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+The Project Gutenberg eBook, Three Years in Europe, by William Wells
+Brown, et al
+
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+
+
+
+Title: Three Years in Europe
+       Places I Have Seen and People I Have Met
+
+
+Author: William Wells Brown
+
+Release Date: May 15, 2005  [eBook #15830]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+
+***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THREE YEARS IN EUROPE***
+
+
+E-text prepared by Suzanne Shell, Michael Punch, and the Project Gutenberg
+Online Distributed Proofreading Team from page images generously made
+available by the Bibliothèque nationale de France (http://gallica.bnf.fr)
+
+
+
+Note: Images of the original pages are available through the
+      Bibliothèque nationale de France. See
+      http://visualiseur.bnf.fr/Visualiseur?Destination=Gallica&O=NUMM-103524
+
+
+
+
+
+THREE YEARS IN EUROPE;
+
+Or, Places I Have Seen and People I Have Met
+
+by
+
+W. WELLS BROWN
+A Fugitive Slave.
+
+With
+
+A MEMOIR OF THE AUTHOR
+
+by
+
+WILLIAM FARMER, Esq.
+
+London:
+Charles Gilpin, 5, Bishopsgate Street, Without.
+Edinburgh: Oliver and Boyd.
+
+1852
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration: W. Wells Brown.]
+
+
+
+CONTENTS.
+
+
+MEMOIR OF WILLIAM WELLS BROWN,                           _Page_ ix-xxix
+
+AUTHOR'S PREFACE,                                            xxxi-xxxii
+
+LETTER I.
+
+Departure from Boston--the Passengers--Halifax--the Passage--
+First Sight of Land--Liverpool,                                     1-9
+
+LETTER II.
+
+Trip to Ireland--Dublin--Her Majesty's Visit--Illumination of the
+City--the Birth-Place of Thomas Moore--a Reception,                9-21
+
+LETTER III.
+
+Departure from Ireland--London--Trip to Paris--Paris--The Peace
+Congress: first day--Church of the Madeleine--Column Vendome--
+the French,                                                       21-38
+
+LETTER IV.
+
+Versailles--The Palace--Second Session of the Congress--Mr.
+Cobden--Henry Vincent--M. Girardin--Abbe Duguerry--Victor Hugo:
+his Speech,                                                       38-49
+
+LETTER V.
+
+M. de Tocqueville's Grand Soiree--Madame de Tocqueville--Visit of
+the Peace Delegates to Versailles--The Breakfast--Speechmaking--
+The Trianons--Waterworks--St. Cloud--The Fete,                    50-59
+
+LETTER VI.
+
+The Tuileries--Place de la Concorde--The Egyptian Obelisk--Palais
+Royal--Residence of Robespierre--A Visit to the Room in which
+Charlotte Corday killed Marat--Church de Notre Dame--Palais de
+Justice--Hotel des Invalids--National Assembly--The Elysee,       59-73
+
+LETTER VII.
+
+The Chateau at Versailles--Private Apartments of Marie
+Antoinette--The Secret Door--Paintings of Raphael and David--
+Arc de Triomphe--Beranger the Poet,                               73-82
+
+LETTER VIII.
+
+Departure from Paris--Boulogne--Folkstone--London--Geo. Thompson,
+Esq., M.P.--Hartwell House--Dr. Lee--Cottage of the
+Peasant--Windsor Castle--Residence of Wm. Penn--England's First
+Welcome--Heath Lodge--The Bank of England,                       83-104
+
+LETTER IX.
+
+The British Museum--A Portrait--Night Reading--A Dark Day--A
+Fugitive Slave on the Streets of London--A Friend in the time
+of need,                                                        104-116
+
+LETTER X.
+
+The Whittington Club--Louis Blanc--Street Amusements--Tower of
+London--Westminster Abbey--National Gallery--Dante--Sir Joshua
+Reynolds,                                                       117-134
+
+LETTER XI.
+
+York-Minster--The Great Organ--Newcastle-on-Tyne--The Labouring
+Classes--The American Slave--Sheffield--James Montgomery,       134-145
+
+LETTER XII.
+
+Kirkstall Abbey--Mary the Maid of the Inn--Newstead Abbey:
+Residence of Lord Byron--Parish Church of Hucknall--Burial Place
+of Lord Byron--Bristol: "Cook's Folly"--Chepstow Castle and
+Abbey--Tintern Abbey--Redcliffe Church,                         145-162
+
+LETTER XIII.
+
+Edinburgh--The Royal Institute--Scott's Monument--John Knox's
+Pulpit--Temperance Meeting--Glasgow--Great Meeting in the City
+Hall,                                                           163-176
+
+LETTER XIV.
+
+Stirling--Dundee--Dr. Dick--Geo. Gilfillan--Dr. Dick at home,   177-184
+
+LETTER XV.
+
+Melrose Abbey--Abbotsford--Dryburgh Abbey--The Grave of Sir
+Walter Scott--Hawick--Gretna Green--Visit to the Lakes,         185-196
+
+LETTER XVI.
+
+Miss Martineau--"The Knoll"--"Ridal Mount"--"The Dove's
+Nest"--Grave of William Wordsworth, Esq.--The English Peasant,  196-207
+
+LETTER XVII.
+
+A Day in the Crystal Palace,                                    207-219
+
+LETTER XVIII.
+
+The London Peace Congress--Meeting of Fugitive Slaves--
+Temperance Demonstration--The Great Exhibition: Last Visit,     219-226
+
+LETTER XIX.
+
+Oxford--Martyrs' Monument--Cost of the Burning of the Martyrs--
+The Colleges--Dr. Pusey--Energy, the Secret of Success,         227-235
+
+LETTER XX.
+
+Fugitive Slaves in England,                                     236-250
+
+LETTER XXI.
+
+A Chapter on American Slavery,                                  250-273
+
+LETTER XXII.
+
+A Narrative of American Slavery,                                273-305
+
+LETTER XXIII.
+
+Aberdeen--Passage by Steamer--Edinburgh--Visit to the
+College--William and Ellen Craft,                               305-312
+
+
+
+
+MEMOIR OF WILLIAM WELLS BROWN.
+
+
+A narrative of the life of the author of the present work has been most
+extensively circulated in England and America. The present memoir will,
+therefore, simply comprise a brief sketch of the most interesting
+portion of Mr. Brown's history while in America, together with a short
+account of his subsequent cisatlantic career. The publication of his
+adventures as a slave, and as a fugitive from slavery in his native
+land, has been most valuable in sustaining a sound anti-slavery spirit
+in Great Britain. His honourable reception in Europe may be equally
+serviceable in America, as another added to the many practical protests
+previously entered from this side of the Atlantic, against the absolute
+bondage of three millions and a quarter of the human race, and the
+semi-slavery involved in the social and political proscription of
+600,000 free coloured people in that country.
+
+William Wells Brown was born at Lexington, in the state of Kentucky, as
+nearly as he can tell in the autumn of 1814. In the Southern States of
+America, the pedigree and age of a horse or a dog are carefully
+preserved, but no record is kept of the birth of a slave. All that Mr.
+Brown knows upon the subject is traditionally, that he was born "about
+corn-cutting time" of that year. His mother was a slave named Elizabeth,
+the property of Dr. Young, a physician. His father was George Higgins, a
+relative of his master.
+
+The name given to our author at his birth, was "William"--no second or
+surname being permitted to a slave. While William was an infant, Dr.
+Young removed to Missouri, where, in addition to his profession as a
+physician, he carried on the--to European notions--incongruous
+avocations of miller, merchant, and farmer. Here William was employed as
+a house servant, while his mother was engaged as a field hand. One of
+his first bitter experiences of the cruelties of slavery, was his
+witnessing the infliction of ten lashes upon the bare back of his
+mother, for being a few minutes behind her time at the field--a
+punishment inflicted with one of those peculiar whips in the
+construction of which, so as to produce the greatest amount of torture,
+those whom Lord Carlisle has designated "the chivalry of the South" find
+scope for their ingenuity.
+
+Dr. Young subsequently removed to a farm near St. Louis, in the same
+State. Having been elected a Member of the Legislature, he devolved the
+management of his farm upon an overseer, having, what to his unhappy
+victims must have been the ironical name of "Friend Haskall." The mother
+and child were now separated. The boy was levied to a Virginian named
+Freeland, who bore the military title of Major, and carried on the
+plebeian business of a publican. This man was of an extremely brutal
+disposition, and treated his slaves with most refined cruelty. His
+favourite punishment, which he facetiously called "Virginian play," was
+to flog his slaves severely, and then expose their lacerated flesh to
+the smoke of tobacco stems, causing the most exquisite agony. William
+complained to his owner of the treatment of Freeland, but, as in almost
+all similar instances, the appeal was in vain. At length he was induced
+to attempt an escape, not from that love of liberty which subsequently
+became with him an unconquerable passion, but simply to avoid the
+cruelty to which he was habitually subjected. He took refuge in the
+woods, but was hunted and "traced" by the blood-hounds of a Major
+O'Fallon, another of "the chivalry of the South," whose gallant
+occupation was that of keeping an establishment for the hire of
+ferocious dogs with which to hunt fugitive slaves. The young slave
+received a severe application of "Virginia play" for his attempt to
+escape. Happily the military publican soon afterwards failed in
+business, and William found a better master and a more congenial
+employment with Captain Cilvers, on board a steam-boat plying between
+St. Louis and Galena. At the close of the sailing season he was levied
+to an hotel-keeper, a native of a free state, but withal of a class
+which exist north as well as south--a most inveterate negro hater. At
+this period of William's history, a circumstance occurred, which,
+although a common incident in the lives of slaves, is one of the keenest
+trials they have to endure--the breaking up of his family circle. Her
+master wanted money, and he therefore sold Elizabeth and six of her
+children to seven different purchasers. The family relationship is
+almost the only solace of slavery. While the mother, brothers, and
+sisters are permitted to meet together in the negro hut after the hour
+of labour, the slaves are comparatively content with their oppressed
+condition; but deprive them of this, the only privilege which they as
+human beings are possessed of, and nothing is left but the animal part
+of their nature--the living soul is extinguished within them. With them
+there is nothing to love--everything to hate. They feel themselves
+degraded to the condition not only of mere animals, but of the most
+ill-used animals in the creation.
+
+Not needing the services of his young relative, Dr. Young hired him to
+the proprietor of the _St. Louis Times_, the best master William ever
+had in slavery. Here he gained the scanty amount of education he
+acquired at the South. This kind treatment by his editorial master
+appears to have engendered in the heart of William a consciousness of
+his own manhood, and led him into the commission of an offence similar
+to that perpetrated by Frederick Douglass, under similar
+circumstances--the assertion of the right of self-defence. He gallantly
+defended himself against the attacks of several boys older and bigger
+than himself, but in so doing was guilty of the unpardonable sin of
+lifting his hand against white lads; and the father of one of them,
+therefore, deemed it consistent with his manhood to lay in wait for the
+young slave, and beat him over the head with a heavy cane till the
+blood gushed from his nose and ears. From the effects of that treatment
+the poor lad was confined to his bed for five weeks, at the end of which
+time he found that, to his personal sufferings, were superadded the
+calamity of the loss of the best master he ever had in slavery.
+
+His next employment was that of waiter on board a steam-boat plying on
+the Mississippi. Here his occupation again was pleasant, and his
+treatment good; but the freedom of action enjoyed by the passengers in
+travelling whithersoever they pleased, contrasted strongly in his mind
+with his own deprivation of will as a slave. The natural result of this
+comparison was an intense desire for freedom--a feeling which was never
+afterwards eradicated from his breast. This love of liberty was,
+however, so strongly counteracted by affection for his mother and
+sisters, that although urgently entreated by one of the latter to take
+advantage of his present favourable opportunity for escape, he would not
+bring himself to do so at the expense of a separation for life from his
+beloved relatives.
+
+His period of living on board the steamer having expired, he was again
+remitted to field labour, under a burning sun. From that labour, from
+which he suffered severely, he was soon removed to the lighter and more
+agreeable occupation of house-waiter to his master. About this time Dr.
+Young, in the conventional phraseology of the locality, "got religion."
+The fruit of his alleged spiritual gain, was the loss of many material
+comforts to the slaves. Destitute of the resources of education, they
+were in the habit of employing their otherwise unoccupied minds on the
+Sunday in fishing and other harmless pursuits; these were now all put an
+end to. The Sabbath became a season of dread to William: he was required
+to drive the family to and from the church, a distance of four miles
+either way; and while they attended to the salvation of their souls
+within the building, he was compelled to attend to the horses without
+it, standing by them during divine service under a burning sun, or
+drizzling rain. Although William did not get the religion of his master,
+he acquired a family passion which appears to have been strongly
+intermixed with the devotional exercises of the household of Dr.
+Young--a love of sweet julep. In the evening, the slaves were required
+to attend family worship. Before commencing the service, it was the
+custom to hand a pitcher of the favourite beverage to every member of
+the family, not excepting the nephew, a child of between four and five
+years old. William was in the habit of watching his opportunity during
+the prayer and helping himself from the pitcher, but one day letting it
+fall, his propensity for this intoxicating drink was discovered, and he
+was severely punished for its indulgence.
+
+In 1830, being then about sixteen years of age, William was hired to a
+slave-dealer named Walker. This change of employment led the youth away
+south and frustrated, for a time, his plans for escape. His experience
+while in this capacity furnishes some interesting, though painful,
+details of the legalized traffic in human beings carried on in the
+United States. The desperation to which the slaves are driven at their
+forced separation from husband, wife, children, and kindred, he found to
+be a frequent cause of suicide. Slave-dealers he discovered were as
+great adepts at deception in the sale of their commodity as the most
+knowing down-easter, or tricky horse dealer. William's occupation on
+board the steamer, as they steamed south, was to prepare the stock for
+the market, by shaving off whiskers and blacking the grey hairs with a
+colouring composition.
+
+At the expiration of the period of his hiring with Walker, William
+returned to his master rejoiced to have escaped an employment so
+repugnant to his feelings. But this joy was not of long duration. One of
+his sisters who, although sold to another master had been living in the
+same city with himself and mother, was again sold to be sent away south,
+never in all probability to meet her sorrowing relatives. Dr. Young
+also, wanting money, intimated to his young kinsman that he was about to
+sell him. This intimation determined William, in conjunction with his
+mother, to attempt their escape. For ten nights they travelled
+northwards, hiding themselves in the woods by day. The mother and son at
+length deemed themselves safe from re-capture, and, although weary and
+foot-sore, were laying down sanguine plans for the acquisition of a farm
+in Canada, the purchase of the freedom of the six other members of the
+family still in slavery, and rejoicing in the anticipated happiness of
+their free home in Canada. At that moment three men made up to and
+seized them, bound the son and led him, with his desponding mother,
+back to slavery. Elizabeth was sold and sent away south, while her son
+became the property of a merchant tailor named Willi. Mr. Brown's
+description of the final interview between himself and his mother, is
+one of the most touching portions of his narrative. The mother, after
+expressing her conviction of the speedy escape from slavery by the hand
+of death, enjoined her child to persevere in his endeavours to gain his
+freedom by flight. Her blessing was interrupted by the kick and curse
+bestowed by her dehumanized master upon her beloved son.
+
+After having been hired for a short time to the captain of the
+steam-boat _Otto_, William was finally sold to Captain Enoch Price for
+650 dollars. That the quickness and intelligence of William rendered him
+very valuable as a slave, is favoured by the evidence of Enoch Price
+himself, who states that he was offered 2000 dollars for Sanford (as he
+was called), in New Orleans. William was strongly urged by his new
+mistress to marry. To facilitate this object, she even went so far as to
+purchase a girl for whom she fancied he had an affection. He himself,
+however, had secretly resolved never to enter into such a connexion
+while in slavery, knowing that marriage, in the true and honourable
+sense of the term, could not exist among slaves. Notwithstanding the
+multitude of petty offences for which a slave is severely punished, it
+is singular that one crime--bigamy--is visited upon a white with
+severity, while no slave has ever yet been tried for it. In fact, the
+man is allowed to form connections with as many women, and the women
+with as many men, as they please.
+
+At St. Louis, William was employed as coachman to Mr. Price; but when
+that gentleman subsequently took his family up the river to Cincinnati,
+Sanford acted as appointed steward. While lying off this city, the
+long-looked-for opportunity of escape presented itself; and on the 1st
+of January, 1834--he being then almost twenty years of age--succeeded in
+getting from the steamer to the wharf, and thence to the woods, where he
+lay concealed until the shades of night had set in, when he again
+commenced his journey northwards. While with Dr. Young, a nephew of that
+gentleman, whose christian name was William, came into the family: the
+slave was, therefore, denuded of the name of William, and thenceforth
+called Sanford. This deprivation of his original name he had ever
+regarded as an indignity, and having now gained his freedom he resumed
+his original name; and as there was no one by whom he could be addressed
+by it, he exultingly enjoyed the first-fruits of his freedom by calling
+himself aloud by his old name "William!" After passing through a variety
+of painful vicissitudes, on the eighth day he found himself destitute of
+pecuniary means, and unable, from severe illness, to pursue his journey.
+In that condition he was discovered by a venerable member of the Society
+of Friends, who placed him in a covered waggon and took him to his own
+house. There he remained about fifteen days, and by the kind treatment
+of his host and hostess, who were what in America are called
+"Thompsonians," he was restored to health, and supplied with the means
+of pursuing his journey. The name of this, his first kind benefactor,
+was "Wells Brown." As William had risen from the degradation of a slave
+to the dignity of a man, it was expedient that he should follow the
+customs of other men, and adopt a second name. His venerable friend,
+therefore, bestowed upon him his own name, which, prefixed by his former
+designation, made him "William Wells Brown," a name that will live in
+history, while those of the men who claimed him as property would, were
+it not for his deeds, have been unknown beyond the town in which they
+lived. In nine days from the time he left Wells Brown's house, he
+arrived at Cleveland, in the State of Ohio, where he found he could
+remain comparatively safe from the pursuit of the man-stealer. Having
+obtained employment as a waiter, he remained in that city until the
+following spring, when he procured an engagement on board a steam-boat
+plying on Lake Erie. In that situation he was enabled, during seven
+months, to assist no less than sixty-nine slaves to escape to Canada.
+While a slave he had regarded the whites as the natural enemies of his
+race. It was, therefore, with no small pleasure that he discovered the
+existence of the salt of America, in the despised Abolitionists of the
+Northern States. He read with assiduity the writings of Benjamin Lundy,
+William Lloyd Garrison, and others; and after his own twenty years'
+experience of slavery, it is not surprising that he should have
+enthusiastically embraced the principles of "total and immediate
+emancipation," and "no union with slaveholders."
+
+In proportion as his mind expanded under the more favourable
+circumstances in which he was placed, he became anxious, not merely for
+the redemption of his race from personal slavery, but for the moral
+elevation of those among them who were free. Finding that habits of
+intoxication were too prevalent amongst his coloured brethren, he, in
+conjunction with others, commenced a temperance reformation in their
+body. Such was the success of their efforts that in three years, in the
+city of Buffalo alone, a society of upwards of 500 members was raised
+out of a coloured population of 700. Of that society Mr. Brown was
+thrice elected President.
+
+The intellectual powers of our author, coupled with his intimate
+acquaintance with the workings of the slave system, recommended him to
+the Abolitionists as a man eminently qualified to arouse the attention
+of the people of the Northern States to the great national sin of
+America. In 1843 he was engaged as a lecturer by the Western New-York
+Anti-Slavery Society. From 1844 to 1847 he laboured in the anti-slavery
+cause in connection with the American Anti-Slavery Society, and from
+that period up to the time of his departure for Europe, in 1849, he was
+an agent of the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society. The records of those
+societies furnish abundant evidence of the success of his labours. From
+the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society he early received the following
+testimony:--
+
+"Since Mr. Brown became an agent of the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery
+Society, he has lectured in very many of the towns of this
+Commonwealth, and won for himself general respect and approbation. He
+combines true self-respect with true humility, and rare judiciousness
+with great moral courage. Himself a fugitive slave, he can
+experimentally describe the situation of those in bonds as bound with
+them; and he powerfully illustrates the diabolism of that system which
+keeps in chains and darkness a host of minds, which, if free and
+enlightened, would shine among men like stars in a firmament."
+
+Another member of that Society speaks thus of him:--"I need not attempt
+any description of the ability and efficiency which characterized his
+speaking throughout the meetings. To you who know him so well, it is
+enough to say that his lectures were worthy of himself. He has left an
+impression on the minds of the people, that few could have done. Cold,
+indeed, must be the heart that could resist the appeals of so noble a
+specimen of humanity, in behalf of a crushed and despised race."
+
+Notwithstanding the celebrity Mr. Brown had acquired in the north, as a
+man of genius and talent, and the general respect his high character had
+gained him, the slave spirit of America denied him the rights of a
+citizen. By the constitution of the United States, he was every moment
+liable to be seized and sent back to slavery. He was in daily peril of a
+gradual legalized murder, under a system one of whose established
+economical principles is, that it is more profitable to work up a slave
+on a plantation in a short time, by excessive labour and cheap food,
+than to obtain a lengthened remuneration by moderate work and humane
+treatment. His only protection from such a fate was the anomaly of the
+ascendancy of the public opinion over the law of the country. So
+uncertain, however, was that tenure of liberty, that even before the
+passage of the Fugitive Slave Law, it was deemed expedient to secure the
+services of Frederick Douglass to the anti-slavery cause by the purchase
+of his freedom. The same course might have been taken to secure the
+labours of Mr. Brown, had he not entertained an unconquerable repugnance
+to its adoption. On the 10th of January, 1848, Enoch Price wrote to Mr.
+Edmund Quincy offering to sell Mr. Brown to himself or friends for 325
+dollars. To this communication the fugitive returned the following pithy
+and noble reply:--
+
+"I cannot accept of Mr. Price's offer to become a purchaser of my body
+and soul. God made me as free as he did Enoch Price, and Mr. Price shall
+never receive a dollar from me or my friends with my consent."
+
+There were, however, other reasons besides his personal safety which led
+to Mr. Brown's visit to Europe. It was thought desirable always to have
+in England some talented man of colour who should be a living lie to the
+doctrine of the inferiority of the African race: and it was moreover
+felt that none could so powerfully advocate the cause of "those in
+bonds" as one who had actually been "bound with them." This had been
+proved in the extraordinary effect produced in Great Britain by
+Frederick Douglass in 1845 and 1846. The American Committee in
+connection with the Peace Congress were also desirous of sending to
+Europe coloured representatives of their Society, and Mr. Brown was
+selected for that purpose, and duly accredited by them to the Paris
+Congress.
+
+On the 18th of July, 1849, a large meeting of the coloured citizens of
+Boston was held in Washington Hall to bid him farewell. At that meeting
+the following resolutions were unanimously adopted:--
+
+"_Resolved_,--That we bid our brother, William Wells Brown, God speed in
+      his mission to Europe, and commend him to the hospitality and
+      encouragement of all true friends of humanity.
+
+"_Resolved_,--That we forward by him our renewed protest against the
+      American Colonization Society; and invoke for him a candid hearing
+      before the British public, in reply to the efforts put forth there
+      by the Rev. Mr. Miller, or any other agent of said Society."
+
+Two days afterwards he sailed for Europe, encountering on his voyage his
+last experience of American prejudice against colour.
+
+On the 28th of August he landed at Liverpool, a time and place memorable
+in his life as the first upon which he could truly call himself a free
+man upon God's earth. In the history of nations, as of individuals,
+there is often singular retributive mercy as well as retributive
+justice. In the seventeenth century the victims of monarchical tyranny
+in Great Britain found social and political freedom when they set foot
+upon Plymouth Rock in New England: in the nineteenth century the victims
+of the oppressions of the American Republic find freedom and social
+equality upon the shores of monarchical England. Liverpool, which
+seventy years back was so steeped in the guilt of negro slavery that
+Paine expressed his surprise that God did not sweep it from the face of
+the earth, is now to the hunted negro the Plymouth Rock of Old England.
+From Liverpool he proceeded to Dublin where he was warmly received by
+Mr. Haughton, Mr. Webb, and other friends of the slave, and publicly
+welcomed at a large meeting presided over by the first named gentleman.
+
+The reception of Mr. Brown at the Peace Congress in Paris was most
+flattering. In a company, comprising a large portion of the _elite_ of
+Europe, he admirably maintained his reputation as a public speaker. His
+brief address, upon that "war spirit of America which holds in bondage
+three million of his brethren," produced a profound sensation. At its
+conclusion the speaker was warmly greeted by Victor Hugo, the Abbe
+Duguerry, Emile de Girardin, the Pastor Coquerel, Richard Cobden, and
+every man of note in the Assembly. At the soiree given by M. De
+Tocqueville, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, and the other fetes given
+to the Members of the Congress, Mr. Brown was received with marked
+attention.
+
+Having finished his Peace mission in France, he commenced an
+Anti-slavery tour in England and Scotland. With that independence of
+feeling which those who are acquainted with him know to be his chief
+characteristic, he rejected the idea of anything like eleemosynary
+support. He determined to maintain himself and family by his own
+exertions--by his literary labours, and the honourable profession of a
+public lecturer. His first metropolitan reception in England was at a
+large, influential, and enthusiastic meeting in the Music Hall, Stone
+Street. The members of the Whittington Club--an institution numbering
+nearly 2000 members, among whom are Lords Brougham, Dudley Coutts
+Stuart, and Beaumont; Charles Dickens, Douglass Jerrold, Martin
+Thackeray, Charles Lushington, M.P., Monckton Milnes, M.P., and several
+other of the most distinguished legislators and literary men and women
+in this country--elected Mr. Brown an honorary member of the Club, as a
+mark of respect to his character; and, as the following extract from the
+Secretary, Mr. Stundwicke, will show, as a protest against the
+distinctions made between man and man on account of colour in
+America:--"I have much pleasure in conveying to you the best thanks of
+the managing committee of this institution for the excellent lecture you
+gave here last evening on the subject of 'Slavery in America,' and also
+in presenting you in their names with an honorary membership of the
+Club. It is hoped that you will often avail yourself of its privileges
+by coming amongst us. You will then see, by the cordial welcome of the
+members, that they protest against the odious distinctions made between
+man and man, and the abominable traffic of which you have been the
+victim."
+
+For the last three years Mr. Brown has been engaged in visiting and
+holding meetings in nearly all the large towns in the kingdom upon the
+question of American Slavery, Temperance, and other subjects. Perhaps no
+coloured individual, not excepting that extraordinary man, Frederick
+Douglass, has done more good in disseminating anti-slavery principles in
+England, Scotland, and Ireland.
+
+In the spring of 1851, two most interesting fugitives, William and Ellen
+Craft, arrived in England. They had made their escape from the South,
+the wife disguised in male attire, and the husband in the capacity of
+her slave. William Craft was doing a thriving business in Boston, but in
+1851 was driven with his wife from that city by the operation of the
+Fugitive Slave Law. For several months they travelled in company with
+Mr. Brown in this country, deepening the disgust created by Mr. Brown's
+eloquent denunciation of slavery by their simple but touching narrative.
+At length they were enabled to gratify their thirst for education by
+gaining admission to Lady Byron's school at Oakham, Surrey. In the month
+of May, Mr. Brown and Mr. and Mrs. Craft were taken by a party of
+anti-slavery friends to the Great Exhibition. The honourable manner in
+which they were received by distinguished persons to whom their history
+was known, and the freedom with which they perambulated the American
+department, was a salutary rebuke to the numerous Americans present, in
+regard to the great sin of their country--slavery; and its great
+folly--prejudice of colour. A curious circumstance occurred during the
+Exhibition. Among the hosts of American visitors to this country was Mr.
+Brown's late master, Enoch Price, who made diligent inquiry after his
+lost piece of property--not, of course, with any view to its
+reclamation--but, to the mutual regret of both parties, without success.
+It is gratifying to state that the master spoke highly of, and expressed
+a wish for the future prosperity of, his fugitive slave; a fact which
+tends to prove that prejudice of colour is to a very great extent a
+thing of locality and association. Had Mr. Price, however, left behind
+him letters of manumission for Mr. Brown, enabling him, if he chose, to
+return to his native land, he would have given a more practical proof of
+respect, and of the sincerity of his desire for the welfare of Mr.
+Brown.
+
+It would extend these pages far beyond their proposed length were
+anything like a detailed account of Mr. Brown's anti-slavery labours in
+this country to be attempted. Suffice it to say that they have
+everywhere been attended with benefit and approbation. At Bolton an
+admirable address from the ladies was presented to him, and at other
+places he has received most honourable testimonials.
+
+Since Mr. Brown left America, the condition of the fugitive slaves in
+his own country has, through the operation of the Fugitive Slave Law,
+been rendered so perilous as to preclude the possibility of return
+without the almost certain loss of liberty. His expatriation has,
+however, been a gain to the cause of humanity in this country, where an
+intelligent representative of the oppressed coloured Americans is
+constantly needed, not only to describe, in language of fervid
+eloquence, the wrongs inflicted upon his race in the United States, but
+to prevent their bonds being strengthened in this country by holding
+fellowship with slave-holding and slave-abetting ministers from America.
+In his lectures he has clearly demonstrated the fact, that the sole
+support of the slavery of the United States is its churches. This
+knowledge of the standing of American ministers in reference to slavery
+has, in the case of Dr. Dyer, and in many other instances, been most
+serviceable, preventing their reception into communion with British
+churches. Last year Mr. Brown succeeded in getting over to this country
+his daughters, two interesting girls twelve and sixteen years of age
+respectively, who are now receiving an education which will qualify them
+hereafter to become teachers in their turn--a description of education
+which would have been denied them in their native land. In 1834 Mr.
+Brown married a free coloured woman, who died in January of the present
+year.
+
+The condition of escaped slaves has engaged much of his attention while
+in this country. He found that in England no anti-slavery organization
+existed whose object was to aid fugitive slaves in obtaining an
+honourable subsistence in the land of their exile. In most cases they
+are thrown upon the support of a few warm-hearted anti-slavery advocates
+in this country, pre-eminent among whom stands Mr. Brown's earliest
+friend, Mr. George Thompson, M.P., whose house is rarely free from one
+or more of those who have acquired the designation of his "American
+constituents." This want has recently been attempted to be supplied,
+partly through Mr. Brown's exertions, and partly by the establishment of
+the Anglo-American Anti-Slavery Association.
+
+On the 1st of August, 1851, a meeting of the most novel character was
+held at the Hall of Commerce, London, being a soiree given by fugitive
+slaves in this country to Mr. George Thompson, on his return from his
+American mission on behalf of their race. That meeting was most ably
+presided over by Mr. Brown, and the speeches made upon the occasion by
+fugitive slaves were of the most interesting and creditable description.
+Although a residence in Canada is infinitely preferable to slavery in
+America, yet the climate of that country is uncongenial to the
+constitutions of the fugitive slaves, and their lack of education is an
+almost insuperable barrier to their social progress. The latter evil Mr.
+Brown attempted to remedy by the establishment of a Manual Labour School
+in Canada.
+
+A public meeting, attended by between 3000 and 4000 persons, was
+convened by Mr. Brown, on the 6th of January, 1851, in the City Hall,
+Glasgow, presided over by Mr. Hastie, one of the representatives of that
+city, at which meeting a resolution was unanimously passed approving of
+Mr. Brown's scheme, which scheme, however, never received that amount of
+support which would have enabled him to bring it into practice; and the
+plan at present only remains as an evidence of its author's ingenuity
+and desire for the elevation of his depressed race. Mr. Brown
+subsequently made, through the columns of the _Times_ newspaper, a
+proposition for the emigration of American fugitive slaves, under fair
+and honourable terms, to the West Indies, where there is a great lack of
+that tillage labour which they are so capable of undertaking. This
+proposition has hitherto met with no better fate than its predecessor.
+
+Mr. Brown's literary abilities may be partly judged of from the
+following pages. The amount of knowledge and education he has acquired
+under circumstances of no ordinary difficulty, is a striking proof of
+what can be done by combined genius and industry. His proficiency as a
+linguist, without the aid of a master, is considerable. His present work
+is a valuable addition to the stock of English literature. The honour
+which has hitherto been paid, and which, so long as he resides upon
+British soil, will no doubt continue to be paid to his character and
+talents, must have its influence in abating the senseless prejudice of
+colour in America, and hastening the time when the object of his
+mission, the abolition of the slavery of his native country, shall be
+accomplished, and that young Republic renouncing with penitence its
+national sin, shall take its proper place amongst the most free,
+civilized, and Christian nations of the earth.
+
+                              W.F.
+
+
+
+
+PREFACE.
+
+
+While I feel conscious that most of the contents of these Letters will
+be interesting chiefly to American readers, yet I may indulge the hope,
+that the fact of their being the first production of a Fugitive Slave,
+as a history of travels, may carry with them novelty enough to secure
+for them, to some extent, the attention of the reading public of Great
+Britain. Most of the letters were written for the private perusal of a
+few personal friends in America; some were contributed to "Frederick
+Douglass's paper," a journal published in the United States. In a
+printed circular sent some weeks since to some of my friends, asking
+subscriptions to this volume, I stated the reasons for its publication:
+these need not be repeated here. To those who so promptly and kindly
+responded to that appeal, I tender my most sincere thanks. It is with no
+little diffidence that I lay these letters before the public; for I am
+not blind to the fact, that they must contain many errors; and to those
+who shall find fault with them on that account, it may not be too much
+for me to ask them kindly to remember, that the author was a slave in
+one of the Southern States of America, until he had attained the age of
+twenty years; and that the education he has acquired, was by his own
+exertions, he never having had a day's schooling in his life.
+
+                              W. WELLS BROWN.
+
+  22, CECIL STREET, STRAND,
+     LONDON.
+
+
+
+
+
+LETTER I.
+
+_Departure from Boston--the Passengers--Halifax--the Passage--First
+Sight of Land--Liverpool._
+
+
+                    LIVERPOOL, _July 28_.
+
+On the 18th July, 1849, I took passage in the steam-ship _Canada_,
+Captain Judkins, bound for Liverpool. The day was a warm one; so much
+so, that many persons on board, as well as several on shore, stood with
+their umbrellas up, so intense was the heat of the sun. The ringing of
+the ship's bell was a signal for us to shake hands with our friends,
+which we did, and then stepped on the deck of the noble craft. The
+_Canada_ quitted her moorings at half-past twelve, and we were soon in
+motion. As we were passing out of Boston Bay, I took my stand on the
+quarter-deck, to take a last farewell (at least for a time), of my
+native land. A visit to the old world, up to that time had seemed but a
+dream. As I looked back upon the receding land, recollections of the
+past rushed through my mind in quick succession. From the treatment that
+I had received from the Americans as a victim of slavery, and the
+knowledge that I was at that time liable to be seized and again reduced
+to whips and chains, I had supposed that I would leave the country
+without any regret; but in this I was mistaken, for when I saw the last
+thread of communication cut off between me and the land, and the dim
+shores dying away in the distance, I almost regretted that I was not on
+shore.
+
+An anticipated trip to a foreign country appears pleasant when talking
+about it, especially when surrounded by friends whom we love; but when
+we have left them all behind, it does not seem so pleasant. Whatever may
+be the fault of the government under which we live, and no matter how
+oppressive her laws may appear, yet we leave our native land (if such
+it be) with feelings akin to sorrow. With the steamer's powerful engine
+at work, and with a fair wind, we were speedily on the bosom of the
+Atlantic, which was as calm and as smooth as our own Hudson in its
+calmest aspect. We had on board above one hundred passengers, forty of
+whom were the "Viennese children"--a troop of dancers. The passengers
+represented several different nations, English, French, Spaniards,
+Africans, and Americans. One man who had the longest pair of mustaches
+that mortal man was ever doomed to wear, especially attracted my
+attention. He appeared to belong to no country in particular, but was
+yet the busiest man on board. After viewing for some time the many
+strange faces around me, I descended to the cabin to look after my
+luggage, which had been put hurriedly on board. I hope that all who take
+a trip of so great a distance may be as fortunate as I was, in being
+supplied with books to read on the voyage. My friends had furnished me
+with literature, from "Macaulay's History of England" to "Jane Eyre," so
+that I did not want for books to occupy my time.
+
+A pleasant passage of about thirty hours, brought us to Halifax, at six
+o'clock in the evening. In company with my friend the President of the
+Oberlin Institute, I took a stroll through the town; and from what
+little I saw of the people in the streets, I am sure that the taking of
+the Temperance pledge would do them no injury. Our stay at Halifax was
+short. Having taken in a few sacks of coals, the mails, and a limited
+number of passengers, we were again out, and soon at sea. After a
+pleasant run of seven days more, and as I was lying in my bed, I heard
+the cry of "Land a-head." Although our passage had been unprecedentedly
+short, yet I need not inform you that this news was hailed with joy by
+all on board. For my own part, I was soon on deck. Away in the distance,
+and on our larboard quarter, were the grey hills of Ireland. Yes! we
+were in sight of the land of Emmett and O'Connell. While I rejoiced with
+the other passengers at the sight of land, and the near approach to the
+end of the voyage, I felt low spirited, because it reminded me of the
+great distance I was from home. But the experience of above twenty
+years' travelling, had prepared me to undergo what most persons must lay
+their account with, in visiting a strange country. This was the last day
+but one that we were to be on board; and as if moved by the sight of
+land, all seemed to be gathering their different things
+together--brushing up their old clothes and putting on their new ones,
+as if this would bring them any sooner to the end of their journey.
+
+The last night on board was the most pleasant, apparently, that we had
+experienced; probably, because it was the last. The moon was in her
+meridian splendour, pouring her broad light over the calm sea; while
+near to us, on our starboard side, was a ship with her snow-white sails
+spread aloft, and stealing through the water like a thing of life. What
+can present a more picturesque view, than two vessels at sea on a
+moonlight night, and within a few rods of each other? With a gentle
+breeze, and the powerful engine at work, we seemed to be flying to the
+embrace of our British neighbours.
+
+The next morning I was up before the sun, and found that we were within
+a few miles of Liverpool. The taking of a pilot on board at eleven
+o'clock, warned us to prepare to quit our ocean palace and seek other
+quarters. At a little past three o'clock, the ship cast anchor, and we
+were all tumbled, bag and baggage, into a small steamer, and in a few
+moments were at the door of the Custom-House. The passage had only been
+nine days and twenty-two hours, the quickest on record at that time, yet
+it was long enough. I waited nearly three hours before my name was
+called, and when it was, I unlocked my trunks and handed them over to
+one of the officers, whose dirty hands made no improvement on the work
+of the laundress. First one article was taken out, and then another,
+till an _Iron Collar_ that had been worn by a female slave on the banks
+of the Mississippi, was hauled out, and this democratic instrument of
+torture became the centre of attraction; so much so, that instead of
+going on with the examination, all hands stopped to look at the "Negro
+Collar."
+
+Several of my countrymen who were standing by, were not a little
+displeased at answers which I gave to questions on the subject of
+Slavery; but they held their peace. The interest created by the
+appearance of the Iron Collar, closed the examination of my luggage. As
+if afraid that they would find something more hideous, they put the
+Custom-House mark on each piece, and passed them out, and I was soon
+comfortably installed at Brown's Temperance Hotel, Clayton Square.
+
+
+No person of my complexion can visit this country without being struck
+with the marked difference between the English and the Americans. The
+prejudice which I have experienced on all and every occasion in the
+United States, and to some extent on board the _Canada_, vanished as
+soon as I set foot on the soil of Britain. In America I had been bought
+and sold as a slave, in the Southern States. In the so-called free
+States, I had been treated as one born to occupy an inferior
+position,--in steamers, compelled to take my fare on the deck; in
+hotels, to take my meals in the kitchen; in coaches, to ride on the
+outside; in railways, to ride in the "negro car;" and in churches, to
+sit in the "negro pew." But no sooner was I on British soil, than I was
+recognised as a man, and an equal. The very dogs in the streets
+appeared conscious of my manhood. Such is the difference, and such is
+the change that is brought about by a trip of nine days in an Atlantic
+steamer.
+
+I was not more struck with the treatment of the people, than with the
+appearance of the great seaport of the world. The grey appearance of the
+stone piers and docks, the dark look of the magnificent warehouses, the
+substantial appearance of every thing around, causes one to think
+himself in a new world instead of the old. Every thing in Liverpool
+looks old, yet nothing is worn out. The beautiful villas on the opposite
+side of the river, in the vicinity of Birkenhead, together with the
+countless number of vessels in the river, and the great ships to be seen
+in the stream, give life and animation to the whole scene.
+
+Every thing in and about Liverpool seems to be built for the future as
+well as the present. We had time to examine but few of the public
+buildings, the first of which was the Custom-House, an edifice that
+would be an ornament to any city in the world.
+
+For the first time in my life, I can say "I am truly free." My old
+master may make his appearance here, with the Constitution of the United
+States in his pocket, the Fugitive Slave Law in one hand and the chains
+in the other, and claim me as his property, but all will avail him
+nothing. I can here stand and look the tyrant in the face, and tell him
+that I am his equal! England is, indeed, the "land of the free, and the
+home of the brave."
+
+
+
+
+LETTER II.
+
+_Trip to Ireland--Dublin--Her Majesty's Visit--Illumination of the
+City--the Birth-Place of Thomas Moore--a Reception._
+
+
+                    DUBLIN, _August 6_.
+
+After remaining in Liverpool two days, I took passage in the little
+steamer _Adelaide_ for this city. The wind being high on the night of
+our voyage, the vessel had scarcely got to sea ere we were driven to
+our berths; and though the distance from Liverpool to Dublin is short,
+yet, strange to say, I witnessed more effects of the sea and rolling of
+the steamer upon the passengers, than was to be seen during the whole of
+our voyage from America. We reached Kingstown, five miles below Dublin,
+after a passage of nearly fifteen hours, and were soon seated on a car,
+and on our way to the city. While coming into the bay, one gets a fine
+view of Dublin and the surrounding country. Few sheets of water make a
+more beautiful appearance than Dublin Bay. We found it as still and
+smooth as a mirror, with a soft mist on its surface--a strange contrast
+to the boisterous sea that we had left a moment before.
+
+The curious phrases of the Irish sounded harshly upon my ear, probably,
+because they were strange to me. I lost no time on reaching the city in
+seeking out some to whom I had letters of introduction, one of whom gave
+me an invitation to make his house my home during my stay, an invitation
+which I did not think fit to decline.
+
+Dublin, the Metropolis of Ireland, is a city of above two hundred
+thousand inhabitants, and is considered by the people of Ireland to be
+the second city in the British Empire. The Liffey, which falls into
+Dublin Bay a little below the Custom-House, divides the town into two
+nearly equal parts. The streets are--some of them--very fine, especially
+upper Sackville Street, in the centre of which stands a pillar erected
+to Nelson, England's most distinguished Naval Commander. The Bank of
+Ireland, to which I paid a visit, is a splendid building, and was
+formerly the Parliament House. This magnificent edifice fronts College
+Green, and near at hand stands a bronze statue of William III. The Bank
+and the Custom-House are two of the finest monuments of architecture in
+the city; the latter of which stands near the river Liffey, and its
+front makes an imposing appearance, extending to three hundred and
+seventy-five feet. It is built of Portland stone, and is adorned with a
+beautiful portico in the centre, consisting of four Doric columns
+supporting an enriched entablature, decorated with a group of figures in
+alto-relievo, representing Hibernia and Britannia presenting emblems of
+peace and liberty. A magnificent dome, supporting a cupola, on whose
+apex stands a colossal figure of Hope, rises nobly from the centre of
+the building to a height of one hundred and twenty-five feet. It is,
+withal, a fine specimen of what man can do.
+
+From this noble edifice, we bent our steps to another part of the city,
+and soon found ourselves in the vicinity of St. Patrick's, where we had
+a heart-sickening view of the poorest of the poor. All the recollections
+of poverty which I had ever beheld, seemed to disappear in comparison
+with what was then before me. We passed a filthy and noisy market, where
+fruit and vegetable women were screaming and begging those passing by to
+purchase their commodities; while in and about the market-place were
+throngs of beggars fighting for rotten fruit, cabbage stocks, and even
+the very trimmings of vegetables. On the side walks, were great numbers
+hovering about the doors of the more wealthy, and following strangers,
+importuning them for "pence to buy bread." Sickly and emaciated-looking
+creatures, half naked, were at our heels at every turn. After passing
+through a half dozen, or more, of narrow and dirty streets, we returned
+to our lodgings, impressed with the idea that we had seen enough of the
+poor for one day.
+
+In our return home, we passed through a respectable looking street, in
+which stands a small three storey brick building, which was pointed out
+to us as the birth-place of Thomas Moore, the poet. The following verse
+from one of Moore's poems was continually in my mind while viewing this
+house:--
+
+    "Where is the slave, so lowly,
+    Condemn'd to chains unholy,
+    Who, could he burst
+    His bonds at first,
+    Would pine beneath them slowly?"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Yesterday was the Sabbath, but it had more the appearance of a holiday
+than a day of rest. It had been announced the day before, that the Royal
+fleet was expected, and at an early hour on Sunday, the entire town
+seemed to be on the move towards Kingstown, and as the family with whom
+I was staying followed the multitude, I was not inclined to remain
+behind, and so went with them. On reaching the station we found it
+utterly impossible to get standing room in any of the trains, much less
+a seat, and therefore determined to reach Kingstown under the plea of a
+morning's walk; and in this we were not alone, for during the walk of
+five miles the road was filled with thousands of pedestrians and a
+countless number of carriages, phaetons, and vehicles of a more humble
+order.
+
+We reached the lower town in time to get a good dinner, and rest
+ourselves before going to make further searches for Her Majesty's fleet.
+At a little past four o'clock, we observed the multitude going towards
+the pier, a number of whom were yelling at the top of their voices,
+"It's coming, it's coming;" but on going to the quay, we found that a
+false alarm had been given. However, we had been on the look-out but a
+short time, when a column of smoke rising as it were out of the sea,
+announced that the Royal fleet was near at hand. The concourse in the
+vicinity of the pier was variously estimated at from eighty to one
+hundred thousand.
+
+It was not long before the five steamers were entering the harbour, the
+one bearing Her Majesty leading the way. As each vessel had a number of
+distinguished persons on board, the people appeared to be at a loss to
+know which was the Queen; and as each party made its appearance on the
+promenade deck, they were received with great enthusiasm, the party
+having the best looking lady being received with the greatest applause.
+The Prince of Wales, and Prince Alfred, while crossing the deck were
+recognised and greeted with three cheers; the former taking off his hat
+and bowing to the people, showed that he had had some training as a
+public man although not ten years of age. But not so with Prince Alfred;
+for, when his brother turned to him and asked him to take off his hat
+and make a bow to the people, he shook his head and said, "No." This was
+received with hearty laughter by those on board, and was responded to by
+the thousands on shore. But greater applause was yet in store for the
+young prince; for the captain of the steamer being near by, and seeing
+that the Prince of Wales could not prevail on his brother to take off
+his hat, stepped up to him and undertook to take it off for him, when,
+seemingly to the delight of all, the prince put both hands to his head
+and held his hat fast. This was regarded as a sign of courage and future
+renown, and was received with the greatest enthusiasm--many crying out,
+"Good, good: he will make a brave king when his day comes."
+
+After the greetings and applause had been wasted on many who had
+appeared on deck, all at once, as if by some magic power, we beheld a
+lady rather small in stature, with auburn or reddish hair, attired in a
+plain dress, and wearing a sky-blue bonnet, standing on the larboard
+paddle-box, by the side of a tall good-looking man, with mustaches. The
+thunders of applause that now rent the air, and cries of "The Queen, the
+Queen," seemed to set at rest the question of which was Her Majesty. But
+a few moments were allowed to the people to look at the Queen, before
+she again disappeared; and it was understood that she would not be seen
+again that evening. A rush was then made for the railway, to return to
+Dublin.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+                    _August 8_.
+
+Yesterday was a great day in Dublin. At an early hour the bells began
+their merry peals, and the people were soon seen in groups in the
+streets and public squares. The hour of ten was fixed for the procession
+to leave Kingstown, and it was expected to enter the city at eleven. The
+windows of the houses in the streets through which the Royal train was
+to pass, were at a premium, and seemed to find ready occupants.
+
+Being invited the day previous to occupy part of a window in Upper
+Sackville Street, I was stationed at my allotted place, at an early
+hour, with an out-stretched neck and open eyes. My own colour differing
+from those about me, I attracted not a little attention from many; and
+often, when gazing down the street to see if the Royal procession was in
+sight, would find myself eyed by all around. But neither while at the
+window, or in the streets, was I once insulted. This was so unlike the
+American prejudice, that it seemed strange to me. It was near twelve
+o'clock before the procession entered Sackville Street, and when it did
+all eyes seemed to beam with delight. The first carriage contained only
+Her Majesty and the Prince Consort; the second, the Royal children; and
+the third, the Lords in Waiting. Fifteen carriages were used by those
+that made up the Royal party. I had a full view of the Queen and all who
+followed in the train. Her Majesty--whether from actual love for her
+person, or the novelty of the occasion, I know not which--was received
+everywhere with the greatest enthusiasm. One thing, however, is certain,
+and that is--Queen Victoria is beloved by her subjects.
+
+But the grand _fete_ was reserved for the evening. Great preparations
+had been made to have a grand illumination on the occasion, and hints
+were thrown out that it would surpass anything ever witnessed in London.
+In this they were not far out of the way; for all who witnessed the
+scene admitted that it could scarcely have been surpassed. My own idea
+of an illumination, as I had seen it in the backwoods of my own native
+land, dwindled into nothing when compared with this magnificent affair.
+
+In company with a few friends, and a lady under my charge, I undertook
+to pass through Sackville and one or two other streets, about eight
+o'clock in the evening, but we found it utterly impossible to proceed.
+Masses thronged the streets, and the wildest enthusiasm seemed to
+prevail. In our attempt to cross the bridge, we were wedged in and lost
+our companions; and on one occasion I was separated from the lady, and
+took shelter under a cart standing in the street. After being jammed and
+pulled about for nearly two hours, I returned to my lodgings, where I
+found part of my company, who had come in one after another. At eleven
+o'clock we had all assembled, and each told his adventures and
+"hairbreadth escapes;" and nearly every one had lost a pocket
+handkerchief or something of the kind: my own was among the missing.
+However, I lost nothing; for a benevolent lady, who happened to be one
+of the company, presented me with one which was of far more value than
+the one I had lost.
+
+Every one appeared to enjoy the holiday which the Royal visit had
+caused. But the Irish are indeed a strange people. How varied their
+aspect--how contradictory their character. Ireland, the land of genius
+and degradation--of great resources and unparalleled poverty--noble
+deeds and the most revolting crimes--the land of distinguished poets,
+splendid orators, and the bravest of soldiers--the land of ignorance and
+beggary! Dublin is a splendid city, but its splendour is that of
+chiselled marble rather than real life. One cannot behold these
+architectural monuments without thinking of the great men that Ireland
+has produced. The names of Burke, Sheridan, Flood, Grattan, O'Connell,
+and Shiel, have become as familiar to the Americans as household words.
+Burke is known as the statesman; Sheridan for his great speech on the
+trial of Warren Hastings; Grattan for his eloquence; O'Connell as the
+agitator; and Shiel as the accomplished orator.
+
+But of Ireland's sons, none stands higher in America than Thomas Moore,
+the Poet. The vigour of his sarcasm, the glow of his enthusiasm, the
+coruscations of his fancy, and the flashing of his wit, seem to be as
+well understood in the new world as the old; and the support which his
+pen has given to civil and religious liberty throughout the world,
+entitled the Minstrel of Erin to this elevated position.
+
+Before leaving America I had heard much of the friends of my enslaved
+countrymen residing in Ireland; and the reception I met with on all
+hands while in public, satisfied me that what I had heard had not been
+exaggerated. To the Webbs, Allens, and Haughtons, of Dublin, the cause
+of the American slave is much indebted.
+
+I quitted Dublin with a feeling akin to leaving my native land.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER III.
+
+_Departure from Ireland--London--Trip to Paris--Paris--The Peace
+Congress: first day--Church of the Madeleine--Column Vendome--the
+French._
+
+
+                    PARIS, _August 23_.
+
+After a pleasant sojourn of three weeks in Ireland, I took passage in
+one of the mail steamers for Liverpool, and arriving there was soon on
+the road to the metropolis. The passage from Dublin to Liverpool was an
+agreeable one. The rough sea that we passed through on going to Ireland
+had given way to a dead calm, and our noble little steamer, on quitting
+the Dublin wharf, seemed to understand that she was to have it all her
+own way. During the first part of the evening, the boat appeared to feel
+her importance, and, darting through the water with majestic strides,
+she left behind her a dark cloud of smoke suspended in the air like a
+banner; while, far astern in the wake of the vessel, could be seen the
+rippled waves sparkling in the rays of the moon, giving strength and
+beauty to the splendour of the evening.
+
+On reaching Liverpool, and partaking of a good breakfast, for which we
+paid double price, we proceeded to the railway station, and were soon
+going at a rate unknown to those accustomed to travel on one of our
+American railways. At a little past two o'clock in the afternoon, we saw
+in the distance the out-skirts of London. We could get but an indistinct
+view, which had the appearance of one architectural mass, extending all
+round to the horizon, and enveloped in a combination of fog and smoke;
+and towering above every other object to be seen, was the dome of St.
+Paul's Cathedral.
+
+A few moments more, and we were safely seated in a "Hansom's Patent,"
+and on our way to Hughes's--one of the politest men of the George Fox
+stamp we have ever met. Here we found forty or fifty persons, who, like
+ourselves, were bound for the Peace Congress. The Sturges, the Wighams,
+the Richardsons, the Allens, the Thomases, and a host of others not less
+distinguished as friends of peace, were of the company--many of whom I
+had heard of, but none of whom I had ever seen; yet I was not an entire
+stranger to many, especially to the abolitionists. In company with a
+friend, I sallied forth after tea to take a view of the city. The
+evening was fine--the dense fog and smoke having to some extent passed
+away, left the stars shining brightly, while the gas light from the
+street lamps and the brilliant shop windows gave it the appearance of
+day-light in a new form. "What street is this?" we asked. "Cheapside,"
+was the reply. The street was thronged, and every body seemed to be
+going at a rapid rate, as if there was something of importance at the
+end of the journey. Flying vehicles of every description passing each
+other with a dangerous rapidity, men with lovely women at their sides,
+children running about as if they had lost their parents--all gave a
+brilliancy to the scene scarcely to be excelled. If one wished to get
+jammed and pushed about, he need go no farther than Cheapside. But every
+thing of the kind is done with a degree of propriety in London, that
+would put the New Yorkers to blush. If you are run over in London, they
+"beg your pardon;" if they run over you in New York, you are "laughed
+at:" in London, if your hat is knocked off it is picked up and handed to
+you; if, in New York, you must pick it up yourself. There is a lack of
+good manners among Americans that is scarcely known or understood in
+Europe. Our stay in the great metropolis gave us but little opportunity
+of seeing much of the place; for in twenty-four hours after our arrival
+we joined the rest of the delegates, and started on our visit to our
+Gallic neighbours.
+
+We assembled at the London Bridge Railway Station on Tuesday morning the
+21st, a few minutes past nine, to the number of 600. The day was fine,
+and every eye seemed to glow with enthusiasm. Besides the delegates,
+there were probably not less than 600 more, who had come to see the
+company start. We took our seats and appeared to be waiting for nothing
+but the iron-horse to be fastened to the train, when all at once, we
+were informed that we must go to the booking-office and change our
+tickets. At this news every one appeared to be vexed. This caused great
+trouble; for on returning to the train many persons got into the wrong
+carriages; and several parties were separated from their friends, while
+not a few were calling out at the top of their voices, "Where is my
+wife? Where is my husband? Where is my luggage? Who's got my boy? Is
+this the right train?" "What is that lady going to do with all these
+children?" asked the guard. "Is she a delegate: are all the children
+delegates?" In the carriage where I had taken my seat was a
+good-looking lady who gave signs of being very much annoyed. "It is just
+so when I am going anywhere: I never saw the like in my life," said she.
+"I really wish I was at home again."
+
+An hour had now elapsed, and we were still at the station. However, we
+were soon on our way, and going at express speed. In passing through
+Kent we enjoyed the scenery exceedingly, as the weather was altogether
+in our favour; and the drapery which nature hung on the trees, in the
+part through which we passed, was in all its gaiety. On our arrival at
+Folkstone, we found three steamers in readiness to convey the party to
+Boulogne. As soon as the train stopped, a general rush was made for the
+steamers; and in a very short time the one in which I had embarked was
+passing out of the harbour. The boat appeared to be conscious that we
+were going on a holy mission, and seemed to be proud of her load. There
+is nothing in this wide world so like a thing of life as a steamer, from
+the breathing of her steam and smoke, the energy of her motion, and the
+beauty of her shape; while the ease with which she is managed by the
+command of a single voice, makes her appear as obedient as the horse is
+to the rein.
+
+When we were about half way between the two great European Powers, the
+officers began to gather the tickets. The first to whom he applied, and
+who handed out his "Excursion Ticket," was informed that we were all in
+the wrong boat. "Is this not one of the boats to take over the
+delegates?" asked a pretty little lady, with a whining voice. "No,
+Madam," said the captain. "You must look to the committee for your pay,"
+said one of the company to the captain. "I have nothing to do with
+committees," the captain replied. "Your fare, Gentlemen, if you please."
+
+Here the whole party were again thrown into confusion. "Do you hear
+that? We are in the wrong boat." "I knew it would be so," said the Rev.
+Dr. Ritchie, of Edinburgh. "It is indeed a pretty piece of work," said a
+plain-looking lady in a handsome bonnet. "When I go travelling again,"
+said an elderly looking gent with an eye-glass to his face, "I will take
+the phaeton and old Dobbin." Every one seemed to lay the blame on the
+committee, and not, too, without some just grounds. However, Mr. Sturge,
+one of the committee, being in the boat with us, an arrangement was
+entered into, by which we were not compelled to pay our fare the second
+time.
+
+As we neared the French coast, the first object that attracted our
+attention was the Napoleon Pillar, on the top of which is a statue of
+the Emperor in the Imperial robes. We landed, partook of refreshment
+that had been prepared for us, and again repaired to the railway
+station. The arrangements for leaving Boulogne were no better than those
+at London. But after the delay of another hour, we were again in motion.
+
+It was a beautiful country through which we passed from Boulogne to
+Amiens. Straggling cottages which bespeak neatness and comfort abound on
+every side. The eye wanders over the diversified views with unabated
+pleasure, and rests in calm repose upon its superlative beauty. Indeed,
+the eye cannot but be gratified at viewing the entire country from the
+coast to the metropolis. Sparkling hamlets spring up as the steam horse
+speeds his way, at almost every point--showing the progress of
+civilization, and the refinement of the nineteenth century.
+
+We arrived at Paris a few minutes past twelve o'clock at night, when,
+according to our tickets, we should have been there at nine. Elihu
+Burritt, who had been in Paris some days, and who had the arrangements
+there pretty much his own way, was at the station waiting the arrival of
+the train, and we had demonstrated to us, the best evidence that he
+understood his business. In no other place on the whole route had the
+affairs been so well managed; for we were seated in our respective
+carriages and our luggage placed on the top, and away we went to our
+hotels without the least difficulty or inconvenience. The champion of an
+"Ocean Penny Postage" received, as he deserved, thanks from the whole
+company for his admirable management.
+
+The silence of the night was only disturbed by the rolling of the wheels
+of the omnibus, as we passed through the dimly lighted streets. Where, a
+few months before was to be seen the flash from the cannon and the
+musket, and the hearing of the cries and groans behind the barricades,
+was now the stillness of death--nothing save here and there a _gens
+d'arme_ was to be seen going his rounds in silence.
+
+The omnibus set us down at the hotel Bedford, Rue de L'Arend, where,
+although near one o'clock, we found a good supper waiting for us; and,
+as I was not devoid of an appetite, I did my share towards putting it
+out of the way.
+
+The next morning I was up at an early hour, and out on the Boulevards to
+see what might be seen. As I was passing from the Bedford to the Place
+de La Concord, all at once, and as if by some magic power, I found
+myself in front of the most splendid edifice imaginable, situated at the
+end of the Rue Nationale. Seeing a number of persons entering the church
+at that early hour, and recognising among them my friend the President
+of the Oberlin (Ohio) Institute, and wishing not to stray too far from
+my hotel before breakfast, I followed the crowd and entered the
+building. The church itself consisted of a vast nave, interrupted by
+four pews on each side, fronted with lofty fluted Corinthian columns
+standing on pedestals, supporting colossal arches, bearing up cupolas,
+pierced with skylights and adorned with compartments gorgeously gilt;
+their corners supported with saints and apostles in _alto relievo_. The
+walls of the church were lined with rich marble. The different paintings
+and figures, gave the interior an imposing appearance. On inquiry, I
+found that I was in the Church of the Madeleine. It was near this spot
+that some of the most interesting scenes occurred during the Revolution
+of 1848, which dethroned Louis Philippe. Behind the Madeleine is a small
+but well supplied market; and on an esplanade east of the edifice, a
+flower market is held on Tuesdays and Fridays.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The first session of the Peace Congress is over.
+
+
+The Congress met this morning at 11 o'clock, in the Salle St. Cecile,
+Rue de la St. Lazare. The Parisians have no "Exeter Hall:" in fact,
+there is no private hall in the city of any size, save this, where such
+a meeting could be held. This hall has been fitted up for the occasion.
+The room is long, and at one end has a raised platform; and at the
+opposite end is a gallery, with seats raised one above another. On one
+side of the hall was a balcony with sofas, which were evidently the
+"reserved seats."
+
+The hall was filled at an early hour with the delegates, their friends,
+and a good sprinkling of the French. Occasionally, small groups of
+gentlemen would make their appearance on the platform, until it soon
+appeared that there was little room left for others; and yet the
+officers of the Convention had not come in. The different countries
+were, many of them, represented here. England, France, Belgium, Germany,
+Switzerland, Greece, Spain, and the United States, had each their
+delegates. The Assembly began to give signs of impatience, when very
+soon the train of officials made their appearance amid great applause.
+Victor Hugo led the way, followed by M. Duguerry, curé of the Madeleine,
+Elihu Burritt, and a host of others of less note. Victor Hugo took the
+chair as President of the Congress, supported by Vice-presidents from
+the several nations represented. Mr. Richard, the Secretary, read a dry
+report of the names of societies, committees, &c., which was deemed the
+opening of the Convention.
+
+The President then arose, and delivered one of the most impressive and
+eloquent appeals in favour of peace that could possibly be imagined. The
+effect produced upon the minds of all present was such as to make the
+author of "_Notre Dame de Paris_" a great favourite with the Congress.
+An English gentleman near me said to his friend, "I can't understand a
+word of what he says, but is it not good?" Victor Hugo concluded his
+speech amid the greatest enthusiasm on the part of the French, which was
+followed by hurrahs in the old English style. The Convention was
+successively addressed by the President of the Brussels Peace Society;
+President Mahan of the Oberlin (Ohio) Institute, U.S.; Henry Vincent;
+and Richard Cobden. The latter was not only the _lion_ of the English
+delegation, but the great man of the Convention. When Mr. Cobden speaks,
+there is no want of hearers. The great power of this gentleman lies in
+his facts and his earnestness, for he cannot be called an eloquent
+speaker. Mr. Cobden addressed the Congress first in French, then in
+English; and, with the single exception of Mr. Ewart, M.P., was the only
+one of the English delegation that could speak to the French in their
+own language.
+
+The Congress was brought to a close at five o'clock, when the numerous
+audience dispersed--the citizens to their homes, and the delegates to
+see the sights.
+
+I was not a little amused at an incident that occurred at the close of
+the first session. On the passage from America, there were in the same
+steamer with me, several Americans, and among these, three or four
+appeared to be much annoyed at the fact that I was a passenger, and
+enjoying the company of white persons; and although I was not openly
+insulted, I very often heard the remark, that "That nigger had better be
+on his master's farm," and "What could the American Peace Society be
+thinking about to send a black man as a delegate to Paris." Well, at the
+close of the first sitting of the Convention, and just as I was leaving
+Victor Hugo, to whom I had been introduced by an M.P., I observed near
+me a gentleman with his hat in hand, whom I recognized as one of the
+passengers who had crossed the Atlantic with me in the _Canada_, and who
+appeared to be the most horrified at having a negro for a fellow
+passenger. This gentleman, as I left M. Hugo, stepped up to me and said,
+"How do you do, Mr. Brown?" "You have the advantage of me," said I. "Oh,
+don't you know me; I was a fellow passenger with you from America; I
+wish you would give me an introduction to Victor Hugo and Mr. Cobden." I
+need not inform you that I declined introducing this pro-slavery
+American to these distinguished men. I only allude to this, to show what
+a change comes over the dreams of my white American brother, by crossing
+the ocean. The man who would not have been seen walking with me in the
+streets of New York, and who would not have shaken hands with me with a
+pair of tongs while on the passage from the United States, could come
+with hat in hand in Paris, and say, "I was your fellow-passenger." From
+the Salle de St. Cecile, I visited the Column Vendome, from the top of
+which I obtained a fine view of Paris and its environs. This is the
+Bunker Hill Monument of Paris. On the top of this pillar is a statue of
+the Emperor Napoleon, eleven feet high. The monument is built with
+stone, and the outside covered with a metallic composition, made of
+cannons, guns, spikes, and other warlike implements taken from the
+Russians and Austrians by Napoleon. Above 1200 cannons were melted down
+to help to create this monument of folly, to commemorate the success of
+the French arms in the German Campaign. The column is in imitation of
+the Trajan pillar at Rome, and is twelve feet in diameter at the base.
+The door at the bottom of the pillar, and where we entered, was
+decorated above with crowns of oak, surmounted by eagles, each weighing
+500 lbs. The bas-relief of the shaft pursues a spiral direction to the
+capitol, and displays, in a chronological order, the principal actions
+of the French army, from the departure of the troops from Boulogne to
+the battle of Austerlitz. The figures are near three feet high, and
+their number said to be two thousand. This sumptuous monument stands on
+a plinth of polished granite, surmounted by an iron railing; and, from
+its size and position, has an imposing appearance when seen from any
+part of the city.
+
+Everything here appears strange and peculiar--the people not less so
+than their speech. The horses, carriages, furniture, dress, and manners,
+are in keeping with their language. The appearance of the labourers in
+caps, resembling nightcaps, seemed particularly strange to me. The women
+without bonnets, and their caps turned the right side behind, had
+nothing of the look of our American women. The prettiest woman I ever
+saw was without a bonnet, walking on the Boulevards. While in Ireland,
+and during the few days I was in England, I was struck with the marked
+difference between the appearance of the women from those of my own
+country. The American women are too tall, too sallow, and too
+long-featured to be called pretty. This is most probably owing to the
+fact that in America the people come to maturity earlier than in most
+other countries.
+
+My first night in Paris was spent with interest. No place can present
+greater street attractions than the Boulevards of Paris. The countless
+number of cafés, with tables before the doors, and these surrounded by
+men with long moustaches, with ladies at their sides, whose very smiles
+give indication of happiness, together with the sound of music from the
+gardens in the rear, tell the stranger that he is in a different country
+from his own.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER IV.
+
+_Versailles--The Palace--Second Session of the Congress--Mr.
+Cobden--Henry Vincent--M. Girardin--Abbe Duguerry--Victor Hugo: his
+Speech._
+
+
+                    VERSAILLES, _August 24_.
+
+After the Convention had finished its sittings yesterday, I accompanied
+Mrs. M. C---- and sisters to Versailles, where they are residing during
+the summer. It was really pleasing to see among the hundreds of strange
+faces in the Convention, those distinguished friends of the slave from
+Boston.
+
+Mrs. C----'s residence is directly in front of the great palace where
+so many kings have made their homes, the prince of whom was Louis XIV.
+The palace is now unoccupied. No ruler has dared to take up his
+residence here since Louis XVI. and Marie Antoinette were driven from it
+by the mob from Paris on the 8th of October, 1789. The town looks like
+the wreck of what it once was. At the commencement of the first
+revolution, it contained one hundred thousand inhabitants; now it has
+only about thirty thousand. It seems to be going back to what it was in
+the time of Louis XIII., when in 1624 he built a small brick chateau,
+and from it arose the magnificent palace which now stands here, and
+which attracts strangers to it from all parts of the world.
+
+I arose this morning before the sun, and took a walk through the grounds
+of the Palace, and remained three hours among the fountains and statuary
+of this more than splendid place. But as I intend spending some days
+here, and shall have better opportunities of seeing and judging, I will
+defer my remarks upon Versailles for the present.
