The Portland daily press., 1874-08-29

place and position. extorted from his wife, Their
lying i'll of miscarriage a document implicit
ing Nh. Beecher, document evincing her love
Tor her pastor and accusing him of having
made an improper solicitation.
| On the following day he sent Mouton tt
beecher requesting an interview with Mr.
Beecher at Moulton's house that evening
Beecher accordingly met TiltOn at Moulton's
house. Tlton received him with a memoran
dunn in his hand, and proceeded to charge
Beecher with being unfriendly with him, with
| seeking his dowfall, spreading injurious rumors
about him, undermining him and advising
Bowen to dismiss him,-injuring him in his
family relations, joining his (Tilton's) mother.
| ln-law in producing discOrd in his family, and
alternating his wife's affections from him-with
| gaining her love more than any living being
| with corrupting her moral virtue-with teach
| ing her to be insncere, lying and by pocritical,
| and ended by asserting that he had made
wicked proposals to her.
Mr.. Tilton then produced another paper, pur-
| porting to be memorandum of q confession
made in full previously to him by his wife of
her love for Mr.. Beecher, and that he had made
| proposals to her of an impure nature.
MIR. Tilton, in the 22d subdivision of his
statement before the committee, referring in
time to December, 1870, states his grievous
complaints of Mr.. Beecher touching Mr. Til
tons business relations with Mr.. Bowen, in
these words: "That he (Mr. Beecher) then
participated in conspiracy to degrade Theo-
place OF business and reputation"
it is clear that on the 29th DAY of December,
when the So-called memorandum of a confess
sion was procured of Mrs. Tilton, the chief in 3.
citing cause OF that step on Tilton's part, was
his belief that Beecher had caused him the loss
of his place of business and repute
Beecher says that this charge of an impure
proposal fell upon him like thunder bolt
Could it be possible that Mrs TIlton, whom he
regarded as the type of SO much moral good
Chnf,l hou do oh, Col,
erous statement? Tilton requested Beecher to
repair to his house where Elizabeth was wait
ing for him and learn from her lips the truth of
the stories in so far as they concerned her The
interview was had and resulted in a written
retraction of the charges of Mrs. Titon, who
seemed in great distress. In a sort of post
script to the retraction, she EXPLICITLY denies
that Beecher had ever offered any improper
solicitations to her; that being the OILY charge
made by Triton or referred to the statement
about the confession in full.
On the next evening Moulton called at Beech
er's house and went up in his bedroom. He
said that he and Tilton had learned that Mrs.
TiltOn had given the retractOn. He expostu-
lated and said the act was unfriendly and would
not mend matters and that Mrs Tilton had al
ready retracted the retraction and that Tilton
had already destroyed bis wife's first paper of
confession. Moulton claimed that Beecher had
acted unfairly, that all difficulties could be set
tied without such papers and that Beecher
ought to give it up. Moulton was under great
apparent excitement. He made no verbal
threats but displayed pistol and laid it on the
bureau near which he stood. The paper was
gwen to him, and after few moments he left.
1t is an amazing pity that at this juncture
Moulton was not handed over to the police. 1t
would have saved much that followed which is
deplored.
Mr. Beecher's distress at the situation was
boundless. He saw the point of being even
falsely accused. He blamed himself for much
that had occurred. He codld not tell how
much of the impending trouble could be at.
tributed to Mrs. T.ton's undue affection for
him, which it was his duty to have repressed.
''My earnest DESIRE he says, sis to avoid
public accusation and the evils which must
necessarily flow from it, and which have now
resulted from it. 1t has been one of the lead
ing motives that must explain my action during
these four years in this matter, while in
morbid condition of mind produced by those
distressing difficulties"
Moulton again called on him. Els manner
was kind and concliatory. Ho protested, how
ever. to believe that Beecher had been seeking
Tilton's downfall, had leagued with Mr. Bowen
against him, and by his advice had come near
destroying Tilton's family.
Beecher expressed many ARMSTRONG regrets at
the misfortunes of that family. Moulton caught
up some OF these expressions and wrote them
down, saying thatif TiltDn could see them there
would be no trouble in procuring a reconcilia.
ton. This paper, which is dated January 1,
1871, was entrusted by Mr. Beecher to Moul-
toms keeping, without reading it, nor was it
read to him.
