The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1875-01-31
The Decision Regarding Tilton's Com
potency as a Witness.
A Picture Of the Judge and
How He Presides.
SOciety's Lesson from the Brook
lyn Cause Celebre.

propose 10 write out an opinion, but merely TO
give decision. He Is sterling Judge, suggest
ing old times when the best citizen got on the
Bench by sort OF Divine right and slowly ana
ponderously moved through life, arbitrating fll.
minating, correcting sentencing.
since the trial came on 1t may be said that only
two persons have made reput ations-the presiding
Judge and the witness Moulton. II had been ex-
pected that M0ulton would be torn to pieces ana
certain belief existed that bis peccadiIloes ana
hailties, as much OF temperament rs OF perform.
ance, would 10 ruthlessly delineated while his
testimony would be perforated and shown to be
unreliable. Aoult0n made Q brag witness princi.
pally because he was perfectly natural and re-
lated his ordinary character. rather sharp
young man, with . plausible tongue and a GER
tain jovial resentment be managed to baf1e the
lawyers arrayed against him and to keep the con-
sideration OF the audience, the jury and, as It
appeared, the Judge. Had he been prosecuted
with less feeling his retorts might have seemed
Impairment but his crosse xamnatt ton developed
the fact that some Of the lawyers most incensed
against him had been nearly on the ragged
edge" like himself-tnat Is, mutual friends seek
Ing to patch up an uucompromisable case. Frank
Mouiton occupies an ambiguous place. With .
certain class OF impulsve people he Is regarded as
q very perfect type OF
CONSISTENT FRIENDSHIP.
nc Is rcCOAccteu AZ Tue BcnOOlmAte OF luton q
quarter OF a century ago, who has man tanned In
the midst OF selfish business complications a
reverence and regard Tor that memorsple friend
Slip The common mind regards him worthily
because he chose the smaller OF two opponents to
befriend. BY such critics he Is held to have been
Q naturally magnanlmous unselfsh person, be.
cause t Was 50 much easier to run into Mr..
Beecber's camp than to dwell on the barren
moor like Edgar with the banished king
ON the other hand, there are persons OF anna
bhity and honor who conceive that Mr. Moulton
had no right IN any emergency to print the com.
munications which Mr.. Beecher mad iutrusteo to
HIM In solemn confidence, much less to make quo
lie the incidental letters OF family associates ike
Thomas Beecher and Bella Hooker. This scandal
has lasted 80 long that very large portion Of
society Is on the ragged edge" oil cOnsis .ency and
without much regard Ior the evidence as 1t Is de.
theory In iact society IS at war In thus case, aud
the conduct OF the Trial Itself antagonHes Ger.
tam class Of hatr-brained paTtisans.
JUDGE NELSON AND THE REPOBTERs.
Judge Nelson mas kept, among MS other dig.
mites . general dignity toward the press not
1ndlvidualZing any particular reporter or ne VS.
paper as some oil the lawyers have done, but ap-
parently seeking to make the most boylsh re-
porter leel that he Is part OF court OF justice
ana responsible for his utterances least to him.
self. In this view of the case the Brooklyn trial /.
Generalization to these rather lo0se times
AL the estates OF the realm are put upon their
good behavior and disciplined The press has
Seen Tor has gSoa while the Bar has
and the caucus nave bossed the Bench. and
It has seemed Tor several years a.
Providence being generally on the side OF the
heaviest legal and social artillery The Brooklyn
patent IN this state two years ago. The Judge IL
great part OF the court, and he has that 1nrel-
lawyers In motion To know what he may do For
instance, last week he ruled out all the Tree love
literature on the theory that II was 'atrocious''-
the word ''atrOcous'' is the Judge's-wnIie mean.
time he reDuked the PLAINTIFFS counsel Tor putting
lmputations upon General Tracy. Nj. Tracy,
SAID the Judge, is an honorable member OF the
Bar
THE JUDGES RULINGS.
Therefore, when 1t Is SAID that the Judge In this
case Is one OF two persons VINO have made repu-
tation, We mean that he The nrst judge IN an
ordinary court who mas made Ais judicial rulings
morality. He mas endeavored, apparently, to make
lawyers reporters aud the audience feel their re-
latl0n to . vast fortunate scandal-something
not to be made Joke or . sensation, nor to be
used by its partisans for the degradation OF third
parties; but an xffar where the greatest good OF
the greatest NUMBER win be subserved by absolute
large, cOnslderate justice.
TINS Judge (Neison) Is somewhat peculiar. He
can be alternately familiar and severe. He Is u
bigboncd. democratic sort OF man, suggesting the
old-ashened judges OF Jefrersonian times men
like samuel Chase, Mexican and Cooper. The
counsel around him are relatively Indifferent
There are several gentlemen In the Beecner trial
whose opinion OF themselves is at least equal to
tue best opinion among tine special ors We can
be impersOnal IN this statement because more
than one, two, or perhaps three, are covered Dy
IL is trial in humanity. 1t test OF the rela-
ton OF the sexes the Justice OF individuality, BY
which we mean the right OF person, male or
female, to alter relations concerning the afectons
ana to resume them
THE INTEREST OF SOCIETY.
The mighty epic OF human nature In this trial Is
recited belore us. with frequent recesses, so mat
We can become partisans OF the tale. MRS rlton
certain position she had resolved to take was not
abandoned by ner. great constituency OF wo-
men 10 trying dictatorial husbands through Mrs.
11lton. great constituency OF husbands Is trv-
Ing suppOsirtious intererers with the domestic re-
iations through Mr. Beecner. Society, In TACT, Is
trying itself by this drama We are ct present in
the drag and stagnaion Of business ana We are
paying unusual attention to such social issue ~
The very sensttiveness we have to show az press
writer's on the subject Is proof OF the interest OF
OF the people in the aiair West OF tnis city every
newspaper 10 nearly consumed with the details OF
the scandal Even in Europe the interest Is an
and Mr.. Tilton's intimacy with MS senJor's lame
and the undoubted propriety Of Mrs. filfon's gen-
srsd ns cs x s myssIs
ana sanSsS It a0serOns cosyss
reliability Of human nature. the permanence or
the affections, the influence Of third parties The
household relation the right to love and he De-
loved without authority. Hence the unmarried
are studying the pro ,lem Of matrimony by this
ties by Mr. Triton and sir. Bcecher. The widows,
who can look back TO their hymeneal lite with a
sS in q ys
temptations on the ragged edges and the true in.
Wardness 81 some Ql the persons 10 this matter.
There ~ no doubt that the growth oil modern Ito
erty and individuality has very greatly disturbed
the old fashioned interreliance between man and
wife, and We are oil using Mr. Beecner's trial ~
know what we may come TO.
HOW TO BENEFIT BY r1k LESSON.
Viewed in the light OF these broad cousidera-
nltoultes, Plymouth church or the Woodruff
school, Ii shallow. Human society requires very
occasionally such awful tests to re-examine ITSELF
The age, tue race, move on by such lights and
shipwrecks ~ the present scandal. Let us, then.
be good tempered, keep the intellectual part Of
ourselves uppermost and trust to . good judge
an average jury and square counsel TO reason ior
Va.
AS to the verdict It might be contempt OF
Court TO prognostlcate II. The defence has not
yet begun, and IL may overturn the entire per-
Torrance Of the prosecution. This BELIEF how
ever prevails among those who daily watch she
trlal-thst the jury Ii neither purchasahle nor
ductile; shat II Is good jury. generally unao-
auainted with she scandal 10 It's intensity, and
49, n1w he HnA0 MA