+
+Yesterday was a great day in the Congress. The session was opened by a
+speech from M. Coquerel, the Protestant clergyman in Paris. His speech
+was received with much applause, and seemed to create great sensation in
+the Congress, especially at the close of his remarks, when he was seized
+by the hand by the Abbe Duguerry, amid the most deafening and
+enthusiastic applause of the entire multitude. The meeting was then
+addressed in English by a short gentleman, of florid complexion. His
+words seemed to come without the least difficulty, and his jestures,
+though somewhat violent, were evidently studied; and the applause with
+which he was greeted by the English delegation, showed that he was a man
+of no little distinction among them. His speech was one continuous flow
+of rapid, fervid eloquence, that seemed to fire every heart; and
+although I disliked his style, I was prepossessed in his favour. This
+was Henry Vincent, and his speech was in favour of disarmament.
+
+Mr. Vincent was followed by M. Emile de Girardin, the editor of _La
+Presse_, in one of the most eloquent speeches that I ever heard; and his
+exclamation of "Soldiers of Peace," drew thunders of applause from his
+own countrymen. M. Girardin is not only the leader of the French press,
+but is a writer on politics of great distinction, and a leader of no
+inconsiderable party in the National Assembly; although still a young
+man, apparently not more than thirty-eight or forty years of age.
+
+After a speech from Mr. Ewart, M.P., in French, and another from Mr.
+Cobden in the same language, the Convention was brought to a close for
+the day. I spent the morning yesterday, in visiting some of the lions of
+the French capital, among which was the Louvre. The French Government
+having kindly ordered, that the members of the Peace Congress should be
+admitted free, and without ticket, to all the public works, I had
+nothing to do but present my card of membership, and was immediately
+admitted.
+
+The first room I entered, was nearly a quarter of a mile in length; is
+known as the "Long Gallery," and contains some of the finest paintings
+in the world. On entering this superb palace, my first impression was,
+that all Christendom had been robbed, that the Louvre might make a
+splendid appearance. This is the Italian department, and one would
+suppose by its appearance that but few paintings had been left in Italy.
+The entrance end of the Louvre was for a long time in an unfinished
+state, but was afterwards completed by that master workman, the Emperor
+Napoleon. It was long thought that the building would crumble into
+decay, but the genius of the great Corsican rescued it from ruin.
+
+During our walk through the Louvre, we saw some twenty or thirty artists
+copying paintings; some had their copies finished and were going out,
+others half done, while many had just commenced. I remained some minutes
+near a pretty French girl, who was copying a painting of a dog rescuing
+a child from a stream of water into which it had fallen.
+
+I walked down one side of the hall and up the other, and was about
+leaving, when I was informed that this was only one room, and that a
+half-dozen more were at my service; but a clock on a neighbouring church
+reminded me that I must quit the Louvre for the Salle de St. Cecile.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+This morning the Hall was filled at an early hour with rather a more
+fashionable looking audience than on any former occasion, and all
+appeared anxious for the Congress to commence its session, as it was
+understood to be the last day. After the reading of several letters from
+gentlemen, apologising for their not being able to attend, the speech of
+Elihu Burritt was read by a son of M. Coquerel. I felt somewhat
+astonished that my countryman, who was said to be master of fifty
+languages, had to get some one to read his speech in French.
+
+The Abbe Duguerry now came forward amid great cheering, and said that
+"the eminent journalist, Girardin, and the great English logician, Mr.
+Cobden, had made it unnecessary for any further advocacy in that
+assembly of the Peace cause--that if the principles laid down in the
+resolutions were carried out, the work would be done. He said that the
+question of general pacification was built on truth--truth which
+emanated from God--and it were as vain to undertake to prevent air from
+expanding as to check the progress of truth. It must and would
+prevail."
+
+A pale, thin-faced gentleman next ascended the platform (or tribune, as
+it was called) amid shouts of applause from the English, and began his
+speech in rather a low tone, when compared with the sharp voice of
+Vincent, or the thunder of the Abbe Duguerry. An audience is not apt to
+be pleased or even contented with an inferior speaker, when surrounded
+by eloquent men, and I looked every moment for manifestations of
+disapprobation, as I felt certain that the English delegation had made a
+mistake in applauding this gentleman who seemed to make such an
+unpromising beginning. But the speaker soon began to get warm on the
+subject, and even at times appeared as if he had spoken before. In a
+very short time, with the exception of his own voice, the stillness of
+death prevailed throughout the building. The speaker, in the delivery of
+one of the most logical speeches made in the Congress, and despite of
+his thin, sallow look, interested me much more than any whom I had
+before heard. Towards the close of his remarks, he was several times
+interrupted by manifestations of approbation; and finally concluded amid
+great cheering. I inquired the gentleman's name, and was informed that
+it was Edward Miall, editor of the _Nonconformist_.
+
+After speeches from several others, the great Peace Congress of 1849,
+which had brought men together from nearly all the governments of
+Europe, and many from America, was brought to a final close by a speech
+from the President, returning thanks for the honour that had been
+conferred upon him. He said, "My address shall be short, and yet I have
+to bid you adieu! How resolve to do so? Here, during three days, have
+questions of the deepest import been discussed, examined, probed to the
+bottom; and during these discussions, counsels have been given to
+governments which they will do well to profit by. If these days'
+sittings are attended with no other result, they will be the means of
+sowing in the minds of those present, gems of cordiality which must
+ripen into good fruit. England, France, Belgium, Europe, and America,
+would all be drawn closer by these sittings. Yet the moment to part has
+arrived, but I can feel that we are strongly united in heart. But before
+parting I may congratulate you and myself on the result of our
+proceedings. We have been all joined together without distinction of
+country; we have all been united in one common feeling during our three
+days' communion. The good work cannot go back, it must advance, it must
+be accomplished. The course of the future may be judged of by the sound
+of the footsteps of the past. In the course of that day's discussion, a
+reminiscence had been handed up to one of the speakers, that this was
+the anniversary of the dreadful massacre of St. Bartholomew: the rev.
+gentleman who was speaking turned away from the thought of that
+sanguinary scene with pious horror, natural to his sacred calling. But
+I, who may boast of firmer nerve, I take up the remembrance. Yes, it was
+on this day, two hundred and seventy-seven years ago, that Paris was
+roused from slumber by the sound of that bell which bore the name of
+_cloche d'argent_. Massacre was on foot, seeking with keen eye for its
+victim--man was busy in slaying man. That slaughter was called forth by
+mingled passions of the worst description. Hatred of all kinds was there
+urging on the slayer--hatred of a religious, a political, a personal
+character. And yet on the anniversary of that same day of horror, and in
+that very city whose blood was flowing like water, has God this day
+given a rendezvous to men of peace, whose wild tumult is transformed
+into order, and animosity into love. The stain of blood is blotted out,
+and in its place beams forth a ray of holy light. All distinctions are
+removed, and Papist and Huguenot meet together in friendly communion.
+(Loud cheers.) Who that thinks of these amazing changes can doubt of the
+progress that has been made? But whoever denies the force of progress
+must deny God, since progress is the boon of Providence, and emanated
+from the great Being above. I feel gratified for the change that has
+been effected, and, pointing solemnly to the past, I say let this day be
+ever held memorable--let the 24th of August, 1572, be remembered only
+for the purpose of being compared with the 24th of August, 1849; and
+when we think of the latter, and ponder over the high purpose to which
+it has been devoted--the advocacy of the principles of peace--let us not
+be so wanting in reliance on Providence as to doubt for one moment of
+the eventful success of our holy cause."
+
+The most enthusiastic cheers followed this interesting speech. A vote of
+thanks to the government, and three times three cheers, with Mr. Cobden
+as "fugleman," ended the great Peace Congress of 1849.
+
+Time for separating had arrived, yet all seemed unwilling to leave the
+place, where for three days men of all creeds and of no creed had met
+upon one common platform. In one sense the meeting was a glorious
+one--in another, it was mere child's play; for the Congress had been
+restricted to the discussion of certain topics. They were permitted to
+dwell on the blessings of peace, but were not allowed to say anything
+about the very subjects above all others that should have been brought
+before the Congress. A French army had invaded Rome and put down the
+friends of political and religious freedom, yet not a word was said in
+reference to it. The fact is, the Committee permitted the Congress to
+be _gagged_, before it had met. They put padlocks upon their own mouths,
+and handed the keys to the government. And this was sorely felt by many
+of the speakers. Richard Cobden, who had thundered his anathemas against
+the Corn Laws of his own country, and against wars in every clime, had
+to sit quiet in his fetters. Henry Vincent, who can make a louder speech
+in favour of peace, than almost any other man, and whose denunciations
+of "all war," have gained him no little celebrity with peace men, had to
+confine himself to the blessings of peace. Oh! how I wished for a
+Massachusetts atmosphere, a New England Convention platform, with
+Wendell Phillips as the speaker, before that assembled multitude from
+all parts of the world.
+
+But the Congress is over, and cannot now be made different; yet it is to
+be hoped that neither the London Peace Committee, nor any other men
+having the charge of getting up such another great meeting, will commit
+such an error again.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER V.
+
+_M. de Tocqueville's Grand Soiree--Madame de Tocqueville--Visit of the
+Peace Delegates to Versailles--The Breakfast--Speechmaking--The
+Trianons--Waterworks--St. Cloud--The Fête._
+
+
+                    VERSAILLES, _August 24_.
+
+The day after the close of the Congress, the delegates and their friends
+were invited to a soirée by M. de Tocqueville, Minister for Foreign
+Affairs, to take place on the next evening (Saturday); and, as my
+coloured face and curly hair did not prevent my getting an invitation, I
+was present with the rest of my peace brethren.
+
+Had I been in America, where colour is considered a crime, I would not
+have been seen at such a gathering, unless as a servant. In company with
+several delegates, we left the Bedford Hotel for the mansion of the
+Minister of Foreign Affairs; and, on arriving, we found a file of
+soldiers drawn up before the gate. This did not seem much like peace:
+however, it was merely done in honour of the company. We entered the
+building through massive doors and resigned ourselves into the hands of
+good-looking waiters in white wigs; and, after our names were duly
+announced, were passed from room to room till I was presented to Madame
+de Tocqueville, who was standing near the centre of the large
+drawing-room, with a bouquet in her hand. I was about passing on, when
+the gentleman who introduced me intimated that I was an "American
+slave." At the announcement of this fact the distinguished lady extended
+her hand and gave me a cordial welcome--at the same time saying, "I hope
+you feel yourself free in Paris." Having accepted an invitation to a
+seat by the lady's side, who seated herself on a sofa, I was soon what I
+most dislike, "the observed of all observers." I recognised among many
+of my own countrymen, who were gazing at me, the American Consul, Mr.
+Walsh. My position did not improve his looks. The company present on
+this occasion were variously estimated at from one thousand to fifteen
+hundred. Among these were the Ambassadors from the different countries
+represented at the French metropolis, and many of the _elite_ of Paris.
+One could not but be interested with the difference in dress, looks, and
+manners of this assemblage of strangers whose language was as different
+as their general appearance. Delight seemed to beam in every countenance
+as the living stream floated from one room to another. The house and
+gardens were illuminated in the most gorgeous manner. Red, yellow, blue,
+green, and many other coloured lamps, suspended from the branches of the
+trees in the gardens, gave life and animation to the whole scene out of
+doors. The soirée passed off satisfactorily to all parties; and by
+twelve o'clock I was again at my Hotel.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Through the politeness of the government the members of the Congress
+have not only had the pleasure of seeing all the public works free, and
+without special ticket, but the palaces of Versailles and St. Cloud,
+together with their splendid grounds, have been thrown open, and the
+water-works set to playing in both places. This mark of respect for the
+Peace movement is commendable in the French; and were I not such a
+strenuous friend of free speech, this act would cause me to overlook the
+padlocks that the government put upon our lips in the Congress.
+
+Two long trains left Paris at nine o'clock for Versailles; and at each
+of the stations the company were loudly cheered by the people who had
+assembled to see them pass. At Versailles, we found thousands at the
+station, who gave us a most enthusiastic welcome. We were blessed with a
+goodly number of the fair sex, who always give life and vigour to such
+scenes. The train had scarcely stopped, ere the great throng were
+wending their ways in different directions, some to the cafés to get
+what an early start prevented their getting before leaving Paris, and
+others to see the soldiers who were on review. But most bent their steps
+towards the great palace.
+
+At eleven o'clock we were summoned to the _dejeuner_, which had been
+prepared by the English delegates in honour of their American friends.
+About six hundred sat down at the tables. Breakfast being ended, Mr.
+Cobden was called to the chair, and several speeches were made. Many
+who had not an opportunity to speak at the Congress, thought this a
+good chance; and the written addresses which had been studied during the
+passage from America, with the hope that they would immortalize their
+authors before the great Congress, were produced at the breakfast table.
+But speech-making was not the order of the day. Too many thundering
+addresses had been delivered in the Salle de St. Cecile, to allow the
+company to sit and hear dryly written and worse delivered speeches in
+the Teniscourt.
+
+There was no limited time given to the speakers, yet no one had been on
+his feet five minutes, before the cry was heard from all parts of the
+house, "Time, time." One American was hissed down, another took his seat
+with a red face, and a third opened his bundle of paper, looked around
+at the audience, made a bow, and took his seat amid great applause. Yet
+some speeches were made, and to good effect, the best of which was by
+Elihu Burritt, who was followed by the Rev. James Freeman Clark. I
+regretted very much that the latter did not deliver his address before
+the Congress, for he is a man of no inconsiderable talent, and an
+acknowledged friend of the slave.
+
+The cry of "The water-works are playing," "The water is on," broke up
+the meeting, without even a vote of thanks to the Chairman; and the
+whole party were soon revelling among the fountains and statues of Louis
+XIV. Description would fail to give a just idea of the grandeur and
+beauty of this splendid place. I do not think that any thing can surpass
+the fountain of Neptune, which stands near the Grand Trianon. One may
+easily get lost in wandering through the grounds of Versailles, but he
+will always be in sight of some life-like statue. These monuments,
+erected to gratify the fancy of a licentious king, make their appearance
+at every turn. Two lions, the one overturning a wild boar, the other a
+wolf, both the production of Fillen, pointed out to us the fountain of
+Diana. But I will not attempt to describe to you any of the very
+beautiful sculptured gods and goddesses here.
+
+With a single friend I paid a visit to the two Trianons. The larger was,
+we were told, just as king Louis Philippe left it. One room was
+splendidly fitted up for the reception of Her Majesty Queen Victoria;
+who, it appeared, had promised a visit to the French Court; but the
+French Monarch ran away from his throne before the time arrived. The
+Grand Trianon is not larger than many noblemen's seats that may be seen
+in a day's ride through any part of the British empire. The building has
+only a ground floor, but its proportions are very elegant.
+
+We next paid our respects to the Little Trianon. This appears to be the
+most Republican of any of the French palaces. I inspected this little
+palace with much interest, not more for its beauty than because of its
+having been the favourite residence of that purest of Princesses, best
+of Queens, and most affectionate of mothers, Marie Antoinette. The
+grounds and building may be said to be only a palace in miniature, and
+this makes it still a more lovely spot. The building consists of a
+square pavilion two stories high, and separated entirely from the
+accessory buildings, which are on the left, and among them a pretty
+chapel. But a wish to be with the multitude, who were roving among the
+fountains, cut short my visit to the trianons.
+
+The day was very fine, and the whole party seemed to enjoy it. It was
+said that there were more than one hundred thousand persons at
+Versailles during the day. The company appeared to lose themselves with
+the pleasure of walking among the trees, flower beds, fountains, and
+statues. I met more than one wife seeking a lost husband, and _vice
+versa_. Many persons were separated from their friends and did not meet
+them again till at the hotels in Paris. In the train returning to Paris,
+an old gentleman who was seated near me said, "I would rest contented if
+I thought I should ever see my wife again!"
+
+At four o'clock we were _en route_ to St. Cloud, the much loved and
+favourite residence of the Emperor Napoleon. It seemed that all Paris
+had come out to St. Cloud to see how the English and Americans would
+enjoy the playing of the water-works. Many kings and rulers of the
+French have made St. Cloud their residence, but none have impressed
+their images so indelibly upon it as Napoleon. It was here he was first
+elevated to power, and here Josephine spent her most happy hours.
+
+The apartments where Napoleon was married to Marie Louise; the private
+rooms of Josephine and Marie Antoinette, were all in turn shown to us.
+While standing on the balcony looking at Paris one cannot wonder that
+the Emperor should have selected this place as his residence, for a more
+lovely spot cannot be found than St. Cloud.
+
+The palace is on the side of a hill, two leagues from Paris, and so
+situated that it looks down upon the French capital. Standing, as we
+did, viewing Paris from St. Cloud, and the setting sun reflecting upon
+the domes, spires, and towers of the city of fashion, made us feel that
+this was the place from which the monarch should watch his subjects.
+From the hour of arrival at St. Cloud till near eight o'clock, we were
+either inspecting the splendid palace or roaming the grounds and
+gardens, whose beautiful walks and sweet flowers made it appear a very
+Paradise on earth.
+
+At eight o'clock the water-works were put in motion, and the variagated
+lamps with their many devices, displaying flowers, stars, and wheels,
+all with a brilliancy that can scarcely be described, seemed to throw
+everything in the shade we had seen at Versailles. At nine o'clock the
+train was announced, and after a good deal of jamming and pushing about,
+we were again on the way to Paris.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER VI.
+
+_The Tuileries--Place de la Concorde--The Egyptian Obelisk--Palais
+Royal--Residence of Robespierre--A Visit to the Room in which Charlotte
+Corday killed Marat--Church de Notre Dame--Palais de Justice--Hotel des
+Invalids--National Assembly--The Elysee._
+
+
+                    PARIS, _August 28_.
+
+Yesterday morning I started at an early hour for the Palace of the
+Tuileries. A show of my card of membership of the Congress (which had
+carried me through so many of the public buildings) was enough to gain
+me immediate admission. The attack of the mob on the palace, on the 20th
+of June, 1792, the massacre of the Swiss guard on the 10th of August of
+the same year, the attack by the people in July 1830, together with the
+recent flight of king Louis Philippe and family, made me anxious to
+visit the old pile.
+
+We were taken from room to room, until the entire building had been
+inspected. In front of the Tuileries, are a most magnificent garden and
+grounds. These were all laid out by Louis XIV., and are left nearly as
+they were during that monarch's reign. Above fifty acres surrounded by
+an iron rail fence, fronts the Place de la Concorde, and affords a place
+of promenade for the Parisians. I walked the pleasing grounds, and saw
+hundreds of well dressed persons walking under the shade of the great
+chestnuts, or sitting on chairs which were kept to let at two sous a
+piece. Near by is the Place de Carrousel, noted for its historical
+remembrances. Many incidents connected with the several revolutions
+occurred here, and it is pointed out as the place where Napoleon
+reviewed that formidable army of his before its departure for Russia.
+
+From the Tuileries, I took a stroll through the Place de la Concorde,
+which has connected with it so many acts of cruelty, that it made me
+shudder as I passed over its grounds. As if to take from one's mind the
+old associations of this place, the French have erected on it, or rather
+given a place to, the celebrated obelisk of Luxor, which now is the
+chief attraction on the grounds. The obelisk was brought from Egypt at
+an enormous expense; for which purpose a ship was built, and several
+hundred men employed above three years in its removal. It is formed of
+the finest red syenite, and covered on each side with three lines of
+hieroglyphic inscriptions, commemorative of Sesostris--the middle lines
+being the most deeply cut and most carefully finished; and the
+characters altogether number more than 1600. The obelisk is of a single
+stone, is 72 feet in height, weighs 500,000 lbs., and stands on a block
+of granite that weighs 250,000 lbs. He who can read Latin will see that
+the monument tells its own story, but to me its characters were all
+blank.
+
+It would be tedious to follow the history of this old and venerated
+stone, which was taken from the quarry 1550 years before the birth of
+Christ; placed in Thebes; its removal; the journey to the Nile, and
+down the Nile; thence to Cherbourg, and lastly its arrival in Paris on
+the 23d of December, 1833--just one year before I escaped from slavery.
+The obelisk was raised on the spot where it now stands, on the 25th of
+October, 1836, in the presence of Louis Philippe and amid the greetings
+of 160,000 persons.
+
+Having missed my dinner, I crossed over to the Palais Royal, to a dining
+saloon, and can assure you that a better dinner may be had there for
+five francs, than can be got in New York for twice that sum, and
+especially if the person who wants the dinner is a coloured man. I found
+no prejudice against my complexion in the Palais Royal.
+
+Many of the rooms in this once abode of Royalty, are most splendidly
+furnished, and decorated with valuable pictures. The likenesses of
+Madame de Stael, J.J. Rousseau, Cromwell, and Francis I., are among
+them.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+After several unsuccessful attempts to-day, in company with R.D. Webb,
+Esq., to seek out the house where once resided the notorious
+Robespierre, I was fortunate enough to find it, but not until I had
+lost the company of my friend. The house is No. 396, Rue St. Honore,
+opposite the Church of the Assumption. It stands back, and is reached by
+entering a court. During the first revolution it was occupied by M.
+Duplay, with whom Robespierre lodged. The room used by the great man of
+the revolution, was pointed out to me. It is small, and the ceiling low,
+with two windows looking out upon the court. The pin upon which the blue
+coat once hung, is still in the wall. While standing there, I could
+almost imagine that I saw the great "Incorruptible," sitting at the
+small table composing those speeches which gave him so much power and
+influence in the Convention and the Clubs.
+
+Here, the disciple of Rousseau sat and planned how he should outdo his
+enemies and hold on to his friends. From this room he went forth,
+followed by his dog Brunt, to take his solitary walk in a favourite and
+neighbouring field, or to the fiery discussions of the National
+Convention. In the same street, is the house in which Madame Roland--one
+of Robespierre's victims--resided.
+
+A view of the residence of one of the master spirits of the French
+revolution inclined me to search out more, and therefore I proceeded to
+the old town, and after winding through several small streets--some of
+them so narrow as not to admit more than one cab at a time--I found
+myself in the Rue de L'Ecole de Medecine, and standing in front of house
+No. 20. This was the residence, during the early days of the revolution,
+of that bloodthirsty demon in human form, Marat.
+
+I said to a butcher, whose shop was underneath, that I wanted to see La
+Chambre de Marat. He called out to the woman of the house to know if I
+could be admitted, and the reply was, that the room was used as a
+sleeping apartment, and could not be seen.
+
+As this was private property, my blue card of membership to the Congress
+was not available. But after slipping a franc into the old lady's hand,
+I was informed that the room was now ready. We entered a court and
+ascended a flight of stairs, the entrance to which is on the right; then
+crossing to the left, we were shown into a moderate-sized room on the
+first floor, with two windows looking out upon a yard. Here it was where
+the "Friend of the People" (as he styled himself,) sat and wrote those
+articles that appeared daily in his journal, urging the people to "hang
+the rich upon lamp posts." The place where the bath stood, in which he
+was bathing at the time he was killed by Charlotte Corday, was pointed
+out to us; and even something representing an old stain of blood was
+shown as the place where he was laid when taken out of the bath. The
+window, behind whose curtains the heroine hid, after she had plunged the
+dagger into the heart of the man whom she thought was the cause of the
+shedding of so much blood by the guillotine, was pointed out with a
+seeming degree of pride by the old woman.
+
+With my Guide Book in hand, I again went forth to "hunt after new
+fancies."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+After walking over the ground where the guillotine once stood, cutting
+off its hundred and fifty heads per day, and then visiting the place
+where some of the chief movers in that sanguinary revolution once
+lived, I felt little disposed to sleep, when the time for it had
+arrived. However, I was out this morning at an early hour, and on the
+Champs Elysees; and again took a walk over the place where the
+guillotine stood, when its fatal blade was sending so many unprepared
+spirits into eternity. When standing here, you have the Palace of the
+Tuileries on one side, the arch on the other; on a third, the classic
+Madeleine; and on the fourth, the National Assembly. It caused my blood
+to chill, the idea of being on the identical spot where the heads of
+Louis XVI. and his Queen, after being cut off, were held up to satisfy
+the blood-thirsty curiosity of the two hundred thousand persons that
+were assembled on the Place de la Revolution. Here Royal blood flowed as
+it never did before or since. The heads of patricians and plebians, were
+thrown into the same basket, without any regard to birth or station.
+Here Robespierre and Danton had stood again and again, and looked their
+victims in the face as they ascended the scaffold; and here, these same
+men had to mount the very scaffold that they had erected for others. I
+wandered up the Seine, till I found myself looking at the statue of
+Henry the IV. over the principal entrance of the Hotel de Ville. When we
+take into account the connection of the Hotel de Ville with the
+different revolutions, we must come to the conclusion, that it is one of
+the most remarkable buildings in Paris. The room was pointed out where
+Robespierre held his counsels, and from the windows of which he could
+look out upon the Place de Greve, where the guillotine stood before its
+removal to the Place de la Concorde. The room is large, with gilded
+hangings, splendid old-fashioned chandeliers, and a chimney-piece with
+fine antiquated carvings, that give it a venerable appearance. Here
+Robespierre not only presided at the counsels that sent hundreds to the
+guillotine; but from this same spot, he, with his brother St. Just and
+others, were dragged before the Committee of Public Safety, and thence
+to the guillotine, and justice and revenge satisfied.
+
+The window from which Lafayette addressed the people in 1830, and
+presented to them Louis Philippe, as the king, was shown to us. Here the
+poet, statesman, philosopher and orator, Lamartine, stood in February
+1848, and, by the power of his eloquence, succeeded in keeping the
+people quiet. Here he forced the mob, braved the bayonets presented to
+his breast, and, by his good reasoning, induced them to retain the
+tri-coloured flag, instead of adopting the red flag, which he considered
+the emblem of blood.
+
+Lamartine is a great heroic genius, dear to liberty and to France; and
+successive generations, as they look back upon the revolution of 1848,
+will recall to memory the many dangers which nothing but his dauntless
+courage warded off. The difficulties which his wisdom surmounted, and
+the good service that he rendered to France, can never be adequately
+estimated or too highly appreciated. It was at the Hotel de Ville that
+the Republic of 1848 was proclaimed to the people.
+
+I next paid my respects to the Column of July that stands on the spot
+formerly occupied by the Bastile. It is 163 feet in height, and on the
+top is the Genius of Liberty, with a torch in his right hand, and in the
+left a broken chain. After a fatiguing walk up a winding stair, I
+obtained a splendid view of Paris from the top of the column.
+
+I thought I should not lose the opportunity of seeing the Church de
+Notre Dame while so near to it, and, therefore, made it my next rallying
+point. No edifice connected with religion has had more interesting
+incidents occurring in it than this old church. Here Pope Pius VII.
+placed the Imperial Crown on the head of the Corsican--or rather
+Napoleon took the Crown from his hands and placed it on his own head.
+Satan dragging the wicked to ----; the rider on the red horse at the
+opening of the second seal; the blessedness of the saints; and several
+other striking sculptured figures were among the many curiosities in
+this splendid place. A hasty view from the gallery concluded my visit to
+the Notre Dame.
+
+Leaving the old church I strayed off in a direction towards the Seine,
+and passed by an old looking building of stately appearance, and
+recognised, among a throng passing in and out, a number of the members
+of the Peace Congress. I joined a party entering, and was soon in the
+presence of men with gowns on, and men with long staffs in their
+hands--and on inquiry found that I was in the Palais de Justice;
+beneath which is the Conciergerie, a noted prison. Louis XVI. and Marie
+Antoinette were tried and condemned to death here.
+
+A bas-relief, by Cortat, representing Louis in conference with his
+Counsel, is here seen. But I had visited too many places of interest
+during the day to remain long in a building surrounded by officers of
+justice, and took a stroll upon the Boulevards.
+
+The Boulevards may be termed the Regent Street of Paris, or a New Yorker
+would call them Broadway. While passing a café, my German friend Faigo,
+whose company I had enjoyed during the passage from America, recognised
+me, and I sat down and took a cup of delicious coffee for the first time
+on the side walk, in sight of hundreds who were passing up and down the
+street every hour. From three till eleven o'clock, P.M., the Boulevards
+are lined with men and women sitting before the doors of the saloons
+drinking their coffee or wines, or both at the same time, as fancy may
+dictate. All Paris appeared to be on the Boulevards, and looking as if
+the great end of this life was enjoyment.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Anxious to see as much as possible of Paris in the limited time I had to
+stay in it, I hired a cab yesterday morning and commenced with the Hotel
+des Invalids, a magnificent building, within a few minutes' walk of the
+National Assembly. On each side of the entrance gate are figures
+representing nations conquered by Louis XIV., with colossal statues of
+Mars and Minerva. The dome on the edifice is the loftiest in Paris--the
+height from the ground being 323 feet.
+
+Immediately below the dome is the tomb of the man at whose word the
+world turned pale. A statue of the Emperor Napoleon stands in the second
+piazza, and is of the finest bronze.
+
+This building is the home of the pensioned soldiers of France. It was
+enough to make one sick at the idea of war, to look upon the mangled
+bodies of these old soldiers. Men with arms and no legs; others had legs
+but no arms; some with canes and crutches, and some wheeling themselves
+about in little hand carts. About three thousand of the decayed soldiers
+were lodged in the Hotel des Invalids, at the time of my visit. Passing
+the National Assembly on my return, I spent a moment or two in it. The
+interior of this building resembles an amphitheatre. It is constructed
+to accommodate 900 members, each having a separate desk. The seat upon
+which the Duchesse of Orleans, and her son, the Comte de Paris, sat,
+when they visited the National Assembly after the flight of Louis
+Philippe, was shown with considerable alacrity. As I left the building,
+I heard that the President of the Republic was on the point of leaving
+the Elysee for St. Cloud, and with the hope of seeing the "Prisoner of
+Ham," I directed my cabman to drive me to the Elysee.
+
+In a few moments we were between two files of soldiers, and entering the
+gates of the palace. I called out to the driver and told him to stop;
+but I was too late, for we were now in front of the massive doors of the
+palace, and a liveried servant opened the cab door, bowed, and asked if
+I had an engagement with the President. You may easily "guess" his
+surprise when I told him no. In my best French, I asked the cabman why
+he had come to the palace, and was answered, "You told me to." By this
+time a number had gathered round, all making inquiries as to what I
+wanted. I told the driver to retrace his steps, and, amid the shrugs of
+their shoulders, the nods of their heads, and the laughter of the
+soldiers, I left the Elysee without even a sight of the President's
+mustaches for my trouble. This was only one of the many mistakes I made
+while in Paris.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER VII.
+
+_The Chateau at Versailles--Private apartments of Marie Antoinette--The
+Secret Door--Paintings of Raphael and David--Arc de Triomphe--Beranger
+the Poet._
+
+
+                    VERSAILLES, _August 31_.
+
+Here I am, within ten leagues of Paris, spending the time pleasantly in
+viewing the palace and grounds of the great Chateau of Louis XIV.
+Fifty-seven years ago, a mob, composed of men, women, and boys, from
+Paris, stood in front of this palace and demanded that the king should
+go with them to the capital. I have walked over the same ground where
+the one hundred thousand stood on that interesting occasion. I have been
+upon the same balcony, and stood by the window from which Maria
+Antoinette looked out upon the mob that were seeking her life.
+
+Anxious to see as much of the palace as I could, and having an offer of
+the company of my young friend, Henry G. Chapman, to go through the
+palace with me, I set out early yesterday morning, and was soon in the
+halls that had often been trod by Royal feet. We passed through the
+private, as well as the public, apartments, through the secret door by
+which Marie Antoinette had escaped from the mob of 1792, and viewed the
+room in which her faithful guards were killed, while attempting to save
+their Royal mistress. I took my seat in one of the little parlour
+carriages that had been used in days of yore for the Royal children;
+while my friend, H.G. Chapman, drew me across the room. The superb
+apartments are not now in use. Silence is written upon these walls,
+although upon them are suspended the portraits of men of whom the world
+has heard.
+
+Paintings, representing Napoleon in nearly all his battles, are here
+seen; and wherever you see the Emperor, there you will also find Murat,
+with his white plume waving above. Callot's painting of the battle of
+Marengo, Hue's of the retaking of Genoa, and Bouchat's of the 18th
+Brumaire, are of the highest order; while David has transmitted his fame
+to posterity, by his splendid painting of the Coronation of Napoleon and
+Josephine in Notre Dame. When I looked upon the many beautiful paintings
+of the last named artist, that adorn the halls of Versailles, I did not
+wonder that his fame should have saved his life, when once condemned and
+sentenced to death during the reign of terror. The guillotine was robbed
+of its intended victim, but the world gained a great painter. As Boswell
+transmitted his own name to posterity with his life of Johnson, so has
+David left his, with the magnificent paintings that are now suspended
+upon the walls of the palaces of the Louvre, the Tuileries, St. Cloud,
+Versailles, and even the little Elysee.
+
+After strolling from room to room, we found ourselves in the Salle du
+Sacre, Diane, Salon de Mars, de Mercure, and d'Apollon. I gazed with my
+eyes turned to the ceiling till I was dizzy. The Salon de la Guerre is
+covered with the most beautiful representations that the mind of man
+could conceive, or the hand accomplish. Louis XIV. is here in all his
+glory. No Marie Antoinette will ever do the honours in these halls
+again.
+
+After spending a whole day in the Palace and several mornings in the
+Gardens, I finally bid adieu to the bronze statue of Louis XIV. that
+stands in front of the Palace, and left Versailles, probably for ever.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+                    PARIS, _September 2_.
+
+I am now on the point of quitting the French Metropolis. I have occupied
+the last two days in visiting places of note in the city. I could not
+resist the inclination to pay a second visit to the Louvre. Another hour
+was spent in strolling through the Italian Hall and viewing the
+master-workmanship of Raphael, the prince of painters. Time flies, even
+in such a place as the Louvre with all its attractions; and before I had
+seen half that I wished, a ponderous clock near by reminded me of an
+engagement, and I reluctantly tore myself from the splendours of the
+place.
+
+During the rest of the day I visited the Jardin des Plantes, and spent
+an hour and a half pleasantly in walking among plants, flowers, and in
+fact everything that could be found in any garden in France. From this
+place we passed by the column of the Bastile, and paid our respects to
+the Bourse, or Exchange, one of the most superb buildings in the city.
+The ground floor and sides of the Bourse, are of fine marble, and the
+names of the chief cities in the world are inscribed on the medallions,
+which are under the upper cornice. The interior of the edifice has a
+most splendid appearance as you enter it.
+
+The Cemetery of Père la Chaise was too much talked of by many of our
+party at the Hotel for me to pass it by, so I took it after the Bourse.
+Here lie many of the great marshals of France--the resting place of each
+marked by the monument that stands over it, except one, which is marked
+only by a weeping willow and a plain stone at its head. This is the
+grave of Marshal Ney. I should not have known that it was his, but some
+unknown hand had written with black paint, "Bravest of the Brave," on
+the unlettered stone that stands at the head of the man who followed
+Napoleon through nearly all his battles, and who was shot after the
+occupation of Paris by the allied army. Peace to his ashes. During my
+ramble through this noted place, I saw several who were hanging fresh
+wreaths of everlasting flowers on the tombs of the departed.
+
+A ride in an omnibus down the Boulevards, and away up the Champs
+Elysees, brought me to the Arc de Triomphe; and after ascending a flight
+of one hundred and sixty-one steps, I was overlooking the city of
+statuary. This stupendous monument was commenced by Napoleon in 1806;
+and in 1811 it had only reached the cornice of the base, where it
+stopped, and it was left for Louis Philippe to finish. The first stone
+of this monument was laid on the 15th of August, 1806, the birth-day of
+the man whose battles it was intended to commemorate. A model of the
+arch was erected for Napoleon to pass through as he was entering the
+city with Maria Louisa, after their marriage. The inscriptions on the
+monument are many, and the different scenes here represented are all of
+the most exquisite workmanship. The genius of War is summoning the
+obedient nations to battle. Victory is here crowning Napoleon after his
+great success in 1810. Fame stands here recording the exploits of the
+warrior, while conquered cities lie beneath the whole. But it would take
+more time than I have at command to give anything like a description of
+this magnificent piece of architecture.
+
+That which seems to take most with Peace Friends, is the portion
+representing an old man taming a bull for agricultural labour; while a
+young warrior is sheathing his sword, a mother and children sitting at
+his feet, and Minerva crowned with laurels, stands shedding her
+protecting influence over them. The erection of this regal monument is
+wonderful, to hand down to posterity the triumphs of the man whom we
+first hear of as a student in the military school at Brienne, whom in
+1784 we see in the Ecole Militaire, founded by Louis XV. in 1751; whom
+again we find at No. 5, Quai de Court, near Rue de Mail; and in 1794 as
+a lodger at No. 19, Rue de la Michandère. From this he goes to the Hotel
+Mirabeau, Rue du Dauphin, where he resided when he defeated his enemies
+on the 13th Vendimaire. The Hotel de la Colonade, Rue Neuve des
+Capuchins is his next residence, and where he was married to Josephine.
+From this hotel he removed to his wife's dwelling in the Rue
+Chanteriene, No. 52. In 1796 the young general started for Italy, where
+his conquests paved the way for the ever memorable 18th Brumaire, that
+made him dictator of France. Napoleon was too great now to be satisfied
+with private dwellings, and we next trace him to the Elysee, St. Cloud,
+Versailles, the Tuileries, Fontainbleau, and finally, came his decline,
+which I need not relate to you.
+
+After visiting the Gobelins, passing through its many rooms, seeing here
+and there a half-finished piece of tapestry; and meeting a number of the
+members of the late Peace Congress, who, like myself had remained behind
+to see more of the beauties of the French capital than could be
+overtaken during the Convention week. I accepted an invitation to dine
+with a German gentleman at the Palais Royal, and was soon revelling amid
+the luxuries of the table. I was glad that I had gone to the Palais
+Royal, for here I had the honour of an introduction to M. Beranger, the
+poet; and although I had to converse with him through an interpreter, I
+enjoyed his company very much. "The people's poet," as he is called, is
+apparently about seventy years of age, bald on the top of the head, and
+rather corpulent, but of active look, and in the enjoyment of good
+health. Few writers in France have done better service to the cause of
+political and religious freedom, than Pierre Jean de Beranger. He is the
+dauntless friend and advocate of the down-trodden poor and oppressed,
+and has often incurred the displeasure of the Government by the arrows
+that he has thrown into their camp. He felt what he wrote; it came
+straight from his heart, and went directly to the hearts of the people.
+He expressed himself strongly opposed to slavery, and said, "I don't
+see how the Americans can reconcile slavery with their professed love of
+freedom." Dinner out of the way, a walk through the different
+apartments, and a stroll over the court, and I bade adieu to the Palais
+Royal, satisfied that I should partake of many worse dinners than I had
+helped to devour that day.
+
+Few nations are more courteous than the French. Here the stranger, let
+him come from what country he may, and be ever so unacquainted with the
+people and language, he is sure of a civil reply to any question that he
+may ask. With the exception of the egregious blunder I have mentioned of
+the cabman driving me to the Elysee, I was not laughed at once while in
+France.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER VIII.
+
+_Departure from Paris--Boulogne--Folkstone--London--Geo. Thompson, Esq.,
+M.P.--Hartwell House--Dr. Lee--Cottage of the Peasant--Windsor
+Castle--Residence of Wm. Penn--England's First Welcome--Heath Lodge--The
+Bank of England._
+
+
+                    LONDON, _Sept. 8th_.
+
+The sun had just appeared from behind a cloud and was setting, and its
+reflection upon the domes and spires of the great buildings in Paris
+made everything appear lovely and sublime, as the train, with almost
+lightning speed, was bringing me from the French metropolis. I gazed
+with eager eyes to catch a farewell glance of the tops of the regal
+palaces through which I had passed, during a stay of fifteen days in the
+French capital.
+
+A pleasant ride of four hours brought us to Boulogne, where we rested
+for the night. The next morning I was up at an early hour, and out
+viewing the town. Boulogne could present but little attraction, after a
+fortnight spent in seeing the lions of Paris. A return to the hotel, and
+breakfast over, we stepped on board the steamer, and were soon crossing
+the channel. Two hours more, and I was safely seated in a railway
+carriage, _en route_ to the English metropolis. We reached London at
+mid-day, where I was soon comfortably lodged at 22, Cecil Street,
+Strand. As the London lodging-houses seldom furnish dinners, I lost no
+time in seeking out a dining-saloon, which I had no difficulty in
+finding in the Strand. It being the first house of the kind I had
+entered in London, I was not a little annoyed at the politeness of the
+waiter. The first salutation I had, after seating myself in one of the
+stalls, was, "Ox tail, Sir; gravy soup; carrot soup, Sir; roast beef;
+roast pork; boiled beef; roast lamb; boiled leg of mutton, Sir, with
+caper sauce; jugged hare, Sir; boiled knuckle of veal and bacon; roast
+turkey and oyster sauce; sucking pig, Sir; curried chicken; harrico
+mutton, Sir." These, and many other dishes which I have forgotten, were
+called over with a rapidity that would have done credit to one of our
+Yankee pedlars, in crying his wares in a New England village. I was so
+completely taken by surprise, that I asked for a "bill of fare," and
+told him to leave me. No city in the world furnishes a cheaper, better,
+and quicker meal for the weary traveller, than a London eating-house.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+After spending a day in looking about through this great thoroughfare,
+the Strand, I sallied forth with letters of introduction, with which I
+had been provided by my friends before leaving America; and following
+the direction of one, I was soon at No. 6, A, Waterloo Place. A moment
+more, and I was in the presence of one of whom I had heard much, and
+whose name is as familiar to the friends of the slave in the United
+States, as household words. Although I had never seen him before, yet I
+felt a feeling akin to love for the man who had proclaimed to the
+oppressors of my race in America, the doctrine of _immediate
+emancipation_ for the slaves of the great Republic. On reaching the
+door, I sent in my letter; and it being fresh from the hands of William
+Lloyd Garrison, the champion of freedom in the New World, was calculated
+to insure me a warm reception at the hands of the distinguished M.P. for
+the Tower Hamlets. Mr. Thompson did not wait for the servant to show me
+in; but met me at the door himself, and gave me a hearty shake of the
+hand, at the same time saying, "Welcome to England. How did you leave
+Garrison." I need not add, that Mr. T. gave me the best advice, as to my
+course in Great Britain; and how I could best serve the cause of my
+enslaved countrymen. I never enjoyed three hours more agreeably than
+those I spent with Mr. T. on the occasion of my first visit. George
+Thompson's love of freedom, his labours in behalf of the American slave,
+the negroes of the West Indies, and the wronged millions of India, are
+too well known to the people of both hemispheres, to need a word of
+comment from me. With the single exception of the illustrious Garrison,
+no individual is more loved and honoured by the coloured people of
+America, and their friends than Mr. Thompson.
+
+A few days after my arrival in London, I received an invitation from
+John Lee, Esq., LL.D., whom I had met at the Peace Congress in Paris, to
+pay him a visit at his seat, near Aylesbury; and as the time was "fixed"
+by the Dr., I took the train on the appointed day, on my way to Hartwell
+House.
+
+I had heard much of the aristocracy of England, and must confess that I
+was not a little prejudiced against them. On a bright sunshine day,
+between the hours of twelve and two, I found myself seated in a
+carriage, my back turned upon Aylesbury, the vehicle whirling rapidly
+over the smooth macadamised road, and I on my first visit to an English
+gentleman. Twenty minutes' ride, and a turn to the right, and we were
+amid the fine old trees of Hartwell Park; one having suspended from its
+branches, the national banners of several different countries; among
+them, the "Stars and Stripes. I felt glad that my own country's flag had
+a place there, although Campbell's lines"--
+
+     "United States, your banner wears,
+      Two emblems,--one of fame;
+      Alas, the other that it bears,
+      Reminds us of your shame.
+      The white man's liberty in types,
+      Stands blazoned by your stars;
+      But what's the meaning of your stripes,
+      They mean your Negro-scars"--
+
+
+were at the time continually running through my mind. Arrived at the
+door, and we received what every one does who visits Dr. Lee--a hearty
+welcome. I was immediately shown into a room with a lofty ceiling, hung
+round with fine specimens of the Italian masters, and told that this was
+my apartment. Hartwell House stands in an extensive park, shaded with
+trees, that made me think of the oaks and elms in an American forest,
+and many of whose limbs had been trimmed and nursed with the best of
+care. This was for seven years the residence of John Hampden the
+patriot, and more recently that of Louis XVIII., during his exile in
+this country. The house is built on a very extensive scale, and is
+ornamented in the interior with carvings in wood of many of the kings
+and princes of bygone centuries. A room some 60 feet by 25 contains a
+variety of articles that the Dr. has collected together--the whole
+forming a museum that would be considered a sight in the Western States
+of America.
+
+The morning after my arrival at Hartwell I was up at an early hour--in
+fact, before any of the servants--wandering about through the vast
+halls, and trying to find my way out, in which I eventually succeeded,
+but not, however, without aid. It had rained the previous night, and the
+sun was peeping through a misty cloud as I strolled through the park,
+listening to the sweet voices of the birds that were fluttering in the
+tops of the trees, and trimming their wings for a morning flight. The
+silence of the night had not yet been broken by the voice of man; and I
+wandered about the vast park unannoyed, except by the dew from the grass
+that wet my slippers. Not far from the house I came abruptly upon a
+beautiful little pond of water, where the gold fish were flouncing
+about, and the gentle ripples glittering in the sunshine looked like so
+many silver minnows playing on the surface.
+
+While strolling about with pleasure, and only regretting that my dear
+daughters were not with me to enjoy the morning's walk, I saw the
+gardener on his way to the garden. I followed him, and was soon feasting
+my eyes upon the richest specimens of garden scenery. There were the
+peaches hanging upon the trees that were fastened to the wall;
+vegetables, fruit, and flowers were there in all their bloom and beauty;
+and even the variegated geranium of a warmer clime, was there in its
+hothouse home, and seemed to have forgotten that it was in a different
+country from its own. Dr. Lee shows great taste in the management of his
+garden. I have seldom seen a more splendid variety of fruits and flowers
+in the southern States of America, than I saw at Hartwell House.
+
+I should, however, state that I was not the only guest at Hartwell
+during my stay. Dr. Lee had invited several others of the American
+delegation to the Peace Congress, and two or three of the French
+delegates who were on a visit to England, were enjoying the Doctor's
+hospitality. Dr. Lee is a staunch friend of Temperance, as well as of
+the cause of universal freedom. Every year he treats his tenantry to a
+dinner, and I need not add that these are always conducted on the
+principle of total abstinence.
+
+During the second day we visited several of the cottages of the work
+people, and in these I took no little interest. The people of the United
+States know nothing of the real condition of the labouring classes of
+England. The peasants of Great Britain are always spoken of as belonging
+to the soil. I was taught in America that the English labourer was no
+better off than the slave upon a Carolina rice-field. I had seen the
+slaves in Missouri huddled together, three, four, and even five families
+in a single room not more than 15 by 25 feet square, and I expected to
+see the same in England. But in this I was disappointed. After visiting
+a new house that the Doctor was building, he took us into one of the
+cottages that stood near the road, and gave us an opportunity, of
+seeing, for the first time, an English peasant's cot. We entered a low
+whitewashed room, with a stone floor that showed an admirable degree of
+cleanness. Before us was a row of shelves filled with earthen dishes and
+pewter spoons, glittering as if they had just come from under the hand
+of a woman of taste. A Cobden loaf of bread, that had just been left by
+the baker's boy, lay upon an oaken table which had been much worn away
+with the scrubbing brush; while just above lay the old family bible that
+had been handed down from father to son, until its possession was
+considered of almost as great value as its contents. A half-open door,
+leading into another room, showed us a clean bed; the whole presenting
+as fine a picture of neatness, order, and comfort, as the most
+fastidious taste could wish to see. No occupant was present, and
+therefore I inspected everything with a greater degree of freedom. In
+front of the cottage was a small grass plot, with here and there a bed
+of flowers, cheated out of its share of sunshine by the tall holly that
+had been planted near it. As I looked upon the home of the labourer, my
+thoughts were with my enslaved countrymen. What a difference, thought I,
+there is between the tillers of the soil in England and America. There
+could not be a more complete refutation of the assertion that the
+English labourer is no better off than the American slave, than the
+scenes that were then before me. I called the attention of one of my
+American friends to a beautiful rose near the door of the cot, and said
+to him, "The law that will protect that flower will also guard and
+protect the hand that planted it." He knew that I had drank deep of the
+cup of slavery, was aware of what I meant, and merely nodded his head in
+reply. I never experienced hospitality more genuine, and yet more
+unpretending, than was meted out to me while at Hartwell. And the
+favourable impression made on my own mind, of the distinguished
+proprietor of Hartwell Park, was nearly as indelible as my humble name
+that the Doctor had engraven in a brick, in the vault beneath the
+Observatory in Hartwell House.
+
+On my return to London I accepted an invitation to join a party on a
+visit to Windsor Castle; and taking the train at the Waterloo Bridge
+Station, we were soon passing through a pleasant part of the country.
+Arrived at the castle, we committed ourselves into the hands of the
+servants, and were introduced into Her Majesty's State apartments,
+Audience Chamber, Vandyck Room, Waterloo Chambers, St. George's Hall,
+Gold Pantry, and many others whose names I have forgotten. In wandering
+about the different apartments I lost my company, and in trying to find
+them, passed through a room in which hung a magnificent portrait of
+Charles I., by Vandyck. The hum and noise of my companions had ceased,
+and I had the scene and silence to myself. I looked in vain for the
+king's evil genius (Cromwell), but he was not in the same room. The
+pencil of Sir Peter Lely has left a splendid full-length likeness of
+James II. George IV. is suspended from a peg in the wall, looking as if
+it was fresh from the hands of Sir Thomas Lawrence, its admirable
+painter. I was now in St. George's Hall, and I gazed upward to view the
+beautiful figures on the ceiling, until my neck was nearly out of joint.
+Leaving this room, I inspected with interest the ancient _keep_ of the
+castle. In past centuries this part of the palace was used as a prison.
+Here James the First of Scotland was detained a prisoner for eighteen
+years. I viewed the window through which the young prince had often
+looked to catch a glimpse of the young and beautiful Lady Jane,
+daughter of the Earl of Somerset, with whom he was enamoured.
+
+From the top of the Round Tower I had a fine view of the surrounding
+country. Stoke Park, once the residence of that great friend of humanity
+and civilization, William Penn, was among the scenes that I viewed with
+pleasure from Windsor Castle. Four years ago, when in the city of
+Philadelphia, and hunting up the places associated with the name of this
+distinguished man, and more recently when walking over the farm once
+occupied by him on the banks of the Delaware, examining the old malt
+house which is now left standing, because of the veneration with which
+the name of the man who built it is held, I had no idea that I should
+ever see the dwelling which he had occupied in the Old World. Stoke Park
+is about four miles from Windsor, and is now owned by the Right Hon.
+Henry Labouchere.
+
+The castle, standing as it does on an eminence, and surrounded by a
+beautiful valley covered with splendid villas, has the appearance of
+Gulliver looking down upon the Lilliputians. It rears its massive
+towers and irregular walls over and above every other object; it stands
+like a mountain in the desert. How full this old palace is of material
+for thought! How one could ramble here alone, or with one or two
+congenial companions, and enjoy a recapitulation of its history! But an
+engagement to be at Croydon in the evening cut short my stay at Windsor,
+and compelled me to return to town in advance of my party.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Having met with John Morland, Esq., of Heath Lodge, at Paris, he gave me
+an invitation to visit Croydon, and deliver a lecture on American
+Slavery; and last evening, at eight o'clock, I found myself in a fine
+old building in the town, and facing the first English audience that I
+had seen in the sea-girt isle. It was my first welcome in England. The
+assembly was an enthusiastic one, and made still more so by the
+appearance of George Thompson, Esq., M.P., upon the platform. It is not
+my intention to give accounts of my lectures or meetings in these pages.
+I therefore merely say, that I left Croydon with a good impression of
+the English, and Heath Lodge with a feeling that its occupant was one
+of the most benevolent of men.
+
+The same party with whom I visited Windsor being supplied with a card of
+admission to the Bank of England, I accepted an invitation to be one of
+the company. We entered the vast building at a little past twelve
+o'clock to-day. The sun threw into the large halls a brilliancy that
+seemed to light up the countenances of the almost countless number of
+clerks, who were at their desks, or serving persons at the counters. As
+nearly all my countrymen who visit London pay their respects to this
+noted institution, I shall sum up my visit to it, by saying that it
+surpassed my highest idea of a bank. But a stroll through this monster
+building of gold and silver brought to my mind an incident that occurred
+to me a year after my escape from slavery.
+
+In the autumn of 1835, having been cheated out of the previous summer's
+earnings, by the captain of the steamer in which I had been employed
+running away with the money, I was, like the rest of the men, left
+without any means of support during the winter, and therefore had to
+seek employment in the neighbouring towns. I went to the town of
+Monroe, in the state of Michigan, and while going through the principal
+streets looking for work, I passed the door of the only barber in the
+town, whose shop appeared to be filled with persons waiting to be
+shaved. As there was but one man at work, and as I had, while employed
+in the steamer, occasionally shaved a gentleman who could not perform
+that office himself, it occurred to me that I might get employment here
+as a journeyman barber. I therefore made immediate application for work,
+but the barber told me he did not need a hand. But I was not to be put
+off so easily, and after making several offers to work cheap, I frankly
+told him, that if he would not employ me I would get a room near to him,
+and set up an opposition establishment. This threat, however, made no
+impression on the barber; and as I was leaving, one of the men who were
+waiting to be shaved said, "If you want a room in which to commence
+business, I have one on the opposite side of the street." This man
+followed me out; we went over, and I looked at the room. He strongly
+urged me to set up, at the same time promising to give me his
+influence. I took the room, purchased an old table, two chairs, got a
+pole with a red stripe painted around it, and the next day opened, with
+a sign over the door, "Fashionable Hair-dresser from New York, Emperor
+of the West." I need not add that my enterprise was very annoying to the
+"shop over the way"--especially my sign, which happened to be the most
+expensive part of the concern. Of course, I had to tell all who came in
+that my neighbour on the opposite side did not keep clean towels, that
+his razors were dull, and, above all, he had never been to New York to
+see the fashions. Neither had I. In a few weeks I had the entire
+business of the town, to the great discomfiture of the other barber.
+
+At this time, money matters in the Western States were in a sad
+condition. Any person who could raise a small amount of money was
+permitted to establish a bank, and allowed to issue notes for four times
+the sum raised. This being the case, many persons borrowed money merely
+long enough to exhibit to the bank inspectors, and the borrowed money
+was returned, and the bank left without a dollar in its vaults, if,
+indeed, it had a vault about its premises. The result was, that banks
+were started all over the Western States, and the country flooded with
+worthless paper. These were known as the "Wild Cat Banks." Silver coin
+being very scarce, and the banks not being allowed to issue notes for a
+smaller amount than one dollar, several persons put out notes from 6 to
+75 cents in value; these were called "Shinplasters." The Shinplaster was
+in the shape of a promissory note, made payable on demand. I have often
+seen persons with large rolls of these bills, the whole not amounting to
+more than five dollars. Some weeks after I had commenced business on my
+"own hook," I was one evening very much crowded with customers; and
+while they were talking over the events of the day, one of them said to
+me, "Emperor, you seem to be doing a thriving business. You should do as
+other business men, issue your Shinplasters." This, of course, as it was
+intended, created a laugh; but with me it was no laughing matter, for
+from that moment I began to think seriously of becoming a banker. I
+accordingly went a few days after to a printer, and he, wishing to get
+the job of printing, urged me to put out my notes, and showed me some
+specimens of engravings that he had just received from Detroit. My head
+being already filled with the idea of a bank, I needed but little
+persuasion to set the thing finally afloat. Before I left the printer
+the notes were partly in type, and I studying how I should keep the
+public from counterfeiting them. The next day my Shinplasters were
+handed to me, the whole amount being twenty dollars, and after being
+duly signed were ready for circulation. At first my notes did not take
+well; they were too new, and viewed with a suspicious eye. But through
+the assistance of my customers, and a good deal of exertion on my own
+part, my bills were soon in circulation; and nearly all the money
+received in return for my notes was spent in fitting up and decorating
+my shop.
+
+Few bankers get through this world without their difficulties, and I was
+not to be an exception. A short time after my money had been out, a
+party of young men, either wishing to pull down my vanity, or to try
+the soundness of my bank, determined to give it "a run." After
+collecting together a number of my bills, they came one at a time to
+demand other money for them, and I, not being aware of what was going
+on, was taken by surprise. One day as I was sitting at my table,
+strapping some new razors I had just got with the avails of my
+"Shinplasters," one of the men entered and said, "Emperor, you will
+oblige me if you will give me some other money for these notes of
+yours." I immediately cashed the notes with the most worthless of the
+Wild Cat money that I had on hand, but which was a lawful tender. The
+young man had scarcely left when a second appeared with a similar
+amount, and demanded payment. These were cashed, and soon a third came
+with his roll of notes. I paid these with an air of triumph, although I
+had but half a dollar left. I began now to think seriously what I should
+do, or how to act, provided another demand should be made. While I was
+thus engaged in thought, I saw the fourth man crossing the street, with
+a handful of notes, evidently my "Shinplasters." I instantaneously shut
+the door, and looking out of the window, said, "I have closed business
+for the day: come to-morrow and I will see you." In looking across the
+street, I saw my rival standing in his shop-door, grinning and clapping
+his hands at my apparent downfall. I was completely "done _Brown_" for
+the day. However, I was not to be "used up" in this way; so I escaped by
+the back door, and went in search of my friend who had first suggested
+to me the idea of issuing notes. I found him, told him of the difficulty
+I was in, and wished him to point out a way by which I might extricate
+myself. He laughed heartily, and then said, "You must act as all bankers
+do in this part of the country." I inquired how they did, and he said,
+"When your notes are brought to you, you must redeem them, and then send
+them out and get other money for them; and, with the latter, you can
+keep cashing your own Shinplasters." This was indeed a new job to me. I
+immediately commenced putting in circulation the notes which I had just
+redeemed, and my efforts were crowned with so much success, that before
+I slept that night my "Shinplasters" were again in circulation, and my
+bank once more on a sound basis.
+
+As I saw the clerks shovelling out the yellow coin upon the counters of
+the Bank of England, and men coming in and going out with weighty bags
+of the precious metal in their hands, or on their shoulders, I could not
+but think of the great contrast between the monster Institution, within
+whose walls I was then standing, and the Wild Cat Banks of America!
+
+
+
+
+LETTER IX.
+
+_The British Museum--A Portrait--Night Reading--A Dark Day--A Fugitive
+Slave on the Streets of London,--A Friend in the time of need._
+
+
+                    LONDON, _Sept. 24_.
+
+I have devoted the past ten days to sight-seeing in the Metropolis--the
+first two of which were spent in the British Museum. After procuring a
+guide-book at the door as I entered, I seated myself on the first seat
+that caught my eye, arranged as well as I could in my mind the different
+rooms, and then commenced in good earnest. The first part I visited was
+the Gallery of Antiquities, through to the north gallery, and thence
+to the Lycian Room. This place is filled with tombs, bas-reliefs,
+statues, and other productions of the same art. Venus, seated, and
+smelling a lotus flower which she held in her hand, and attended by
+three graces, put a stop to the rapid strides that I was making through
+this part of the hall. This is really one of the most precious
+productions of the art that I have ever seen. Many of the figures in
+this room are very much mutilated, yet one can linger here for hours
+with interest. A good number of the statues are of uncertain date; they
+are of great value as works of art, and more so as a means of
+enlightening much that has been obscure with respect to Lycia, an
+ancient and celebrated country of Asia Minor.
+
+In passing through the eastern Zoological Gallery, I was surrounded on
+every side by an army of portraits suspended upon the walls; and among
+these was the Protector. The people of one century kicks his bones
+through the streets of London, another puts his portrait in the British
+Museum, and a future generation may possibly give him a place in
+Westminster Abbey. Such is the uncertainty of the human character.
+Yesterday, a common soldier--to-day, the ruler of an empire--to-morrow,
+suspended upon the gallows. In an adjoining room I saw a portrait of
+Baxter, which gives one a pretty good idea of the great Nonconformist.
+In the same room hung a splendid modern portrait, without any intimation
+in the guide-book of who it represented, or when it was painted. It was
+so much like one whom I had seen, and on whom my affections were placed
+in my younger days, that I obtained a seat from an adjoining room and
+rested myself before it. After sitting half an hour or more, I wandered
+to another part of the building, but only to return again to my "first
+love," where I remained till the throng had disappeared one after
+another, and the officer reminding me that it was time to close.
+
+It was eight o'clock before I reached my lodgings. Although fatigued by
+the day's exertions, I again resumed the reading of Roscoe's "Leo X.,"
+and had nearly finished seventy-three pages, when the clock on St.
+Martin's Church apprised me that it was two. He who escapes from slavery
+at the age of twenty years, without any education, as did the writer of
+this letter, must read when others are asleep, if he would catch up with
+the rest of the world. "To be wise," says Pope, "is but to know how
+little can be known." The true searcher after truth and knowledge is
+always like a child; although gaining strength from year to year, he
+still "learns to labour and to wait." The field of labour is ever
+expanding before him, reminding him that he has yet more to learn;
+teaching him that he is nothing more than a child in knowledge, and
+inviting him onward with a thousand varied charms. The son may take
+possession of the father's goods at his death, but he cannot inherit
+with the property the father's cultivated mind. He may put on the
+father's old coat, but that is all: the immortal mind of the first
+wearer has gone to the tomb.
+
+Property may be bequeathed, but knowledge cannot. Then let him who
+would be useful in his day and generation be up and doing. Like the
+Chinese student who learned perseverance from the woman whom he saw
+trying to rub a crow-bar into a needle, so should we take the experience
+of the past to lighten our feet through the paths of the future.
+
+The next morning at ten, I was again at the door of the great building;
+was soon within its walls seeing what time would not allow of the
+previous day. I spent some hours in looking through glass cases, viewing
+specimens of minerals, such as can scarcely be found in any place out of
+the British Museum. During this day I did not fail to visit the great
+Library. It is a spacious room, surrounded with large glass cases filled
+with volumes, whose very look tells you that they are of age. Around,
+under the cornice, were arranged a number of old black-looking
+portraits, in all probability the authors of some of the works in the
+glass cases beneath. About the room were placed long tables, with stands
+for reading and writing, and around these were a number of men busily
+engaged in looking over some chosen author. Old men with grey hairs,
+young men with mustaches--some in cloth, others in fustian, indicating
+that men of different rank can meet here. Not a single word was spoken
+during my stay, all appearing to enjoy the silence that reigned
+throughout the great room. This is indeed a retreat from the world. No
+one inquires who the man is who is at his side, and each pursues in
+silence his own researches. The racing of pens over the sheets of paper
+was all that disturbed the stillness of the occasion.
+
+From the Library I strolled to other rooms, and feasted my eyes on what
+I had never before seen. He who goes over this immense building, cannot
+do so without a feeling of admiration for the men whose energy has
+brought together this vast and wonderful collection of things, the like
+of which cannot be found in any other museum in the world. The
+reflection of the setting sun against a mirror in one of the rooms, told
+me that night was approaching, and I had but a moment in which to take
+another look at the portrait that I had seen the previous day, and then
+bade adieu to the Museum.
+
+Having published the narrative of my life and escape from slavery, and
+put it into the booksellers' hands--and seeing a prospect of a fair
+sale, I ventured to take from my purse the last sovereign to make up a
+small sum to remit to the United States, for the support of my daughter,
+who is at school there. Before doing this, however, I had made
+arrangements to attend a public meeting in the city of Worcester, at
+which the mayor was to preside. Being informed by the friends of the
+slave there, that I would, in all probability, sell a number of copies
+of my book, and being told that Worcester was only ten miles from
+London, I felt safe in parting with all but a few shillings, feeling
+sure that my purse would soon be again replenished. But you may guess my
+surprise when I learned that Worcester was above a hundred miles from
+London, and that I had not retained money enough to defray my expenses
+to the place. In my haste and wish to make up the ten pounds to send to
+my children, I had forgotten that the payment for my lodgings would be
+demanded before I should leave town. Saturday morning came; I paid my
+lodging bill, and had three shillings and fourpence left; and out of
+this sum I was to get three dinners, as I was only served with breakfast
+and tea at my lodgings. Nowhere in the British empire do the people
+witness as dark days as in London. It was on Monday morning, in the fore
+part of October, as the clock on St. Martin's Church was striking ten,
+that I left my lodgings, and turned into the Strand. The street lamps
+were yet burning, and the shops were all lighted as if day had not made
+its appearance. This great thoroughfare, as usual at this time of the
+day, was thronged with business men going their way, and women
+sauntering about for pleasure or for the want of something better to do.
+I passed down the Strand to Charing Cross, and looked in vain to see the
+majestic statue of Nelson upon the top of the great shaft. The clock on
+St. Martin's Church struck eleven, but my sight could not penetrate
+through the dark veil that hung between its face and me. In fact, day
+had been completely turned into night; and the brilliant lights from the
+shop windows almost persuaded me that another day had not appeared.
+Turning, I retraced my steps, and was soon passing through the massive
+gates of Temple Bar, wending my way to the city, when a beggar boy at my
+heels accosted me for a half-penny to buy bread. I had scarcely served
+the boy, when I observed near by, and standing close to a lamp post, a
+coloured man, and from his general appearance I was satisfied that he
+was an American. He eyed me attentively as I passed him, and seemed
+anxious to speak. When I had got some distance from him I looked back,
+and his eyes were still upon me. No longer able to resist the temptation
+to speak with him, I returned, and commencing conversation with him,
+learned a little of his history, which was as follows. He had, he said,
+escaped from slavery in Maryland, and reached New York; but not feeling
+himself secure there, he had, through the kindness of the captain of an
+English ship, made his way to Liverpool; and not being able to get
+employment there, he had come up to London. Here he had met with no
+better success; and having been employed in the growing of tobacco, and
+being unaccustomed to any other work, he could not get to labour in
+England. I told him he had better try to get to the West Indies; but he
+informed me that he had not a single penny, and that he had nothing to
+eat that day. By this man's story, I was moved to tears; and going to a
+neighbouring shop, I took from my purse my last shilling, changed it,
+and gave this poor brother fugitive one-half. The poor man burst into
+tears as I placed the sixpence in his hand, and said--"You are the first
+friend I have met in London." I bade him farewell, and left him with a
+feeling of regret that I could not place him beyond the reach of want. I
+went on my way to the city, and while going through Cheapside, a streak
+of light appeared in the east that reminded me that it was not night. In
+vain I wandered from street to street, with the hope that I might meet
+some one who would lend me money enough to get to Worcester. Hungry and
+fatigued I was returning to my lodgings, when the great clock of St
+Paul's Church, under whose shadow I was then passing, struck four. A
+stroll through Fleet Street and the Strand, and I was again pacing my
+room. On my return, I found a letter from Worcester had arrived in my
+absence, informing me that a party of gentlemen would meet me the next
+day on my reaching that place; and saying, "Bring plenty of books, as
+you will doubtless sell a large number." The last sixpence had been
+spent for postage stamps, in order to send off some letters to other
+places, and I could not even stamp a letter in answer to the one last
+from Worcester. The only vestige of money about me was a smooth farthing
+that a little girl had given to me at the meeting at Croydon, saying,
+"This is for the slaves." I was three thousand miles from home, with but
+a single farthing in my pocket! Where on earth is a man without money
+more destitute? The cold hills of the Arctic regions have not a more
+inhospitable appearance than London to the stranger with an empty
+pocket. But whilst I felt depressed at being in such a sad condition, I
+was conscious that I had done right in remitting the last ten pounds to
+America. It was for the support of those whom God had committed to my
+care, and whom I love as I can no others. I had no friend in London to
+whom I could apply for temporary aid. My friend, Mr. Thompson, was out
+of town, and I did not know his address. The dark day was rapidly
+passing away--the clock in the hall had struck six. I had given up all
+hopes of reaching Worcester the next day, and had just rung the bell for
+the servant to bring me some tea, when a gentle tap at the door was
+heard--the servant entered, and informed me that a gentleman below was
+wishing to see me. I bade her fetch a light and ask him up. The stranger
+was my young friend Frederick Stevenson, son of the excellent minister
+of the Borough Road Chapel. I had lectured in this chapel a few days
+previous; and this young gentleman, with more than ordinary zeal and
+enthusiasm for the cause of bleeding humanity, and respect for me, had
+gone amongst his father's congregation and sold a number of copies of my
+book, and had come to bring me the money. I wiped the silent tear from
+my eyes as the young man placed the thirteen half-crowns in my hand. I
+did not let him know under what obligation I was to him for this
+disinterested act of kindness. He does not know to this day what aid he
+has rendered to a stranger in a strange land, and I feel that I am but
+discharging in a trifling degree, my debt of gratitude to this young
+gentleman, in acknowledging my obligation to him. As the man who called
+for bread and cheese, when feeling in his pocket for the last threepence
+to pay for it, found a sovereign that he was not aware he possessed,
+countermanded the order for the lunch, and bade them bring him the best
+dinner they could get; so I told the servant when she brought the tea,
+that I had changed my mind, and should go out to dine. With the means in
+my pocket of reaching Worcester the next day, I sat down to dinner at
+the Adelphi with a good cut of roast beef before me, and felt myself
+once more at home. Thus ended a dark day in London.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER X.
