The Portland daily press., 1874-07-28

and with Southern proclivites, remembering
what gigantic blows he struck at slavery and
man stealing and assocating the eclipse of
their power with the determination of the 'pe-
culiar institution Indicate a purpose to hold
him to rigid account for any sins that may
be laid to his door since he was so relentless III
his denunciation of theirs. Aud no doubt
there are many village taverns aud town bar
rooms, where the chronic topers gather by
night and by day to incarnadine their noses
with constant potations, in which ill-natured
things will be said apropos of cold water par
sons, and their not being SO much better, after
all than other people.
But Plymouth Church will not part with
their spiritual teacher, nor be in the least de-
gree moved from their allegiance to him.
Those of them, if there be any such, who find
it impossible to reconcile his own mournful
self upbraidngs with perfect innocence alike
in thought and act, will bear in mind how
often he has taught them the sublime Chris
tian tenet of forgiveness. They will turn to
the eighth chapter of John and find in that
touching episode in the life of Jesus an ex-
ample of the large charity which covers
multitude of sins. 1t strikes me that wouldn't
be unnstructive reading for DR.. Bacon and
the other divnes who have taken such deal
of pains to stir up this strife, and thereby oc-
casioned so much sorrow and suffering to SO
little purpose. I do not by any means wish to
be considered as intimating that they are I'M
familiar with the New Testament, but they
seem to have been governed more in this mat
| ter by the precepts of the Old. They may not
! seek to extingush the most brilliant luminary
| that ever shone in the American pulpit, but
| they have acted precisely as if they had that
| object in view. If they could accomplish it
| they would be striking tremendous blow at
| church organizations If it could be demon
| strated that the foremost clergyman in all the
land, leading throughout a long ministry an
| apparently blameless, useful and noble life-a
model of all the roprietes-living constantly
| in the sight of. his fellow men-enjoying no
| privacy-accorded no opportunities for seclu-
sion-could yet have been all the while an
undetected hypocrite and have practiced a
career of successful deception and wickedness,
the sincerity Of every other preacher in the
country would be subject to general doubt and
suspicion, and with good reason.
| But the more one thinks about it the more
| preposterous it seems. If Henry Ward
Beecher is not an upright, pure minded man,
there is no use in putting any further faith in
human nature. We might lust as well con
clude at once that every mortal being is a
| cheat and sham There are no signs, DO
tests by which you can gauge man, if these
| fail which have established his claim to be
implicitly trusted. Hence, I refuse to accept
| any statement which antagonizes my belief in
the inherent goodness of Mr.. Beecher. That
he has been weak enough to put himself on
record as having committed some offence, de-
| manding confession and repentance, 1 dis
cover to my grief. That he has been subjected
to species of black-mail now appears clear
ly. But await farther developments, with
the most steadfast conviction, that nothing
can transpire to destroy or seriously impair q
reputation so robly earned, and SO firmly es.
tablished as that of the illustrous preacher of
Brooklyn.
| so, yet we trust that somehow good
Will be the final goal of ill,
To pangs of nature, sins of will,
Defects Of doubt, and tants of blood''
YARMOUTH.