The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1874-07-26


quent dlAhonoring by lieechcr Of his |
mon wrong6lnoss aud periidy,
That about nine yenrs ago, Row. II, T.
w. Boechor hogan, nnd thereafter con- /
llnucd, u friendship with Mrs. l., II. /
Tiltou, for whose native dellcaoy aud |
extreme religious senBlbllity ho often |
expressed 10 her husband u high ndnl' /
ration Visited her from time 10 time |
for years I'LL 1870, when, for reasons he |
before stated, he ceased such visits,
during which period, 10y many tokens
aud attentions, he won the affection
and love of Mrs. Extraordinarily,
after long moral resistance by her aud
after repeated assaults by him upon
her mlnd, with OvermastGrlng urgl-
mcnts accomplished the possession Of
her person, maintaining with her
thencoiorward, during the period h0ro-
matter stated, the relation called crln'
inul intercourse this relation being
regarded by her during that period M
not being criminal or morally wrong,
such being the power of his arguments,
rs n Clergyman, TO satisfy her religious
scruples against such violation OF vlr-
tue and honor.
That on the evening Of October 10,
| 1868, or thereabouts, Mrs. Elizabeth r.
Triton held an Interview with Rev.
| Henry Ward Beecher ut his residence,
she being then In II tender state OF
mind, owing to the recent death ana
burial Of II young child; aud during
| this interview gn net Of criminal COM
merce took place between this pastor
and this pnrshoner, the motiyo on
| her part being, ~ heroinbeiore stated,
not regarded by her vt the time rs
criminal or wrong which net was follow
ed by Il similar net Of crimlnality bc-
tween these same parties ut Tilton's
residence during Il pastoral Visit paid
| by Beecher to her on the subsequent
Saturday evening, and followed also
| by other similar acts on various occa-
sions from the autumn of 1868 TO the
spring of 1879, the plnces being the two
residences aforesaid, and occasionally
other places, to which her pastorwould
Invite and accompany her or NJ which
he would meet her by previous APP
pOlntment, these acts OF wrong being
on her part, from first to last, not wan
ION or consciously wicked, but arising
| through u binding of her moral per-
ceptiOns, accustomed 10y the powerful
| influence cXertpd on her mind at that
time 10 this end 10y Che Rev. Henry
| Ward BeeGher III her trusted religious
preceptor aud guide.
That previous to the aforesaid crimi-
nal intimacy, one of the reasons which
Mrs. TitOn alleged for her encourage
ment Of such exceptional attentions
from the Rev. Henry Ward Beecher
was the fact that she hud been much
distressed with rumors against his
moral purity, and wished to convince
him TINT she could receive his kind
ness and yet resist his solicitation, aud
that she could inspire In him, by her
purity and fidelity, an increased re-
spect for the chaste dignity of woman
hood. Previous to the autumn of 1865
she maintained with christian lirmness
toward her pastor this position Of re-
sislance, always refusing his amorous
pleas, which were strong and oit-re-
peated; and In II letter to her husband,
dated February 3, 1865, she wrote as
follows; "V0 love IL praiseworthy, but
to abuse the gift Is sin. Here am
strong. No demonstrations or inscina-
tions could cause mo TO yield my wo-
manhood
That the first suspicion which crossed
the mind of Theodore Triton that the
Rev. Henry Ward Beecher was abus-
ing, or might abuse, the affection and
reverence which Mrs. Triton bore
towards her pastor, was an improper
caress given by Beecher to Mrs. Triton
while seated by her aide on the floor of
his library, overhauling engravings.
Mr.. Tilton, u few hours afterwards,
asked Of his wife an explanation other
permission of such liberty, whereat she
at first denied the fact, but then con-
fessed 1t, and said she had spoken
chidingly to Beecher concerning it.
On another occasion Iilton, after
leaving his house in the early morning,
returned to 1t in the forenoon, and on
going to his bedchamber found the
door locked, and when on his knock
ing ut the door it was opened by Mrs.
Tilton, Beecher was seen within, mp
parently much confused, and exhibit
ing n flushed face. Mrs. riton, after
wards made n plausible explanation,
which, from the confidence reposed in
her by her husband, was by him
deemed satisfactory.
That in the spring of 1870, ON Til
toms return from winters absence,
he noticed in his wife such evidence OF
an absorption of her mind IN Beecher
that In II short time an arrangement
took place between her husband and
herself, IN consequence of which she
went into the country earlier than usu-
al for the summer sQjourn. After an
absence of several weeks, she volun-
tarily returned to her home in Brook
| lyn, on the evening of July 3, 1870,
when, then and there, within a few
hours after her arrival, and after eX-
acting from her husband the promise
that he would do the Rev. Henry Ward
Beecher no harm, nor communicate to
him what she was about to say, she
made n circumstantial confession to
her husband of the criminal facts here
inbetore state, accompanied with eta
tons from Beecher's arguments and
reasonings with her to overcome her
long maintained scruples against
yielding to his desires, and declaring
that she had committed no wrong to
her husband or her marriage vow,
quoting in support of this opinion that
her pastor had repeatedly assured her
that she was spotless and chaste, which
she believed herself to be. She further
stated that her sexual commerce
with him had never proceeded from
low or vulgar thoughts, either on her
part or his, but alw avs from pure af-
lection and high religious love. She
stated furthermore that Mr.. Beecher
habitually characterized their intima-
cy by the term 'nest hiding,n and he
would suffer pain andsorrow { his hid
den secret were ever made known. She
said that her mind was often burden-
ed by the deceit necessary for her to
practice in order to prevent discovery,
and that her conscience had many
times impelled her to throw off this
burden of enforced falsehood by maxi