+
+_The Whittington Club--Louis Blanc--Street Amusements--Tower of
+London--Westminster Abbey--National Gallery--Dante--Sir Joshua
+Reynolds._
+
+
+                    LONDON, _October 10_.
+
+For some days past, Sol has not shown his face, clouds have obscured the
+sky, and the rain has fallen in torrents, which has contributed much to
+the general gloom. However, I have spent the time in as agreeable a
+manner as I well could. Yesterday I fulfilled an engagement to dine with
+a gentleman at the Whittington Club. One who is unacquainted with the
+Club system as carried on in London, can scarcely imagine the
+conveniences they present. Every member appears to be at home, and all
+seem to own a share in the Club. There is a free-and-easy way with those
+who frequent Clubs, and a licence given there that is unknown in the
+drawing-room of the private mansion. I met the gentleman at the Club, at
+the appointed hour, and after his writing my name in the visitors'
+book, we proceeded to the dining-room, where we partook of a good
+dinner.
+
+We had been in the room but a short time, when a small man, dressed in
+black, with his coat buttoned up to the chin, entered the saloon, and
+took a seat at the table hard by. My friend in a low whisper informed me
+that this person was one of the French refugees. He was apparently not
+more than thirty years of age, and exceedingly good looking--his person
+being slight, his feet and hands very small and well shaped, especially
+his hands, which were covered with kid gloves, so tightly drawn on, that
+the points of the finger nails were visible through them. His face was
+mild and almost womanly in its beauty, his eyes soft and full, his brow
+open and ample, his features well defined, and approaching to the ideal
+Greek in contour; the lines about his mouth were exquisitely sweet, and
+yet resolute in expression; his hair was short--his having no mustaches
+gave him nothing of the look of a Frenchman; and I was not a little
+surprised when informed that the person before me was Louis Blanc. I
+could scarcely be persuaded to believe that one so small, so child-like
+in stature, had taken a prominent part in the Revolution of 1848. He
+held in his hand a copy of _La Presse_, and as soon as he was seated,
+opened it and began to devour its contents. The gentleman with whom I
+was dining was not acquainted with him, but at the close of our dinner
+he procured me an introduction through another gentleman.
+
+As we were returning to our lodgings, we saw in Exeter Street, Strand,
+one of those exhibitions that can be seen in almost any of the streets
+in the suburbs of the Metropolis, but which is something of a novelty to
+those from the other side of the Atlantic. This was an exhibition of
+"Punch and Judy." Everything was in full operation when we reached the
+spot. A puppet appeared eight or ten inches from the waist upwards, with
+an enormous face, huge nose, mouth widely grinning, projecting chin,
+cheeks covered with grog blossoms, a large protuberance on his back,
+another on his chest; yet with these deformities he appeared uncommonly
+happy. This was Mr. Punch. He held in his right hand a tremendous
+bludgeon, with which he amused himself by rapping on the head every one
+who came within his reach. This exhibition seems very absurd, yet not
+less than one hundred were present--children, boys, old men, and even
+gentlemen and ladies, were standing by, and occasionally greeting the
+performer with the smile of approbation. Mr. Punch, however, was not to
+have it all his own way, for another and better sort of Punch-like
+exhibition appeared a few yards off, that took away Mr. Punch's
+audience, to the great dissatisfaction of that gentleman. This was an
+exhibition called the Fantoccini, and far superior to any of the street
+performances which I have yet seen. The curtain rose and displayed a
+beautiful theatre in miniature, and most gorgeously painted. The organ
+which accompanied it struck up a hornpipe, and a sailor, dressed in his
+blue jacket, made his appearance and commenced keeping time with the
+utmost correctness. This figure was not so long as Mr. Punch, but much
+better looking. At the close of the hornpipe the little sailor made a
+bow, and tripped off, apparently conscious of having deserved the
+undivided applause of the bystanders. The curtain dropped; but in two
+or three minutes it was again up, and a rope was discovered, extended on
+two cross pieces, for dancing upon. The tune was changed to an air, in
+which the time was marked, a graceful figure appeared, jumped upon the
+rope with its balance pole, and displayed all the manoeuvres of an
+expert performer on the tight rope. Many who would turn away in disgust
+from Mr. Punch, will stand for hours and look at the performances of the
+Fantoccini. If people, like the Vicar of Wakefield, will sometimes
+"allow themselves to be happy," they can hardly fail to have a hearty
+laugh at the drolleries of the Fantoccini. There may be degrees of
+absurdity in the manner of wasting our time, but there is an evident
+affectation in decrying these humble and innocent exhibitions, by those
+who will sit till two or three in the morning to witness a pantomime at
+a theatre-royal.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+An autumn sun shone brightly through a remarkably transparent atmosphere
+this morning, which was a most striking contrast to the weather we have
+had during the past three days; and I again set out to see some of the
+lions of the city, commencing with the Tower of London. Every American,
+on returning home from a visit to the old world, speaks with pride of
+the places he saw while in Europe; and of the many resorts of interest
+he has read of, few have made a more lasting impression upon his memory
+than the Tower of London. The stories of the imprisoning of kings, and
+queens, the murdering of princes, the torturing of men and women,
+without regard to birth, education, or station, and of the burning and
+rebuilding of the old pile, have all sunk deep into his heart. A walk of
+twenty minutes, after being set down at the Bank by an omnibus, brought
+me to the gate of the Tower. A party of friends who were to meet me
+there had not arrived, so I had an opportunity of inspecting the grounds
+and taking a good view of the external appearance of the old and
+celebrated building. The Tower is surrounded by a high wall, and around
+this a deep ditch partly filled with stagnated water. The wall incloses
+twelve acres of ground on which stand the several towers, occupying,
+with their walks and avenues, the whole space. The most ancient part of
+the building is called the "White Tower," so as to distinguish it from
+the parts more recently built. Its walls are seventeen feet in
+thickness, and ninety-two in height, exclusive of the turrets, of which
+there are four. My company arrived, and we entered the tower through
+four massive gates, the innermost one being pointed out as the "Water,
+or Traitors' Gate"--so called from the fact that it opened to the river,
+and through it the criminals were usually brought to the prison within.
+But this passage is now closed up. We visited the various apartments in
+the old building. The room in the Bloody Tower, where the infant princes
+were put to death by the command of their uncle, Richard III.; also, the
+recess behind the gate where the bones of the young princes were
+concealed, were shown to us. The warden of the prison who showed us
+through, seemed to have little or no veneration for Henry VIII.; for he
+often cracked a joke, or told a story at the expense of the murderer of
+Anne Boleyn. The old man wiped the tear from his eye, as he pointed out
+the grave of Lady Jane Grey. This was doubtless one of the best as well
+as most innocent of those who lost their lives in the Tower; young,
+virtuous, and handsome, she became a victim to the ambition of her own
+and her husband's relations. I tried to count the names on the wall in
+"Beauchamp's Tower," but they were too numerous. Anne Boleyn was
+imprisoned here. The room in the "Brick Tower," where Lady Jane Grey was
+imprisoned, was pointed out as a place of interest. We were next shown
+into the "White Tower." We passed through a long room filled with many
+things having a warlike appearance; and among them a number of
+equestrian figures, as large as life, and clothed in armour and
+trappings of the various reigns from Edward I. to James II., or from
+1272 to 1685. Elizabeth, or the "Maiden Queen," as the warden called
+her, was the most imposing of the group; she was on a cream coloured
+charger. We left the Maiden Queen to examine the cloak upon which
+General Wolf died, at the storming of Quebec. In this room Sir Walter
+Raleigh was imprisoned, and here was written his "History of the
+World." In his own hand, upon the wall, is written, "Be thou faithful
+unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life." His Bible is still
+shown, with these memorable lines written in it by himself a short time
+before his death:--
+
+   "Even such is Time that takes on trust,
+    Our youth, our joy, our all we have,
+    And pays us but with age and dust;
+    Who in the dark and silent grave,
+    When we have wandered all our ways,
+    Shuts up the story of our days."
+
+
+Spears, battle-axes, pikes, helmets, targets, bows and arrows, and many
+instruments of torture, whose names I did not learn, grace the walls of
+this room. The block on which the Earl of Essex and Anne Boleyn were
+beheaded, was shown among other objects of interest. A view of the
+"Queen's Jewels" closed our visit to the Tower. The Gold Staff of St.
+Edward, and the Baptismal Font used at the Royal christenings, made of
+solid silver, and more than four feet high, were among the jewels here
+exhibited. The Sword of Justice was there, as if to watch the rest of
+the valuables. However, this was not the sword that Peter used. Our
+acquaintance with De Foe, Sir Walter Raleigh, Chaucer, and James
+Montgomery, through their writings, and the knowledge that they had been
+incarcerated within the walls of the bastile that we were just leaving,
+caused us to look back again and again upon its dark grey turrets.
+
+I closed the day with a look at the interior of St. Paul's Cathedral. A
+service was just over, and we met a crowd coming out as we entered the
+great building. "Service is over, and two pence for all that wants to
+stay," was the first sound that caught our ears. In the Burlesque of
+"Esmeralda," a man is met in the belfry of the Notre Dame at Paris, and
+being asked for money by one of the vergers says:--
+
+   "I paid three pence at the door,
+    And since I came in a great deal more:
+    Upon my honour you have emptied my purse,
+    St. Paul's Cathedral could not do worse."
+
+
+I felt inclined to join in this sentiment before I left the church. A
+fine statue of "Surly Sam" Johnson was one of the first things that
+caught our eyes on looking around. A statue of Sir Edward Packenham,
+who fell at the Battle of New Orleans, was on the opposite side of the
+great hall. As we had walked over the ground where this General fell, we
+viewed his statue with more than ordinary interest. We were taken from
+one scene of interest to another, until we found ourselves in the
+"Whispering Gallery." From the dome we had a splendid view of the
+Metropolis of the world. A scaffold was erected up here to enable an
+artist to take sketches from which a panorama of London was painted. The
+artist was three years at work. The painting is now exhibited at the
+Colosseum; but the brain of the artist was turned, and he died insane!
+Indeed, one can scarcely conceive how it could be otherwise. You in
+America have no idea of the immensity of this building. Pile together
+half-a-dozen of the largest churches in New York or Boston, and you will
+have but a faint representation of St. Paul's Cathedral.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I have just returned from a stroll of two hours through Westminster
+Abbey. We entered the building at a door near Poets' Corner, and,
+naturally enough, looked around for the monuments of the men whose
+imaginative powers have contributed so much to instruct and amuse
+mankind. I was not a little disappointed in the few I saw. In almost any
+church-yard you may see monuments and tombs far superior to anything in
+the Poets' Corner. A few only have monuments. Shakspere, who wrote of
+man to man, and for man to the end of time, is honoured with one.
+Addison's monument is also there; but the greater number have nothing
+more erected to their memories than busts or medallions. Poets' Corner
+is not splendid in appearance, yet I observed visiters lingering about
+it, as if they were tied to the spot by love and veneration for some
+departed friend. All seemed to regard it as classic ground. No sound
+louder than a whisper was heard during the whole time, except the verger
+treading over the marble floor with a light step. There is great
+pleasure in sauntering about the tombs of those with whom we are
+familiar through their writings; and we tear ourselves from their ashes,
+as we would from those of a bosom friend. The genius of these men
+spreads itself over the whole panorama of Nature, giving us one vast and
+varied picture, the colour of which will endure to the end of time. None
+can portray like the poet the passions of the human soul. The statue of
+Addison, clad in his dressing-gown, is not far from that of Shakspere.
+He looks as if he had just left the study, after finishing some chosen
+paper for the _Spectator_. This memento of a great man, was the work of
+the British public. Such a mark of national respect was but justice to
+one who has contributed more to purify and raise the standard of English
+literature, than any man of his day. We next visited the other end of
+the same transept, near the northern door. Here lie Mansfield, Chatham,
+Fox, the second William Pitt, Grattan, Wilberforce, and a few other
+statesmen. But, above all, is the stately monument to the Earl of
+Chatham. In no other place so small, do so many great men lie together.
+To these men, whose graves strangers from all parts of the world wish to
+view, the British public are in a great measure indebted for England's
+fame. The high pre-eminence which England has so long enjoyed and
+maintained in the scale of empire, has constantly been the boast and
+pride of the English people. The warm panegyrics that have been lavished
+on her constitution and laws--the songs chaunted to celebrate her
+glory--the lustre of her arms, as the glowing theme of her warriors--the
+thunder of her artillery in proclaiming her moral prowess, her flag
+being unfurled to every breeze and ocean, rolling to her shores the
+tribute of a thousand realms--show England to be the greatest nation in
+the world, and speak volumes for the great departed, as well as for
+those of the living present. One requires no company, no amusements, no
+books in such a place as this. Time and death have placed within those
+walls sufficient to occupy the mind, if one should stay here a week.
+
+On my return, I spent an hour very pleasantly in the National Academy,
+in the same building as the National Gallery. Many of the paintings here
+are of a fine order. Oliver Cromwell looking upon the headless corpse of
+King Charles I., appeared to draw the greatest number of spectators. A
+scene from "As You Like it," was one of the best executed pieces we saw.
+This was "Rosalind, Celia, and Orlando." The artist did himself and the
+subject great credit. Kemble, in Hamlet, with that ever memorable skull
+in his hand, was one of the pieces which we viewed with no little
+interest. It is strange that Hamlet is always represented as a thin,
+lean man, when the Hamlet of Shakspere was a fat, John Bull-kind of a
+man. But the best piece in the Gallery was "Dante meditating the episode
+of Francesca da Rimini and Paolo Malatesta, S'Inferno, Canto V." Our
+first interest for the great Italian poet was created by reading Lord
+Byron's poem, "The Lament of Dante." From that hour we felt like
+examining everything connected with the great Italian poet. The history
+of poets, as well as painters, is written in their works. The best
+written life of Goldsmith is to be found in his poem of "The Traveller,"
+and his novel of "The Vicar of Wakefield." Boswell could not have
+written a better life of himself than he has done in giving the
+Biography of Dr. Johnson. It seems clear that no one can be a great poet
+without having been sometime during life a lover, and having lost the
+object of his affection in some mysterious way. Burns had his Highland
+Mary, Byron his Mary, and Dante was not without his Beatrice. Whether
+there ever lived such a person as Beatrice seems to be a question upon
+which neither of his biographers have thrown much light. However, a
+Beatrice existed in the poet's mind, if not on earth. His attachment to
+Beatrice Portinari, and the linking of her name with the immortality of
+his great poem, left an indelible impression upon his future character.
+The marriage of the object of his affections to another, and her
+subsequent death, and the poet's exile from his beloved Florence,
+together with his death amongst strangers--all give an interest to the
+poet's writings, which could not be heightened by romance itself. When
+exiled and in poverty, Dante found a friend in the father of Francesca.
+And here, under the roof of his protector, he wrote his great poem. The
+time the painter has chosen is evening. Day and night meet in mid-air:
+one star is alone visible. Sailing in vacancy are the shadows of the
+lovers. The countenance of Francesca is expressive of hopeless agony.
+The delineations are sublime, the conception is of the highest order,
+and the execution admirable. Dante is seated in a marble vestibule, in a
+meditating attitude, the face partly concealed by the right hand upon
+which it is resting. On the whole, it is an excellently painted piece,
+and causes one to go back with a fresh relish to the Italian's
+celebrated poem. In coming out, we stopped a short while in the upper
+room of the Gallery, and spent a few minutes over a painting
+representing Mrs. Siddons in one of Shakspere's characters. This is by
+Sir Joshua Reynolds, and is only one of the many pieces that we have
+seen of this great artist. His genius was vast, and powerful in its
+grasp. His fancy fertile, and his inventive faculty inexhaustible in its
+resources. He displayed the very highest powers of genius by the
+thorough originality of his conceptions, and by the entirely new path
+that he struck out in art. Well may Englishmen be proud of his name. And
+as time shall step between his day and those that follow after him, the
+more will his works be appreciated. We have since visited his grave,
+and stood over his monument in St. Paul's.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XI.
+
+_York Minster--The Great Organ--Newcastle-on-Tyne--The Labouring
+Classes--The American Slave--Sheffield--James Montgomery._
+
+
+                    _January, 1850_.
+
+Some days since, I left the Metropolis to fulfil a few engagements to
+visit provincial towns; and after a ride of nearly eight hours, we were
+in sight of the ancient city of York. It was night, the moon was in her
+zenith, and there seemed nothing between her and the earth but
+glittering gold. The moon, the stars, and the innumerable gas-lights,
+gave the city a panoramic appearance. Like a mountain starting out of a
+plain, there stood the Cathedral in all its glory, looking down upon the
+surrounding buildings, with all the appearance of a Gulliver standing
+over the Lilliputians. Night gave us no opportunity to view the
+Minster. However, we were up the next morning before the sun, and
+walking round the Cathedral with a degree of curiosity seldom excited
+within us. It is thought that a building of the same dimensions would
+take fifty years to complete it at the present time, even with all the
+improvements of the nineteenth century, and would cost no less than the
+enormous sum of two millions of pounds sterling. From what I had heard
+of this famous Cathedral, my expectations were raised to the highest
+point; but it surpassed all the idea that I had formed of it. On
+entering the building, we lost all thought of the external appearance by
+the matchless beauty of the interior. The echo produced by the tread of
+our feet upon the floor as we entered, resounding through the aisles,
+seemed to say "Put off your shoes, for the place whereon you tread is
+holy ground." We stood with hat in hand, and gazed with wonder and
+astonishment down the incomparable vista of more than five hundred feet.
+The organ, which stands near the centre of the building, is said to be
+one of the finest in the world. A wall, in front of which is a screen
+of the most gorgeous and florid architecture and executed in solid
+stone, separates the nave from the service choir. The beautiful
+workmanship of this makes it appear so perfect, as almost to produce the
+belief that it is tracery work of wood. We ascended the rough stone
+steps through a winding stair to the turrets, where we had such a view
+of the surrounding country, as can be obtained from no other place. On
+the top of the centre and highest turret, is a grotesque figure of a
+fiddler; rather a strange looking object, we thought, to occupy the most
+elevated pinnacle on the house of God. All dwellings in the
+neighbourhood appear like so many dwarfs couching at the feet of the
+Minster; while its own vastness and beauty impress the observer with
+feelings of awe and sublimity. As we stood upon the top of this
+stupendous mountain of ecclesiastical architecture, and surveyed the
+picturesque hills and valleys around, imagination recalled the tumult of
+the sanguinary battles fought in sight of the edifice. The rebellion of
+Octavius near three thousand years ago, his defeat and flight to the
+Scots, his return and triumph over the Romans, and being crowned king
+of all Britain; the assassination of Oswald king of the Northumbrians;
+the flaying alive of Osbert; the crowning of Richard III; the siege by
+William the Conqueror; the siege by Cromwell, and the pomp and splendour
+with which the different monarchs had been received in York, all
+appeared to be vividly before me. While we were thus calling to our aid
+our knowledge of history, a sweet peal from the lungs of the ponderous
+organ below cut short our stay among the turrets, and we descended to
+have our organ of tune gratified, as well as to finish the inspection of
+the interior.
+
+I have heard the sublime melodies of Handel, Hayden, and Mozart,
+performed by the most skilful musicians; I have listened with delight
+and awe to the soul-moving compositions of those masters, as they have
+been chaunted in the most magnificent churches; but never did I hear
+such music, and played upon such an instrument, as that sent forth by
+the great organ in the Cathedral of York. The verger took much delight
+in showing us the Horn that was once mounted with gold, but is now
+garnished with brass. We viewed the monuments and tombs of the departed,
+and then spent an hour before the great north window. The designs on the
+painted glass, which tradition states was given to the church by five
+virgin sisters, is the finest thing of the kind in Great Britain. I felt
+a relief on once more coming into the open air and again beholding
+Nature's own sun-light. The splendid ruins of St. Mary's Abbey, with its
+eight beautiful light gothic windows, next attracted our attention. A
+visit to the Castle finished our stay in York; and as we were leaving
+the old city we almost imagined that we heard the chiming of the bells
+for the celebration of the first Christian Sabbath, with Prince Arthur
+as the presiding genius.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+England stands pre-eminently the first government in the world for
+freedom of speech and of the press. Not even in our own beloved America,
+can the man who feels himself oppressed speak as he can in Great
+Britain. In some parts of England, however, the freedom of thought is
+tolerated to a greater extent than in others; and of the places
+favourable to reforms of all kinds, calculated to elevate and benefit
+mankind, Newcastle-on-Tyne doubtless takes the lead. Surrounded by
+innumerable coal mines, it furnishes employment for a large labouring
+population, many of whom take a deep interest in the passing events of
+the day, and, consequently, are a reading class. The public debater or
+speaker, no matter what may be his subject, who fails to get an audience
+in other towns, is sure of a gathering in the Music Hall, or Lecture
+Room in Newcastle. Here I first had an opportunity of coming in contact
+with a portion of the labouring people of Britain. I have addressed
+large and influential meetings in Newcastle and the neighbouring towns,
+and the more I see and learn of the condition of the working-classes of
+England the more I am satisfied of the utter fallacy of the statements
+often made that their condition approximates to that of the slaves of
+America. Whatever may be the disadvantages that the British peasant
+labours under, he is free; and if he is not satisfied with his employer
+he can make choice of another. He also has the right to educate his
+children; and he is the equal of the most wealthy person before an
+English Court of Justice. But how is it with the American Slave? He has
+no right to himself, no right to protect his wife, his child, or his own
+person. He is nothing more than a living tool. Beyond his field or
+workshop he knows nothing. There is no amount of ignorance he is not
+capable of. He has not the least idea of the face of this earth, nor of
+the history or constitution of the country in which he dwells. To him
+the literature, science, and art--the progressive history, and the
+accumulated discoveries of bygone ages, are as if they had never been.
+The past is to him as yesterday, and the future scarcely more than
+to-morrow. Ancestral monuments, he has none; written documents fraught
+with cogitations of other times, he has none; and any instrumentality
+calculated to awaken and expound the intellectual activity and
+comprehension of a present or approaching generation, he has none. His
+condition is that of the leopard of his own native Africa. It lives, it
+propagates its kind; but never does it indicate a movement towards that
+all but angelic intelligence of man. The slave eats, drinks, and
+sleeps--all for the benefit of the man who claims his body as his
+property. Before the tribunals of his country he has no voice. He has no
+higher appeal than the mere will of his owner. He knows nothing of the
+inspired Apostles through their writings. He has no Sabbath, no Church,
+no Bible, no means of grace,--and yet we are told that he is as well off
+as the labouring classes of England. It is not enough that the people of
+my country should point to their Declaration of Independence which
+declares that "all men are created equal." It is not enough that they
+should laud to the skies a constitution containing boasting declarations
+in favour of freedom. It is not enough that they should extol the genius
+of Washington, the patriotism of Henry, or the enthusiasm of Otis. The
+time has come when nations are judged by the acts of the present instead
+of the past. And so it must be with America. In no place in the United
+Kingdom has the American Slave warmer friends than in Newcastle.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I am now in Sheffield, and have just returned from a visit to James
+Montgomery, the poet. In company with James Wall, Esq., I proceeded to
+The Mount, the residence of Mr. Montgomery; and our names being sent in,
+we were soon in the presence of the "Christian Poet." He held in his
+left hand the _Eclectic Review_ for the month, and with the right gave
+me a hearty shake, and bade me "Welcome to old England." He was anything
+but like the portraits I had seen of him, and the man I had in my mind's
+eye. I had just been reading his "Pelican Island," and I eyed the poet
+with no little interest. He is under the middle size, his forehead high
+and well formed, the top of which was a little bald; his hair of a
+yellowish colour, his eyes rather small and deep set, the nose long and
+slightly aquiline, his mouth rather small, and not at all pretty. He was
+dressed in black, and a large white cravat entirely hid his neck and
+chin: his having been afflicted from childhood with salt-rhum, was
+doubtless the cause of his chin being so completely buried in the
+neckcloth. Upon the whole, he looked more like one of our American
+Methodist parsons, than any one I have seen in this country. He entered
+freely into conversation with us. He said he should be glad to attend my
+lecture that evening, but that he had long since quit going out at
+night. He mentioned having heard William Lloyd Garrison some years
+before, and with whom he was well pleased. He said it had long been a
+puzzle to him, how Americans could hold slaves and still retain their
+membership in the churches. When we rose to leave, the old man took my
+hand between his two, and with tears in his eyes said, "Go on your
+Christian mission, and may the Lord protect and prosper you. Your
+enslaved countrymen have my sympathy, and shall have my prayers." Thus
+ended our visit to the Bard of Sheffield. Long after I had quitted the
+presence of the poet, the following lines of his were ringing in my
+ears:--
+
+   "Wanderer, whither dost thou roam?
+    Weary wanderer, old and grey,
+    Wherefore has thou left thine home,
+    In the sunset of thy day.
+    Welcome wanderer as thou art,
+    All my blessings to partake;
+    Yet thrice welcome to my heart,
+    For thine injured people's sake.
+    Wanderer, whither would'st thou roam?
+    To what region far away?
+    Bend thy steps to find a home,
+    In the twilight of thy day.
+    Where a tyrant never trod,
+    Where a slave was never known--
+    But where Nature worships God
+    In the wilderness alone."
+
+
+Mr. Montgomery seems to have thrown his entire soul into his meditations
+on the wrongs of Switzerland. The poem from which we have just quoted,
+is unquestionably one of his best productions, and contains more of the
+fire of enthusiasm than all his other works. We feel a reverence almost
+amounting to superstition, for the poet who deals with nature. And who
+is more capable of understanding the human heart than the poet? Who has
+better known the human feelings than Shakspere; better painted than
+Milton, the grandeur of Virtue; better sighed than Byron over the subtle
+weaknesses of Hope? Who ever had a sounder taste, a more exact
+intellect than Dante? or who has ever tuned his harp more in favour of
+Freedom, than our own Whittier?
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XII.
+
+_Kirkstall Abbey--Mary the Maid of the Inn--Newstead Abbey: Residence of
+Lord Byron--Parish Church of Hucknall--Burial Place of Lord
+Byron--Bristol: "Cook's Folly"--Chepstow Castle and Abbey--Tintern
+Abbey--Redcliffe Church._
+
+
+                    _January 29_.
+
+In passing through Yorkshire, we could not resist the temptation it
+offered, to pay a visit to the extensive and interesting ruin of
+Kirkstall Abbey, which lies embosomed in a beautiful recess of Airedale,
+about three miles from Leeds. A pleasant drive over a smooth road,
+brought us abruptly in sight of the Abbey. The tranquil and pensive
+beauty of the desolate Monastery, as it reposes in the lap of pastoral
+luxuriance, and amidst the touching associations of seven centuries, is
+almost beyond description when viewed from where we first beheld it.
+After arriving at its base, we stood for some moments under the mighty
+arches that lead into the great hall, gazing at its old grey walls
+frowning with age. At the distance of a small field, the Aire is seen
+gliding past the foot of the lawn on which the ruin stands, after it has
+left those precincts, sparkling over a weir with a pleasing murmur. We
+could fully enter into the feelings of the Poet when he says:--
+
+   "Beautiful fabric! even in decay
+      And desolation, beauty still is thine;
+    As the rich sunset of an autumn day,
+      When gorgeous clouds in glorious hues combine
+    To render homage to its slow decline,
+      Is more majestic in its parting hour:
+    Even so thy mouldering, venerable shrine
+      Possesses now a more subduing power,
+    Than in thine earlier sway, with pomp and pride thy dower."
+
+
+The tale of "Mary, the Maid of the Inn," is supposed, and not without
+foundation, to be connected with this Abbey. "Hark to Rover," the name
+of the house where the key is kept, was, a century ago, a retired inn or
+pot-house, and the haunt of many a desperate highwayman and poacher. The
+anecdote is so well known, that it is scarcely necessary to relate it.
+It, however, is briefly this:--
+
+"One stormy night, as two travellers sat at the inn, each having
+exhausted his news, the conversation was directed to the Abbey, the
+boisterous night, and Mary's heroism; when a bet was at last made by one
+of them, that she would not go and bring back from the nave a slip of
+the alder-tree growing there. Mary, however, did go; but having nearly
+reached the tree, she heard a low, indistinct dialogue; at the same
+time, something black fell and rolled towards her, which afterwards
+proved to be a hat. Directing her attention to the place whence the
+conversation proceeded, she saw, from behind a pillar, two men carrying
+a murdered body: they passed near the place where she stood, a heavy
+cloud was swept from off the face of the moon, and Mary fell
+senseless--one of the murderers was her intended husband! She was
+awakened from her swoon, but--her reason had fled for ever." Mr. Southey
+wrote a beautiful poem founded on this story, which will be found in his
+published works. We spent nearly three hours in wandering through these
+splendid ruins. It is both curious and interesting to trace the early
+history of these old piles, which become the resort of thousands,
+nine-tenths of whom are unaware either of the classic ground on which
+they tread, or of the peculiar interest thrown around the spot by the
+deeds of remote ages.
+
+During our stay in Leeds, we had the good fortune to become acquainted
+with Wilson Armistead, Esq. This gentleman is well known as an able
+writer against Slavery. His most elaborate work is "A Tribute for the
+Negro." This is a volume of 560 pages, and is replete with facts
+refuting the charges of inferiority brought against the Negro race. Few
+English gentlemen have done more to hasten the day of the American
+slave's liberation, than Wilson Armistead.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+We have just paid a visit to Newstead Abbey, the far-famed residence of
+Lord Byron. I posted from Hucknall over to Newstead one pleasant
+morning, and, being provided with a letter of introduction to Colonel
+Wildman, I lost no time in presenting myself at the door of the Abbey.
+But, unfortunately for me, the Colonel was at Mansfield, in attendance
+at the Assizes--he being one of the County Magistrates. I did not
+however lose the object of my visit, as every attention was paid in
+showing me about the premises. I felt as every one must, who gazes for
+the first time upon these walls, and remembers that it was here, even
+amid the comparative ruins of a building once dedicated to the sacred
+cause of Religion and her twin sister, Charity, that the genius of Byron
+was first developed. Here that he paced with youthful melancholy the
+halls of his illustrious ancestors, and trode the walks of the
+long-banished monks. The housekeeper--a remarkably good looking and
+polite woman--showed us through the different apartments, and explained
+in the most minute manner every object of interest connected with the
+interior of the building. We first visited the Monks' Parlour, which
+seemed to contain nothing of note, except a very fine stained
+window--one of the figures representing St. Paul, surmounted by a cross.
+We passed through Lord Byron's Bedroom, the Haunted Chamber, the
+Library, and the Eastern Corridor, and halted in the Tapestry Bedroom,
+which is truly a magnificent apartment, formed by the Byrons for the use
+of King Charles II. The ceiling is richly decorated with the Byron arms.
+We next visited the grand Drawing-room, probably the finest in the
+building. This saloon contains a large number of splendid portraits,
+among which is the celebrated portrait of Lord Byron, by Phillips. In
+this room we took into our hand the Skull-cup, of which so much has been
+written, and that has on it a short inscription, commencing with--"Start
+not--nor deem my spirit fled." Leaving this noble room, we descended by
+a few polished oak steps into the West Corridor, from which we entered
+the grand Dining Hall, and through several other rooms, until we reached
+the Chapel. Here we were shown a stone coffin which had been found near
+the high altar, when the workmen were excavating the vault, intended by
+Lord Byron for himself and his dog. The coffin contained the skeleton of
+an Abbot, and also the identical skull from which the cup, of which I
+have made mention, was made. We then left the building, and took a
+stroll through the grounds. After passing a pond of cold crystal water,
+we came to a dark wood in which are two leaden statues of Pan, and a
+female satyr--very fine specimens as works of art. We here inspected the
+tree whereon Byron carved his own name and that of his sister, with the
+date, all of which are still legible. However, the tree is now dead, and
+we were informed that Colonel Wildman intended to have it cut down so as
+to preserve the part containing the inscription. After crossing an
+interesting and picturesque part of the gardens, we arrived within the
+precincts of the ancient Chapel, near which we observed a neat marble
+monument, and which we supposed to have been erected to the memory of
+some of the Byrons; but, on drawing near to it, we read the following
+inscription:--
+
+                "Near this spot
+        are deposited the remains of one
+      who possessed beauty without vanity,
+          strength without insolence,
+            courage without ferocity,
+    and all the virtues of man without his vices.
+  This praise, which would be unmeaning flattery,
+        if inscribed over human ashes,
+      is but a just tribute to the memory of
+              BOATSWAIN, a dog,
+    Who was born at Newfoundland, May, 1803,
+  and died at Newstead Abbey, November 18, 1808."
+
+
+By a will which his Lordship executed in 1811, he directed that his own
+body should be buried in a vault in the garden, near his faithful dog.
+This feeling of affection to his dumb and faithful follower, commendable
+in itself, seems here to have been carried beyond the bounds of reason
+and propriety.
+
+In another part of the grounds we saw the oak tree planted by the poet
+himself. It has now attained a goodly size, considering the growth of
+the oak, and bids fair to become a lasting memento to the Noble Bard,
+and to be a shrine to which thousands of pilgrims will resort in future
+ages, to do homage to his mighty genius. This tree promises to share in
+after times the celebrity of Shakspere's mulberry, and Pope's willow.
+Near by, and in the tall trees, the rooks were keeping up a tremendous
+noise. After seeing everything of interest connected with the great
+poet, we entered our chaise, and left the premises. As we were leaving,
+I turned to take a farewell look at the Abbey, standing in solemn
+grandeur, the long ivy clinging fondly to the rich tracery of a former
+age. Proceeding to the little town of Hucknall, we entered the old grey
+Parish Church, which has for ages been the last resting-place of the
+Byrons, and where repose the ashes of the Poet, marked only by a neat
+marble slab, bearing the date of the poet's birth, death, and the fact
+that the tablet was placed there by his sister. This closed my visit to
+the interesting scenes associated with Byron's strange eventful
+history--scenes that ever acquire a growing charm as the lapse of years
+softens the errors of the man, and confirms the genius of the poet.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+                    _May 10_.
+
+It was on a lovely morning that I found myself on board the little
+steamer _Wye_, passing out of Bristol harbour. In going down the river,
+we saw on our right, the stupendous rocks of St. Vincent towering some
+four or five hundred feet above our heads. By the swiftness of our fairy
+steamer, we were soon abreast of Cook's Folly, a singular tower, built
+by a man from whom it takes its name, and of which the following
+romantic story is told:--"Some years since a gentleman, of the name of
+Cook, erected this tower, which has since gone by the name of 'Cook's
+Folly.' A son having been born, he was desirous of ascertaining, by
+means of astrology, if he would live to enjoy his property. Being
+himself a firm believer, like the poet Dryden, that certain information
+might be obtained from the above science, he caused the child's
+horoscope to be drawn, and found, to his dismay, that in his third,
+sixteenth, or twenty-first year, he would be in danger of meeting with
+some fearful calamity or sudden death, to avert which he caused the
+turret to be constructed, and the child placed therein. Secure, as he
+vainly thought, there he lived, attended by a faithful servant, their
+food and fuel being conveyed to them by means of a pully-basket, until
+he was old enough to wait upon himself. On the eve of his twenty-first
+year, his parent's hopes rose high, and great were the rejoicings
+prepared to welcome the young heir to his home. But, alas! no human
+skill could avert the dark fate which clung to him. The last night he
+had to pass alone in the turret, a bundle of faggots was conveyed to him
+as usual, in which lay concealed a viper, which clung to his hand. The
+bite was fatal; and, instead of being borne in triumph, the dead body of
+his only son was the sad spectacle which met the sight of his father."
+
+We crossed the channel and soon entered the mouth of that most
+picturesque of rivers, the Wye. As we neared the town of Chepstow the
+old Castle made its appearance, and a fine old ruin it is. Being
+previously provided with a letter of introduction to a gentleman in
+Chepstow, I lost no time in finding him out. This gentleman gave me a
+cordial reception, and did what Englishmen seldom ever do, lent me his
+saddle horse to ride to the Abbey. While lunch was in preparation I took
+a stroll through the Castle which stood near by. We entered the Castle
+through the great door-way and were soon treading the walls that had
+once sustained the cannon and the sentinel, but were now covered with
+weeds and wild flowers. The drum and fife had once been heard within
+these walls--the only music now is the cawing of the rook and daw. We
+paid a hasty visit to the various apartments, remaining longest in those
+of most interest. The room in which Martin the Regicide was imprisoned
+nearly twenty years, was pointed out to us. The Castle of Chepstow is
+still a magnificent pile, towering upon the brink of a stupendous cliff,
+on reaching the top of which, we had a splendid view of the surrounding
+country. Time, however, compelled us to retrace our steps, and after
+partaking of a lunch, we mounted a horse for the first time in ten
+years, and started for Tintern Abbey. The distance from Chepstow to the
+Abbey is about five miles, and the road lies along the banks of the
+river. The river is walled in on either side by hills of much beauty,
+clothed from base to summit with the richest verdure. I can conceive of
+nothing more striking than the first appearance of the Abbey. As we
+rounded a hill, all at once we saw the old ruin standing before us in
+all its splendour. This celebrated ecclesiastical relic of the olden
+time is doubtless the finest ruin of its kind in Europe. Embosomed
+amongst hills, and situated on the banks of the most fairy-like river in
+the world, its beauty can scarcely be surpassed. We halted at the
+"Beaufort Arms," left our horse, and sallied forth to view the Abbey.
+The sun was pouring a flood of light upon the old grey walls, lighting
+up its dark recesses, as if to give us a better opportunity of viewing
+it. I gazed with astonishment and admiration at its many beauties, and
+especially at the superb gothic windows over the entrance door. The
+beautiful gothic pillars, with here and there a representation of a
+praying priest, and mailed knights, with saints and Christian martyrs,
+and the hundreds of Scriptural representations, all indicate that this
+was a place of considerable importance in its palmy days. The once
+stone floor had disappeared, and we found ourselves standing on a floor
+of unbroken green grass, swelling back to the old walls, and looking so
+verdant and silken that it seemed the very floor of fancy. There are
+more romantic and wilder places than this in the world, but none more
+beautiful. The preservation of these old abbeys should claim the
+attention of those under whose charge they are, and we felt like joining
+with the poet and saying:--
+
+                           "O ye who dwell
+    Around yon ruins, guard the precious charge
+    From hands profane! O save the sacred pile--
+    O'er which the wing of centuries has flown
+    Darkly and silently, deep-shadowing all
+    Its pristine honours--from the ruthless grasp
+    Of future violation."
+
+
+In contemplating these ruins more closely, the mind insensibly reverts
+to the period of feudal and regal oppression, when structures like that
+of Tintern Abbey necessarily became the scenes of stirring and
+highly-important events. How altered is the scene! Where were formerly
+magnificence and splendour; the glittering array of priestly prowess;
+the crowded halls of haughty bigots, and the prison of religious
+offenders; there is now but a heap of mouldering ruins. The oppressed
+and the oppressor have long since lain down together in the peaceful
+grave. The ruin, generally speaking, is unusually perfect, and the
+sculpture still beautifully sharp. The outward walls are nearly entire,
+and are thickly clad with ivy. Many of the windows are also in a good
+state of preservation; but the roof has long since fallen in. The
+feathered songsters were fluttering about, and pouring forth their
+artless lays as a tribute of joy; while the lowing of the herds, the
+bleating of flocks, and the hum of bees upon the farm near by, all burst
+upon the ear, and gave the scene a picturesque sublimity that can be
+easier imagined than described. Most assuredly Shakspere had such ruins
+in view when he exclaimed--
+
+   "The cloud-capp'd towers, the gorgeous palaces,
+    The solemn temples, the great globe itself,
+    Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve--
+    And, like the baseless fabric of a vision,
+    Leave not a wreck behind."
+
+
+In the afternoon we returned to Bristol, and I spent the greater part
+of the next day in examining the interior of Redcliffe Church. Few
+places in the West of England have greater claims upon the topographer
+and historian than the church of St. Mary's, Redcliffe. Its antiquity,
+the beauty of its architecture, and above all the interesting
+circumstances connected with its history, entitle it to peculiar notice.
+It is also associated with the enterprise of genius; for its name has
+been blended with the reputation of Rowley, of Canynge, and of
+Chatterton; and no lover of poetry and admirer of art can visit it
+without a degree of enthusiasm. And when the old building shall have
+mouldered into ruins, even these will be trodden with veneration as
+sacred to the recollection of genius of the highest order. Ascending a
+winding stair, we were shown into the Treasury Room. The room forms an
+irregular octagon, admitting light through narrow unglazed apertures
+upon the broken and scattered fragments of the famous Rowleian chests,
+that with the rubble and dust of centuries cover the floor. It is here
+creative fancy pictures forth the sad image of the spirit of the
+spot--the ardent boy, flushed and fed by hope, musing on the brilliant
+deception he had conceived--whose daring attempt has left his name unto
+the intellectual world as a marvel and a mystery.
+
+That a boy under twelve years of age should write a series of poems,
+imitating the style of the fifteenth century, and palm these poems off
+upon the world as the work of a monk, is indeed strange; and that these
+should become the object of interesting contemplation to the literary
+world, and should awaken inquiries, and exercise the talents of a
+Southey, a Bryant, a Miller, a Mathias, and others, savours more of
+romance than reality. I had visited the room in a garret in High
+Holborn, where this poor boy died. I had stood over a grave in the
+burial-ground of the Lane Workhouse, which was pointed out to me as the
+last resting-place of Chatterton; and now I was in the room where it was
+alleged he obtained the manuscripts that gave him such notoriety. We
+descended and viewed other portions of the church. The effect of the
+chancel, as seen behind the pictures, is very singular, and suggestive
+of many swelling thoughts. We look at the great east window, it is
+unadorned with its wonted painted glass; we look at the altar-screen
+beneath, on which the light of day again falls, and behold the injuries
+it has received at the hands of time. There is a dreary mournfulness in
+the scene which fastens on the mind, and is in unison with the time-worn
+mouldering fragments that are seen all around us. And this dreariness is
+not removed by our tracing the destiny of man on the storied pavements
+or on the graven brass, that still bears upon its surface the names of
+those who obtained the world's regard years back. This old pile is not
+only an ornament to the city, but it stands a living monument to the
+genius of its founder. Bristol has long sustained a high position as a
+place from which the American Abolitionists have received substantial
+encouragement in their arduous labours for the emancipation of the
+slaves of that land; and the writer of this received the best evidence
+that in this respect the character of the people had not been
+exaggerated, especially as regards the "Clifton Ladies' Anti-Slavery
+Society."
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XXIII.[A]
+
+[A] This letter is rather out of its proper place here. I had mislaid
+the MS., and my distance from the printer prevented the matter being
+rectified. In another edition, the transposition can be effected.
+
+_Aberdeen--Passage by Steamer--Edinburgh--Visit to the College--William
+and Ellen Craft._
+
+
+I have visited few places where I found more warm friends than in
+Aberdeen. This is the Granite City of Scotland.
+
+Aberdeen reminds one of Boston, especially in a walk down Union Street,
+which is said to be one of the finest promenades in Europe.
+
+The town is situated on a neck of land between the rivers Dee and Don,
+and is the most important place in the north of Scotland. During our
+third day in the city, we visited among other places the Old Bridge of
+Don, which is not only resorted to on account of its antique celebrity
+and peculiar appearance, but also because of the notoriety that it has
+gained by Lord Byron's poem of the "Bridge of Don."
+
+An engagement to be in Edinburgh and vicinity, cut short our stay in the
+north. The very mild state of the weather, and a wish to see something
+of the coast between Aberdeen and Edinburgh, induced us to make the
+journey by water.
+
+On Friday evening, the 14th, after delivering a lecture before the Total
+Abstinence Society, in company with William and Ellen Craft, I went on
+board the steamer bound for Edinburgh. On reaching the vessel, we found
+the drawing-room almost entirely at our service, and prejudice against
+colour being unknown, we had no difficulty in getting the best
+accommodation which the steamer could furnish. This is so unlike the
+pro-slavery, negro-hating spirit of America, that the Crafts seemed
+almost bewildered by the transition. I had been in the saloon but a
+short time, when, looking at the newspapers on the table, I discovered
+the _North Star_. It was like meeting with a friend in a strange land. I
+looked in vain on the margin for the name of its owner, but as I did not
+feel at liberty to take it, and as it appeared to be alone, I laid the
+_Liberator_ by its side to keep it company.
+
+The night was a glorious one. The sky was without a speck; and the
+clear, piercing air had a brilliancy I have seldom seen. The moon was in
+its zenith--the steamer and surrounding objects were beautiful in the
+extreme. The boat got under weigh at a little past twelve, and we were
+soon out at sea. The "Queen" is a splendid craft, and without the aid of
+sails, was able to make fifteen miles within the hour. I was up the next
+morning before the sun, and found the sea as on the previous night--as
+calm and smooth as a mirror. It was a delightful morning, more like
+April than February; and the sun, as it rose, seemed to fire every peak
+of the surrounding hills. On our left, lay the Island of May, while to
+the right was to be seen the small fishing town of Anstruther, twenty
+miles distant from Edinburgh. Beyond these, on either side, was a range
+of undulating blue mountains, swelling as they retired, into a bolder
+outline and a loftier altitude, until they terminated some twenty-five
+or thirty miles in the dim distance. A friend at my side pointed out a
+place on the right, where the remains of an old castle or look-out
+house, used in the time of the border wars, once stood, and which
+reminded us of the barbarism of the past.
+
+But these signs are fast disappearing. The plough and roller have passed
+over many of these foundations, and the time will soon come, when the
+antiquarian will look in vain for those places that history has pointed
+out to him, as connected with the political and religious struggles of
+the past. The steward of the vessel came round to see who of the
+passengers wished for breakfast, and as the keen air of the morning had
+given me an appetite, and there being no prejudice on the score of
+colour, I took my seat at the table and gave ample evidence that I was
+not an invalid. On returning to the deck again, I found we had entered
+the Forth, and that "Modern Athens" was in sight; and, far above every
+other object, with its turrets almost lost in the clouds, could be seen
+Edinburgh Castle. After landing, a pleasant ride over one of the finest
+roads in Scotland, with a sprinkling of beautiful villas on either side,
+brought us once more to Cannon's Hotel.
+
+In a city like Edinburgh, there is always something to keep the public
+alive, but during our three days' stay in the town, on this occasion,
+there were topics under discussion which seemed to excite the people,
+although I had been told that the Scotch were not excitable. Indeed all
+Edinburgh seemed to have gone mad about the Pope. If his Holiness should
+think fit to pay a visit to his new dominions, I would advise him to
+keep out of reach of the Scotch.
+
+In company with the Crafts, I visited the Calton Hill, from which we had
+a delightful view of the city and surrounding country. I had an
+opportunity during my stay in the city, of visiting the Infirmary, and
+was pleased to see among the two or three hundred students, three
+coloured young men, seated upon the same benches with those of a fairer
+complexion, and yet there appeared no feeling on the part of the whites
+towards their coloured associates, except of companionship and respect.
+One of the cardinal truths, both of religion and freedom, is the
+equality and brotherhood of man. In the sight of God and all just
+institutions, the whites can claim no precedence or privilege, on
+account of their being white; and if coloured men are not treated as
+they should be in the educational institutions in America, it is a
+pleasure to know that all distinction ceases by crossing the broad
+Atlantic. I had scarcely left the lecture room of the Institute and
+reached the street, when I met a large number of the students on their
+way to the college, and here again were seen coloured men arm in arm
+with whites. The proud American who finds himself in the splendid
+streets of Edinburgh, and witnesses such scenes as these, can but behold
+in them the degradation of his own country, whose laws would make slaves
+of these same young men, should they appear in the streets of
+Charleston or New Orleans.
+
+After all, our country is the most despotic in the wide world, and to
+expose and hold it up to the scorn and contempt of other nations, is the
+duty of every coloured man who would be true to himself and his race.
+
+
+During my stay in Edinburgh, I accepted an invitation to breakfast with
+the great champion of Philosophical Phrenology. Few foreigners are more
+admired in America, than the author of "The Constitution of Man."[B]
+Although not far from 70 years of age, I found him apparently as active
+and as energetic as many men of half that age. He was much pleased with
+Mr. and Mrs. Craft, who formed a part of the breakfast party. It may be
+a pleasure to the friends of these two fugitive slaves, to know that
+they are now the inmates of a good school where they are now being
+educated. For this, they are mainly indebted to that untiring friend of
+the Slave, John B. Estlin, Esq., of Bristol, whose zeal and co-operation
+with the American Abolitionists, have gained for him an undying name
+with the friends of freedom in the New World.
+
+[B] George Combe, Esq.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XIII.
+
+_Edinburgh--The Royal Institute--Scott's Monument--John Knox's
+Pulpit--Temperance Meeting--Glasgow--Great Meeting in the City Hall._
+
+
+                    EDINBURGH, _January 1, 1851_.
+
+You will see by the date of this that I am spending my
+New-Year's-Day in the Scottish Capital, in company with our friend,
+William Craft. I came by invitation to attend a meeting of the Edinburgh
+Ladies' Emancipation Society.
+
+The meeting was held on Monday evening last, at which William Craft
+gave, for the first time, since his arrival in this country, a history
+of his escape from Georgia, two years ago, together with his recent
+flight from Boston.
+
+Craft's reception was one of deep enthusiasm, and his story was well
+told, and made a powerful impression on the audience. I would that the
+slaveholders, Hughes and Knight, could have been present and heard the
+thundering applause with which our friend was received on the following
+evening. Craft attended a meeting of the Edinburgh Total Abstinence
+Society, before which I lectured, and his appearance here was also
+hailed with much enthusiasm. Our friend bids fair to become a favourite
+with the Scotch.
+
+Much regret was expressed that Ellen was not present. She was detained
+in Liverpool by indisposition. But Mrs. Craft has so far recovered, that
+we expect her here to-morrow.
+
+The appearance of these two fugitives in Great Britain, at this time,
+and under the circumstances, will aid our cause, and create a renewed
+hatred to the abominable institution of American slavery. I have
+received letters from a number of the friends of the slave, in which
+they express a wish to aid the Crafts; and among the first of these,
+were our good friends, John B. Estlin, Esq., of Bristol, and Harriet
+Martineau.
+
+But I must give you my impression of this fine city. Edinburgh is the
+most picturesque of all the towns which I have visited since my arrival
+in the father-land. Its situation has been compared to that of Athens,
+but it is said that the modern Athens is superior to the ancient. I was
+deeply impressed with the idea that I had seen the most beautiful of
+cities, after beholding those fashionable resorts, Paris and Versailles.
+I have seen nothing in the way of public grounds to compare with the
+gardens of Versailles, or the _Champs Elysees_ at Paris; and as for
+statuary, the latter place is said to take the lead of the rest of the
+world.
+
+The general appearance of Edinburgh prepossesses one in its favour. The
+town being built upon the brows of a large terrace, presents the most
+wonderful perspective. Its first appearance to a stranger, and the first
+impression, can scarcely be but favourable. In my first walk through the
+town, I was struck with the difference in the appearance of the people
+from the English. But the difference between the Scotch and the
+Americans, is very great. The cheerfulness depicted in the countenances
+of the people here, and their free and easy appearance, is very striking
+to a stranger. He who taught the sun to shine, the flowers to bloom, the
+birds to sing, and blesses us with rain, never intended that his
+creatures should look sad. There is a wide difference between the
+Americans and any other people which I have seen. The Scotch are healthy
+and robust, unlike the long-faced, sickly-looking Americans.
+
+While on our journey from London to Paris, to attend the Peace Congress,
+I could not but observe the marked difference between the English and
+American delegates. The former looked as if their pockets had been
+filled with sandwiches, made of good bread and roast beef, while the
+latter appeared as if their pockets had been filled with Holloway's
+Pills, and Mrs. Kidder's Cordial.
+
+I breakfasted this morning in a room in which the Poet Burns, as I was
+informed, had often sat. The conversation here turned upon Burns. The
+lady of the house pointed to a scrap of poetry which was in a frame
+hanging on the wall, written, as she said, by the Poet, on hearing the
+people rejoicing in a church over the intelligence of a victory. I
+copied it and will give it to you:--
+
+   "Ye hypocrites! are these your pranks,
+    To murder men and give God thanks?
+    For shame! give o'er, proceed no further,
+    God won't accept your thanks for murder."
+
+
+The fact that I was in the room where Scotland's great national poet had
+been a visitor, caused me to feel that I was on classic, if not hallowed
+ground. On returning from our morning visit, we met a gentleman with a
+coloured lady on each arm. Craft remarked in a very dry manner, "If they
+were in Georgia, the slaveholders would make them walk in a more hurried
+gait than they do." I said to my friend, that if he meant the
+pro-slavery prejudice would not suffer them to walk peaceably through
+the streets, they need go no further than the pro-slavery cities of New
+York and Philadelphia. When walking through the streets, I amused
+myself, by watching Craft's countenance; and in doing so, imagined I saw
+the changes experienced by every fugitive slave in his first month's
+residence in this country. A sixteen months' residence has not yet
+familiarized me with the change.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+                    LAUREL BANK, _Jan. 18, 1851_.
+
+Dear Douglass,--I remained in Edinburgh a day or two after the
+date of my last letter, which gave me an opportunity of seeing some of
+the lions in the way of public buildings, &c., in company with our
+friend Wm. Craft. I paid a visit to the Royal Institute, and inspected
+the very fine collection of paintings, statues, and other productions of
+art. The collection in the Institute is not to be compared to the
+British Museum at London, or the Louvre at Paris, but is probably the
+best in Scotland. Paintings from the hands of many of the masters, such
+as Sir A. Vandyke, Tiziano, Vercellio and Van Dellen, were hanging on
+the wall, and even the names of Reubens, and Titian, were attached to
+some of the finer specimens. Many of these represent some of the nobles,
+and distinguished families of Rome, Athens, Greece, &c. A beautiful one
+representing a group of the Lomellini family of Genoa, seemed to attract
+the attention of most of the visitors.
+
+In visiting this place, we passed close by the monument of Sir Walter
+Scott. This is the most exquisite thing of the kind that I have seen
+since coming to this country. It is said to be the finest monument in
+Europe. There sits the author of "Waverley," with a book and pencil in
+hand, taking notes. A beautiful dog is seated by his side. Whether this
+is meant to represent his favourite dog, Camp, at whose death the Poet
+shed so many tears, we were not informed; but I was of opinion that it
+might be the faithful Percy, whose monument stands in the grounds at
+Abbotsford. Scott was an admirer of the canine tribe. One may form a
+good idea of the appearance of this distinguished writer, when living,
+by viewing this remarkable statue. The statue is very beautiful, but not
+equal to the one of Lord Byron, which was executed to be placed by the
+side of Johnson, Milton, and Addison, in Poets' Corner, Westminster
+Abbey; but the Parliament not allowing it a place there, it now stands
+in one of the Colleges at Cambridge. While viewing the statue of Byron,
+I thought he, too, should have been represented with a dog by his side,
+for he, like Scott, was remarkably fond of dogs, so much so that he
+intended to have his favourite, Boatswain, interred by his side.
+
+We paid a short visit to the monuments of Burns and Allan Ramsay, and
+the renowned old Edinburgh Castle. The Castle is now used as a barrack
+for Infantry. It is accessible only from the High Street, and must have
+been impregnable before the discovery of gunpowder. In the wars with the
+English, it was twice taken by stratagem; once in a very daring manner,
+by climbing up the most inaccessible part of the rock upon which it
+stands, and where a foe was least expected, and putting the guard to
+death; and another time, by a party of soldiers disguising themselves as
+merchants, and obtaining admission inside the Castle gates. They
+succeeded in preventing the gates from being closed, until reinforced by
+a party of men under Sir Wm. Douglas, who soon overpowered the occupants
+of the Castle.
+
+We could not resist the temptation held out to see the Palace of
+Holyrood. It was in this place that the beautiful, but unfortunate Mary,
+Queen of Scots, resided for a number of years. On reaching the palace,
+we were met at the door by an elderly looking woman, with a red face,
+garnished with a pair of second-hand curls, the whole covered with a cap
+having the widest border that I had seen for years. She was very kind in
+showing us about the premises, especially as we were foreigners, no
+doubt expecting an extra fee for politeness. The most interesting of the
+many rooms in this ancient castle, is the one which was occupied by the
+Queen, and where her Italian favourite, Rizzio, was murdered.
+
+But by far the most interesting object which we visited while in
+Edinburgh, was the house where the celebrated Reformer, John Knox,
+re-resided. It is a queer-looking old building, with a pulpit on the
+outside, and above the door are the nearly obliterated remains of the
+following inscription:--"Lufe. God. Above. Al. And. your. Nichbour. As
+you. Self." This was probably traced under the immediate direction of
+the great Reformer. Such an inscription put upon a house of worship at
+the present day, would be laughed at. I have given it to you,
+punctuation and all, just as it stands.
+
+The general architecture of Edinburgh is very imposing, whether we
+regard the picturesque disorder of the buildings, in the Old Town, or
+the symmetrical proportions of the streets and squares in the New. But
+on viewing this city which has the reputation of being the finest in
+Europe, I was surprised to find that it had none of those sumptuous
+structures, which like St. Paul's, or Westminster Abbey, York Minster,
+and some other of the English provincial Cathedrals, astonish the
+beholder alike by their magnitude and their architectural splendour. But
+in no city which I have visited in the kingdom, is the general standard
+of excellence better maintained than in Edinburgh.
+
+I am not sure, my dear friend, whether or not I mentioned in my last
+letter the attendance of Wm. Craft and myself at a splendid Soiree of
+the Edinburgh Temperance Society, and our being voted in life members,
+in the most enthusiastic manner, by the whole audience. I will here give
+you a part of the speech of the President, as reported in the _Christian
+News_. This should cause the pro-slavery whites, and especially
+negro-hating Sons of Temperance, who refuse the coloured man a place in
+their midst, to feel ashamed of their unchristian conduct. Here it is,
+let them judge for themselves:--
+
+"A great feature in our meeting to-night, is that we have beside us two
+individuals, who, according to the immaculate laws of immaculate
+Yankeedom, have been guilty of the tremendous crime of stealing
+themselves. (Applause.) Mr. Craft, who sits beside me, has stolen his
+good wife, and Mrs. Craft has stolen her worthy husband; and our
+respected friend, Mr. Brown, has cast a covetous eye on his own person.
+In the name of the Temperance reformers of Edinburgh--in the name of
+universal Scotland, I would welcome these two victims of the white man's
+pride, ambition, selfishness, and cupidity. I welcome them as our equals
+in every respect. (Great applause.) What a humiliating thought it will
+be, surely, for our American friends on the other side of the water,
+when they hear (and we shall endeavour to let them hear) that the very
+man whom they consider not worthy to sit in a third class carriage along
+with a white man, and that too in a district of country where the very
+aristocracy deal in cheap cheese--(great applause) traffic in tallow
+candles, and spend their nights and days among raw hides and train
+oil--(applause)--what a humbling thought it will be for them to know
+that these very men in the centre of educated Scotland, in the midst of
+educated Edinburgh, are thought fit to hold even the first rank upon our
+aristocratic platform. Let us, then, my friends, lift our voices this
+evening in one swelling chorus for the down-trodden slave. Let us
+publish abroad the fact to the world, that the sympathies of Scotland
+are with the bondsman everywhere. Let us unite our voices to cry, Down
+with the iniquitous Slave Bill!--Down with the aristocracy of the
+skin!--Perish forever the deepest-dyed, the hardest-hearted system of
+abomination under heaven!--Perish the sum of all villanies! Perish
+American slavery. (Great applause.)"
+
+But I must leave the good and hospitable people of the Scottish Capital
+for the present. I have taken an elaborate stock of notes, and may speak
+of Edinburgh again.
+
+I left William and Ellen Craft (the latter of whom has just come to
+Edinburgh), and took the Glasgow train, and after a ride of two hours
+through a beautiful country, with its winding hills on either side--its
+fertile fields, luxuriant woods, and stately mansions lying around us,
+arrived in the muddy, dirty, smoky, foggy city of Glasgow. As I had had
+a standing invitation from a distinguished gentleman with whom I became
+acquainted in London, to partake of his hospitality, should I ever visit
+Glasgow, and again received a note while in Edinburgh renewing the
+invitation, I proceeded to his residence at Partick, three miles from
+Glasgow. This is one of the loveliest spots which I have yet seen. Our
+mansion is on the side of Laurel Bank, a range of the Kilpatrick hills.
+We have a view of the surrounding country.
+
+On Monday evening, Jan. 6, a public meeting was held in the City Hall,
+to extend a welcome to the American fugitive slaves. The hall, one of
+the largest in the kingdom, was filled at an early hour. At the
+appointed time, Alex. Hastie, Esq., M.P., entered the great room,
+followed by the fugitives and most of the leading abolitionists, amid
+rapturous applause. With a Member of Parliament in the chair, and
+almost any number of clergymen on the platform, the meeting had an
+influential appearance. From report, I had imbibed the opinion that the
+Scotch were not easily moved, but if I may judge from the enthusiasm
+which characterised the City Hall demonstration, I should place them but
+little behind the English. After an excellent speech from the Chairman,
+and spirited addresses from several clergymen, William Craft was
+introduced to the meeting, and gave an account of the escape of himself
+and wife from slavery, and their subsequent flight from Boston. Any
+description of mine would give but a poor idea of the intense feeling
+that pervaded the meeting. I think all who were there, left the hall
+after hearing that noble fugitive, with a greater abhorrence of American
+slavery than they previously entertained.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XIV.
+
+_Stirling--Dundee--Dr. Dick--Geo. Gilfillan--Dr. Dick at home._
+
+
+                    PERTH, SCOTLAND, _Jan. 31, 1851_.
+
+I am glad once more to breathe an atmosphere uncontaminated by the fumes
+and smoke of a city with its population of three hundred thousand
+inhabitants. In company with our friends Wm. and Ellen Craft, I left
+Glasgow on the afternoon of the 23d inst., for Dundee, a beautiful town
+situated on the banks of the river Tay. One like myself, who has spent
+the best part of an eventful life in cities, and who prefers, as I do, a
+country to a town life, feels a greater degree of freedom when
+surrounded by forest trees, or country dwellings, and looking upon a
+clear sky, than when walking through the thronged thoroughfares of a
+city, with its dense population, meeting every moment a new or strange
+face which one has never seen before, and never expects to see again.
+Although I had met with one of the warmest public receptions with which
+I have been greeted since my arrival in the country, and had had an
+opportunity of shaking hands with many noble friends of the slave, whose
+names I had often seen in print, yet I felt glad to see the tall
+chimneys and smoke of Glasgow receding in the distance, as our 'iron
+horse' was taking us with almost lightning speed from the commercial
+capital of Scotland.
+
+The distance from Glasgow to Dundee is some seventy or eighty miles, and
+we passed through the finest country which I have seen in this portion
+of the Queen's dominions. We passed through the old town of Stirling,
+which lies about thirty miles distant from Glasgow, and is a place much
+frequented by those who travel for pleasure. It is built on the brow of
+a hill, and the Castle from which it most probably derived its name, may
+be seen from a distance. Had it not been for a "professional" engagement
+the same evening at Dundee, I would most assuredly have halted to take a
+look at the old building.
+
+The Castle is situated or built on an isolated rock, which seems as if
+Nature had thrown it there for that purpose. It was once the retreat of
+the Scottish Kings, and famous for its historical associations. Here the
+"Lady of the Lake," with the magic ring, sought the monarch to intercede
+for her father; here James II. murdered the Earl of Douglas; here the
+beautiful but unfortunate Mary was made Queen; and here John Knox, the
+Reformer, preached the coronation sermon of James VI. The Castle Hill
+rises from the valley of the Forth, and makes an imposing and
+picturesque appearance. The windings of the noble river till lost in the
+distance, present pleasing contrasts, scarcely to be surpassed.
+
+The speed of our train, after passing Stirling, brought before us, in
+quick succession, a number of fine valleys and farm houses. Every spot
+seemed to have been arrayed by Nature for the reception of the cottage
+of some happy family. During this ride, we passed many sites where the
+lawns were made, the terraces defined and levelled, the groves
+tastefully clumped, the ancient trees, though small when compared to our
+great forest oaks, were beautifully sprinkled here and there, and in
+everything the labour of art seemed to have been anticipated by Nature.
+Cincinnatus could not have selected a prettier situation for a farm,
+than some which presented themselves, during this delightful journey. At
+last we arrived at the place of our destination, where our friends were
+in waiting for us.
+
+As I have already forwarded to you a paper containing an account of the
+Dundee meeting, I shall leave you to judge from these reports the
+character of the demonstration. Yet I must mention a fact or two
+connected with our first evening's visit to this town. A few hours after
+our arrival in the place, we were called upon by a gentleman whose name
+is known wherever the English language is spoken--one whose name is on
+the tongue of every student and school-boy in this country and America,
+and what lives upon their lips will live and be loved for ever.
+
+We were seated over a cup of strong tea, to revive our spirits for the
+evening, when our friend entered the room, accompanied by a gentleman,
+small in stature, and apparently seventy-five years of age, yet he
+appeared as active as one half that age. Feeling half drowsy from riding
+in the cold, and then the sudden change to a warm fire, I was rather
+inclined not to move on the entrance of the stranger. But the name of
+Thomas Dick, LL.D., roused me in a moment, from my lethargy; I could
+scarcely believe that I was in the presence of the "Christian
+Philosopher." Dr. Dick is one of the men to whom the age is indebted. I
+never find myself in the presence of one to whom the world owes so much
+as Dr. Dick, without feeling a thrilling emotion, as if I were in the
+land of spirits. Dr. Dick had come to our lodgings to see and
+congratulate Wm. and Ellen Craft upon their escape from the republican
+Christians of the United States; and as he pressed the hand of the
+"white slave," and bid her "welcome to British soil," I saw the silent
+tear stealing down the cheek of this man of genius. How I wished that
+the many slaveholders and pro-slavery professed Christians of America,
+who have read and pondered the philosophy of this man, could have been
+present. Thomas Dick is an abolitionist--one who is willing that the
+world should know that he hates the "peculiar institution." At the
+meeting that evening, Dr. Dick was among the most prominent. But this
+was not the only distinguished man who took part on that occasion.
+
+Another great mind was on the platform, and entered his solemn protest
+in a manner long to be remembered by those present. This was the Rev.
+George Gilfillan, well known as the author of the "Portraits of Literary
+Men." Mr. Gilfillan is an energetic speaker, and would have been the
+lion of the evening, even if many others who are more distinguished as
+platform orators had been present. I think it was Napoleon who said that
+the enthusiasm of others abated his own. At any rate, the spirit with
+which each speaker entered upon his duty for the evening, abated my own
+enthusiasm for the time being. The last day of our stay in Dundee, I
+paid a visit, by invitation, to Dr. Dick, at his residence in the little
+village of Broughty Ferry. We found the great astronomer in his parlour
+waiting for us. From the parlour we went to the new study, and here I
+felt more at ease, for I went to see the Philosopher in his study, and
+not in his drawing-room. But even this room had too much the look of
+nicety to be an author's _sanctum_; and I inquired and was soon informed
+by Mrs. Dick, that I should have a look at the "_old study_."
+
+During a sojourn of eighteen months in Great Britain, I have had the
+good fortune to meet with several distinguished literary characters, and
+have always managed, while at their places of abode, to see the table
+and favourite chair. Wm. and Ellen Craft were seeing what they could see
+through a microscope, when Mrs. Dick returned to the room, and intimated
+that we could now see the old literary workshop. I followed, and was
+soon in a room about fifteen feet square, with but one window, which
+occupied one side of the room. The walls of the other three sides were
+lined with books. And many of these looked the very personification of
+age. I took my seat in the "_old arm chair_;" and here, thought I, is
+the place and the seat in which this distinguished man sat, while
+weaving the radiant wreath of renown which now in his old age surrounds
+him, and whose labours will be more appreciated by future ages than the
+present.
+
+I took a farewell of the author of the "Solar System," but not until I
+had taken a look through the great telescope in the observatory. This
+instrument, through which I tried to see the heavens, was not the one
+invented by Galileo, but an improvement upon the original. On leaving
+this learned man, he shook hands with us, and bade us "God speed" in our
+mission; and I left the philosopher, feeling I had not passed an hour
+more agreeably, with a literary character, since the hour which I spent
+with Poet Montgomery a few months since. And, by-the-bye, there is a
+resemblance between the poet and the philosopher. In becoming acquainted
+with great men, I have become a convert to the opinion, that a big nose
+is an almost necessary appendage to the form of a man with a giant
+intellect. If those whom I have seen be a criterion, such is certainly
+the case. But I have spun out this too long, and must close.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XV.
