American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1876-02-19
BEECRER T1LhS BACK.

noned by the Plymouth church
to substantiate the char
res he made against Mr.. Beecher,
and desiring to keep sacred the
names of those who had reposed
IN him, proposed to the
that he would choose
friend, Mr.. Beecher to do the same,
the two thus chosen to select a
third, and before the three be
would reveal all the facts in his
and that the arbitrator
should weigh all the testimony and
the result. The church
rejected this proposition,
and demanded that MIR. Bowen
make good his charges before them
at once. In reply, Bowen asked
for ten days tune to get ready his
evidence. THIS was announced to
tue Plymouth congregation. on Fri
day night Of last week, at their
prayer meeting. A discussion fol
lowed, which was closed by Mr..
Beecher, who said:
"Although 1 am as much inter-
ested in the matter in discussion as
anybody can be, am very far from
feeling in the spirited humor that
many of the brethren are in. A
con troversy between any two MEM
bers of church is sad thing. A
controversy between q member of a
church and the pastor is very sad
thing. 1 regard the relationship of
the pastor TO a church as not sec
ond to the relations of a mother to
her daughter or of a father to his
son and where. as i'll this case.
the intercourse began early and
continued without breaking for half
a score of years, and still continued
nominally far more than as many
years more, to have even a fracture,
to have a quarrel, is a sad thing. 1t
certainly is to me IN the nature of
q funeral service, and not in the
nature of an ordinary political har-
angue.
ssMr. Bowen was one of the earli-
est members of the church and one
of its founders. 1 do not forget that
it was his threshold I crossed when
/ FIRST came to Brooklyn; that at
his hands aud those of his now hap
py wife in heaven / received hospi-
talities which 1 shall not forget.
We took sweet counsel together,
aud to his individual zeal in that
early period of the church's history,
We are indebted for much of its
early prosperity; and 1 cannot
think of anything more sad than
that at this late day the man with
whom I have walked arm in arm,
whose house was as a brothers.
house to me, whose children in their
earlier days learned to love meal
most all of whom have grown up
almost literally on my knee-to find
him in such antagonisn to me that
one or the other of us must be de-
stroyed, is not thing for smiles, is
not a thing for cheering.
"Now, l do not propose to argue
this question tonight; it is not fiji
that / should do it. wish only to
say that if, for the last fifteen years
and more, Mr.. Bowen has been in
possession of such facts as he now
alleges in his letter, and never men
toned them to me nor communi
Gated them to an officer of this
church, nor in anywise brough,
them to the knowledge of the
church, then he deserves to be ex'
PEELED from the church for violation
of his covenant.
"IfI am what I am alleged to be
and have been what he alleges thai
have been, and he knew it ant
permitted it without a word o
warning to me or to the church, Ii,
has committed crime against this
church and against morality.
"Then, if it be not SO, and ths
allegation is leland it is lie
and before God I pronounce it a liz
applausel-then he is guilty of a
l won't sag more heinous crim'
than the other, but a yoke fellow
black from the pit.
81 pronounce the allegation h'
has made, absolutely false. Further
let me say that Mr.. Bowen, on being
demanded to state what was thu
evidence in bis possession, plead
(mimicking Bowen that he is pu
upon trial, and that he has not hat
time but he had time to write tina
letter, which charges me before thu
people of this continent with bein;
q criminal and sets me up as a mon
ster.
"But I have still another word t,
say, and that is as to the tribuna
which be proposes, on the condition
that he may hide in their presenc,
the names, and that then their wor'
shall be given out in adjudication
of. this matter. No secrecy shall
rest on this matter. Applause.
do not say that l would not, in
certain respect, go before any sucl
committee but there shall be IL
secret about it. If this matter i
not to be explored to the bottom, i
shall be because my will is set aside
1 do not propose that lie shall hid
himself, nor will permit anythin:
to be hidden about me- by having i
referred to three gentlemen, who
ever they are, with the understand
ing that they shall keep 1t secret an,
only let out what they think. VIVA
they think won't satisfy you, aid i
won't satisfy me; and since tn
.,ott.r hoe I,oon ,,ul,lisbad in fh