National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1876-08-01
THE REPORT OF THE MAJORITY OF THE
NAVAL COMMITTEE

In scanning this extraordinary d0cu-
ment, conceived and executed for pur-
pose, the reader is struck with the fact that
appearances even of fairness have been dis
regarded; no more, however, than has been
the case with many other of the lnyestigat-
ing committees that have marked in a
disgraceful manner this session of Congress.
1t was evidently not the purpose to ascer-
tain abuses and correct them or to gain the
truth, but instead to make whatever could
be speciously construed into an abuse, and
speciously objected to.
The debate on Saturday in the House
should be carefully read by every Demo
crat especially. who cares about even the
appearance and forms of justice. 1t is
worth while to note the character and pre-
cedents of persons who are willing to "a
tach innuendo and stigma that the worth of
the innuendo may be weighed.
Mr.. Whitthorne. the chairman ofthe com
mittee, is from Tennessee, and note, law
yer by profession. He served as adjutant
general of the provisional army of Tennes
see during the rebellion, where he is not
supposed 10 have faced the music" He
processes great admiration for the navy,
yet his every act bellies his assertion. If
single naval officer is culpable and known
to him, it was his duty to name him,
and to state fairly that he should in
his opinion be tried for the Of
tense. Instead he sneakingly insinu-
ates culpability of naval officers, and pro-
poses the aid of the Judiciary Committee
to apply the law! He processes to be a
lawyer. His constituency regard him,
doubtless, as an able criminal, constitutional
and probably international lawyer: and
yet, with all this, he proposes that the
Judiciary Committee examine four thou
sand pages Of testimony, TO see if the laws
are not sufficient to impesch the Secretary
of the Navy
The Hon. B. B. Lewis, Of Alabama, was
Confederate officer and is lawyer.
The Hon. Roger Q. Mills, of Corsicana,
was elected to the Forty-third Congress
and was re elected to the Forty fourth as
Democrat defeating Pleasant NJ. YELL
Republican. Such is the brief history
given in full taken from the Congressional
Directory. Is he q lawyer? Has he no
history, no father, no mother, Is he a
poor orphan? Or is history SO overpower-
ing that he has withheld il? Well may a
person who gives so brief history of him
self inquire closely into the bank account
of any one fortunate enough to have bank
account and income tax. Is the Hon. Mr.
Mills lawyer? We pause fora reply.
The Hon. Mr.. Willis, of New York. is
a lawyer; the Hon. Mr.. Williams, of Della
ware, is supposed to follow agricultural
pursuits and belong to the only State in
the Union where the whipping post is
'legslized institution" and docs good"
The Hon. Mr.. Jones, of New Hamp-
shire, pursues, when not in Congress, the
honorable vocation of brewing beer, and
is doubtless gentleman and scholar.
The Hon. John Robbins, of Pa, is
a manufacturer and might be supposed
to know enough, as well as the Hon
Mr.. Burleigh, when aided by competent
lawyers on the committee, to decide
whether the Secretary of the Navy is
culpable and whether any existing law
covers the offense. Yet, these gentle
men meanly propose to blacken the
naval service by proclaiming that navy
officers are culpsble, and yet not name one,
and that the Secretary of the Navy is cul
pable, but that they have not enough
knowledge of the law or common sense
enough to look over the Revised Statutes
and have him held responsible for viola
ton of the law.
1t may be worth while to ask the con-
scientious Burleigh whether he found any
navy yard "abuse" more fragrant than his
demand as member of Congress for the