Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1869-10-19
Rev.H.W .Beecher-His Private Ha bits.

The great preacher never sleeps
with his clothes on. Once when re
monstrated upon.the singularity o
his conduct in this respect, and the
pernicieus effect the example might
have upon the younger members Of
his congregation, he replied, with
the frank and open candor that has
always characterized him, that be
would give worlds to be able to rid
himself of the custom-and added
that the anguish he has suffered in
trying to break himself of tho habit
had made him old before he was so.
Mr.. Beecher never wears his hat at
dinner. He does not consider it
healthy. 1t does not Immediately
break down ones constitution, but
it is slow and sure. He knows one
case where man persisted in the
habit, in spite of the tears and en-
treaties OF his friends, until it was
too late, and he reaped the due re-
ward of his rashness, for it carried
HIM OFF at last at the age of LOG,
Had that man listened to reason he
might have lived to be comfort to
his parents and solace to their de-
clining years.
Mr.. Beecher never swears. In all
his life a profane expression never
passed his lips. But if he were to
take it into his head to try it once,
he would make even that disgusting
habit seem beautiful-he would han
die it as it was never handled before,
and If there was wholesome moral
lesson hidden away in it anywhere,
he would ferret it out and use it
with tremendous effect. Panoplied
with his grand endowments-his
judgement, his discriminating taste,
his felicity of expression, his grace
full fancy-if Mr.. Beecher had q mind
to swear, he would throw into it an
amount of poetry, and pathos, and
splendid imagery, and moving earn
estness, and resistless energy, topped
off and climaxed with a gorgeous py-
rotechnic confagration of filagree
and fancy swearing, that would as
tonish and delight the nearer, and
forever after culver through his be-
wildercd memory an exquisite con-
fusion of rainbows and music and
thunder and lightning. A man of
high order of intellect and apprecia-
ton could sit and listen to Mr..
Beecher swear for a week without
getting tired.
Mr.. Beecher is very regular in his
habits. He always goes to bed
promptly between 9 and o'clock,
and never upon any account allows
himself to vary from this rule. He
is jrsst as particular about getting up,
VII NJ he does the next day, gener-
ally. He considers that to this dis
cipline, and to this alone, he is in
debted for the rugged health he has
enjoyed ever since he adopted it.
Mr.. Beecher does not go around
ami get advertisements for the
plymouth Pulpit" If he does it is
without his knowledge or consent.
If such a report has been started it
is an absolute duty to refute it in this
article. However, no such report
has yet been heard of, and therefore
it is not necessary to more than re-
flute it in a purely general way at
this time. Mr. Beecher could aug
ment the bulk of the pamphlet to
which his sermons are attached if he
chose to go round and solicit adver-
Using, but he would not dream of
doing such thing. He has no time
for such recreation. lie has to
preach, and he has to make the ded-
ication speeches for all sorts of things,
and he is obliged to make few re-
marks on nearly all distinguished
occasions, because very often Mr..
Greeley is busy and cannot come.
And besides he has to carry on his
rm.-Mark Tuain