The anti-monopolist. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1874-1878, 1875-03-25
Inject that excites her morbid feel

lnSCuLlOn lOT tue IAS0nO' AAA'6 AA~A W
centricities which I allude to, not to rep
rebate their author, whom disease may
largely exempt from censure, she at
tempted, about that time, to take the life
Of her husband, the Hon. n. B. Morse,
by clutching his throat and strangling
him with such powerful energy that her
grasp was loosened with difficulty by the
inmates of the house, and her fury
ouenched with chloroform. a circum-
stance speedily followed by legal sepa-
ration between her husband and herself.
In less degree she used violence towards
other persons connected with her by
blood or marriage, and had frequently
written letters to me threatening my life.
Her ingenuity of statement against her
relatives during the spasms of her insane
Mysteries is cunning and malicious in the
extreme. At the same time, in saying
this, bear testimony to the innate kind
illness and beautiful affection of her ma
ture. By those who know her well, her
peculiarities are understood, but to her
casual acquaintance they generally 1e'
main successfully hidden in the demeanor
of one of the most peaeeable and fascina-
ting Of persons.
The unhappiness which she has occa-
stoned to every member of my own fami-
" had increased. year by year, until, at
last, Mrs. Tilton and | had been compel
led to forbid her to enter our house. AS
illustrations of the mischief which Mrs.
Morse had wrought against us. she spoke
of Mrs. Tilton, two years ago, to our old
est daughter, Miss Florence Tilton (then
IL years old), in terms of elimination re-
voting to any pure girls mind. and most
terrible when spoken to such a girl against
her own mother, being nothing less than
the central accusation in the great scam
dial, which another mad woman after
wards published to the world. Mrs.
Morse once went to lawyer in Brooklyn,
and, with plausible air, consulted him
about divorce between my wife and me
"a fact which VIC learned only by acct
dent, not until it had spread its bats.
wings and gone flying abroad. She wrote
to sundry journalists anonymous letters
to prejudice me in their estimation, and
trace to her fertile brain the tale that |
once took my wife by the hair Of the
head and kicked her during illness. But
| fOrbear to narrate hun.
dred instances which come to
my mind of her misunderstanding propen-
sites. 1t is sufficient to say in reference
to my case with Mr.. Bowen and Mr..
Beecher, and to the case of each against
the other, that she made careful and
malicious use Of the few facts in her pos
session and of the many fancies which
these engendered in her diseased and un-
happy mind. Mrs. Morse, in plotting
her insane mischief, chose confederate
for brief time in Mrs. H. w. Beecher,
another lady Of abnormal type, whose
peculiarities, having less aggravation, are
also less pardonable than Mrs. Morse's.
For eleven years Mrs. Beecher and have
not been on speaking terms, nor have l
ever had so relentless an enemy. Strange
as it is. the cause of the hostility was an
act of kindness which | performed for
one of her children an act for which her
husband has never ceased to speak CRATE
fully, and which he commemorated at the
time by sending me beautiful gift in
bronze. She never spoke to me after
ward. To the readers of these manu-
script pages, which are chiefly for Brook
Ign use, she needs no description here.
In the fall of 1870, Mr.. Bowen urged
me to support in the Union Mr.. E. D.
Webster for Congress, a Republican NOM
nation, which many Of the best citizens
of that party had publicly repudiated.
against one meeting at the Academy
had made, Judge George G. Reynolds be-
ing the chief speaker. l declined to sup
port Mr.. Webster, though. as | knew
nothing against him personally. made
no war on his character. Mr.. Bowen re-
peated his plea in Webster's behalf. and
repeated my refusal. Mr.. Bowen then
said there was enc way in which the
Brooklyn Union could be made to sup
port Webster, and that was by dismiss
ing its editor answered: "Yes; but
that is the only way" This was the
first instance. in all my relations with
Mr.. Bowen, covering fifteen years, in
which had ever known him to attempt
to bend the integrity Of my mind. MIR
Webster was defeated, and he credited
it to this day. After tn is difficulty. Mr.
Bowen gave me to understand
that, as he owned two newspapers
he meant to edit at least
one Of them; accordingly he chose the
lions share. taking the Independent foI
himself and leaving the Union for me
He said that he could not reasonably
hope for more than ten remaining year.
of active life. and that if he was to wiz
any fame or position to bequeath to hi!
children, he must do it within that time
So. without q murmcr, took off my
crown and laid it at his feet and sale
Live the King!' We then made /
treaty, and two contracts were drawn NJ
between US, by which Mr.. Bowen was Il
be editor-in-chief Of the Independent
IS had been, and I its leading specia
contributor, ~ Mr.. Beccher had been il
the days Of the Star Papers-this ar
arrangement to last two years at 5000 ,
year. Furthermore, was to be also tn,
|editor-in- chief Of the Unioa, giving NJ
my lectures, ~ arrangement to last fiv,
years at 5000, together with 10 pei
cent. Of the net profits, which promises
to be 5000 nore. making, all told, MI
yearly income $4,000.
| Two days later, namely. Saturday, De
cember "a. Mr.. johnson mentioned to m,