+
+_Melrose Abbey--Abbotsford--Dryburgh Abbey--The Grave of Sir Walter
+Scott--Hawick--Gretna Green--Visit to the Lakes._
+
+
+                    YORK, _March 26, 1851_.
+
+I closed my last letter in the ancient town of Melrose, on the banks of
+the Tweed, and within a stone's throw of the celebrated ruins from which
+the town derives its name. The valley in which Melrose is situated, and
+the surrounding hills, together with the Monastery, have so often been
+made a theme for the Scottish bards, that this has become the most
+interesting part of Scotland. Of the many gifted writers who have taken
+up the pen, none have done more to bring the Eildon Hills and Melrose
+Abbey into note, than the author of "Waverley." But who can read his
+writings without a regret, that he should have so woven fact and fiction
+together, that it is almost impossible to discriminate between the one
+and the other.
+
+We arrived at Melrose in the evening, and proceeded to the chapel where
+our meeting was to be held, and where our friends, the Crafts, were
+warmly greeted. On returning from the meeting, we passed close by the
+ruins of Melrose, and, very fortunately, it was a moonlight night. There
+is considerable difference of opinion among the inhabitants of the place
+as regards the best time to view the Abbey. The author of the "Lay of
+the Last Minstrel," says:--
+
+   "If thou wouldst view fair Melrose aright,
+    Go visit it by the pale moonlight:
+    For the gay beams of lightsome day
+    Gild but to flout the ruins gray."
+
+
+In consequence of this admonition, I was informed that many persons
+remain in town to see the ruins by moonlight. Aware that the moon did
+not send its rays upon the old building every night in the year, I asked
+the keeper what he did on dark nights. He replied that he had a large
+lantern, which he put upon the end of a long pole, and with this he
+succeeded in lighting up the ruins. This good man laboured hard to
+convince me that his invention was nearly, if not quite as good, as
+Nature's own moon. But having no need of an application of his invention
+to the Abbey, I had no opportunity of judging of its effect. I thought,
+however, that he had made a moon to some purpose, when he informed me
+that some nights, with his pole and lantern, he earned his four or five
+shillings. Not being content with a view by "moonlight alone," I was up
+the next morning before the sun, and paid my respects to the Abbey. I
+was too early for the keeper, and he handed me the key through the
+window, and I entered the rooms alone. It is one labyrinth of gigantic
+arches and dilapidated halls, the ivy growing and clinging wherever it
+can fasten its roots, and the whole as fine a picture of decay as
+imagination could create. This was the favourite resort of Sir Walter
+Scott, and furnished him much matter for the "Lay of the Last Minstrel."
+He could not have selected a more fitting place for solitary thought
+than this ancient abode of monks and priests. In passing through the
+cloisters, I could not but remark the carvings of leaves and flowers,
+wrought in stone in the most exquisite manner, looking as fresh as if
+they were just from the hands of the artist. The lapse of centuries
+seems not to have made any impression upon them, or changed their
+appearance in the least. I sat down among the ruins of the Abbey. The
+ground about was piled up with magnificent fragments of stone,
+representing various texts of Scripture, and the quaint ideas of the
+priests and monks of that age. Scene after scene swept through my fancy
+as I looked upon the surrounding objects. I could almost imagine I saw
+the bearded monks going from hall to hall, and from cell to cell. In
+visiting these dark cells, the mind becomes oppressed by a sense of the
+utter helplessness of the victims who once passed over the thresholds
+and entered these religious prisons. There was no help or hope but in
+the will that ordered their fate. How painful it is to gaze upon these
+walls, and to think how many tears have been shed by their inmates, when
+this old Monastery was in its glory. I ascended to the top of the ruin
+by a circuitous stairway, whose stone steps were worn deep from use by
+many who, like myself, had visited them to gratify a curiosity. From the
+top of the Abbey, I had a splendid view of the surrounding hills and
+the beautiful valley through which flows the Gala Water and Tweed. This
+is unquestionably the most splendid specimen of Gothic architectural
+ruin in Scotland. But any description of mine conveys but a poor idea to
+the fancy. To be realized, it must be seen.
+
+During the day, we paid a visit to Abbotsford, the splendid mansion of
+the late Sir Walter Scott, Bart. This beautiful seat is situated on the
+banks of the Tweed, just below its junction with the Gala Water. It is a
+dreary looking spot, and the house from the opposite side of the river
+has the appearance of a small, low castle. In a single day's ride
+through England, one may see half a dozen cottages larger than
+Abbotsford House. I was much disappointed in finding the premises
+undergoing repairs and alterations, and that all the trees between the
+house and the river had been cut down. This is to be regretted the more,
+because they were planted, nearly every one of them, by the same hand
+that waved its wand of enchantment over the world. The fountain had been
+removed from where it had been placed by the hands of the Poet to the
+centre of the yard; and even a small stone that had been placed over the
+favourite dog "Percy," had been taken up and thrown among some loose
+stones. One visits Abbotsford because of the genius of the man that once
+presided over it. Everything connected with the great Poet is of
+interest to his admirers, and anything altered or removed, tends to
+diminish that interest. We entered the house, and were conducted through
+the great Hall, which is hung all round with massive armour of all
+descriptions, and other memorials of ancient times. The floor is of
+white and black marble. In passing through the hall, we entered a narrow
+arched room, stretching quite across the building, having a window at
+each end. This little or rather narrow room is filled with all kinds of
+armour, which is arranged with great taste. We were next shown into the
+Dining-room, whose roof is of black oak, richly carved. In this room is
+a painting of the head of Queen Mary, in a charger, taken the day after
+the execution. Many other interesting portraits grace the walls of this
+room. But by far the finest apartment in the building is the
+Drawing-room, with a lofty ceiling, and furnished with antique ebony
+furniture. After passing through the Library, with its twenty thousand
+volumes, we found ourselves in the Study, and I sat down in the same
+chair where once sat the Poet; while before me was the table upon which
+was written the "Lady of the Lake," "Waverley," and other productions of
+this gifted writer. The clothes last worn by the Poet were shown to us.
+There was the broad skirted blue coat, with its large buttons, the plaid
+trousers, the heavy shoes, the black vest and white hat. These were all
+in a glass case, and all looked the poet and novelist. But the inside of
+the buildings had undergone alterations as well as the outside. In
+passing through the Library, we saw a granddaughter of the Poet. She was
+from London, and was only on a visit of a few days. She looked pale and
+dejected, and seemed as if she longed to leave this secluded spot and
+return to the metropolis. She looked for all the world like a hothouse
+plant. I don't think the Scotch could do better than to purchase
+Abbotsford, while it has some imprint of the great magician, and secure
+its preservation; for I am sure that, a hundred years hence, no place
+will be more frequently visited in Scotland than the home of the late
+Sir Walter Scott. After sauntering three hours about the premises, I
+left, but not without feeling that I had been well paid for my trouble
+in visiting Abbotsford.
+
+In the afternoon of the same day, in company with the Crafts, I took a
+drive to Dryburgh Abbey. It is a ruin of little interest, except as
+being the burial place of Scott. The poet lies buried in St. Mary's
+Aisle. His grave is in the left transept of the cross, and close to
+where the high altar formerly stood. Sir Walter Scott chose his own
+grave, and he could not have selected a sunnier spot if he had roamed
+the wide world over. A shaded window breaks the sun as it falls upon his
+grave. The ivy is creeping and clinging wherever it can, as if it would
+shelter the poet's grave from the weather. The author lies between his
+wife and eldest son, and there is only room enough for one grave more,
+and the son's wife has the choice of being buried here.
+
+The four o'clock train took us to Hawick; and after a pleasant visit in
+this place, and the people registering their names against American
+Slavery, and the Fugitive Bill in particular, we set out for Carlisle,
+passing through the antique town of Langholm. After leaving the latter
+place, we had to travel by coach. But no matter how one travels here, he
+travels at a more rapid rate than in America. The distance from Langholm
+to Carlisle, twenty miles, occupied only two and a-half hours in the
+journey. It was a cold day and I had to ride on the outside, as the
+inside had been taken up. We changed horses, and took in and put out
+passengers with a rapidity which seems almost incredible. The road was
+as smooth as a mirror.
+
+We bid farewell to Scotland, as we reached the little town of Gretna
+Green. This town being on the line between England and Scotland, is
+noted as the place where a little cross-eyed, red-faced blacksmith, by
+the name of Priestly, first set up his own altar to Hymen, and married
+all who came to him, without regard to rank or station, and at prices to
+suit all. It was worth a ride through this part of the country, if for
+no other purpose than to see the town where more clandestine marriages
+have taken place than in any other part in the world. A ride of eight or
+nine miles brought us in sight of the Eden, winding its way slowly
+through a beautiful valley, with farms on either side, covered with
+sheep and cattle. Four very tall chimneys, sending forth dense columns
+of black smoke, announced to us that we were near Carlisle. I was really
+glad of this, for Ulysses was never more tired of the shores of Ilion
+than I of the top of that coach.
+
+We remained over night at Carlisle, partaking of the hospitality of the
+prince of bakers, and left the next day for the Lakes, where we had a
+standing invitation to pay a visit to a distinguished literary lady. A
+cold ride of about fifty miles brought us to the foot of Lake
+Windermere, a beautiful sheet of water, surrounded by mountains that
+seemed to vie with each other which should approach nearest the sky. The
+margin of the lake is carved out and built up into terrace above
+terrace, until the slopes and windings are lost in the snow-capped peaks
+of the mountains. It is not surprising that such men as Southey,
+Coleridge, Wordsworth, and others, resorted to this region for
+inspiration. After a coach ride of five miles (passing on our journey
+the "Dove's Nest," home of the late Mrs. Hemans), we were put down at
+the door of the Salutation Hotel, Ambleside, and a few minutes after
+found ourselves under the roof of the authoress of "Society in America."
+I know not how it is with others, but for my own part, I always form an
+opinion of the appearance of an author whose writings I am at all
+familiar with, or a statesman whose speeches I have read. I had pictured
+in my own mind a tall, stately-looking lady of about sixty years, as the
+authoress of "Travels in the East," and for once I was right, with the
+single exception that I had added on too many years by twelve. The
+evening was spent in talking about the United States; and William Craft
+had to go through the narrative of his escape from slavery. When I
+retired for the night, I found it almost impossible to sleep. The idea
+that I was under the roof of the authoress of "The Hour and the Man,"
+and that I was on the banks of the sweetest lake in Great Britain,
+within half a mile of the residence of the late poet Wordsworth, drove
+sleep from my pillow. But I must leave an account of my visit to the
+Lakes for a future letter.
+
+When I look around and see the happiness here, even among the poorer
+classes, and that too in a country where the soil is not at all to be
+compared with our own, I mourn for our down-trodden countrymen, who are
+plundered, oppressed, and made chattels of, to enable an ostentatious
+aristocracy to vie with each other in splendid extravagance.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XVI.
+
+_Miss Martineau--"The Knoll"--"Ridal Mount"--"The Dove's Nest"--Grave of
+William Wordsworth, Esq.--The English Peasant._
+
+
+                    _May 30, 1851_.
+
+A series of public meetings, one pressing close upon the heel of
+another, must be an apology for my six or eight weeks' silence. But I
+hope that no temporary suspense on my part will be construed into a want
+of interest in our cause, or a wish to desist from giving occasionally a
+scrap (such as it is) to the _North Star_.
+
+My last letter left me under the hospitable roof of Harriet Martineau. I
+had long had an invitation to visit this distinguished friend of our
+race, and as the invitation was renewed during my tour through the
+North, I did not feel disposed to decline it, and thereby lose so
+favourable an opportunity of meeting with one who had written so much in
+behalf of the oppressed of our land. About a mile from the head of Lake
+Windermere, and immediately under Wonsfell, and encircled by mountains
+on all sides, except the south-west, lies the picturesque little town of
+Ambleside, and the brightest spot in the place is "The Knoll," the
+residence of Miss Martineau.
+
+We reached "The Knoll" a little after nightfall, and a cordial shake of
+the hand by Miss M., who was waiting for us, soon assured us that we had
+met with a warm friend.
+
+It is not my intention to lay open the scenes of domestic life at "The
+Knoll," nor to describe the social parties of which my friends and I
+were partakers during our sojourn within the hospitable walls of this
+distinguished writer; but the name of Miss M. is so intimately connected
+with the Anti-slavery movement, by her early writings, and those have
+been so much admired by the friends of the slave in the United States,
+that I deem it not at all out of place for me to give the readers of the
+_North Star_ some idea of the authoress of "Political Economy," "Travels
+in the East," "The Hour and the Man," &c.
+
+The dwelling is a cottage of moderate size, built after Miss M.'s own
+plan, upon a rise of land from which it derives the name of "The Knoll."
+The Library is the largest room in the building, and upon the walls of
+it were hung some beautiful engravings and a continental map. On a long
+table which occupied the centre of the room, were the busts of
+Shakspere, Newton, Milton, and a few other literary characters of the
+past. One side of the room was taken up with a large case, filled with a
+choice collection of books, and everything indicated that it was the
+home of genius and of taste.
+
+The room usually occupied by Miss M., and where we found her on the
+evening of our arrival, is rather small and lighted by two large
+windows. The walls of this room were also decorated with prints and
+pictures, and on the mantle-shelf were some models in _terra cottia_ of
+Italian groups. On a circular table lay casts, medallions, and some very
+choice water-colour drawings. Under the south window stood a small table
+covered with newly opened letters, a portfolio and several new books,
+with here and there a page turned down, and one with a paper knife
+between its leaves as if it had only been half read. I took up the last
+mentioned, and it proved to be the "Life and Poetry of Hartly
+Coleridge," son of S.T. Coleridge. It was just from the press, and had,
+a day or two before, been forwarded to her by the publisher. Miss M. is
+very deaf and always carries in her left hand a trumpet; and I was not a
+little surprised on learning from her that she had never enjoyed the
+sense of smell, and only on one occasion the sense of taste, and that
+for a single moment. Miss M. is loved with a sort of idolatry by the
+people of Ambleside, and especially the poor, to whom she gives a
+course of lectures every winter gratuitously. She finished her last
+course the day before our arrival. She was much pleased with Ellen
+Craft, and appeared delighted with the story of herself and husband's
+escape from slavery, as related by the latter--during the recital of
+which I several times saw the silent tear stealing down her cheek, and
+which she tried in vain to hide from us.
+
+When Craft had finished, she exclaimed, "I would that every woman in the
+British Empire, could hear that tale as I have, so that they might know
+how their own sex was treated in that boasted land of liberty." It seems
+strange to the people of this county, that one so white and so lady-like
+as Mrs. Craft, should have been a slave and forced to leave the land of
+her nativity and seek an asylum in a foreign country. The morning after
+our arrival, I took a stroll by a circuitous pathway to the top of
+Loughrigg Fell. At the foot of the mount I met a peasant, who very
+kindly offered to lend me his donkey, upon which to ascend the mountain.
+Never having been upon the back of one of these long eared animals, I
+felt some hesitation about trusting myself upon so diminutive looking a
+creature. But being assured that if I would only resign myself to his
+care and let him have his own way, I would be perfectly safe, I mounted,
+and off we set. We had, however, scarcely gone fifty rods, when, in
+passing over a narrow part of the path and overlooking a deep chasm, one
+of the hind feet of the donkey slipped, and with an involuntary shudder,
+I shut my eyes to meet my expected doom; but fortunately the little
+fellow gained his foothold, and in all probability saved us both from a
+premature death. After we had passed over this dangerous place, I
+dismounted, and as soon as my feet had once more gained _terra firma_, I
+resolved that I would never again yield my own judgment to that of any
+one, not even to a donkey.
+
+It seems as if Nature has amused herself in throwing these mountains
+together. From the top of the Loughrigg Fell, the eye loses its power in
+gazing upon the objects below. On our left, lay Rydal Mount, the
+beautiful seat of the late poet Wordsworth. While to the right, and away
+in the dim distance, almost hidden by the native trees, was the cottage
+where once resided Mrs. Hemans. And below us lay Windermere, looking
+more like a river than a lake, and which, if placed by the side of our
+own Ontario, Erie or Huron, would be lost in the fog. But here it looks
+beautiful in the extreme, surrounded as it is by a range of mountains
+that have no parallel in the United States for beauty. Amid a sun of
+uncommon splendour, dazzling the eye with the reflection upon the water
+below, we descended into the valley, and I was soon again seated by the
+fireside of our hospitable hostess. In the afternoon of the same day, we
+took a drive to the "Dove's Nest," the home of the late Mrs. Hemans.
+
+We did not see the inside of the house, on account of its being occupied
+by a very eccentric man, who will not permit a woman to enter the house,
+and it is said that he has been known to run when a female had
+unconsciously intruded herself upon his premises. And as our company was
+in part composed of ladies, we had to share their fate, and therefore
+were prevented from seeing the interior of the Dove's Nest. The
+exhibitor of such a man would be almost sure of a prize at the great
+Exhibition.
+
+At the head of Grassmere Lake, and surrounded by a few cottages, stands
+an old gray, antique-looking Parish Church, venerable with the lapse of
+centuries, and the walls partly covered with ivy, and in the rear of
+which is the parish burial-ground. After leaving the Dove's Nest, and
+having a pleasant ride over the hills and between the mountains, and
+just as the sun was disappearing behind them, we arrived at the gate of
+Grassmere Church; and alighting and following Miss M., we soon found
+ourselves standing over a grave, marked by a single stone, and that,
+too, very plain, with a name deeply cut. This announced to us that we
+were standing over the grave of William Wordsworth. He chose his own
+grave, and often visited the spot before his death. He lies in the most
+sequestered spot in the whole grounds, and the simplicity and beauty of
+the place was enough to make one in love with it, to be laid so far from
+the bustle of the world, and in so sweet a place. The more one becomes
+acquainted with the literature of the old world, the more he must love
+her poets. Among the teachers of men, none are more worthy of study than
+the poets; and, as teachers, they should receive far more credit than is
+yielded to them. No one can look back upon the lives of Dante,
+Shakspere, Milton, Goethe, Cowper, and many others that we might name,
+without being reminded of the sacrifices which they made for mankind,
+and which were not appreciated until long after their deaths. We need
+look no farther than our own country to find men and women wielding the
+pen practically and powerfully for the right. It is acknowledged on all
+hands in this country, that England has the greatest dead poets, and
+America the greatest living ones. The poet and the true Christian have
+alike a hidden life. Worship is the vital element of each. Poetry has in
+it that kind of utility which good men find in their Bible, rather than
+such convenience as bad men often profess to draw from it. It ennobles
+the sentiments, enlarges the affections, kindles the imagination, and
+gives to us the enjoyment of a life in the past, and in the future, as
+well as in the present. Under its light and warmth, we wake from our
+torpidity and coldness, to a sense of our capabilities. This impulse
+once given, a great object is gained. Schiller has truly said, "Poetry
+can be to a man, what love is to a hero. It can neither counsel him nor
+smite him, nor perform any labour for him, but it can bring him up to be
+a hero, can summon him to deeds, and arm him with strength for all he
+ought to be." I have often read with pleasure the sweet poetry of our
+own Whitfield of Buffalo, which has appeared from time to time in the
+columns of the _North Star_. I have always felt ashamed of the fact that
+he should be compelled to wield the razor instead of the pen for a
+living. Meaner poets than James M. Whitfield, are now living by their
+compositions; and were he a white man he would occupy a different
+position.
+
+After remaining a short time, and reading the epitaphs of the departed,
+we again returned to "The Knoll." Nothing can be more imposing than the
+beauty of English park scenery, and especially in the vicinity of the
+lakes. Magnificent lawns that extend like sheets of vivid green, with
+here and there a sprinkling of fine trees, heaping up rich piles of
+foliage, and then the forests with the hare, the deer, and the rabbit,
+bounding away to the covert, or the pheasant suddenly bursting upon the
+wing--the artificial stream, the brook taught to wind in natural
+meanderings, or expand into the glassy lake, with the yellow leaf
+sleeping upon its bright waters, and occasionally a rustic temple or
+sylvan statue grown green and dark with age, give an air of sanctity and
+picturesque beauty to English scenery that is unknown in the United
+States. The very labourer with his thatched cottage and narrow slip of
+ground-plot before the door, the little flower-bed, the woodbine trimmed
+against the wall, and hanging its blossoms about the windows, and the
+peasant seen trudging home at nightfall with the avails of the toil of
+the day upon his back--all this tells us of the happiness both of rich
+and poor in this country. And yet there are those who would have the
+world believe that the labourer of England is in a far worse condition
+than the slaves of America. Such persons know nothing of the real
+condition of the working classes of this country. At any rate, the poor
+here, as well as the rich, are upon a level, as far as the laws of the
+country are concerned. The more one becomes acquainted with the English
+people, the more one has to admire them. They are so different from the
+people of our own country. Hospitality, frankness, and good humour, are
+always to be found in an Englishman. After a ramble of three days about
+the lakes, we mounted the coach, bidding Miss Martineau farewell, and
+quitted the lake district.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XVII.
+
+_A Day in the Crystal Palace._
+
+
+                    LONDON, _June 27th, 1851_.
+
+Presuming that you will expect from me some account of the great World's
+Fair, I take my pen to give you my own impressions, although I am afraid
+that anything which I may say about this "Lion of the day," will fall
+far short of a description. On Monday last, I quitted my lodgings at an
+early hour, and started for the Crystal Palace. This day was fine, such
+as we seldom experience in London, with a clear sky, and invigorating
+air, whose vitality was as rousing to the spirits as a blast from the
+"horn of Astolpho." Although it was not yet 10 o'clock when I entered
+Piccadilly, every omnibus was full, inside and out, and the street was
+lined with one living stream, as far as the eye could reach, all wending
+their way to the "Glass-House." No metropolis in the world presents such
+facilities as London for the reception of the Great Exhibition, now
+collected within its walls. Throughout its myriads of veins, the stream
+of industry and toil pulses with sleepless energy. Every one seems to
+feel that this great Capital of the world, is the fittest place wherein
+they might offer homage to the dignity of toil. I had already begun to
+feel fatigued by my pedestrian excursion as I passed "Apsley House," the
+residence of the Duke of Wellington, and emerged into Hyde Park.
+
+I had hoped that on getting into the Park, I would be out of the crowd
+that seemed to press so heavily in the street. But in this I was
+mistaken. I here found myself surrounded by and moving with an
+overwhelming mass, such as I had never before witnessed. And, away in
+the distance, I beheld a dense crowd, and above every other object, was
+seen the lofty summit of the Crystal Palace. The drive in the Park was
+lined with princely-looking vehicles of every description. The drivers
+in their bright red and gold uniforms, the pages and footmen in their
+blue trousers and white silk stockings, and the horses dressed up in
+their neat, silver-mounted harness, made the scene altogether one of
+great splendour. I was soon at the door, paid my shilling, and entered
+the building at the south end of the Transept. For the first ten or
+twenty minutes I was so lost in astonishment, and absorbed in pleasing
+wonder, that I could do nothing but gaze up and down the vista of the
+noble building. The Crystal Palace resembles in some respects, the
+interior of the cathedrals of this country. One long avenue from east to
+west is intersected by a Transept, which divides the building into two
+nearly equal parts. This is the greatest building the world ever saw,
+before which the Pyramids of Egypt, and the Colossus of Rhodes must
+hide their diminished heads. The palace was not full at any time during
+the day, there being only 64,000 persons present. Those who love to
+study the human countenance in all its infinite varieties, can find
+ample scope for the indulgence of their taste, by a visit to the World's
+Fair. All countries are there represented--Europeans, Asiatics,
+Americans and Africans, with their numerous subdivisions. Even the
+exclusive Chinese, with his hair braided, and hanging down his back, has
+left the land of his nativity, and is seen making long strides through
+the Crystal Palace, in his wooden-bottomed shoes. Of all places of
+curious costumes and different fashions, none has ever yet presented
+such a variety as this Exhibition. No dress is too absurd to be worn in
+this place.
+
+There is a great deal of freedom in the Exhibition. The servant who
+walks behind his mistress through the Park feels that he can crowd
+against her in the Exhibition. The Queen and the day labourer, the
+Prince and the merchant, the peer and the pauper, the Celt and the
+Saxon, the Greek and the Frank, the Hebrew and the Russ, all meet here
+upon terms of perfect equality. This amalgamation of rank, this kindly
+blending of interests, and forgetfulness of the cold formalities of
+ranks and grades, cannot but be attended with the very best results. I
+was pleased to see such a goodly sprinkling of my own countrymen in the
+Exhibition--I mean coloured men and women--well-dressed, and moving
+about with their fairer brethren. This, some of our pro-slavery
+Americans did not seem to relish very well. There was no help for it. As
+I walked through the American part of the Crystal Palace, some of our
+Virginian neighbours eyed me closely and with jealous looks, especially
+as an English lady was leaning on my arm. But their sneering looks did
+not disturb me in the least. I remained the longer in their department,
+and criticised the bad appearance of their goods the more. Indeed, the
+Americans, as far as appearance goes, are behind every other country in
+the Exhibition. The "Greek Slave" is the only production of Art which
+the United States has sent. And it would have been more to their credit
+had they kept that at home. In so vast a place as the Great Exhibition
+one scarcely knows what to visit first, or what to look upon last. After
+wandering about through the building for five hours, I sat down in one
+of the galleries and looked at the fine marble statue of Virginius, with
+the knife in his hand and about to take the life of his beloved and
+beautiful daughter, to save her from the hands of Appius Claudius. The
+admirer of genius will linger for hours among the great variety of
+statues in the long avenue. Large statues of Lords Eldon and Stowell,
+carved out of solid marble, each weighing above twenty tons, are among
+the most gigantic in the building.
+
+I was sitting with my 400 paged guide-book before me, and looking down
+upon the moving mass, when my attention was called to a small group of
+gentlemen standing near the statue of Shakspere, one of whom wore a
+white coat and hat, and had flaxen hair, and trousers rather short in
+the legs. The lady by my side, and who had called my attention to the
+group, asked if I could tell what country this odd-looking gentleman was
+from? Not wishing to run the risk of a mistake, I was about declining
+to venture an opinion, when the reflection of the sun against a mirror,
+on the opposite side, threw a brilliant light upon the group, and
+especially on the face of the gentleman in the white coat, and I
+immediately recognized under the brim of the white hat, the features of
+Horace Greeley, Esq., of the New York "Tribune." His general appearance
+was as much out of the English style as that of the Turk whom I had seen
+but a moment before--in his bag-like trousers, shuffling along in his
+slippers. But oddness in dress, is one of the characteristics of the
+Great Exhibition.
+
+Among the many things in the Crystal Palace, there are some which
+receive greater attention than others, around which may always be seen
+large groups of the visitors. The first of these is the Koh-i-noor, the
+"Mountain of Light." This is the largest and most valuable diamond in
+the world, said to be worth £2,000,000 sterling. It is indeed a great
+source of attraction to those who go to the Exhibition for the first
+time, but it is doubtful whether it obtains such admiration afterwards.
+We saw more than one spectator turn away with the idea that after all
+it was only a piece of glass. After some jamming, I got a look at the
+precious jewel, and although in a brass-grated cage, strong enough to
+hold a lion, I found it to be no larger than the third of a hen's egg.
+Two policemen remain by its side day and night.
+
+The finest thing in the Exhibition, is the "Veiled Vestal," a statue of
+a woman carved in marble, with a veil over her face, and so neatly done,
+that it looks as if it had been thrown over after it was finished. The
+Exhibition presents many things which appeal to the eye and touch the
+heart, and altogether, it is so decorated and furnished, as to excite
+the dullest mind, and satisfy the most fastidious.
+
+England has contributed the most useful and substantial articles;
+France, the most beautiful; while Russia, Turkey, and the West Indies,
+seem to vie with each other in richness. China and Persia are not
+behind. Austria has also contributed a rich and beautiful stock. Sweden,
+Norway, Denmark, and the smaller states of Europe, have all tried to
+outdo themselves in sending goods to the World's Fair. In Machinery,
+England has no competitor. In Art, France is almost alone in the
+Exhibition, setting aside England.
+
+In natural productions and provisions, America stands alone in her
+glory. There lies her pile of canvassed hams; whether they were wood or
+real, we could not tell. There are her barrels of salt, beef, and pork,
+her beautiful white lard, her Indian-corn and corn-meal, her rice and
+tobacco, her beef tongues, dried peas, and a few bags of cotton. The
+contributors from the United States seemed to have forgotten that this
+was an exhibition of Art, or they most certainly would not have sent
+provisions. But the United States takes the lead in the contributions,
+as no other country has sent in provisions. The finest thing contributed
+by our countrymen, is a large piece of silk with an eagle painted upon
+it, surrounded by stars and stripes.
+
+After remaining more than five hours in the great temple, I turned my
+back upon the richly laden stalls and left the Crystal Palace. On my
+return home I was more fortunate than in the morning, inasmuch as I
+found a seat for my friend and myself in an omnibus. And even my ride
+in the close omnibus was not without interest. For I had scarcely taken
+my seat, when my friend, who was seated opposite me, with looks and
+gesture informed me that we were in the presence of some distinguished
+person. I eyed the countenances of the different persons, but in vain,
+to see if I could find any one who by his appearance showed signs of
+superiority over his fellow-passengers. I had given up the hope of
+selecting the person of note when another look from my friend directed
+my attention to a gentlemen seated in the corner of the omnibus. He was
+a tall man with strongly marked features, hair dark and coarse. There
+was a slight stoop of the shoulder--that bend which is almost always a
+characteristic of studious men. But he wore upon his countenance a
+forbidding and disdainful frown, that seemed to tell one that he thought
+himself better than those about him. His dress did not indicate a man of
+high rank; and had we been in America, I would have taken him for an
+Ohio farmer.
+
+While I was scanning the features and general appearance of the
+gentleman, the Omnibus stopped and put down three or four of the
+passengers, which gave me an opportunity of getting a seat by the side
+of my friend, who, in a low whisper, informed me that the gentleman whom
+I had been eyeing so closely, was no less a person than Thomas Carlyle.
+I had read his "Hero-worship," and "Past and Present," and had formed a
+high opinion of his literary abilities. But his recent attack upon the
+emancipated people of the West Indies, and his laborious article in
+favour of the re-establishment of the lash and slavery, had created in
+my mind a dislike for the man, and I almost regretted that we were in
+the same Omnibus. In some things, Mr. Carlyle is right: but in many, he
+is entirely wrong. As a writer, Mr. Carlyle is often monotonous and
+extravagant. He does not exhibit a new view of nature, or raise
+insignificant objects into importance, but generally takes commonplace
+thoughts and events, and tries to express them in stronger and statelier
+language than others. He holds no communion with his kind, but stands
+alone without mate or fellow. He is like a solitary peak, all access to
+which is cut off. He exists not by sympathy but by antipathy. Mr.
+Carlyle seems chiefly to try how he shall display his own powers, and
+astonish mankind, by starting new trains of speculation or by expressing
+old ones so as not to be understood. He cares little what he says, so as
+he can say it differently from others. To read his works, is one thing;
+to understand them, is another. If any one thinks that I exaggerate, let
+him sit for an hour over "Sartor Resartus," and if he does not rise from
+its pages, place his three or four dictionaries on the shelf, and say I
+am right, I promise never again to say a word against Thomas Carlyle. He
+writes one page in favour of Reform, and ten against it. He would hang
+all prisoners to get rid of them, yet the inmates of the prisons and
+"work-houses are better off than the poor." His heart is with the poor;
+yet the blacks of the West Indies should be taught, that if they will
+not raise sugar and cotton by their own free will, "Quashy should have
+the whip applied to him." He frowns upon the Reformatory speakers upon
+the boards of Exeter Hall, yet he is the prince of reformers. He hates
+heroes and assassins, yet Cromwell was an angel, and Charlotte Corday a
+saint. He scorns everything, and seems to be tired of what he is by
+nature, and tries to be what he is not. But you will ask, what has
+Thomas Carlyle to do with a visit to the Crystal Palace? My only reply
+is, "Nothing," and if my remarks upon him have taken up the space that
+should have been devoted to the Exhibition, and what I have written not
+prove too burdensome to read, my next will be "a week in the Crystal
+Palace."
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XVIII.
+
+_The London Peace Congress--Meeting of Fugitive Slaves--Temperance
+Demonstration--The Great Exhibition: last visit._
+
+
+                    LONDON, _August 20_.
+
+The past six weeks have been of a stirring nature in this great
+metropolis. It commenced with the Peace Congress, the proceedings of
+which have long since reached you. And although that event has passed
+off, it may not be out of place here to venture a remark or two upon its
+deliberations.
+
+A meeting upon the subject of Peace, with the support of the monied and
+influential men who rally around the Peace standard, could scarcely have
+been held in Exeter Hall without creating some sensation. From all parts
+of the world flocked delegates to this practical protest against war.
+And among those who took part in the proceedings, were many men whose
+names alone would, even on ordinary occasions, have filled the great
+hall. The speakers were chosen from among the representatives of the
+various countries, without regard to dialect or complexion; and the only
+fault which seemed to be found with the Committee's arrangement was,
+that in their desire to get foreigners and Londoners, they forgot the
+country delegates, so that none of the large provincial towns were at
+all represented in the Congress, so far as speaking was concerned.
+Manchester, Leeds, Newcastle, and all the important towns in Scotland
+and Ireland, were silenced in the great meeting. I need not say that
+this was an oversight of the Committee, and one, too, that has done some
+injury. Such men as the able Chairman of the late Anti-Corn Law League,
+cannot be forgotten in such a meeting, without giving offence to those
+who sent him, especially when the Committee brought forward, day after
+day, the same speakers, chosen from amongst the metropolitan delegation.
+However, the meeting was a glorious one, and will long be remembered
+with delight as a step onward in the cause of Peace. Burritt's
+Brotherhood Bazaar followed close upon the heels of the Peace Congress;
+and this had scarcely closed, when that ever-memorable meeting of the
+American Fugitive Slaves took place in the Hall of Commerce.
+
+The Temperance people made the next reformatory move. This meeting took
+place in Exeter Hall, and was made up of delegates from the various
+towns in the kingdom. They had come from the North, East, West, and
+South. There was the quick-spoken son of the Emerald Isle, with his
+pledge suspended from his neck; there, too, the Scot, speaking his broad
+dialect; also the representatives from the provincial towns of England
+and Wales, who seemed to speak anything but good English.
+
+The day after the meeting had closed in Exeter Hall, the country
+societies, together with those of the metropolis, assembled in Hyde
+Park, and then walked to the Crystal Palace. Their number while going to
+the Exhibition, was variously estimated at from 15,000 to 20,000, and
+was said to have been the largest gathering of Teetotalers ever
+assembled in London. They consisted chiefly of the working classes,
+their wives and children--clean, well-dressed and apparently happy:
+their looks indicating in every way those orderly habits which, beyond
+question, distinguish the devotees of that cause above the common
+labourers of this country. On arriving at the Exhibition, they soon
+distributed themselves among the departments, to revel in its various
+wonders, eating their own lunch, and drinking from the Crystal Fountain.
+
+And now I am at the world's wonder, I will remain here until I finish
+this sheet. I have spent fifteen days in the Exhibition, and have
+conversed with those who have spent double that number amongst its
+beauties, and the general opinion appears to be, that six months would
+not be too long to remain within its walls to enable one to examine its
+laden stalls. Many persons make the Crystal Palace their home, with the
+exception of night. I have seen them come in the morning, visit the
+dressing-room, then go to the refreshment room, and sit down to
+breakfast as if they had been at their hotel. Dinner and tea would be
+taken in turn.
+
+The Crystal Fountain is the great place of meeting in the Exhibition.
+There you may see husbands looking for lost wives, wives for stolen
+husbands, mothers for their lost children, and towns-people for their
+country friends; and unless you have an appointment at a certain place
+at an hour, you might as well prowl through the streets of London to
+find a friend, as in the Great Exhibition. There is great beauty in the
+"Glass House." Here, in the transept, with the glorious sunlight coming
+through that wonderful glass roof, may the taste be cultivated and
+improved, the mind edified, and the feelings chastened. Here,
+surrounded by noble creations in marble and bronze, and in the midst of
+an admiring throng, one may gaze at statuary which might fitly decorate
+the house of the proudest prince in Christendom.
+
+He who takes his station in the gallery, at either end, and looks upon
+that wondrous nave, or who surveys the matchless panorama around him
+from the intersection of the nave and transept, may be said, without
+presumption or exaggeration, to see all the kingdoms of this world and
+the glory of them. He sees not only a greater collection of fine
+articles, but also a greater as well as more various assemblage of the
+human race, than ever before was gathered under one roof.
+
+One of the beauties of this great international gathering is, that it is
+not confined to rank or grade. The million toilers from mine, and
+factory, and workshop, and loom, and office, and field, share with their
+more wealthy neighbours the feast of reason and imagination spread out
+in the Crystal Palace.
+
+It is strange indeed to see so many nations assembled and represented
+on one spot of British ground. In short, it is one great theatre, with
+thousands of performers, each playing his own part. England is there,
+with her mighty engines toiling and whirring, indefatigable in her
+enterprises to shorten labour. India spreads her glitter and paint.
+France, refined and fastidious, is there every day, giving the last
+touch to her picturesque group; and the other countries, each in their
+turn, doing what they can to show off. The distant hum of thousands of
+good humoured people, with occasionally a national anthem from some
+gigantic organ, together with the noise of the machinery, seems to send
+life into every part of the Crystal Palace.
+
+When you get tired of walking, you can sit down and write your
+impressions, and there is the "post" to receive your letter, or if it be
+Friday or Saturday, you may, if you choose, rest yourself by hearing a
+lecture from Professor Anstead; and then before leaving take your last
+look, and see something that you have not before seen. Every thing which
+is old in cities, new in colonial life, splendid in courts, useful in
+industry, beautiful in nature, or ingenious in invention, is there
+represented. In one place we have the Bible translated into one hundred
+and fifty languages; in another, we have saints and archbishops painted
+on glass; in another, old palaces and the altars of a John Knox, a
+Baxter, or some other divines of olden time. In the old Temple of
+Delphi, we read that every state of the civilized world had its separate
+treasury, where Herodotus, born two thousand years before his time, saw
+and observed all kinds of prodigies in gold and silver, brass and iron,
+and even in linen. The nations all met there on one common ground, and
+the peace of the earth was not a little promoted by their common
+interest in the sanctity and splendour of that shrine. As long as the
+Exhibition lasts, and its memory endures, we hope and trust that it may
+shed the same influence. With this hasty scrap, I take leave of the
+Great Exhibition.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XIX.
+
+_Oxford--Martyrs' Monument--Cost of the Burning of the Martyrs--The
+Colleges--Dr. Pusey--Energy, the Secret of Success._
+
+
+                    OXFORD, _September 10th, 1851_.
+
+I have just finished a short visit to the far famed city of Oxford,
+which has not unaptly been styled the City of Palaces. Aside from this
+being one of the principal seats of learning in the world, it is
+distinguished alike for its religious and political changes in times
+past. At one time it was the seat of Popery; at another, the
+uncompromising enemy of Rome. Here the tyrant, Richard the Third, held
+his court, and when James the First, and his son Charles the First,
+found their capital too hot to hold them, they removed to their loyal
+city of Oxford. The writings of the great Republicans were here
+committed to the flames. At one time Popery sent Protestants to the
+stake and faggot; at another, a Papist King found no favour with the
+people. A noble monument now stands where Cranmer, Ridley, and Latimer,
+proclaimed their sentiments and faith, and sealed them with their blood.
+And now we read upon the Town Treasurer's book--for three loads of wood,
+one load of faggots, one post, two chains and staples, to burn Ridley
+and Latimer, £1 5s. 1d. Such is the information one gets by looking over
+the records of books written three centuries ago.
+
+It was a beautiful day on which I arrived at Oxford, and instead of
+remaining in my hotel, I sallied forth to take a survey of the beauties
+of the city. I strolled into Christ Church Meadows, and there spent the
+evening in viewing the numerous halls of learning which surround that
+splendid promenade. And fine old buildings they are: centuries have
+rolled over many of them, hallowing the old walls, and making them grey
+with age. They have been for ages the chosen homes of piety and
+philosophy. Heroes and scholars have gone forth from their studies here,
+into the great field of the world, to seek their fortunes, and to
+conquer and be conquered. As I surveyed the exterior of the different
+Colleges, I could here and there see the reflection of the light from
+the window of some student, who was busy at his studies, or throwing
+away his time over some trashy novel, too many of which find their way
+into the trunks or carpet bags of the young men on setting out for
+College. As I looked upon the walls of these buildings, I thought as the
+rough stone is taken from the quarry to the finisher, there to be made
+into an ornament, so was the young mind brought here to be cultivated
+and developed. Many a poor unobtrusive young man, with the appearance of
+little or no ability, is here moulded into a hero, a scholar, a tyrant,
+or a friend of humanity. I never look upon these monuments of education,
+without a feeling of regret, that so few of our own race can find a
+place within their walls. And this being the fact, I see more and more
+the need of our people being encouraged to turn their attention more
+seriously to self-education, and thus to take a respectable position
+before the world, by virtue of their own cultivated minds and moral
+standing.
+
+Education, though obtained by a little at a time, and that, too, over
+the midnight lamp, will place its owner in a position to be respected
+by all, even though he be black. I know that the obstacles which the
+laws of the land, and of society, place between the coloured man and
+education in the United States, are very great, yet if _one_ can break
+through these barriers, more can; and if our people would only place the
+right appreciation upon education, they would find these obstacles are
+easier to be overcome than at first sight appears. A young man once
+asked Carlyle, what was the secret of success. His reply was, "Energy;
+whatever you undertake, do it with all your might." Had it not been for
+the possession of energy, I might now have been working as a servant for
+some brainless fellow who might be able to command my labour with his
+money, or I might have been yet toiling in chains and slavery. But
+thanks to energy, not only for my being to-day in a land of freedom, but
+also for my dear girls being in one of the best seminaries in France,
+instead of being in an American school, where the finger of scorn would
+be pointed at them by those whose superiority rests entirely upon their
+having a whiter skin. But I am straying too far from the purpose of
+this letter.
+
+Oxford is indeed one of the finest located places in the kingdom, and
+every inch of ground about it seems hallowed by interesting
+associations. The University, founded by the good King Alfred, still
+throws its shadow upon the side-walk; and the lapse of ten centuries
+seems to have made but little impression upon it. Other seats of
+learning may be entitled to our admiration, but Oxford claims our
+veneration. Although the lateness of the night compelled me, yet I felt
+an unwillingness to tear myself from the scene of such surpassing
+interest. Few places in any country as noted as Oxford is, but what has
+some distinguished person residing within its precincts. And knowing
+that the City of Palaces was not an exception to this rule, I resolved
+to see some of its lions. Here, of course, is the head quarters of the
+Bishop of Oxford, a son of the late William Wilberforce, Africa's noble
+champion. I should have been glad to have seen this distinguished pillar
+of the Church, but I soon learned that the Bishop's residence was out of
+town, and that he seldom visited the city except on business. I then
+determined to see one who, although a lesser dignitary in the church, is
+nevertheless, scarcely less known than the Bishop of Oxford. This was
+the Rev. Dr. Pusey, a divine, whose name is known wherever the religion
+of Jesus is known and taught, and the acknowledged head of the
+Puseyites. On the second morning of my visit, I proceeded to Christ
+Church Chapel, where the rev. gentleman officiates. Fortunately I had an
+opportunity of seeing the Dr., and following close in his footsteps to
+the church. His personal appearance is anything but that of one who is
+the leader of a growing and powerful party in the church. He is rather
+under the middle size, and is round shouldered, or rather stoops. His
+profile is more striking than his front face, the nose being very large
+and prominent. As a matter of course, I expected to see a large nose,
+for all great men have them. He has a thoughtful, and somewhat sullen
+brow, a firm and somewhat pensive mouth, a cheek pale, thin, and deeply
+furrowed. A monk fresh from the cloisters of Tintern Abbey, in its
+proudest days, could scarcely have made a more ascetic and solemn
+appearance than did Dr. Pusey on this occasion. He is not apparently
+above forty-five, or at most fifty years of age, and his whole aspect
+renders him an admirable study for an artist. Dr. Pusey's style of
+preaching is cold and tame, and one looking at him would scarcely
+believe that such an apparently uninteresting man could cause such an
+eruption in the Church as he has. I was glad to find that a coloured
+young man was among the students at Oxford.
+
+A few months since, I paid a visit to our countryman, Alexander Crummel,
+who is still pursuing his studies at Cambridge--a place, though much
+inferior to Oxford as far as appearance is concerned, is yet said to be
+greatly its superior as a place of learning. In an hour's walk through
+the Strand, Regent, or Piccadilly Streets in London, one may meet half a
+dozen coloured young men, who are inmates of the various Colleges in the
+metropolis. These are all signs of progress in the cause of the sons of
+Africa. Then let our people take courage, and with that courage let them
+apply themselves to learning. A determination to excel is the sure road
+to greatness, and that is as open to the black man as the white. It was
+that which has accomplished the mightiest and noblest triumphs in the
+intellectual and physical world. It was that which has made such rapid
+strides towards civilization, and broken the chains of ignorance and
+superstition, which have so long fettered the human intellect. It was
+determination which raised so many worthy individuals from the humble
+walks of society, and from poverty, and placed them in positions of
+trust and renown. It is no slight barrier that can effectually oppose
+the determination of the will--success must ultimately crown its
+efforts. "The world shall hear of me," was the exclamation of one whose
+name has become as familiar as household words. A Toussaint, once
+laboured in the sugar field with his spelling-book in his pocket, amid
+the combined efforts of a nation to keep him in ignorance. His name is
+now recorded among the list of statesmen of the past. A Soulouque was
+once a slave, and knew not how to read. He now sits upon the throne of
+an Empire.
+
+In our own country, there are men who once held the plough, and that
+too without any compensation, who are now presiding at the editor's
+table. It was determination that brought out the genius of a Franklin,
+and a Fulton, and that has distinguished many of the American Statesmen,
+who but for their energy and determination would never have had a name
+beyond the precincts of their own homes.
+
+It is not always those who have the best advantages, or the greatest
+talents, that eventually succeed in their undertakings; but it is those
+who strive with untiring diligence to remove all obstacles to success,
+and who, with unconquerable resolution, labour on until the rich reward
+of perseverance is within their grasp. Then again let me say to our
+young men--Take courage; "There is a good time coming." The darkness of
+the night appears greatest just before the dawn of day.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XX.
+
+_Fugitive Slaves in England._
+
+
+The love of freedom is one of those natural impulses of the human breast
+which cannot be extinguished. Even the brute animals of the creation
+feel and show sorrow and affection when deprived of their liberty.
+Therefore is a distinguished writer justified in saying, "Man is free,
+even were he born in chains." The Americans boast, and justly, too, that
+Washington was the hero and model patriot of the American
+Revolution--the man whose fame, unequalled in his own day and country,
+will descend to the end of time, the pride and honour of humanity. The
+American speaks with pride of the battles of Lexington and Bunker Hill;
+and when standing in Faneuil Hall, he points to the portraits of Otis,
+Adams, Hancock, Quincy, Warren, and Franklin, and tells you that their
+names will go down to posterity among the world's most devoted and
+patriotic friends of human liberty.
+
+It was on the first of August, 1851, that a number of men, fugitives
+from that boasted land of freedom, assembled at the Hall of Commerce in
+the City of London, for the purpose of laying their wrongs before the
+British nation, and at the same time, to give thanks to the God of
+Freedom for the liberation of their West India brethren, on the first of
+August, 1834. Little notice had been given of the intended meeting, yet
+it seemed to be known in all parts of the city. At the hour of half-past
+seven, for which the meeting had been called, the spacious hall was well
+filled, and the fugitives, followed by some of the most noted English
+Abolitionists, entered the hall, amid the most deafening applause, and
+took their seats on the platform. The appearance of the great hall at
+this juncture was most splendid. Besides the committee of fugitives, on
+the platform there were a number of the oldest and most devoted of the
+Slave's friends. On the left of the chair sat Geo. Thompson, Esq., M.P.;
+near him was the Rev. Jabez Burns, D.D.; and by his side the Rev. John
+Stevenson, M.A., Wm. Farmer, Esq., R. Smith, Esq.; while on the other
+side were the Rev. Edward Mathews, John Cunliff, Esq., Andrew Paton,
+Esq., J.P. Edwards, Esq., and a number of coloured gentlemen from the
+West Indies. The body of the hall was not without its distinguished
+guests. The Chapmans and Westons of Boston, U.S., were there. The
+Estlins and Tribes had come all the way from Bristol to attend the great
+meeting. The Patons of Glasgow had delayed their departure, so as to be
+present. The Massies had come in from Upper Clapton. Not far from the
+platform sat Sir Francis Knowles, Bart., still farther back was Samuel
+Bowly, Esq., while near the door were to be seen the greatest critic of
+the age, and England's best living poet. Macaulay had laid aside the
+pen, entered the hall, and was standing near the central door, while not
+far from the historian stood the newly-appointed Poet Laureat. The
+author of "In Memoriam" had been swept in by the crowd, and was standing
+with his arms folded, and beholding for the first time (and probably the
+last) so large a number of coloured men in one room. In different parts
+of the hall were men and women from nearly all parts of the kingdom,
+besides a large number who, drawn to London by the Exhibition, had come
+in to see and hear these oppressed people plead their own cause.
+
+The writer of this sketch was chosen Chairman of the meeting, and
+commenced its proceedings by delivering the following address, which we
+cut from the columns of the _Morning Advertiser_:--
+
+
+"The Chairman, in opening the proceedings, remarked that, although the
+metropolis had of late been inundated with meetings of various
+character, having reference to almost every variety of subject, yet that
+the subject they were called upon that evening to discuss differed from
+them all. Many of those by whom he was surrounded, like himself, had
+been victims to the inhuman institution of Slavery, and were in
+consequence exiled from the land of their birth. They were fugitives
+from their native land, but not fugitives from justice, and they had not
+fled from a monarchical, but from a so-called republican government.
+They came from amongst a people who declared, as part of their creed,
+that all men were born free, but who, while they did so, made slaves of
+every sixth man, woman, and child in the country (hear, hear). He must
+not, however, forget that one of the purposes for which they were met
+that night was to commemorate the emancipation of their brothers and
+sisters in the isles of the sea. That act of the British Parliament, and
+he might add in this case with peculiar emphasis, of the British nation,
+passed on the 12th day of August, 1833, to take effect on the first day
+of August, 1834, and which enfranchised 800,000 West Indian slaves, was
+an event sublime in its nature, comprehensive and mighty in its
+immediate influences and remote consequences, precious beyond expression
+to the cause of freedom, and encouraging beyond the measure of any
+government on earth to the hearts of all enlightened and just men. This
+act was the commencement of a long course of philanthropic and Christian
+efforts on the part of some of the best men that the world ever
+produced. It was not his intention to go into a discussion or a
+calculation of the rise and fall of property, or whether sugar was worth
+more or less by the act of emancipation. But the abolition of Slavery
+in the West Indies, was a blow struck in the right direction, at that
+most inhuman of all traffics, the slave trade--a trade which would never
+cease so long as slavery existed, for where there was a market there
+would be merchandise; where there was demand there would be a supply;
+where there were carcases there would be vultures; and they might as
+well attempt to turn the water, and make it run up the Niagara river, as
+to change this law. It was often said by the Americans that England was
+responsible for the existence of slavery there, because it was
+introduced into that country while the colonies were under the British
+Crown. If that were the case, they must come to the conclusion that, as
+England abolished Slavery in the West Indies, she would have done the
+same for the American States if she had had the power to do it; and if
+that was so, they might safely say that the separation of the United
+States from the mother country was (to say the least) a great misfortune
+to one-sixth of the population of that land. England had set a noble
+example to America, and he would to heaven his countrymen would follow
+the example. The Americans boasted of their superior knowledge, but they
+needed not to boast of their superior guilt, for that was set upon a
+hill top, and that too, so high, that it required not the lantern of
+Diogenes to find it out. Every breeze from the western world brought
+upon its wings the groans and cries of the victims of this guilt. Nearly
+all countries had fixed the seal of disapprobation on slavery, and when,
+at some future age, this stain on the page of history shall be pointed
+at, posterity will blush at the discrepancy between American profession
+and American practice. What was to be thought of a people boasting of
+their liberty, their humanity, their Christianity, their love of
+justice, and at the same time keeping in slavery nearly four millions of
+God's children, and shutting out from them the light of the Gospel, by
+denying the Bible to the slave! (Hear, hear.) No education, no marriage,
+everything done to keep the mind of the slave in darkness. There was a
+wish on the part of the people of the northern States to shield
+themselves from the charge of slave-holding, but as they shared in the
+guilt, he was not satisfied with letting them off without their share in
+the odium. And now a word about the Fugitive Slave Bill. That measure
+was in every respect an unconstitutional measure. It set aside the right
+formerly enjoyed by the fugitive of trial by jury--it afforded to him no
+protection, no opportunity of proving his right to be free, and it
+placed every free coloured person at the mercy of any unprincipled
+individual who might wish to lay claim to him. (Hear.) That law is
+opposed to the principles of Christianity--foreign alike to the laws of
+God and man, it had converted the whole population of the free States
+into a band of slave-catchers, and every rood of territory is but so
+much hunting ground, over which they might chase the fugitive. But while
+they were speaking of slavery in the United States, they must not omit
+to mention that there was a strong feeling in that land, not only
+against the Fugitive Slave Law, but also against the existence of
+slavery in any form. There was a band of fearless men and women in the
+city of Boston, whose labours for the slave had resulted in good beyond
+calculation. This noble and heroic class had created an agitation in the
+whole country, until their principles have taken root in almost every
+association in the land, and which, with God's blessing, will, in due
+time, cause the Americans to put into practice what they have so long
+professed. (Hear, hear.) He wished it to be continually held up before
+the country, that the northern States are as deeply implicated in the
+guilt of slavery as the South. The north had a population of 13,553,328
+freemen; the south had a population of only 6,393,756 freemen; the north
+has 152 representatives in the house, the south only 81; and it would be
+seen by this, that the balance of power was with the free States.
+Looking, therefore, at the question in all its aspects, he was sure that
+there was no one in this country but who would find out, that the
+slavery of the United States of America was a system the most abandoned
+and the most tyrannical. (Hear, hear.)"
+
+At the close of this address, the Rev. Edward Matthews, last from
+Bristol, but who had recently returned from the United States, where he
+had been maltreated on account of his fidelity to the cause of freedom,
+was introduced, and made a most interesting speech. The next speaker was
+George Thompson, Esq., M.P.; and we need only say that his eloquence,
+which has seldom or ever been equalled, and never surpassed, exceeded,
+on this occasion, the most sanguine expectations of his friends. All who
+sat under the thundering anathemas which he hurled against slavery,
+seemed instructed, delighted, and animated. No one could scarcely have
+remained unmoved by the pensive sympathies that pervaded the entire
+assembly. There were many in the meeting who had never seen a fugitive
+slave before, and when any of the speakers would refer to those on the
+platform, the whole audience seemed moved to tears. No meeting of the
+kind held in London for years created a greater sensation than this
+gathering of refugees from the "Land of the free, and the home of the
+brave." The following appeal, which I had written for the occasion, was
+unanimously adopted at the close of the meeting, and thus ended the
+great Anti-Slavery demonstration of 1851.
+
+
+AN APPEAL TO THE PEOPLE OF GREAT BRITAIN AND THE WORLD.
+
+We consider it just, both to the people of the United States and to
+ourselves, in making an appeal to the inhabitants of other countries,
+against the laws which have exiled us from our native land, to state the
+ground upon which we make our appeal, and the causes which impel us to
+do so. There are in the United States of America, at the present time,
+between three and four millions of persons, who are held in a state of
+slavery which has no parallel in any other part of the world; and whose
+numbers have, within the last fifty years, increased to a fearful
+extent. These people are not only deprived of the rights to which the
+laws of Nature and Nature's God entitle them, but every avenue to
+knowledge is closed against them. The laws do not recognise the family
+relation of a slave, and extend to him protection in the enjoyment of
+domestic endearments. Brothers and sisters, parents and children,
+husbands and wives, are torn asunder, and permitted to see each other
+no more. The shrieks and agonies of the slave are heard in the markets
+at the seat of government, and within hearing of the American Congress,
+as well as on the cotton, sugar and rice plantations of the far South.
+
+The history of the negroes in America is but a history of repeated
+injuries and acts of oppression committed upon them by the whites. It is
+not for ourselves that we make this appeal, but for those whom we have
+left behind.
+
+In their Declaration of Independence, the Americans declare that "all
+men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with
+certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the
+pursuit of happiness." Yet one-sixth of the inhabitants of the great
+Republic are slaves. Thus they give the lie to their own professions. No
+one forfeits his or her character or standing in society by being
+engaged in holding, buying or selling a slave; the details of which, in
+all their horror, can scarcely be told.
+
+Although the holding of slaves is confined to fifteen of the thirty-one
+States, yet we hold that the non-slave-holding States are equally guilty
+with the slave-holding. If any proof is needed on this point, it will be
+found in the passage of the inhuman Fugitive Slave Law, by Congress; a
+law which could never have been enacted without the votes of a portion
+of the representatives from the free States, and which is now being
+enforced, in many of the States, with the utmost alacrity. It was the
+passing of this law that exiled us from our native land, and it has
+driven thousands of our brothers and sisters from the free States, and
+compelled them to seek a refuge in the British possessions in North
+America. The Fugitive Slave Law has converted the entire country, North
+and South, into one vast hunting-ground. We would respectfully ask you
+to expostulate with the Americans, and let them know that you regard
+their treatment of the coloured people of that country as a violation of
+every principle of human brotherhood, of natural right, of justice, of
+humanity, of Christianity, of love to God and love to man.
+
+It is needless that we should remind you that the religious sects of
+America, with but few exceptions, are connected with the sin of
+slavery--the churches North as well as South. We would have you tell the
+professed Christians of that land, that if they would be respected by
+you, they must separate themselves from the unholy alliance with men who
+are daily committing deeds which, if done in England, would cause the
+perpetrator to be sent to a felon's doom; that they must refuse the
+right hand of Christian fellowship, whether individually or
+collectively, to those implicated, in any way, in the guilt of slavery.
+
+We do not ask for a forcible interference on your part, but only that
+you will use all lawful and peaceful means to restore to this much
+injured race their God-given rights. The moral and religious sentiment
+of mankind must be arrayed against slave-holding, to make it infamous,
+ere we can hope to see it abolished. We would ask you to set them the
+example, by excluding from your pulpits, and from religious communion,
+the slave-holding and pro-slavery ministers who may happen to visit this
+country. We would even go further, and ask you to shut your doors
+against either ministers or laymen, who are at all guilty of upholding
+and sustaining this monster sin. By the cries of the slave, which come
+from the fields and swamps of the far South, we ask you to do this! By
+that spirit of liberty and equality of which you all admire, we would
+ask you to do this. And by that still nobler, higher, and holier spirit
+of our beloved Saviour, we would ask you to stamp upon the head of the
+slaveholder, with a brand deeper than that which marks the victim of his
+wrongs, the infamy of theft, adultery, man-stealing, piracy, and murder,
+and, by the force of public opinion, compel him to "unloose the heavy
+burden, and let the oppressed go free."
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XXI.
+
+_A Chapter on American Slavery._
+
+
+The word Englishman is but another name for an American, and the word
+American is but another name for an Englishman--England is the father,
+America the son. They have a common origin and identity of language;
+they hold the same religious and political opinions; they study the same
+histories, and have the same literature. Steam and mechanical ingenuity
+have brought the two countries within nine days sailing of each other.
+The Englishman on landing at New-York finds his new neighbours speaking
+the same language which he last heard on leaving Liverpool, and he sees
+the American in the same dress that he had been accustomed to look upon
+at home, and soon forgets that he is three thousand miles from his
+native land, and in another country. The American on landing at
+Liverpool, and taking a walk through the great commercial city, finding
+no difficulty in understanding the people, supposes himself still in
+New-York; and if there seems any doubt in his own mind, growing out of
+the fact that the people have a more healthy look, seem more polite, and
+that the buildings have a more substantial appearance than those he had
+formerly looked upon, he has only to imagine, as did Rip Van Winkle,
+that he has been asleep these hundred years.
+
+If the Englishman who has seen a Thompson silenced in Boston, or a
+Macready mobbed in New-York, upon the ground that they were foreigners,
+should sit in Exeter Hall and hear an American orator until he was
+hoarse, and wonder why the American is better treated in England than
+the Englishman in America, he has only to attribute it to John Bull's
+superior knowledge of good manners, and his being a more law-abiding man
+than brother Jonathan. England and America has each its reforms and its
+reformers, and they have more or less sympathy with each other. It has
+been said that one generation commences a reform in England, and that
+another generation finishes it. I would that so much could be said with
+regard to the great object of reform in America--the system of slavery!
+
+No evil was ever more deeply rooted in a country than is slavery in the
+United States. Spread over the largest and most fertile States in the
+Union, with decidedly the best climate, and interwoven, as it is, with
+the religious, political, commercial, and social institutions of the
+country, it is scarcely possible to estimate its influence. This is the
+evil which claims the attention of American Reformers, over and above
+every other evil in the land, and thanks to a kind providence, the
+American slave is not without his advocates. The greatest enemy to the
+Anti-Slavery Society, and the most inveterate opposer of the men whose
+names stand at the head of the list as officers and agents of that
+association, will, we think, assign to William Lloyd Garrison, the first
+place in the ranks of the American Abolitionists. The first to proclaim
+the doctrine of immediate emancipation to the slaves of America, and on
+that account an object of hatred to the slave-holding interest of the
+country, and living for years with his life in danger, he is justly
+regarded by all, as the leader of the Anti-Slavery movement in the New
+World. Mr. Garrison is at the present time but little more than
+forty-five years of age, and of the middle size. He has a high and
+prominent forehead, well developed, with no hair on the top of the head,
+having lost it in early life; with a piercing eye, a pleasant, yet
+anxious countenance, and of a most loveable disposition; tender, and
+blameless in his family affections, devoted to his friends; simple and
+studious, upright, guileless, distinguished, and worthy, like the
+distinguished men of antiquity, to be immortalized by another Plutarch.
+How many services never to be forgotten, has he not rendered to the
+cause of the slave, and the welfare of mankind! As a speaker, he is
+forcible, clear, and logical, yet he will not rank with the many who are
+less known. As a writer, he is regarded as one of the finest in the
+United States, and certainly the most prominent in the Anti-Slavery
+cause. Had Mr. Garrison wished to serve himself, he might, with his
+great talents, long since, have been at the head of either of the great
+political parties. Few men can withstand the allurements of office, and
+the prize-money that accompanies them. Many of those who were with him
+fifteen years ago, have been swept down with the current of popular
+favour, either in Church or State. He has seen a Cox on the one hand,
+and a Stanton on the other, swept away like so much floating wood
+before the tide. When the sturdiest characters gave way, when the finest
+geniuses passed one after another under the yoke of slavery, Garrison
+stood firm to his convictions, like a rock that stands stirless amid the
+conflicting agitation of the waves. He is not only the friend and
+advocate of freedom with his pen and his tongue, but to the oppressed of
+every clime he opens his purse, his house, and his heart: yet he is not
+a man of money. The fugitive slave, fresh from the whips and chains, who
+is turned off by the politician, and experiences the cold shoulder of
+the divine, finds a bed and a breakfast under the hospitable roof of Mr.
+Lloyd Garrison.
+
+The party of which he is the acknowledged head, is one of no
+inconsiderable influence in the United States. No man has more bitter
+enemies or stauncher friends than he. There are those among his friends
+who would stake their all upon his veracity and integrity; and we are
+sure that the coloured people throughout America, bond and free, in
+whose cause he has so long laboured, will, with one accord, assign the
+highest niche in their affection to the champion of universal
+emancipation. Every cause has its writers and its orators. We have drawn
+a hasty and imperfect sketch of the greatest writer in the Anti-Slavery
+field: we shall now call attention to the most distinguished public
+speaker. The name of Wendell Phillips is but another name for eloquence.
+Born in the highest possible position in America, Mr. Phillips has all
+the advantages that birth can give to one in that country. Educated at
+the first University, graduating with all the honours which the College
+could bestow on him, and studying the law and becoming a member of the
+bar, he has all the accomplishments that these advantages can give to a
+man of a great mind. Nature has treated him as a favourite. His stature
+is not tall, but handsome; his expressive countenance paints and
+reflects every emotion of his soul. His gestures are wonderfully
+graceful, like his delivery. There is a fascination in the soft gaze of
+his eyes, which none can but admire. Being a great reader, and endowed
+by nature with a good memory, he supplies himself with the most
+complicated dates and historical events. Nothing can equal the variety
+of his matter. I have heard him more than twenty different times on the
+same subject, but never heard the same speech. He is personal, but there
+is nothing offensive in his personalities. He extracts from a subject
+all that it contains, and does it as none but Wendell Phillips can. His
+voice is beautifully musical, and it is calculated to attract wherever
+it is heard. He is a man of calm intrepidity, of a patriotic and warm
+heart, with manners the most affable, temper the most gentle, a
+rectitude of principle entirely natural, a freedom from ambition, and a
+modesty quite singular. As Napoleon kept the Old Guard in reserve, to
+turn the tide in battle, so do the Abolitionists keep Mr. Phillips in
+reserve when opposition is expected in their great gatherings. We have
+seen the meetings turned into a bedlam, by the mobocratic slave-holding
+spirit, and when the speakers had one after another left the platform
+without a hearing, and the chairman had lost all control of the
+assembly, the appearance of this gentleman upon the platform would turn
+the tide of events. He would not beg for a hearing, but on the
+contrary, he would lash them as no preceding speaker had done. If, by
+their groans and yells, they stifled his voice, he would stand unmoved
+with his arms folded, and by the very eloquence of his looks put them to
+silence. His speeches against the Fugitive Slave Law, and his withering
+rebukes of Daniel Webster and other northern men who supported that
+measure, are of the most splendid character, and will compare in point
+of composition with anything ever uttered by Chatham or Sheridan in
+their palmiest days. As a public speaker, Mr. Phillips is, without
+doubt, the first in the United States. Considering his great talent, his
+high birth, and the prospects which lay before him, and the fact that he
+threw everything aside to plead the slave's cause, we must be convinced
+that no man has sacrificed more upon the altar of humanity than Wendell
+Phillips.
+
+Within the past ten years, a great impetus has been given to the
+anti-slavery movement in America by coloured men who have escaped from
+slavery. Coming as they did from the very house of bondage, and being
+able to speak from sad experience, they could speak as none others
+could.
+
+The gentleman to whom we shall now call attention is one of this class,
+and doubtless the first of his race in America. The name of Frederick
+Douglass is well known throughout this country as well as America. Born
+and brought up as a slave, he was deprived of a mother's care and of
+early education. Escaping when he was little more than twenty years of
+age, he was thrown upon his own resources in the free states, where
+prejudice against colour is but another name for slavery. But during all
+this time he was educating himself as well as circumstances would admit.
+Mr. Douglass commenced his career as a public speaker some ten years
+since, as an agent of the American or Massachusetts Anti-Slavery
+Societies. He is tall and well made. His vast and well-developed
+forehead announces the power of his intellect. His voice is full and
+sonorous. His attitude is dignified, and his gesticulation is full of
+noble simplicity. He is a man of lofty reason, natural, and without
+pretension, always master of himself, brilliant in the art of exposing
+and of abstracting. Few persons can handle a subject with which they are
+familiar better than Mr. Douglass. There is a kind of eloquence issuing
+from the depth of the soul, as from a spring, rolling along its copious
+floods, sweeping all before it, overwhelming by its very force,
+carrying, upsetting, engulphing its adversaries, and more dazzling and
+more thundering than the bolt which leaps from crag to crag. This is the
+eloquence of Frederick Douglass. He is one of the greatest mimics of the
+age. No man can put on a sweeter smile or a more sarcastic frown than
+he: you cannot put him off his guard. He is always in good humour. Mr.
+Douglass possesses great dramatic powers; and had he taken up the sock
+and buskin, instead of becoming a lecturer, he would have made as fine a
+Coriolanus as ever trod the stage.
