Year: 1862

Ian that Gen. Stone was in this city, and
that he General McClellan) was sof
opinion that General Stone should 80.
pear before the com uistee In regard to-
the matters laid to his charge, and the


committee informed the Secretary of


War that they were willing to hear Gen.


Stone at any time.


"On January 81, 1862, General Stone
appeared before the committee the see


ond time, was informed of the nature of


the evidence bearing against him.. and


was allowed to proceed and make his
own explaaatioff ii his own way.


''The committee then appointed sub
comm :ttee to wait upon the Secretary of


War and inform him that there was q
conflict Of testimony in relation to Gen.
eral Stone, and to communicate to him


what that testimony was. :"


Mr.. WADE.-That, sir, is the inauis-
itorial course we have taken with Gen.
Stone. AS he was likely to be implica-
ted in the Balls Bluff affair, he was QUE
Of the early witnesses that we called in.


We were not inquiring into the conduct,
of any individual. That was not what
we were placed there, as we believed, to-
do. 1t was not our construction of pow
ers that were granted to us. We were
to inquire into the facts connected with
the conduct of the war, and if there were
short comings or delinqueneies that
might light upon anybody's head, We
were not to direct it; we sought no evi-
dence to impeach any man, and if the
evidence seemed to impinge on the cred
ibility, the loyalty, or the character of
any man, we sought that man, and laid
before him the course Of the evidence,
and the matters wherein he was iucul-
pated. We did the same to General
Stone. We summoned him before us to-
give an account of that affair at Balls
Bluff, to give US all the information he
could on the subject, and, after that, as
you see from our records, the much ap
plauded chief of your army, whom the
Senator believes to be immaculate aud
above the suspicion of any body, was the
very man that knocked at our door to-
inform us that, in his judgment, it was
our duty to summon General Stone again
before US, and We accommodated him.
We did not want any more testimony
than we had got, but if General Stone:
had any new light to throw on the sub
ject, we, as an impartial committee, were
not only willing, but anxious that Ire
should appear before US. He didappear
before US. | will not say that in his
amended testimony he made the case in
tinitel worse than it was before. will
not go into that, for do not want to in
culpate him unless he is guilty. Sir,
we have done Gen. Stone no harm; none
atall. If he is an innocent man, his
own testimony stands forth as his justiS@
6cation. IF we have informed the Pres
ident, the Secretary of War, and the
Cabinet of the testimony that seemed tor
impeach him, we also showed his own
exculpation at the same time, and then,
at the instance of this immaculate COM
mander of ours, We received General
Stone again, and went through the whole
thing.


Where is the accuser of that commit
tee? We hope he has not skedaddled
after making his speech. Weare an in
QUESTION, are we? We are to be im--
peached by the Senator from California.
Why? If, in the course Of our investi-





traitor in the camp, and were not to
make it known, in Gods name what bu-
siness had We in the committee; what
business had we in the Senate; what bu-
siness had we in the United States, even,
as private citizens? The gentleman said
on Wednesday last, that it was the deep
est, the most disgraceful thing he ever
had heard of. He seemed toIegret that
it has been his fortune to get into
place where he had to associate with men
so depraved; for that is fair construc-
ton of what he said. Sir, imagine he
worked hard to get here; and 1 do not
think he is polluted by the contact at
all. I consider it to be a part of my
senatorial duty here, if happen to know
that man holding high Office is dis
loyal, where his disloyalty might preju-
dice the public, to make it known with
out being on any committee especially
detailed for that purpose. And yet the
Senator thinks it is deeply disgraceful
toward traitors whom he never assails,
or speaks word in disparagement of.


Now, sir, as | said before, have
listened to this kind of defense of trait
ors long enough What has the Ad-
done that this gentleman
should rise here in the Senate and brand
hem as tyrants and despots and inquis-
tors, and tell us he is going to run 8
parallel between the President and
Secretary of War and the old inquisi-
lion? Why, sir, only think of the per-
'ect burlesque! The President of the
United States, who neither by word OF
Iced, or thought would harm hair of
my mans head, who, of all men | know,
S the most reluctant to offend anybody,
put who as patriot, is anxious to vim
licate the Constitution of the United
States and the Government he has sworn
% support--and he does it with tole-
.ation and mildness toward these
raitors that has met with the censure
IF many good men, who think he does
rot so far enough-this mild, equitable,
ust man is to be branded here, by
< night of the Golden Circle, with being
grand inguisitor, armed with tyranny,
whose purpose it is to destroy the rights
md property and the lives of men,
Sir, the thing is absolutely ridiculous,
md would not. become any Senator on
his floor, unless he was compelled to
10 so by joining this. new tangled Or
sanization, whose purpose it is, we are
old, to reconstruct the Democratic
party. l believe l asked the gentleman
what kind of reconstruction it was to
he. The old eckinridoe- Buchanan