Knoxville weekly chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1875, 1875-02-10
TILTON- BEECHER.
Tiiton on the Witness Stand.
E.tr.ord,nar, Narrative of Scandal,

smells ike Slaughter-hOuse,' said an
old legal butcher to-day about noon,
1t was true. We all waited anXiously
at the hour of the opening of Court this
morning for Judge Nelson's decision
upon Tilton's admissibility as "a wit
ness in his own suit. Beecher was
there with his wife, though he preach
ed twice yesterday.
Tllton was there enid group of adj
herents. Mrs. Tilton was there with
three lady companions, two of them
well advanced in years. The jurors
and all the lawyers and reporters sat
in eager expectation for the decisive
voice of the Judge. The crowds out
side waited rs anxiously for it as any>
body. They all felt it would be
wEIGHTY AND SENSATIONAL. DAY
If Tilton were allowed to testify. At
the moment the clock indicated 1he
opening hour, the Judge broke the ST.
lence by announcing, First, that Til
ton is competent to testify in his own
behalf Second, that he is not compe-
tent to testify to any confidential COM
mIInication of his wife.
This was sort of compromise decis-
ion, and the smiling faces of counsel
for plaintiff and for defendant showed
that both sides considered it more satS
isfastory than they had expected.
There was a brief argument between
Evarts and Beach as TO the bearing of
the Judges decision, and Evarts took
an exception to the first part of it,
while Beach took one to the second.
Tilton at once ascended the witness
chair, took the oath and settled him
self down for
THE sICKENINu WORK OF THE DAY.
He looked quite as well as usual,
tall to the height of over six feet,
heavy to the weight Of nearly two
hundred pounds, with his familiar
light complexion and long, bushy
blonde hair. A short distance in front
sat his woeful-faced wife, with figure
80 light, petite and shrunken as to be
in marked contrast with his own. 1t
certainly was curious spectacle to see
this husband thus confront his wife as
her accuser under the circumstances,
and in the peculiar way in which the
thing happened to-day. All the half
dozen ladies in Court, all friends of
Mrs. Tilton, sat, like the rest of the
spectators, with their eyes fixed stead.
lily on him. Mrs. Tilton wore a slight
vail, looked straight at him from the
first to the last of his story, and the re-
porters say that her face was set in
sternness and anger. These sharp-sigbt-
ed reporters also say that Mr.. Beech
er's face was covered with wonder
ment and surprise, while Mrs. Beecher
looked ct him freezingly or sneeringly
especially at his bits of evidence re-
ferring to herself.
TILToN'S EVIDENCE
Consisted mainly of series of extend
ed narratives, several of them half an
hour long, in reply to questions, and
they were only terminated now and
then to give place to interruptory ar
guments between counsel about certain
items of evidence.
These narratives were, in "A great
measure, a recapitulation, with vara-
tons and Celebrations, of his several
newspaper statements, published last
summer, and some OF them went right
along the track of these statements in
regular continuity as regards incidents,
circumstances, and other details.
The testimony was as extraordinary
as any ever given in any court. Til.
ton spoke in measured, moderate, dis
tinct, and carefully selected language,
with clear, deep bass voice. His
manners, ways and expressions were
at times very Tiltonian. He was first
asked the ordinary questions about his
age, residence and profession, and
some of us were rather surprised to
learn that while he is about" thirty
nine" his wife is about forty-one"
When asked concerning his children,
he spoke of "our daughter" Tour
next daughter and "our son." and ut
this point there was close listening to
hear how he would speak of the fourth
living
VRsTs
TY
He once expressed doubt. But in this
case he also said " our youngest SON."
He was next questioned about tne
origin of his relations to the Independ,
cat, about his acquaintance with
Reecher and Moulton, and about the
property ESTIMATED by him at $50, 000)
which he possessed at the beginning
of 1871 the object of the last Inquiry
being to show that he was well off
when his troubles began four years
ago. He was then asked to state what
occurred at his first troublous inter-
view with Beecher, on December 80,
1870, but Mr., Evarts objected to his
telling what might be derived from
confidential communication with his
wife, and an Argument between the
counsel ensued.
Wnen III was over Triton began his
long narrative, which was exceeding
iy minute in all its details, and which,
admitting the brief arguments aud in
terruptions of counsel, lasted nearly
four hours continuously. AT the inter
view he told Beecher Bowen's stories
about his (Beecher's) numerous adul-
teries for twenty-five years, which wit
ness had previously mentioned to Mrs.
Tilton, on which she made confession
70 him OF her own guilt in written
paper addressed to Beecher, which is
now destroyed.
Here there was an argument about
Tilton's being permitted to recite from
memory his wife's so-called onfession,
and the Judge ordered this TO be omit
ted for the present.
He said that Mrs. TiltOn had come
home unexpectedly from the country
10 tell witness
THE SECRET BETWEEN BEECHER AND