The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1875-03-23

slept in the front part and other times in
the back part of the house
l do not remember where the children
slept at that time; l was lying there, and
Mr.. Tilton came in TO bid me goodnight
and he stroked my hair and remarked
how soft ii was; he put his hand on my
neck, ! removed it and he said, "Why
Bessie, darling, how modest you are
He said people in the best classes of So
ciety, generally gave such csresses in the
best society; that even ministers gave
them. / told him | did not care what
people in the best society did; he talked
to me about marriage and attinities,
and asked me to allow him
to love and caress me, and that
no harm should happen to me;
| thought this conversation on his
part was very strange; | was then about
seventeen years of age; was not shock
ed; studied over his language, rs | did
not know what he meant; | was angry
when he put his hand on my neck; | had
not to this time been much attached to
Mrs. Titon, but do not think / told her
then OF that occurrence; ! remember him
distinctly saying, Why Bessie dear
how painfully modest you are | do not
know what be meant by attinitic, and
physical expressions "f l"vci ia the
summer of 1874, ! was on visit
to come friends in Pittsburgh, Pa, and
came on to Brooklyn in August
while here went before the
Church Committee and testified
before them; spoke to them
of two occasions on whicn TiltOn visited
my room; the question was put to me:
Did Theodore Tlton ever attempt your
RUM and answered yes, he did on two
occasions; think told the committee
that Mrs. TillOn was at Monticello on
one of these occasions; | do not rcmcm-
Der saving that Mrs. Tilton WAS in
Schoharic; ! now know she was at
Monticello, and must have been mis-
taken when | told the committee Schoha-
ric; this was in 1869; | was mistaken in
saving before the committee that on the
first occasion. when | was carried into
n- room, | awukc in his arms; | was also
mistaken when said that the two events
occurred close together; ! said to them
that | thought Ms. TIIton was at Scho-
hnro on one o. these occasions; ] was
in Stcubcnvillc from 1871 until |
rcturned ~ Brooklyn in 1914
| only knew of my going before the COM
mittcc about ten minutes before it occurr-
ed; talked with General Tracy before
went there; on the second night after
arrived in the city | went before the
committee; my father left me ut Mr..
HALLIDAY ; and ne took me up to Mrs.
OvinytUn's: it was in the morning that |
went there, and that evening appeared
before the committee; | saw Mrs. Tilton
there, and during my stay there the OBJ
jcct of my appearing before the commit
| tee was mentioned; do not think 1t was
/ mentioned until General Tracy called; l
/ did not talk OF the occurrences at Mrs.
/ Ovinp,ons or Mr.. Hallidav's, until Cen
/ Tracy called; the committee met at 8
| o'clock and General Tracy called bet wcen
/ ! and 5; | am sure | did not talk with
/ him two hours; | do not remember who
went with me before tine committee; /
talked over the subject with u great
many parties afterwards, with Mrs. Til
ton. Mr.. Shearman and others; found
afterwards, on looking over the evidence
given by me on that occasion, that | had
made one mistake in my testimony; !
was then stopping at Mrs. Purdy's; when
! | made this discovery; Mrs. Morse was
| also there. but | did not talk over the
| matter with her or a. to the testimony
! given by me; when | made the discovery
! il WIS after reflection. and | cast over
the testimony i'll my own mind,
( when the mistakes were discovered
bv me- there was book of testimony
/ riyen me bv Mr.. Shearman, but ! never
! looked at it: | discovered some of my dis
crepancies through talking with Mrs.
/ Mitchell VINO was ut Mr.. Hills; DR..
/ Carey, llr. Hin and Mrs. Mitchell were
present then but had discovered my
/ mistakes before that time; they were not
the subject Of conversation then; while
talking with Mrs Mitchell several little
things were called to my mind which |
| had not recollectcd before,
What she Did Not Tell the Conn
mittcc.
| DO not think | told before the com
mittcc about Tilton -troking my hair and
forehead, nor about his putting his hand
on my neck.
Mr.. Fullerton then read the remainder
of that testimony which the wit
ness said was not told the committee,
as it was forgotten at the
time. The witness continued, | had not
thought anything about this conversation
Ten minutes before | went before the
committee; ! never forgot this converse
ton. but / recollected ii in 1870 when
| was in Marietta, when was dcscrib-
ing il to Mrs. Tilton, it all came up TO
me in detail, and was fresh in my recOl-
| lection; this was in the fall of that year
| remembered something about it. but
/ not in ali the details, on the 4th OF No
vcmber, 1870, and told some persons
about il; when | went before the COM
mittcc, went with the inten-
ton Of telling all l knew
aud if hNd remembered
it. would have told it as now tell it
before the jury; told it to Mr.. Joseph
Richards. Miss Oakley, Mrs. Bradshaw
: and Judge Morse: | think it wa, in De-
ccmbcr 1870, told these parties that
We returned to Marietta on the 10th of
November. and thinkit was in Decem-
I ber and not il November that | told the
story; | told this story to the people.
IKnow He was Bad Man.
/ | told the story for Mr.. TltoR's sake,
As she was blamed for being bad to him,
and | wished to correct this impression
nopcr>on suggested that should tell this
story. nor did Mrs. Morse instruct me to
tell 1t to these parties; did not tell Mrs.
Morse was going to tell this story; l
told Mrs. Putnam before telling
these persons but not the whole
matter; told Mrs. Bradshaw
about hi. knocking me down and how he
/ acted. and his treatment of Mrs. Tilton
/ | told her that hetricd to ruin me; | did
not tell hcr the details; did not tell any
. Of these parties the story; substantially /
only told Mrs Putnam that he had at
tempted 20 ruin me; up 10 the time that
| came unto the stand, | had told the
story substantially 10 steuogrsph"r,
ID, T'I,S