The New York herald., 1874-07-23
"Catherine Gaunt."

"Catherine Gaunt."
That is weird, singular, significant letter
which Mrs. Tilton wrote to her husband-''My
dear Theodore, to-day, through the ministry
of Catherine Gaunt, character Of fiction, my
eyes have been opened for the first time in my
experience, so that I clearly see my sin. 1t
was when knew that was loved to suffer it
to grow to passion. A virtuous woman
should check instantly an absorbing love"
There is something penitent and noble in
these words, but, withal, something SO ma wk-
ishly sentimental that we look for the explana-
ton not to the woman who uttered them, but
to the philosophy that was taught her and the
atmosphere Of her daily life. 1t is plain that
she is no Hester Prynne, carrying in her breast
a secret which the flaming scarlet letter on her
bosom only helped to conceal. Neither is she q
Catherine Gaunt, resolute, wrong headed, fa-
natical, but pure. She is simply an emotional
woman, given to rhapsodies, who fell in love
with great preacher, to whom husband S
jealousy imputed the offence of Dimmes-
dale or Brother Leonard And yet, much as
it grieves to say this, she is the feeble coun-
terpart of both these unfortunate heroines,
and stands to-day the justification of fctions
which well nigh drove the world mad with
their unrealities.
A study of Charles Reade' novel reveals the
dual life Of the devout woman foundering be-
tween her strong love Of her Church and her
unconscious love of her priest 1t is sngu-
larly we'll drawn picture which the novelist
paints. Father Francis, coarse and burly
ecclesiastlc, yielded place to Brother Leonard,
who '1ooked and moved like being who had
come down from some higher sphere to pay
the world a very little visit" Mrs. Gaunt at
first could make nothing of him and COM
planned to her husband that he was ''spirit-
ual machine - while that genial gentleman
answered. "Well am of your mind; he is
very poor company compared with that jovial
Old blade, Francis But why so many
words, Kate? You don't use to bite twice at
cherry; if the milksop is not to your taste
give him the sack, and be damned to him"
But Brother Leonard was really great
preacher. and the first time she heard him
Mrs. Gaunt ''sat thrilled, enraptured,
melted" She soon became the priests Ma
donna, filing his rooms with flowers when
ne was absent and caring for him in secret.
And he, in turn, preached only for her. She
could not only understand his sermons but
the occult sympathy between them told her he
was preaching to her and that she was part of
his inspiration. But all the time something
xr,hi <oh horh rt hot 81
admired her more than was safe or prudent.
The spell was on her, however, and it was not
easy to ioresee the real danger His fervent
eloquence had appealed at once to her imagi-
nation and her religious aspirations. From on
interest in the preaching it was only step to
interest in the preacher; but in Ill things she
treated him simply as holy man, her spirit
ual guide. He was so devout that she forgave
him for keeping her glove which he picked
up in the wood, and for painting her portrait
for his own delectation. She even obeyed
him when he told her to dismiss her Protes-
tant servants and employ Catholics in their
places. Busy and malicious tongues told part
Of this to her husband, and he, as a matter of
course was furious. She failed to understand
the road she had taken. In short time she
had become SO jealous in good works that she
withdrew from society, surrendered her judg-
took an interest in her husband or her hus-
bands affairs. There was separation and
grief, and after much suffering that reconcile
alton which is necessary to give a novel a
happy ending
The story, we begin TO suspect, is not an
uncommon one Here was a woman albeit q
character of fiction, as Mrs. Tilton says, who
never thought to wrong her husband but
the devotion she owed him as wife she per-
mitted to be absorbed by another and not
only became the defender OF the poor, silly
priest, but allowed her husband to 60 from her
ton. ''The sin was Leonard s. said Father
Francis to the erring woman, ''but the fault
was yours" That this fault was Mrs.
Tilton's she admits in her relna rkable letter.
that the graver sin was Mr.. Beecher's seems
the deduction of his statement which we print
this morning. That there was no crime is
now plain enough. The Brooklyn story is the
story OF Catherine Gaunt over again, only the
Plymouth pastor was no silly ecclesiastic, as
the novelist calls the other, and it was hardly
priestly in him to take pleasure in the
'paternal affection" which is now the grava-
men of the charge against him. This, We
are inclined 80 think, is the whole story which
Mr.. Titon's heated imagination has distorted
into terrible crime, and the lesson to be
learned from it is in that deduction which
stands out with such startling prominence in
Mrs. Tiltons letter-a virtuous woman should
check instantly an absorbing love.
Communication OF Dockray's Sentence.
The Spanish authorities have displayed q
sense of n awakeDinO wisdom in rodifvin, fla