+
+However, Mr. Douglass was not the first coloured man that became a
+lecturer, and thereby did service to the cause of his countrymen. The
+earliest and most effective speaker from among the coloured race in
+America, was Charles Lennox Remond. In point of eloquence, this
+gentleman is not inferior to either Wendell Phillips or Frederick
+Douglass. Mr. Remond is of small stature, and neat figure, with a head
+well developed, but a remarkably thin face. As an elocutionist, he is,
+without doubt, the first on the anti-slavery platform. He has a good
+voice, a pleasing countenance, a prompt intelligence, and when speaking,
+is calculated to captivate and carry away an audience by the very force
+of his eloquence. Born in the freest state of the Union, and of most
+respectable parents, he prides himself not a little on his birth and
+descent. One can scarcely find fault with this, for, in the United
+States, the coloured man is deprived of the advantages which parentage
+gives to the white man. Mr. Remond is a descendant of one of those
+coloured men who stood side by side with white men on the plains of
+Concord and Lexington, in the battles that achieved the independence of
+the colonies from the mother country, in the war of the Revolution. Mr.
+Remond has felt deeply, (probably more so than any other coloured man),
+the odious prejudice against colour. On this point he is sensitive to a
+fault. If any one will sit for an hour and hear a lecture from him on
+this subject, if he is not converted, he will at least become convinced,
+that the boiling cauldron of anti-slavery discussion has never thrown
+upon its surface a more fiery spirit than Charles Lennox Remond.
+
+There are some men who neither speak nor write, but whose lives place
+them in the foremost ranks in the cause which they espouse. One of these
+is Francis Jackson. He was one of the earliest to give countenance and
+support to the anti-slavery movement. In the year 1835, when a mob of
+more than 5000 merchants and others, in Boston, broke up an anti-slavery
+meeting of females, at which William Lloyd Garrison and George Thompson
+were to deliver addresses, and when the Society had no room in which to
+hold its meetings (having been driven from their own room by the mob),
+Francis Jackson, with a moral courage scarcely ever equalled, came
+forward and offered his private dwelling to the ladies, to hold their
+meeting in. The following interesting passage occurs in a letter from
+him to the Secretary of the Society a short time after, on receiving a
+vote of thanks from its members:--
+
+"If a large majority of this community choose to turn a deaf ear to the
+wrongs which are inflicted upon their countrymen in other portions of
+the land--if they are content to turn away from the sight of oppression,
+and 'pass by on the other side'--so it must be.
+
+"But when they undertake in any way to impair or annul my right to
+speak, write, and publish upon any subject, and more especially upon
+enormities, which are the common concern of every lover of his country
+and his kind--so it must not be--so it shall not be, if I for one can
+prevent it. Upon this great right let us hold on at all hazards. And
+should we, in its exercise, be driven from public halls to private
+dwellings, one house at least shall be consecrated to its preservation.
+And if, in defence of this sacred privilege, which man did not give me,
+and shall not (if I can help it) take from me, this roof and these walls
+shall be levelled to the earth, let them fall if they must; they cannot
+crumble in a better cause. They will appear of very little value to me
+after their owner shall have been whipt into silence."
+
+There are among the contributors to the Anti-Slavery cause, a few who
+give with a liberality which has never been surpassed by the donors to
+any benevolent association in the world, according to their means--the
+chief of these is Francis Jackson.
+
+In the month of May, 1844, while one evening strolling up Broadway, New
+York, I saw a crowd making its way into the Minerva Rooms, and, having
+no pressing engagement, I followed, and was soon in a splendid hall,
+where some twelve or fifteen hundred persons were seated, and listening
+to rather a strange-looking man. The speaker was tall and slim, with
+long arms, long legs, and a profusion of auburn or reddish hair hanging
+in ringlets down his shoulders; while a huge beard of the same colour
+fell upon his breast. His person was not at all improved by his dress.
+The legs of his trousers were shorter than those worn by smaller men:
+the sleeves of his coat were small and short, the shirt collar turned
+down in Byronic style, beard and hair hid his countenance, so that no
+redeeming feature could be found there; yet there was one redeeming
+quality about the man--that was the stream of fervid eloquence which
+escaped from his lips. I inquired his name, and was informed that it was
+Charles C. Burleigh. Nature has been profuse in showering her gifts upon
+Mr. Burleigh, but all has been bestowed upon his head and heart. There
+is a kind of eloquence which weaves its thread around the hearer, and
+gradually draws him into its web, fascinating him with its gaze,
+entangling him as the spider does the fly, until he is fast: such is the
+eloquence of C.C. Burleigh. As a debater he is unquestionably the first
+on the Anti-slavery platform. If he did not speak so fast, he would
+equal Wendell Phillips; if he did not reason his subject out of
+existence, he would surpass him. However, one would have to travel over
+many miles, and look in the faces of many men, before he would find one
+who has made more personal sacrifices, or done more to bring about the
+Emancipation of the American Slaves, than Mr. Charles C. Burleigh.
+
+Whoever the future historian of the Anti-Slavery movement may be, he
+will not be able to compile a correct history of this great struggle,
+without consulting the writings of Edmund Quincy, a member of one of
+the wealthiest, patriotic, and aristocratic families in New England: the
+prestige of his name is a passport to all that the heart could wish.
+Descended from a family, whose name is connected with all that was
+glorious in the great American Revolution, the son of one who has again
+and again represented his native State, in the National Congress, he
+too, like Wendell Phillips, threw away the pearl of political
+preferment, and devoted his distinguished talents to the cause of the
+Slave. Mr. Quincy is better known in this country as having filled the
+editorial chair of _The Liberator_, during the several visits of its
+Editor to Great Britain. As a speaker, he does not rank as high as some
+who are less known; as a writer, he has few equals. The "Annual Reports"
+of the American and Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Societies for the past
+fifteen or twenty years, have emanated from his pen. When posterity, in
+digging among the tombs of the friends of mankind, and of universal
+freedom, shall fail to find there the name of Edmund Quincy, it will be
+because the engraver failed to do his duty.
+
+Were we sent out to find a man who should excel all others in
+collecting together new facts and anecdotes, and varnishing up old ones
+so that they would appear new, and bringing them into a meeting and
+emptying out, good or bad, the whole contents of his sack, to the
+delight and admiration of the audience, we would unhesitatingly select
+James N. Buffum as the man. If Mr. Buffum is not a great speaker, he has
+what many accomplished orators have not--_i.e._, a noble and generous
+heart. If the fugitive slave, fresh from the cotton-field, should make
+his appearance in the town of Lynn, in Massachusetts, and should need a
+night's lodging or refreshments, he need go no farther than the
+hospitable door of James N. Buffum.
+
+Most men who inherit large fortunes, do little or nothing to benefit
+mankind. A few, however, spend their means in the best possible manner:
+one of the latter class is Gerrit Smith. The name of this gentleman
+should have been brought forward among those who are first mentioned in
+this chapter. Some eight or ten years ago, Mr. Smith was the owner of
+large tracts of land, lying in twenty-nine counties in the State of New
+York, and came to the strange conclusion to give the most of it away.
+Consequently, three thousand lots of land, containing from thirty to one
+hundred acres each, were given to coloured men residing in the
+State--the writer of this being one of the number.
+
+Although universal suffrage is enjoyed by the whites in the State of New
+York, a property-qualification is imposed on coloured men; and this act
+of Mr. Smith's not only made three thousand men the owners of land, but
+created also three thousand voters. The ability to give, and the
+willingness to do so, is not by any means the greatest quality of this
+gentleman. As a public speaker, Mr. Smith has few equals; and certainly
+no man in his State has done more to forward the cause of Negro
+Emancipation than he.
+
+We have already swelled the pages of this chapter beyond what we
+intended when we commenced, but yet we have called attention to only one
+branch of American Reformers. The Temperance Reformers are next to be
+considered. This cause has many champions, and yet none who occupy a
+very prominent position before the world. The first temperance newspaper
+published in the United States, was edited by William Lloyd Garrison.
+Gerrit Smith has also done much in promulgating temperance views. But
+the most noted man in the movement at the present time, and the one best
+known to the British public, is John B. Gough. This gentleman was at one
+time an actor on the stage, and subsequently became an inebriate of the
+most degraded kind. He was, however, reclaimed through the great
+Washingtonian movement that swept over the United States a few years
+since. In stature, Mr. Gough is tall and slim, with black hair, which he
+usually wears too long. As an orator, he is considered among the first
+in the United States. Having once been an actor, he throws all his
+dramatic powers into his addresses. He has a facility of telling strange
+and marvellous stories which can scarcely be surpassed; and what makes
+them still more interesting, he always happens to be an eyewitness.
+While speaking, he acts the drunkard, and does it in a style which could
+not be equalled on the boards of the Lyceum or Adelphi. No man has
+obtained more signatures to the temperance pledge than he. After all, it
+is a question whether he has ever been of any permanent service to this
+reform or not. Mr. Gough has more than once fallen from his position as
+a teetotaler; more than once he has broken his pledge, and when found by
+his friends, was in houses of a questionable character. However, some
+are of opinion that these defects have been of use to him; for when he
+has made his appearance after one of these debaucheries, the people
+appear to sympathize more with him, and some thought he spoke better. If
+we believe that a person could enjoy good health with water upon the
+brain, we would be of opinion that Mr. Gough's cranium contained a
+greater quantity than that of any other living man. When speaking before
+an audience, he can weep when he pleases; and the tears shed on these
+occasions are none of your make-believe kind--none of your small drops
+trickling down the cheeks one at a time;--but they come in great
+showers, so as even to sprinkle upon the paper which he holds in his
+hand. Of course, he is not alone in shedding tears in his meetings,
+many of his hearers usually join him; especially the ladies, as these
+showers are intended for them. However, no one can sit for an hour and
+hear John. B. Gough, without coming to the conclusion that he is nothing
+more than a theatrical mountebank.
+
+The ablest speaker on the subject of Peace, is Charles Sumner. Standing
+more than six feet in height, and well proportioned, Mr. Sumner makes a
+most splendid and commanding appearance before an assembly. It is not
+his looks alone that attract attention--his very countenance indicates a
+superior mind. Born in the upper circle, educated in the first College
+in the country, and finally becoming a member of the Bar, he is well
+qualified to take the highest possible position as a public speaker. As
+an orator, Charles Sumner has but one superior in the United States, and
+that is Wendell Phillips. Mr. Sumner is an able advocate for the
+liberation of the American Slaves as well as of the cause of Peace, and
+has rendered great aid to the abolition movement.
+
+The name of Elihu Burritt, for many reasons, should be placed at the
+head of the Peace Movement. No man was ever more devoted to one idea
+than he is to that of peace. If he is an advocate of Temperance, it is
+because it will promote peace. If he opposes Slavery, it is upon the
+grounds of peace. Ask him why he wants an "Ocean Penny Postage," he will
+tell you to engender the principles of peace. Everything with him hinges
+upon the doctrine of peace. As a speaker, Mr. Burritt does not rank
+amongst the first. However, his speeches are of a high order, some think
+them too high, and complain that he is too much of a cloud-traveller,
+and when he descends from these aerial flights and cloudy thrones, they
+are unwilling to admit that he can be practical. If Mr. Burritt should
+prove as good a statesman as a theorist, he would be an exception to
+most who belong to the aerial school. As a writer he stands deservedly
+high. In his "Sparks from the Anvil," and "Voice from the Forge," are to
+be found as fine pieces as have been produced by any writer of the day.
+His "Drunkard's Wife" is the most splendid thing of the kind in the
+language. His stature is of the middle size, head well developed, with
+eyes deeply set, and a prepossessing countenance, though not handsome;
+he wears an exterior of remarkable austerity, and everything about him
+is grave, even to his smile. Being well versed in the languages, ancient
+and modern, he does not lack variety or imagination, either in his
+public addresses or private conversation; yet it would be difficult to
+find a man with a better heart, or sweeter spirit, than Elihu Burritt.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XXII.
+
+_A Narrative of American Slavery._
+
+
+Although the first slaves, introduced into the American Colonies from
+the coast of Africa, were negroes of a very dark complexion with woolly
+hair, and it was thought that slavery would be confined to the blacks,
+yet the present slave population of America is far from being black.
+This change in colour, is attributable, solely to the unlimited power
+which the slave owner exercises over his victim. There being no lawful
+marriage amongst slaves, and no encouragement to slave women to be
+virtuous and chaste, there seems to be no limits to the system of
+amalgamation carried on between master and slave. This accounts for the
+fact, that most persons who go from Europe, or from the Free States,
+into Carolina or Virginia, are struck with the different shades of
+colour amongst the slaves. On a plantation employing fifty slaves, it is
+not uncommon to see one third of them mulattoes, and some of these
+nearly white.
+
+In the year 1831, there resided in the state of Virginia, a slave who
+was so white, that no one would suppose for a moment that a drop of
+African blood coursed through his veins. His skin was fair, hair soft,
+straight, fine and white; his eyes blue, nose prominent, lips thin; his
+head well formed, forehead high and prominent; and he was often taken
+for a white free person, by those who did not know him. This made his
+condition as a slave still more intolerable; for one so white, seldom
+ever receives fair treatment at the hands of his fellow slaves; and the
+whites usually regard such slaves as persons, who, if not often flogged
+and otherwise ill treated, to remind them of their condition, would soon
+"forget" that they were slaves, and "think themselves as good as white
+folks." During that year, an insurrection broke out amongst the slave
+population, known as the Southampton Rebellion, or the "Nat Turner
+Insurrection." Five or six hundred slaves, believing in the doctrine
+that "all men are created equal," armed with such weapons as they could
+get, commenced a war for freedom. Amongst these was George, the white
+slave of whom we have spoken. He had been employed as a house servant,
+and had heard his master and visiters speak of the down-trodden and
+oppressed Poles; he heard them talk of going to Greece to fight for
+Grecian liberty, and against the oppressors of that ill-fated people.
+George, fired with the love of freedom, and zeal for the cause of his
+enslaved countrymen, joined the insurrection. The result of that
+struggle for liberty is well known. The slaves were defeated, and those
+who were not taken prisoners, took refuge in the dismal swamps. These
+were ordered to surrender; but instead of doing so, they challenged
+their proud oppressors to take them, and immediately renewed the war. A
+ferocious struggle now commenced between the parties; but not until the
+United States troops were called in, did they succeed in crushing a
+handful of men and women who were fighting for freedom. The negroes were
+hunted with dogs, and many who were caught were burnt alive; while some
+were hung, and others flogged and banished from the State.
+
+Among those who were sentenced to be hanged, was George. He was placed
+in prison to await the day of execution, which would give him ten days
+to prepare for his doom. George was the son of a member of the American
+Congress, his mother being a servant in the principal hotel in
+Washington, where members of Congress usually put up. After the birth of
+George, his mother was sold to a negro trader, and he to a Virginian,
+who sent agents through the country to buy up young slaves to raise for
+the market. George was only about nineteen years of age, when he
+unfortunately became connected with the insurrection. Mr. Green, who
+owned George, was a comparatively good master, and prided himself on
+treating his slaves better than most men. This gentleman was also the
+owner of a girl who was perfectly white, with straight hair and
+prominent features. This girl was said to be the daughter of her own
+master. A feeling of attachment sprang up between Mary and George, which
+proved to be more than mere friendship, and upon which we base the
+burden of this narrative.
+
+After poor George had been sentenced to death and cast into prison, Mary
+begged and obtained leave to visit George, and administer to him the
+comforts of religion, as she was a member of a religious body, while
+George was not. As George had been a considerable favourite with Mrs.
+Green, Mary had no difficulty in obtaining permission to pay a daily
+visit to him, to whom she had pledged her heart and hand. At one of
+these meetings, and only four days from the time fixed for the
+execution, while Mary was seated in George's cell, it occurred to her
+that she might yet save him from a felon's doom. She revealed to him
+the secret that was then occupying her thoughts, viz., that George
+should exchange clothes with her, and thus attempt his escape in
+disguise. But he would not for a single moment listen to the
+proposition. Not that he feared detection; but he would not consent to
+place an innocent and affectionate girl in a position where she might
+have to suffer for him. Mary pleaded, but in vain--George was
+inflexible. The poor girl left her lover with a heavy heart, regretting
+that her scheme had proved unsuccessful.
+
+Towards the close of the next day, Mary again appeared at the prison
+door for admission, and was soon by the side of him whom she so ardently
+loved. While there, the clouds which had overhung the city for some
+hours, broke, and the rain fell in torrents amid the most terrific
+thunder and lightning. In the most persuasive manner possible, Mary
+again importuned George to avail himself of her assistance to escape
+from an ignominious death. After assuring him that she not being the
+person condemned, would not receive any injury, he at last consented,
+and they began to exchange apparel. As George was of small stature, and
+both were white, there was no difficulty in his passing out without
+detection: and as she usually left the cell weeping, with handkerchief
+in hand, and sometimes at her face, he had only to adopt this mode and
+his escape was safe. They had kissed each other, and Mary had told
+George where he would find a small parcel of provisions which she had
+placed in a secluded spot, when the prison-keeper opened the door, and
+said, "Come, girl, it is time for you to go." George again embraced
+Mary, and passed out of the gaol. It was already dark and the street
+lamps were lighted, so that our hero in his new dress had no dread of
+detection. The provisions were sought out and found, and poor George was
+soon on the road towards Canada. But neither of them had once thought of
+a change of dress for George when he should have escaped, and he had
+walked but a short distance before he felt that a change of his apparel
+would facilitate his progress. But he dared not go amongst even his
+coloured associates for fear of being betrayed. However, he made the
+best of his way on towards Canada, hiding in the woods during the day,
+and travelling by the guidance of the North Star at night.
+
+One morning, George arrived on the banks of the Ohio river, and found
+his journey had terminated, unless he could get some one to take him
+across the river in a secret manner, for he would not be permitted to
+cross in any of the ferry boats; it being a penalty for crossing a
+slave, besides the value of the slave. He concealed himself in the tall
+grass and weeds near the river, to see if he could embrace an
+opportunity to cross. He had been in his hiding-place but a short time,
+when he observed a man in a small boat, floating near the shore,
+evidently fishing. His first impulse was to call out to the man and ask
+him to take him over to the Ohio side, but the fear that the man was a
+slaveholder, or one who might possibly arrest him, deterred him from it.
+The man after rowing and floating about for some time fastened the boat
+to the root of a tree, and started to a neighbouring farm-house. This
+was George's moment, and he seized it. Running down the bank, he
+unfastened the boat, jumped in, and with all the expertness of one
+accustomed to a boat, rowed across the river and landed on the Ohio
+side.
+
+Being now in a free state, he thought he might with perfect safety
+travel on towards Canada. He had, however, gone but a few miles, when he
+discovered two men on horseback coming behind him. He felt sure that
+they could not be in pursuit of him, yet he did not wish to be seen by
+them, so he turned into another road, leading to a house near by. The
+men followed, and were but a short distance from George, when he ran up
+to a farm house, before which was standing a farmer-looking man, in a
+broad-brimmed hat and straight collared coat, whom he implored to save
+him from the "slave-catchers." The farmer told him to go into the barn
+near by; he entered by the front door, the farmer following, and closing
+the door behind George, but remaining outside, and gave directions to
+his hired man as to what should be done with George. The slaveholders by
+this time had dismounted, and were in the front of the barn demanding
+admittance, and charging the farmer with secreting their slave woman,
+for George was still in the dress of a woman. The Friend, for the farmer
+proved to be a member of the Society of Friends, told the slave-owners
+that if they wished to search his barn, they must first get an officer
+and a search warrant. While the parties were disputing, the farmer began
+nailing up the front door, and the hired man served the back door in the
+same way. The slaveholders, finding that they could not prevail on the
+Friend to allow them to get the slave, determined to go in search of an
+officer. One was left to see that the slave did not escape from the
+barn, while the other went off at full speed to Mount Pleasant, the
+nearest town. George was not the slave of either of these men, nor were
+they in pursuit of him, but they had lost a woman who had been seen in
+that vicinity, and when they saw poor George in the disguise of a
+female, and attempting to elude pursuit, they felt sure they were close
+upon their victim. However, if they had caught him, although he was not
+their slave, they would have taken him back and placed him in goal, and
+there he would have remained until his owner arrived.
+
+After an absence of nearly two hours, the slave owner returned with an
+officer and found the Friend still driving large nails into the door. In
+a triumphant tone, and with a corresponding gesture, he handed the
+search-warrant to the Friend, and said, "There, Sir, now I will see if I
+can't get my Nigger." "Well," said the Friend, "thou hast gone to work
+according to law, and thou can now go into my barn." "Lend me your
+hammer that I may get the door open," said the slaveholder. "Let me see
+the warrant again." And after reading it over once more, he said, "I see
+nothing in this paper which says I must supply thee with tools to open
+my door; if thou wishes to go in, thou must get a hammer elsewhere." The
+sheriff said, "I will go to a neighbouring farm and borrow something
+which will introduce us to Miss Dinah;" and he immediately went in
+search of tools. In a short time the officer returned, and they
+commenced an assault and battery upon the barn door, which soon yielded;
+and in went the slaveholder and officer, and began turning up the hay
+and using all other means to find the lost property; but, to their
+astonishment, the slave was not there. After all hope of getting Dinah
+was gone, the slave-owner in a rage, said to the Friend, "My Nigger is
+not here." "I did not tell thee there was any one here." "Yes, but I saw
+her go in, and you shut the door behind her, and if she was not in the
+barn, what did you nail the door for?" "Can't I do what I please with my
+own barn door? Now I will tell thee; thou need trouble thyself no more,
+for the person thou art after entered the front door and went out at the
+back door, and is a long way from here by this time. Thou and thy friend
+must be somewhat fatigued by this time, wont thou go in and take a
+little dinner with me?" We need not say that this cool invitation of the
+good Quaker was not accepted by the slaveholders. George, in the
+meantime, had been taken to a Friend's dwelling some miles away, where,
+after laying aside his female attire, and being snugly dressed up in a
+straight collared coat, and pantaloons to match, was again put on the
+right road towards Canada. Two weeks after this found him in the town
+of St. Catharines, working on the farm of Colonel Strut, and attending a
+night school.
+
+George, however, did not forget his promise to use all means in his
+power to get Mary out of slavery. He, therefore, laboured with all his
+might, to obtain money with which to employ some one to go back to
+Virginia for Mary. After nearly six months' labour at St. Catharines, he
+employed an English missionary to go and see if the girl could be
+purchased, and at what price. The missionary went accordingly, but
+returned with the sad intelligence that on account of Mary's aiding
+George to escape, the court had compelled Mr. Green to sell her out of
+the State, and she had been sold to a Negro trader and taken to the New
+Orleans market. As all hope of getting the girl was now gone, George
+resolved to quit the American continent for ever. He immediately took
+passage in a vessel laden with timber, bound for Liverpool, and in five
+weeks from that time he was standing on the quay of the great English
+seaport. With little or no education, he found many difficulties in the
+way of getting a respectable living. However, he obtained a situation
+as porter in a large house in Manchester, where he worked during the
+day, and took private lessons at night. In this way he laboured for
+three years, and was then raised to the situation of a clerk. George was
+so white as easily to pass for a white man, and being somewhat ashamed
+of his African descent, he never once mentioned the fact of his having
+been a slave. He soon became a partner in the firm that employed him,
+and was now on the road to wealth.
+
+In the year 1842, just ten years after George Green (for he adopted his
+master's name) arrived in England, he visited France, and spent some
+days at Dunkirk. It was towards sunset, on a warm day in the month of
+October, that Mr. Green, after strolling some distance from the Hotel de
+Leon, entered a burial ground and wandered long alone among the silent
+dead, gazing upon the many green graves and marble tombstones of those
+who once moved on the theatre of busy life, and whose sounds of gaiety
+once fell upon the ear of man. All nature around was hushed in silence,
+and seemed to partake of the general melancholy which hung over the
+quiet resting place of departed mortals. After tracing the varied
+inscriptions which told the characters or conditions of the departed,
+and viewing the mounds 'neath which the dust of mortality slumbered, he
+had now reached a secluded spot, near to where an aged weeping willow
+bowed its thick foliage to the ground, as though anxious to hide from
+the scrutinizing gaze of curiosity the grave beneath it. Mr. Green
+seated himself upon a marble tomb, and began to read Roscoe's Leo X., a
+copy of which he had under his arm. It was then about twilight, and he
+had scarcely gone through half a page, when he observed a lady in black,
+leading a boy some five years old up one of the paths; and as the lady's
+black veil was over her face, he felt somewhat at liberty to eye her
+more closely. While looking at her, the lady gave a scream and appeared
+to be in a fainting position, when Mr. Green sprang from his seat in
+time to save her from falling to the ground. At this moment, an elderly
+gentleman was seen approaching with a rapid step, who from his
+appearance was evidently the lady's father, or one intimately connected
+with her. He came up, and in a confused manner, asked what was the
+matter. Mr. Green explained as well as he could. After taking up the
+smelling bottle which had fallen from her hand, and holding it a short
+time to her face, she soon began to revive. During all this time, the
+lady's veil had so covered her face, that Mr. Green had not seen it.
+When she had so far recovered as to be able to raise her head, she again
+screamed, and fell back into the arms of the old man. It now appeared
+quite certain, that either the countenance of George Green, or some
+other object, was the cause of these fits of fainting; and the old
+gentleman, thinking it was the former, in rather a petulant tone said,
+"I will thank you, Sir, if you will leave us alone." The child whom the
+lady was leading had now set up a squall; and amid the death-like
+appearance of the lady, the harsh look of the old man, and the cries of
+the boy, Mr. Green left the grounds and returned to his hotel.
+
+Whilst seated by the window, and looking out upon the crowded street,
+with every now and then the strange scene in the grave-yard vividly
+before him, Mr. Green thought of the book he had been reading, and,
+remembering that he had left it on the tomb, where he had suddenly
+dropped it when called to the assistance of the lady, he immediately
+determined to return in search of it. After a walk of some twenty
+minutes, he was again over the spot where he had been an hour before,
+and from which he had been so unceremoniously expelled by the old man.
+He looked in vain for the book; it was no where to be found: nothing
+save a bouquet which the lady had dropped, and which lay half-buried in
+the grass from having been trodden upon, indicated that any one had been
+there that evening. Mr. Green took up the bunch of flowers, and again
+returned to the hotel.
+
+After passing a sleepless night, and hearing the clock strike six, he
+dropped into a sweet sleep, from which he did not awake until roused by
+the rap of a servant, who, entering his room, handed him a note which
+ran as follows:--"Sir,--I owe you an apology for the inconveniences to
+which you were subjected last evening, and if you will honour us with
+your presence to dinner to-day at four o'clock, I shall be most happy to
+give you due satisfaction. My servant will be in waiting for you at
+half-past three. I am, sir, your obedt. servant, J. Devenant. October
+23, to George Green, Esq."
+
+The servant who handed this note to Mr. Green, informed him that the
+bearer was waiting for a reply. He immediately resolved to accept the
+invitation, and replied accordingly. Who this person was, and how his
+name and the hotel where he was stopping had been found out, was indeed
+a mystery. However, he waited impatiently for the hour when he was to
+see this new acquaintance, and get the mysterious meeting in the
+grave-yard solved.
+
+The clock on a neighbouring church had scarcely ceased striking three,
+when the servant announced that a carriage had called for Mr. Green. In
+less than half an hour, he was seated in a most sumptuous barouch, drawn
+by two beautiful iron greys, and rolling along over a splendid gravel
+road, completely shaded by large trees which appeared to have been the
+accumulating growth of many centuries. The carriage soon stopped in
+front of a low villa, and this too was imbedded in magnificent trees
+covered with moss. Mr. Green alighted and was shown into a superb
+drawing room, the walls of which were hung with fine specimens from the
+hands of the great Italian painters, and one by a German artist
+representing a beautiful monkish legend connected with "The Holy
+Catherine," and illustrious lady of Alexandria. The furniture had an
+antique and dignified appearance. High backed chairs stood around the
+room; a venerable mirror stood on the mantle-shelf; rich curtains of
+crimson damask hung in folds at either side of the large windows; and a
+rich Turkey carpet covered the floor. In the centre stood a table
+covered with books, in the midst of which was an old fashioned vase
+filled with fresh flowers, whose fragrance was exceedingly pleasant. A
+faint light, together with the quietness of the hour gave beauty beyond
+description to the whole scene.
+
+Mr. Green had scarcely seated himself upon the sofa, when the elderly
+gentleman whom he had met the previous evening made his appearance,
+followed by the little boy, and introduced himself as Mr. Devenant. A
+moment more, and a lady--a beautiful brunette--dressed in black, with
+long curls of a chesnut colour hanging down her cheeks, entered the
+room. Her eyes were of a dark hazel, and her whole appearance indicated
+that she was a native of a southern clime. The door at which she entered
+was opposite to where the two gentlemen were seated. They immediately
+rose; and Mr. Devenant was in the act of introducing her to Mr. Green,
+when he observed that the latter had sunk back upon the sofa, and the
+last word that he remembered to have heard was, "It is her." After this,
+all was dark and dreamy: how long he remained in this condition it was
+for another to tell. When he awoke, he found himself stretched upon the
+sofa, with his boots off, his neckerchief removed, shirt collar
+unbuttoned, and his head resting upon a pillow. By his side sat the old
+man, with the smelling bottle in the one hand, and a glass of water in
+the other, and the little boy standing at the foot of the sofa. As soon
+as Mr. Green had so far recovered as to be able to speak, he said,
+"Where am I, and what does this mean?" "Wait a while," replied the old
+man, "and I will tell you all." After the lapse of some ten minutes he
+rose from the sofa, adjusted his apparel, and said, "I am now ready to
+hear anything you have to say." "You were born in America," said the old
+man. "Yes," he replied. "And you were acquainted with a girl named
+Mary," continued the old man. "Yes, and I loved her as I can love none
+other." "The lady whom you met so mysteriously last evening is Mary,"
+replied Mr. Devenant. George Green was silent, but the fountains of
+mingled grief and joy stole out from beneath his eye lashes, and
+glistened like pearls upon his pale and marble-like cheeks. At this
+juncture the lady again entered the room. Mr. Green sprang from the
+sofa, and they fell into each other's arms, to the surprise of the old
+man and little George, and to the amusement of the servants who had
+crept up one by one, and were hid behind the doors or loitering in the
+hall. When they had given vent to their feelings, they resumed their
+seats and each in turn related the adventures through which they had
+passed. "How did you find out my name and address," asked Mr. Green?
+"After you had left us in the grave-yard, our little George said, 'O,
+mamma, if there aint a book!' and picked it up and brought it to us.
+Papa opened it, and said 'the gentleman's name is written in it, and
+here is a card of the Hotel de Leon, where I suppose he is stopping.'
+Papa wished to leave the book, and said it was all a fancy of mine that
+I had ever seen you before, but I was perfectly convinced that you were
+my own George Green. Are you married?" "No, I am not." "Then, thank
+God!" exclaimed Mrs. Devenant. The old man who had been silent all this
+time, said, "Now, Sir, I must apologize for the trouble you were put to
+last evening." "And you are single now." "Yes," she replied. "This is
+indeed the Lord's doings," said Mr. Green, at the same time bursting
+into a flood of tears. Although Mr. Devenant was past the age when men
+should think upon matrimonial subjects, yet this scene brought vividly
+before his eyes the days when he was a young man, and had a wife living,
+and he thought it time to call their attention to dinner, which was
+then waiting. We need scarcely add, that Mr. Green and Mrs. Devenant did
+very little towards diminishing the dinner that day.
+
+After dinner the lovers (for such we have to call them) gave their
+experience from the time that George Green left the gaol, dressed in
+Mary's clothes. Up to that time, Mr. Green's was substantially as we
+have related it. Mrs. Devenant's was as follows:--"The night after you
+left the prison," said she, "I did not shut my eyes in sleep. The next
+morning, about 8 o'clock, Peter, the gardener, came to the gaol to see
+if I had been there the night before, and was informed that I had, and
+that I left a little after dark. About an hour after, Mr. Green came
+himself, and I need not say that he was much surprised on finding me
+there, dressed in your clothes. This was the first tidings they had of
+your escape." "What did Mr. Green say when he found that I had fled?"
+"O!" continued Mrs. Devenant, "he said to me when no one was near, I
+hope George will get off, but I fear you will have to suffer in his
+stead. I told him that if it must be so I was willing to die if you
+could live." At this moment George Green burst into tears, threw his
+arms around her neck, and exclaimed, "I am glad I have waited so long,
+with the hope of meeting you again."
+
+Mrs. Devenant again resumed her story:--"I was kept in gaol three days,
+during which time I was visited by the Magistrates and two of the
+Judges. On the third day I was taken out, and master told me that I was
+liberated, upon condition that I be immediately sent out of the State.
+There happened to be just at that time in the neighbourhood a
+negro-trader, and he purchased me, and I was taken to New Orleans. On
+the steam-boat we were kept in a close room where slaves are usually
+confined, so that I saw nothing of the passengers on board or the towns
+we passed. We arrived at New Orleans and were all put into the
+slave-market for sale. I was examined by many persons, but none seemed
+willing to purchase me; as all thought me too white, and said I would
+run away and pass as a free white woman. On the second day while in the
+slave-market, and while planters and others were examining slaves and
+making their purchases, I observed a tall young man with long black hair
+eyeing me very closely, and then talking to the trader. I felt sure that
+my time had now come, but the day closed without my being sold. I did
+not regret this, for I had heard that foreigners made the worst of
+masters, and I felt confident that the man who eyed me so closely was
+not an American.
+
+"The next day was the Sabbath. The bells called the people to the
+different places of worship. Methodists sang, and Baptists immersed, and
+Presbyterians sprinkled, and Episcopalians read their prayers, while the
+ministers of the various sects preached that Christ died for all; yet
+there were some twenty-five or thirty of us poor creatures confined in
+the '_Negro Pen_' awaiting the close of the Holy Sabbath, and the dawn
+of another day, to be again taken into the market, there to be examined
+like so many beasts of burden. I need not tell you with what anxiety we
+waited for the advent of another day. On Monday we were again brought
+out, and placed in rows to be inspected; and fortunately for me, I was
+sold before we had been on the stand an hour. I was purchased by a
+gentleman residing in the city, for a waiting-maid for his wife, who was
+just on the eve of starting for Mobile, to pay a visit to a near
+relation. I was then dressed to suit the situation of a maid-servant;
+and, upon the whole, I thought that in my new dress I looked as much the
+lady as my mistress.
+
+"On the passage to Mobile, who should I see among the passengers, but
+the tall, long-haired man that had eyed me so closely in the
+slave-market a few days before. His eyes were again on me, and he
+appeared anxious to speak to me, and I as reluctant to be spoken to. The
+first evening after leaving New Orleans, soon after twilight had let her
+curtain down, and pinned it with a star, and while I was seated on the
+deck of the boat, near the ladies' cabin, looking upon the rippled
+waves, and the reflection of the moon upon the sea, all at once I saw
+the tall young man standing by my side. I immediately rose from my seat,
+and was in the act of returning to the cabin, when he in a broken
+accent said, 'Stop a moment; I wish to have a word with you. I am your
+friend.' I stopped and looked him full in the face, and he said, 'I saw
+you some days since in the slave-market, and I intended to have
+purchased you to save you from the condition of a slave. I called on
+Monday, but you had been sold and had left the market. I inquired and
+learned who the purchaser was, and that you had to go to Mobile, so I
+resolved to follow you. If you are willing, I will try and buy you from
+your present owner, and you shall be free.' Although this was said in an
+honest and off-hand manner, I could not believe the man to be sincere in
+what he said. 'Why should you wish to set _me_ free?' I asked. 'I had an
+only sister,' he replied, 'who died three years ago in France, and you
+are so much like her, that had I not known of her death, I would most
+certainly have taken you for her.' 'However much I may resemble your
+sister, you are aware that I am not her, and why take so much interest
+in one whom you never saw before?' 'The love,' said he, 'which I had for
+my sister is transferred to you.' I had all along suspected that the
+man was a knave, and this profession of love confirmed me in my former
+belief, and I turned away and left him.
+
+"The next day, while standing in the cabin and looking through the
+window, the French gentleman (for such he was) came to the window while
+walking on the guards, and again commenced as on the previous evening.
+He took from his pocket a bit of paper and put into my hand, and at the
+same time saying, 'Take this, it may some day be of service to you,
+remember it is from a friend,' and left me instantly. I unfolded the
+paper, and found it to be a 100 dols. bank note, on the United States
+Branch Bank, at Philadelphia. My first impulse was to give it to my
+mistress, but upon a second thought, I resolved to seek an opportunity,
+and to return the hundred dollars to the stranger. Therefore, I looked
+for him, but in vain; and had almost given up the idea of seeing him
+again, when he passed me on the guards of the boat and walked towards
+the stem of the vessel. It being now dark, I approached him and offered
+the money to him. He declined, saying at the same time, 'I gave it to
+you--keep it.' 'I do not want it,' I said. 'Now,' said he, 'you had
+better give your consent for me to purchase you, and you shall go with
+me to France.' 'But you cannot buy me now,' I replied, 'for my master is
+in New Orleans, and he purchased me not to sell, but to retain in his
+own family.' 'Would you rather remain with your present mistress, than
+be free?' 'No,' said I. 'Then fly with me to-night; we shall be in
+Mobile in two hours from this, and, when the passengers are going on
+shore, you can take my arm, and you can escape unobserved. The trader
+who brought you to New Orleans exhibited to me a certificate of your
+good character, and one from the Minister of the Church to which you
+were attached in Virginia; and upon the faith of these assurances, and
+the love I bear you, I promise before high heaven that I will marry you
+as soon as it can be done.' This solemn promise, coupled with what had
+already transpired, gave me confidence in the man; and rash as the act
+may seem, I determined in an instant to go with him. My mistress had
+been put under the charge of the captain; and as it would be past ten
+o'clock when the steamer would land, she accepted an invitation of the
+captain to remain on board with several other ladies till morning. I
+dressed myself in my best clothes, and put a veil over my face, and was
+ready on the landing of the boat. Surrounded by a number of passengers,
+we descended the stage leading to the wharf and were soon lost in the
+crowd that thronged the quay. As we went on shore we encountered several
+persons announcing the names of hotels, the starting of boats for the
+interior, and vessels bound for Europe. Among these was the ship
+_Utica_, Captain Pell, bound for Havre. 'Now,' said Mr. Devenant, 'this
+is our chance.' The ship was to sail at 12 o'clock that night, at high
+tide; and following the men who were seeking passengers, we went
+immediately on board. Devenant told the Captain of the ship that I was
+his sister, and for such we passed during the voyage. At the hour of
+twelve the _Utica_ set sail, and we were soon out at sea.
+
+"The morning after we left Mobile, Devenant met me as I came from my
+state-room and embraced me for the first time. I loved him, but it was
+only that affection which we have for one who has done us a lasting
+favour: it was the love of gratitude rather than that of the heart. We
+were five weeks on the sea, and yet the passage did not seem long, for
+Devenant was so kind. On our arrival at Havre, we were married and came
+to Dunkirk, and I have resided here ever since."
+
+At the close of this narrative, the clock struck ten, when the old man,
+who was accustomed to retire at an early hour, rose to take leave,
+saying at the same time, "I hope you will remain with us to-night." Mr.
+Green would fain have excused himself, on the ground that they would
+expect him and wait at the hotel, but a look from the lady told him to
+accept the invitation. The old man was the father of Mrs. Devenant's
+deceased husband, as you will no doubt long since have supposed. A
+fortnight from the day on which they met in the grave-yard, Mr. Green
+and Mrs. Devenant were joined in holy wedlock; so that George and Mary,
+who had loved each other so ardently in their younger days, were now
+husband and wife. Without becoming responsible for the truthfulness of
+the above narrative, I give it to you, reader, as it was told to me in
+January last, in France, by George Green himself.
+
+A celebrated writer has justly said of woman: "A woman's whole life is a
+history of the affections. The heart is her world; it is there her
+ambition strives for empire; it is there her avarice seeks for hidden
+treasures. She sends forth her sympathies on adventure; she embarks her
+whole soul in the traffic of affection; and if shipwrecked, her case is
+hopeless--for it is a bankruptcy of the heart."
+
+Mary had every reason to believe that she would never see George again;
+and although she confesses that the love she bore him was never
+transferred to her first husband, we can scarcely find fault with her
+for marrying Mr. Devenant. But the adherence of George Green to the
+resolution never to marry, unless to his Mary, is, indeed, a rare
+instance of the fidelity of man in the matter of love. We can but blush
+for our country's shame, when we recall to mind the fact, that while
+George and Mary Green, and numbers of other fugitives from American
+slavery, can receive protection from any of the Governments of Europe,
+they cannot return to their native land without becoming slaves.
+
+
+
+                FINIS.
+
+
+  AYR: PRINTED AT THE ADVERTISER OFFICE.
+
+
+
+
+Transcriber's notes:
+====================
+
+ERRATA from the original volume, applied to the text.
+======
+
+Page 8, eleventh line from bottom, _for_ villages _read_ villas
+The beautiful villages [**Erratum: villas] on the opposite side of the
+
+145, fourth line from top, _for_ Dante _read_ Whittier
+our own Dante? [**Erratum: Whittier?]
+
+205, second line from bottom, _for_ towns _read_ lawns
+in the vicinity of the lakes. Magnificent towns [**Erratum: lawns]
+
+264, seventh line from top, _for_ 1834 _read_ 1844
+In the month of May, 1834, [**Erratum: 1844,] while one evening
+
+273, eighth line from top, _for_ vanity _read_ variety
+lack vanity [**Erratum: variety] or imagination, either in his public
+
+Letter XXIII displaced to be between XII and XIII, as per editor's
+footnote.
+
+TYPOS
+=====
+
+All "Mr" replaced with "Mr." (~10%).  Similarly for "Mrs".
+
+play," was to flag [**typo: flog] his slaves severely, and
+
+tyranny in Great Britian [**typo: Britain] found social and
+
+passengers, forty of whom were the "Vienneise [**typo: Viennese]
+
+we were in sight of the land of Emmitt [**typo: Emmett] and
+
+Rev. Dr. Ritchie, of Edinburgh. [** quote deleted] "It is indeed a
+
+by M. Duguery, [**typo: Duguerry,] curé of the Madeleine,
+
+The column is in imitation of the Trojan [**typo: Trajan]
+
+XVI. and Marie Antionette [**typo: Antoinette] were driven from it by
+
+building. [** full-stop added] The speaker, in the delivery of one of
+
+Fète. [**typo: Fête.]
+
+soirèe [**typo: soirée] by M. de Tocqueville, Minister for
+
+to the whole scene out of doors. The soirèe [**typo: soirée]
+
+announced, and after a good deal of jambing [**typo: jamming] and
+
+same basket, without any regard to birth or station. [** full-stop added]
+
+had more interesting incidents occuring [**typo: occurring] in it than
+
+of Raphael and David--Arc de Triomphe--Beranger  [** final em-dash added]
+
+Jardin des Plantes, and spent an hour and a-half [**typo: a half]
+
+Were [**typo: were] at the time continually running through my
+
+meeted [**typo: meted] out to me while at Hartwell. And the
+
+I will see you." [** missing quote inserted] In looking across the street, I
+
+great contrast beetween [**typo: between] the monster Institution,
+
+The Tower is surounded [**typo: surrounded] by a high wall, and
+
+skilful muscians; [**typo: musicians;] I have listened with delight
+
+history, and the accumulated discoveries of byegone [**typo: bygone]
+
+acquiline, [**typo: aquiline] his mouth rather small, and not at all
+
+and died at Newstead Abbey, November 18, 1808." [**missing quote inserted]
+
+with the poet and saying:-- [**colon added]
+
+had such ruins in view when he exclaimed:-- [**colon added]
+
+Elyses [**typo: Elysees] at Paris; and as for statuary, the latter
+
+where the celebrated Reformer, John Knox, re-resided.[**typo: resided.]
+
+lake is carved out and and [**typo: deleted second "and"] built up into terrace
+
+through to the north gallery, and and [**typo: deleted second "and"] thence to
+
+myself upon so diminutive a looking [**typo: looking a] creature.
+
+upon the wing--the artifical [**typo: artificial] stream, the brook
+
+seemed to have forgotton [**typo: forgotten] that this was an exhibition
+
+"Sartar [**typo: Sartor] Resartus," and if he does not rise from its
+
+the cloisters of Tinterran [**typo: Tintern] Abbey, in its proudest
+
+that which has accomplished the mightest [**typo: mightiest] and
+
+That measure was in every respect an unconsitutional [**typo: unconstitutional]
+
+practice what they have so long professsd [**typo: professed]. (Hear,
+
+I had writen [**typo: written] for the occasion, was unanimously
+
+taken him back and placed him in goal [**typo: gaol], and
+
+was kept in goal [**typo: gaol] three days, during
+
+into my hand, and at the sametime [**typo: same time] saying,
+
+be a 100 dols. Bank [**typo?: bank] note, on the United States
+
+But the adherence of George Green to the re-resolution [**typo: resolution]
+
+
+Apparent errata, but possibly acceptable period words: (left as-is in text).
+===============
+
+without the least difficulty, and his jestures, [**typo: gestures,]
+   Per OED, jesture obs. form of gesture. May be typo?
+
+motion, and the variagated [**typo: variegated] lamps with their many
+   Per OED, verb variagate was known variant of variegate up to the 19th century
+
+enemies on the 13th Vendimaire [**typo: Vendémiaire]. The Hotel de
+  May be British variant used at the period
+
+observed visiters [**typo: visitors] lingering about it, as if they
+  May be valid past spelling
+
+being conveyed to them by means of a pully-basket, [**typo: pulley-basket,]
+   Per OED, pully known variant of pulley, 15th-19th centuries
+
+under heaven!--Perish the sum of all villanies! [**typo: villainies!]
+   Per OED, known alternate spelling, 16th-19th centuries
+
+force, carrying, upsetting, engulphing [**typo: engulfing] its adversaries,
+   Per OED, known alternate spelling (along with ingulf and ingulph);
+   an example of engulph quoted from an 1871 source.
+
+master and visiters [**typo: visitors] speak of the down-trodden
+  May be valid past spelling
+
+with long curls of a chesnut [**typo: chestnut] colour hanging down
+   Per OED, chesnut was the most common spelling as late as 1820.
+   Johnson set "chestnut" as the standard...
+
+Others found to be acceptable variants:
+   Bastile,
+   plebians,
+   laureat,
+   trode,
+   Shakspere.
+
+
+
+***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THREE YEARS IN EUROPE***
+
+
+******* This file should be named 15830-8.txt or 15830-8.zip *******
+
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+<body>
+<h1 class="pg">The Project Gutenberg eBook, Three Years in Europe, by William Wells
+Brown, et al</h1>
+<pre class="pg">
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at <a href = "https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a></pre>
+<p>Title: Three Years in Europe</p>
+<p>       Places I Have Seen and People I Have Met</p>
+<p>Author: William Wells Brown</p>
+<p>Release Date: May 15, 2005  [eBook #15830]</p>
+<p>Language: English</p>
+<p>Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1</p>
+<p>***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THREE YEARS IN EUROPE***</p>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<h4 class="pg">E-text prepared by Suzanne Shell, Michael Punch,<br />
+    and the Project Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team<br />
+    from page images generously made available by<br />
+    the Bibliothèque nationale de France (http://gallica.bnf.fr)</h4>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<table border="0" style="background-color: #ccccff;" cellpadding="10">
+  <tr>
+    <td valign="top">
+      Note:
+    </td>
+    <td>
+      Images of the original pages are available through the
+	  Biblioth&egrave;que nationale de France. See
+      <a href="http://visualiseur.bnf.fr/Visualiseur?Destination=Gallica&amp;O=NUMM-103524">
+      http://visualiseur.bnf.fr/Visualiseur?Destination=Gallica&amp;O=NUMM-103524</a>
+   </td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<hr class="full" />
+<div><!-- Page -30 --><a name="Page_ii" id="Page_ii" title="ii" class="pagenum"></a></div>
+<h1 class="noindent" style="text-align: center">&nbsp;</h1>
+
+<div class="noindent" style="text-align: center" >
+<!-- Page -29 --><a name="Page_iii" id="Page_iii" title="iii" class="pagenum"></a>
+<img src="images/wellsbrown.jpg" alt="W. Wells Brown." title="W. Wells Brown." /><br />
+<b>W. Wells Brown.</b>
+<!-- Page -28 --><a name="Page_iv" id="Page_iv" title="iv" class="pagenum"></a></div>
+
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+
+
+<h2><span style="text-align: center; font-size: 141%">
+THREE YEARS IN EUROPE;</span><br />
+
+<span style="font-size: 50%">OR,</span><br />
+
+PLACES I HAVE SEEN AND PEOPLE I
+HAVE MET.<br />
+<br />
+<br />
+BY W. WELLS BROWN,<br />
+
+<span style="font-size: 50%">A FUGITIVE SLAVE.</span><br />
+<br />
+
+<span style="font-size: 41%">WITH</span><br />
+<br />
+A MEMOIR OF THE AUTHOR,<br />
+
+<span style="font-size: 71%">BY WILLIAM FARMER, Esq.</span><br />
+<br />
+<br />
+
+<span style="font-size: 71%">LONDON:<br />
+CHARLES GILPIN, 5, BISHOPSGATE STREET, WITHOUT.<br />
+
+EDINBURGH: OLIVER AND BOYD.<br />
+
+1852.</span></h2>
+<div><!-- Page -27 --><a name="Page_v" id="Page_v" title="v" class="pagenum"></a></div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="CONTENTS" id="CONTENTS"></a>CONTENTS.</h2>
+
+<p />  <!-- bizarrely, without this line, IE5 doesn't show the TOC at all!! (just a big blank) -->
+<ul class="TOC">
+
+<li><a href="#MEMOIR_OF_WILLIAM_WELLS_BROWN">
+<span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Memoir of William Wells Brown,</span></a>
+<span class="tocright"><i>Page</i>      ix-xxix</span>
+<br /></li>
+<li><a href="#PREFACE"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Author's Preface,</span></a>
+<span class="tocright">xxxi-xxxii</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_I"><b>LETTER I.</b></a></li>
+<li>Departure from Boston&mdash;the Passengers&mdash;Halifax&mdash;the Passage&mdash;First
+Sight of Land&mdash;Liverpool,      <span class="tocright">1-9</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_II"><b>LETTER II.</b></a></li>
+<li>Trip to Ireland&mdash;Dublin&mdash;Her Majesty's Visit&mdash;Illumination of the City&mdash;the
+Birth-Place of Thomas Moore&mdash;a Reception,      <span class="tocright">9-21</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_III"><b>LETTER III.</b></a></li>
+<li>Departure from Ireland&mdash;London&mdash;Trip to Paris&mdash;Paris&mdash;The Peace Congress:
+first day&mdash;Church of the Madeleine&mdash;Column Vendome&mdash;the
+French,      <span class="tocright">21-38</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_IV"><b>LETTER IV.</b></a></li>
+<li>Versailles&mdash;The Palace&mdash;Second Session of the Congress&mdash;Mr. Cobden&mdash;Henry
+Vincent&mdash;M. Girardin&mdash;Abbe Duguerry&mdash;Victor Hugo: his
+Speech,      <span class="tocright">38-49</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_V"><b>LETTER V.</b></a></li>
+<li>M. de Tocqueville's Grand Soiree&mdash;Madame de Tocqueville&mdash;Visit of the Peace
+Delegates to Versailles&mdash;The Breakfast&mdash;Speechmaking&mdash;The Trianons&mdash;Waterworks&mdash;St.
+Cloud&mdash;The Fete,      <span class="tocright">50-59</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_VI"><b>LETTER VI.</b></a></li>
+<li>The Tuileries&mdash;Place de la Concorde&mdash;The Egyptian Obelisk&mdash;Palais Royal&mdash;Residence
+of Robespierre&mdash;A Visit to the Room in which Charlotte Corday
+killed Marat&mdash;Church de Notre Dame&mdash;Palais de Justice&mdash;Hotel des
+Invalids&mdash;National Assembly&mdash;The Elysee,      <span class="tocright">59-73</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;">
+<!-- Page -26 --><a name="Page_vi" id="Page_vi" title="vi" class="pagenum"></a>
+<a href="#LETTER_VII"><b>LETTER VII.</b></a></li>
+<li>The Chateau at Versailles&mdash;Private Apartments of Marie Antoinette&mdash;The
+Secret Door&mdash;Paintings of Raphael and David&mdash;Arc de Triomphe&mdash;Beranger
+the Poet,      <span class="tocright">73-82</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_VIII"><b>LETTER VIII.</b></a></li>
+<li>Departure from Paris&mdash;Boulogne&mdash;Folkstone&mdash;London&mdash;Geo. Thompson, Esq.,
+M.P.&mdash;Hartwell House&mdash;Dr. Lee&mdash;Cottage of the Peasant&mdash;Windsor Castle&mdash;Residence
+of Wm. Penn&mdash;England's First Welcome&mdash;Heath Lodge&mdash;The
+Bank of England,      <span class="tocright">83-104</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_IX"><b>LETTER IX.</b></a></li>
+<li>The British Museum&mdash;A Portrait&mdash;Night Reading&mdash;A Dark Day&mdash;A Fugitive
+Slave on the Streets of London&mdash;A Friend in the time of need,      <span class="tocright">104-116</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_X"><b>LETTER X.</b></a></li>
+<li>The Whittington Club&mdash;Louis Blanc&mdash;Street Amusements&mdash;Tower of
+London&mdash;Westminster Abbey&mdash;National Gallery&mdash;Dante&mdash;Sir Joshua
+Reynolds,      <span class="tocright">117-134</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_XI"><b>LETTER XI.</b></a></li>
+<li>York-Minster&mdash;The Great Organ&mdash;Newcastle-on-Tyne&mdash;The Labouring Classes&mdash;The
+American Slave&mdash;Sheffield&mdash;James Montgomery,      <span class="tocright">134-145</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_XII"><b>LETTER XII.</b></a></li>
+<li>Kirkstall Abbey&mdash;Mary the Maid of the Inn&mdash;Newstead Abbey: Residence of
+Lord Byron&mdash;Parish Church of Hucknall&mdash;Burial Place of Lord Byron&mdash;Bristol:
+&quot;Cook's Folly&quot;&mdash;Chepstow Castle and Abbey&mdash;Tintern Abbey&mdash;Redcliffe
+Church,      <span class="tocright">145-162</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_XIII"><b>LETTER XIII.</b></a></li>
+<li>Edinburgh&mdash;The Royal Institute&mdash;Scott's Monument&mdash;John Knox's Pulpit&mdash;Temperance
+Meeting&mdash;Glasgow&mdash;Great Meeting in the City Hall,      <span class="tocright">163-176</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_XIV"><b>LETTER XIV.</b></a></li>
+<li>Stirling&mdash;Dundee&mdash;Dr. Dick&mdash;Geo. Gilfillan&mdash;Dr. Dick at home,      <span class="tocright">177-184</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_XV"><b>LETTER XV.</b></a></li>
+<li>Melrose Abbey&mdash;Abbotsford&mdash;Dryburgh Abbey&mdash;The Grave of Sir Walter
+Scott&mdash;Hawick&mdash;Gretna Green&mdash;Visit to the Lakes,      <span class="tocright">185-196</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;">
+<!-- Page -25 --><a name="Page_vii" id="Page_vii" title="vii" class="pagenum"></a>
+<a href="#LETTER_XVI"><b>LETTER XVI.</b></a></li>
+<li>Miss Martineau&mdash;&quot;The Knoll&quot;&mdash;&quot;Ridal Mount&quot;&mdash;&quot;The Dove's Nest&quot;&mdash;Grave
+of William Wordsworth, Esq.&mdash;The English Peasant,      <span class="tocright">196-207</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_XVII"><b>LETTER XVII.</b></a></li>
+<li>A Day in the Crystal Palace,      <span class="tocright">207-219</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_XVIII"><b>LETTER XVIII.</b></a></li>
+<li>The London Peace Congress&mdash;Meeting of Fugitive Slaves&mdash;Temperance Demonstration&mdash;The
+Great Exhibition: Last Visit,      <span class="tocright">219-226</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_XIX"><b>LETTER XIX.</b></a></li>
+<li>Oxford&mdash;Martyrs' Monument&mdash;Cost of the Burning of the Martyrs&mdash;The Colleges&mdash;Dr.
+Pusey&mdash;Energy, the Secret of Success,      <span class="tocright">227-235</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_XX"><b>LETTER XX.</b></a></li>
+<li>Fugitive Slaves in England,      <span class="tocright">236-250</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_XXI"><b>LETTER XXI.</b></a></li>
+<li>A Chapter on American Slavery,      <span class="tocright">250-273</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_XXII"><b>LETTER XXII.</b></a></li>
+<li>A Narrative of American Slavery,      <span class="tocright">273-305</span></li>
+
+<li style="text-align: center; font-weight: bold;"><a href="#LETTER_XXIIIA"><b>LETTER XXIII.</b></a></li>
+<li>Aberdeen&mdash;Passage by Steamer&mdash;Edinburgh&mdash;Visit to the College&mdash;William
+and Ellen Craft,      <span class="tocright">305-312</span></li>
+</ul>
+<div><!-- Page -24 --><a name="Page_viii" id="Page_viii" title="viii" class="pagenum"></a><!-- Page -23 --><a name="Page_ix" id="Page_ix" title="ix" class="pagenum"></a></div>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="MEMOIR_OF_WILLIAM_WELLS_BROWN" id="MEMOIR_OF_WILLIAM_WELLS_BROWN"></a>MEMOIR OF WILLIAM WELLS BROWN.</h2>
+
+
+<p>A narrative of the life of the author of the present
+work has been most extensively circulated in
+England and America. The present memoir will,
+therefore, simply comprise a brief sketch of the
+most interesting portion of Mr. Brown's history
+while in America, together with a short account
+of his subsequent cisatlantic career. The publication
+of his adventures as a slave, and as a fugitive
+from slavery in his native land, has been most
+valuable in sustaining a sound anti-slavery spirit
+in Great Britain. His honourable reception in
+Europe may be equally serviceable in America, as
+another added to the many practical protests previously
+entered from this side of the Atlantic,
+against the absolute bondage of three millions
+and a quarter of the human race, and the semi-slavery
+involved in the social and political proscription
+of 600,000 free coloured people in that
+country.</p>
+
+<p>William Wells Brown was born at Lexington,
+in the state of Kentucky, as nearly as he can tell
+in the autumn of 1814. In the Southern States
+of America, the pedigree and age of a horse or a
+<!-- Page -22 --><a name="Page_x" id="Page_x" title="x" class="pagenum"></a>dog are carefully preserved, but no record is kept
+of the birth of a slave. All that Mr. Brown
+knows upon the subject is traditionally, that he
+was born &quot;about corn-cutting time&quot; of that year.
+His mother was a slave named Elizabeth, the
+property of Dr. Young, a physician. His father
+was George Higgins, a relative of his master.</p>
+
+<p>The name given to our author at his birth, was
+&quot;William&quot;&mdash;no second or surname being permitted
+to a slave. While William was an infant,
+Dr. Young removed to Missouri, where, in addition
+to his profession as a physician, he carried
+on the&mdash;to European notions&mdash;incongruous avocations
+of miller, merchant, and farmer. Here
+William was employed as a house servant, while
+his mother was engaged as a field hand. One of
+his first bitter experiences of the cruelties of slavery,
+was his witnessing the infliction of ten lashes
+upon the bare back of his mother, for being a few
+minutes behind her time at the field&mdash;a punishment
+inflicted with one of those peculiar whips in
+the construction of which, so as to produce the
+greatest amount of torture, those whom Lord
+Carlisle has designated &quot;the chivalry of the
+South&quot; find scope for their ingenuity.</p>
+
+<p>Dr. Young subsequently removed to a farm
+near St. Louis, in the same State. Having been
+elected a Member of the Legislature, he devolved
+the management of his farm upon an overseer,
+having, what to his unhappy victims must have
+been the ironical name of &quot;Friend Haskall.&quot; The
+mother and child were now separated. The boy
+was levied to a Virginian named Freeland, who
+bore the military title of Major, and carried on the
+<!-- Page -21 --><a name="Page_xi" id="Page_xi" title="xi" class="pagenum"></a>plebeian business of a publican. This man was of
+an extremely brutal disposition, and treated his
+slaves with most refined cruelty. His favourite
+punishment, which he facetiously called &quot;Virginian
+play,&quot; was to <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;flag&quot; in the original text">flog</ins> his slaves severely, and
+then expose their lacerated flesh to the smoke of
+tobacco stems, causing the most exquisite agony.
+William complained to his owner of the treatment
+of Freeland, but, as in almost all similar instances,
+the appeal was in vain. At length he was induced
+to attempt an escape, not from that love of liberty
+which subsequently became with him an unconquerable
+passion, but simply to avoid the
+cruelty to which he was habitually subjected. He
+took refuge in the woods, but was hunted and
+&quot;traced&quot; by the blood-hounds of a Major
+O'Fallon, another of &quot;the chivalry of the South,&quot;
+whose gallant occupation was that of keeping an
+establishment for the hire of ferocious dogs with
+which to hunt fugitive slaves. The young slave
+received a severe application of &quot;Virginia play&quot; for
+his attempt to escape. Happily the military
+publican soon afterwards failed in business, and
+William found a better master and a more congenial
+employment with Captain Cilvers, on board
+a steam-boat plying between St. Louis and
+Galena. At the close of the sailing season he
+was levied to an hotel-keeper, a native of a free
+state, but withal of a class which exist north as
+well as south&mdash;a most inveterate negro hater. At
+this period of William's history, a circumstance
+occurred, which, although a common incident in
+the lives of slaves, is one of the keenest trials they
+have to endure&mdash;the breaking up of his family
+<!-- Page -20 --><a name="Page_xii" id="Page_xii" title="xii" class="pagenum"></a>circle. Her master wanted money, and he
+therefore sold Elizabeth and six of her children
+to seven different purchasers. The family
+relationship is almost the only solace of slavery.
+While the mother, brothers, and sisters are
+permitted to meet together in the negro hut
+after the hour of labour, the slaves are comparatively
+content with their oppressed condition; but
+deprive them of this, the only privilege which they
+as human beings are possessed of, and nothing is
+left but the animal part of their nature&mdash;the
+living soul is extinguished within them. With
+them there is nothing to love&mdash;everything to
+hate. They feel themselves degraded to the condition
+not only of mere animals, but of the most
+ill-used animals in the creation.</p>
+
+<p>Not needing the services of his young relative,
+Dr. Young hired him to the proprietor of the <i>St.
+Louis Times</i>, the best master William ever had in
+slavery. Here he gained the scanty amount of
+education he acquired at the South. This kind
+treatment by his editorial master appears to have
+engendered in the heart of William a consciousness
+of his own manhood, and led him into the
+commission of an offence similar to that perpetrated
+by Frederick Douglass, under similar circumstances&mdash;the
+assertion of the right of self-defence.
+He gallantly defended himself against
+the attacks of several boys older and bigger than
+himself, but in so doing was guilty of the unpardonable
+sin of lifting his hand against white lads;
+and the father of one of them, therefore, deemed
+it consistent with his manhood to lay in wait for
+the young slave, and beat him over the head with
+<!-- Page -19 --><a name="Page_xiii" id="Page_xiii" title="xiii" class="pagenum"></a>a heavy cane till the blood gushed from his nose
+and ears. From the effects of that treatment the
+poor lad was confined to his bed for five weeks, at
+the end of which time he found that, to his personal
+sufferings, were superadded the calamity of the loss
+of the best master he ever had in slavery.</p>
+
+<p>His next employment was that of waiter on
+board a steam-boat plying on the Mississippi.
+Here his occupation again was pleasant, and his
+treatment good; but the freedom of action enjoyed
+by the passengers in travelling whithersoever
+they pleased, contrasted strongly in his mind
+with his own deprivation of will as a slave. The
+natural result of this comparison was an intense
+desire for freedom&mdash;a feeling which was never
+afterwards eradicated from his breast. This love
+of liberty was, however, so strongly counteracted
+by affection for his mother and sisters, that although
+urgently entreated by one of the latter to
+take advantage of his present favourable opportunity
+for escape, he would not bring himself to
+do so at the expense of a separation for life from
+his beloved relatives.</p>
+
+<p>His period of living on board the steamer
+having expired, he was again remitted to field
+labour, under a burning sun. From that labour,
+from which he suffered severely, he was soon removed
+to the lighter and more agreeable occupation
+of house-waiter to his master. About this
+time Dr. Young, in the conventional phraseology
+of the locality, &quot;got religion.&quot; The fruit of his
+alleged spiritual gain, was the loss of many material
+comforts to the slaves. Destitute of the resources
+of education, they were in the habit of
+<!-- Page -18 --><a name="Page_xiv" id="Page_xiv" title="xiv" class="pagenum"></a>employing their otherwise unoccupied minds on
+the Sunday in fishing and other harmless pursuits;
+these were now all put an end to. The
+Sabbath became a season of dread to William: he
+was required to drive the family to and from the
+church, a distance of four miles either way; and
+while they attended to the salvation of their
+souls within the building, he was compelled
+to attend to the horses without it, standing
+by them during divine service under a burning
+sun, or drizzling rain. Although William
+did not get the religion of his master, he acquired
+a family passion which appears to have been
+strongly intermixed with the devotional exercises
+of the household of Dr. Young&mdash;a love of sweet
+julep. In the evening, the slaves were required
+to attend family worship. Before commencing
+the service, it was the custom to hand a pitcher of
+the favourite beverage to every member of the
+family, not excepting the nephew, a child of
+between four and five years old. William was in
+the habit of watching his opportunity during the
+prayer and helping himself from the pitcher, but
+one day letting it fall, his propensity for this intoxicating
+drink was discovered, and he was
+severely punished for its indulgence.</p>
+
+<p>In 1830, being then about sixteen years of age,
+William was hired to a slave-dealer named
+Walker. This change of employment led the
+youth away south and frustrated, for a time, his
+plans for escape. His experience while in this
+capacity furnishes some interesting, though painful,
+details of the legalized traffic in human beings
+carried on in the United States. The desperation
+<!-- Page -17 --><a name="Page_xv" id="Page_xv" title="xv" class="pagenum"></a>to which the slaves are driven at their forced
+separation from husband, wife, children, and
+kindred, he found to be a frequent cause of suicide.
+Slave-dealers he discovered were as great
+adepts at deception in the sale of their commodity
+as the most knowing down-easter, or tricky horse
+dealer. William's occupation on board the
+steamer, as they steamed south, was to prepare
+the stock for the market, by shaving off whiskers
+and blacking the grey hairs with a colouring
+composition.</p>
+
+<p>At the expiration of the period of his hiring
+with Walker, William returned to his master
+rejoiced to have escaped an employment so repugnant
+to his feelings. But this joy was not of
+long duration. One of his sisters who, although
+sold to another master had been living in the
+same city with himself and mother, was again
+sold to be sent away south, never in all probability
+to meet her sorrowing relatives. Dr. Young also,
+wanting money, intimated to his young kinsman
+that he was about to sell him. This intimation
+determined William, in conjunction with his
+mother, to attempt their escape. For ten nights
+they travelled northwards, hiding themselves in
+the woods by day. The mother and son at length
+deemed themselves safe from re-capture, and,
+although weary and foot-sore, were laying down
+sanguine plans for the acquisition of a farm in
+Canada, the purchase of the freedom of the six
+other members of the family still in slavery,
+and rejoicing in the anticipated happiness of their
+free home in Canada. At that moment three
+men made up to and seized them, bound the son
+<!-- Page -16 --><a name="Page_xvi" id="Page_xvi" title="xvi" class="pagenum"></a>and led him, with his desponding mother, back
+to slavery. Elizabeth was sold and sent away
+south, while her son became the property of a
+merchant tailor named Willi. Mr. Brown's description
+of the final interview between himself
+and his mother, is one of the most touching
+portions of his narrative. The mother, after
+expressing her conviction of the speedy escape
+from slavery by the hand of death, enjoined her
+child to persevere in his endeavours to gain his
+freedom by flight. Her blessing was interrupted
+by the kick and curse bestowed by her dehumanized
+master upon her beloved son.</p>
+
+<p>After having been hired for a short time to the
+captain of the steam-boat <i>Otto</i>, William was
+finally sold to Captain Enoch Price for 650 dollars.
+That the quickness and intelligence of William
+rendered him very valuable as a slave, is favoured
+by the evidence of Enoch Price himself, who states
+that he was offered 2000 dollars for Sanford (as
+he was called), in New Orleans. William was
+strongly urged by his new mistress to marry. To
+facilitate this object, she even went so far as
+to purchase a girl for whom she fancied he had an
+affection. He himself, however, had secretly
+resolved never to enter into such a connexion
+while in slavery, knowing that marriage, in the
+true and honourable sense of the term, could not
+exist among slaves. Notwithstanding the multitude
+of petty offences for which a slave is severely
+punished, it is singular that one crime&mdash;bigamy&mdash;is
+visited upon a white with severity, while no
+slave has ever yet been tried for it. In fact, the man
+is allowed to form connections with as many
+<!-- Page -15 --><a name="Page_xvii" id="Page_xvii" title="xvii" class="pagenum"></a>women, and the women with as many men, as
+they please.</p>
+
+<p>At St. Louis, William was employed as coachman
+to Mr. Price; but when that gentleman
+subsequently took his family up the river to Cincinnati,
+Sanford acted as appointed steward.
