation into the con- duct of MT. Robeson as Secretary of the Navy. After a long investigation, the Committee make majority and minority reports: the former, referring the evidence
 to the Judiciary committee to decide
 whether the misconduct of which they
 find MT. Robeson guilty will warrant his impeachment; which the minority ''find no reason to censure or find fault with
 his conduct in the administration of the
 Navy Department. All the Democrats
 of the committee sign the majority report | which is also subscribed by one Repub-
 lican, a member from Maine; and it is a
 significant fact that this Republican re-
 tires from politics with the close of his
 present term. The minority are all Re- publicans. Incidental to their difference
 about the conduct of MT Robeson is an equally sharp divergence of opinion in
 the committee regarding the present con-
 dition of the navy.
 An amusing instance of the bafiing ef- feet of such statements and counter-state-
 ments regarding ascertainable facts was seen in the way they misled even the ex- perienced political writers of the Hartford Courant. Shortly after the synopsis of
 the majoyity report was decided, the Hnnronk V1nh1icho1 cI,o~v> 0R "Our Rotten Navy" On receipt of the
 minority report, that paper retracted its former statements. attributing it's mistake to the partisan and unreliable character of the majority report. If such contrarie ty of statement puzzles even the political expert, how can we wonder that the pub lie at large IS in doubt regarding facts that candid investigation could not have left in doubt? There might be an honest difference of opinion Tn the committee re- garding the guilt of Robeson; there could not be such a difference of opinion be- tween honest and candid men regarding the present condition of our Navy!
 The simple truth seems to be that in their haste to blacken the present admin istration the Democrats of the Naval Com mittee have offered an exagge, ated and misleading view of the defciences of our navy. while the Republicans with equal want of candor deny the existence of any such deficiencies. The Presidential election is at hand, and honorable" men sign lying reports especially designed to mislead the people Such craftsmanship IS as dangerous as it is disreputable. Pub lie officers come to think that. whatever they do, they will be accused of dishones- ty by their political enemies, and defend ed by their political friends There can be no greater encouragement of crime in high places than this prevalent habit of uncandid accusation and of uncandid de- fense. Under cover of this general licen- tiousness of politics, thieves plunder the government regardless of the attacks of political adversaries so long as they can rely on the support of political friends; and those friends are deliberate. misled by their chosen representatives who whitewash instead of exposing the scoundrels of their own party.
 In the present cuse it is impossible to tell whether the views of the majority or of the minority arc most distorted by partisanship. The former have shown very uncommendable want of fairness in the way they have conducted their at- tack, and manifest desire to make capi- tai out of such disreputable facts as they could discover. On the other hand we cannot conceive how the minority could 'And no fault" with system of Catell contracts, and with an extravaganza has kept up the extraordinary expenses of the Navy department, without producing any adequate results. In fact the wise Amer ican looks for no candor and little truth from congress of partisans, or partisan press, in the last six months before a pres- idential election. He must form his judgment of the conduct of affairs before that season of excitement and collision of opinions. or it will be of extremely small value.