The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1869-12-18
the Observation-Disclosures Mar
Fiage.

El1SCs
Bsechsr Defends Himself to Els
People.
On the evening of the 10Th inst.
the usual weekly meeting was held at
Plymouth Church, when Mr.. Shear
man, one OF the members, spoke kindly
of Mr.. Beecheras action in the Rich
ardson- mcfarland case, and said that
he thought he had acted rightly under
the circumstances. He then asked
Mr.. Baecher to give his own account
of the affair, which he did as follows,
according to the report OF the Brook
Ign Union:
have but one hesitation, and that
is not liking to bring anybody else
into trouble in the slightest degree.
IF l get into trouble, my nature IS to
stand up squarely, and takea,the con-
sequences. Amen. And ii any man
can stand and take 1t longer than L
can, | would like to see him. Laugh
ter and applause. There is some
thing that grows up within me as firn
as adamant, that man is made for
trouble. You can measure man By
the way be takes trouble. If / have
any pride of character it is that when
! all i dark and others are discouraged,
will staud up to the very forefront
of what is to be done. 1t was this
spirit in part that led me into this
matter.
Mr.. Beecher then said that the first
thing he ever had to do with Mr..
Richardson was to write him Dote
complimenting his work, Beyond
the Mississippi" He had never seen
Mr.. Richardson, but it was an act ire
quently performed between literary
persons.
Mr.. Richardson he had never seen
until the night Of the marriage.
He said he was waited upon by Mrs.
| Calhoun, who was a gifted and elo-
quent writer for the Tribune. A gen.
tleman here interposed, and said that
Mrs. Calhoun's late husband was a
deputy collector and a man Of great
respectability Mr.. Beecher resumed:
Mrs. Calhoun showed him note from
Mr.. Greeley, which commended her
to Mr. Beecher, but did rot ask. him
| (Mr. Beecher) to perform the mar
rage. He said Mr.. Greeley should
be relieved of that responsibility. In
conversation. she said that she had
known Mrs. Mcfarland, and believed
her to be a woman Of responsibility,
and that the divorce from her hus-
band was a legal one. She also knew
nothing that would hinder a proper
marriage. Mr.. Beecher went on to
say that he had not heard Of the first
shooting by Mcfarland of Richard
son. Men occupied as he was occu-
pied and absorbed in his ministerial
and literary work had not the time for
extensive reading Of newspapers, and
| therefore 1t was not surprising that
he should be ignorant Of that which
was now q matter of history.
On the evening OF the marriage be
was at DIR. II. NJ. Fields, in company
with Father Hyaefnthe, and was from
| there called to the AstOr House.
There he found a corridor full of
friends, and Q weeping group around
the bed. The surgeons told him that
Mr.. Richardson was under the lntlu
ence of opiates, and that after their
effect was over he would gradually
sink and de- There was not much
time for inquiry. lie inquired if the
field was clear, and was assured there
was no impediment. Mr.. Beechcr
said these were the facts as near as he
could recOllect them.
MR.. BEEcHER'S VIEWS.
Mr.. Beechers then said ho would
give his present views of the matter:
Mr.. rockingham, at whose church
Mr.. Richardson was an occasional
attendant, and went there whenever
he was In the city, was present. MIR.
| rockingham offered the prayer, and
he (Mr. Beecher) performed the cere-
nony, an6 10 so doing simply acted as
a magistrate-not in the semi ortho
| dox fashion Of magistrate and min
ister merged into one office. When
two parties came to him for marriage,
| he could not summon witnesses, he
could not act as judge, but simply
con6ne himself TO that which was
purely magisterial. At the time OF
the marriage at the Astor House he
| did not understand that the laws of
New York declared null and void q
divorce obtained in Indiana.
He said in performing the marriage
service he was magistrate er o65cio,
quo ad hoe. Laughter He wished
to be excused, as that was the only
Latin he knew. He had. from the
beginning Of his career, considered it
his duty to marry anybody that comes
before him, provided be did not, vio-
late any statute.
he had looked through the civil
code OF the. State, and he had been
unable to discover any definition OF
the duties of minister In resDach tn
marriage. 1t seemed to him that there
was no defined law about it in the re-
vised code. After the marriage and
before the funeral of Mr.. Richardson.
he had asked q responsible party as to
the legality Of the divorce, and it was
stated to him that the divorce was
quite correct. He inquired also of
another person whether the divorce
had been obtained on more than legal
grounds, and it was stated in reply
thai. il was granted, not only upon
legal, but also upon moral grounds.
The question had been asked
during this discussion who Mrs.
Mcfarland had not sought the d.
vorce from her husband in the State
of New York. He had been told in
reply to this that Mrs. Mcfarland had
resided in Indiana eighteen months.
and that she had gone there to seek
the divorce to save her children from
the stain and annoyance which the
seeking Of that divorce In this State
would bring upon them. Mr.. Beecher
SAID he would consider it superlative
Impudence for him to inquire into the
circumstances of the couple. 1t was
| mt his hrru5ro~o IL