, 1875-05-09

| LAST
Those who read the correspondence betwee
TETON and his wife during tho period eove1
ed by the years 1866, z, g, and 9, rs publish
ed in TIE TRIBUNE last September, can un
derstand the great change which has ovo1
taken these two people which has brokel
up and forever household where there wa
so much peace and happiness, andhas seVeres
two persons who, from that correspondents
were linked in tho strongest bonds Of con
fdence and love.
In 1870 came the revelation which, while
shattering the faith that had preceded it, dc
veloped the strength Of the love Of these
people even in its ruin For six months tht
secret Was kept, and the household to al
| the world was unchanged Then, maddene6
by what he understood was the maliciou:
effort to injure him in his business relations
Tn1oN sent, by BOWEN, tbs letter ordering
| BEEcHER to leave Plymouth Church. Then
| in hot succession followed the events which
have been the subject Of 30 much contro-
versy,-the correspondence, confessions,
| recantations, statements, and counter-state-
ments, from December 81, 1870, to July,
1874. During all this time Triton, except
in his dealings with BEEcHER through MouL-
TON, protected his wife's fair fame before
the world, going to the extent Of explicit de.
malls Of the more serious accusations, BE
continued to live with her, and to proclaim
his confidence in her moral purity. At Inst,
the wife for whom be had played such q
false part 30 many years abandoned bis
homo and went over to the adversary, and
denounced her husband
Then, abandoned By the woman for whose
protection he had been so long silent, THEo-
DoRE TnroN proclaimed his accusation
against BEEcHKE in the most formal and pub.
lie manner. Mrs TnroN became partisan
Of Mr. BEEcmR- She appeared before th4
She has attended this trial, taking her place
among his friends, and, as WAS disclosed by
one Of tha witnesses, has been supported by
money contributions Of his friends.
Hardly had she left her husband before her
humiliation began MI. BEEoHEn IN his
statement before thn Church Committee
spoke Of her having thrust her affections
upon him, and claimed that his grief in the
past had been caused BY his not having put
aside the affection she WIS seeking to laYish
upon him. In his evidence on the trial be
repeated this statement substantially; that
the woman had become IN love with him, had
pushed her affections upon him, and that the
only weakness he was conscious Of was that
he had not spurned her. His innocence Was
an-important, and to establish that the de-
tense adopted the theory that this unfor-
tunata woman had been for years forcing her
love ON REEcHEn, without any reciprocity on
his part, and that all that there was in the
case was traceab1e to her weakness and Ie,'
forgetfulness Of duty.
During this long suspense this poor wom-
IN, If she have the ordinary sensitivene IS Of
human nature, must have felt TINT, in aban-
doning husband because he reproached her,
to espouse the cause of man who pro-
claimed her moral guilt as evidence to sus-
tain his own innocence, she had hardly bet
tered her condition. She had left husband
who, believing she had been betrayed into
guilt, still bravod the worlds seorn for her
sake, and for the sake OF their children, to
take up the cause Of a man who, from first to
last, has accused her OF wantonly thrusting
her affections upon him against his will, thus
placing him in embarrassing positions, and
giving color to unfounded charges agninst his
character. She abandoned her husband.
children and home; while Mr. BHoHER has
treated her from first 10 last ~ sick1y, sen
timental fool pursuing him with her adeo-
ton and vainly tempting him into error.
In the progress Of the great trial, when her
husband and BKEcHER had both told their
veraions Of her conduct, weakness, and, per-
haps, crime, sho waited with patient, agonix-
ing suffering for the moment when she could
tell the Court and jury, and that world which
had 30 long been busy with her name, the
sad story Of her 1ife,-waited until she could
tell them what she knew, and knew better
than all othars, Of herself, and how she had
suffered, and what she had endured,
while used as football between the two
great Egotists- her husband and her pastor.
Day after dag she waited. Witness after
witness, including her own servants and her
brother, were put upon the stand, not to tes-
tfy to her innocence or her guilt, but to the
innocence or guilt Of Mr. BmmEA. She,
the greet central figure Of the whole case,
upon whose innocence on guilt all other
things depended, WAS entirely ignored
treated as outside and foreign to the case.
Men and vomen, and Mr.. BREonEB himself,
sWore to Mr. BEEoHxR's innocence, ignoring
The fact that, If the despissd little woman liv-
ing upon aims was guilty, no amount OF
swearing could aoquit the man TO whose de-
fenss unlimited money and unlimited friends
had been contributed. The attempt to acquit
Ar. BEEoHKa and lasvs the world to be-
ieve what It chess of Hrs, Tnross
guilt - ons of thosa anomalies which
~ rot nptaanahle. Th1t, howsvee. h1s
bsak IL 9&ot7. u ths 9atnsaa& II.