The Somerset press. [volume] (Somerset, Ohio) 1873-1977, 1874-08-07
Interesting Correspondence.

the importance of delivering them to is
at your earliest convenience.
Very truly yours,
"H. W. SAGE, Chairman.
MR.. TILroN's REPLY.
"I74 LIvISGsToNE STREET,
BRookLYN, AUGUST. ;, 1874.
.'.ir. Henry W. Sage, Chairman Coumitte:
"MY DEAR SIR-I have just received
your note Of July 81, four days after
date. Unless you accidentally misdat
ed it, the communication should have
come to me several days ago. This leads
me to recall similar dilatoriness Of the
delivery Of your original note first sum-
moniDg me to your committee, which |
received only four hours before | was 10
appear, and yet the summons bore date
of the day previons. But let these trities
pass.
"Your note, just received, surprises
me by its contents, for you seem to have
forgotten that on the last day of my ap
pearance before your committee | car
ried to your meeting not only all the
documents which l quoted in my sworn
statement, save those in Moulton's pos
session, but many more besides, making
a double handful of interesting and i'm
portant papers
VITAL TO MY CASE AND DESTRUCTIVE
TO YOURS.
''All these papers ] purposed to lay
before you, but no sooner had | begun to
read them aloud in Your presence than
one OF your attorneys stopped me in read
ing, and proposed that l should save the
commiseee's time by referring these pa
pers to one of your members, Hon.
John Winslow. 1 acquiesced in this
suggestion, and retired from yonr com
mittee with expectation Of a speedy con-
ference with Mr.. Winslow. Perhaps it
was my proper duty to have called on
Mr.. Winslow, but as the whole commit
tee had previously set the example Of
calling in body Of one of the other par
tics 10 this controversy, | took it for
granted that Mr.. Winslow would repeat
this precedent by doing me the honor to
call ut my house, st which time he would
have been a welcome guest. But while
waiting for his coming / aras called upon
instead By a policeman, who arrested me,
and carried me, at thirty minutes notice,
before Justice Riley's Police Court, to
answer the charge of libeling Rev. Hen
ry Ward Beecher. against whom 1 had
spoken
NOT 4 LIBEL, BUT THE TRUTH.
''Up to the time of this arrest had
employed no lawyer, not needing any.
But on finding myself before a Police
Court, and not understanding the motive
of my arrest nor methods of Courts, /
requested my friend Judge 5. d. Morris
to answer for me in a technical proceed
ing in which knew not how to answer
properly for myself. Twice already
have been before thi. unexpected tribu-
nal, and may be called before it third
time on Wednesday next. Mean. hile
my counsel, TO whom have Just shown
y0uT note, instructs me to lay no
DOCUMENTS. PAPERS OR REMAINING
TESTIMONY
Before your committee, nor TO hold
any further communication with you
in amy form except to send you this
present and final letter containing the
reasons for this step. These reasons are
the following:
"First-you are Il committee OF Mr..
Beecher's friends, appointed by himself,
and expected to act in his behalf, assist
ed by attorneys employed exclusively for
his vIndication; holding
SECRET SESSIONS INACCESSIBLE To THE
PUBLIC;
Having no power to compel witnesses;
giving no opportunity for the op ,site
side to cross examine such as volu4 tari-
ly appear; publishing OF suppr, sing
their testimony as you see fit, SO far rs
my own experience goes;
ASKING ME NO QUESTIONS
Save such as were irrelevant to the
case, and emitting to publish in .rour
imperfect and unjust report os my tesli-
mony all that was most pertinent 10 my
own side Of the controversy.
"Second-The daily papers Of Brook
lyn and New York have heen aFtf.,lly
led day by day with
CRUMBS OF FICTITIOUS EVIDENCE
Against my own character, "a il, not
Mr. Beecher, but | alone were the man
on trial; and though I have little light,
perhaps, to hold Your committee re-
sponsible for this daily misrepesenta-
ton, which may come through the lice
Of others, yet the result is the sa1.ia 10
me as if you had Deliberately designed
it, and that result is this. namely:
EXPECT NO JUSTICE
Either from your tribunal, sine Won
can not compel witnesses to teatify, nor
from your reporters, since they &: not
give impartial reports.
"Third-I can not resist the cnrvic-
| tion (though mean no of'ense ii ex-
pressing it) that your committee has
come at last to be as
LITTLE SATISFACTORY TO THE PUBLIC
As to myself, and that your verdict (if
you render one) could not possibly be
based on the full facts, since you lave
no power to compel witnesses, nor to
verify their testimony by oath, n"r to
sift it by cross-examination.
"For these reasons, which ought to
have moved me earlier, have instruct
ted my counsel to proceed at once n his
discretion to carry my case from your
jurisdiction
TO A COURT OF LAW.
And in view of this instruction from me
he hTs in turn instructed me to holi no
further communication with your COM
mittee except this present letter of cour-
tesy, in which | have the honor to bid
you farewell, in doing which ALLOW me
to add that the respect which | ain un-
able to entertain for your committe as Il
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