Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1874-07-12
THE BEECHER SCANDAL:
The Dirty Business Given TO q Commit
tee Of Mr. Beecher's Selection for
Examination and Report.
Letters from Mr.. Beecher In Reference
TO the COmmittee-A Report In the
Case Possible Sometime
this Fall.

NEW YORK, July I0.-Two letters o
Mr.. Beecher's will be published in the
next issue Of the Christian Union. One
of them, dated June 9th, solieits an in.
vestigation into the charges preferred
against him, and is addressed to the
following "a smbers of Plymouth church
H. 3. Clafiin, August Stowe, Henry
M M'Leveland, John Winslow and r. A
White. The second letter is dated July
9Th, and addressed to the clerk Of Ply.
mouth church. With it is enclosed 8
copy of a previous letter, and the CLERK
of the church is asked TO give all posi-,
ble aid TO the Investigating committee
The Tribune says: "Rev. Henry
Ward Beeeher has demanded an inves-
tigatiOn by Plymouth church of the in
nuendoes against his personal charactel
by Theodore Tilton. The request was
promptly made on June 9th, the day
Of the publication of Mr.. Tilton's letter,
and a special committee was appointed
to conduct the inquiry. This has been
in progress since the fourth OF July, and
will probably be concluded in a few
days"
dAt the inquiry INTO the charges re-
specting my conduct, as comprised in the
laLE DuIilEdtABLh by III AAAbOIt AAHS
Thought that both the church and the
society should be represented, and take
the liberty of asking the following gen.
-tlemen to serve in this inquiry, and
to 90 that which truth and justice
may require. I beg that each OF the
gentlemen named will consider this as
il it had been separately and personally
sent to him to-day from the church :
Henry w. Sage, Augustus St0rrs, Henry
NJ. Cleveland. From the society: Hor-
ace B. Clafiin, John Winston, s. n.
White. When you have satisfied your
selves, by an impartial and thorough
examination of all the sources of evil
dence, you will communicate to the
examining committee of the church
such action as may then seem to you
right and wise.
HENRY WARD BEECHER-
The examining committee recOgniz-
ing the representative character of the
men thus appointed, unanimously adopt
Ell the action Of the pastor, and finally
authorized the gentlemen named TO act
as a committee on its behalf and report
the result Of their inquiry for its infor-
nation and further action.
The COagregGti0RGiist lately sug-
gested that the charge against Mr..
Beecher should be referred for exami-
nation to several distinguished
men in several parts of the country, but
Mr.. Beecher seemed to have thought
that the matter might more apprOpri-
ately be referred to members Of his own
church and society, whose interest in its
minister would make them do their
work thoroughly and impartially, and
who having been chosen by their fellow
members, would especially have their
This, however, is in accord
ance with the principles and genius Of
COngregationalism, which impose
upon every church the duty Of
settling its own difficulties without need
lessly troubling others. Mr.. TiltOn's
it will be remembered, was
made on Thursday, June 25th. Mr..
coming to town on Friday,
conducted his usual prayer-meeting, and
on Saturday, the twenty-seventh, wrote
the above letter, asking the church to
investigate the matter. The committee
has entered upon its work, and will pros
ecute it to the earliest possible compile
ton. The second letter of Mr.. Beecher,
also addressed to the examining COM
mittee, and referred to above, IS not con-
tanned in the above article; it was OBJ
tanned last night by Tribune reporter,
and is as follows:
DEAR BRETHREN-I inclose to you a
letter, in which I have requested three
from the church and three
from the society of Plymouth church
gentlemen OF unimpeachable repute,
and who have not been involved in any
of the trials through which we have
passed during the year-to make thor
Ough and impartial examination of all
the charges or insinuatiOns against my
good name, and report the same to you;
and now respectfully request you viii
give to this committee authority to act
in your behalf. It seemed wise to me
that the request should proceed from
me and without your foregoing knowi-
edge, and that you should give to it au-
.hOrity to act in your behalf IN 80 far as
a thorough investigation Of the facts
should be concerned.
HENRY WARD BEECHER-
Mr. Shearman says the committee re-
,eived the letter on Sunday, July I'd,
and went to work the next day. Their
action received the unanimous approval
Of the examining committee OF the
church, which met July 9Th, and the
six gentlemen were made sub-eommlt-
tee of the examining committee. They
expected to finish their labOrs this week,
although they were delayed = the diff
Guilty o! getting witnesses; MOI because
Of the unwilhngness OF witnesses to tes-
5ify, but because of the absence Of so
many of them from town, Very few
we're present at the Plymouth prayer
tonight, owing to the storm.
Mr.. Baecher did not attend.