The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1874-08-22
Cantinu,,I from Rird Pigt.

ton that she considered you as true
friend as myself. enclosed this letter
10 Mr. Tilton, asking him TO show II 10
YOU II he thought best and TO write ne |
what II all meant. lie never replied or
returned the letter 10 me, as requested,
but have copy oil Il at your service
Ia the month Of February alter that,
on returning home from Washington,
went 10 Mrs Stanton's TO spend Sunday.
At Jersey City met Mrs. Woodruff,
who had come on In the same train with
me, Il seemed, and who urged me In a
hlsty way TO bring Mrs. Stanton over on
Monday for a suffrage consultation as 10
the spring convention. Remembering
her assertion OF the friendship between
you aud her, and meeting you occasion.
ally OF Moulton's house, | thought would
put this 10 test, and replied that II |
could be sure OF seeing you q!
the same time ! would come. She
promised TO secure you II possible, and
l fully meant to keep my appointment,
mt on Sunday remembered al appoint
ment Of New Haven, which ] should miss
II l stopped In New York, and go passed
by, dropping her letter by the way
Curiously enough, Sister Catherine, VINO
was staying at your house ht mus lllne,
said 10 me here casually, in letter OF
that same week, Belle Henry went over
10 New York to see you last Monday, but
could not find you. or course my infer.
cnCe was that Mrs. W, either had power
over YOU or you were secretly with friends
during that Sunday. Mrs. Stanton told
me precisely what Mr.. Tilton had said to
her when in the rage OF discovery be
lied 10 the house oil Mrs. -, and before
them both narrated the story OF his
inhdclity as confessed 10 his vile
and OF hers as confessed to him. She
added that not long after she went to MIR.
Moulton's and met you coming down the
front steps, and on entering met Tilton
and Moulton, who said: ave have just
had Plymouth Church at our feet, and
here is his confession" showing q manu-
script. She added that Mrs. TiltOn had
made similar statements 10 Miss Anthony,
and have since received from Miss An
thony confederation OF this, although
she refuses 10 give me the particulars, be.
ing bound In confidence. She thinks
from that day to this | have carried 4
hesyy load. You may be sure could
not share 1t with my husband, because he
was ulEcady overwhelmed and alarmiDgly
affected brain wise, but resolved that i
he'went abroad, as he probably must, !
would not go with him, leaving you alone
rs Il were 10 bear whatever might come
Of our relations.
Oh, my dear brother, fear the awful
struggle to live according TO law has
wrought an absolute Generalization as TO
truthlulness. And 50 he can talk about
spanglcs on garment Of falshoOd, when
the garment is truth and the specks are the
ial1ehoOd.
His next letter to me was so different
from this. | read it to you, but will copy
it lest you have forgotten its character:
April %, 1872.
Nm Dear Belle IL was sorry when !
met you at Bridgeport not TO have had n
longer talk with you about the meeting in
May. do not intend to make any species
on any tonic during anniversary week.
Indeed shall be out of town. do not
want YOU to take any ground this year ex-
ccpt upon suffrage. You know my SYM
pathy with you probably. You and are
nearer together than any Of our family. |
cannot give any reason now. | am clear.
Still YOU follow your own Judgement. ]
thank you for your letter. OF some
things ! neither talk nor will be talked
with. For love and sympathy | am
deeply thankful. The only help that call
he grateful to me or us is silence, and a
silcucing influence on all Others A day
may come for converse. II isnow living or
dead. Ny Dear Sister Belle, love me and
do not talk about me or suffer Others in
your presence God keep you. God keep
us all. Gor lowing brother,
II. W. b.
The undCrsCoring is his own, and
when read in thai horrible story that
he begged lew hours notice that he
might kill himself, my mind flew back to
this sentence, which suggested suicide 10
me the moment Tread II. Living or dead,
my dear sister Belle love me, and l be
lieve even that now. Tom. can't you go
10 brother Edward at once and give him
these letters OF mino and tell him what |
told you, and when you have COunSellcd
together US brothers should counsel, come
to INC II you can. 1t looks as il he hoped
to buy my silence with my love. AT
present OF course shall keep silence, but
truth is dcarer than all things else, and il
no will not speak il in some way, can.
not always stand as conscntlng 10 lie.
God help US all.
Yours in love, BELLE.
If YOU can't come to me, send Edward
AN utterly alone and my heart aches
for that woman even as for my own flesh
and blood. do not understand her, but
know her to be pure and unseltish and
absolutely driven by some power foreign
to herself, to these strange ulteranCes
which arc always in behalf Of freedom,
purity and truth, as she understands It,
always 10 bciriGnd the poor outCast, and
bring low only the proud and the hypo'
critic in high places. The word about
meeting at Mrs. Phelps house have adj
ded 10 the copy II you gee Henry tell
him Of this.
The reply TO this letter by the Rev
Thomas r. Beecher to his sister is as
follows:
REV. THOMAS II. BEECHER TO HIS SISTER,
ELMrRA, Nov. 9Th, 1872.
Dear BelI6-To allow the devil himself
to be crushed for speaking the truth is
uuspeaksbly cOwardly and contemplate.
respect, as at present advised, Mrs.
Woodruff, while | Rbhor her philosophy. |
She only carries out Henry's philosophy, |
against which | recorded my protest
twenty years ago, and parted IsnghiDgly |
and CheerIully from him, saying, 1--WE
cannot work together" lie has driiIed
and have hardened like a crystal, till !
am sharp cornered and exacting. can.
not help him except by prayer; | cannot
help him through Edward. In my judg.
meat Henry is following his slippery doc.
trines OF expedienCy, and in his cry OF
progress and the nObleness Of human ma
ture he has sacrificed the clear, exact
ideal Of integrity. Hands of until he is
down, and then my pulpit, my home, my
church, my purse, and my heart are At
his service. or the two, Woodruff is my
hero and Henry my coward, as at present
advised. But lprotest against the whole
batch and all its belongings. WINS not
anti slavery; | am not antiiAmily, but as
l wrote years ago. whenever | assault
slavery because Of its denominations l
shall asssil the church, the state, the fam.
lily, and all other institutions Of selfish
usage.
retain the papers. You cannot keep
Henry. You must beTtrue to Woodruff
am out OF the circle as yet, and am glad
o! 1t. When the storm line includes me,
shall suffer as christian, saying,
uonnsn an trop, p,apU nn,it IN r;,o - |