Sunbury American. [volume] (Sunbury, Pa.) 1848-1879, 1874-07-31
New YORK, July 2S, 1874.
BEECHER-TTIT LION.

New YORK, July %, 1874.
BEECHER-TTLTON.
Long before this scrawl reaches you the
telegraph will have brought you the full
text of Theodore Tlton's statement Of the
trouble between himself and Henry Ward
Beecher, with Mr.. Beecher's reply thereto.
All | can give you is the effect of these
publications upon the public of New York
and Brooklyn, where both parties are well
known. The statement of TiltOn is more
direct and damaging than those closest to
him supposed it would be. II was expect
ed that he would undertake to show that
Beecher had made an attempt upon Mrs.
Tilton, and that he had invaded other
homes, all of which he would endeavor to
substantiate by circumstantiaI evidence.
But his sworn statement that the great
preacher had actually seduced Mrs. Theo-
dOre TiltOn, struck the community like q
thunderbolt from clear sky. And so
skillfully is the statement made, so care
fully are all The loop-holes closed up, that
Mr.. Beecher's best friends are compelled
to admit that it has an ugly look and that
Tilton had cause to do as he had DONE OF
course, the question is asked, 'Why did
he not right himself before Why did he
not cast off this unfaithful wife and drag
down the seducer at the time he made the
discovery ?'' If askers of these questions
know Tilton and his wife the questions
would not be asked at ALL Mrs. Tilton is
woman of a most intense religious nature,
Of singularity sensitive nature-a wo-
man, in short, who lives in q morbid, un-
healthy world, which is peoplcd by her
Imagination with all sorts of angels and
/ demons. y sweet, Spirituelte woman is
/ Elizabeth TiltOn, but her nature is so in,
tense, so morbidly religious, that she is
| precisely the woman that a bad spiritual
/ guide could do anything with he chose to
do. She believed in Henry Ward Beecher
she idolized and worshiped him. He
was her idea of perfect man-to her he
was mere than a man, he was demi-god.
| With her nature she could be made wax
in the hands of man like Beecher.
And knowing this-appreciating the pe
culiar nature of his wife, Tilton believed
he had been outraged, but had that pity
upon his wife that kept the secret in his
own bosom till he was compelled in self
defence to make part of it public. 1t will
| be remembered that in his first statement
he only limited at the matter, without 60
| ing into detail This was intended as his
warning to Mr.. Beecher's friends to keer
away from him. Had they done so the
I quarrel would have stopped there. But
these friends believed they could get pos
session of Mrs. Tilton in such way as tc
discredit any statement he could make
and they defed him. Mrs. Tilton left his
house and sided with his enemies, where
upon Titon was driven to the wall, and
made desperate, made the statement which
is now before the world.
Beecher, of course, denies everything,
and Mrs. Tilton has followed suit. But
/ the public do and will believe TiltoG, fol
there have been rumOrs affecting the char
aCter of Mr.. Beecher INTERPOLATION fol
years, and the opionion is that these ru
niors have a foundation in fact. Then the
case has been pettifogged in all sorts o.
ways by his friends. The Committee o.
/ Investigation was selected by himself, and
the Committee have, from the beginning
acted more as his attorneys than as his
judges. 1t is safe to say that Henry Ward
Beechers sun is sinking and in a few
months it will go down forever. 1t is a
pity that brain so large, and soul so all
embracing, could not have been so balanced
as to have run on to the end. Alas for
poor humanity.