LETTERS OP A CITIZEN. 469 



of the vessels for the service for which they were designed were 

 withheld 1 I have studied my language, sir ; I know the import of 

 every word I have used ; and should you or the governor dare to 

 move one step from where I have here placed you, I hold myself 

 bound to give the public the proof of what I have asserted ; viz., 

 that important official documents were withheld when called for by 

 Congress, and that trivial, unimportant papers were sent in their 

 stead ! 



I trust, sir, I have said enough about the naval part of your sil- 

 ly and impudent proclamation ; silly 9 because it covered you with 

 ridicule, from the weakness of the defence set up ; impudent, be- 

 cause you attempted to mislead and deceive the people, by pretend- 

 ing that the expedition was about to receive a purely scientific 

 character ; a point upon which I shall be very apt to satisfy the 

 public before these letters are closed, though I mean to be as brief 

 as is consistent with justice to you and your coadjutor. 



How far you have propagated errors as to the force employed 

 under your present commander, will be the subject of inquiry in 

 my next communication ; the scientific part will follow. 

 I have the honour to be, 



Very respectfully, your fellow 



CITIZEN. 



XVL 



To the Honourable Joel R. Poinsett, Secretary of War. 



SIR, 



In the slight allusion I have hitherto made to the probable con- 

 siderations which influenced you in the selection of your lieutenant 

 commodore the certain kind of service he was deemed peculiar- 

 ly fitted to perform, and for which it was supposed that in the 

 whole navy there would be no other competent I confined myself 

 within the limits of what was not only freely spoken of at the 

 time, as matter of general and well-founded rumour, but openly 

 alluded to in Congressional debate. However regular the record 

 on file in the department may appear ; however beaut j /m man- 

 ner the command was tendered and accepted ; with whatever dern- 