This paper, sometimes called the apology and
sometimes the confession, is in no proper sense
Beecher's production, or a correct report of
what he said. No man will believe for an in
slant that Beecher said 81 humble myself be-
fore Tilton as do before my God" Another
sentence Her forgiveness" 1 have Mr..
Baecher's statement that it was not said, nor
the sem lan,le of it.
Pausing here avery important question arises.
In this connection, to what does the apology
refer? 1t declares Mrs. Tllton guiltless, and
yet Titon says it refers to adultery, which Mr..
Beecher denies. Without now considering the
weight of credit to which the respective partie
are entitled to where there is a conflict between
them, we believe, and propose to show from the
evidence, that the original was improper adj
vances, and that as time passed and the cOnspi-
racy deepened, it was enlarged into adultery.
The Importance of this is apparent, because if
the charge has been so changed, then both Til
ton and Moulton are conspirators, and convicted
of a vile fraud, which necessarily ends their in
huence in this controversy.
What is the proof that the charge in the first
instance was adultery? 1t is said that it was,
and that the memorandum in the hands of Til
ton in his wife's hand writing was to such
effect. But this is denied by both Beecher and
Mrs. Tilton, and the written papsr is not pro-
duced. 1t is said further, that Mr.. Beecher
COuloSScu Iu6 VI duulltIy, Uub tuiS ID dStllu
denied by him, and such alleged confession is
inconsistent with the retraction he received
that evening from Mrs, Tilton. If he had con-
fessed, what service could the retraction rem
der? Why procure one at all if, as alleged.
Beecher had that evening confessed to Tilton
and Moulton, or to either? What, then, was
the charge preferred on the evening of Decem-
Der 3Oth? We answer that it was improper adj
vances, which, of course, Mr.. Beecher denied.
What occurred in the matter of retraction
that evening, and all subsequent conversations,
acts and letters of the various persons concern
ed in dealing with the scandal are consistent
with this view and with no other The retrac-
ton procured, referred to improper advances
and to nothing else. Is it likely if the main
offence had been charged, Mr.. Beecher would
retraction of that? Here is a sort of postscript
to the retraction, in which charge of imprope r
advances is explicitly denied; thus showing,
we submit that this was the charge that was
in the mind of both Mrs. Tilton and Mr.. Beech
er and 40 other offense.
But look further: Mr.. Tilton lin the last four
years has many times said verbally and in
writing that the charge was the lesser offense,
This is important, under the rule that where a
complainant has made different and incOnsist-
ent statements of the offenses, who alleges his
credibity is damaged, and IN most cases, de-
stroyed. In the written statement of the Of
tense shown to DR.. Storrs by Tilton and Car
penter, which was made in Mrs. Tlton's hand,
writing under the demand Of her husband, who
saysIhe dictated the precise Notwithstanding
the offense, the charge was an impure PROPOSE
ton. This statement Mrs. Tilton .retracted,
says she protested against it as false when
signed, and afterwards saw DR.. Storrs and told
him SO.
Dr. Storrs in letter to the committee con-
firms the retractiou. In the manuscript pre-
pared by Mr.. Mlton, which he called the true
story, the offence was stated to be an improper
advance. This ''true story" Mr.. Tilton was in
the habit of reading to newspaper men, per.
| sonal friends and to others, without, it would
seem, much discrimination, considering how
| anxious he professed to be not to make known
his secret. Beecher testifies that he met Tilton
| on the ferry boat aboat two weeks after the
| publication of the Woodruff scandal, and they
| talked the matter over. He says Tilton was at
| first mysterious and non-committal, but on
| their waG home in Brooklyn Tilton invited him
| into his house, where the true story was ex.
| hibited to Beecher and prolonged converse
| ton was had, which lasted until midnight
| and during all of this not one word was said oil
| limited by Tilton that he believed that Beechel
had committed adultery. On the contrary, he
asserted his mistaken confidence in his wife's
purity, and complained only of impure solicita-
| ton,