Year: 1878

The Tilton-Beecher scandaI-The Pre-


tended ConkIing Interview-A History


Of the World Repsrf.


NEW YORK, April o. 1873.
The admirers of scandal and bounce have
had abundant regalement this week. To the
amazement of nearly everybody and to the in-
efable disgust of all decent people, Mrs. Til
toms mania for romsncing has broken out
again in most unaccountable way and we are
threatened with another torrent of vulgar tat
tie about matter Of which all the world has
heard great deal too much already. The only
moral to be deduced from this fresh chapter Of
gossip is the obvious one, that the sole witness
upon whose testimony the most eminent clergy
man of his generation was forced to defense
of bis reputation is utterly without credibility
or consistency of stateme She shows her
self equally ready TO sign confessions or re-
fractions, to accuse or to vindcate. 1t simply
depends upon the mood she is in or the in
fluences by which she is surrounded. 1t is
charitable to suppose that weakness, of mind
has as much to do with these bewildering va
garies as depravity Of heart. 1t is hardly rea-
sonable to conclude that sane woman would
acknowledge herself perjarer, an offence
which exposes her to the penalties of criminal
law, to say nothing of the strangeness of the
spectacle of her making public proclsma-
tion of her own shame. The whole thing is
unaccountable on any other hypothesis than
that there has been from the beginning de-
ranged mental condition which relieves this
extraordinary person from any moral respons-
bility for her actions. II it were otherwise it
would be difficult to conceive of q punishment
severe enough to make atonement for the mis-
parable wrong to individuals, families and So
ciety at large, and no good to anybody on earth.
She has set an example OF recklessness in bear
ing false witness that would II she
were believed to be of sound mind, destroy
our faith in the reliability Of human evidence,
even under the solemn obligations of an oath.
The plea of lunacy in such a case may very
properly be interposed. The nature Of the
| original accusation furnishes ground for t and
the innumerable contradictory averments


which have followed, help to sustain Ii.


| 1t is horrible thing, however, that the honor
OF a clergyman, whose three score years of life
have been marked by the constant practice of
the highest virtues that adorn human nature,
man 80 generous so noble, so sympathetic,s so
full Of that kindness Of heart which flows out
in all manner of good deeds-ons who has en-
deared himself not only to the greatest parish
| in America, but to vast multitudes who have
felt his magnetism as II was. transmitted to
them from numerous platforms that have re-
| sounded with his eloquence-and still more from
personal association with him--should be i'm
peached on on the sole authority of rhapso-
dist who swears first one way and then another
precisely as the paroxysm happens to seize
her. am glad to notice signs of public impa-
tience at the possible renewal of this subject,
and am in hopes it may be suffered to die out
as 1t ought to, alike because it has been ex.
hausted and is nauseating.


We have had also this week another sort of
gossip, not so vulgar, and extremely short-lived
but which made things lively for twenty-four
hours. An ingenious newspaper reporter sue
ceeded in palming off upon the proprietor Of
that exceedingly sprightly and enterprising
Democratic daily, the World. rather clever
literary forgery, purporting 20 be an "Inter-
view with Senator Conkling" This brochure
was in the Market for some time before pur-
chaser could be found for it. 1t was offered to
one newspaper to my knowledge for $3.50 and
declined. 1t bore internal evidence of being q
fabrication in the very first line. 1t was dated
at Utica, place in which the Senator has only
been once since December, and then he was
not there long enough to have been interviewed
even if he had possessed sufficient patience to
undergo that infliction.


There was no great difficulty in tracing the
origin of the article. Last fall, Lewis Lau-
renee, gentleman of large wealth and an ar
dent Republican, being dissatisfied with the
course of the Utica Herald, which, though
nominaly a Republican sheet, was contin-
ually apologizing for and finding fault with
the party, decided on establishing daily paper
there, which should reflect the sentiments Of
people who adhered to the old organization
faithfully and zeaously-who were not ashamed
but thoroughly proud of its record and their
fidelity to it-who did not consider moral
indigestion and dyspepsia the highest evil
dences OF exalted political purity, aud who be-
lieved, as everybody believes now, who is not
too Ignorant to comprehend or too prejudiced
to accept the truth Of history, that General
Grants administration was equal in efficiency
and integrity to any that ever controlled the
affairs of the Republic.


Animated by this purpose Mr.. Laurence
equipped an establishment and started the
Utica Republican. He engaged as a member
OF his editorial corps the very man who subse-
quently manufactured the Conkling interview.
For some reason or other the engagement lasted
but short time. However at the outset Of it,
the new man was treated with the considera-
ton due to his position. 1t happened In this
wise that he met Mr.. Coukling socially. No
doubt he gathered up great many scraps of
conversation which subsequently, after he had
lost his situation, he recalled to memory, en-
bellished extensively through the aid of vivid
imagination, spicsd in such a way as to contrib
ute to them apiquant flavor, and dished them up
in the taking form in which they appeared In
the World of April 18Th. 1t isn't likely he
got much pay for his work. His asking price
was $3.50 5ut he probably sold for great deal
less than that. He sold himself pretty badly
provided he has any aspirations in the line Of
his profession. Counterfeting is dangerous
business. even when it is not applied to making
fac-similes of bank notes. To man of let
ters the penalty of detection in 1t is the i'm
PooeiohAty VI sctbluS trusted any more. 90
this little adventure will not be likely to turn
out good speculation to the contriver of 1t.
1t certainly was not worth paying for. The
unfortunate purchaser was obliged to devote
columns of space to defence Of the publica-
tion, not to take any account Of the strain up
on his reasoning faculties involved in the delib-
crate effort to impress his readers with the idea
that he thought the document genuine. A
philosoph cal friend of mine who reads a great


many false statements In newspapers, always
answers every suggestion of making correc-
tion with the matter-of-fact remark that can
editor cannot afford to acknowledge himself
beaten, so If he has once said thing, he will
stick to it, no matter how clearly you prove he
was mistaken" 1 presume the World will
never tire of ayowing its conviction that the
fabulous " interview actually took place,
no matter how clearly 1t is demonstrated to
have been geographically impossible as well as
essentially improbable.


The evening papers of tie sane day snapped