The Toledo chronicle. [volume] (Toledo, Tama County, Iowa) 1873-1924, 1874-07-30
the TlTon-seEcHER SCANDAL.


F%e& &c. vS
Ttlton's Statement.
Mr.. THEODORE TILTON appeared DC
fore the Investigating Committee o.
Plymouth Church ON the evening OF july
20, and presented sworn statement OF
his relations with Henry Ward Beechel
and the relations Of that gentleman with
his (Tilton's) wife, an imperfect knowl
edge of which has formed the basis OF
what is known as the Tilton- beecner
scandal. This statement lifts the cur
tain and exposes to the public gaze
hideous picture Of moral depravity. 1t
is a sickeninr and horrible revelation.
The statement contains twenty-five
specifications, giving time and place OF the
commission Of the offenses therein men
toned, and on its face appears unan
swerable The Introductory and conclud
ing portions of the statement are
here given. the former because it con
tains q recital of the motives that infiu
enced him to appear before the commit
tee, and the latter because it is reca
pitulation Of his grounds of offense:
GENTLEMEN OF THE CoMMITTEE-Ir
communicating to you the detailed state
ment of facts of evidence which you have
been for several days expecting at my
hands, let me remind you of the circum
stances which called this statement forth
In my recent letter to DIR. Bacon / al
ludcd to an Offense and an apology BY
the Rev. Henry Ward Beecher. To whom
socver else this allusion seemed indefinite
to Mr.. Beecher it was PLAIN. The offense
was committed by him: the apology was
made by him. Both acts were his own
and were among the most momentous oc'
currences Of his life. OF all men in
Plymouth Church or in the world
the Rev. Henry Ward Beechel
was the one man who was
best informed concerning this offense
and apology, and the one man who least
needed to inquire into either. Never
theless, while possessing perfect knowl
edge Of both these acts done by himself, he
has chosen to put on public affectation
Of ignorance and innocence concerning
them, and has conspicuously appointed q
committee Of SIX of the ablest men Of his
church, together with two attorneys, to
inquire into what he leaves you to re-
gard as the unaccountable mystery OF
this offense and apology, as if he had
neither committed the one nor offered
the other; but as if both were mere fig
ments Of another mans imagination thus
adrOitly prompting the public to draw
some hallucination or deiusion, living
in a dream and forging fraud
Furthermore, in order to cast over this ex
PLANTATION the delicate glamour which al
ways lends charm to the defense Of {
woman's honor, Mrs. Elizabeth X. TiltOn
lately my wife, has been prompted away
from her home to reside among Mr.
Beecher's friends, and to cooperate Will
him in his ostensibly honest and laudabl.
inquiry into facts concerning which shf
too las well as he) has for years past -
perfect and equal knowledge with him
self.
"This investigat therefore, has beer
publicly pressed upon me by Beechcr
seconded by Mrs Tilton both Of whom
in so doing, have united in assuming be
fore the public the non-existence of grave
and solemn facts, into which they have
conspired to investigate for the purpose
not of eliciting but of denying, the
truth This joint assumption by them
which has seemed to your committee tt
be in good faith, has naturally led you
into an examination in which you expect
to find on their part nothing but limo
cence and on my part nothing but Sian
der. 1t is now my unhappy duty, from
which have in vain hitherto sough
earnestly 10 be delivered, to give you tn
facts and evidence for reversing you
opinion on this subject In doing thi
painful may say heartrending-dut,
the responsibility for making TIT
grave disclosures which am about Il
lay before you belongs not to me, bu
first to Beecher. who has prompted you
to this examination, and next to Mrs Til
ton, who has joined him in con piracy
which cannot fail to be full If peril and
wretchedness to many hearts. l call
you to witness that in my first
brief examination by your com
mittee l begged and implored you
not to inquire into the facts of this case
but rather seek to bury them beyond al
possible revelation. Happy for all con
,,l 81
1t is now too late. The last opportunity
for reconciliation and settlement has
passed This investigation, undertaken
by you in ignorance of the danger.
against which Beecher should have
warned you in advance, will shortly
prove ITSELF to your surprise, to have
been an act of wanton and wicked folly
for which the Rev. Henry Ward Beecher
IS its originator and public sponsor, will
hereafter find no space for repentance
though he seek it carefully and with
tears This desperate man must hold
himself only and not me account
able for the wretchedness which
these disclosures will carry tl
his swn home and hearth, as they have
already brought to mine. will ado
that the original documents referred to
in the ensuing sworn statement are fol
the most part in my possession but that
the apology and few other papers are
in the hands of Francis D. Moulton
Truly yours, THEODORE TILToN."
REHABILITATION.
Finally, that in addition to the fore.
going facts and evidences, other con.
frmations could be adduced if needed
to prove the following recapitulated
statement, namely: That the Rev
Henry Ward Beecher, as pastor and
friend of Mr.. Tilton and his family, tres
passed upon the sanctity of friend
ship and hospitality in long endeavor
to seduce Mrs. Elizabeth II. Tilton
that by the artful use Of his priestly au
thority with her, she being his pupil in
religion, he accomplished this seduction
that for period OF a year and half OF
thereabout he maintained criminal inter
course with her, overcoming her previous
modest scruples against such conduct by
investing it with false justification as
sanctioned by love and religion; that he
then participated in q conspiracy to de-
grade Theodore Tilton before the public
by the loss of place, business and re-
pute; that he abused Mr.. Tilton's for
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