+While lying off this city, the long-looked-for
+opportunity of escape presented itself; and on the
+1st of January, 1834&mdash;he being then almost
+twenty years of age&mdash;succeeded in getting from
+the steamer to the wharf, and thence to the
+woods, where he lay concealed until the shades of
+night had set in, when he again commenced his
+journey northwards. While with Dr. Young, a
+nephew of that gentleman, whose christian name
+was William, came into the family: the slave was,
+therefore, denuded of the name of William, and
+thenceforth called Sanford. This deprivation of
+his original name he had ever regarded as an
+indignity, and having now gained his freedom he
+resumed his original name; and as there was no
+one by whom he could be addressed by it, he
+exultingly enjoyed the first-fruits of his freedom
+by calling himself aloud by his old name &quot;William!&quot;
+After passing through a variety of painful
+vicissitudes, on the eighth day he found himself
+destitute of pecuniary means, and unable, from
+severe illness, to pursue his journey. In that
+condition he was discovered by a venerable member
+of the Society of Friends, who placed him in
+a covered waggon and took him to his own house.
+There he remained about fifteen days, and by the
+kind treatment of his host and hostess, who were
+what in America are called &quot;Thompsonians,&quot;
+<!-- Page -14 --><a name="Page_xviii" id="Page_xviii" title="xviii" class="pagenum"></a>he was restored to health, and supplied with
+the means of pursuing his journey. The name
+of this, his first kind benefactor, was &quot;Wells
+Brown.&quot; As William had risen from the degradation
+of a slave to the dignity of a man, it
+was expedient that he should follow the customs
+of other men, and adopt a second name. His
+venerable friend, therefore, bestowed upon him
+his own name, which, prefixed by his former
+designation, made him &quot;William Wells Brown,&quot;
+a name that will live in history, while those of the
+men who claimed him as property would, were it
+not for his deeds, have been unknown beyond the
+town in which they lived. In nine days from the
+time he left Wells Brown's house, he arrived at
+Cleveland, in the State of Ohio, where he found
+he could remain comparatively safe from the pursuit
+of the man-stealer. Having obtained employment
+as a waiter, he remained in that city until
+the following spring, when he procured an engagement
+on board a steam-boat plying on Lake Erie.
+In that situation he was enabled, during seven
+months, to assist no less than sixty-nine slaves to
+escape to Canada. While a slave he had regarded
+the whites as the natural enemies of his race. It
+was, therefore, with no small pleasure that he discovered
+the existence of the salt of America, in the
+despised Abolitionists of the Northern States. He
+read with assiduity the writings of Benjamin Lundy,
+William Lloyd Garrison, and others; and after
+his own twenty years' experience of slavery, it is not
+surprising that he should have enthusiastically
+embraced the principles of &quot;total and immediate
+emancipation,&quot; and &quot;no union with slaveholders.&quot;</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page -13 --><a name="Page_xix" id="Page_xix" title="xix" class="pagenum"></a>In proportion as his mind expanded under the
+more favourable circumstances in which he was
+placed, he became anxious, not merely for the
+redemption of his race from personal slavery, but
+for the moral elevation of those among them who
+were free. Finding that habits of intoxication
+were too prevalent amongst his coloured brethren,
+he, in conjunction with others, commenced a
+temperance reformation in their body. Such was
+the success of their efforts that in three years, in
+the city of Buffalo alone, a society of upwards of
+500 members was raised out of a coloured population
+of 700. Of that society Mr. Brown was
+thrice elected President.</p>
+
+<p>The intellectual powers of our author, coupled
+with his intimate acquaintance with the workings
+of the slave system, recommended him to the
+Abolitionists as a man eminently qualified to
+arouse the attention of the people of the Northern
+States to the great national sin of America. In
+1843 he was engaged as a lecturer by the Western
+New-York Anti-Slavery Society. From 1844
+to 1847 he laboured in the anti-slavery
+cause in connection with the American Anti-Slavery
+Society, and from that period up to the
+time of his departure for Europe, in 1849,
+he was an agent of the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery
+Society. The records of those societies
+furnish abundant evidence of the success of
+his labours. From the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery
+Society he early received the following
+testimony:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>&quot;Since Mr. Brown became an agent of the
+Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society, he has lec<!-- Page -12 --><a name="Page_xx" id="Page_xx" title="xx" class="pagenum"></a>tured
+in very many of the towns of this Commonwealth,
+and won for himself general respect and
+approbation. He combines true self-respect with
+true humility, and rare judiciousness with great
+moral courage. Himself a fugitive slave, he can
+experimentally describe the situation of those in
+bonds as bound with them; and he powerfully
+illustrates the diabolism of that system which
+keeps in chains and darkness a host of minds,
+which, if free and enlightened, would shine
+among men like stars in a firmament.&quot;</p>
+
+<p>Another member of that Society speaks thus
+of him:&mdash;&quot;I need not attempt any description
+of the ability and efficiency which characterized
+his speaking throughout the meetings. To you
+who know him so well, it is enough to say that
+his lectures were worthy of himself. He has left
+an impression on the minds of the people, that
+few could have done. Cold, indeed, must be the
+heart that could resist the appeals of so noble a
+specimen of humanity, in behalf of a crushed and
+despised race.&quot;</p>
+
+<p>Notwithstanding the celebrity Mr. Brown had
+acquired in the north, as a man of genius and
+talent, and the general respect his high character
+had gained him, the slave spirit of America
+denied him the rights of a citizen. By the constitution
+of the United States, he was every moment
+liable to be seized and sent back to slavery.
+He was in daily peril of a gradual legalized murder,
+under a system one of whose established
+economical principles is, that it is more profitable
+to work up a slave on a plantation in a short
+time, by excessive labour and cheap food, than to
+<!-- Page -11 --><a name="Page_xxi" id="Page_xxi" title="xxi" class="pagenum"></a>obtain a lengthened remuneration by moderate
+work and humane treatment. His only protection
+from such a fate was the anomaly of the
+ascendancy of the public opinion over the law of
+the country. So uncertain, however, was that
+tenure of liberty, that even before the passage
+of the Fugitive Slave Law, it was deemed expedient
+to secure the services of Frederick Douglass
+to the anti-slavery cause by the purchase of
+his freedom. The same course might have
+been taken to secure the labours of Mr. Brown,
+had he not entertained an unconquerable repugnance
+to its adoption. On the 10th of January,
+1848, Enoch Price wrote to Mr. Edmund Quincy
+offering to sell Mr. Brown to himself or friends
+for 325 dollars. To this communication the
+fugitive returned the following pithy and noble
+reply:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>&quot;I cannot accept of Mr. Price's offer to become
+a purchaser of my body and soul. God made me
+as free as he did Enoch Price, and Mr. Price shall
+never receive a dollar from me or my friends with
+my consent.&quot;</p>
+
+<p>There were, however, other reasons besides his
+personal safety which led to Mr. Brown's visit to
+Europe. It was thought desirable always to have
+in England some talented man of colour who
+should be a living lie to the doctrine of the
+inferiority of the African race: and it was moreover
+felt that none could so powerfully advocate
+the cause of &quot;those in bonds&quot; as one who had
+actually been &quot;bound with them.&quot; This had
+been proved in the extraordinary effect produced
+in Great Britain by Frederick Douglass in 1845
+<!-- Page -10 --><a name="Page_xxii" id="Page_xxii" title="xxii" class="pagenum"></a>and 1846. The American Committee in connection
+with the Peace Congress were also desirous
+of sending to Europe coloured representatives of
+their Society, and Mr. Brown was selected for that
+purpose, and duly accredited by them to the Paris
+Congress.</p>
+
+<p>On the 18th of July, 1849, a large meeting of
+the coloured citizens of Boston was held in
+Washington Hall to bid him farewell. At that
+meeting the following resolutions were unanimously
+adopted:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p class="noindent" style="padding-left: 3em; text-indent: -3em;">
+&quot;<i>Resolved</i>,&mdash;That we bid our brother, William
+Wells Brown, God speed in his mission to
+Europe, and commend him to the hospitality
+and encouragement of all true friends of
+humanity.</p>
+
+<p class="noindent" style="padding-left: 3em; text-indent: -3em;">
+&quot;<i>Resolved</i>,&mdash;That we forward by him our renewed
+protest against the American Colonization
+Society; and invoke for him a candid hearing
+before the British public, in reply to the
+efforts put forth there by the Rev. Mr. Miller,
+or any other agent of said Society.&quot;</p>
+
+<p>Two days afterwards he sailed for Europe,
+encountering on his voyage his last experience of
+American prejudice against colour.</p>
+
+<p>On the 28th of August he landed at Liverpool,
+a time and place memorable in his life as the
+first upon which he could truly call himself a free
+man upon God's earth. In the history of nations,
+as of individuals, there is often singular retributive
+mercy as well as retributive justice. In
+the seventeenth century the victims of monarchical
+tyranny in Great <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;Britian&quot; in the original text">Britain</ins> found social and
+<!-- Page -9 --><a name="Page_xxiii" id="Page_xxiii" title="xxiii" class="pagenum"></a>political freedom when they set foot upon Plymouth
+Rock in New England: in the nineteenth
+century the victims of the oppressions of the
+American Republic find freedom and social
+equality upon the shores of monarchical England.
+Liverpool, which seventy years back was so
+steeped in the guilt of negro slavery that Paine
+expressed his surprise that God did not sweep it
+from the face of the earth, is now to the hunted
+negro the Plymouth Rock of Old England.
+From Liverpool he proceeded to Dublin where he
+was warmly received by Mr. Haughton, Mr.
+Webb, and other friends of the slave, and publicly
+welcomed at a large meeting presided over
+by the first named gentleman.</p>
+
+<p>The reception of Mr. Brown at the Peace Congress
+in Paris was most flattering. In a company,
+comprising a large portion of the <i>elite</i> of Europe,
+he admirably maintained his reputation as a
+public speaker. His brief address, upon that
+&quot;war spirit of America which holds in bondage
+three million of his brethren,&quot; produced a profound
+sensation. At its conclusion the speaker
+was warmly greeted by Victor Hugo, the Abbe
+Duguerry, Emile de Girardin, the Pastor
+Coquerel, Richard Cobden, and every man of note
+in the Assembly. At the soiree given by M. De
+Tocqueville, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, and
+the other fetes given to the Members of the Congress,
+Mr. Brown was received with marked
+attention.</p>
+
+<p>Having finished his Peace mission in France, he
+commenced an Anti-slavery tour in England and
+Scotland. With that independence of feeling
+<!-- Page -8 --><a name="Page_xxiv" id="Page_xxiv" title="xxiv" class="pagenum"></a>which those who are acquainted with him know to
+be his chief characteristic, he rejected the idea of
+anything like eleemosynary support. He determined
+to maintain himself and family by his own
+exertions&mdash;by his literary labours, and the
+honourable profession of a public lecturer. His
+first metropolitan reception in England was at a
+large, influential, and enthusiastic meeting in the
+Music Hall, Stone Street. The members of the
+Whittington Club&mdash;an institution numbering
+nearly 2000 members, among whom are Lords
+Brougham, Dudley Coutts Stuart, and Beaumont;
+Charles Dickens, Douglass Jerrold, Martin
+Thackeray, Charles Lushington, M.P., Monckton
+Milnes, M.P., and several other of the most distinguished
+legislators and literary men and women
+in this country&mdash;elected Mr. Brown an honorary
+member of the Club, as a mark of respect to his
+character; and, as the following extract from the
+Secretary, Mr. Stundwicke, will show, as a protest
+against the distinctions made between man and
+man on account of colour in America:&mdash;&quot;I have
+much pleasure in conveying to you the best thanks
+of the managing committee of this institution for
+the excellent lecture you gave here last evening on
+the subject of 'Slavery in America,' and also in
+presenting you in their names with an honorary
+membership of the Club. It is hoped that you
+will often avail yourself of its privileges by coming
+amongst us. You will then see, by the cordial
+welcome of the members, that they protest against
+the odious distinctions made between man and
+man, and the abominable traffic of which you have
+been the victim.&quot;</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page -7 --><a name="Page_xxv" id="Page_xxv" title="xxv" class="pagenum"></a>For the last three years Mr. Brown has been
+engaged in visiting and holding meetings in nearly
+all the large towns in the kingdom upon the
+question of American Slavery, Temperance, and
+other subjects. Perhaps no coloured individual,
+not excepting that extraordinary man, Frederick
+Douglass, has done more good in disseminating
+anti-slavery principles in England, Scotland, and
+Ireland.</p>
+
+<p>In the spring of 1851, two most interesting
+fugitives, William and Ellen Craft, arrived in
+England. They had made their escape from the
+South, the wife disguised in male attire, and the
+husband in the capacity of her slave. William
+Craft was doing a thriving business in Boston,
+but in 1851 was driven with his wife from
+that city by the operation of the Fugitive
+Slave Law. For several months they travelled
+in company with Mr. Brown in this country,
+deepening the disgust created by Mr. Brown's
+eloquent denunciation of slavery by their simple
+but touching narrative. At length they were
+enabled to gratify their thirst for education by
+gaining admission to Lady Byron's school at
+Oakham, Surrey. In the month of May, Mr.
+Brown and Mr. and Mrs. Craft were taken by a
+party of anti-slavery friends to the Great Exhibition.
+The honourable manner in which they
+were received by distinguished persons to whom
+their history was known, and the freedom with
+which they perambulated the American department,
+was a salutary rebuke to the numerous
+Americans present, in regard to the great sin
+of their country&mdash;slavery; and its great folly&mdash;prejudice<!-- Page -6 --><a name="Page_xxvi" id="Page_xxvi" title="xxvi" class="pagenum"></a>
+of colour. A curious circumstance occurred
+during the Exhibition. Among the hosts
+of American visitors to this country was Mr.
+Brown's late master, Enoch Price, who made diligent
+inquiry after his lost piece of property&mdash;not,
+of course, with any view to its reclamation&mdash;but,
+to the mutual regret of both parties, without success.
+It is gratifying to state that the master
+spoke highly of, and expressed a wish for the
+future prosperity of, his fugitive slave; a fact
+which tends to prove that prejudice of colour is
+to a very great extent a thing of locality and
+association. Had Mr. Price, however, left behind
+him letters of manumission for Mr. Brown, enabling
+him, if he chose, to return to his native
+land, he would have given a more practical proof
+of respect, and of the sincerity of his desire for the
+welfare of Mr. Brown.</p>
+
+<p>It would extend these pages far beyond their
+proposed length were anything like a detailed
+account of Mr. Brown's anti-slavery labours in
+this country to be attempted. Suffice it to say
+that they have everywhere been attended with
+benefit and approbation. At Bolton an admirable
+address from the ladies was presented to him, and
+at other places he has received most honourable
+testimonials.</p>
+
+<p>Since Mr. Brown left America, the condition of
+the fugitive slaves in his own country has,
+through the operation of the Fugitive Slave
+Law, been rendered so perilous as to preclude
+the possibility of return without the
+almost certain loss of liberty. His expatriation
+has, however, been a gain to the cause of human<!-- Page -5 --><a name="Page_xxvii" id="Page_xxvii" title="xxvii" class="pagenum"></a>ity
+in this country, where an intelligent representative
+of the oppressed coloured Americans is constantly
+needed, not only to describe, in language
+of fervid eloquence, the wrongs inflicted upon his
+race in the United States, but to prevent their
+bonds being strengthened in this country by holding
+fellowship with slave-holding and slave-abetting
+ministers from America. In his lectures he has
+clearly demonstrated the fact, that the sole support
+of the slavery of the United States is its
+churches. This knowledge of the standing of
+American ministers in reference to slavery has,
+in the case of Dr. Dyer, and in many other instances,
+been most serviceable, preventing their
+reception into communion with British churches.
+Last year Mr. Brown succeeded in getting over
+to this country his daughters, two interesting
+girls twelve and sixteen years of age respectively,
+who are now receiving an education which will
+qualify them hereafter to become teachers in their
+turn&mdash;a description of education which would
+have been denied them in their native land. In
+1834 Mr. Brown married a free coloured woman,
+who died in January of the present year.</p>
+
+<p>The condition of escaped slaves has engaged
+much of his attention while in this country. He
+found that in England no anti-slavery organization
+existed whose object was to aid fugitive slaves
+in obtaining an honourable subsistence in the
+land of their exile. In most cases they are thrown
+upon the support of a few warm-hearted anti-slavery
+advocates in this country, pre-eminent
+among whom stands Mr. Brown's earliest friend,
+Mr. George Thompson, M.P., whose house is
+<!-- Page -4 --><a name="Page_xxviii" id="Page_xxviii" title="xxviii" class="pagenum"></a>rarely free from one or more of those who have
+acquired the designation of his &quot;American constituents.&quot;
+This want has recently been attempted
+to be supplied, partly through Mr. Brown's exertions,
+and partly by the establishment of the
+Anglo-American Anti-Slavery Association.</p>
+
+<p>On the 1st of August, 1851, a meeting of the
+most novel character was held at the Hall of
+Commerce, London, being a soiree given by
+fugitive slaves in this country to Mr. George
+Thompson, on his return from his American mission
+on behalf of their race. That meeting was most
+ably presided over by Mr. Brown, and the speeches
+made upon the occasion by fugitive slaves were of
+the most interesting and creditable description.
+Although a residence in Canada is infinitely preferable
+to slavery in America, yet the climate of that
+country is uncongenial to the constitutions of the
+fugitive slaves, and their lack of education is an
+almost insuperable barrier to their social progress.
+The latter evil Mr. Brown attempted to remedy
+by the establishment of a Manual Labour School
+in Canada.</p>
+
+<p>A public meeting, attended by between 3000
+and 4000 persons, was convened by Mr. Brown,
+on the 6th of January, 1851, in the City Hall,
+Glasgow, presided over by Mr. Hastie, one of the
+representatives of that city, at which meeting a
+resolution was unanimously passed approving of
+Mr. Brown's scheme, which scheme, however,
+never received that amount of support which
+would have enabled him to bring it into practice;
+and the plan at present only remains as an
+evidence of its author's ingenuity and desire for
+<!-- Page -3 --><a name="Page_xxix" id="Page_xxix" title="xxix" class="pagenum"></a>the elevation of his depressed race. Mr. Brown
+subsequently made, through the columns of the
+<i>Times</i> newspaper, a proposition for the emigration
+of American fugitive slaves, under fair and honourable
+terms, to the West Indies, where there is a
+great lack of that tillage labour which they are so
+capable of undertaking. This proposition has
+hitherto met with no better fate than its predecessor.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Brown's literary abilities may be partly
+judged of from the following pages. The amount
+of knowledge and education he has acquired under
+circumstances of no ordinary difficulty, is a striking
+proof of what can be done by combined genius
+and industry. His proficiency as a linguist, without
+the aid of a master, is considerable. His
+present work is a valuable addition to the stock of
+English literature. The honour which has hitherto
+been paid, and which, so long as he resides upon
+British soil, will no doubt continue to be paid to his
+character and talents, must have its influence in
+abating the senseless prejudice of colour in
+America, and hastening the time when the object
+of his mission, the abolition of the slavery of his
+native country, shall be accomplished, and that
+young Republic renouncing with penitence its
+national sin, shall take its proper place amongst
+the most free, civilized, and Christian nations of
+the earth.</p>
+
+<p class="quotdate">
+W.F.
+</p>
+
+<div><!-- Page -2 blank--><a name="Page_xxx" id="Page_xxx" title="xxx"></a><!-- Page -1 --><a name="Page_xxxi" id="Page_xxxi" title="xxxi" class="pagenum"></a></div>
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="PREFACE" id="PREFACE"></a>PREFACE.</h2>
+
+
+<p>While I feel conscious that most of the contents
+of these Letters will be interesting chiefly to
+American readers, yet I may indulge the hope,
+that the fact of their being the first production of
+a Fugitive Slave, as a history of travels, may carry
+with them novelty enough to secure for them, to
+some extent, the attention of the reading public
+of Great Britain. Most of the letters were
+written for the private perusal of a few personal
+friends in America; some were contributed to
+&quot;Frederick Douglass's paper,&quot; a journal published
+in the United States. In a printed circular sent
+some weeks since to some of my friends, asking
+subscriptions to this volume, I stated the reasons
+for its publication: these need not be repeated
+<!-- Page 0 --><a name="Page_xxxii" id="Page_xxxii" title="xxxii" class="pagenum"></a>here. To those who so promptly and kindly
+responded to that appeal, I tender my most sincere
+thanks. It is with no little diffidence that I
+lay these letters before the public; for I am not
+blind to the fact, that they must contain many
+errors; and to those who shall find fault with
+them on that account, it may not be too much for
+me to ask them kindly to remember, that the
+author was a slave in one of the Southern States
+of America, until he had attained the age of
+twenty years; and that the education he has
+acquired, was by his own exertions, he never having
+had a day's schooling in his life.</p>
+
+<p class="quotdate">
+W. WELLS BROWN.</p>
+<p>
+22, CECIL STREET, STRAND,<br />
+<span style="margin-left: 1.5em;">LONDON.</span>
+</p>
+
+
+
+<div><!-- Page 1 --><a name="Page_1" id="Page_1" title="1" class="pagenum"></a></div>
+<!-- Repeat title not needed
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="THREE_YEARS_IN_EUROPE" id="THREE_YEARS_IN_EUROPE"></a>THREE YEARS IN EUROPE;</h2>
+
+<p>OR,</p>
+
+<p>PLACES I HAVE SEEN AND PEOPLE I HAVE MET.</p>
+-->
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="LETTER_I" id="LETTER_I"></a>LETTER I.</h2>
+
+<h3>Departure from Boston&mdash;the Passengers&mdash;Halifax&mdash;the
+Passage&mdash;First Sight of Land&mdash;Liverpool.</h3>
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Liverpool</span>, <i>July 28</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">On</span> the 18th July, 1849, I took passage in the
+steam-ship <i>Canada</i>, Captain Judkins, bound for
+Liverpool. The day was a warm one; so much
+so, that many persons on board, as well as several
+on shore, stood with their umbrellas up, so intense
+was the heat of the sun. The ringing of
+the ship's bell was a signal for us to shake hands
+with our friends, which we did, and then stepped
+on the deck of the noble craft. The <i>Canada</i>
+quitted her moorings at half-past twelve, and we
+<!-- Page 2 --><a name="Page_2" id="Page_2" title="2" class="pagenum"></a>were soon in motion. As we were passing out of
+Boston Bay, I took my stand on the quarter-deck,
+to take a last farewell (at least for a time), of my
+native land. A visit to the old world, up to that
+time had seemed but a dream. As I looked back
+upon the receding land, recollections of the past
+rushed through my mind in quick succession.
+From the treatment that I had received from the
+Americans as a victim of slavery, and the knowledge
+that I was at that time liable to be seized
+and again reduced to whips and chains, I had
+supposed that I would leave the country without
+any regret; but in this I was mistaken, for when
+I saw the last thread of communication cut off
+between me and the land, and the dim shores
+dying away in the distance, I almost regretted
+that I was not on shore.</p>
+
+<p>An anticipated trip to a foreign country appears
+pleasant when talking about it, especially
+when surrounded by friends whom we love; but
+when we have left them all behind, it does not
+seem so pleasant. Whatever may be the fault
+of the government under which we live, and no
+matter how oppressive her laws may appear, yet
+<!-- Page 3 --><a name="Page_3" id="Page_3" title="3" class="pagenum"></a>we leave our native land (if such it be) with feelings
+akin to sorrow. With the steamer's powerful
+engine at work, and with a fair wind, we were
+speedily on the bosom of the Atlantic, which was
+as calm and as smooth as our own Hudson in its
+calmest aspect. We had on board above one hundred
+passengers, forty of whom were the &quot;<ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;Vienneise&quot; in the original text">Viennese</ins>
+children&quot;&mdash;a troop of dancers. The passengers
+represented several different nations, English,
+French, Spaniards, Africans, and Americans. One
+man who had the longest pair of mustaches that
+mortal man was ever doomed to wear, especially
+attracted my attention. He appeared to belong
+to no country in particular, but was yet the busiest
+man on board. After viewing for some time
+the many strange faces around me, I descended
+to the cabin to look after my luggage, which had
+been put hurriedly on board. I hope that all
+who take a trip of so great a distance may be as
+fortunate as I was, in being supplied with books
+to read on the voyage. My friends had furnished
+me with literature, from &quot;Macaulay's History of
+England&quot; to &quot;Jane Eyre,&quot; so that I did not want
+for books to occupy my time.</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page 4 --><a name="Page_4" id="Page_4" title="4" class="pagenum"></a>A pleasant passage of about thirty hours,
+brought us to Halifax, at six o'clock in the evening.
+In company with my friend the President
+of the Oberlin Institute, I took a stroll through
+the town; and from what little I saw of the
+people in the streets, I am sure that the taking of
+the Temperance pledge would do them no injury.
+Our stay at Halifax was short. Having taken in
+a few sacks of coals, the mails, and a limited
+number of passengers, we were again out, and
+soon at sea. After a pleasant run of seven days
+more, and as I was lying in my bed, I heard the
+cry of &quot;Land a-head.&quot; Although our passage had
+been unprecedentedly short, yet I need not inform
+you that this news was hailed with joy by all on
+board. For my own part, I was soon on deck.
+Away in the distance, and on our larboard
+quarter, were the grey hills of Ireland. Yes!
+we were in sight of the land of <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;Emmitt&quot; in the original text">Emmett</ins> and
+O'Connell. While I rejoiced with the other passengers
+at the sight of land, and the near approach
+to the end of the voyage, I felt low spirited,
+because it reminded me of the great distance I
+was from home. But the experience of above
+<!-- Page 5 --><a name="Page_5" id="Page_5" title="5" class="pagenum"></a>twenty years' travelling, had prepared me to
+undergo what most persons must lay their account
+with, in visiting a strange country. This was the
+last day but one that we were to be on board;
+and as if moved by the sight of land, all seemed
+to be gathering their different things together&mdash;brushing
+up their old clothes and putting on their
+new ones, as if this would bring them any sooner
+to the end of their journey.</p>
+
+<p>The last night on board was the most pleasant,
+apparently, that we had experienced; probably,
+because it was the last. The moon was in her
+meridian splendour, pouring her broad light over
+the calm sea; while near to us, on our starboard
+side, was a ship with her snow-white sails spread
+aloft, and stealing through the water like a thing
+of life. What can present a more picturesque
+view, than two vessels at sea on a moonlight
+night, and within a few rods of each other?
+With a gentle breeze, and the powerful engine at
+work, we seemed to be flying to the embrace of
+our British neighbours.</p>
+
+<p>The next morning I was up before the sun, and
+found that we were within a few miles of Liver<!-- Page 6 --><a name="Page_6" id="Page_6" title="6" class="pagenum"></a>pool.
+The taking of a pilot on board at eleven
+o'clock, warned us to prepare to quit our ocean
+palace and seek other quarters. At a little past
+three o'clock, the ship cast anchor, and we were
+all tumbled, bag and baggage, into a small
+steamer, and in a few moments were at the door
+of the Custom-House. The passage had only been
+nine days and twenty-two hours, the quickest on
+record at that time, yet it was long enough. I
+waited nearly three hours before my name was
+called, and when it was, I unlocked my trunks
+and handed them over to one of the officers, whose
+dirty hands made no improvement on the work of
+the laundress. First one article was taken out,
+and then another, till an <i>Iron Collar</i> that had
+been worn by a female slave on the banks of the
+Mississippi, was hauled out, and this democratic
+instrument of torture became the centre of attraction;
+so much so, that instead of going on with
+the examination, all hands stopped to look at the
+&quot;Negro Collar.&quot;</p>
+
+<p>Several of my countrymen who were standing
+by, were not a little displeased at answers which I
+gave to questions on the subject of Slavery; but
+<!-- Page 7 --><a name="Page_7" id="Page_7" title="7" class="pagenum"></a>they held their peace. The interest created by
+the appearance of the Iron Collar, closed the
+examination of my luggage. As if afraid that they
+would find something more hideous, they put the
+Custom-House mark on each piece, and passed
+them out, and I was soon comfortably installed at
+Brown's Temperance Hotel, Clayton Square.</p>
+
+<p><br />
+No person of my complexion can visit this
+country without being struck with the marked difference
+between the English and the Americans.
+The prejudice which I have experienced on all and
+every occasion in the United States, and to some
+extent on board the <i>Canada</i>, vanished as soon as
+I set foot on the soil of Britain. In America I
+had been bought and sold as a slave, in the
+Southern States. In the so-called free States, I
+had been treated as one born to occupy an
+inferior position,&mdash;in steamers, compelled to take
+my fare on the deck; in hotels, to take my
+meals in the kitchen; in coaches, to ride on the
+outside; in railways, to ride in the &quot;negro car;&quot;
+and in churches, to sit in the &quot;negro pew.&quot; But
+no sooner was I on British soil, than I was
+<!-- Page 8 --><a name="Page_8" id="Page_8" title="8" class="pagenum"></a>recognised as a man, and an equal. The very
+dogs in the streets appeared conscious of my
+manhood. Such is the difference, and such is the
+change that is brought about by a trip of nine
+days in an Atlantic steamer.</p>
+
+<p>I was not more struck with the treatment of
+the people, than with the appearance of the great
+seaport of the world. The grey appearance of the
+stone piers and docks, the dark look of the magnificent
+warehouses, the substantial appearance of
+every thing around, causes one to think himself in
+a new world instead of the old. Every thing in
+Liverpool looks old, yet nothing is worn out.
+The beautiful <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: Erratum applied, &quot;villages&quot; in the original text">villas</ins> on the opposite side of the
+river, in the vicinity of Birkenhead, together with
+the countless number of vessels in the river, and
+the great ships to be seen in the stream, give life
+and animation to the whole scene.</p>
+
+<p>Every thing in and about Liverpool seems to be
+built for the future as well as the present. We
+had time to examine but few of the public buildings,
+the first of which was the Custom-House,
+an edifice that would be an ornament to any city
+in the world.</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page 9 --><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9" title="9" class="pagenum"></a>For the first time in my life, I can say &quot;I am
+truly free.&quot; My old master may make his appearance
+here, with the Constitution of the United
+States in his pocket, the Fugitive Slave Law in
+one hand and the chains in the other, and claim
+me as his property, but all will avail him nothing.
+I can here stand and look the tyrant in the face,
+and tell him that I am his equal! England is,
+indeed, the &quot;land of the free, and the home of
+the brave.&quot;</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="LETTER_II" id="LETTER_II"></a>LETTER II.</h2>
+
+<h3>Trip to Ireland&mdash;Dublin&mdash;Her Majesty's Visit&mdash;Illumination
+of the City&mdash;the Birth-Place
+of Thomas Moore&mdash;a Reception.</h3>
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Dublin</span>, <i>August 6</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">After</span> remaining in Liverpool two days, I took
+passage in the little steamer <i>Adelaide</i> for this
+city. The wind being high on the night of our
+voyage, the vessel had scarcely got to sea ere we
+<!-- Page 10 --><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10" title="10" class="pagenum"></a>were driven to our berths; and though the distance
+from Liverpool to Dublin is short, yet,
+strange to say, I witnessed more effects of the sea
+and rolling of the steamer upon the passengers,
+than was to be seen during the whole of our
+voyage from America. We reached Kingstown,
+five miles below Dublin, after a passage of nearly
+fifteen hours, and were soon seated on a car, and
+on our way to the city. While coming into the
+bay, one gets a fine view of Dublin and the surrounding
+country. Few sheets of water make a
+more beautiful appearance than Dublin Bay. We
+found it as still and smooth as a mirror, with a
+soft mist on its surface&mdash;a strange contrast to the
+boisterous sea that we had left a moment before.</p>
+
+<p>The curious phrases of the Irish sounded
+harshly upon my ear, probably, because they
+were strange to me. I lost no time on reaching
+the city in seeking out some to whom I had letters
+of introduction, one of whom gave me an invitation
+to make his house my home during my stay,
+an invitation which I did not think fit to decline.</p>
+
+<p>Dublin, the Metropolis of Ireland, is a city of
+above two hundred thousand inhabitants, and is
+<!-- Page 11 --><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11" title="11" class="pagenum"></a>considered by the people of Ireland to be the
+second city in the British Empire. The Liffey,
+which falls into Dublin Bay a little below the
+Custom-House, divides the town into two nearly
+equal parts. The streets are&mdash;some of them&mdash;very
+fine, especially upper Sackville Street, in
+the centre of which stands a pillar erected to
+Nelson, England's most distinguished Naval
+Commander. The Bank of Ireland, to which I
+paid a visit, is a splendid building, and was
+formerly the Parliament House. This magnificent
+edifice fronts College Green, and near at hand
+stands a bronze statue of William III. The
+Bank and the Custom-House are two of the finest
+monuments of architecture in the city; the latter
+of which stands near the river Liffey, and its front
+makes an imposing appearance, extending to
+three hundred and seventy-five feet. It is built
+of Portland stone, and is adorned with a beautiful
+portico in the centre, consisting of four Doric
+columns supporting an enriched entablature,
+decorated with a group of figures in alto-relievo,
+representing Hibernia and Britannia presenting
+emblems of peace and liberty. A magnificent
+<!-- Page 12 --><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12" title="12" class="pagenum"></a>dome, supporting a cupola, on whose apex stands
+a colossal figure of Hope, rises nobly from the
+centre of the building to a height of one hundred
+and twenty-five feet. It is, withal, a fine specimen
+of what man can do.</p>
+
+<p>From this noble edifice, we bent our steps to
+another part of the city, and soon found ourselves
+in the vicinity of St. Patrick's, where we had a
+heart-sickening view of the poorest of the poor.
+All the recollections of poverty which I had ever
+beheld, seemed to disappear in comparison with
+what was then before me. We passed a filthy
+and noisy market, where fruit and vegetable
+women were screaming and begging those passing
+by to purchase their commodities; while in and
+about the market-place were throngs of beggars
+fighting for rotten fruit, cabbage stocks, and even
+the very trimmings of vegetables. On the side
+walks, were great numbers hovering about the
+doors of the more wealthy, and following
+strangers, importuning them for &quot;pence to buy
+bread.&quot; Sickly and emaciated-looking creatures,
+half naked, were at our heels at every turn.
+After passing through a half dozen, or more,
+<!-- Page 13 --><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13" title="13" class="pagenum"></a>of narrow and dirty streets, we returned to our
+lodgings, impressed with the idea that we had
+seen enough of the poor for one day.</p>
+
+<p>In our return home, we passed through a respectable
+looking street, in which stands a small
+three storey brick building, which was pointed
+out to us as the birth-place of Thomas Moore, the
+poet. The following verse from one of Moore's
+poems was continually in my mind while viewing
+this house:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<div><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&quot;Where is the slave, so lowly,</span></div>
+<div>Condemn'd to chains unholy,</div>
+<div>Who, could he burst</div>
+<div>His bonds at first,</div>
+<div>Would pine beneath them slowly?&quot;</div>
+</div></div>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p>Yesterday was the Sabbath, but it had more the
+appearance of a holiday than a day of rest. It had
+been announced the day before, that the Royal
+fleet was expected, and at an early hour on Sunday,
+the entire town seemed to be on the move
+towards Kingstown, and as the family with whom I
+was staying followed the multitude, I was not inclined
+to remain behind, and so went with them.
+<!-- Page 14 --><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14" title="14" class="pagenum"></a>On reaching the station we found it utterly impossible
+to get standing room in any of the trains,
+much less a seat, and therefore determined to
+reach Kingstown under the plea of a morning's
+walk; and in this we were not alone, for during
+the walk of five miles the road was filled with
+thousands of pedestrians and a countless number
+of carriages, phaetons, and vehicles of a more
+humble order.</p>
+
+<p>We reached the lower town in time to get a
+good dinner, and rest ourselves before going to
+make further searches for Her Majesty's fleet.
+At a little past four o'clock, we observed the multitude
+going towards the pier, a number of whom
+were yelling at the top of their voices, &quot;It's coming,
+it's coming;&quot; but on going to the quay, we
+found that a false alarm had been given. However,
+we had been on the look-out but a short
+time, when a column of smoke rising as it were
+out of the sea, announced that the Royal fleet was
+near at hand. The concourse in the vicinity of
+the pier was variously estimated at from eighty to
+one hundred thousand.</p>
+
+<p>It was not long before the five steamers were
+<!-- Page 15 --><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15" title="15" class="pagenum"></a>entering the harbour, the one bearing Her Majesty
+leading the way. As each vessel had a
+number of distinguished persons on board, the
+people appeared to be at a loss to know which was
+the Queen; and as each party made its appearance
+on the promenade deck, they were received with
+great enthusiasm, the party having the best looking
+lady being received with the greatest applause.
+The Prince of Wales, and Prince Alfred, while
+crossing the deck were recognised and greeted
+with three cheers; the former taking off his hat
+and bowing to the people, showed that he had had
+some training as a public man although not ten
+years of age. But not so with Prince Alfred; for,
+when his brother turned to him and asked him to
+take off his hat and make a bow to the people, he
+shook his head and said, &quot;No.&quot; This was received
+with hearty laughter by those on board,
+and was responded to by the thousands on shore.
+But greater applause was yet in store for the
+young prince; for the captain of the steamer being
+near by, and seeing that the Prince of Wales
+could not prevail on his brother to take off his
+hat, stepped up to him and undertook to take it
+<!-- Page 16 --><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16" title="16" class="pagenum"></a>off for him, when, seemingly to the delight of all,
+the prince put both hands to his head and held
+his hat fast. This was regarded as a sign of courage
+and future renown, and was received with the
+greatest enthusiasm&mdash;many crying out, &quot;Good,
+good: he will make a brave king when his day
+comes.&quot;</p>
+
+<p>After the greetings and applause had been
+wasted on many who had appeared on deck, all at
+once, as if by some magic power, we beheld a
+lady rather small in stature, with auburn or
+reddish hair, attired in a plain dress, and wearing
+a sky-blue bonnet, standing on the larboard
+paddle-box, by the side of a tall good-looking
+man, with mustaches. The thunders of applause
+that now rent the air, and cries of &quot;The Queen,
+the Queen,&quot; seemed to set at rest the question of
+which was Her Majesty. But a few moments were
+allowed to the people to look at the Queen,
+before she again disappeared; and it was understood
+that she would not be seen again that
+evening. A rush was then made for the railway,
+to return to Dublin.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><!-- Page 17 --><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17" title="17" class="pagenum"></a><i>August 8</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Yesterday</span> was a great day in Dublin. At an
+early hour the bells began their merry peals, and
+the people were soon seen in groups in the streets
+and public squares. The hour of ten was fixed
+for the procession to leave Kingstown, and it was
+expected to enter the city at eleven. The
+windows of the houses in the streets through
+which the Royal train was to pass, were at a
+premium, and seemed to find ready occupants.</p>
+
+<p>Being invited the day previous to occupy part
+of a window in Upper Sackville Street, I was
+stationed at my allotted place, at an early hour,
+with an out-stretched neck and open eyes. My
+own colour differing from those about me, I
+attracted not a little attention from many; and
+often, when gazing down the street to see if the
+Royal procession was in sight, would find myself
+eyed by all around. But neither while at the
+window, or in the streets, was I once insulted.
+This was so unlike the American prejudice, that
+it seemed strange to me. It was near twelve
+o'clock before the procession entered Sackville
+Street, and when it did all eyes seemed to beam
+<!-- Page 18 --><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18" title="18" class="pagenum"></a>with delight. The first carriage contained only
+Her Majesty and the Prince Consort; the second,
+the Royal children; and the third, the Lords in
+Waiting. Fifteen carriages were used by those
+that made up the Royal party. I had a full view
+of the Queen and all who followed in the train.
+Her Majesty&mdash;whether from actual love for her
+person, or the novelty of the occasion, I know
+not which&mdash;was received everywhere with the
+greatest enthusiasm. One thing, however, is
+certain, and that is&mdash;Queen Victoria is beloved
+by her subjects.</p>
+
+<p>But the grand <i>fete</i> was reserved for the evening.
+Great preparations had been made to have a
+grand illumination on the occasion, and hints
+were thrown out that it would surpass anything
+ever witnessed in London. In this they were
+not far out of the way; for all who witnessed
+the scene admitted that it could scarcely have
+been surpassed. My own idea of an illumination,
+as I had seen it in the backwoods of my own
+native land, dwindled into nothing when compared
+with this magnificent affair.</p>
+
+<p>In company with a few friends, and a
+<!-- Page 19 --><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19" title="19" class="pagenum"></a>lady under my charge, I undertook to pass
+through Sackville and one or two other streets,
+about eight o'clock in the evening, but we
+found it utterly impossible to proceed. Masses
+thronged the streets, and the wildest enthusiasm
+seemed to prevail. In our attempt to cross
+the bridge, we were wedged in and lost our companions;
+and on one occasion I was separated from
+the lady, and took shelter under a cart standing
+in the street. After being jammed and pulled
+about for nearly two hours, I returned to my
+lodgings, where I found part of my company, who
+had come in one after another. At eleven o'clock
+we had all assembled, and each told his adventures
+and &quot;hairbreadth escapes;&quot; and nearly
+every one had lost a pocket handkerchief or something
+of the kind: my own was among the missing.
+However, I lost nothing; for a benevolent
+lady, who happened to be one of the company,
+presented me with one which was of far more
+value than the one I had lost.</p>
+
+<p>Every one appeared to enjoy the holiday which
+the Royal visit had caused. But the Irish are
+indeed a strange people. How varied their
+<!-- Page 20 --><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20" title="20" class="pagenum"></a>aspect&mdash;how contradictory their character. Ireland,
+the land of genius and degradation&mdash;of
+great resources and unparalleled poverty&mdash;noble
+deeds and the most revolting crimes&mdash;the land of
+distinguished poets, splendid orators, and the
+bravest of soldiers&mdash;the land of ignorance and
+beggary! Dublin is a splendid city, but its
+splendour is that of chiselled marble rather than
+real life. One cannot behold these architectural
+monuments without thinking of the great men
+that Ireland has produced. The names of Burke,
+Sheridan, Flood, Grattan, O'Connell, and Shiel,
+have become as familiar to the Americans as
+household words. Burke is known as the statesman;
+Sheridan for his great speech on the trial
+of Warren Hastings; Grattan for his eloquence;
+O'Connell as the agitator; and Shiel as the
+accomplished orator.</p>
+
+<p>But of Ireland's sons, none stands higher in
+America than Thomas Moore, the Poet. The
+vigour of his sarcasm, the glow of his enthusiasm,
+the coruscations of his fancy, and the flashing of
+his wit, seem to be as well understood in the new
+world as the old; and the support which his pen
+<!-- Page 21 --><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21" title="21" class="pagenum"></a>has given to civil and religious liberty throughout
+the world, entitled the Minstrel of Erin to this
+elevated position.</p>
+
+<p>Before leaving America I had heard much of
+the friends of my enslaved countrymen residing
+in Ireland; and the reception I met with on all
+hands while in public, satisfied me that what I
+had heard had not been exaggerated. To the
+Webbs, Allens, and Haughtons, of Dublin, the
+cause of the American slave is much indebted.</p>
+
+<p>I quitted Dublin with a feeling akin to leaving
+my native land.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="LETTER_III" id="LETTER_III"></a>LETTER III.</h2>
+
+<h3>Departure from Ireland&mdash;London&mdash;Trip to Paris&mdash;Paris&mdash;The
+Peace Congress: first day&mdash;Church
+of the Madeleine&mdash;Column Vendome&mdash;the
+French.</h3>
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Paris</span>, <i>August 23</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">After</span> a pleasant sojourn of three weeks in Ireland,
+I took passage in one of the mail steamers
+<!-- Page 22 --><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22" title="22" class="pagenum"></a>for Liverpool, and arriving there was soon on
+the road to the metropolis. The passage from
+Dublin to Liverpool was an agreeable one. The
+rough sea that we passed through on going to
+Ireland had given way to a dead calm, and our
+noble little steamer, on quitting the Dublin wharf,
+seemed to understand that she was to have it all
+her own way. During the first part of the evening,
+the boat appeared to feel her importance,
+and, darting through the water with majestic
+strides, she left behind her a dark cloud of smoke
+suspended in the air like a banner; while, far
+astern in the wake of the vessel, could be seen
+the rippled waves sparkling in the rays of the
+moon, giving strength and beauty to the splendour
+of the evening.</p>
+
+<p>On reaching Liverpool, and partaking of a good
+breakfast, for which we paid double price, we
+proceeded to the railway station, and were soon
+going at a rate unknown to those accustomed to
+travel on one of our American railways. At a
+little past two o'clock in the afternoon, we saw in
+the distance the out-skirts of London. We could
+get but an indistinct view, which had the appear<!-- Page 23 --><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23" title="23" class="pagenum"></a>ance
+of one architectural mass, extending all round
+to the horizon, and enveloped in a combination of
+fog and smoke; and towering above every other
+object to be seen, was the dome of St. Paul's
+Cathedral.</p>
+
+<p>A few moments more, and we were safely
+seated in a &quot;Hansom's Patent,&quot; and on our way
+to Hughes's&mdash;one of the politest men of the
+George Fox stamp we have ever met. Here
+we found forty or fifty persons, who, like
+ourselves, were bound for the Peace Congress.
+The Sturges, the Wighams, the Richardsons, the
+Allens, the Thomases, and a host of others not
+less distinguished as friends of peace, were of the
+company&mdash;many of whom I had heard of, but
+none of whom I had ever seen; yet I was not an
+entire stranger to many, especially to the abolitionists.
+In company with a friend, I sallied
+forth after tea to take a view of the city. The
+evening was fine&mdash;the dense fog and smoke having
+to some extent passed away, left the stars shining
+brightly, while the gas light from the street
+lamps and the brilliant shop windows gave it the
+appearance of day-light in a new form. &quot;What
+<!-- Page 24 --><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24" title="24" class="pagenum"></a>street is this?&quot; we asked. &quot;Cheapside,&quot; was the
+reply. The street was thronged, and every body
+seemed to be going at a rapid rate, as if there
+was something of importance at the end of the
+journey. Flying vehicles of every description
+passing each other with a dangerous rapidity,
+men with lovely women at their sides, children
+running about as if they had lost their parents&mdash;all
+gave a brilliancy to the scene scarcely to be
+excelled. If one wished to get jammed and pushed
+about, he need go no farther than Cheapside.
+But every thing of the kind is done with a degree
+of propriety in London, that would put the New
+Yorkers to blush. If you are run over in London,
+they &quot;beg your pardon;&quot; if they run over you in
+New York, you are &quot;laughed at:&quot; in London, if
+your hat is knocked off it is picked up and
+handed to you; if, in New York, you must pick
+it up yourself. There is a lack of good manners
+among Americans that is scarcely known or understood
+in Europe. Our stay in the great metropolis
+gave us but little opportunity of seeing
+much of the place; for in twenty-four hours after
+our arrival we joined the rest of the delegates,
+<!-- Page 25 --><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25" title="25" class="pagenum"></a>and started on our visit to our Gallic neighbours.</p>
+
+<p>We assembled at the London Bridge Railway
+Station on Tuesday morning the 21st, a few
+minutes past nine, to the number of 600. The
+day was fine, and every eye seemed to glow with
+enthusiasm. Besides the delegates, there were
+probably not less than 600 more, who had come
+to see the company start. We took our seats
+and appeared to be waiting for nothing but the
+iron-horse to be fastened to the train, when all at
+once, we were informed that we must go to the
+booking-office and change our tickets. At this
+news every one appeared to be vexed. This
+caused great trouble; for on returning to the
+train many persons got into the wrong carriages;
+and several parties were separated from their
+friends, while not a few were calling out at the
+top of their voices, &quot;Where is my wife? Where is
+my husband? Where is my luggage? Who's got
+my boy? Is this the right train?&quot; &quot;What is that
+lady going to do with all these children?&quot; asked
+the guard. &quot;Is she a delegate: are all the children
+delegates?&quot; In the carriage where I had
+<!-- Page 26 --><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26" title="26" class="pagenum"></a>taken my seat was a good-looking lady who gave
+signs of being very much annoyed. &quot;It is just so
+when I am going anywhere: I never saw the like
+in my life,&quot; said she. &quot;I really wish I was at
+home again.&quot;</p>
+
+<p>An hour had now elapsed, and we were still at
+the station. However, we were soon on our way,
+and going at express speed. In passing through
+Kent we enjoyed the scenery exceedingly, as the
+weather was altogether in our favour; and the drapery
+which nature hung on the trees, in the part
+through which we passed, was in all its gaiety.
+On our arrival at Folkstone, we found three
+steamers in readiness to convey the party to
+Boulogne. As soon as the train stopped, a
+general rush was made for the steamers; and in
+a very short time the one in which I had embarked
+was passing out of the harbour. The
+boat appeared to be conscious that we were going
+on a holy mission, and seemed to be proud of her
+load. There is nothing in this wide world so
+like a thing of life as a steamer, from the breathing
+of her steam and smoke, the energy of her
+motion, and the beauty of her shape; while the
+<!-- Page 27 --><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27" title="27" class="pagenum"></a>ease with which she is managed by the command
+of a single voice, makes her appear as obedient
+as the horse is to the rein.</p>
+
+<p>When we were about half way between the two
+great European Powers, the officers began to
+gather the tickets. The first to whom he applied,
+and who handed out his &quot;Excursion
+Ticket,&quot; was informed that we were all in the
+wrong boat. &quot;Is this not one of the boats to
+take over the delegates?&quot; asked a pretty little
+lady, with a whining voice. &quot;No, Madam,&quot;
+said the captain. &quot;You must look to the committee
+for your pay,&quot; said one of the company to
+the captain. &quot;I have nothing to do with committees,&quot;
+the captain replied. &quot;Your fare, Gentlemen,
+if you please.&quot;</p>
+
+<p>Here the whole party were again thrown into
+confusion. &quot;Do you hear that? We are in the
+wrong boat.&quot; &quot;I knew it would be so,&quot; said the
+Rev. Dr. Ritchie, of Edinburgh<ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: typo, quote deleted">.</ins> &quot;It is indeed a
+pretty piece of work,&quot; said a plain-looking lady
+in a handsome bonnet. &quot;When I go travelling
+again,&quot; said an elderly looking gent with an eye-glass
+to his face, &quot;I will take the phaeton and
+<!-- Page 28 --><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28" title="28" class="pagenum"></a>old Dobbin.&quot; Every one seemed to lay the blame
+on the committee, and not, too, without some
+just grounds. However, Mr. Sturge, one of the
+committee, being in the boat with us, an arrangement
+was entered into, by which we were not
+compelled to pay our fare the second time.</p>
+
+<p>As we neared the French coast, the first object
+that attracted our attention was the Napoleon
+Pillar, on the top of which is a statue of the
+Emperor in the Imperial robes. We landed, partook
+of refreshment that had been prepared for us,
+and again repaired to the railway station. The
+arrangements for leaving Boulogne were no
+better than those at London. But after the delay
+of another hour, we were again in motion.</p>
+
+<p>It was a beautiful country through which we
+passed from Boulogne to Amiens. Straggling
+cottages which bespeak neatness and comfort
+abound on every side. The eye wanders over the
+diversified views with unabated pleasure, and
+rests in calm repose upon its superlative beauty.
+Indeed, the eye cannot but be gratified at viewing
+the entire country from the coast to the metropolis.
+Sparkling hamlets spring up as the steam
+<!-- Page 29 --><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29" title="29" class="pagenum"></a>horse speeds his way, at almost every point&mdash;showing
+the progress of civilization, and the
+refinement of the nineteenth century.</p>
+
+<p>We arrived at Paris a few minutes past twelve
+o'clock at night, when, according to our tickets,
+we should have been there at nine. Elihu Burritt,
+who had been in Paris some days, and who had
+the arrangements there pretty much his own way,
+was at the station waiting the arrival of the train,
+and we had demonstrated to us, the best evidence
+that he understood his business. In no other
+place on the whole route had the affairs been so
+well managed; for we were seated in our respective
+carriages and our luggage placed on the top,
+and away we went to our hotels without the least
+difficulty or inconvenience. The champion of an
+&quot;Ocean Penny Postage&quot; received, as he deserved,
+thanks from the whole company for his admirable
+management.</p>
+
+<p>The silence of the night was only disturbed by
+the rolling of the wheels of the omnibus, as we
+passed through the dimly lighted streets. Where,
+a few months before was to be seen the flash
+from the cannon and the musket, and the hearing
+<!-- Page 30 --><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30" title="30" class="pagenum"></a>of the cries and groans behind the barricades,
+was now the stillness of death&mdash;nothing save here
+and there a <i>gens d'arme</i> was to be seen going his
+rounds in silence.</p>
+
+<p>The omnibus set us down at the hotel Bedford,
+Rue de L'Arend, where, although near one
+o'clock, we found a good supper waiting for us;
+and, as I was not devoid of an appetite, I did my
+share towards putting it out of the way.</p>
+
+<p>The next morning I was up at an early hour,
+and out on the Boulevards to see what might be
+seen. As I was passing from the Bedford to the
+Place de La Concord, all at once, and as if by
+some magic power, I found myself in front of the
+most splendid edifice imaginable, situated at the
+end of the Rue Nationale. Seeing a number of
+persons entering the church at that early hour,
+and recognising among them my friend the President
+of the Oberlin (Ohio) Institute, and wishing
+not to stray too far from my hotel before breakfast,
+I followed the crowd and entered the building.
+The church itself consisted of a vast nave,
+interrupted by four pews on each side, fronted
+with lofty fluted Corinthian columns standing on
+<!-- Page 31 --><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31" title="31" class="pagenum"></a>pedestals, supporting colossal arches, bearing up
+cupolas, pierced with skylights and adorned with
+compartments gorgeously gilt; their corners supported
+with saints and apostles in <i>alto relievo</i>.
+The walls of the church were lined with rich
+marble. The different paintings and figures,
+gave the interior an imposing appearance. On
+inquiry, I found that I was in the Church of
+the Madeleine. It was near this spot that some
+of the most interesting scenes occurred during
+the Revolution of 1848, which dethroned Louis
+Philippe. Behind the Madeleine is a small but
+well supplied market; and on an esplanade east
+of the edifice, a flower market is held on Tuesdays
+and Fridays.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p class="noindent">The first session of the Peace Congress is over.</p>
+
+<p><br />
+The Congress met this morning at 11 o'clock,
+in the Salle St. Cecile, Rue de la St. Lazare.
+The Parisians have no &quot;Exeter Hall:&quot; in fact,
+there is no private hall in the city of any size,
+save this, where such a meeting could be held.
+This hall has been fitted up for the occasion. The
+<!-- Page 32 --><a name="Page_32" id="Page_32" title="32" class="pagenum"></a>room is long, and at one end has a raised platform;
+and at the opposite end is a gallery, with
+seats raised one above another. On one side of
+the hall was a balcony with sofas, which were
+evidently the &quot;reserved seats.&quot;</p>
+
+<p>The hall was filled at an early hour with the
+delegates, their friends, and a good sprinkling of
+the French. Occasionally, small groups of gentlemen
+would make their appearance on the platform,
+until it soon appeared that there was little
+room left for others; and yet the officers of the
+Convention had not come in. The different
+countries were, many of them, represented here.
+England, France, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland,
+Greece, Spain, and the United States, had
+each their delegates. The Assembly began to
+give signs of impatience, when very soon the
+train of officials made their appearance amid
+great applause. Victor Hugo led the way, followed
+by M. <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;Duguery&quot; in the original text">Duguerry</ins>, cur&eacute; of the Madeleine,
+Elihu Burritt, and a host of others of less note.
+Victor Hugo took the chair as President of the
+Congress, supported by Vice-presidents from the
+several nations represented. Mr. Richard, the
+<!-- Page 33 --><a name="Page_33" id="Page_33" title="33" class="pagenum"></a>Secretary, read a dry report of the names of
+societies, committees, &amp;c., which was deemed
+the opening of the Convention.</p>
+
+<p>The President then arose, and delivered one of
+the most impressive and eloquent appeals in
+favour of peace that could possibly be imagined.
+The effect produced upon the minds of all present
+was such as to make the author of &quot;<i>Notre Dame
+de Paris</i>&quot; a great favourite with the Congress.
+An English gentleman near me said to his friend,
+&quot;I can't understand a word of what he says, but
+is it not good?&quot; Victor Hugo concluded his
+speech amid the greatest enthusiasm on the part
+of the French, which was followed by hurrahs in
+the old English style. The Convention was
+successively addressed by the President of the
+Brussels Peace Society; President Mahan of the
+Oberlin (Ohio) Institute, U.S.; Henry Vincent;
+and Richard Cobden. The latter was not only
+the <i>lion</i> of the English delegation, but the great
+man of the Convention. When Mr. Cobden
+speaks, there is no want of hearers. The great
+power of this gentleman lies in his facts
+and his earnestness, for he cannot be called an
+<!-- Page 34 --><a name="Page_34" id="Page_34" title="34" class="pagenum"></a>eloquent speaker. Mr. Cobden addressed the
+Congress first in French, then in English; and,
+with the single exception of Mr. Ewart, M.P., was
+the only one of the English delegation that could
+speak to the French in their own language.</p>
+
+<p>The Congress was brought to a close at five
+o'clock, when the numerous audience dispersed&mdash;the
+citizens to their homes, and the delegates to
+see the sights.</p>
+
+<p>I was not a little amused at an incident that
+occurred at the close of the first session. On the
+passage from America, there were in the same
+steamer with me, several Americans, and among
+these, three or four appeared to be much annoyed
+at the fact that I was a passenger, and enjoying
+the company of white persons; and although I
+was not openly insulted, I very often heard the
+remark, that &quot;That nigger had better be on his
+master's farm,&quot; and &quot;What could the American
+Peace Society be thinking about to send a black
+man as a delegate to Paris.&quot; Well, at the close
+of the first sitting of the Convention, and just as I
+was leaving Victor Hugo, to whom I had been
+introduced by an M.P., I observed near me a
+<!-- Page 35 --><a name="Page_35" id="Page_35" title="35" class="pagenum"></a>gentleman with his hat in hand, whom I recognized
+as one of the passengers who had crossed
+the Atlantic with me in the <i>Canada</i>, and who
+appeared to be the most horrified at having a
+negro for a fellow passenger. This gentleman, as
+I left M. Hugo, stepped up to me and said,
+&quot;How do you do, Mr. Brown?&quot; &quot;You have the
+advantage of me,&quot; said I. &quot;Oh, don't you know
+me; I was a fellow passenger with you from
+America; I wish you would give me an introduction
+to Victor Hugo and Mr. Cobden.&quot; I need
+not inform you that I declined introducing this
+pro-slavery American to these distinguished men.
+I only allude to this, to show what a change comes
+over the dreams of my white American brother,
+by crossing the ocean. The man who would not
+have been seen walking with me in the streets of
+New York, and who would not have shaken hands
+with me with a pair of tongs while on the passage
+from the United States, could come with hat in
+hand in Paris, and say, &quot;I was your fellow-passenger.&quot;
+From the Salle de St. Cecile, I visited
+the Column Vendome, from the top of which I
+obtained a fine view of Paris and its environs.
+<!-- Page 36 --><a name="Page_36" id="Page_36" title="36" class="pagenum"></a>This is the Bunker Hill Monument of Paris. On
+the top of this pillar is a statue of the Emperor
+Napoleon, eleven feet high. The monument is
+built with stone, and the outside covered with a
+metallic composition, made of cannons, guns,
+spikes, and other warlike implements taken from
+the Russians and Austrians by Napoleon. Above
+1200 cannons were melted down to help to create
+this monument of folly, to commemorate the success
+of the French arms in the German Campaign.
+The column is in imitation of the <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;Trojan&quot; in the original text">Trajan</ins>
+pillar at Rome, and is twelve feet in diameter
+at the base. The door at the bottom of the
+pillar, and where we entered, was decorated above
+with crowns of oak, surmounted by eagles, each
+weighing 500 lbs. The bas-relief of the shaft
+pursues a spiral direction to the capitol, and displays,
+in a chronological order, the principal
+actions of the French army, from the departure
+of the troops from Boulogne to the battle of
+Austerlitz. The figures are near three feet high,
+and their number said to be two thousand.
+This sumptuous monument stands on a plinth of
+polished granite, surmounted by an iron railing;
+<!-- Page 37 --><a name="Page_37" id="Page_37" title="37" class="pagenum"></a>and, from its size and position, has an imposing
+appearance when seen from any part of the city.</p>
+
+<p>Everything here appears strange and peculiar&mdash;the
+people not less so than their speech. The
+horses, carriages, furniture, dress, and manners,
+are in keeping with their language. The appearance
+of the labourers in caps, resembling nightcaps,
+seemed particularly strange to me. The
+women without bonnets, and their caps turned
+the right side behind, had nothing of the look
+of our American women. The prettiest woman
+I ever saw was without a bonnet, walking on
+the Boulevards. While in Ireland, and during
+the few days I was in England, I was struck with
+the marked difference between the appearance
+of the women from those of my own country.
+The American women are too tall, too sallow,
+and too long-featured to be called pretty. This
+is most probably owing to the fact that in America
+the people come to maturity earlier than in most
+other countries.</p>
+
+<p>My first night in Paris was spent with interest.
+No place can present greater street attractions
+than the Boulevards of Paris. The countless
+<!-- Page 38 --><a name="Page_38" id="Page_38" title="38" class="pagenum"></a>number of caf&eacute;s, with tables before the doors,
+and these surrounded by men with long moustaches,
+with ladies at their sides, whose very
+smiles give indication of happiness, together with
+the sound of music from the gardens in the rear,
+tell the stranger that he is in a different country
+from his own.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="LETTER_IV" id="LETTER_IV"></a>LETTER IV.</h2>
+
+<h3>Versailles&mdash;The Palace&mdash;Second Session of the
+Congress&mdash;Mr. Cobden&mdash;Henry Vincent&mdash;M.
+Girardin&mdash;Abbe Duguerry&mdash;Victor Hugo:
+his Speech.</h3>
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Versailles</span>, <i>August 24</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">After</span> the Convention had finished its sittings
+yesterday, I accompanied Mrs. M. C&mdash;&mdash; and
+sisters to Versailles, where they are residing
+during the summer. It was really pleasing to see
+among the hundreds of strange faces in the
+Convention, those distinguished friends of the
+slave from Boston.</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page 39 --><a name="Page_39" id="Page_39" title="39" class="pagenum"></a>Mrs. C&mdash;&mdash;'s residence is directly in front of
+the great palace where so many kings have made
+their homes, the prince of whom was Louis XIV.
+The palace is now unoccupied. No ruler has
+dared to take up his residence here since Louis
+XVI. and Marie <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;Antionette&quot; in the original text">Antoinette</ins> were driven from it by
+the mob from Paris on the 8th of October, 1789.
+The town looks like the wreck of what it once
+was. At the commencement of the first revolution,
+it contained one hundred thousand
+inhabitants; now it has only about thirty
+thousand. It seems to be going back to what it
+was in the time of Louis XIII., when in 1624
+he built a small brick chateau, and from it arose
+the magnificent palace which now stands here,
+and which attracts strangers to it from all parts
+of the world.</p>
+
+<p>I arose this morning before the sun, and took
+a walk through the grounds of the Palace, and
+remained three hours among the fountains and
+statuary of this more than splendid place. But as
+I intend spending some days here, and shall have
+better opportunities of seeing and judging, I will
+defer my remarks upon Versailles for the present.</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page 40 --><a name="Page_40" id="Page_40" title="40" class="pagenum"></a>Yesterday was a great day in the Congress.
+The session was opened by a speech from M.
+Coquerel, the Protestant clergyman in Paris.
+His speech was received with much applause, and
+seemed to create great sensation in the Congress,
+especially at the close of his remarks, when he
+was seized by the hand by the Abbe Duguerry,
+amid the most deafening and enthusiastic applause
+of the entire multitude. The meeting was then
+addressed in English by a short gentleman, of
+florid complexion. His words seemed to come
+without the least difficulty, and his jestures,
+though somewhat violent, were evidently studied;
+and the applause with which he was greeted by
+the English delegation, showed that he was a
+man of no little distinction among them. His
+speech was one continuous flow of rapid, fervid
+eloquence, that seemed to fire every heart; and
+although I disliked his style, I was prepossessed
+in his favour. This was Henry Vincent, and his
+speech was in favour of disarmament.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Vincent was followed by M. Emile de
+Girardin, the editor of <i>La Presse</i>, in one of the
+most eloquent speeches that I ever heard; and his
+<!-- Page 41 --><a name="Page_41" id="Page_41" title="41" class="pagenum"></a>exclamation of &quot;Soldiers of Peace,&quot; drew thunders
+of applause from his own countrymen. M.
+Girardin is not only the leader of the French
+press, but is a writer on politics of great distinction,
+and a leader of no inconsiderable party
+in the National Assembly; although still a young
+man, apparently not more than thirty-eight or
+forty years of age.</p>
+
+<p>After a speech from Mr. Ewart, M.P., in French,
+and another from Mr. Cobden in the same language,
+the Convention was brought to a close for
+the day. I spent the morning yesterday, in
+visiting some of the lions of the French capital,
+among which was the Louvre. The French
+Government having kindly ordered, that the
+members of the Peace Congress should be
+admitted free, and without ticket, to all the public
+works, I had nothing to do but present my card
+of membership, and was immediately admitted.</p>
+
+<p>The first room I entered, was nearly a quarter
+of a mile in length; is known as the &quot;Long Gallery,&quot;
+and contains some of the finest paintings
+in the world. On entering this superb palace,
+my first impression was, that all Christendom had
+<!-- Page 42 --><a name="Page_42" id="Page_42" title="42" class="pagenum"></a>been robbed, that the Louvre might make a
+splendid appearance. This is the Italian department,
+and one would suppose by its appearance
+that but few paintings had been left in Italy.
+The entrance end of the Louvre was for a long
+time in an unfinished state, but was afterwards
+completed by that master workman, the Emperor
+Napoleon. It was long thought that the building
+would crumble into decay, but the genius of
+the great Corsican rescued it from ruin.</p>
+
+<p>During our walk through the Louvre, we saw
+some twenty or thirty artists copying paintings;
+some had their copies finished and were going out,
+others half done, while many had just commenced.
+I remained some minutes near a pretty French
+girl, who was copying a painting of a dog rescuing
+a child from a stream of water into which it had
+fallen.</p>
+
+<p>I walked down one side of the hall and up the
+other, and was about leaving, when I was informed
+that this was only one room, and that a half-dozen
+more were at my service; but a clock on a
+neighbouring church reminded me that I must
+quit the Louvre for the Salle de St. Cecile.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p><!-- Page 43 --><a name="Page_43" id="Page_43" title="43" class="pagenum"></a>This morning the Hall was filled at an early
+hour with rather a more fashionable looking audience
+than on any former occasion, and all appeared
+anxious for the Congress to commence its
+session, as it was understood to be the last day.
+After the reading of several letters from gentlemen,
+apologising for their not being able to
+attend, the speech of Elihu Burritt was read by a
+son of M. Coquerel. I felt somewhat astonished
+that my countryman, who was said to be master
+of fifty languages, had to get some one to read
+his speech in French.</p>
+
+<p>The Abbe Duguerry now came forward amid
+great cheering, and said that &quot;the eminent journalist,
+Girardin, and the great English logician,
+Mr. Cobden, had made it unnecessary for any
+further advocacy in that assembly of the Peace
+cause&mdash;that if the principles laid down in the resolutions
+were carried out, the work would be
+done. He said that the question of general
+pacification was built on truth&mdash;truth which emanated
+from God&mdash;and it were as vain to undertake
+to prevent air from expanding as to check
+<!-- Page 44 --><a name="Page_44" id="Page_44" title="44" class="pagenum"></a>the progress of truth. It must and would prevail.&quot;</p>
+
+<p>A pale, thin-faced gentleman next ascended
+the platform (or tribune, as it was called) amid
+shouts of applause from the English, and began
+his speech in rather a low tone, when compared
+with the sharp voice of Vincent, or the thunder
+of the Abbe Duguerry. An audience is not apt
+to be pleased or even contented with an inferior
+speaker, when surrounded by eloquent men, and
+I looked every moment for manifestations of disapprobation,
+as I felt certain that the English
+delegation had made a mistake in applauding this
+gentleman who seemed to make such an unpromising
+beginning. But the speaker soon began
+to get warm on the subject, and even at times
+appeared as if he had spoken before. In a very
+short time, with the exception of his own voice,
+the stillness of death prevailed throughout the
+building<ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: typo, added full-stop">.</ins> The speaker, in the delivery of one of
+the most logical speeches made in the Congress,
+and despite of his thin, sallow look, interested me
+much more than any whom I had before heard.
