Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1876-02-05
The Proprietor and Editor Of the New
York Independent at Last BOunces
the Plymouth Pastor, and
Proposes TO Tell All
He Knows.
The Silence Of Years Rudely Broken
The COunselOrs of Beecher have
Gone too Far, and Pushed
Friend to the Wall.
Brother Bowen Believes, from Evidence
Presented to Him, that Beecher
is Guilty Of "Adultery, Per-
jury and Hyp0crisy"-
Etc, Etc.

NEW YORK, February 4.-TO-nighU
Henry g. Bowen presented 8 letter to
the examining committee Of Plymouth
church in answer to the grievances of
Mr.. s. n. White, member OF said COM
mittee. BE commences by saying that
the church once unanimously ac-
quilted him Of slAnderiDg
their pastor. At that time
he was charged with talking too much,
now the charge is he is talking too little
His silence was based upon the trips rite
agreement to bury the past and keep
silent in the future. He relates the SUBJ
stance Of theinterviews with Mr.. White,
and says: felt at first, as l do now,
that Mr.. White, the examining COM
mittGe and Plymouth church could be
better employed in invest 3ting the
direct charges against the pastor made
in the plainest language; charges en-
bracing crimes Of adultery and perjury,
rather than in skirmishing about ia new
fields to see if q few more persons could
not be scared, or in some way drawn or
driven into the difficulty. In my more
than twenty-five years connection with
Plymouth church have heard many
A SAD STORY
from many a sad heart-some for lOss of
property, some for loss OF their dearest
earthly friends, and some for loss Of
cbaracter-a greater loss tbau,all. May
God forgive me if l have ever done
wrong in listening to one single case
thus presented, but for thus doing and
that only, assert that l have been un-
tremendously summoned to appear be-
fore this committees; and I here most
sOlemnly declare that there is no other
basis for Mr.. Whites grievances against
me. Whether he will have other griev-
ances against me after hearing me at
this time, remains to be seen. But let
me ask
A FEW QUESTIONS.
Who comes here 10 quOIe words OF SLAM
der which l have ever uttered against
the pastor? Who says that have ever
once, in any way, except by silence, in
jured him? Let me ask, has Henry
Ward Beecber any grievances against
me? II so, has he ever brought them be-
fore this committee? Others, as you
know, have in,plainest English, charged
Mr.. Beecher with both adultry and per-
jury. They have challenged an investi-
CATION in court, or in council, and hard
ly a whisper has been heard in reply.
Where was the valiant Mr.. 5. n. White
all this time? Where is he now? Dare
the gentleman, or any OF you,
summon these 6ceuseTs into
court of justics and there demand
the evidence on which these charges
of adultery and perjury against Mr..
Beecher was made? II he is absolutely
innocent, why do you not act as if-you
believed it, and thus put an end to this
horrible seandsl9 II be is pure man,
here is the straight rOad out of all diff
cuity. You have, unfortunately, in my
opinion, chosen a different course. Mr..
White says there is one too many in
Plymouth church, at one end or the
other. He does not state that at one end
of the church stands man openly
charged with
ADULTERY, PERJURY AND HYPOCRISY,
and at the other end man charged only
with the mere grievance OF silencs. He
does not propose to arraign and faith
fully try the one charged with the awful
crime OF adultery, but to drag before you
the man who by his silence has actually
led the people to believe he did know
something about Mr.. Beecber. Such
evidence of justice, impsrtislity, broth
eFly love and fair dealing l commend
to your respectful consideration. l was
not long ago told that it Was the secret
intention Of Plymouth church to destroy
me, is possible, and that l was in any
event to be driven from its communion.
l could not then believe this, but it now
appears that others had better informa-
tiOn than myself. For more than year
past it has been evident 10 me and to
others that this serious threat would
sooner or later be put into execution, but
how was this to be done? The following
tells
THE WHOLE STORY:
From that day to this 1 have been
wickedly and Indignantly asssiled in
my business affairs; all sorts of crimes
and misGemeanors have been charged
or limited at, and have been held up to
the world as a man totally unworthy Of
respect or public confidence. Every one
Of these charges or insinuatiOns / pro-
nOunce 10 be totally false; their authors
are slandereTs, and l hereby challenge
Plymouth church to appoint its own
committee to investigate, openly and
vigorously, my words and my deeds,
either in or out of church, from the day
OF my birth to the present hour. am
ready for the trial l do not propose
now to give in detail facts which have
come to my knowledge, or indecent dis
closures and confidential cOmmunica-
tions which have, from time to time,
been presented or communicated to me
in regard to
THE CHARACTER OF HENRY WARD
BEECHER,
to his dishOnoTable conduct in business
affairs, to his treacherOus treatment Of
friends, to his breaking OF written cove
nants, to his untruthful statements in
court, to his lodging all through the in
vestigatiOn into his conduct aud charac-
ter, to his stOlid indifference when un-
lust charges and malicious ISLANDERS have
been made against particular members
of his church, to his recent contradictory
utterances in regard to what he charac-
terized SIS a hodge-podge council, COM
posed Of wolves and foxes like Drs.
StOrrs and BuddingtOD, which council
at one time be said he had never OBJ
jected to, but in regard to which he did,
on another occasion, positively say,
al won't have anything to do with it,"
and finally, at his coarse abuse and
slanderous charges Of perjury, uttered
boldly and publicly in his own lecture
room against an honest christian woman
who had dared, as she alleged, to speak
the truth concerning him. With this
brief reference to matters which have
had an influence in forming my judg'
ment, 1 will now hasten to tell you
frankly what are my conclusions in re-
gard to the character Of
THE PASTOR OF PLYMOUTH CHURCH.
1 have known Mr.. Beecher quite inti-
mstely since the day IF his arrival IN
Brooklyn. have been acquainted with
him socially and privately, in church
and in family, in business matters and
in religious matters; have heard at
tentively, but with profound grief, what
has been said to = cOntidentially
against him; have felt my heart stirred
to it's depth for the dear friends who,
years before the present scandal was
published, sOrrOwfully begged my cOun-
sci as they assured me that their pastor
and mine had crsitily betrayed the sane
tily Of their homes; the very charge
long after presented to me by Tneo-
E-s-