THE BEECHER-TILTON SCANDAL.

Thames Advertiser, Volume VII, Issue 1885, 3 November 1874, Page 3

THE BEECHER-TILTON SCANDAL.

The committee of Plymouth Church have exonerated the J.(ev. Mr Ward Beecher, but Mr Tilton is not satisfied, and has now moved the Law Courts in an action for heavy damages against tho reverend gentleman. We make the following extracts from his own statement :—

1. That on the 2nd of October, 1855, at Plymouth Church, Brooklyn, a marriage between Theodore Tilton and Elizabeth M. Hichards was performed by the Rev. Henry Ward Beecher, which marriage, thirteenyears afterwards, was dishonoured and violated by this clergyman through the criminal seduction of this wife and mother, as hereinafter set forth.

2. That for a period of'about fifteen years, extending both before and after this marriage, an intimate friendship existed between Theodore Tilton and tho Bev. Henry Ward Beecher..

3, That about nine years ago the Bev. Henry Ward Beecher begau, and thereafter eontiuued, a friendship with Mrs Elizabeth M. Tilton, for whose native deli, eacy and extreme'religious sensibility he often expressed to her husband a high admiration; visiting her from lime to time for years, until the year 1870, when, for reasons hereinafter stated, he ceased such visits; during which period, by many, tokens and attentions, he won the affectionate love of Mrs I ilton; whereby, after long moral resistance by her, and after repeated assaults by him upon her mind with overmastering arguments, accomplished the possession, of her person; maintaining with her' thenceforward, during the period hereinafter stated, the relation called criminal intercourse; this relation being rflgarded by her during that period as not criminal or morally wrong i —•such had been the power, of his argu« ' moats as a clergyman, to satisfy Uec

religious scruples agaiuat such violation of virtue and honour. .

4. That in the evening of October 10, 1868, or thereabouts, Mrs Klizabeth At. iilton held an interview with the Kev. Henry Ward Beecher at his residence, she being then in a tender state of mind, owing to the recent death and burial of a young child; and during this interview an act of criminal commerce took place between this pastor and this parishioner, which act was followed by a similar act of criminality between these same parties at Mr Tiltoh's residence, during a pastoral visit paid by Mr Beecher to her on the subsequent Saturday evening, followed also by other similar acts on various occasions from the autumn of 1868 to the spring of 1870, the places being the two residences aforesaid, aud occasionally other places to which her pastor would invito and accompanyher or at which.he would meet her by previous-appointrjient, these acts of wrong being on her part, from first to last, not wanton or consciously wicked, but. arising.through a blindjng.of her moral perceptions, occasioned by the powerful influence exerted on her mind at that time to this end by the Kev. Henry Ward Beecher as her trusted religion preceptor and guide. 5. That the pastoral visits made by the Kev. Henry Ward Beecher' to Mrs Tiltoft during the year 1868 became so .frequent as to excite commeut, being in marked contrast with his known habit t of making few calls on his parishioners. ' 6. That previous to the aforesaid criminal intimacy one of the reasons whioh Mrs Tilton alleged for her encouragement of such exceptional attentions from the Kev, Henry .Ward- Beecher was the fact that she had been much distressed with rumours against his moral purity, and wished to convince him that she could receive his kindness and 'yet resist his solicitations; and that she could' inspire in him by her purity and fidelity, an increased respect for the chaste dignity of womanhood.

7. That the first suspicion which . ; crossed the mind of Theodore Tilton that < the Rev. Henry Ward Beecher was abusing, or might abuse, the affection aud reverence which Mrs Tilton bore, towards her pastor, was an improper caress given by Mr Beecher to Mrs •(••■ Tilton while seated by her side on the floor of his library overlooking engrav-' ings. Mr Tilton, a few hours afterwards, asked of his wife an explanation of hor permission of such a liberty, whereat at first denied the fact, but then confessed"'' "' it, andsaid that she. had spoken chidinjjly to Mr Beecher concerning it. On another occasion Mr Tilton, after, leaving his house.in the early morning, returned to it in the forenoon, and, on going to his bedchamber, found the door locked, and when'oii knocking,, the door was opened by Mrs Tilton, Mr Beecher was seen within, apparently much confused and exhibiting a flushed face. Mrs Tilton ; t: : .| afterwards made a plausible explanation, ' r ' which, from the confidence reposed in her by her husband, was by him deemed . satisfactory. ■. 8. That in the spring of 1870, on Mr Tilton's return from a winter's absence, : he noticed in his wife such evidence of the absorption of her mind in Mr Beecher that in a short time an estrangement took place between her husband and herself. After an absence of several weeks she voluntarily returned to her home in Brooklyn. On the eveuing of July 3, 1870, when, and then and there, within a few hours after her arrival, and after exacting from her husband a solemn promise that he would do the Uev. Henry Ward Beecher no harm nor communicate to him what she was about to say, she made a circumstantial confessim to her husband of the criminal facts hereinbefore stated. She affirmed also that xMr Beeoher had assured her repeatedly that he loved her better than any other woman, and she felt, justified before God in her intimacy with him, save the necessary deceit which accompanied it, and at which she frequently suffered in her mind. 9. Thatafter theabove-namedconfession by Mrs Elizabeth M. Tilton she returned to the country to await such action by her husband as he might see fit to take, • whereupon, after many considerations, the chief of which was that she had not voluntarily gone astray, but had been artfully mislead, through religious rever- . ' euce for the Bev. Henry Ward Beecher as her spiritual guide, together also from a desire to protect the family from open shame, Mr Tiitou, condoned the wrong, and he addressed to his wife such letters of affection, tenderness, and respect as he felt would restore her wounded spirit, and . which did partially produce that result. 10. That in December, 1870, differences arose between Theodore Tilton and Henry C. Bowcn, which were augmented by the Bev. Henry Ward Beecher and Mrs Beecher; in consequence whereof and at the wisli of Mrs Elizabeth M. Tilton, expressed in writing in a paper put into the hands of Mr Francis D. Moulton, with a view to procure a harmonious interview between Mr Tilton and Mr Beecher, such an interview was arranged and carried' out by Mr Moulton at his then residence on Clinton-street; Mr Beecher and Mr Tilton meeting and speaking then and there for the first time since Mrs Tilton's confession of six months before. The : paper in Mr Moulton's hands was*a statement by Mrs Tilton of the substance of the confession whion she had before made and of her wish and prayer for reconciliation and peace between her pastor and husband. This paper furnished to Mr Beecher the first knowledge which he had as yet received that Mrs Tilton had made such a confession. At this interview between Mr Beecher and. Mr Tilton permission was sought by Mr Beecher to consult with .Mrs Tilton on that same evening. This permission being granted, Mr Beecher departed from Mr Moulton's house, and in about half an hour returned I thither expressing his remorse and shame, . and declaring that his life and work seemed brought to a sudden end. Later in the same evening Mr T'lton, on returning to his house, found his wife weeping and in great distress, saying that what she hud meant for peace had only given pain and anguish; that Mr Beecher had just called on her, declaring that she had slain him, and that he would probably be tried before a council of ministers unless she would give him a written paper for his protection. Whereupon she said he dictated to her, and she copied in her own handwriting, upon a suitable paper for him to use to clear himself before a council of Ministers. .