+Towards the close of his remarks, he was several
+<!-- Page 45 --><a name="Page_45" id="Page_45" title="45" class="pagenum"></a>times interrupted by manifestations of approbation;
+and finally concluded amid great cheering.
+I inquired the gentleman's name, and was informed
+that it was Edward Miall, editor of the
+<i>Nonconformist</i>.</p>
+
+<p>After speeches from several others, the great
+Peace Congress of 1849, which had brought men
+together from nearly all the governments of
+Europe, and many from America, was brought to
+a final close by a speech from the President, returning
+thanks for the honour that had been
+conferred upon him. He said, &quot;My address shall
+be short, and yet I have to bid you adieu! How
+resolve to do so? Here, during three days, have
+questions of the deepest import been discussed,
+examined, probed to the bottom; and during these
+discussions, counsels have been given to governments
+which they will do well to profit by. If
+these days' sittings are attended with no other
+result, they will be the means of sowing in the
+minds of those present, gems of cordiality which
+must ripen into good fruit. England, France,
+Belgium, Europe, and America, would all be
+drawn closer by these sittings. Yet the moment
+<!-- Page 46 --><a name="Page_46" id="Page_46" title="46" class="pagenum"></a>to part has arrived, but I can feel that we are
+strongly united in heart. But before parting I
+may congratulate you and myself on the result of
+our proceedings. We have been all joined together
+without distinction of country; we have
+all been united in one common feeling during
+our three days' communion. The good work
+cannot go back, it must advance, it must be
+accomplished. The course of the future may be
+judged of by the sound of the footsteps of the
+past. In the course of that day's discussion, a
+reminiscence had been handed up to one of the
+speakers, that this was the anniversary of the
+dreadful massacre of St. Bartholomew: the rev.
+gentleman who was speaking turned away from
+the thought of that sanguinary scene with pious
+horror, natural to his sacred calling. But I, who
+may boast of firmer nerve, I take up the remembrance.
+Yes, it was on this day, two hundred
+and seventy-seven years ago, that Paris was
+roused from slumber by the sound of that bell
+which bore the name of <i>cloche d'argent</i>.
+Massacre was on foot, seeking with keen eye
+for its victim&mdash;man was busy in slaying man.
+<!-- Page 47 --><a name="Page_47" id="Page_47" title="47" class="pagenum"></a>That slaughter was called forth by mingled passions
+of the worst description. Hatred of all kinds was
+there urging on the slayer&mdash;hatred of a religious,
+a political, a personal character. And yet on the
+anniversary of that same day of horror, and in
+that very city whose blood was flowing like water,
+has God this day given a rendezvous to men of
+peace, whose wild tumult is transformed into
+order, and animosity into love. The stain of
+blood is blotted out, and in its place beams
+forth a ray of holy light. All distinctions are
+removed, and Papist and Huguenot meet together
+in friendly communion. (Loud cheers.)
+Who that thinks of these amazing changes can
+doubt of the progress that has been made? But
+whoever denies the force of progress must deny
+God, since progress is the boon of Providence,
+and emanated from the great Being above. I
+feel gratified for the change that has been effected,
+and, pointing solemnly to the past, I say let
+this day be ever held memorable&mdash;let the 24th of
+August, 1572, be remembered only for the purpose
+of being compared with the 24th of August,
+1849; and when we think of the latter, and
+<!-- Page 48 --><a name="Page_48" id="Page_48" title="48" class="pagenum"></a>ponder over the high purpose to which it has
+been devoted&mdash;the advocacy of the principles of
+peace&mdash;let us not be so wanting in reliance on
+Providence as to doubt for one moment of the
+eventful success of our holy cause.&quot;</p>
+
+<p>The most enthusiastic cheers followed this
+interesting speech. A vote of thanks to the
+government, and three times three cheers, with
+Mr. Cobden as &quot;fugleman,&quot; ended the great
+Peace Congress of 1849.</p>
+
+<p>Time for separating had arrived, yet all seemed
+unwilling to leave the place, where for three days
+men of all creeds and of no creed had met upon
+one common platform. In one sense the meeting
+was a glorious one&mdash;in another, it was mere
+child's play; for the Congress had been restricted
+to the discussion of certain topics. They were
+permitted to dwell on the blessings of peace, but
+were not allowed to say anything about the very
+subjects above all others that should have been
+brought before the Congress. A French army
+had invaded Rome and put down the friends of
+political and religious freedom, yet not a word
+was said in reference to it. The fact is, the Com<!-- Page 49 --><a name="Page_49" id="Page_49" title="49" class="pagenum"></a>mittee
+permitted the Congress to be <i>gagged</i>, before
+it had met. They put padlocks upon their
+own mouths, and handed the keys to the government.
+And this was sorely felt by many of the
+speakers. Richard Cobden, who had thundered
+his anathemas against the Corn Laws of his own
+country, and against wars in every clime, had to
+sit quiet in his fetters. Henry Vincent, who can
+make a louder speech in favour of peace, than almost
+any other man, and whose denunciations of
+&quot;all war,&quot; have gained him no little celebrity
+with peace men, had to confine himself to the
+blessings of peace. Oh! how I wished for a
+Massachusetts atmosphere, a New England Convention
+platform, with Wendell Phillips as the
+speaker, before that assembled multitude from all
+parts of the world.</p>
+
+<p>But the Congress is over, and cannot now be
+made different; yet it is to be hoped that neither
+the London Peace Committee, nor any other men
+having the charge of getting up such another
+great meeting, will commit such an error again.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<div><!-- Page 50 --><a name="Page_50" id="Page_50" title="50" class="pagenum"></a></div>
+<h2><a name="LETTER_V" id="LETTER_V"></a>LETTER V.</h2>
+
+<h3>M. de Tocqueville's Grand Soiree&mdash;Madame de
+Tocqueville&mdash;Visit of the Peace Delegates to
+Versailles&mdash;The Breakfast&mdash;Speechmaking&mdash;The
+Trianons&mdash;Waterworks&mdash;St. Cloud&mdash;The
+<ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;F&egrave;te&quot; in the original text">F&ecirc;te</ins>.
+</h3>
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Versailles</span>, <i>August 24</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">The</span> day after the close of the Congress, the
+delegates and their friends were invited to a
+<ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;soir&egrave;e&quot; in the original text">soir&eacute;e</ins> by M. de Tocqueville, Minister for
+Foreign Affairs, to take place on the next evening
+(Saturday); and, as my coloured face and curly
+hair did not prevent my getting an invitation, I
+was present with the rest of my peace brethren.</p>
+
+<p>Had I been in America, where colour is considered
+a crime, I would not have been seen at
+such a gathering, unless as a servant. In company
+with several delegates, we left the Bedford
+Hotel for the mansion of the Minister of Foreign
+Affairs; and, on arriving, we found a file of
+soldiers drawn up before the gate. This did not
+<!-- Page 51 --><a name="Page_51" id="Page_51" title="51" class="pagenum"></a>seem much like peace: however, it was merely
+done in honour of the company. We entered the
+building through massive doors and resigned ourselves
+into the hands of good-looking waiters in
+white wigs; and, after our names were duly
+announced, were passed from room to room till I
+was presented to Madame de Tocqueville, who was
+standing near the centre of the large drawing-room,
+with a bouquet in her hand. I was about
+passing on, when the gentleman who introduced
+me intimated that I was an &quot;American slave.&quot;
+At the announcement of this fact the distinguished
+lady extended her hand and gave me a cordial
+welcome&mdash;at the same time saying, &quot;I hope you
+feel yourself free in Paris.&quot; Having accepted an
+invitation to a seat by the lady's side, who seated
+herself on a sofa, I was soon what I most dislike,
+&quot;the observed of all observers.&quot; I recognised
+among many of my own countrymen, who were
+gazing at me, the American Consul, Mr. Walsh.
+My position did not improve his looks. The
+company present on this occasion were variously
+estimated at from one thousand to fifteen hundred.
+Among these were the Ambassadors from the
+<!-- Page 52 --><a name="Page_52" id="Page_52" title="52" class="pagenum"></a>different countries represented at the French
+metropolis, and many of the <i>elite</i> of Paris. One
+could not but be interested with the difference in
+dress, looks, and manners of this assemblage of
+strangers whose language was as different as their
+general appearance. Delight seemed to beam in
+every countenance as the living stream floated
+from one room to another. The house and gardens
+were illuminated in the most gorgeous manner.
+Red, yellow, blue, green, and many other
+coloured lamps, suspended from the branches of
+the trees in the gardens, gave life and animation
+to the whole scene out of doors. The <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;soir&egrave;e&quot; in the original text">soir&eacute;e</ins>
+passed off satisfactorily to all parties; and by
+twelve o'clock I was again at my Hotel.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p>Through the politeness of the government the
+members of the Congress have not only had the
+pleasure of seeing all the public works free, and
+without special ticket, but the palaces of Versailles
+and St. Cloud, together with their splendid
+grounds, have been thrown open, and the water-works
+set to playing in both places. This mark
+of respect for the Peace movement is commendable
+<!-- Page 53 --><a name="Page_53" id="Page_53" title="53" class="pagenum"></a>in the French; and were I not such a strenuous
+friend of free speech, this act would cause me to
+overlook the padlocks that the government put
+upon our lips in the Congress.</p>
+
+<p>Two long trains left Paris at nine o'clock for
+Versailles; and at each of the stations the company
+were loudly cheered by the people who had
+assembled to see them pass. At Versailles, we
+found thousands at the station, who gave us a
+most enthusiastic welcome. We were blessed
+with a goodly number of the fair sex, who always
+give life and vigour to such scenes. The train
+had scarcely stopped, ere the great throng were
+wending their ways in different directions, some
+to the caf&eacute;s to get what an early start prevented
+their getting before leaving Paris, and others to
+see the soldiers who were on review. But most
+bent their steps towards the great palace.</p>
+
+<p>At eleven o'clock we were summoned to the
+<i>dejeuner</i>, which had been prepared by the English
+delegates in honour of their American friends.
+About six hundred sat down at the tables. Breakfast
+being ended, Mr. Cobden was called to the
+chair, and several speeches were made. Many
+<!-- Page 54 --><a name="Page_54" id="Page_54" title="54" class="pagenum"></a>who had not an opportunity to speak at the Congress,
+thought this a good chance; and the written
+addresses which had been studied during the
+passage from America, with the hope that they
+would immortalize their authors before the great
+Congress, were produced at the breakfast table.
+But speech-making was not the order of the day.
+Too many thundering addresses had been delivered
+in the Salle de St. Cecile, to allow the
+company to sit and hear dryly written and worse
+delivered speeches in the Teniscourt.</p>
+
+<p>There was no limited time given to the speakers,
+yet no one had been on his feet five minutes,
+before the cry was heard from all parts of the
+house, &quot;Time, time.&quot; One American was hissed
+down, another took his seat with a red face, and
+a third opened his bundle of paper, looked around
+at the audience, made a bow, and took his seat
+amid great applause. Yet some speeches were
+made, and to good effect, the best of which was
+by Elihu Burritt, who was followed by the Rev.
+James Freeman Clark. I regretted very much
+that the latter did not deliver his address before
+the Congress, for he is a man of no inconsider<!-- Page 55 --><a name="Page_55" id="Page_55" title="55" class="pagenum"></a>able
+talent, and an acknowledged friend of the
+slave.</p>
+
+<p>The cry of &quot;The water-works are playing,&quot;
+&quot;The water is on,&quot; broke up the meeting, without
+even a vote of thanks to the Chairman; and
+the whole party were soon revelling among the
+fountains and statues of Louis XIV. Description
+would fail to give a just idea of the grandeur and
+beauty of this splendid place. I do not think
+that any thing can surpass the fountain of Neptune,
+which stands near the Grand Trianon.
+One may easily get lost in wandering through
+the grounds of Versailles, but he will always be
+in sight of some life-like statue. These monuments,
+erected to gratify the fancy of a licentious
+king, make their appearance at every turn.
+Two lions, the one overturning a wild boar, the
+other a wolf, both the production of Fillen, pointed
+out to us the fountain of Diana. But I will
+not attempt to describe to you any of the very
+beautiful sculptured gods and goddesses here.</p>
+
+<p>With a single friend I paid a visit to the two
+Trianons. The larger was, we were told, just as
+king Louis Philippe left it. One room was
+<!-- Page 56 --><a name="Page_56" id="Page_56" title="56" class="pagenum"></a>splendidly fitted up for the reception of Her
+Majesty Queen Victoria; who, it appeared, had
+promised a visit to the French Court; but the
+French Monarch ran away from his throne before
+the time arrived. The Grand Trianon is not larger
+than many noblemen's seats that may be seen in a
+day's ride through any part of the British empire.
+The building has only a ground floor, but its proportions
+are very elegant.</p>
+
+<p>We next paid our respects to the Little Trianon.
+This appears to be the most Republican of any of
+the French palaces. I inspected this little palace
+with much interest, not more for its beauty than
+because of its having been the favourite residence
+of that purest of Princesses, best of Queens, and
+most affectionate of mothers, Marie Antoinette.
+The grounds and building may be said to be only
+a palace in miniature, and this makes it still a more
+lovely spot. The building consists of a square
+pavilion two stories high, and separated entirely
+from the accessory buildings, which are on the left,
+and among them a pretty chapel. But a wish
+to be with the multitude, who were roving among
+the fountains, cut short my visit to the trianons.</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page 57 --><a name="Page_57" id="Page_57" title="57" class="pagenum"></a>The day was very fine, and the whole party
+seemed to enjoy it. It was said that there were
+more than one hundred thousand persons at
+Versailles during the day. The company appeared
+to lose themselves with the pleasure of walking
+among the trees, flower beds, fountains, and
+statues. I met more than one wife seeking a lost
+husband, and <i>vice versa</i>. Many persons were
+separated from their friends and did not meet
+them again till at the hotels in Paris. In the
+train returning to Paris, an old gentleman who
+was seated near me said, &quot;I would rest contented
+if I thought I should ever see my wife again!&quot;</p>
+
+<p>At four o'clock we were <i>en route</i> to St. Cloud,
+the much loved and favourite residence of the
+Emperor Napoleon. It seemed that all Paris
+had come out to St. Cloud to see how the English
+and Americans would enjoy the playing of the
+water-works. Many kings and rulers of the
+French have made St. Cloud their residence, but
+none have impressed their images so indelibly
+upon it as Napoleon. It was here he was first
+elevated to power, and here Josephine spent her
+most happy hours.</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page 58 --><a name="Page_58" id="Page_58" title="58" class="pagenum"></a>The apartments where Napoleon was married
+to Marie Louise; the private rooms of Josephine
+and Marie Antoinette, were all in turn shown to
+us. While standing on the balcony looking at
+Paris one cannot wonder that the Emperor should
+have selected this place as his residence, for a
+more lovely spot cannot be found than St. Cloud.</p>
+
+<p>The palace is on the side of a hill, two leagues
+from Paris, and so situated that it looks down
+upon the French capital. Standing, as we did,
+viewing Paris from St. Cloud, and the setting sun
+reflecting upon the domes, spires, and towers of
+the city of fashion, made us feel that this was the
+place from which the monarch should watch his
+subjects. From the hour of arrival at St. Cloud
+till near eight o'clock, we were either inspecting
+the splendid palace or roaming the grounds and
+gardens, whose beautiful walks and sweet flowers
+made it appear a very Paradise on earth.</p>
+
+<p>At eight o'clock the water-works were put in
+motion, and the variagated lamps with their many
+devices, displaying flowers, stars, and wheels, all
+with a brilliancy that can scarcely be described,
+seemed to throw everything in the shade we had
+<!-- Page 59 --><a name="Page_59" id="Page_59" title="59" class="pagenum"></a>seen at Versailles. At nine o'clock the train was
+announced, and after a good deal of <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;jambing&quot; in the original text">jamming</ins> and
+pushing about, we were again on the way to
+Paris.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="LETTER_VI" id="LETTER_VI"></a>LETTER VI.</h2>
+
+<h3>The Tuileries&mdash;Place de la Concorde&mdash;The Egyptian
+Obelisk&mdash;Palais Royal&mdash;Residence of
+Robespierre&mdash;A Visit to the Room in which
+Charlotte Corday killed Marat&mdash;Church de
+Notre Dame&mdash;Palais de Justice&mdash;Hotel des
+Invalids&mdash;National Assembly&mdash;The Elysee.</h3>
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Paris</span>, <i>August 28</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Yesterday</span> morning I started at an early hour
+for the Palace of the Tuileries. A show of my
+card of membership of the Congress (which had
+carried me through so many of the public buildings)
+was enough to gain me immediate admission.
+The attack of the mob on the palace, on
+the 20th of June, 1792, the massacre of the Swiss
+guard on the 10th of August of the same year,
+<!-- Page 60 --><a name="Page_60" id="Page_60" title="60" class="pagenum"></a>the attack by the people in July 1830, together
+with the recent flight of king Louis Philippe and
+family, made me anxious to visit the old pile.</p>
+
+<p>We were taken from room to room, until the
+entire building had been inspected. In front of
+the Tuileries, are a most magnificent garden and
+grounds. These were all laid out by Louis XIV.,
+and are left nearly as they were during that
+monarch's reign. Above fifty acres surrounded
+by an iron rail fence, fronts the Place de la
+Concorde, and affords a place of promenade for
+the Parisians. I walked the pleasing grounds,
+and saw hundreds of well dressed persons walking
+under the shade of the great chestnuts, or sitting
+on chairs which were kept to let at two sous
+a piece. Near by is the Place de Carrousel, noted
+for its historical remembrances. Many incidents
+connected with the several revolutions occurred
+here, and it is pointed out as the place where
+Napoleon reviewed that formidable army of his
+before its departure for Russia.</p>
+
+<p>From the Tuileries, I took a stroll through the
+Place de la Concorde, which has connected with it
+so many acts of cruelty, that it made me shudder
+<!-- Page 61 --><a name="Page_61" id="Page_61" title="61" class="pagenum"></a>as I passed over its grounds. As if to take from
+one's mind the old associations of this place, the
+French have erected on it, or rather given a place
+to, the celebrated obelisk of Luxor, which now is
+the chief attraction on the grounds. The obelisk
+was brought from Egypt at an enormous expense;
+for which purpose a ship was built, and several
+hundred men employed above three years in its
+removal. It is formed of the finest red syenite,
+and covered on each side with three lines of
+hieroglyphic inscriptions, commemorative of
+Sesostris&mdash;the middle lines being the most
+deeply cut and most carefully finished; and the
+characters altogether number more than 1600.
+The obelisk is of a single stone, is 72 feet in height,
+weighs 500,000 lbs., and stands on a block of
+granite that weighs 250,000 lbs. He who can
+read Latin will see that the monument tells its
+own story, but to me its characters were all
+blank.</p>
+
+<p>It would be tedious to follow the history of this
+old and venerated stone, which was taken from
+the quarry 1550 years before the birth of Christ;
+placed in Thebes; its removal; the journey to
+<!-- Page 62 --><a name="Page_62" id="Page_62" title="62" class="pagenum"></a>the Nile, and down the Nile; thence to Cherbourg,
+and lastly its arrival in Paris on the 23d of
+December, 1833&mdash;just one year before I escaped
+from slavery. The obelisk was raised on the spot
+where it now stands, on the 25th of October,
+1836, in the presence of Louis Philippe and amid
+the greetings of 160,000 persons.</p>
+
+<p>Having missed my dinner, I crossed over to the
+Palais Royal, to a dining saloon, and can assure
+you that a better dinner may be had there for
+five francs, than can be got in New York for twice
+that sum, and especially if the person who wants
+the dinner is a coloured man. I found no
+prejudice against my complexion in the Palais
+Royal.</p>
+
+<p>Many of the rooms in this once abode of
+Royalty, are most splendidly furnished, and
+decorated with valuable pictures. The likenesses
+of Madame de Stael, J.J. Rousseau, Cromwell,
+and Francis I., are among them.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p>After several unsuccessful attempts to-day, in
+company with R.D. Webb, Esq., to seek out
+the house where once resided the notorious
+<!-- Page 63 --><a name="Page_63" id="Page_63" title="63" class="pagenum"></a>Robespierre, I was fortunate enough to find it, but
+not until I had lost the company of my friend.
+The house is No. 396, Rue St. Honore, opposite
+the Church of the Assumption. It stands back,
+and is reached by entering a court. During the
+first revolution it was occupied by M. Duplay,
+with whom Robespierre lodged. The room used
+by the great man of the revolution, was pointed
+out to me. It is small, and the ceiling low, with
+two windows looking out upon the court. The
+pin upon which the blue coat once hung, is still
+in the wall. While standing there, I could almost
+imagine that I saw the great &quot;Incorruptible,&quot;
+sitting at the small table composing those speeches
+which gave him so much power and influence in
+the Convention and the Clubs.</p>
+
+<p>Here, the disciple of Rousseau sat and planned
+how he should outdo his enemies and hold on to
+his friends. From this room he went forth,
+followed by his dog Brunt, to take his solitary
+walk in a favourite and neighbouring field, or to
+the fiery discussions of the National Convention.
+In the same street, is the house in which Madame
+Roland&mdash;one of Robespierre's victims&mdash;resided.</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page 64 --><a name="Page_64" id="Page_64" title="64" class="pagenum"></a>A view of the residence of one of the master
+spirits of the French revolution inclined me to
+search out more, and therefore I proceeded to
+the old town, and after winding through several
+small streets&mdash;some of them so narrow as not to
+admit more than one cab at a time&mdash;I found
+myself in the Rue de L'Ecole de Medecine, and
+standing in front of house No. 20. This was the
+residence, during the early days of the revolution,
+of that bloodthirsty demon in human form,
+Marat.</p>
+
+<p>I said to a butcher, whose shop was underneath,
+that I wanted to see La Chambre de
+Marat. He called out to the woman of the
+house to know if I could be admitted, and the
+reply was, that the room was used as a sleeping
+apartment, and could not be seen.</p>
+
+<p>As this was private property, my blue card of
+membership to the Congress was not available.
+But after slipping a franc into the old lady's hand,
+I was informed that the room was now ready.
+We entered a court and ascended a flight of
+stairs, the entrance to which is on the right; then
+crossing to the left, we were shown into a mo<!-- Page 65 --><a name="Page_65" id="Page_65" title="65" class="pagenum"></a>derate-sized
+room on the first floor, with two windows
+looking out upon a yard. Here it was where
+the &quot;Friend of the People&quot; (as he styled himself,)
+sat and wrote those articles that appeared daily in
+his journal, urging the people to &quot;hang the rich
+upon lamp posts.&quot; The place where the bath
+stood, in which he was bathing at the time he
+was killed by Charlotte Corday, was pointed out
+to us; and even something representing an old
+stain of blood was shown as the place where he
+was laid when taken out of the bath. The window,
+behind whose curtains the heroine hid,
+after she had plunged the dagger into the heart
+of the man whom she thought was the cause of
+the shedding of so much blood by the guillotine,
+was pointed out with a seeming degree of pride
+by the old woman.</p>
+
+<p>With my Guide Book in hand, I again went
+forth to &quot;hunt after new fancies.&quot;</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p>After walking over the ground where the guillotine
+once stood, cutting off its hundred and fifty
+heads per day, and then visiting the place where
+some of the chief movers in that sanguinary revo<!-- Page 66 --><a name="Page_66" id="Page_66" title="66" class="pagenum"></a>lution
+once lived, I felt little disposed to sleep,
+when the time for it had arrived. However, I was
+out this morning at an early hour, and on the
+Champs Elysees; and again took a walk over the
+place where the guillotine stood, when its fatal
+blade was sending so many unprepared spirits
+into eternity. When standing here, you have
+the Palace of the Tuileries on one side, the arch
+on the other; on a third, the classic Madeleine;
+and on the fourth, the National Assembly. It
+caused my blood to chill, the idea of being on the
+identical spot where the heads of Louis XVI. and
+his Queen, after being cut off, were held up to
+satisfy the blood-thirsty curiosity of the two hundred
+thousand persons that were assembled on
+the Place de la Revolution. Here Royal blood
+flowed as it never did before or since. The heads
+of patricians and plebians, were thrown into the
+same basket, without any regard to birth or station<ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: typo, full-stop added">.</ins>
+Here Robespierre and Danton had stood
+again and again, and looked their victims in the
+face as they ascended the scaffold; and here, these
+same men had to mount the very scaffold that they
+had erected for others. I wandered up the Seine,
+<!-- Page 67 --><a name="Page_67" id="Page_67" title="67" class="pagenum"></a>till I found myself looking at the statue of
+Henry the IV. over the principal entrance of the
+Hotel de Ville. When we take into account the
+connection of the Hotel de Ville with the different
+revolutions, we must come to the conclusion,
+that it is one of the most remarkable buildings in
+Paris. The room was pointed out where Robespierre
+held his counsels, and from the windows of
+which he could look out upon the Place de Greve,
+where the guillotine stood before its removal to
+the Place de la Concorde. The room is large,
+with gilded hangings, splendid old-fashioned
+chandeliers, and a chimney-piece with fine antiquated
+carvings, that give it a venerable appearance.
+Here Robespierre not only presided at the
+counsels that sent hundreds to the guillotine; but
+from this same spot, he, with his brother St. Just
+and others, were dragged before the Committee of
+Public Safety, and thence to the guillotine, and
+justice and revenge satisfied.</p>
+
+<p>The window from which Lafayette addressed
+the people in 1830, and presented to them Louis
+Philippe, as the king, was shown to us. Here the
+poet, statesman, philosopher and orator, Lamar<!-- Page 68 --><a name="Page_68" id="Page_68" title="68" class="pagenum"></a>tine,
+stood in February 1848, and, by the power
+of his eloquence, succeeded in keeping the people
+quiet. Here he forced the mob, braved the
+bayonets presented to his breast, and, by his good
+reasoning, induced them to retain the tri-coloured
+flag, instead of adopting the red flag, which he
+considered the emblem of blood.</p>
+
+<p>Lamartine is a great heroic genius, dear to
+liberty and to France; and successive generations,
+as they look back upon the revolution of 1848,
+will recall to memory the many dangers which
+nothing but his dauntless courage warded off. The
+difficulties which his wisdom surmounted, and the
+good service that he rendered to France, can never
+be adequately estimated or too highly appreciated.
+It was at the Hotel de Ville that the Republic of
+1848 was proclaimed to the people.</p>
+
+<p>I next paid my respects to the Column of July
+that stands on the spot formerly occupied by the
+Bastile. It is 163 feet in height, and on the top
+is the Genius of Liberty, with a torch in his right
+hand, and in the left a broken chain. After a
+fatiguing walk up a winding stair, I obtained a
+splendid view of Paris from the top of the column.</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page 69 --><a name="Page_69" id="Page_69" title="69" class="pagenum"></a>I thought I should not lose the opportunity of
+seeing the Church de Notre Dame while so near
+to it, and, therefore, made it my next rallying
+point. No edifice connected with religion has
+had more interesting incidents <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;occuring&quot; in the original text">occurring</ins> in it than
+this old church. Here Pope Pius VII. placed
+the Imperial Crown on the head of the Corsican&mdash;or
+rather Napoleon took the Crown from his
+hands and placed it on his own head. Satan
+dragging the wicked to &mdash;&mdash;; the rider on the
+red horse at the opening of the second seal; the
+blessedness of the saints; and several other
+striking sculptured figures were among the many
+curiosities in this splendid place. A hasty view
+from the gallery concluded my visit to the Notre
+Dame.</p>
+
+<p>Leaving the old church I strayed off in a
+direction towards the Seine, and passed by an
+old looking building of stately appearance, and
+recognised, among a throng passing in and out,
+a number of the members of the Peace Congress.
+I joined a party entering, and was soon in
+the presence of men with gowns on, and men
+with long staffs in their hands&mdash;and on inquiry
+<!-- Page 70 --><a name="Page_70" id="Page_70" title="70" class="pagenum"></a>found that I was in the Palais de Justice; beneath
+which is the Conciergerie, a noted prison. Louis
+XVI. and Marie Antoinette were tried and condemned
+to death here.</p>
+
+<p>A bas-relief, by Cortat, representing Louis in
+conference with his Counsel, is here seen. But I
+had visited too many places of interest during the
+day to remain long in a building surrounded by
+officers of justice, and took a stroll upon the
+Boulevards.</p>
+
+<p>The Boulevards may be termed the Regent
+Street of Paris, or a New Yorker would call them
+Broadway. While passing a caf&eacute;, my German
+friend Faigo, whose company I had enjoyed
+during the passage from America, recognised me,
+and I sat down and took a cup of delicious coffee
+for the first time on the side walk, in sight of
+hundreds who were passing up and down the
+street every hour. From three till eleven o'clock,
+<span style="font-variant: small-caps;">P.M.</span>, the Boulevards are lined with men and
+women sitting before the doors of the saloons
+drinking their coffee or wines, or both at the
+same time, as fancy may dictate. All Paris
+appeared to be on the Boulevards, and looking
+<!-- Page 71 --><a name="Page_71" id="Page_71" title="71" class="pagenum"></a>as if the great end of this life was enjoyment.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p>Anxious to see as much as possible of Paris in
+the limited time I had to stay in it, I hired a cab
+yesterday morning and commenced with the
+Hotel des Invalids, a magnificent building, within
+a few minutes' walk of the National Assembly.
+On each side of the entrance gate are figures
+representing nations conquered by Louis XIV.,
+with colossal statues of Mars and Minerva. The
+dome on the edifice is the loftiest in Paris&mdash;the
+height from the ground being 323 feet.</p>
+
+<p>Immediately below the dome is the tomb of
+the man at whose word the world turned pale.
+A statue of the Emperor Napoleon stands in the
+second piazza, and is of the finest bronze.</p>
+
+<p>This building is the home of the pensioned
+soldiers of France. It was enough to make one
+sick at the idea of war, to look upon the mangled
+bodies of these old soldiers. Men with arms and
+no legs; others had legs but no arms; some with
+canes and crutches, and some wheeling themselves
+about in little hand carts. About three thousand
+of the decayed soldiers were lodged in the Hotel
+<!-- Page 72 --><a name="Page_72" id="Page_72" title="72" class="pagenum"></a>des Invalids, at the time of my visit. Passing the
+National Assembly on my return, I spent a
+moment or two in it. The interior of this building
+resembles an amphitheatre. It is constructed
+to accommodate 900 members, each having a
+separate desk. The seat upon which the Duchesse
+of Orleans, and her son, the Comte de Paris, sat,
+when they visited the National Assembly after
+the flight of Louis Philippe, was shown with considerable
+alacrity. As I left the building, I heard
+that the President of the Republic was on the
+point of leaving the Elysee for St. Cloud, and
+with the hope of seeing the &quot;Prisoner of Ham,&quot;
+I directed my cabman to drive me to the Elysee.</p>
+
+<p>In a few moments we were between two files
+of soldiers, and entering the gates of the palace. I
+called out to the driver and told him to stop; but
+I was too late, for we were now in front of the
+massive doors of the palace, and a liveried servant
+opened the cab door, bowed, and asked if I had
+an engagement with the President. You may
+easily &quot;guess&quot; his surprise when I told him no.
+In my best French, I asked the cabman why he
+had come to the palace, and was answered, &quot;You
+<!-- Page 73 --><a name="Page_73" id="Page_73" title="73" class="pagenum"></a>told me to.&quot; By this time a number had
+gathered round, all making inquiries as to what I
+wanted. I told the driver to retrace his steps,
+and, amid the shrugs of their shoulders, the nods of
+their heads, and the laughter of the soldiers, I left
+the Elysee without even a sight of the President's
+mustaches for my trouble. This was only one of
+the many mistakes I made while in Paris.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="LETTER_VII" id="LETTER_VII"></a>LETTER VII.</h2>
+
+<h3>The Chateau at Versailles&mdash;Private apartments of
+Marie Antoinette&mdash;The Secret Door&mdash;Paintings
+of Raphael and David&mdash;Arc de Triomphe<ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: typo, final em-dash added">&mdash;</ins>Beranger
+the Poet.</h3>
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Versailles</span>, <i>August 31</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Here</span> I am, within ten leagues of Paris, spending
+the time pleasantly in viewing the palace and
+grounds of the great Chateau of Louis XIV.
+Fifty-seven years ago, a mob, composed of men,
+women, and boys, from Paris, stood in front of
+<!-- Page 74 --><a name="Page_74" id="Page_74" title="74" class="pagenum"></a>this palace and demanded that the king should go
+with them to the capital. I have walked over the
+same ground where the one hundred thousand
+stood on that interesting occasion. I have been
+upon the same balcony, and stood by the window
+from which Maria Antoinette looked out upon the
+mob that were seeking her life.</p>
+
+<p>Anxious to see as much of the palace as I could,
+and having an offer of the company of my young
+friend, Henry G. Chapman, to go through the
+palace with me, I set out early yesterday morning,
+and was soon in the halls that had often
+been trod by Royal feet. We passed through
+the private, as well as the public, apartments,
+through the secret door by which Marie Antoinette
+had escaped from the mob of 1792, and
+viewed the room in which her faithful guards
+were killed, while attempting to save their Royal
+mistress. I took my seat in one of the little
+parlour carriages that had been used in days of
+yore for the Royal children; while my friend, H.G.
+Chapman, drew me across the room. The
+superb apartments are not now in use. Silence
+is written upon these walls, although upon them
+<!-- Page 75 --><a name="Page_75" id="Page_75" title="75" class="pagenum"></a>are suspended the portraits of men of whom the
+world has heard.</p>
+
+<p>Paintings, representing Napoleon in nearly all
+his battles, are here seen; and wherever you see
+the Emperor, there you will also find Murat, with
+his white plume waving above. Callot's painting
+of the battle of Marengo, Hue's of the retaking of
+Genoa, and Bouchat's of the 18th Brumaire,
+are of the highest order; while David has transmitted
+his fame to posterity, by his splendid
+painting of the Coronation of Napoleon and Josephine
+in Notre Dame. When I looked upon the
+many beautiful paintings of the last named artist,
+that adorn the halls of Versailles, I did not wonder
+that his fame should have saved his life, when
+once condemned and sentenced to death during
+the reign of terror. The guillotine was robbed of
+its intended victim, but the world gained a great
+painter. As Boswell transmitted his own name
+to posterity with his life of Johnson, so has David
+left his, with the magnificent paintings that are
+now suspended upon the walls of the palaces of
+the Louvre, the Tuileries, St. Cloud, Versailles,
+and even the little Elysee.</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page 76 --><a name="Page_76" id="Page_76" title="76" class="pagenum"></a>After strolling from room to room, we found
+ourselves in the Salle du Sacre, Diane, Salon de
+Mars, de Mercure, and d'Apollon. I gazed with
+my eyes turned to the ceiling till I was dizzy.
+The Salon de la Guerre is covered with the most
+beautiful representations that the mind of man
+could conceive, or the hand accomplish. Louis
+XIV. is here in all his glory. No Marie Antoinette
+will ever do the honours in these halls again.</p>
+
+<p>After spending a whole day in the Palace and
+several mornings in the Gardens, I finally bid
+adieu to the bronze statue of Louis XIV. that
+stands in front of the Palace, and left Versailles,
+probably for ever.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Paris</span>, <i>September 2</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">I am</span> now on the point of quitting the French
+Metropolis. I have occupied the last two days
+in visiting places of note in the city. I could not
+resist the inclination to pay a second visit to the
+Louvre. Another hour was spent in strolling
+through the Italian Hall and viewing the master-workmanship
+of Raphael, the prince of painters.
+<!-- Page 77 --><a name="Page_77" id="Page_77" title="77" class="pagenum"></a>Time flies, even in such a place as the Louvre
+with all its attractions; and before I had seen
+half that I wished, a ponderous clock near by
+reminded me of an engagement, and I reluctantly
+tore myself from the splendours of the place.</p>
+
+<p>During the rest of the day I visited the
+Jardin des Plantes, and spent an hour and <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;a-half&quot; in the original text">a half</ins>
+pleasantly in walking among plants, flowers, and
+in fact everything that could be found in any
+garden in France. From this place we passed by
+the column of the Bastile, and paid our respects
+to the Bourse, or Exchange, one of the most
+superb buildings in the city. The ground floor
+and sides of the Bourse, are of fine marble, and the
+names of the chief cities in the world are inscribed
+on the medallions, which are under the upper
+cornice. The interior of the edifice has a most
+splendid appearance as you enter it.</p>
+
+<p>The Cemetery of P&egrave;re la Chaise was too much
+talked of by many of our party at the Hotel for
+me to pass it by, so I took it after the Bourse.
+Here lie many of the great marshals of France&mdash;the
+resting place of each marked by the monument
+that stands over it, except one, which is
+<!-- Page 78 --><a name="Page_78" id="Page_78" title="78" class="pagenum"></a>marked only by a weeping willow and a plain
+stone at its head. This is the grave of Marshal
+Ney. I should not have known that it was his,
+but some unknown hand had written with black
+paint, &quot;Bravest of the Brave,&quot; on the unlettered
+stone that stands at the head of the man who
+followed Napoleon through nearly all his battles,
+and who was shot after the occupation of Paris by
+the allied army. Peace to his ashes. During my
+ramble through this noted place, I saw several
+who were hanging fresh wreaths of everlasting
+flowers on the tombs of the departed.</p>
+
+<p>A ride in an omnibus down the Boulevards,
+and away up the Champs Elysees, brought me to
+the Arc de Triomphe; and after ascending a
+flight of one hundred and sixty-one steps, I was
+overlooking the city of statuary. This stupendous
+monument was commenced by Napoleon in
+1806; and in 1811 it had only reached the
+cornice of the base, where it stopped, and it was
+left for Louis Philippe to finish. The first stone
+of this monument was laid on the 15th of
+August, 1806, the birth-day of the man whose
+battles it was intended to commemorate. A
+<!-- Page 79 --><a name="Page_79" id="Page_79" title="79" class="pagenum"></a>model of the arch was erected for Napoleon to
+pass through as he was entering the city with
+Maria Louisa, after their marriage. The inscriptions
+on the monument are many, and the
+different scenes here represented are all of the
+most exquisite workmanship. The genius of War
+is summoning the obedient nations to battle.
+Victory is here crowning Napoleon after his great
+success in 1810. Fame stands here recording the
+exploits of the warrior, while conquered cities lie
+beneath the whole. But it would take more time
+than I have at command to give anything like a
+description of this magnificent piece of architecture.</p>
+
+<p>That which seems to take most with Peace
+Friends, is the portion representing an old man
+taming a bull for agricultural labour; while a young
+warrior is sheathing his sword, a mother and children
+sitting at his feet, and Minerva crowned with
+laurels, stands shedding her protecting influence
+over them. The erection of this regal monument
+is wonderful, to hand down to posterity the triumphs
+of the man whom we first hear of as a
+student in the military school at Brienne, whom
+<!-- Page 80 --><a name="Page_80" id="Page_80" title="80" class="pagenum"></a>in 1784 we see in the Ecole Militaire, founded by
+Louis XV. in 1751; whom again we find at No.
+5, Quai de Court, near Rue de Mail; and in 1794
+as a lodger at No. 19, Rue de la Michand&egrave;re.
+From this he goes to the Hotel Mirabeau, Rue du
+Dauphin, where he resided when he defeated his
+enemies on the 13th Vendimaire. The Hotel de
+la Colonade, Rue Neuve des Capuchins is his next
+residence, and where he was married to Josephine.
+From this hotel he removed to his wife's dwelling
+in the Rue Chanteriene, No. 52. In 1796
+the young general started for Italy, where his
+conquests paved the way for the ever memorable
+18th Brumaire, that made him dictator of
+France. Napoleon was too great now to be
+satisfied with private dwellings, and we next trace
+him to the Elysee, St. Cloud, Versailles, the
+Tuileries, Fontainbleau, and finally, came his
+decline, which I need not relate to you.</p>
+
+<p>After visiting the Gobelins, passing through its
+many rooms, seeing here and there a half-finished
+piece of tapestry; and meeting a number of the
+members of the late Peace Congress, who, like
+myself had remained behind to see more of the
+<!-- Page 81 --><a name="Page_81" id="Page_81" title="81" class="pagenum"></a>beauties of the French capital than could be
+overtaken during the Convention week. I accepted
+an invitation to dine with a German gentleman
+at the Palais Royal, and was soon revelling
+amid the luxuries of the table. I was
+glad that I had gone to the Palais Royal, for
+here I had the honour of an introduction to M.
+Beranger, the poet; and although I had to converse
+with him through an interpreter, I enjoyed
+his company very much. &quot;The people's poet,&quot;
+as he is called, is apparently about seventy years
+of age, bald on the top of the head, and rather
+corpulent, but of active look, and in the enjoyment
+of good health. Few writers in France
+have done better service to the cause of political
+and religious freedom, than Pierre Jean de
+Beranger. He is the dauntless friend and advocate
+of the down-trodden poor and oppressed,
+and has often incurred the displeasure of the
+Government by the arrows that he has thrown
+into their camp. He felt what he wrote; it
+came straight from his heart, and went directly
+to the hearts of the people. He expressed himself
+strongly opposed to slavery, and said, &quot;I
+<!-- Page 82 --><a name="Page_82" id="Page_82" title="82" class="pagenum"></a>don't see how the Americans can reconcile
+slavery with their professed love of freedom.&quot;
+Dinner out of the way, a walk through the
+different apartments, and a stroll over the court,
+and I bade adieu to the Palais Royal, satisfied
+that I should partake of many worse dinners
+than I had helped to devour that day.</p>
+
+<p>Few nations are more courteous than the
+French. Here the stranger, let him come from
+what country he may, and be ever so unacquainted
+with the people and language, he is sure of a
+civil reply to any question that he may ask.
+With the exception of the egregious blunder I
+have mentioned of the cabman driving me to the
+Elysee, I was not laughed at once while in
+France.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<div><!-- Page 83 --><a name="Page_83" id="Page_83" title="83" class="pagenum"></a></div>
+<h2><a name="LETTER_VIII" id="LETTER_VIII"></a>LETTER VIII.</h2>
+
+<h3>Departure from Paris&mdash;Boulogne&mdash;Folkstone&mdash;London&mdash;Geo.
+Thompson, Esq., M.P.&mdash;Hartwell
+House&mdash;Dr. Lee&mdash;Cottage of the Peasant&mdash;Windsor
+Castle&mdash;Residence of Wm. Penn&mdash;England's
+First Welcome&mdash;Heath Lodge&mdash;The
+Bank of England</h3>
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">London</span>, <i>Sept. 8th</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">The</span> sun had just appeared from behind a cloud
+and was setting, and its reflection upon the
+domes and spires of the great buildings in Paris
+made everything appear lovely and sublime, as
+the train, with almost lightning speed, was
+bringing me from the French metropolis. I
+gazed with eager eyes to catch a farewell glance
+of the tops of the regal palaces through which I
+had passed, during a stay of fifteen days in the
+French capital.</p>
+
+<p>A pleasant ride of four hours brought us to
+Boulogne, where we rested for the night. The
+next morning I was up at an early hour, and out
+<!-- Page 84 --><a name="Page_84" id="Page_84" title="84" class="pagenum"></a>viewing the town. Boulogne could present but
+little attraction, after a fortnight spent in seeing
+the lions of Paris. A return to the hotel, and
+breakfast over, we stepped on board the steamer,
+and were soon crossing the channel. Two hours
+more, and I was safely seated in a railway
+carriage, <i>en route</i> to the English metropolis.
+We reached London at mid-day, where I was
+soon comfortably lodged at 22, Cecil Street,
+Strand. As the London lodging-houses seldom
+furnish dinners, I lost no time in seeking out a
+dining-saloon, which I had no difficulty in finding
+in the Strand. It being the first house of the
+kind I had entered in London, I was not a little
+annoyed at the politeness of the waiter. The
+first salutation I had, after seating myself in one
+of the stalls, was, &quot;Ox tail, Sir; gravy soup;
+carrot soup, Sir; roast beef; roast pork; boiled
+beef; roast lamb; boiled leg of mutton, Sir,
+with caper sauce; jugged hare, Sir; boiled
+knuckle of veal and bacon; roast turkey and
+oyster sauce; sucking pig, Sir; curried chicken;
+harrico mutton, Sir.&quot; These, and many other
+dishes which I have forgotten, were called over
+<!-- Page 85 --><a name="Page_85" id="Page_85" title="85" class="pagenum"></a>with a rapidity that would have done credit to
+one of our Yankee pedlars, in crying his wares in
+a New England village. I was so completely
+taken by surprise, that I asked for a &quot;bill of
+fare,&quot; and told him to leave me. No city in
+the world furnishes a cheaper, better, and quicker
+meal for the weary traveller, than a London
+eating-house.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p>After spending a day in looking about through
+this great thoroughfare, the Strand, I sallied
+forth with letters of introduction, with which I
+had been provided by my friends before leaving
+America; and following the direction of one, I
+was soon at No. 6, A, Waterloo Place. A
+moment more, and I was in the presence of one
+of whom I had heard much, and whose name is
+as familiar to the friends of the slave in the
+United States, as household words. Although I
+had never seen him before, yet I felt a feeling
+akin to love for the man who had proclaimed to
+the oppressors of my race in America, the doctrine
+of <i>immediate emancipation</i> for the slaves of
+the great Republic. On reaching the door, I
+<!-- Page 86 --><a name="Page_86" id="Page_86" title="86" class="pagenum"></a>sent in my letter; and it being fresh from the
+hands of William Lloyd Garrison, the champion
+of freedom in the New World, was calculated to
+insure me a warm reception at the hands of the
+distinguished M.P. for the Tower Hamlets. Mr.
+Thompson did not wait for the servant to show
+me in; but met me at the door himself, and gave
+me a hearty shake of the hand, at the same time
+saying, &quot;Welcome to England. How did you
+leave Garrison.&quot; I need not add, that Mr. T. gave
+me the best advice, as to my course in Great Britain;
+and how I could best serve the cause of my
+enslaved countrymen. I never enjoyed three
+hours more agreeably than those I spent with Mr.
+T. on the occasion of my first visit. George
+Thompson's love of freedom, his labours in behalf
+of the American slave, the negroes of the West
+Indies, and the wronged millions of India, are too
+well known to the people of both hemispheres, to
+need a word of comment from me. With the
+single exception of the illustrious Garrison, no
+individual is more loved and honoured by the
+coloured people of America, and their friends than
+Mr. Thompson.</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page 87 --><a name="Page_87" id="Page_87" title="87" class="pagenum"></a>A few days after my arrival in London, I received
+an invitation from John Lee, Esq., LL.D.,
+whom I had met at the Peace Congress in Paris,
+to pay him a visit at his seat, near Aylesbury;
+and as the time was &quot;fixed&quot; by the Dr., I took
+the train on the appointed day, on my way to
+Hartwell House.</p>
+
+<p>I had heard much of the aristocracy of England,
+and must confess that I was not a little prejudiced
+against them. On a bright sunshine day,
+between the hours of twelve and two, I found myself
+seated in a carriage, my back turned upon
+Aylesbury, the vehicle whirling rapidly over the
+smooth macadamised road, and I on my first visit
+to an English gentleman. Twenty minutes' ride,
+and a turn to the right, and we were amid the
+fine old trees of Hartwell Park; one having suspended
+from its branches, the national banners of
+several different countries; among them, the
+&quot;Stars and Stripes. I felt glad that my own
+country's flag had a place there, although Campbell's
+lines&quot;&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<div><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&quot;United States, your banner wears,</span></div>
+<div>Two emblems,&mdash;one of fame;</div>
+<div><!-- Page 88 --><a name="Page_88" id="Page_88" title="88" class="pagenum"></a>Alas, the other that it bears,</div>
+<div>Reminds us of your shame.</div>
+<div>The white man's liberty in types,</div>
+<div>Stands blazoned by your stars;</div>
+<div>But what's the meaning of your stripes,</div>
+<div>They mean your Negro-scars&quot;&mdash;</div>
+</div></div>
+
+<p class="noindent"><ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;Were&quot; in the original text">were</ins> at the time continually running through my
+mind. Arrived at the door, and we received
+what every one does who visits Dr. Lee&mdash;a hearty
+welcome. I was immediately shown into a room
+with a lofty ceiling, hung round with fine specimens
+of the Italian masters, and told that this
+was my apartment. Hartwell House stands in
+an extensive park, shaded with trees, that made
+me think of the oaks and elms in an American
+forest, and many of whose limbs had been trimmed
+and nursed with the best of care. This was for
+seven years the residence of John Hampden the
+patriot, and more recently that of Louis XVIII.,
+during his exile in this country. The house is
+built on a very extensive scale, and is ornamented
+in the interior with carvings in wood of many of
+the kings and princes of bygone centuries. A
+room some 60 feet by 25 contains a variety of
+<!-- Page 89 --><a name="Page_89" id="Page_89" title="89" class="pagenum"></a>articles that the Dr. has collected together&mdash;the
+whole forming a museum that would be considered
+a sight in the Western States of America.</p>
+
+<p>The morning after my arrival at Hartwell I
+was up at an early hour&mdash;in fact, before any of the
+servants&mdash;wandering about through the vast halls,
+and trying to find my way out, in which I eventually
+succeeded, but not, however, without
+aid. It had rained the previous night, and the
+sun was peeping through a misty cloud as I
+strolled through the park, listening to the sweet
+voices of the birds that were fluttering in the tops
+of the trees, and trimming their wings for a
+morning flight. The silence of the night had not
+yet been broken by the voice of man; and I
+wandered about the vast park unannoyed, except
+by the dew from the grass that wet my slippers.
+Not far from the house I came abruptly upon a
+beautiful little pond of water, where the gold fish
+were flouncing about, and the gentle ripples
+glittering in the sunshine looked like so many
+silver minnows playing on the surface.</p>
+
+<p>While strolling about with pleasure, and only
+regretting that my dear daughters were not with
+<!-- Page 90 --><a name="Page_90" id="Page_90" title="90" class="pagenum"></a>me to enjoy the morning's walk, I saw the
+gardener on his way to the garden. I followed
+him, and was soon feasting my eyes upon the
+richest specimens of garden scenery. There were
+the peaches hanging upon the trees that were
+fastened to the wall; vegetables, fruit, and
+flowers were there in all their bloom and beauty;
+and even the variegated geranium of a warmer
+clime, was there in its hothouse home, and
+seemed to have forgotten that it was in a different
+country from its own. Dr. Lee shows great taste
+in the management of his garden. I have
+seldom seen a more splendid variety of fruits and
+flowers in the southern States of America, than I
+saw at Hartwell House.</p>
+
+<p>I should, however, state that I was not the
+only guest at Hartwell during my stay. Dr.
+Lee had invited several others of the American
+delegation to the Peace Congress, and two or
+three of the French delegates who were on a visit
+to England, were enjoying the Doctor's hospitality.
+Dr. Lee is a staunch friend of Temperance,
+as well as of the cause of universal freedom.
+Every year he treats his tenantry to a dinner,
+<!-- Page 91 --><a name="Page_91" id="Page_91" title="91" class="pagenum"></a>and I need not add that these are always conducted
+on the principle of total abstinence.</p>
+
+<p>During the second day we visited several of the
+cottages of the work people, and in these I took
+no little interest. The people of the United
+States know nothing of the real condition of the
+labouring classes of England. The peasants of
+Great Britain are always spoken of as belonging
+to the soil. I was taught in America that the
+English labourer was no better off than the slave
+upon a Carolina rice-field. I had seen the slaves
+in Missouri huddled together, three, four, and
+even five families in a single room not more than
+15 by 25 feet square, and I expected to see the
+same in England. But in this I was disappointed.
+After visiting a new house that the Doctor was
+building, he took us into one of the cottages that
+stood near the road, and gave us an opportunity,
+of seeing, for the first time, an English peasant's
+cot. We entered a low whitewashed room, with
+a stone floor that showed an admirable degree of
+cleanness. Before us was a row of shelves filled
+with earthen dishes and pewter spoons, glittering
+as if they had just come from under the hand of
+<!-- Page 92 --><a name="Page_92" id="Page_92" title="92" class="pagenum"></a>a woman of taste. A Cobden loaf of bread, that
+had just been left by the baker's boy, lay upon an
+oaken table which had been much worn away with
+the scrubbing brush; while just above lay the old
+family bible that had been handed down from
+father to son, until its possession was considered
+of almost as great value as its contents. A half-open
+door, leading into another room, showed us
+a clean bed; the whole presenting as fine a
+picture of neatness, order, and comfort, as the
+most fastidious taste could wish to see. No
+occupant was present, and therefore I inspected
+everything with a greater degree of freedom. In
+front of the cottage was a small grass plot, with
+here and there a bed of flowers, cheated out of its
+share of sunshine by the tall holly that had been
+planted near it. As I looked upon the home
+of the labourer, my thoughts were with my
+enslaved countrymen. What a difference, thought
+I, there is between the tillers of the soil in
+England and America. There could not be a
+more complete refutation of the assertion that the
+English labourer is no better off than the
+American slave, than the scenes that were then
+<!-- Page 93 --><a name="Page_93" id="Page_93" title="93" class="pagenum"></a>before me. I called the attention of one of my
+American friends to a beautiful rose near the
+door of the cot, and said to him, &quot;The law that
+will protect that flower will also guard and
+protect the hand that planted it.&quot; He knew that
+I had drank deep of the cup of slavery, was aware
+of what I meant, and merely nodded his head
+in reply. I never experienced hospitality more
+genuine, and yet more unpretending, than was
+<ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;meeted&quot; in the original text">meted</ins> out to me while at Hartwell. And the
+favourable impression made on my own mind, of
+the distinguished proprietor of Hartwell Park,
+was nearly as indelible as my humble name
+that the Doctor had engraven in a brick, in
+the vault beneath the Observatory in Hartwell
+House.</p>
+
+<p>On my return to London I accepted an invitation
+to join a party on a visit to Windsor Castle;
+and taking the train at the Waterloo Bridge
+Station, we were soon passing through a pleasant
+part of the country. Arrived at the castle, we committed
+ourselves into the hands of the servants,
+and were introduced into Her Majesty's State
+apartments, Audience Chamber, Vandyck Room,
+<!-- Page 94 --><a name="Page_94" id="Page_94" title="94" class="pagenum"></a>Waterloo Chambers, St. George's Hall, Gold
+Pantry, and many others whose names I have forgotten.
+In wandering about the different apartments
+I lost my company, and in trying to find
+them, passed through a room in which hung a
+magnificent portrait of Charles I., by Vandyck.
+The hum and noise of my companions had ceased,
+and I had the scene and silence to myself. I
+looked in vain for the king's evil genius (Cromwell),
+but he was not in the same room. The
+pencil of Sir Peter Lely has left a splendid full-length
+likeness of James II. George IV. is suspended
+from a peg in the wall, looking as if it
+was fresh from the hands of Sir Thomas Lawrence,
+its admirable painter. I was now in St.
+George's Hall, and I gazed upward to view the
+beautiful figures on the ceiling, until my neck
+was nearly out of joint. Leaving this room, I inspected
+with interest the ancient <i>keep</i> of the
+castle. In past centuries this part of the palace
+was used as a prison. Here James the First of
+Scotland was detained a prisoner for eighteen
+years. I viewed the window through which the
+young prince had often looked to catch a glimpse
+<!-- Page 95 --><a name="Page_95" id="Page_95" title="95" class="pagenum"></a>of the young and beautiful Lady Jane, daughter
+of the Earl of Somerset, with whom he was
+enamoured.</p>
+
+<p>From the top of the Round Tower I had a fine
+view of the surrounding country. Stoke Park,
+once the residence of that great friend of humanity
+and civilization, William Penn, was among the
+scenes that I viewed with pleasure from Windsor
+Castle. Four years ago, when in the city of
+Philadelphia, and hunting up the places associated
+with the name of this distinguished man, and
+more recently when walking over the farm once
+occupied by him on the banks of the Delaware,
+examining the old malt house which is now left
+standing, because of the veneration with which
+the name of the man who built it is held, I had
+no idea that I should ever see the dwelling which
+he had occupied in the Old World. Stoke Park is
+about four miles from Windsor, and is now owned
+by the Right Hon. Henry Labouchere.</p>
+
+<p>The castle, standing as it does on an eminence,
+and surrounded by a beautiful valley covered with
+splendid villas, has the appearance of Gulliver
+looking down upon the Lilliputians. It rears its
+<!-- Page 96 --><a name="Page_96" id="Page_96" title="96" class="pagenum"></a>massive towers and irregular walls over and above
+every other object; it stands like a mountain in
+the desert. How full this old palace is of material
+for thought! How one could ramble here alone,
+or with one or two congenial companions, and
+enjoy a recapitulation of its history! But an
+engagement to be at Croydon in the evening cut
+short my stay at Windsor, and compelled me to
+return to town in advance of my party.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p>Having met with John Morland, Esq., of Heath
+Lodge, at Paris, he gave me an invitation to visit
+Croydon, and deliver a lecture on American
+Slavery; and last evening, at eight o'clock, I found
+myself in a fine old building in the town, and
+facing the first English audience that I had seen
+in the sea-girt isle. It was my first welcome in
+England. The assembly was an enthusiastic one,
+and made still more so by the appearance of
+George Thompson, Esq., M.P., upon the platform.
+It is not my intention to give accounts of my
+lectures or meetings in these pages. I therefore
+merely say, that I left Croydon with a good
+impression of the English, and Heath Lodge with
+<!-- Page 97 --><a name="Page_97" id="Page_97" title="97" class="pagenum"></a>a feeling that its occupant was one of the most
+benevolent of men.</p>
+
+<p>The same party with whom I visited Windsor
+being supplied with a card of admission to the
+Bank of England, I accepted an invitation to be
+one of the company. We entered the vast building
+at a little past twelve o'clock to-day. The
+sun threw into the large halls a brilliancy that
+seemed to light up the countenances of the almost
+countless number of clerks, who were at their
+desks, or serving persons at the counters. As
+nearly all my countrymen who visit London pay
+their respects to this noted institution, I shall sum
+up my visit to it, by saying that it surpassed my
+highest idea of a bank. But a stroll through this
+monster building of gold and silver brought to
+my mind an incident that occurred to me a year
+after my escape from slavery.</p>
+
+<p>In the autumn of 1835, having been cheated
+out of the previous summer's earnings, by the
+captain of the steamer in which I had been
+employed running away with the money, I was,
+like the rest of the men, left without any means
+of support during the winter, and therefore had to
+<!-- Page 98 --><a name="Page_98" id="Page_98" title="98" class="pagenum"></a>seek employment in the neighbouring towns. I
+went to the town of Monroe, in the state of
+Michigan, and while going through the principal
+streets looking for work, I passed the door of the
+only barber in the town, whose shop appeared to
+be filled with persons waiting to be shaved. As
+there was but one man at work, and as I had,
+while employed in the steamer, occasionally shaved
+a gentleman who could not perform that office
+himself, it occurred to me that I might get
+employment here as a journeyman barber. I
+therefore made immediate application for work,
+but the barber told me he did not need a hand.
+But I was not to be put off so easily, and after
+making several offers to work cheap, I frankly told
+him, that if he would not employ me I would get
+a room near to him, and set up an opposition
+establishment. This threat, however, made no
+impression on the barber; and as I was leaving,
+one of the men who were waiting to be shaved
+said, &quot;If you want a room in which to commence
+business, I have one on the opposite side of the
+street.&quot; This man followed me out; we went
+over, and I looked at the room. He strongly
+<!-- Page 99 --><a name="Page_99" id="Page_99" title="99" class="pagenum"></a>urged me to set up, at the same time promising to
+give me his influence. I took the room, purchased
+an old table, two chairs, got a pole with a
+red stripe painted around it, and the next day
+opened, with a sign over the door, &quot;Fashionable
+Hair-dresser from New York, Emperor of the
+West.&quot; I need not add that my enterprise was
+very annoying to the &quot;shop over the way&quot;&mdash;especially
+my sign, which happened to be the
+most expensive part of the concern. Of course, I
+had to tell all who came in that my neighbour on
+the opposite side did not keep clean towels, that
+his razors were dull, and, above all, he had never
+been to New York to see the fashions. Neither
+had I. In a few weeks I had the entire business
+of the town, to the great discomfiture of the other
+barber.</p>
+
+<p>At this time, money matters in the Western
+States were in a sad condition. Any person who
+could raise a small amount of money was permitted
+to establish a bank, and allowed to issue
+notes for four times the sum raised. This being
+the case, many persons borrowed money merely
+long enough to exhibit to the bank inspectors,
+<!-- Page 100 --><a name="Page_100" id="Page_100" title="100" class="pagenum"></a>and the borrowed money was returned, and the
+bank left without a dollar in its vaults, if, indeed,
+it had a vault about its premises. The result was,
+that banks were started all over the Western
+States, and the country flooded with worthless
+paper. These were known as the &quot;Wild Cat
+Banks.&quot; Silver coin being very scarce, and the
+banks not being allowed to issue notes for a
+smaller amount than one dollar, several persons
+put out notes from 6 to 75 cents in value; these
+were called &quot;Shinplasters.&quot; The Shinplaster
+was in the shape of a promissory note, made payable
+on demand. I have often seen persons with
+large rolls of these bills, the whole not amounting
+to more than five dollars. Some weeks after I
+had commenced business on my &quot;own hook,&quot; I
+was one evening very much crowded with customers;
+and while they were talking over the
+events of the day, one of them said to me,
+&quot;Emperor, you seem to be doing a thriving
+business. You should do as other business men,
+issue your Shinplasters.&quot; This, of course, as it
+was intended, created a laugh; but with me it was
+no laughing matter, for from that moment I
+<!-- Page 101 --><a name="Page_101" id="Page_101" title="101" class="pagenum"></a>began to think seriously of becoming a banker.
+I accordingly went a few days after to a printer,
+and he, wishing to get the job of printing, urged
+me to put out my notes, and showed me some
+specimens of engravings that he had just received
+from Detroit. My head being already filled with
+the idea of a bank, I needed but little persuasion
+to set the thing finally afloat. Before I left the
+printer the notes were partly in type, and I studying
+how I should keep the public from counterfeiting
+them. The next day my Shinplasters
+were handed to me, the whole amount being
+twenty dollars, and after being duly signed were
+ready for circulation. At first my notes did not
+take well; they were too new, and viewed with a
+suspicious eye. But through the assistance of my
+customers, and a good deal of exertion on my own
+part, my bills were soon in circulation; and
+nearly all the money received in return for my
+notes was spent in fitting up and decorating my
+shop.</p>
+
+<p>Few bankers get through this world without
+their difficulties, and I was not to be an exception.
+A short time after my money had been out, a
+<!-- Page 102 --><a name="Page_102" id="Page_102" title="102" class="pagenum"></a>party of young men, either wishing to pull down
+my vanity, or to try the soundness of my bank,
+determined to give it &quot;a run.&quot; After collecting
+together a number of my bills, they came one at a
+time to demand other money for them, and I, not
+being aware of what was going on, was taken by
+surprise. One day as I was sitting at my table,
+strapping some new razors I had just got with the
+avails of my &quot;Shinplasters,&quot; one of the men
+entered and said, &quot;Emperor, you will oblige me
+if you will give me some other money for these
+notes of yours.&quot; I immediately cashed the notes
+with the most worthless of the Wild Cat money
+that I had on hand, but which was a lawful
+tender. The young man had scarcely left when a
+second appeared with a similar amount, and demanded
+payment. These were cashed, and soon
+a third came with his roll of notes. I paid these
+with an air of triumph, although I had but half a
+dollar left. I began now to think seriously what
+I should do, or how to act, provided another demand
+should be made. While I was thus engaged
+in thought, I saw the fourth man crossing
+the street, with a handful of notes, evidently my
+&quot;<!-- Page 103 --><a name="Page_103" id="Page_103" title="103" class="pagenum"></a>Shinplasters.&quot; I instantaneously shut the door,
+and looking out of the window, said, &quot;I have
+closed business for the day: come to-morrow and
+I will see you.<ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: typo, missing quote inserted">&quot;</ins> In looking across the street, I
+saw my rival standing in his shop-door, grinning
+and clapping his hands at my apparent downfall.
+I was completely &quot;done <i>Brown</i>&quot; for the day.
+However, I was not to be &quot;used up&quot; in this
+way; so I escaped by the back door, and went in
+search of my friend who had first suggested to
+me the idea of issuing notes. I found him, told
+him of the difficulty I was in, and wished him to
+point out a way by which I might extricate myself.
+He laughed heartily, and then said, &quot;You
+must act as all bankers do in this part of the
+country.&quot; I inquired how they did, and he said,
+&quot;When your notes are brought to you, you must
+redeem them, and then send them out and get
+other money for them; and, with the latter, you
+can keep cashing your own Shinplasters.&quot; This
+was indeed a new job to me. I immediately
+commenced putting in circulation the notes which
+I had just redeemed, and my efforts were crowned
+with so much success, that before I slept that
+<!-- Page 104 --><a name="Page_104" id="Page_104" title="104" class="pagenum"></a>night my &quot;Shinplasters&quot; were again in circulation,
+and my bank once more on a sound basis.</p>
+
+<p>As I saw the clerks shovelling out the yellow
+coin upon the counters of the Bank of England,
+and men coming in and going out with weighty
+bags of the precious metal in their hands, or on
+their shoulders, I could not but think of the
+great contrast <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;beetween&quot; in the original text">between</ins> the monster Institution,
+within whose walls I was then standing, and the
+Wild Cat Banks of America!</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="LETTER_IX" id="LETTER_IX"></a>LETTER IX.</h2>
+
+<h3>The British Museum&mdash;A Portrait&mdash;Night Reading&mdash;A
+Dark Day&mdash;A Fugitive Slave on the
+Streets of London,&mdash;A Friend in the time of
+need.</h3>
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">London</span>, <i>Sept. 24</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">I have</span> devoted the past ten days to sight-seeing
+in the Metropolis&mdash;the first two of which were
+spent in the British Museum. After procuring a
+<!-- Page 105 --><a name="Page_105" id="Page_105" title="105" class="pagenum"></a>guide-book at the door as I entered, I seated myself
+on the first seat that caught my eye,
+arranged as well as I could in my mind the different
+rooms, and then commenced in good
+earnest. The first part I visited was the Gallery
+of Antiquities, through to the north gallery, <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;and and&quot; in the original text">and</ins>
+thence to the Lycian Room. This place is
+filled with tombs, bas-reliefs, statues, and other
+productions of the same art. Venus, seated, and
+smelling a lotus flower which she held in her
+hand, and attended by three graces, put a stop to
+the rapid strides that I was making through this
+part of the hall. This is really one of the most
+precious productions of the art that I have ever
+seen. Many of the figures in this room are very
+much mutilated, yet one can linger here for hours
+with interest. A good number of the statues are
+of uncertain date; they are of great value as works
+of art, and more so as a means of enlightening
+much that has been obscure with respect to
+Lycia, an ancient and celebrated country of Asia
+Minor.</p>
+
+<p>In passing through the eastern Zoological Gallery,
+I was surrounded on every side by an army
+<!-- Page 106 --><a name="Page_106" id="Page_106" title="106" class="pagenum"></a>of portraits suspended upon the walls; and among
+these was the Protector. The people of one
+century kicks his bones through the streets of
+London, another puts his portrait in the British
+Museum, and a future generation may possibly
+give him a place in Westminster Abbey. Such is
+the uncertainty of the human character. Yesterday,
+a common soldier&mdash;to-day, the ruler of an
+empire&mdash;to-morrow, suspended upon the gallows.
+In an adjoining room I saw a portrait of Baxter,
+which gives one a pretty good idea of the great
+Nonconformist. In the same room hung a splendid
+modern portrait, without any intimation in
+the guide-book of who it represented, or when it
+was painted. It was so much like one whom I
+had seen, and on whom my affections were placed
+in my younger days, that I obtained a seat from
+an adjoining room and rested myself before it.
+After sitting half an hour or more, I wandered to
+another part of the building, but only to return
+again to my &quot;first love,&quot; where I remained till the
+throng had disappeared one after another, and
+the officer reminding me that it was time to
+close.</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page 107 --><a name="Page_107" id="Page_107" title="107" class="pagenum"></a>It was eight o'clock before I reached my lodgings.
