River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1875-01-29

Extract from Moulton's Testimony ON Thur,
day.

uo tiihe he hau COMMITTED against EllZ-
abeth and Theodore Tilton, and his sor-
row that he had mentioned Mrs. Billiards.
name to Bowen.
q. Did he dictrate what you wrote,
senteuce by sentence! A. lie did--every
word except what is at the top: ''En.
trusted IN confidence to +. ID. Moulton."
Q. Did he dictate. "My dear friend
Moultonl" A. lie did.
Q. Can you recall another letter of his
commencing IN that way? A. cannot.
q. What was to be tho nature of the
trust
A. | was to do with that paper, as a
friend of Beecher, what | thought was
judcious was to show it to Tilton. 1t
was to be used in reconciling the differ
ences between Beecher and Tilton.
z. Were you to part with it A. Not
to part with it to any one except Tilton.
q. We're you to part with it! A. If
| chose. There was nothing said about
it. ! suggested placing the words, "ln
trust TO +. ID. Moulton' at the top, that
the letter might be under my control, and
put them there. Nothing else was said
about the trust. took the paper to
Titon the same night, and read il to him,
or he took it from my hand and read it.
| cannot say whether he had possession
of it one hour that night; he hadn it two
hours. My recollection is that the paper
was not out Of my possession that night.
think put it in a bureau-drawer that
night, after | had got through with Til
ton. The next time distinctly remem.
bered seeing it, after December, 1870, was
after the publication of the Woodruff
story, in November, 1872. found it in
a tin box. 1t was never in the safe over
in New York. When saw this
paper, in 1872, | don't know that
Tilton then had copy of it.
cannot tell at what date knew he had
a copy of it. 1t was at the time of the
Bacon or the ''True Story" he read it to
me. He did not make a copy of it in my
presence, the night it was written. My
recollection is that he did not. | don't
recollect that he wrote it down in short.
hand, when read it. | don't remember
that ! ever showed it to him, after De-
cember, 1870. Very likely did. II he
asked me, would show il to him.
q. Then, up to the publication of the
Bacon letter, Titon had no other oppor.
tunity of making a copy, so far as you re-
memberi A. | dont't recollect.
Q. Do you know where he got the
copy he had "A. don't know, specific
ally.
Q. Did you ever give him copy! A.
No, sir.
Q. Did he ever take copy in your
presence! A. don't recollect that he
did.
Q. Did you ever give him an opportu
nifty Of making copy. A. ] don't re-
collect that did.
There was wrangle at this point be-
tween counsel, the object of the defense
being to get in remark that witness had
already stated that he probably handed
the paper to Tilton at some time.
At this point Gen. Tracy introduced
the punctuation" scene with great dra-
matte effect at first, but by the time he
had got through, plaintiffs counsel had
neutralized its effect considerably. The
object was to show that witness being a
man of education, the contrition letter,
which defense insists is badly punctuated,
written in large scrawl and few
words, covering four pages of letter
paper. was never dictated by Beecher,
but his words hastily taken down in the
gathering darkness.
q. You were educated at the New
York academy! A. was.
z. You compose very well, do you
not. A. (Laughing.) can't say that !
do; not very WE'LL
q. You understand the rules Of compo-
sitiOn and punctuation very we'll! A. Not
very well.
z. You have correspondent with literary
peoplei A. Yes, with a few.
q. And you understand how, after a
period, to begin the next sentence, wheth.
er with q small letter or capital! A.
Laughing.) ! do.
Mr.. Fullerton. IL counsel are asking
these questions for their own information
don't object. (Laughter.)
z. He dictated, sentence by sentence,
and you as deliberately wrote it! A. |
wrote as he dictated.
2. IL wasn't written hastily! A. 1t
was written rapidly. don't know what
you mean by hastily.
q. Was it written to catch words. A.
Ii was.
q. You wrote as from a man debating,
and not as from man talking, and whose
words you were trying to catch A.
From a man debating.
Q. (IIanding up the contrition letter.
Is that your usual handwriting A.
usually write with a steel pen; this APP
pears to have been written with a quill.
q. DO you remember whether il was
written with steel pen or quill A. |
do not.
Mr.. Sherman took the letter and said,
Nov | want to read this letter as it is
written, punctuation and all. 1t never
has been read as written"
Mr.. Fullerton. You don't read pune
tuations. You see il. Laughter.
Mr.. Sherman then read the letter, in
this style, amidst laughter from sympa.
thizers with the defense:
"BRooKLYN, Jan. l, ls7I.-[ln trust with Y
u. Moult0nl My DEAR FRIEND MOULTON:
ask through YOU Theodore Tiltons forgiveness
and humble myself before him as do my
God he would have been a better man in iny
circumstances than have been Making no
period until after the word "teen" can u b