Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-11-03
A GREAT AUTHORIZES.
An Interesting Account Of the Life
and Literary Triumphs Of
MRS. HARRIET BEECHER STOWE,
Some Remarkable Extracts From Her
autobiography.
4 REFERExCE TO THE BEECHER TRlAE
A RETEREHCE TO TIE BEECHEE THAI


WRITTEN ToR THE pIsRAzcH.J
One BY one the great personalities n'adS
great BY the work they wrought for the pre-
servation Of our Union, are passing away.
Grant has gone, Beecher Is dead and it was
not many months ago that the funeral dirgs
was chanted over the bier Of Sheridan.
No figure among the few Of those great
ones still remaining to Us stands out more
prominently and sharply against the hori-
zon of popular affection and vensFstion than
that Of Mrs. Stowe. The author Of an epic
of love and wrath, than which no other
book. with the exception Of the Bible. has
circulated more widely; the writer Of 30
other volumes which have bat eemented
more closely the bulWarks Of her fsme; 3
loving, nmple-minded, natural woman; the
place filed By Mrs. Stowe among the grand
characters Of this century Is unique.
It was about two ago weeks that, upon ny
bicycle, glided over the cracking leaves
through Hartford streets 10 call upon Mrs,
Stowe, with whom have had an intimass
acquaintance for years. II was q lovely day,
and as turned into Forest street, near the
corner of which stands Mrs. Stoves modest
residence, and in moment
more diSmounted By her gateway,
the front door opened and there, standing
upon the threshold, was Mrs. Stowe herself
shall never forget the picture. A slight
figure draped in black, sharply outlined
against the shadow Of the hallway beyond,
the snow white hair brushed straight back
from q broad, low forehead, features,
Beecherian in their strong, fine outlines,
creased into innumerable minute wrinkles,
blush gray eyes dimmed BY age, thus does
the author Of Uncle Toms Cabin" look IN
her 18th year.
It is not my intention in the limited space
at my command to speak further Of my visit.
I may say, however, that enjoyed il much
more than former ones because had spent
the evening before in reading the advance
proofs OF Mrs. Stoves autobiography Ills
from these advance proofs that have been
permitted to take the extracts, none Of which
have ever been printed before, which appear
in the following article.
A CHILD EssAx1sT.
The thing which most Interested me II
the beginning was composition given en-
tire IN the first chapter, which shows Mrs.
Stoves marvellous preoOcit7 a. . child
of12.
The title is the remarkable one Of, rCan
the Immortality Of the Soul be Proved By
the Light Of Nature 2''
The following extracts speak for them
selves:
It has Justly been concluded By fhs phllos0.
pliers Of every age: 'The proper study of man
both physical and mental, have been subieoJ
of the most critical examination. In the course
Of these researches many have been at loss TO
account for the change which takes place in the
I.-.-a-~ nfa nrer rar
attributed 70 the fight Of its tenant, and b.
others to its final annihilation-
The questions, "What becomes Of the soul
nibilsted 81 f E .whas s its destiny srtsr dssts E
are those which, from the interest that We al
feel IN them, VIII probably sngros universal
attention.
IN pursuing these inquiries Il v1l Be- necoS.
sary TO dIvesf ourselves OF an that knoH.sdla
which We have Obtained from TIE nkht uhich-r
revelation has she'd over them, aud place our.
selves In the same position - the philosophers
Of past ages when considering ne sans sub
The first argument which has been adrancsd
to prove the immortality OF the soul b drawn
from the nature Of mind itself. Il has lssy tie
supporters Of this theory no composition a.
parts. and therefore, as there are no partIolel.
is not susceptible Of divisibility and cannot Be
acted upon By decay, and thera1oro 4 Lt UIu
NOT decay It Will exist forever
And here Il b said that beng of su1h m
finite wisdom and beneTolencs a5 that Of which
the Creator Is possessed would not have formed
man with such VAST capacities and boundIsr1
desires. and would have given him no 1ppo-
tunity FOR exercising them.
In order 20 establish the validity Of this aFEu.
ment, IL Is necessary to prove By the liEht %
nature that the Creator Il beneYolsnf which.
being impractdcable. g Of ITSELF snmnieuf -
render the argument invalid.
But the argument proceeds upon the g1uDcs
sition that TO destroy the soul would Be unwI1o.
Now this is arraigning the HAll-wi1er beluTe
mistakes 10 bis government Can Wo IooE
into the council Of the -Unsearchablen and SEQ
what means are made 10 answer their end8f 4
The great desire Of the soul Tor Immortality,
its secret, innate horror Of annlhilafion, has
been brought TO prove its immortality But DO
we always md this horror or this de8lrof u n
not much more evident that the great majority
of mankind have no such dread at aIIf I1u0
that there IL q strong feeling Of horror sxcit1d
by the idea Of perishing from the earth and
being forgotten, Of losing all these honor5 and
all that fame aWaittd them. Many feel this secret
horror when they look down upon
THE VALE OF FUTURITx
and reflect that though now the idols Of fna
the common portion OF mankind-onliVlorI But
this dread does not arise from any idea of their
destiny beyond the tomb. and even we're 1hIl
true Il would AFFORD no proof that the mind
would exist forever, merely from it, strong a.
sires. For Il might with a8 much correctness
be argued that the body Win exist forever ps-
this principle nothing which we strongly desire
would ever be withheld from us. and no aTu
that We greatly dread VIII ever come upon a.
Again, il has been said that the constant pro.
Zression Of the powers Of the mind a15ff8
another proof Of ffz immortality.
In answer 70 tins il may Be said that the 1ouI
9 not always progressing IN her powers 4
not rather . subject OF general remark that
;hese brilliant talents which IN youth expand
n manhood become stationary, and IN ord ago
nan descends to the tomb scarce wreck az
hat once powerful mind remalnA
Some minds there are who e the time az
JARED and Il the arEumsnt Be valid f6sss ~
he only cases where Immortality u conferred.
Again, lt q urged that the inequality % ~
Yards and puni.hmens n this world demand
mother IN which virtue may Be rewarded and
nee punished. This argnmenk n he 1I1s,
lace, takes for its foundation tha1
y the light q nature The distino.
y discovered. BY some this d Absolutely d.
relieved, and By AL considered extr6me|F
doubtful And. secondly, Il puts the Greater
ctions Of HIs crsaturoa No such ohllFltlol
xists, and thereforo the argument cannot -
Aid. And this supposes he Creeco1 . -
aturs be proved. and as the whole srzlmant
ests upon this foundation q certainly canno1
This argumsnt aIso directly imDsachss ~
hiss that, forasmuoh e Ho un1 no1 aba %
manage His governments In this world, he
1ust have another IN which % rcofIfy t1o MS
axes and ovorslEht1 Of thia and what 1n idea
rould this give us o. our all-wI8s CEsatori
From ali these arguments. which. hoWoI11
lausibls at drst sight are found . Be futIIa
ray be argued the necessity q aEoTe|atIon.
Vifnout Il the destiny 0f the noblost az tie
loFks Of God would have been loft IN obgoufII1.
lever till the blessed light Of the Gospel
aWned on the borders Of the pit, and TIE hnl-
Ids Of the Gross proclaimed APoaco on s1rEn
nd good win to men" was ft that oeulIdrr11
nd misled man was enabled 70 trace hil o1Ir1l
Iai origin and glorious destiny.
This remarkable pieos Of literary eompo-
ltion vas read q Z school exhib,aon hv
Ers. Stowe when in her twelfth year. and
be original Of Il e stu % the psi1esllon q