The House Armed Services Committee received an unusual assignment: in effect, it had to fight over again one of the celebrated naval actions of the War of 1812the capture of the U.S. frigate Chesapeake by the British frigate Shannon, off Boston Harbor. The American hero in that encounter was Captain James ("Don't give up the ship!") Lawrence. The villain, according to a later Navy court-martial, was 3rd Lieut. William S. Cox. Last week the House Committee had a resolution before it that would reverse the verdict against Cox.
In the thick of battle, as the British prepared...
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