Bozeman avant courier. [volume] (Bozeman, Mont.) 1872-1882, 1877-11-22

The story Of the Rev. j. d. Wickham.
!, d.. is simply fa,se.
The next competent false witness is t
Rev. Charles ilawley. d. d., who pr
ceedS to state that the story OF the Rev.
ID. Wickam. ID. D.. is corroboratcd by oil
er citizens Of New Rochelle. The nam
OF these ancient residents are withhel
According to these unknown witnesses. Il
account given by the deceased elder W;
entirely correct. But as the particulars
sir. Pane'S conduct "werc too loatlisOn
to be described in print" we are left e
tiiply in the dark as to what he really di'
While ut New Rochelle Mr.. Paine live
with Mr.. Purdy-with Mr.. Dean-wit
Captain Pelton. and with Mr.. Staple.
is worthy of note that all of these gcntl,
men give tie lie direct to the statemcn!
Of "ole!er residents" and ancient citizen
'no,>en of by the Rev. Charles IIaulcy. /
/ -, aht |; sc him With his ..laa;,.som
particulars" existing only in his own ninl
- e irNt gentleman you bring upon tn
. stand is W. III. L.add. who quotes from tn
henoirs OF Stephen Grellet. This gentle
'ia.n also has the misfortune to be dead
\, t,coriin@ to his account. Mr. Paine mad
his rccantation to a servant girl OF his by
the name of Mary Roscoe. To this girl
according to the account. Mr. Paine utter
ed the wish that all who read his book hat
burned it. | believe there is mistake il
the name of this girl. Her name was
probably Mary IIinsdale. as it was one,
claimed that Paine made the same remark
to her. but this point shall notice here
after. These are your witnesses. and The
only ones you bring forward. to supper,
your charge that Thomas Paine lived q
druken and beas!ly lite and died a drunken
cowarlly and beastly death. All these
c;llHmnies are found in a life of Paine by a
Mr.. Cheethain. tie convicted libeler al
ready referred to. Mr.. Cheetham was an
enemy of the man whose life he pretended
TO write.
In order to show you the estimation in
Which VI. Chcetham WAS held by Mr..
Paine. l VIII give yoll Il copy of letter
that throws light upon this point:
OCTOBER 2Sth. 1907.
Mr.. CliEETnAM: Unless you make a
public apology for the abuse and fllsehOod
in Your paper of Tuesday. October 2.th.
me, l will prosecute you for
lying.
THOMAS PAINE.
In another letter. speaking of the same
nan. Mr.. Paine says:
IF an unprincipled bully cannot be re-
orned. he can be punished.' ..CheetIam
.as been so long in the habit of giving
;llse information. that truth to him is Ike
. foccign language"
NJ. Chcetham wrote Tie life of Paine TO
,ratify his malice and to support religion.
lie was prosecuted for libcl-was convict
d and fired.
Yet the life of Paine written by this man
5 referred to by the Christian world as the
highest authority. ,
As to the personal habits Of Mr. Paine
ve have the testimony Of William Carver.
With whom he lived; of Mr.. Jarvis. the
rtist. with whom he lived: of Mr.. Staple.
With whom he lived; of Mr.. Pursly. who
vas a tenant of Paine's; of Mr. Burger.
With whom he was intimate: of Thomas
lixon and Captain Daniel Pelton. both ot
whom lie knew well: Of AmasSa Wood
worth. who was with him when he died:
f John Fellows. who boarded at the same
ouse; of James Wilburn. with whom he
oardetl: of B. F. lIaSLin. a lawyer. who
ias well acquainted with him and called
pom him during his last illness; of Walter
lorton, a friend; of Clio Hickman. who
ad known him for many years; Of WiIet
nd Elias Hicks. Quakcrs. who knew him
and well; of Judge Iertell. II.
iargary. Eli!u Palmer. and many others.
III these testified to tie fact that Mr..
'aine was a temperate man. In those
"ys nearly everybody used spirituous
quors. Paine was not an exception; but |
c did not drink to excess. Mr.. LOvett.
tho kept the City Hotel. where Paine |
topped in note to Caleb Bingham. de-
Jared that Paine drank less than any
oarGer he had.
Against all this evidence you produce
ne story of Grant Thorburn-the story of
.cv. J. ID. Wickham that an elder in the
'urci, told him that Paine was drunk
ri. corroborated by the Rev. Ciias. Haw-
:. and an extract from Lossin"'s istory
} the same effect. The evidence is over
.ilelningly against you. Will you have
2e flirncss to admit it? Your witnesses |
&c merely the repeaters of the f,lsehooAs
f james Cheetham, the convicted libeler.
After all. drinking is not as bad as lying.
n honest drunkard is better than i cal
mniator of the dead "A remnant of old
Mortality. drunk, bloated and half asleep"
better than perfectly sober defender of
un,an slavery.
TO become drunk is virtue compared |
ith stealing a babe from the breast of its !
lother.
Drunkenness is one of the beattitudes.
,mpared with editing religious paper
eyoted to tie defense of slavery upon the
round that it is a divine institution.
Do you really think that Paine was a
runken beast when he wrote ..COmmon
ense''-a pamphlet that aroused three
ilhons of people. as people were never
'oused by pamphlet before? Was he
-unhen beast when he wrote the '.Crisis:''
'as it TO drunken beast that the follow
g letter was addressed:
Rocky HILL. Sept. 10, 1888.
| have learned since have been at this
ace, that you are at Borlenlown.-
neither for the sake of retirement or
OnOny know not. Be it for either or
'th, or whatever it may, if you will come
this place and partake with me l shall
exceedingly happy to see you at it.
our presence may remind Congress of
'ur past services to this country; and if it
in my power to impress them, command
Y best eXertiOns with freedom. as they ,