The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1852-10-28

This was the understanding when IRE sepa-
rated mean MIR. Beecher and myself |
have heard nothing from Mr.. Beecher or Mrs.
Stowe since, till, to my astonishment | learned
that these letters had been published without
modification, lcithOW ma knOlriedge or consent
am not aware whether Mr.. Beecher saw
my counsel or not | have made repeated eff
forts TO see Mr.. Butler since my return, for
have been absent But he has been out of
town, and have as yet learned nothing from
him
Ii has appeared to me unwise to come out
and deny publicly the authorship Of the letters
ascribed to me. They may have got to the
press by some mistake of a third person to
whom they may have been intrusted, for
cannot yet believe that either Mr. Beecher or
Mrs Stowe would Intentionally authorize their
publication, and | prefer that Mrs. Stowe
should have the privilege of explaining the mis-
take, rather than she should appear to have
done thing so extraordinary as 10 publish let
ters over my name without either my sigma
ture or consent.
1t has seemed to me, all along, that it would
have been well for you to have come and seen
me about this business. | cannot consent to 4
stand before the public as one soliciting it as a
favor from Mrs. Stowe to set me right before
the public wish her to set herself right in
respect to what she has done in relation to me.
am not impatient | allow time. But it is
not a matter for compromise, as if there were
wrong on both sides | do not wish to afilict
Mrs. Stowe, and would not knowingly consent
to her doing anything, on my account, that
would not be- under the circumstances the very
best thing for her character and her reputa-
ton as a Christian woman. Had you not bet
ter come on and see me! | have had my full
share of trouble about the business and in my
earnestness to settle the matter amicably, !
have borne much more than my friends think
| ought to have done. have no doubt that
you and could settle the whole affair, by a
conference OF an hour or two, and quite agree
with you that it would be II great shame that
we should have any sort of public conflict in
relation to it. With great repect, yours, truly
JOEL Parker.
Req c. f. Store, d. D.
About this time DR.. Parker had given his
version of this matter to Mr. Converse editor
of the Christian Observer, Philadelphia, and in
the last number Of that paper, Oct %, 1852,
the following editorial account is given
Mrs. Store and Dr. Parker.
Some months since, our attention was called
TO misrepresentation of DR.. Parker's Ian
guage and sentiments in one Of the foot notes
of " Uncle Toms Cabin" At the same time
we were told that Dr. p had written to Mrs
y. requesting her to retract the mis-statement.
We were also advised that Mrs s. was not dis
posed to make the correction required-and
that Dr. Z. put the matter into the hands of
able counsel for ad ustment About the last |
OF June correspondence appeared in some of
our exchange papers pUrporting to be copies |
of letters between DR. p. and Mrs. s., AMIGA
bly, settling the difficulty. We read the letters
with amazement! We were surprised that DR..
7. should permit Mrs. $ or any one ~ 10 set"
him right before the pubiic" in the style of
Mrs. SIS letters, or that he should ever ask to
be GHsred to publish such Il letter! Meet
ing with DR.. p shortly after he assured us, in
answer to some inquiry, that THESE LETTERS
WERE FoRGERIES that he neither WrOte Mem
nor signed them nor consented to their publica-
ton and that Mr. Beecher had caused them
to be published without his consent!
"Why, then, do you not expose the f0rgeryt'
we asked DR. p. replied, in substance, that
The exposure would be discreditable or scanda-
Gus to the mlnlstry-and that he wished to
lvoid anything that might be the occasion OF
eproach to the ministry or religion 1t was
hen our intention topublish nothing about the
natter; but as it is now spread abroad, we
hlnk it due to those concerned to state the
acts contained in this article.
The italics and capitalization are the Chris
ian Observers
On the same day that Dr. Parker wrote to
Professor Stowe as above he wrote to my ven
rable father DR.. Lyman Beecher, of Boston
nd the cool recital to father of his sons agen-
y IN transaction which he pronounces
oRGERY, must forever stand as model.
Dr. Parker TO Dr. Lyman Beecher.
New YORK, June 80, 1852
Rev. AND DEAR SIR Your very kind letter
zane duly to hand. delayed responding to
t, because hoped in a short time to be able
% congratulate you and myself and all con-
,erned, by saying that the whole difficulty was
cttIed But am afraid now it is further off
han ever
The publication of these letters was very cx
Still, hope it can be explained.
have written DR.. Stowe fully to-day. You
will probably see the letter.
have no doubt, if could see him or YOUR
elf one hour, the whole affair could be adj J
listed.
| appreciate all You say of my rights and
haracter being dear to you. trust you most
and do not wish to occasion YOU n
lngle sensation of discomfort | suppose YOU
ave seen the letters-the correspondence pub-
shed in The Tribune and The Independent
'ou could not, of course, have known before {
and that they were drawn up by your son, !
|. w Bcecher, and that they were without NV !
lgnature, rs mere form of negotiation, TO be
eylsed '
never could have consented to their publi- '
alton, till they were modified How thew =
anne to be published, do not know. hone 8
md trust that it was not intentional; that it I
eSulted from some mistake of Il third party, to {
whom they may have becvniptrusted for con-
erence with me, and uch((5nodifcations as {
'lrs. Stowe and myself might mutually con-
ent TO- If so, Mrs. Stowe ought to know i'm
nedately that no such person ever came to
ne
| have no doubt that full conference either
With yourself or Professor Stowe would set
'verything right. Yours, afectionatcly,
JOEL PARKER.
In this congeries of letters was one other of
July 81, to the Ne,o York Observer, and which
was published in that paper Sept. 30, 1852.
Dr. Parker TO New York Observer
New YORK. July 81, 1852
My DEAR SIR: On returning from the coun-
try this afternoon | found your note of the
2Sth instant on my table The correspond
ence to which you refer, purporting to be
correspondence between myself and Mrs Il b.
Stowe, was drawn up by Rev. II W. Beecher,
rs proposed basis of settling the difficulties
between myself and Mrs. Stowe. That is TO
say, Mr. Bcccher proposed that we should, both
Mrs Stowe and myself, adopt these letters as
ours. | agreed to have it under aduisement
and encouraged the expectation that ruth some
'nod!heGhon we might settle the whole matter
by some such method. Mr. Beecher took the
paper, which Mrs Stowe had not seen. and to