Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1874-07-30

ton, taking To h1mSeif the shame OF
having misused his sacred Office rs q
clergyman to corrupt her mind, ex-
pressing q determination to kill himself
in case of his exposure and begging
MOulton to take a pen and receive from
his (Beecher's) lips an apology, to be
conveyed to Mr.. Tilton, in the hope
that such appeal would secure Tilton's
forgiveness.
The apology which Mr.. Beecher die
tated to Mr.. Moulton was as follows:
s[In trust with F. D. Moulton.]
My Dear Friend Moulton:
Il ask through you Theodore Tilton's
forgiveness, and / humble myself be-
fore him as / do before my God. He
would have been a better man in my
circumstances than / have been. i can
ask nothing except that he will remem-
Der all the other breasts that would
ache. / will not plead for myself. ]
even wish were dead; but others
must live to suffer. I viii die before
any one else but myself shall be incnl-
pated. All my thooghts are running
out toward my friends, and toward the
poor child lying there and praying with
her folded hands. She Is guiltiess-
sinned against--tearing the transgres-
sion of another. Her forgiveness have.
l humbly pray to God to put it into the
heart of her husband to forgive me.
Il have trusted this to MOultOn in
confidence. III. w. BEECHER.'
In the above document the last SEN
tence and signature are in the hand
writing of the. Rev. Henry Ward
Beecher.
XII. That Mrs. Tilton wrote the fol-
lowing letter to friend:
'174 LIVINGSTON STREET BROOKLYN,
January 4, 1871.
DEAR FRIEND-A cruel conspiracy
has been formed against my husband,
which my mother and Mrs. Beeoher
have been chief actors.
Yours truly, ELIZABETH R. TILToN.'
ATTEMPTS TO QUIET THE MATTER.
XII. That in the following month
Moulton, wishing to bind Tilton and
Beecner by mutual expressions of good
spirit, elected from them the fol-
lowing correspondence
BROOKLYN, Feb. Z, 1871.
my DEAR FRIEND-1n several con-
'SAo@tAoho WIN yOA yON hsNO ooNSN
about my feelings toward Mr.. Beecher,
and yesterday you said the time had
come when you would like to receive
from me an expression of this kind in
writing. say, therefore, very cheer
fully that, Notwithstanding the great
suffering which he has caused to Eliza
beth and myself, bear him no malice;
shall do him no wrong; shall discoun-
tenance every project, by wholnsOever
proposed, for any exposure of his secret
to the public, and, il know myself at
all, shall epdeavOr to act toward Mr..
Beecher as l would have him, in SIM
liar circumstances, act toward me. /
ought to add that your own good Off
ces in this case have led me to a higher
moral feeling than might otherwise
have reached.
Ever yours affectionately,
THEODORE TILToN.
To FRANK MoULTON.'
On the same day Beecher wrote to
MoultOn the following:
FEB. Z, 1871.
my DEAR FRIEND MoULToN-Ia am
glad to send you book, &c.
Many, many friends has God raised up
to me, but to no one of them has He
ever given the opportunity and the
wisdom to serve me as you have. You
have also proved TheodOre's friend and
Elizabeth's. Does God look down from
heaven on three unhappier creatures
that more need a friend than these
Is it not an intimation of Gods intent
of mercy to all that each one of these
has in you tried and proved friend
But only in you are we thus united.
WOnld to God, who orders all hearts,
that by His kind meditation Theodore,
Elizabeth and I could be made
friends again. Theodore will have the
hardest task in such a case, but has he
not proved himself capable of the
noblest things? I wonder if Elizabeth
knows how generously he has carried
himself toward me? Of course L can
never speak with her again without
his permission, and / do not know that
even then it would be best: -
Mr.. MOultOn on the same day asked
TiltOn if he would permit Beecher to
to address letter to Mrs. Tilton, and
Tilton replied in the affirmative,
whereupon Beecher wrote as follows
BROOKLYN, Feb. Z, 1871.
my DEAR Mrs. TILToN when I
saw you last 1 did not expect ever to
see you again, or to be alive many
days. God was kinder to me than was
my own thought. The friend whom
God sent to me (Moulton) has proved,
above all friends that ever had, able
and willing to help in this emergency
of my life. His hand it was that tied
up the storm that was ready to burst
on our heads. You have no friend,
Theodore excepted, who has it in his
power to serve you so vitality, and who
will do it with such delicacy and honor.
1t does my sore heart good to see in
Moulton an unfeigned respect and hon.
or for you. 1t would kill me if /
thought otherwise, He will be as true
a friend to your honor and happiness as
q brother could be to q sister. In him
we have common ground. You and
1 may meet in him. The past is end
ed, but is there no future-no wiser,
higher holier future? May not this
friend stand as priest In the new
of reconciliation, and medi-
ate and bless Theodore and my most
unhappy self? Do not let my earnest
ness fail of its effect, and you believe
in my Judgment. I have put myself
wholly and gladly in Moulton's 8 hands,
and there l must meet you. This is
sent with TheOdore's consent, but he
has not read it. Will you return it to
me by his own hand? am very ear
nest in this wish, for all our sakes, as
such letter, ought not to be subject to
even q chance of miscarriage. Your
happy friend, H. w. BEECHER.'
LETTERS OF CONTRITION EROM MRS.
TILTON TO HER HUSBAND.
XIII. That about year after Mrs.
Tilton's confession her mind remained
in the fixed opinion that her criminal
relations with Beecher bad not been
wrong, 90 strongly had he i'm
pressed her to the contrary, but at
length change took place In her CEN
on this subject, as noted in the
n u A.