The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-10-31
HENRY WARD BBBCHBR,s LATEST INFAMY

Il will not shock your modesty by abiding
to the atrocious stories fabricated about Mr..
Cleveland In his youth he may have gone
beyond the lines of propriety. NO doubt ne
did. If every man in New York State to-
night who had broken the seventh command
ment voted for Cleveland, he would be
elected by 100000 majority
The husband and father who reads this in
famous libel will very naturally conclude that
it is the utterance of some ibertine and bum
mer anxious to inculpate others in order to
mitigate his own offending against the laws of
chastity and confluence. How shall the shame
slanderous words are the utterances of an as
sumed Christian minister, a man prominent
before the people, one who has been a leader
in religious thought and action9 There are
in the State of New York 200, 900 voters.
If Henry Ward Beecher-for it is he who
makes the above infamous assertion-be right
then there are no less than 700, 600 men guilty
of adultery in that State alone! Think Of it,
husbands and fathers; 200 900 more hbertines
than men of honor! What does this awful
charge imply, but that like number of
women are devoid of virtue and of womanly
honori Is it possible that in this day of civil
ization and home life there are millions of
wives and mothers who have been debaucheds
What do the men and women think of it7 Is
the charge truea Or, is Henry Ward Beecher
liar and slandererP Out of the heart of
every loving husband whose wife has borne
him children, or whose infinite love for him
hot and indignant protest against this fell
low-he does not deserve the honor Of
being called a man-who pirates about
confessed adultery and bastardy, at
the age of forty, as youthful indiscretion''
and s.going beyond the lines of propriety."
His SANDER is atrociously false, as he himself
well knows. 1t has not been so many years
but that it is still remembered, when this
same preacher shocked to the center the world
of virtue and morality by his own fearful sin.
At that time Mr. Beecher, like Cleveland,
confessed his guilt, but unlike Cleveland pro-
fessed profoundest repentance, and 'humbled
himself as he would before his God" and a
charitable world forgave the awful wrong he
had committed. How much more must So
ciety endure from this mani What need was
there, but as a measure of sef-defense, for
Beecher, with smutty hands, to rush to the
support of another confessed betrayer of
woman2 If so be that Beeeher is right, and
that 100000 of the men of New York
are adulterers, then may we be ex-
cused in feeling that civilization is a
failure and Christianity burlesque. The al
legation is too monstrous too horrible to con-
template, and the utterer of such a sentiment
deserves social ostracism; his presence is an in
suit to every pure man and virtuous woman,
every lovely home circle in Christendom
This warfare on the sanctity of home and
the purity of woman is a new feature in
American politics. and one that ought to for
ever damn the party that has encouraged it.
That it is purposely waged, there remains no
doubt. Even Mr. Hendricks himself has re-
marked that, if the story concerning Mr..
Cleveland were proven true, it would win him
votes! Think of tia mans perfdy to wom-
an badge of responsibility, the best guar
anty of popularity! We do not believe such a
monstrous impossibility Nor will
the American people fail to re-
sent this wanton insult never
put upon any other people in the world Has
the virtue Of American women come to be