Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1874-07-25
OPINIONS oFrHEPRE

% GOd, a sweet goodwill
To all mankind.
SLEEPY HOLLOW, November !, ISL.
OPINIONS OF THE PRESS.
From the New York Herald.l
There is no doubt that this misfortun
is one Of the most terrible that has eve
befallen public man. "Dimmesdoll,
when he went into the pillOry, in Haw
thorne's romance OF the ,Scdg2et Letter
suffered no such agony rs we find her
recorded in the history OF Henry Ware
Beecher. What days Of sorrow, humili
alton and abasement, pursued by fury
as relentless and unpausing as Nemesis
Mr.. TiltOn, whatever the offense, ha!
sssUredly revenged it. Wherever be ap,
pears in this sad narrative he is cool, res.
olute. pOssessed-mOying toward .
1 purpose which never escapes and never
| deceives him. Mr.. Beecher is always
the sUppliant, Mrs. Tilton the interces-
sOr; Mr.. Tilt0D, hard, pitiless, inexor-
/ able, with q preconceived purpose in his
mind, and compelling every fact and
sentiment to bend to it. Mr.. Beecher' g
/ letters Of sorrOw, his wife's earnest notes
/ Of repentance, Mr.. JOhnsOn's record of
/ his prayers and his tears-nay, even the
tender and one would certainly think
almost sacred letters in which hopeful
wife and mother sees the measure of a
husbands love in the love she bears to
her Saviour and her God. It is almost
too painful TO dwell on these things, but
our main thought goes out to the great
and noble soul who is the illustrioUs ac-
cGsed. We are proud to feel that thus
far be comes out Of his trial magnani-
nous, brave, sOrely-stTicken soul, who
hos aFTfF,aru1 r15aur.aa 10 uorrcrr-u br4f
who shows himself in no way unworthy
of his genius, his fame, and the forty
years of his blameless christian life.
From the New York Worid-l
The charge now made against Mr..
Beecher rests, so far as Mr.. Tilton's state
ment enables US to assign to it any fOun-
datIOn at all, upon the alleged knowl-
edge had Of this charge and the alleged
action taken in consequence of it by GER
tain third parties, notably Mr.. MoultOn,
Mr.. Carpenter and Mr.. Oliver johnson.
1t is but commonly just, by the way, to
say that letter given in this statement
as written by Mr.. Oliver johnson to Mr..
Tilton on this subject is absolutely the
one oasis Of manliDess and right feeling
which Tefreshes this else desert waste of
senumentalism, prmiency, cowardice
and filth. When Mr.. Beecher shall have
been confronted by these third parties,
and MIR. BeecheT's testimony can be
weighed with or against theirs, it will
be iu order to form final judgment as
to the truth or falsehood Of the charge
which, so far as it rests on anything
now within the range Of vision of the
public, rests alone upon them and upon
their testimony.
From the New York Tribunel
The commanding personality of Mr..
Beecher SO dwarfs every other figure in
this melancholy drama, that it is hard
ly worth while 10 waste time in dwell
ing upon the peculiarities of Mr.. Til
toms extraordinary statement. The fe-
verish and unwhOlesome atmosphere of
emotion in which the lesser personages
live and move renders their written and
their oral assertions equally doubtful
and untTustWOrthy. UDOn any theory
Of the matter, il is inexpressibly mourn
ful to see amid what a poisonous cloud
of mean passions, temptations, Jealous
les, and even devotiOns, as injurious as
hatred5, this great orator and teacher
habituauy walked. In a few days we
shall learn what answer be has to make
to these grave accusations. If he can
disprOve them, his position will be
stronger than ever for this trial and tri-
umph. II he fails, it is not too much to
say that all christendom will deplore a
loss hardly TO be measured by words,
and in our own country his lapse will be
regarded as a well-nigh irreparable dis
sster. 1t is not only his elOquence, his
fame, his christian character and exam
pie that are here assailed. We should
lose in him the eminent preacher whom
LEnnUuQ an Il mil kNn
ripe and liberal thinker, whose value is
only just beginning to be recognized by
cultivated and thoughtful men. If he
should come alive out Of this ordeal, he
viii be priced more than ever. If not,
the pistOl-shOt nf Booth caused ma
tiOnal sorrow no deeper and not so hope
less.
From the New York Times.
Assuming a categorical denisl of all
the alleged Odenses on the part of Mr..
Beecher, the evidence against him rests
on the testimony Of Mr.. and Mrs Til
ton. The credibility Of the Confession
of the latter must, however, be greatly
qualified by her withdrawal of the accu.
sations therein implied-in fact, in le-
gal sense, Mrs. TiltOn's contradictory
statements render her almost worthless
as a witness. The evidence, then,
against MIR. Beecher seems to be mar
rOwed down to the statements Of Mr..
Tilton, fortified as they are by the ex-
pressiOns OF deep eontrition, and almost
agOnizing suspense contained in the let
ters addressed by MIR. BeecheI to Mr..
MoultOn a year ago. II Mr.. Beecher
has. as stated, submitted his defense to
the committee, that document will be
expected TO explain under what prompt
ings the letters in question, whose
genuineness must be assumed, were writ
ten. Presuming always that MIR.
Beecher's statement involves q general
denial Of the allegations made by Mr..
TiltOD, it must present some coherent
theory of the starting point of the
dreaTy series Of negotiations and COR
ferences referring to Mr.. Tilfon's domes-
tic relations, in which he bore 50 pTOmi-
nent part.
From the Chicago TribuneI
The issue is thus clearly made up be-
tween Mr.. Beeeher and Mr.. Tilton. One
OF them speaks truly, and one Of them
falsely. Mr. TiltOn has given a circum-
narrative, and sworn to its truth
fulness. Mr.. BeecheI has drawn upon
his reserve fund Of good reputation, and
denied the accusation in all its breadth.
OF course the matter cannot rest here.
Mr.. Beecher's good name will serve him
in this emergency tosway public opinion,
but it will not serve him further. The
formal and detailed charge must be re-
futed in form and detail.
From the Baltimore Gazette.l
And now, with such circunnstantialitv
of detail as 10 almost force conviction.
the shameful story is told, and whether
il will be wholly true, or only true in
part, it blasts hencefOrth and forever the
character Of two men-One the most
eminent preacher Of his time, the other
a writer Of no little public repute.
Fronl-the Cincinnati Chroniele.l
However much the friends of Mr..
Beecher may deny Iilton's credibillty
as a witness, they viii find it very diff
cult to impesch the narrative of the let