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Show 3249 Dent- C 1274 or a part of your intention to do anything other than determine facts. But you did go, not because of any general interest of the War Department, or special interest of the War Department in these streams at this time, but because of this litigation, and for the purpose of qualifying yourself to be a witness for the government in this case, isn't that true? A That was my understanding of how I came to be detailed. MR. BLACKMAR: Right here, your Honor, we would like to state in the record how Colonel Dent came to be assigned to this case. MR. FARNSWORTH: We object to the interruption of the examination of this witness in this manner. THE SPECIAL MASTER: I do not think it makes the slightest difference how he happened to be assigned. I assume any officer of the United States Army in pursuance of his duty will testify to the facts as he understands them. I don't think it makes the slightest difference how he came into the case. MR. BLACKMAR: Except for this reason, that the army engineers are the only engineers in the United States who study rivers from the standpoint of navigation. THE SPECIAL MASTER: you can bring those things out in qualifying the witness. I do not think it makes any difference how he came into the case. |