New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1875-06-02
THE WRITING AND PRESENTATION OF THE
RESIGNATION LETTER.

Now we come to the Bowen and Bcecher IN
terview far have not already disposed OF H. IN It's
relevancy and application to the principal issue here'
and which l now ask little attention TO- MI
Beecher the sole witness TO that interview up 10 the
point of the introduction Of the rebuta evidence OF the
| plaintiff which brings Mr. Bowen on the stand now
see the attitude in which Mr. Tlton places himself Ia re-
gard to that mssive, and the Judgment that he eA
poses himself TO, when the only conclusion III resaru "
Mr. Beecher, TO affect him, s not the sendhg or 'no
forging of the weapon, but the manner IN which nc
receives It, Tton tells you that when Mr. Bowen was
running nm with this TRADE against him, somehow or
other Il became appropriate for himself to introduce al
psnuaion or an accusation against Mr. Beecher IN To
spec to his own, Mr. Tltons family, ana that INA. aoo
saon was not the least discredltabe 10 Ills WIG, vi
| his chdrens fame, but an accusation against MI
Beecher to wit: that Mr.. Beecher had made improper
advances or improper proposals to his r Tltons wire;
that thereupon Mr. Bowen either then giving or before
that having gyen the catalogue OF Mr. Beechers PROM
from Indianapolis down. the terror and the danger
that he to all the people OF Brooklyn MI inon
quite moderate suggestion that he nad peeh g"'' "
these improper advances Immediately echpSeu' III
Bowens mind all this horrible scheme ana system VI
profgacy that he had been enarging upon; Bowen
tbou0bt no Doubt TO himself: "Now here Is something
that looks as II there something to IT, nave peeh
dealing In this cloudy calumny and nobody mas neeueu
what / said but really now, this young man-he mas
got something that not too incredible and that as nc
gives his own wife the object to be sure saving her
innocence his credit and the fame OF his chdren-reay
now there is something 1t Ia your duty Mr. Tton 10
arrest this long career OF progacy to stem this tide OF
adultery to restrict this widespreadng seduction You
have got fact Use it," swell, but MT. Bowen you
have been talking about facts that were thousand times
as great as this little fact Of mne Why don't you use
some of your facts 7" Oh Of honor restraints me-
Mr.. Beecher and have come to settlement and all
things are ended between u.s." Why had MT he thought
% @bote ~ hon hp TltOn
infamous aspersons OF Mr.. Beecheri think his sense
of honor and goes and you can see people etch
and carry it, But anyhow he did, and that was enough
for Tton Tton the point of honor at once
At once Bowen recoiled. 81 will not ask You to he
guilty of breach OF honor far be ii from me-" "How
shall we arrange IL then4" "Why, you open the mat
ter by this insnuaton about your wife, and that Will
open the question of Beechers moral character in gen
eral and then l shall be relieved upon the point
of honor, and I will back you up Weh'
now was there ever moro fifty adjusted con-
trivance between two "mep of honor" to MAINTAIN
their honori and yet when they tell you their own
story of it, they wonder that people don't think it as hon
orahe as It seemed to them (Iaughterl "Now." says
Bowen "you write letter, an open letter, and VIII
carry it," and as TOn says. it was their joint act
their Joint act. Said to Mr. Tilton, "What was your
ohjecti What did you expect to accomplish " cx-
pected" said he" My object was to strike him to the
hearth Iexpected to accomplish his expulsion from his
I
| said "He can't stay twelve hours under that letter
Put n" saws Bowen "nothing dehnte but put in, for
reasons explicitly known to him. and they altered the
draft and put that nan appeal to MI Beechers con-
scousness hoping that when he saw Theodore Iliton
signed to that would pack up his trunk and 60 Well
| we are coming nearer TO the proceedings OF the
KuKlux than we expected to be in these civilized
communities Put in" says Bowen leave your pull
pit quit the editing Of The Christian Union" Well,
no." says Tlton, we have got enough in" now Bowen
did not think there enough n provided Beecher was
not driver out of the rival newspaper but STILL sup
pose he concluded that he left Plymouth Church. and
left Brooklyn probably he would not continue to edit
! TN, Christian Union Now now the mssive Is forged
now the messenger charged and now Bowen If he has
not got Beecher has got Tton-got him, got hfn-body
and soul He has got, under his signature bold de-
FAINT blaekma letter against Mr. Beecher; and although
the space between Bowen house and Beechers house is
not very long yet there time enough to lead Bowen
to reflect that perhaps would be as well to seal up that
letter and not carry open and he did So We got that
much of truth at least out of Bowens lips and from
| his tongue the moisture that closed that letter.
That Is plain there is denying that Well, Bowen
goes there and hands il to Beecher Beecher opened it,
and read it. and did not fall down dead but on his
own view of it, turned to Bowen and said "Why this is
sheer insanity: the man ia crazy" That was enough
for Bowen He knew that that appeal for reasons ex-
pcty known to yourself" did not carry any conscious
ness TO Mr. Beecher, and that what TtOn had told him
had disappeared like the baseess fabric OF vision and
then he felt had Tlton before now, have got him
with the evidence that his charge false for have de-
vered to the against whom came as suddenly as
the stroke Of the ghtning know he was unprepared
know now that this arrogant, grave. delibe-
rate challenge to him, which, If the reasons explicitly
known to himself that suggested by T1ton TO me
had existed would have Immediately brought some con-
fusion to the face tremor to the lips some per-
pexty to the understanding" And it not sol Hyou
| 1oI hnnv 1rfn In Din Ia
sixteen months with Theodore Tltons wife, and some
body suddenly brought you letter written and signed
by the husband appealing to your consciousness OF some
| relation to him that should suggest and JUSTIFY
| that demand don't you think that II would make
| some impression youf All the evidence shows,
and it is part of the plaintiffs case. that no inmation
whatever proceeding from Mrs. Titon, or proceeding
from Mr. Tilton, had ever brought to Mr. Beecher's
knowledge the fact this terrible guilt prolonged
persistent nexplcsbe, had become known to the III
ured husband and Bowen who had been only that very
day unrong to Tton the enormity Of Beechers profit
gacy and the Christian duty OF arrestng It, and had
sezed upon Tons suggestion that he at least had an eff
fort prOfgac TO charge against Beecher-sezed 1t
and carried it there, looked at Mr.. Beecher as he
| read the letter, heard his answer and at once
| concluded Whatever Mrs. TiltOn may have
| said TO Mr.. Tilton, whatever Jealousy may have IN
vented or hatred magnifed in Tiltons breast there Is
nothing Beechers consciousness that makes the color
come go in his open cOuntenance that is coursed as
Immediately by every tetale flow Of blood as young
maidens in the flush OF health Al Mr.. Bowen has not
lived in vain He knows something about false charges
he has seen the ways OF this wicked world and he
that instead Of that charge relieving him Of the rivalry
of The Christian Union crushing the antagonism Of
Beecher to him Tilton, all that had happened
that Beecher possession Of this conclusive proof of
Mr.. Titon's enmty and maligDty. All Bowen must
have hands Of his understanding and chuckled
over forethough in having closed that letter for II
it had remained Enclosed, Mr.. Beecher would had
the same evidence against him, Bowen, that he had
against Tton. Now, Bowen says that Mr. Beecher
| treated IT, far any spontaneous expression OF
his Beechers own went, even more contemptuousy