Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1874-08-29
TILTON-BEECHER SCANDAL.
Report OF the Investigating
Committee.

Committee.
New York, 20. The following is the full
| report of the Beecher investigating committee
to the examining committee of Plymouth
Church:
Dear Brethren The Pastor of Plymouth
Church, the Rev. Henry Ward Beecher, ad-
dressed to US a letter June eth, 1874, of
which the following is a copy:
Brooklyn, June 81, 1874
Gentlemen-In the present state of the
public feeling, l owe it to my friends, and to
the Church, and TO the Society over which
am Pastor. to have some proper investigation
made of the rumors insinuatons or charges
made respecting my conduct as compromised
, by the late publication made by Mr.. Tilton.
| have thought that both the church and the
society should be represented, and take the
liberty of asking the following gentlemen to
to serve in the inquiry and to do that which
truth and justice may require. | beg that
each Of the gentlemen named will consider as
I if it had been separately and personally sent
to him:
From the Church-Henry W, Sage. Angus
tus Storrs, Henry NJ. Cleveland.
From the Society-Horace B. Claflin, John
Winslow, S. V. White.
l desire you when you have satisfied
yourselves by thorough and impartial exam
ination of all sources of of evidence to COM
muncate to the examining committee or to
the church, such action as there may seem to
you right and wise.
(Signed0 II. w. BEECHER.
| The committee named having signifed
their willingness to serve in the grave matter
so referred to them, Mr.. Beecher sent the;fot-
lowing letter to the examining committee of
| Plymouth church -
July 9Th, 1874.
Dear Brethren Il enclose to you a letter
| which l have requested three gentlemen from
the church and three from the Society of
Plymouth Church gentlemen of unimpeached
repute, and who have not been involved in any
OF the trials through which we have passed
during the Year, to make thorough and i'm
partial examination of all charges or insinua-
tons agains my good name, and to report the
same to you; and l now respectfully request
that you will give to this committee the au-
thority 10 act in your behalf also. 1t seemed
wise to me that the request should proceed
from me and without your foregoing knowl-
edge, and that you should give to it authority
to act in your behalf in so far as thorough
examination of the facts should be concerned
(Signed) II. w. BEEcHER.
Thereupon the examining committee duly
authorized the committee named in the letter
of June 81, to act in their behalf also.
Second.-Your committee cannot here re-
frain from referring to the inexpressible re-
greet, which they, in common with all good
men, feel that uncomfortable circumstances
have made it necessary to discuss in the most
public manner the unhappy scandal which is
the subject of present inquiry. But, except
ing the situation as we found it when we en-
tered upon the high and solemn trust thus
imposed, we have been profoundly impressed
| ftom the beginning with the grave Importance
of the work before us.
| For a considerable time, vague and indef-
mite rumors were in circulation, touching in
| a vital manner the Christian integrity of our
beloved pastor. But nothing had appeared
| from a known, responsible source, in tangi-
BILE form, until the letter of Mr.. Theodore
| Tilton to the Rev. DIR. Bacon, which was pub
lshed the 25th day of June, 1874 1t was the
appearance of this letter that moved Mr.
| Beecher, two days afterwards, to request an
| immediate investigation. 1t will be seen by
| the terms of such request, that some proper
| investigation is asked for, by him, of the ru-
| mors, insinuations or charges made especting
his conduct as compromised, hy the charges
made by Mr.. Tilton. We were requested to
make an impartial and thorough investigation
''of all sources of evidence and TO advise
such action as may seem right and wise.
Third.-In conducting this investigation
we have faithfully endeavored to make it
thorough and impartial, and to obtain such
facts as are relevant to the inquiry from all
attainable sources of evidence. For this
purpose we have summoned or requested the
attendance of the following persons, to testify
| before the committee: Mrs. Elizabeth X.
Tilton, Mrs. H. w. Beecher, Samuel Wlke-
son, John II. Howard, Theodore Tilton,
Samuel L. Becher, Mrs. N. B. Morse, Oliver
johnson, Rev. A. S. Storrs, ID. d., Dwight
johnson, Isaac Fl. Bailey, Mrs. Putnam, j..
w. Mason, Rev. w. w. Patton, Mary c.,
Ames, Richard P Buck, Francis b. Carpen-
ter, Albert F. Norton, Thos. M. Vail, Z. NJ.
Holmes, Hon. N. b. Morse, Mrs. Mary b.
Bradshaw, Joseph Richards, Miss Elizabeth
A. Turner. Francis w. Skies, M. D., Chas
Corez, NJ. D., DR.. Minton, Miss Oakley, Mrs.
Elizabeth A. Orvington, Mrs. Wallace, Rev
| S. b. Halliday, Thos. G. Sherman, Benz. f.
Tracy, Francis d. Moulton, Franklin W ood-
ruff, John w. Harmon, Rev. Henry Ward
Beecher. Most of the persons named have
attended as requested before the committee.
One notable exception is Francis B. Carpen-
; ter. Mr.. Francis d. Moulton promised to
testify fully, but has failed to do so. He has
submitted three short statements in writing to
the committee, consisting chiefly of reasons
why he declined to testify, and of promises
to testify at the call of the committe. The
committee have called him three times, with
the results stated. In addition to the evil
dence of the persons named, we have exam
ined considerable number of letters and
other Observation-Disclosures. which, in some
way, were supposed to relate to the subject
matter of inquiry. We have held, in the