The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1869-09-01

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Tr1uuphRnt Defence Of Innocence.
TO THE EDITOR OF THE HERALD:- .r. t
Tonbel the living is at all times cowardiy crime,
butt It is doubly So and In It's mendacity and malice
tenfOld, when the dead are the objects Of the SLAM
der The law protects the reputation OF the dead %
well the livinG and for the reason that IL 1t DID
not then revenge Of the living would fell upon the
ibellers OF the dead But the '4awis delayn is TOO
slow to meet some cases. and were the writer OF the
libel now engrossing public attention not woman
1t Ii possible that there Ia one nan ct least h this
community that would personally resent 1t.
No reader Tan doubt the talents Of Mrs.
Stowe as . fiction writer, ana a. proved
by "Unce Toms Cabinn but she has now
eclpsed herself by this atrocious libel upon one OF
her own sex, in connection with Lord Byron.
claim the privilege OF establishing the falsity Of the
incestuous charge, and my knowledge Is founded
upon personal acquaintance and friendship with the
Hon. Mrs Augusta Leigh herself for more than seven
years. also with the Countess Guicci0l and with the
Earl OF Harrington formerly Colonel the Hon. Lei
cester Stanh0pe, Lord Byron's intimate friend ana
mine for more than twenty years, and who had
conversation upon the very theme with Lord Byron
scarcely an hour before the poet died, and which
was about to be renewed with Mr.. william Fletcher,
his lordshp's valet en- cher when death permitted
only broken sentences. These accumulated Incl
uenCS lOriH purL OF INV mS autODiOKTdpHy, uut VIC
present occasion demands from my friendship to the
just memory Of the dead that anticipate the truth
at this time, inasmuch as the subject has sud-
denly been published In such AbellOus form
as to be the theme Of society throughout
America and must be in Europe. In my
observations l shall not regard Mrs. Stowe
in her character Of the matron, nor in any OF those
domestic virtues which pr0verbally belong to her;
but claim the privilege as public critic to review
what she has caused to be published as an author
without fear favor, and doubly do l claim the
right OF defending from libellOus charge lady
friend, now dead, who, being thus shamefully
illuminated. cannot defend herself. In fact, all
persons implicated or interested are waited for by
Mrs. Stowe until they are dead before she gives to
the world this monster Of ibellous conception, and
for which she is viii be paid money, it is fair
to assume from the fact that she is public writer
OF repute and for talented periodical, which may
now be termed 1.-THE Incest Libel Monthly Of the
Atlantic;" and your readers will legally observe
that the greater the reputation Of the auth0ress and
the magazine Of nitro -glycerne combustibles, the
greater the injury and the explosive danger, the
greater the wrong to the memory Of the dead and
to the reputation and wounded feelings OF the liv-
Ing and the greater the damages in law as also the
punishment upon indictment and conviction, as The
libellers will find hereafter
ness that II an untruth can be proved in his pre-
vious examination IN chief then falsehood perme-
ates through the entire testimony. Fdlsus in uno,
Jdisus IN Onlltbus-false In one, false In all. Now
to apply this rule of evidence to Mrs. Stowe. She
states three times In her narrative that Lord and
Lady Byron lived together two years, and during
which time ''she struggled with the fends," &c.
Now, it Is notorious and historically true that they
married January 2, 1915. and separated for
ever on January Is, 1916, their only child having
been born on December 10, 1915. Thus they lived
together only one year and q few days. Again. Mrs.
Stowe always mentions the accused lady as having
been Lord "Byron's own sister," She was only the
hafsister OF the poet holding the blood rela-
tionship as Abraham did to his wife Sarah. And, to
make the direct accusation more app lling, the
Puritan authOress directly charges that incestu-
Gus chd Of SIM was born OF the body Of the sister
OF Byron and he himself the father and that Lady
Byron confided to her. in writing, the secret The
perfection Of libel Is suppressi0 Ueri Ell sug0esto
ralst-the concealment of truth and the invention
and assertion OF fasehood-both OF which obtain
in the foregoing premises. Mrs. stowe never men,
tons that the "sister" was married, though she
knew IT, The faithful and noble-hearted Augusta
worth legion Of Lady Byrons-was married. and
to an oficer OF the British army, Colonel George
Leigh alluded to the will OF Lord Byron as being
the husband Of Augusta. This will was made and
executed on July 20, 1885, only about six months
after Lord ByrOns marriage, ana 1t is notorious that
the poet never saw Augusta again after he LETT Eng
land in April, 1885, The only child Of Lord Byron
by his wife was baptized Ada Augusta-named
after the very lady maliciously ltbelled and
who was the vrtu0us mother OF q legitimate child,
born to her by her marriage with Colonel G. gorge
Leigh Can infamy 60 further down to the depths
OF hell than to conceal from the public this lady's
~taxpr--
child, and declare 1t to be the incesuous Offspring
OF her own brother' Yes Mrs. Stowe charges
the Lady Augusta with the triple moral
sins Of fornicatlon, adultery and incest
even to maternity. The triple-headed Cerb erus Of
hell alone il the proper emblem Of this demoniac
and atrocious libel. OF course never personally
knew Lord Byron, the poet-he died when was a
intimate friends, and select las subj0ined from the
number those with whom l have cOnversed upon
this very subject and who mad the indignant denial
from Lord Byron himself and as had 1t from the
Lady Augusta; and superadded ts the deathbed de-
claration Of the poet to his intimate and heroic
Stanhope, afterwards the Earl Of Harrington who
had the distinguished charge of the dead body Of
fence OF the illuminated lady with which Testimony
shall conclude this letter.
is we'll known fact in human history tor tbat there
Is nothing so quickly creates hatred OF another az
to tannt any person with his physical deformity
temperament as was VIGOROUSLY George Gordon
Byron: At the time OF his birth an accident
caused malformation of one OF his feet
and legs. or this he was feverishy sensitive ana
any allusion to it would drive MIN into
q furious rage; and even as Q child of
only four years, he resented it BY striking
his nurses friend with whip for auding to i-con
trasting as she did the beauty of his face with the
def0rmty OF his leg and foot which to him through
out mis- life hideous contrast. 1t was the same
TO him as was the withered arm and deformed legs
TO Richard Ill, and my readers will remember Clos
ters s0lilOquy viz, ITO shrink my arm mn like
witnered shrub; to shape my legs OF an UNEQUAL
size, that the dogs bark at me as halt by them
Now, when Lord Byron said to his bride sYou will |
md that you have married devi'-as cited by Mrs
Stowe, but as II he really meant Satanic simpv |
alluded In bitter to his deformed foOt-more
resembling the devils than MANS And through |
MS lie ne took the utmost trouble by his costume &c
10 conceal the deiormty but what In that respect
can you conceal from your wife or yOur waller , |
Thence It was that Lord Byron ON the dax Of h,s |