Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1874-08-27

about the Beecher-Tilton scandal
It adds nothing to the evidence
heretofore adduced, except that
Moulton asserts that Beecher and
Mrs. Tilton both confessed adultery
to him. No documents are pro-
duced that in the least sustain this
assertion; it stands merely as his
say-so. A remarkable popularity
of the case is that among all the
documents bearing upon it, the
only ones of which no copies are
produced, are the two most import
ant, to-wit: Mrs. Tilton's confess
sion and retraction. 1t is to say
the least, very singular that Moul-
ton and Tilton, with their facility
for preserving copies of everything
connected with the matter, are both
minus copy of Mrs. Tilton's con-
fessiop, which would be so valuable
to their cause, and positively settle
the doubt as to whether it was
actual crilninality to which she con-
fessed as Moulton and Tilton
claim-or only an improper pro-
posal, as Beecher and Mrs. Tilton
assert. A writer in the State Jour
nal dissects Moulton's last state
ment as follows:
MEsSRs. EDITORS - The state
ment OF the Mutual Friend" labors
most painfully with manifest eff
fort to sacrifice one OF his friends"
to save the other. Tilton was the
friends Of his boyhood, but Beecher
he did not know until 1869. There
would be, perhaps, some merit in
this fidelity to ''tLe friend of his
boyhood," ii it were not for the
significant fact that his own safety
is involved, and the cause becomes,
in a measure, his own. He and
Iilton are in the same boat, and if
that goes down both are lost.
Now, after the alledged "confes-
sion" to Moulton, the very next
document which the mutual friend"
publishes as emanating from Beech
er, is II statement concerning the
"whisperings" of Bowen, in which
Beecler shows that Bowen could
not be unfavorabiy candid in his
limitations, because the latter con-
tinued to attend Plymouth Church,
publish Beecher's sersons, invited
him to his house, which statement
concludes as follows: ''Now, the
force of the statement that he did
not himself believe that | had done
anything criminal, which should af-
feet my standing as man, a citizen,
and minister illustrated by the fore
going, is demonstrated by his con-
duct when he did believe Theodore
Mlton had committed immoralities,
his dismal from the Independent, his
ignominious expulsion from the
Brooklyn Union, his refusal to pay
him the salary, and forfeit of the
contract
And yet the man who wrote those
words as a memorandum for Moul-
ton to keep, according to this same
Moulton, has already confessed him
self guilty of all that Bowen had
charged.
One would naturally suppose that
the inconsistency would have ex-
cited the surprise of the confidant.
Indeed, ii Beecher had confessed
his crime to Moulton, why should
he be trying afterwards to vindi-
cate himself to the same person
Again, in a letter to Il. B. Per-
kins, written about one month af-
ter the alleged confession, Beecher
uses language which characterizes
the rumors about him as miserable
lies; and says That "if the papers
Go not meddle, the SANDER will fall
lstillborn." "If a sensation
Should be got mp, there are enough
enemies to ian the matter and create
annoyances, though not final dan,-
age"
Again, in June, 1872, Mr.. Beech
er denied the ISLANDERS against him
IN the following language: II SOL
EMMY pronounce the charges to be
false, one and all, and to be without
any color OF reason or Foundations"
Now all these SOLEMN denials were
written after the alleged admission
OF guilt, and the mutual" father