+Although fatigued by the day's exertions,
+I again resumed the reading of Roscoe's &quot;Leo
+X.,&quot; and had nearly finished seventy-three pages,
+when the clock on St. Martin's Church apprised
+me that it was two. He who escapes from slavery
+at the age of twenty years, without any education,
+as did the writer of this letter, must read
+when others are asleep, if he would catch up with
+the rest of the world. &quot;To be wise,&quot; says Pope,
+&quot;is but to know how little can be known.&quot; The
+true searcher after truth and knowledge is always
+like a child; although gaining strength from year
+to year, he still &quot;learns to labour and to wait.&quot;
+The field of labour is ever expanding before him,
+reminding him that he has yet more to learn;
+teaching him that he is nothing more than a
+child in knowledge, and inviting him onward
+with a thousand varied charms. The son may
+take possession of the father's goods at his death,
+but he cannot inherit with the property the
+father's cultivated mind. He may put on the
+father's old coat, but that is all: the immortal
+mind of the first wearer has gone to the tomb.</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page 108 --><a name="Page_108" id="Page_108" title="108" class="pagenum"></a>Property may be bequeathed, but knowledge
+cannot. Then let him who would be useful in
+his day and generation be up and doing. Like
+the Chinese student who learned perseverance
+from the woman whom he saw trying to rub a
+crow-bar into a needle, so should we take the
+experience of the past to lighten our feet through
+the paths of the future.</p>
+
+<p>The next morning at ten, I was again at the
+door of the great building; was soon within its
+walls seeing what time would not allow of the
+previous day. I spent some hours in looking
+through glass cases, viewing specimens of minerals,
+such as can scarcely be found in any place
+out of the British Museum. During this day I
+did not fail to visit the great Library. It is a
+spacious room, surrounded with large glass cases
+filled with volumes, whose very look tells you that
+they are of age. Around, under the cornice,
+were arranged a number of old black-looking
+portraits, in all probability the authors of some of
+the works in the glass cases beneath. About the
+room were placed long tables, with stands for
+reading and writing, and around these were a
+<!-- Page 109 --><a name="Page_109" id="Page_109" title="109" class="pagenum"></a>number of men busily engaged in looking over
+some chosen author. Old men with grey hairs,
+young men with mustaches&mdash;some in cloth,
+others in fustian, indicating that men of different
+rank can meet here. Not a single word was
+spoken during my stay, all appearing to enjoy
+the silence that reigned throughout the great
+room. This is indeed a retreat from the world.
+No one inquires who the man is who is at his
+side, and each pursues in silence his own researches.
+The racing of pens over the sheets of
+paper was all that disturbed the stillness of the
+occasion.</p>
+
+<p>From the Library I strolled to other rooms,
+and feasted my eyes on what I had never before
+seen. He who goes over this immense building,
+cannot do so without a feeling of admiration for
+the men whose energy has brought together this
+vast and wonderful collection of things, the like of
+which cannot be found in any other museum in
+the world. The reflection of the setting sun
+against a mirror in one of the rooms, told me
+that night was approaching, and I had but a
+moment in which to take another look at the
+<!-- Page 110 --><a name="Page_110" id="Page_110" title="110" class="pagenum"></a>portrait that I had seen the previous day, and
+then bade adieu to the Museum.</p>
+
+<p>Having published the narrative of my life and
+escape from slavery, and put it into the booksellers'
+hands&mdash;and seeing a prospect of a fair sale, I
+ventured to take from my purse the last sovereign
+to make up a small sum to remit to the United
+States, for the support of my daughter, who is at
+school there. Before doing this, however, I had
+made arrangements to attend a public meeting in
+the city of Worcester, at which the mayor was
+to preside. Being informed by the friends of
+the slave there, that I would, in all probability,
+sell a number of copies of my book, and being
+told that Worcester was only ten miles from
+London, I felt safe in parting with all but
+a few shillings, feeling sure that my purse would
+soon be again replenished. But you may guess
+my surprise when I learned that Worcester was
+above a hundred miles from London, and that I
+had not retained money enough to defray my
+expenses to the place. In my haste and wish to
+make up the ten pounds to send to my children,
+I had forgotten that the payment for my lodgings
+<!-- Page 111 --><a name="Page_111" id="Page_111" title="111" class="pagenum"></a>would be demanded before I should leave town.
+Saturday morning came; I paid my lodging bill,
+and had three shillings and fourpence left; and
+out of this sum I was to get three dinners, as I
+was only served with breakfast and tea at my
+lodgings. Nowhere in the British empire do the
+people witness as dark days as in London. It was
+on Monday morning, in the fore part of October,
+as the clock on St. Martin's Church was striking
+ten, that I left my lodgings, and turned into the
+Strand. The street lamps were yet burning, and
+the shops were all lighted as if day had not made
+its appearance. This great thoroughfare, as usual
+at this time of the day, was thronged with business
+men going their way, and women sauntering about
+for pleasure or for the want of something better
+to do. I passed down the Strand to Charing
+Cross, and looked in vain to see the majestic
+statue of Nelson upon the top of the great shaft.
+The clock on St. Martin's Church struck eleven,
+but my sight could not penetrate through the
+dark veil that hung between its face and me. In
+fact, day had been completely turned into night;
+and the brilliant lights from the shop windows
+<!-- Page 112 --><a name="Page_112" id="Page_112" title="112" class="pagenum"></a>almost persuaded me that another day had not
+appeared. Turning, I retraced my steps, and was
+soon passing through the massive gates of Temple
+Bar, wending my way to the city, when a beggar
+boy at my heels accosted me for a half-penny to
+buy bread. I had scarcely served the boy, when
+I observed near by, and standing close to a lamp
+post, a coloured man, and from his general
+appearance I was satisfied that he was an
+American. He eyed me attentively as I passed
+him, and seemed anxious to speak. When I had
+got some distance from him I looked back, and
+his eyes were still upon me. No longer able to
+resist the temptation to speak with him, I returned,
+and commencing conversation with him,
+learned a little of his history, which was as follows.
+He had, he said, escaped from slavery in Maryland,
+and reached New York; but not feeling
+himself secure there, he had, through the kindness
+of the captain of an English ship, made his way
+to Liverpool; and not being able to get employment
+there, he had come up to London.
+Here he had met with no better success; and
+having been employed in the growing of
+<!-- Page 113 --><a name="Page_113" id="Page_113" title="113" class="pagenum"></a>tobacco, and being unaccustomed to any other
+work, he could not get to labour in England.
+I told him he had better try to get to the West
+Indies; but he informed me that he had not a
+single penny, and that he had nothing to eat that
+day. By this man's story, I was moved to tears;
+and going to a neighbouring shop, I took from
+my purse my last shilling, changed it, and gave
+this poor brother fugitive one-half. The poor
+man burst into tears as I placed the sixpence in
+his hand, and said&mdash;&quot;You are the first friend I
+have met in London.&quot; I bade him farewell, and
+left him with a feeling of regret that I could
+not place him beyond the reach of want. I went
+on my way to the city, and while going through
+Cheapside, a streak of light appeared in the east
+that reminded me that it was not night. In vain
+I wandered from street to street, with the hope
+that I might meet some one who would lend me
+money enough to get to Worcester. Hungry and
+fatigued I was returning to my lodgings, when
+the great clock of St Paul's Church, under whose
+shadow I was then passing, struck four. A stroll
+through Fleet Street and the Strand, and I was
+<!-- Page 114 --><a name="Page_114" id="Page_114" title="114" class="pagenum"></a>again pacing my room. On my return, I found a
+letter from Worcester had arrived in my absence,
+informing me that a party of gentlemen would
+meet me the next day on my reaching that place;
+and saying, &quot;Bring plenty of books, as you will
+doubtless sell a large number.&quot; The last sixpence
+had been spent for postage stamps, in
+order to send off some letters to other places,
+and I could not even stamp a letter in answer to
+the one last from Worcester. The only vestige
+of money about me was a smooth farthing that a
+little girl had given to me at the meeting at
+Croydon, saying, &quot;This is for the slaves.&quot; I
+was three thousand miles from home, with but a
+single farthing in my pocket! Where on earth is
+a man without money more destitute? The cold
+hills of the Arctic regions have not a more inhospitable
+appearance than London to the stranger
+with an empty pocket. But whilst I felt depressed
+at being in such a sad condition, I was conscious
+that I had done right in remitting the last ten
+pounds to America. It was for the support of
+those whom God had committed to my care, and
+whom I love as I can no others. I had no
+<!-- Page 115 --><a name="Page_115" id="Page_115" title="115" class="pagenum"></a>friend in London to whom I could apply for temporary
+aid. My friend, Mr. Thompson, was out
+of town, and I did not know his address. The dark
+day was rapidly passing away&mdash;the clock in
+the hall had struck six. I had given up all
+hopes of reaching Worcester the next day, and
+had just rung the bell for the servant to bring me
+some tea, when a gentle tap at the door was
+heard&mdash;the servant entered, and informed me
+that a gentleman below was wishing to see me.
+I bade her fetch a light and ask him up. The
+stranger was my young friend Frederick Stevenson,
+son of the excellent minister of the Borough
+Road Chapel. I had lectured in this chapel a
+few days previous; and this young gentleman,
+with more than ordinary zeal and enthusiasm for
+the cause of bleeding humanity, and respect for
+me, had gone amongst his father's congregation
+and sold a number of copies of my book, and had
+come to bring me the money. I wiped the silent
+tear from my eyes as the young man placed the
+thirteen half-crowns in my hand. I did not
+let him know under what obligation I was to him
+for this disinterested act of kindness. He does
+<!-- Page 116 --><a name="Page_116" id="Page_116" title="116" class="pagenum"></a>not know to this day what aid he has rendered
+to a stranger in a strange land, and I feel that I
+am but discharging in a trifling degree, my debt
+of gratitude to this young gentleman, in acknowledging
+my obligation to him. As the man who
+called for bread and cheese, when feeling in
+his pocket for the last threepence to pay for it,
+found a sovereign that he was not aware he possessed,
+countermanded the order for the lunch,
+and bade them bring him the best dinner they
+could get; so I told the servant when she brought
+the tea, that I had changed my mind, and should
+go out to dine. With the means in my pocket
+of reaching Worcester the next day, I sat down
+to dinner at the Adelphi with a good cut of roast
+beef before me, and felt myself once more at
+home. Thus ended a dark day in London.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<div><a name="Page_117" id="Page_117" title="117" class="pagenum"></a></div>
+<h2><a name="LETTER_X" id="LETTER_X"></a><!-- Page 117 -->LETTER X.</h2>
+
+<h3>The Whittington Club&mdash;Louis Blanc&mdash;Street
+Amusements&mdash;Tower of London&mdash;Westminster
+Abbey&mdash;National Gallery&mdash;Dante&mdash;Sir
+Joshua Reynolds.</h3>
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">London</span>, <i>October 10</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">For</span> some days past, Sol has not shown his face,
+clouds have obscured the sky, and the rain has
+fallen in torrents, which has contributed much to
+the general gloom. However, I have spent the
+time in as agreeable a manner as I well could.
+Yesterday I fulfilled an engagement to dine with
+a gentleman at the Whittington Club. One who
+is unacquainted with the Club system as carried
+on in London, can scarcely imagine the conveniences
+they present. Every member appears
+to be at home, and all seem to own a share in the
+Club. There is a free-and-easy way with those
+who frequent Clubs, and a licence given there that
+is unknown in the drawing-room of the private
+mansion. I met the gentleman at the Club, at
+<!-- Page 118 --><a name="Page_118" id="Page_118" title="118" class="pagenum"></a>the appointed hour, and after his writing my
+name in the visitors' book, we proceeded to the
+dining-room, where we partook of a good dinner.</p>
+
+<p>We had been in the room but a short time,
+when a small man, dressed in black, with his coat
+buttoned up to the chin, entered the saloon, and
+took a seat at the table hard by. My friend in a
+low whisper informed me that this person was one
+of the French refugees. He was apparently not
+more than thirty years of age, and exceedingly
+good looking&mdash;his person being slight, his feet
+and hands very small and well shaped, especially
+his hands, which were covered with kid gloves, so
+tightly drawn on, that the points of the finger
+nails were visible through them. His face was
+mild and almost womanly in its beauty, his eyes
+soft and full, his brow open and ample, his features
+well defined, and approaching to the ideal
+Greek in contour; the lines about his mouth were
+exquisitely sweet, and yet resolute in expression;
+his hair was short&mdash;his having no mustaches gave
+him nothing of the look of a Frenchman; and I
+was not a little surprised when informed that the
+person before me was Louis Blanc. I could
+<!-- Page 119 --><a name="Page_119" id="Page_119" title="119" class="pagenum"></a>scarcely be persuaded to believe that one so small,
+so child-like in stature, had taken a prominent
+part in the Revolution of 1848. He held in his
+hand a copy of <i>La Presse</i>, and as soon as he
+was seated, opened it and began to devour its
+contents. The gentleman with whom I was
+dining was not acquainted with him, but at the
+close of our dinner he procured me an introduction
+through another gentleman.</p>
+
+<p>As we were returning to our lodgings, we saw
+in Exeter Street, Strand, one of those exhibitions
+that can be seen in almost any of the streets in
+the suburbs of the Metropolis, but which is something
+of a novelty to those from the other side of
+the Atlantic. This was an exhibition of &quot;Punch
+and Judy.&quot; Everything was in full operation when
+we reached the spot. A puppet appeared eight or
+ten inches from the waist upwards, with an enormous
+face, huge nose, mouth widely grinning, projecting
+chin, cheeks covered with grog blossoms, a
+large protuberance on his back, another on his
+chest; yet with these deformities he appeared
+uncommonly happy. This was Mr. Punch. He
+held in his right hand a tremendous bludgeon,
+<!-- Page 120 --><a name="Page_120" id="Page_120" title="120" class="pagenum"></a>with which he amused himself by rapping on the
+head every one who came within his reach. This
+exhibition seems very absurd, yet not less than
+one hundred were present&mdash;children, boys, old
+men, and even gentlemen and ladies, were standing
+by, and occasionally greeting the performer
+with the smile of approbation. Mr. Punch,
+however, was not to have it all his own way, for
+another and better sort of Punch-like exhibition
+appeared a few yards off, that took away Mr.
+Punch's audience, to the great dissatisfaction
+of that gentleman. This was an exhibition
+called the Fantoccini, and far superior to any
+of the street performances which I have yet
+seen. The curtain rose and displayed a beautiful
+theatre in miniature, and most gorgeously
+painted. The organ which accompanied it
+struck up a hornpipe, and a sailor, dressed in his
+blue jacket, made his appearance and commenced
+keeping time with the utmost correctness. This
+figure was not so long as Mr. Punch, but much
+better looking. At the close of the hornpipe the
+little sailor made a bow, and tripped off, apparently
+conscious of having deserved the undivided ap<!-- Page 121 --><a name="Page_121" id="Page_121" title="121" class="pagenum"></a>plause
+of the bystanders. The curtain dropped;
+but in two or three minutes it was again up, and a
+rope was discovered, extended on two cross pieces,
+for dancing upon. The tune was changed to an
+air, in which the time was marked, a graceful figure
+appeared, jumped upon the rope with its balance
+pole, and displayed all the manoeuvres of an expert
+performer on the tight rope. Many who
+would turn away in disgust from Mr. Punch, will
+stand for hours and look at the performances of
+the Fantoccini. If people, like the Vicar of
+Wakefield, will sometimes &quot;allow themselves to
+be happy,&quot; they can hardly fail to have a hearty
+laugh at the drolleries of the Fantoccini. There
+may be degrees of absurdity in the manner of
+wasting our time, but there is an evident affectation
+in decrying these humble and innocent
+exhibitions, by those who will sit till two or three
+in the morning to witness a pantomime at a
+theatre-royal.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p>An autumn sun shone brightly through a
+remarkably transparent atmosphere this morning,
+which was a most striking contrast to the weather
+<!-- Page 122 --><a name="Page_122" id="Page_122" title="122" class="pagenum"></a>we have had during the past three days; and I
+again set out to see some of the lions of the city,
+commencing with the Tower of London. Every
+American, on returning home from a visit to the
+old world, speaks with pride of the places he saw
+while in Europe; and of the many resorts of
+interest he has read of, few have made a more
+lasting impression upon his memory than the
+Tower of London. The stories of the imprisoning
+of kings, and queens, the murdering of princes,
+the torturing of men and women, without regard
+to birth, education, or station, and of the burning
+and rebuilding of the old pile, have all sunk deep
+into his heart. A walk of twenty minutes, after
+being set down at the Bank by an omnibus,
+brought me to the gate of the Tower. A party of
+friends who were to meet me there had not
+arrived, so I had an opportunity of inspecting the
+grounds and taking a good view of the external
+appearance of the old and celebrated building.
+The Tower is <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;surounded&quot; in the original text">surrounded</ins> by a high wall, and
+around this a deep ditch partly filled with stagnated
+water. The wall incloses twelve acres of
+ground on which stand the several towers, occupy<!-- Page 123 --><a name="Page_123" id="Page_123" title="123" class="pagenum"></a>ing,
+with their walks and avenues, the whole space.
+The most ancient part of the building is called the
+&quot;White Tower,&quot; so as to distinguish it from the
+parts more recently built. Its walls are seventeen
+feet in thickness, and ninety-two in height, exclusive
+of the turrets, of which there are four.
+My company arrived, and we entered the tower
+through four massive gates, the innermost one
+being pointed out as the &quot;Water, or Traitors'
+Gate&quot;&mdash;so called from the fact that it opened to the
+river, and through it the criminals were usually
+brought to the prison within. But this passage
+is now closed up. We visited the various apartments
+in the old building. The room in the
+Bloody Tower, where the infant princes were
+put to death by the command of their uncle,
+Richard III.; also, the recess behind the gate
+where the bones of the young princes were concealed,
+were shown to us. The warden of the
+prison who showed us through, seemed to have
+little or no veneration for Henry VIII.; for he often
+cracked a joke, or told a story at the expense of the
+murderer of Anne Boleyn. The old man wiped
+the tear from his eye, as he pointed out the grave
+<!-- Page 124 --><a name="Page_124" id="Page_124" title="124" class="pagenum"></a>of Lady Jane Grey. This was doubtless one of
+the best as well as most innocent of those who lost
+their lives in the Tower; young, virtuous, and
+handsome, she became a victim to the ambition
+of her own and her husband's relations. I tried
+to count the names on the wall in &quot;Beauchamp's
+Tower,&quot; but they were too numerous. Anne
+Boleyn was imprisoned here. The room in the
+&quot;Brick Tower,&quot; where Lady Jane Grey was
+imprisoned, was pointed out as a place
+of interest. We were next shown into the
+&quot;White Tower.&quot; We passed through a long
+room filled with many things having a warlike
+appearance; and among them a number of
+equestrian figures, as large as life, and clothed
+in armour and trappings of the various reigns
+from Edward I. to James II., or from 1272
+to 1685. Elizabeth, or the &quot;Maiden Queen,&quot;
+as the warden called her, was the most imposing
+of the group; she was on a cream coloured
+charger. We left the Maiden Queen to examine
+the cloak upon which General Wolf died,
+at the storming of Quebec. In this room Sir
+Walter Raleigh was imprisoned, and here was
+<!-- Page 125 --><a name="Page_125" id="Page_125" title="125" class="pagenum"></a>written his &quot;History of the World.&quot; In his
+own hand, upon the wall, is written, &quot;Be
+thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a
+crown of life.&quot; His Bible is still shown, with
+these memorable lines written in it by himself a
+short time before his death:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<div><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&quot;Even such is Time that takes on trust,</span></div>
+<div>Our youth, our joy, our all we have,</div>
+<div>And pays us but with age and dust;</div>
+<div>Who in the dark and silent grave,</div>
+<div>When we have wandered all our ways,</div>
+<div>Shuts up the story of our days.&quot;</div>
+</div></div>
+
+<p class="noindent">Spears, battle-axes, pikes, helmets, targets,
+bows and arrows, and many instruments of torture,
+whose names I did not learn, grace the
+walls of this room. The block on which the
+Earl of Essex and Anne Boleyn were beheaded,
+was shown among other objects of interest. A
+view of the &quot;Queen's Jewels&quot; closed our visit to
+the Tower. The Gold Staff of St. Edward, and the
+Baptismal Font used at the Royal christenings,
+made of solid silver, and more than four feet high,
+were among the jewels here exhibited. The
+Sword of Justice was there, as if to watch the rest
+<!-- Page 126 --><a name="Page_126" id="Page_126" title="126" class="pagenum"></a>of the valuables. However, this was not the
+sword that Peter used. Our acquaintance with
+De Foe, Sir Walter Raleigh, Chaucer, and James
+Montgomery, through their writings, and the
+knowledge that they had been incarcerated within
+the walls of the bastile that we were just leaving,
+caused us to look back again and again upon its
+dark grey turrets.</p>
+
+<p>I closed the day with a look at the interior of
+St. Paul's Cathedral. A service was just over, and
+we met a crowd coming out as we entered the
+great building. &quot;Service is over, and two pence
+for all that wants to stay,&quot; was the first sound that
+caught our ears. In the Burlesque of &quot;Esmeralda,&quot;
+a man is met in the belfry of the Notre
+Dame at Paris, and being asked for money by one
+of the vergers says:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<div><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&quot;I paid three pence at the door,</span></div>
+<div>And since I came in a great deal more:</div>
+<div>Upon my honour you have emptied my purse,</div>
+<div>St. Paul's Cathedral could not do worse.&quot;</div>
+</div></div>
+
+<p class="noindent">I felt inclined to join in this sentiment before I
+left the church. A fine statue of &quot;Surly Sam&quot;
+Johnson was one of the first things that caught
+<!-- Page 127 --><a name="Page_127" id="Page_127" title="127" class="pagenum"></a>our eyes on looking around. A statue of Sir
+Edward Packenham, who fell at the Battle of New
+Orleans, was on the opposite side of the great
+hall. As we had walked over the ground where
+this General fell, we viewed his statue with more
+than ordinary interest. We were taken from
+one scene of interest to another, until we found
+ourselves in the &quot;Whispering Gallery.&quot; From
+the dome we had a splendid view of the Metropolis
+of the world. A scaffold was erected up here
+to enable an artist to take sketches from which a
+panorama of London was painted. The artist
+was three years at work. The painting is now
+exhibited at the Colosseum; but the brain of the
+artist was turned, and he died insane! Indeed,
+one can scarcely conceive how it could be otherwise.
+You in America have no idea of the immensity
+of this building. Pile together half-a-dozen
+of the largest churches in New York or Boston,
+and you will have but a faint representation of
+St. Paul's Cathedral.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p>I have just returned from a stroll of two hours
+through Westminster Abbey. We entered the
+<!-- Page 128 --><a name="Page_128" id="Page_128" title="128" class="pagenum"></a>building at a door near Poets' Corner, and, naturally
+enough, looked around for the monuments
+of the men whose imaginative powers have contributed
+so much to instruct and amuse mankind.
+I was not a little disappointed in the few I saw.
+In almost any church-yard you may see monuments
+and tombs far superior to anything in the
+Poets' Corner. A few only have monuments.
+Shakspere, who wrote of man to man, and for
+man to the end of time, is honoured with one.
+Addison's monument is also there; but the
+greater number have nothing more erected to
+their memories than busts or medallions. Poets'
+Corner is not splendid in appearance, yet I
+observed visiters lingering about it, as if they
+were tied to the spot by love and veneration
+for some departed friend. All seemed to regard
+it as classic ground. No sound louder than a
+whisper was heard during the whole time, except
+the verger treading over the marble floor with a
+light step. There is great pleasure in sauntering
+about the tombs of those with whom we are
+familiar through their writings; and we tear
+ourselves from their ashes, as we would from
+<!-- Page 129 --><a name="Page_129" id="Page_129" title="129" class="pagenum"></a>those of a bosom friend. The genius of these
+men spreads itself over the whole panorama of
+Nature, giving us one vast and varied picture,
+the colour of which will endure to the end of
+time. None can portray like the poet the passions
+of the human soul. The statue of Addison,
+clad in his dressing-gown, is not far from that of
+Shakspere. He looks as if he had just left the
+study, after finishing some chosen paper for
+the <i>Spectator</i>. This memento of a great man,
+was the work of the British public. Such a
+mark of national respect was but justice to one
+who has contributed more to purify and raise the
+standard of English literature, than any man of
+his day. We next visited the other end of the
+same transept, near the northern door. Here lie
+Mansfield, Chatham, Fox, the second William
+Pitt, Grattan, Wilberforce, and a few other
+statesmen. But, above all, is the stately monument
+to the Earl of Chatham. In no other place
+so small, do so many great men lie together. To
+these men, whose graves strangers from all parts
+of the world wish to view, the British public are
+in a great measure indebted for England's fame.
+<!-- Page 130 --><a name="Page_130" id="Page_130" title="130" class="pagenum"></a>The high pre-eminence which England has so
+long enjoyed and maintained in the scale of
+empire, has constantly been the boast and pride
+of the English people. The warm panegyrics
+that have been lavished on her constitution and
+laws&mdash;the songs chaunted to celebrate her glory&mdash;the
+lustre of her arms, as the glowing theme of
+her warriors&mdash;the thunder of her artillery in proclaiming
+her moral prowess, her flag being unfurled
+to every breeze and ocean, rolling to her
+shores the tribute of a thousand realms&mdash;show
+England to be the greatest nation in the world, and
+speak volumes for the great departed, as well as
+for those of the living present. One requires no
+company, no amusements, no books in such a
+place as this. Time and death have placed within
+those walls sufficient to occupy the mind, if one
+should stay here a week.</p>
+
+<p>On my return, I spent an hour very pleasantly
+in the National Academy, in the same building
+as the National Gallery. Many of the paintings
+here are of a fine order. Oliver Cromwell looking
+upon the headless corpse of King Charles
+I., appeared to draw the greatest number of spec<!-- Page 131 --><a name="Page_131" id="Page_131" title="131" class="pagenum"></a>tators.
+A scene from &quot;As You Like it,&quot; was one
+of the best executed pieces we saw. This was
+&quot;Rosalind, Celia, and Orlando.&quot; The artist did
+himself and the subject great credit. Kemble, in
+Hamlet, with that ever memorable skull in his
+hand, was one of the pieces which we viewed with
+no little interest. It is strange that Hamlet is
+always represented as a thin, lean man, when the
+Hamlet of Shakspere was a fat, John Bull-kind of
+a man. But the best piece in the Gallery was
+&quot;Dante meditating the episode of Francesca da
+Rimini and Paolo Malatesta, S'Inferno, Canto
+V.&quot; Our first interest for the great Italian poet
+was created by reading Lord Byron's poem,
+&quot;The Lament of Dante.&quot; From that hour we
+felt like examining everything connected with the
+great Italian poet. The history of poets, as well
+as painters, is written in their works. The best
+written life of Goldsmith is to be found in his
+poem of &quot;The Traveller,&quot; and his novel of &quot;The
+Vicar of Wakefield.&quot; Boswell could not have
+written a better life of himself than he has done
+in giving the Biography of Dr. Johnson. It
+seems clear that no one can be a great poet with<!-- Page 132 --><a name="Page_132" id="Page_132" title="132" class="pagenum"></a>out
+having been sometime during life a lover, and
+having lost the object of his affection in some
+mysterious way. Burns had his Highland Mary,
+Byron his Mary, and Dante was not without his
+Beatrice. Whether there ever lived such a
+person as Beatrice seems to be a question
+upon which neither of his biographers have
+thrown much light. However, a Beatrice existed in
+the poet's mind, if not on earth. His attachment
+to Beatrice Portinari, and the linking of her
+name with the immortality of his great poem,
+left an indelible impression upon his future
+character. The marriage of the object of his
+affections to another, and her subsequent death,
+and the poet's exile from his beloved Florence,
+together with his death amongst strangers&mdash;all
+give an interest to the poet's writings, which
+could not be heightened by romance itself. When
+exiled and in poverty, Dante found a friend in the
+father of Francesca. And here, under the roof of
+his protector, he wrote his great poem. The
+time the painter has chosen is evening. Day and
+night meet in mid-air: one star is alone visible.
+Sailing in vacancy are the shadows of the lovers.
+<!-- Page 133 --><a name="Page_133" id="Page_133" title="133" class="pagenum"></a>The countenance of Francesca is expressive of
+hopeless agony. The delineations are sublime,
+the conception is of the highest order, and the
+execution admirable. Dante is seated in a marble
+vestibule, in a meditating attitude, the face partly
+concealed by the right hand upon which it is
+resting. On the whole, it is an excellently
+painted piece, and causes one to go back with a
+fresh relish to the Italian's celebrated poem. In
+coming out, we stopped a short while in the upper
+room of the Gallery, and spent a few minutes
+over a painting representing Mrs. Siddons in
+one of Shakspere's characters. This is by Sir
+Joshua Reynolds, and is only one of the many
+pieces that we have seen of this great artist. His
+genius was vast, and powerful in its grasp. His
+fancy fertile, and his inventive faculty inexhaustible
+in its resources. He displayed the very
+highest powers of genius by the thorough originality
+of his conceptions, and by the entirely new
+path that he struck out in art. Well may
+Englishmen be proud of his name. And as time
+shall step between his day and those that follow
+after him, the more will his works be appreciated.
+<!-- Page 134 --><a name="Page_134" id="Page_134" title="134" class="pagenum"></a>We have since visited his grave, and stood over
+his monument in St. Paul's.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="LETTER_XI" id="LETTER_XI"></a>LETTER XI.</h2>
+
+<h3>York Minster&mdash;The Great Organ&mdash;Newcastle-on-Tyne&mdash;The
+Labouring Classes&mdash;The American
+Slave&mdash;Sheffield&mdash;James Montgomery.</h3>
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><i>January, 1850</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Some</span> days since, I left the Metropolis to fulfil a
+few engagements to visit provincial towns; and
+after a ride of nearly eight hours, we were in
+sight of the ancient city of York. It was night,
+the moon was in her zenith, and there seemed
+nothing between her and the earth but glittering
+gold. The moon, the stars, and the innumerable
+gas-lights, gave the city a panoramic appearance.
+Like a mountain starting out of a plain, there
+stood the Cathedral in all its glory, looking down
+upon the surrounding buildings, with all the
+appearance of a Gulliver standing over the Lilli<!-- Page 135 --><a name="Page_135" id="Page_135" title="135" class="pagenum"></a>putians.
+Night gave us no opportunity to view
+the Minster. However, we were up the next
+morning before the sun, and walking round the
+Cathedral with a degree of curiosity seldom
+excited within us. It is thought that a building
+of the same dimensions would take fifty years to
+complete it at the present time, even with all the
+improvements of the nineteenth century, and
+would cost no less than the enormous sum of two
+millions of pounds sterling. From what I had
+heard of this famous Cathedral, my expectations
+were raised to the highest point; but it surpassed
+all the idea that I had formed of it. On entering
+the building, we lost all thought of the external
+appearance by the matchless beauty of the interior.
+The echo produced by the tread of our feet
+upon the floor as we entered, resounding through
+the aisles, seemed to say &quot;Put off your shoes, for
+the place whereon you tread is holy ground.&quot;
+We stood with hat in hand, and gazed with
+wonder and astonishment down the incomparable
+vista of more than five hundred feet. The organ,
+which stands near the centre of the building, is
+said to be one of the finest in the world. A
+<!-- Page 136 --><a name="Page_136" id="Page_136" title="136" class="pagenum"></a>wall, in front of which is a screen of the most
+gorgeous and florid architecture and executed in
+solid stone, separates the nave from the service
+choir. The beautiful workmanship of this makes
+it appear so perfect, as almost to produce the belief
+that it is tracery work of wood. We ascended
+the rough stone steps through a winding stair to
+the turrets, where we had such a view of the surrounding
+country, as can be obtained from no
+other place. On the top of the centre and highest
+turret, is a grotesque figure of a fiddler; rather
+a strange looking object, we thought, to occupy
+the most elevated pinnacle on the house of God.
+All dwellings in the neighbourhood appear like so
+many dwarfs couching at the feet of the Minster;
+while its own vastness and beauty impress the
+observer with feelings of awe and sublimity. As
+we stood upon the top of this stupendous mountain
+of ecclesiastical architecture, and surveyed
+the picturesque hills and valleys around, imagination
+recalled the tumult of the sanguinary
+battles fought in sight of the edifice. The rebellion
+of Octavius near three thousand years ago,
+his defeat and flight to the Scots, his return and
+<!-- Page 137 --><a name="Page_137" id="Page_137" title="137" class="pagenum"></a>triumph over the Romans, and being crowned
+king of all Britain; the assassination of Oswald
+king of the Northumbrians; the flaying alive of
+Osbert; the crowning of Richard III; the siege
+by William the Conqueror; the siege by Cromwell,
+and the pomp and splendour with which the
+different monarchs had been received in York,
+all appeared to be vividly before me. While we
+were thus calling to our aid our knowledge of
+history, a sweet peal from the lungs of the ponderous
+organ below cut short our stay among the
+turrets, and we descended to have our organ of
+tune gratified, as well as to finish the inspection
+of the interior.</p>
+
+<p>I have heard the sublime melodies of Handel,
+Hayden, and Mozart, performed by the most
+skilful <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;muscians&quot; in the original text">musicians</ins>; I have listened with delight
+and awe to the soul-moving compositions of those
+masters, as they have been chaunted in the most
+magnificent churches; but never did I hear such
+music, and played upon such an instrument, as
+that sent forth by the great organ in the
+Cathedral of York. The verger took much
+delight in showing us the Horn that was once
+<!-- Page 138 --><a name="Page_138" id="Page_138" title="138" class="pagenum"></a>mounted with gold, but is now garnished with
+brass. We viewed the monuments and tombs of
+the departed, and then spent an hour before the
+great north window. The designs on the painted
+glass, which tradition states was given to the
+church by five virgin sisters, is the finest thing of
+the kind in Great Britain. I felt a relief on once
+more coming into the open air and again beholding
+Nature's own sun-light. The splendid ruins of
+St. Mary's Abbey, with its eight beautiful light
+gothic windows, next attracted our attention. A
+visit to the Castle finished our stay in York; and
+as we were leaving the old city we almost
+imagined that we heard the chiming of the bells
+for the celebration of the first Christian Sabbath,
+with Prince Arthur as the presiding genius.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p>England stands pre-eminently the first government
+in the world for freedom of speech and of
+the press. Not even in our own beloved America,
+can the man who feels himself oppressed speak
+as he can in Great Britain. In some parts of
+England, however, the freedom of thought is
+tolerated to a greater extent than in others; and
+<!-- Page 139 --><a name="Page_139" id="Page_139" title="139" class="pagenum"></a>of the places favourable to reforms of all kinds,
+calculated to elevate and benefit mankind, Newcastle-on-Tyne
+doubtless takes the lead. Surrounded
+by innumerable coal mines, it furnishes
+employment for a large labouring population,
+many of whom take a deep interest in the
+passing events of the day, and, consequently,
+are a reading class. The public debater or
+speaker, no matter what may be his subject,
+who fails to get an audience in other towns, is
+sure of a gathering in the Music Hall, or Lecture
+Room in Newcastle. Here I first had an opportunity
+of coming in contact with a portion of the
+labouring people of Britain. I have addressed
+large and influential meetings in Newcastle and
+the neighbouring towns, and the more I see and
+learn of the condition of the working-classes of
+England the more I am satisfied of the utter
+fallacy of the statements often made that their
+condition approximates to that of the slaves of
+America. Whatever may be the disadvantages
+that the British peasant labours under, he is
+free; and if he is not satisfied with his employer
+he can make choice of another. He also has the
+<!-- Page 140 --><a name="Page_140" id="Page_140" title="140" class="pagenum"></a>right to educate his children; and he is the equal
+of the most wealthy person before an English
+Court of Justice. But how is it with the
+American Slave? He has no right to himself,
+no right to protect his wife, his child, or his own
+person. He is nothing more than a living tool.
+Beyond his field or workshop he knows nothing.
+There is no amount of ignorance he is not
+capable of. He has not the least idea of the face
+of this earth, nor of the history or constitution
+of the country in which he dwells. To him the
+literature, science, and art&mdash;the progressive
+history, and the accumulated discoveries of <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;byegone&quot; in the original text">bygone</ins>
+ages, are as if they had never been. The
+past is to him as yesterday, and the future
+scarcely more than to-morrow. Ancestral monuments,
+he has none; written documents fraught
+with cogitations of other times, he has none;
+and any instrumentality calculated to awaken
+and expound the intellectual activity and comprehension
+of a present or approaching generation,
+he has none. His condition is that of the
+leopard of his own native Africa. It lives, it
+propagates its kind; but never does it indicate a
+<!-- Page 141 --><a name="Page_141" id="Page_141" title="141" class="pagenum"></a>movement towards that all but angelic intelligence
+of man. The slave eats, drinks, and sleeps&mdash;all
+for the benefit of the man who claims his body
+as his property. Before the tribunals of his
+country he has no voice. He has no higher
+appeal than the mere will of his owner. He
+knows nothing of the inspired Apostles through
+their writings. He has no Sabbath, no Church,
+no Bible, no means of grace,&mdash;and yet we are
+told that he is as well off as the labouring classes
+of England. It is not enough that the people of
+my country should point to their Declaration of
+Independence which declares that &quot;all men are
+created equal.&quot; It is not enough that they
+should laud to the skies a constitution containing
+boasting declarations in favour of freedom.
+It is not enough that they should extol the
+genius of Washington, the patriotism of Henry,
+or the enthusiasm of Otis. The time has come
+when nations are judged by the acts of the
+present instead of the past. And so it must be
+with America. In no place in the United Kingdom
+has the American Slave warmer friends
+than in Newcastle.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p><!-- Page 142 --><a name="Page_142" id="Page_142" title="142" class="pagenum"></a>I am now in Sheffield, and have just returned
+from a visit to James Montgomery, the poet. In
+company with James Wall, Esq., I proceeded to
+The Mount, the residence of Mr. Montgomery;
+and our names being sent in, we were soon in the
+presence of the &quot;Christian Poet.&quot; He held in
+his left hand the <i>Eclectic Review</i> for the
+month, and with the right gave me a hearty
+shake, and bade me &quot;Welcome to old England.&quot;
+He was anything but like the portraits I had
+seen of him, and the man I had in my mind's eye.
+I had just been reading his &quot;Pelican Island,&quot;
+and I eyed the poet with no little interest. He
+is under the middle size, his forehead high and
+well formed, the top of which was a little bald;
+his hair of a yellowish colour, his eyes rather
+small and deep set, the nose long and slightly
+<ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;acquiline&quot; in the original text">aquiline</ins>, his mouth rather small, and not at all
+pretty. He was dressed in black, and a large
+white cravat entirely hid his neck and chin: his
+having been afflicted from childhood with salt-rhum,
+was doubtless the cause of his chin being so
+completely buried in the neckcloth. Upon the
+<!-- Page 143 --><a name="Page_143" id="Page_143" title="143" class="pagenum"></a>whole, he looked more like one of our American
+Methodist parsons, than any one I have seen in
+this country. He entered freely into conversation
+with us. He said he should be glad to attend
+my lecture that evening, but that he had
+long since quit going out at night. He mentioned
+having heard William Lloyd Garrison
+some years before, and with whom he was well
+pleased. He said it had long been a puzzle to
+him, how Americans could hold slaves and still
+retain their membership in the churches. When
+we rose to leave, the old man took my hand between
+his two, and with tears in his eyes said, &quot;Go
+on your Christian mission, and may the Lord protect
+and prosper you. Your enslaved countrymen
+have my sympathy, and shall have my prayers.&quot;
+Thus ended our visit to the Bard of Sheffield.
+Long after I had quitted the presence of the poet,
+the following lines of his were ringing in my
+ears:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<div><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&quot;Wanderer, whither dost thou roam?</span></div>
+<div>Weary wanderer, old and grey,</div>
+<div>Wherefore has thou left thine home,</div>
+<div>In the sunset of thy day.</div>
+<div><!-- Page 144 --><a name="Page_144" id="Page_144" title="144" class="pagenum"></a>Welcome wanderer as thou art,</div>
+<div>All my blessings to partake;</div>
+<div>Yet thrice welcome to my heart,</div>
+<div>For thine injured people's sake.</div>
+<div>Wanderer, whither would'st thou roam?</div>
+<div>To what region far away?</div>
+<div>Bend thy steps to find a home,</div>
+<div>In the twilight of thy day.</div>
+<div>Where a tyrant never trod,</div>
+<div>Where a slave was never known&mdash;</div>
+<div>But where Nature worships God</div>
+<div>In the wilderness alone.&quot;</div>
+</div></div>
+
+
+<p>Mr. Montgomery seems to have thrown his
+entire soul into his meditations on the wrongs of
+Switzerland. The poem from which we have
+just quoted, is unquestionably one of his best
+productions, and contains more of the fire of
+enthusiasm than all his other works. We feel a
+reverence almost amounting to superstition, for
+the poet who deals with nature. And who is
+more capable of understanding the human heart
+than the poet? Who has better known the
+human feelings than Shakspere; better painted
+than Milton, the grandeur of Virtue; better
+sighed than Byron over the subtle weaknesses of
+<!-- Page 145 --><a name="Page_145" id="Page_145" title="145" class="pagenum"></a>Hope? Who ever had a sounder taste, a more
+exact intellect than Dante? or who has ever
+tuned his harp more in favour of Freedom, than
+our own <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: Erratum applied, &quot;Dante&quot; in the original text">Whittier</ins>?</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="LETTER_XII" id="LETTER_XII"></a>LETTER XII.</h2>
+
+<h3>Kirkstall Abbey&mdash;Mary the Maid of the Inn&mdash;Newstead
+Abbey: Residence of Lord Byron&mdash;Parish
+Church of Hucknall&mdash;Burial Place
+of Lord Byron&mdash;Bristol: &quot;Cook's Folly&quot;&mdash;Chepstow
+Castle and Abbey&mdash;Tintern Abbey&mdash;Redcliffe
+Church.</h3>
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><i>January 29</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">In</span> passing through Yorkshire, we could not
+resist the temptation it offered, to pay a visit to
+the extensive and interesting ruin of Kirkstall
+Abbey, which lies embosomed in a beautiful recess
+of Airedale, about three miles from Leeds. A
+pleasant drive over a smooth road, brought us
+abruptly in sight of the Abbey. The tranquil and
+<!-- Page 146 --><a name="Page_146" id="Page_146" title="146" class="pagenum"></a>pensive beauty of the desolate Monastery, as it
+reposes in the lap of pastoral luxuriance, and amidst
+the touching associations of seven centuries, is
+almost beyond description when viewed from
+where we first beheld it. After arriving at its
+base, we stood for some moments under the mighty
+arches that lead into the great hall, gazing at its
+old grey walls frowning with age. At the distance
+of a small field, the Aire is seen gliding past
+the foot of the lawn on which the ruin stands,
+after it has left those precincts, sparkling over a
+weir with a pleasing murmur. We could fully enter
+into the feelings of the Poet when he says:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<div><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&quot;Beautiful fabric! even in decay</span></div>
+<div class="i1">And desolation, beauty still is thine;</div>
+<div>As the rich sunset of an autumn day,</div>
+<div class="i1">When gorgeous clouds in glorious hues combine</div>
+<div>To render homage to its slow decline,</div>
+<div class="i1">Is more majestic in its parting hour:</div>
+<div>Even so thy mouldering, venerable shrine</div>
+<div class="i1">Possesses now a more subduing power,</div>
+<div>Than in thine earlier sway, with pomp and pride thy dower.&quot;</div>
+</div></div>
+
+
+<p>The tale of &quot;Mary, the Maid of the Inn,&quot; is
+<!-- Page 147 --><a name="Page_147" id="Page_147" title="147" class="pagenum"></a>supposed, and not without foundation, to be connected
+with this Abbey. &quot;Hark to Rover,&quot; the
+name of the house where the key is kept, was, a
+century ago, a retired inn or pot-house, and the
+haunt of many a desperate highwayman and
+poacher. The anecdote is so well known, that it
+is scarcely necessary to relate it. It, however, is
+briefly this:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>&quot;One stormy night, as two travellers sat at
+the inn, each having exhausted his news,
+the conversation was directed to the Abbey, the
+boisterous night, and Mary's heroism; when a
+bet was at last made by one of them, that she
+would not go and bring back from the nave a
+slip of the alder-tree growing there. Mary, however,
+did go; but having nearly reached the tree,
+she heard a low, indistinct dialogue; at the same
+time, something black fell and rolled towards her,
+which afterwards proved to be a hat. Directing
+her attention to the place whence the conversation
+proceeded, she saw, from behind a pillar, two
+men carrying a murdered body: they passed near
+the place where she stood, a heavy cloud was
+swept from off the face of the moon, and Mary
+<!-- Page 148 --><a name="Page_148" id="Page_148" title="148" class="pagenum"></a>fell senseless&mdash;one of the murderers was her
+intended husband! She was awakened from her
+swoon, but&mdash;her reason had fled for ever.&quot; Mr.
+Southey wrote a beautiful poem founded on this
+story, which will be found in his published works.
+We spent nearly three hours in wandering through
+these splendid ruins. It is both curious and interesting
+to trace the early history of these old
+piles, which become the resort of thousands,
+nine-tenths of whom are unaware either of the
+classic ground on which they tread, or of the
+peculiar interest thrown around the spot by the
+deeds of remote ages.</p>
+
+<p>During our stay in Leeds, we had the
+good fortune to become acquainted with Wilson
+Armistead, Esq. This gentleman is well
+known as an able writer against Slavery. His
+most elaborate work is &quot;A Tribute for the
+Negro.&quot; This is a volume of 560 pages, and is
+replete with facts refuting the charges of inferiority
+brought against the Negro race. Few
+English gentlemen have done more to hasten the
+day of the American slave's liberation, than
+Wilson Armistead.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p><!-- Page 149 --><a name="Page_149" id="Page_149" title="149" class="pagenum"></a>We have just paid a visit to Newstead Abbey,
+the far-famed residence of Lord Byron. I posted
+from Hucknall over to Newstead one pleasant
+morning, and, being provided with a letter of
+introduction to Colonel Wildman, I lost no time
+in presenting myself at the door of the Abbey.
+But, unfortunately for me, the Colonel was at
+Mansfield, in attendance at the Assizes&mdash;he being
+one of the County Magistrates. I did not however
+lose the object of my visit, as every attention
+was paid in showing me about the premises.
+I felt as every one must, who gazes for the first
+time upon these walls, and remembers that it was
+here, even amid the comparative ruins of a
+building once dedicated to the sacred cause of
+Religion and her twin sister, Charity, that the
+genius of Byron was first developed. Here that
+he paced with youthful melancholy the halls
+of his illustrious ancestors, and trode the walks of
+the long-banished monks. The housekeeper&mdash;a
+remarkably good looking and polite woman&mdash;showed
+us through the different apartments, and
+explained in the most minute manner every
+<!-- Page 150 --><a name="Page_150" id="Page_150" title="150" class="pagenum"></a>object of interest connected with the interior
+of the building. We first visited the Monks'
+Parlour, which seemed to contain nothing of note,
+except a very fine stained window&mdash;one of the
+figures representing St. Paul, surmounted by a
+cross. We passed through Lord Byron's Bedroom,
+the Haunted Chamber, the Library, and the
+Eastern Corridor, and halted in the Tapestry Bedroom,
+which is truly a magnificent apartment,
+formed by the Byrons for the use of King
+Charles II. The ceiling is richly decorated
+with the Byron arms. We next visited the
+grand Drawing-room, probably the finest in
+the building. This saloon contains a large number
+of splendid portraits, among which is the
+celebrated portrait of Lord Byron, by Phillips.
+In this room we took into our hand the
+Skull-cup, of which so much has been written, and
+that has on it a short inscription, commencing with&mdash;&quot;Start
+not&mdash;nor deem my spirit fled.&quot; Leaving
+this noble room, we descended by a few polished
+oak steps into the West Corridor, from which we
+entered the grand Dining Hall, and through
+several other rooms, until we reached the
+<!-- Page 151 --><a name="Page_151" id="Page_151" title="151" class="pagenum"></a>Chapel. Here we were shown a stone coffin
+which had been found near the high altar,
+when the workmen were excavating the vault,
+intended by Lord Byron for himself and his
+dog. The coffin contained the skeleton of
+an Abbot, and also the identical skull from
+which the cup, of which I have made mention,
+was made. We then left the building,
+and took a stroll through the grounds. After
+passing a pond of cold crystal water, we came
+to a dark wood in which are two leaden
+statues of Pan, and a female satyr&mdash;very fine
+specimens as works of art. We here inspected
+the tree whereon Byron carved his own name
+and that of his sister, with the date, all of which
+are still legible. However, the tree is now dead,
+and we were informed that Colonel Wildman
+intended to have it cut down so as to preserve
+the part containing the inscription. After crossing
+an interesting and picturesque part of the
+gardens, we arrived within the precincts of the
+ancient Chapel, near which we observed a neat
+marble monument, and which we supposed to
+have been erected to the memory of some of the
+<!-- Page 152 --><a name="Page_152" id="Page_152" title="152" class="pagenum"></a>Byrons; but, on drawing near to it, we read the
+following inscription:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="poem">
+<div style="text-align: center;">&quot;Near this spot&nbsp;</div>
+<div style="text-align: center;">are deposited the remains of one</div>
+<div style="text-align: center;">who possessed beauty without vanity,</div>
+<div style="text-align: center;">strength without insolence,</div>
+<div style="text-align: center;">courage without ferocity,</div>
+<div style="text-align: center;">and all the virtues of man without his vices.</div>
+<div style="text-align: center;">This praise, which would be unmeaning flattery,</div>
+<div style="text-align: center;">if inscribed over human ashes,</div>
+<div style="text-align: center;">is but a just tribute to the memory of</div>
+<div style="text-align: center;">BOATSWAIN, a dog,</div>
+<div style="text-align: center;">Who was born at Newfoundland, May, 1803,</div>
+<div style="text-align: center;">&nbsp;and died at Newstead Abbey, November 18, 1808.<ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: typo, missing quote inserted">&quot;</ins></div>
+</div>
+
+
+<p>By a will which his Lordship executed in 1811,
+he directed that his own body should be buried in
+a vault in the garden, near his faithful dog. This
+feeling of affection to his dumb and faithful follower,
+commendable in itself, seems here to have
+been carried beyond the bounds of reason and
+propriety.</p>
+
+<p>In another part of the grounds we saw the oak
+tree planted by the poet himself. It has now attained
+a goodly size, considering the growth of
+the oak, and bids fair to become a lasting memento
+<!-- Page 153 --><a name="Page_153" id="Page_153" title="153" class="pagenum"></a>to the Noble Bard, and to be a shrine to which
+thousands of pilgrims will resort in future ages,
+to do homage to his mighty genius. This tree
+promises to share in after times the celebrity of
+Shakspere's mulberry, and Pope's willow. Near
+by, and in the tall trees, the rooks were keeping
+up a tremendous noise. After seeing everything
+of interest connected with the great poet, we
+entered our chaise, and left the premises. As we
+were leaving, I turned to take a farewell look at
+the Abbey, standing in solemn grandeur, the long
+ivy clinging fondly to the rich tracery of a former
+age. Proceeding to the little town of Hucknall,
+we entered the old grey Parish Church, which has
+for ages been the last resting-place of the Byrons,
+and where repose the ashes of the Poet, marked
+only by a neat marble slab, bearing the date of
+the poet's birth, death, and the fact that the
+tablet was placed there by his sister. This closed
+my visit to the interesting scenes associated with
+Byron's strange eventful history&mdash;scenes that ever
+acquire a growing charm as the lapse of years
+softens the errors of the man, and confirms the
+genius of the poet.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+<p class="quotdate"><!-- Page 154 --><a name="Page_154" id="Page_154" title="154" class="pagenum"></a><i>May 10</i>.</p>
+
+<p>It was on a lovely morning that I found myself
+on board the little steamer <i>Wye</i>, passing out of
+Bristol harbour. In going down the river, we
+saw on our right, the stupendous rocks of St.
+Vincent towering some four or five hundred feet
+above our heads. By the swiftness of our fairy
+steamer, we were soon abreast of Cook's Folly, a
+singular tower, built by a man from whom it takes
+its name, and of which the following romantic
+story is told:&mdash;&quot;Some years since a gentleman,
+of the name of Cook, erected this tower, which
+has since gone by the name of 'Cook's Folly.'
+A son having been born, he was desirous of ascertaining,
+by means of astrology, if he would live to
+enjoy his property. Being himself a firm believer,
+like the poet Dryden, that certain information
+might be obtained from the above science,
+he caused the child's horoscope to be drawn, and
+found, to his dismay, that in his third, sixteenth,
+or twenty-first year, he would be in danger of
+meeting with some fearful calamity or sudden
+<!-- Page 155 --><a name="Page_155" id="Page_155" title="155" class="pagenum"></a>death, to avert which he caused the turret to be
+constructed, and the child placed therein. Secure,
+as he vainly thought, there he lived, attended
+by a faithful servant, their food and fuel
+being conveyed to them by means of a pully-basket,
+until he was old enough to wait upon
+himself. On the eve of his twenty-first year, his
+parent's hopes rose high, and great were the rejoicings
+prepared to welcome the young heir to
+his home. But, alas! no human skill could avert
+the dark fate which clung to him. The last night
+he had to pass alone in the turret, a bundle of
+faggots was conveyed to him as usual, in which
+lay concealed a viper, which clung to his hand.
+The bite was fatal; and, instead of being borne
+in triumph, the dead body of his only son was the
+sad spectacle which met the sight of his father.&quot;</p>
+
+<p>We crossed the channel and soon entered the
+mouth of that most picturesque of rivers, the Wye.
+As we neared the town of Chepstow the old
+Castle made its appearance, and a fine old ruin it
+is. Being previously provided with a letter of
+introduction to a gentleman in Chepstow, I lost
+no time in finding him out. This gentleman
+<!-- Page 156 --><a name="Page_156" id="Page_156" title="156" class="pagenum"></a>gave me a cordial reception, and did what
+Englishmen seldom ever do, lent me his saddle
+horse to ride to the Abbey. While lunch was in
+preparation I took a stroll through the Castle
+which stood near by. We entered the Castle
+through the great door-way and were soon treading
+the walls that had once sustained the cannon
+and the sentinel, but were now covered with
+weeds and wild flowers. The drum and fife had
+once been heard within these walls&mdash;the only
+music now is the cawing of the rook and daw.
+We paid a hasty visit to the various apartments,
+remaining longest in those of most interest. The
+room in which Martin the Regicide was imprisoned
+nearly twenty years, was pointed out to us.
+The Castle of Chepstow is still a magnificent pile,
+towering upon the brink of a stupendous cliff, on
+reaching the top of which, we had a splendid view
+of the surrounding country. Time, however,
+compelled us to retrace our steps, and after partaking
+of a lunch, we mounted a horse for the
+first time in ten years, and started for Tintern
+Abbey. The distance from Chepstow to the
+Abbey is about five miles, and the road lies along
+<!-- Page 157 --><a name="Page_157" id="Page_157" title="157" class="pagenum"></a>the banks of the river. The river is walled
+in on either side by hills of much beauty, clothed
+from base to summit with the richest verdure. I
+can conceive of nothing more striking than the
+first appearance of the Abbey. As we rounded a
+hill, all at once we saw the old ruin standing
+before us in all its splendour. This celebrated
+ecclesiastical relic of the olden time is doubtless
+the finest ruin of its kind in Europe. Embosomed
+amongst hills, and situated on the banks of the
+most fairy-like river in the world, its beauty can
+scarcely be surpassed. We halted at the &quot;Beaufort
+Arms,&quot; left our horse, and sallied forth
+to view the Abbey. The sun was pouring a
+flood of light upon the old grey walls, lighting
+up its dark recesses, as if to give us a better
+opportunity of viewing it. I gazed with astonishment
+and admiration at its many beauties, and
+especially at the superb gothic windows over the
+entrance door. The beautiful gothic pillars, with
+here and there a representation of a praying
+priest, and mailed knights, with saints and
+Christian martyrs, and the hundreds of Scriptural
+representations, all indicate that this was a place
+<!-- Page 158 --><a name="Page_158" id="Page_158" title="158" class="pagenum"></a>of considerable importance in its palmy days.
+The once stone floor had disappeared, and we
+found ourselves standing on a floor of unbroken
+green grass, swelling back to the old walls, and
+looking so verdant and silken that it seemed the
+very floor of fancy. There are more romantic
+and wilder places than this in the world, but none
+more beautiful. The preservation of these old
+abbeys should claim the attention of those under
+whose charge they are, and we felt like joining
+with the poet and saying<ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: typo, colon added">:&mdash;</ins></p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<div class="i9">&quot;O ye who dwell<br /></div>
+<div>Around yon ruins, guard the precious charge</div>
+<div>From hands profane! O save the sacred pile&mdash;</div>
+<div>O'er which the wing of centuries has flown</div>
+<div>Darkly and silently, deep-shadowing all</div>
+<div>Its pristine honours&mdash;from the ruthless grasp</div>
+<div>Of future violation.&quot;</div>
+</div></div>
+
+
+<p>In contemplating these ruins more closely, the
+mind insensibly reverts to the period of feudal
+and regal oppression, when structures like that of
+Tintern Abbey necessarily became the scenes of
+stirring and highly-important events. How
+altered is the scene! Where were formerly mag<!-- Page 159 --><a name="Page_159" id="Page_159" title="159" class="pagenum"></a>nificence
+and splendour; the glittering array of
+priestly prowess; the crowded halls of haughty
+bigots, and the prison of religious offenders;
+there is now but a heap of mouldering ruins.
+The oppressed and the oppressor have long since
+lain down together in the peaceful grave. The
+ruin, generally speaking, is unusually perfect,
+and the sculpture still beautifully sharp. The
+outward walls are nearly entire, and are thickly
+clad with ivy. Many of the windows are also in a
+good state of preservation; but the roof has long
+since fallen in. The feathered songsters were fluttering
+about, and pouring forth their artless lays
+as a tribute of joy; while the lowing of the herds,
+the bleating of flocks, and the hum of bees upon
+the farm near by, all burst upon the ear, and gave
+the scene a picturesque sublimity that can be easier
+imagined than described. Most assuredly Shakspere
+had such ruins in view when he exclaimed<ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: typo, colon added">:&mdash;</ins></p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<div><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&quot;The cloud-capp'd towers, the gorgeous palaces,</span></div>
+<div>The solemn temples, the great globe itself,</div>
+<div>Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve&mdash;</div>
+<div>And, like the baseless fabric of a vision,</div>
+<div>Leave not a wreck behind.&quot;</div>
+</div></div>
+
+
+<p><!-- Page 160 --><a name="Page_160" id="Page_160" title="160" class="pagenum"></a>In the afternoon we returned to Bristol, and I
+spent the greater part of the next day in examining
+the interior of Redcliffe Church. Few places
+in the West of England have greater claims upon
+the topographer and historian than the church of
+St. Mary's, Redcliffe. Its antiquity, the beauty
+of its architecture, and above all the interesting
+circumstances connected with its history, entitle
+it to peculiar notice. It is also associated with
+the enterprise of genius; for its name has been
+blended with the reputation of Rowley, of
+Canynge, and of Chatterton; and no lover of
+poetry and admirer of art can visit it without a
+degree of enthusiasm. And when the old building
+shall have mouldered into ruins, even these
+will be trodden with veneration as sacred to the
+recollection of genius of the highest order.
+Ascending a winding stair, we were shown into
+the Treasury Room. The room forms an irregular
+octagon, admitting light through narrow unglazed
+apertures upon the broken and scattered
+fragments of the famous Rowleian chests, that
+with the rubble and dust of centuries cover the
+floor. It is here creative fancy pictures forth the
+<!-- Page 161 --><a name="Page_161" id="Page_161" title="161" class="pagenum"></a>sad image of the spirit of the spot&mdash;the ardent
+boy, flushed and fed by hope, musing on the
+brilliant deception he had conceived&mdash;whose
+daring attempt has left his name unto the intellectual
+world as a marvel and a mystery.</p>
+
+<p>That a boy under twelve years of age should
+write a series of poems, imitating the style of the
+fifteenth century, and palm these poems off
+upon the world as the work of a monk, is indeed
+strange; and that these should become the object
+of interesting contemplation to the literary world,
+and should awaken inquiries, and exercise the
+talents of a Southey, a Bryant, a Miller, a
+Mathias, and others, savours more of romance
+than reality. I had visited the room in a garret
+in High Holborn, where this poor boy died. I
+had stood over a grave in the burial-ground of the
+Lane Workhouse, which was pointed out to me as
+the last resting-place of Chatterton; and now I
+was in the room where it was alleged he obtained
+the manuscripts that gave him such notoriety.
+We descended and viewed other portions of the
+church. The effect of the chancel, as seen behind
+the pictures, is very singular, and suggestive of
+<!-- Page 162 --><a name="Page_162" id="Page_162" title="162" class="pagenum"></a>many swelling thoughts. We look at the great
+east window, it is unadorned with its wonted
+painted glass; we look at the altar-screen beneath,
+on which the light of day again falls, and behold
+the injuries it has received at the hands of time.
+There is a dreary mournfulness in the scene which
+fastens on the mind, and is in unison with the
+time-worn mouldering fragments that are seen
+all around us. And this dreariness is not removed
+by our tracing the destiny of man on the
+storied pavements or on the graven brass, that
+still bears upon its surface the names of those
+who obtained the world's regard years back.
+This old pile is not only an ornament to the city,
+but it stands a living monument to the genius of
+its founder. Bristol has long sustained a high
+position as a place from which the American
+Abolitionists have received substantial encouragement
+in their arduous labours for the emancipation
+of the slaves of that land; and the writer of
+this received the best evidence that in this respect
+the character of the people had not been exaggerated,
+especially as regards the &quot;Clifton Ladies'
+Anti-Slavery Society.&quot;</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="LETTER_XXIIIA" id="LETTER_XXIIIA"></a>LETTER <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: As per editor's footnote, this letter moved to here.">XXIII.</ins><a name="FNanchor_A_1" id="FNanchor_A_1"></a><a href="#Footnote_A_1" class="fnanchor"
+title="This letter is rather out of its proper place here. I had mislaid the MS., and my distance from the printer prevented the matter being rectified. In another edition, the transposition can be effected.">[A]</a></h2>
+
+<h3>Aberdeen&mdash;Passage by Steamer&mdash;Edinburgh&mdash;Visit
+to the College&mdash;William and Ellen
+Craft.</h3>
+
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">I have</span> visited few places where I found more
+warm friends than in Aberdeen. This is the
+Granite City of Scotland.</p>
+
+<p>Aberdeen reminds one of Boston, especially in
+a walk down Union Street, which is said to be
+one of the finest promenades in Europe.</p>
+
+<p>The town is situated on a neck of land between
+<!-- Page 306 --><a name="Page_306" id="Page_306" title="306" class="pagenum"></a>the rivers Dee and Don, and is the most important
+place in the north of Scotland. During our third
+day in the city, we visited among other places the
+Old Bridge of Don, which is not only resorted to
+on account of its antique celebrity and peculiar
+appearance, but also because of the notoriety that
+it has gained by Lord Byron's poem of the
+&quot;Bridge of Don.&quot;</p>
+
+<p>An engagement to be in Edinburgh and
+vicinity, cut short our stay in the north. The
+very mild state of the weather, and a wish to see
+something of the coast between Aberdeen and
+Edinburgh, induced us to make the journey by
+water.</p>
+
+<p>On Friday evening, the 14th, after delivering a
+lecture before the Total Abstinence Society, in
+company with William and Ellen Craft, I went
+on board the steamer bound for Edinburgh. On
+reaching the vessel, we found the drawing-room
+almost entirely at our service, and prejudice
+against colour being unknown, we had no difficulty
+in getting the best accommodation which
+the steamer could furnish. This is so unlike the
+pro-slavery, negro-hating spirit of America, that
+<!-- Page 307 --><a name="Page_307" id="Page_307" title="307" class="pagenum"></a>the Crafts seemed almost bewildered by the transition.
+I had been in the saloon but a short
+time, when, looking at the newspapers on the
+table, I discovered the <i>North Star</i>. It was like
+meeting with a friend in a strange land. I
+looked in vain on the margin for the name
+of its owner, but as I did not feel at liberty
+to take it, and as it appeared to be alone,
+I laid the <i>Liberator</i> by its side to keep it
+company.</p>
+
+<p>The night was a glorious one. The sky was
+without a speck; and the clear, piercing air had
+a brilliancy I have seldom seen. The moon was
+in its zenith&mdash;the steamer and surrounding objects
+were beautiful in the extreme. The boat
+got under weigh at a little past twelve, and we
+were soon out at sea. The &quot;Queen&quot; is a splendid
+craft, and without the aid of sails, was able to
+make fifteen miles within the hour. I was up
+the next morning before the sun, and found the
+sea as on the previous night&mdash;as calm and smooth
+as a mirror. It was a delightful morning, more
+like April than February; and the sun, as it rose,
+seemed to fire every peak of the surrounding
+<!-- Page 308 --><a name="Page_308" id="Page_308" title="308" class="pagenum"></a>hills. On our left, lay the Island of May, while
+to the right was to be seen the small fishing
+town of Anstruther, twenty miles distant from
+Edinburgh. Beyond these, on either side, was
+a range of undulating blue mountains, swelling
+as they retired, into a bolder outline and a loftier
+altitude, until they terminated some twenty-five
+or thirty miles in the dim distance. A friend at
+my side pointed out a place on the right, where
+the remains of an old castle or look-out house,
+used in the time of the border wars, once stood,
+and which reminded us of the barbarism of the
+past.</p>
+
+<p>But these signs are fast disappearing. The
+plough and roller have passed over many of these
+foundations, and the time will soon come, when
+the antiquarian will look in vain for those places
+that history has pointed out to him, as connected
+with the political and religious struggles of the
+past. The steward of the vessel came round to
+see who of the passengers wished for breakfast,
+and as the keen air of the morning had given me
+an appetite, and there being no prejudice on the
+score of colour, I took my seat at the table and
+<!-- Page 309 --><a name="Page_309" id="Page_309" title="309" class="pagenum"></a>gave ample evidence that I was not an invalid.
+On returning to the deck again, I found we had
+entered the Forth, and that &quot;Modern Athens&quot;
+was in sight; and, far above every other object,
+with its turrets almost lost in the clouds, could
+be seen Edinburgh Castle. After landing, a
+pleasant ride over one of the finest roads in Scotland,
+with a sprinkling of beautiful villas on
+either side, brought us once more to Cannon's
+Hotel.</p>
+
+<p>In a city like Edinburgh, there is always something
+to keep the public alive, but during our three
+days' stay in the town, on this occasion, there
+were topics under discussion which seemed
+to excite the people, although I had been
+told that the Scotch were not excitable. Indeed
+all Edinburgh seemed to have gone mad about the
+Pope. If his Holiness should think fit to pay a
+visit to his new dominions, I would advise him to
+keep out of reach of the Scotch.</p>
+
+<p>In company with the Crafts, I visited the
+Calton Hill, from which we had a delightful
+view of the city and surrounding country.
+I had an opportunity during my stay
+<!-- Page 310 --><a name="Page_310" id="Page_310" title="310" class="pagenum"></a>in the city, of visiting the Infirmary, and
+was pleased to see among the two or three
+hundred students, three coloured young men,
+seated upon the same benches with those of a fairer
+complexion, and yet there appeared no feeling on
+the part of the whites towards their coloured
+associates, except of companionship and respect.
+One of the cardinal truths, both of religion and
+freedom, is the equality and brotherhood of man.
+In the sight of God and all just institutions, the
+whites can claim no precedence or privilege, on
+account of their being white; and if coloured men
+are not treated as they should be in the educational
+institutions in America, it is a pleasure to know
+that all distinction ceases by crossing the broad
+Atlantic. I had scarcely left the lecture room of
+the Institute and reached the street, when I met a
+large number of the students on their way to the
+college, and here again were seen coloured men arm
+in arm with whites. The proud American who finds
+himself in the splendid streets of Edinburgh, and
+witnesses such scenes as these, can but behold in
+them the degradation of his own country, whose
+laws would make slaves of these same young men,
+<!-- Page 311 --><a name="Page_311" id="Page_311" title="311" class="pagenum"></a>should they appear in the streets of Charleston or
+New Orleans.</p>
+
+<p>After all, our country is the most despotic in
+the wide world, and to expose and hold it up to
+the scorn and contempt of other nations, is the
+duty of every coloured man who would be true to
+himself and his race.</p>
+
+<p><br />
+During my stay in Edinburgh, I accepted an
+invitation to breakfast with the great champion of
+Philosophical Phrenology. Few foreigners are
+more admired in America, than the author of
+&quot;The Constitution of Man.&quot;<a name="FNanchor_B_2" id="FNanchor_B_2"></a><a href="#Footnote_B_2" class="fnanchor"
+title="George Combe, Esq.">[B]</a> Although not far
+from 70 years of age, I found him apparently as
+active and as energetic as many men of half that
+age. He was much pleased with Mr. and Mrs.
+Craft, who formed a part of the breakfast party.
+It may be a pleasure to the friends of these two
+fugitive slaves, to know that they are now the inmates
+of a good school where they are now being
+educated. For this, they are mainly indebted to
+that untiring friend of the Slave, John B. Estlin,
+Esq., of Bristol, whose zeal and co-operation with
+the American Abolitionists, have gained for him
+an undying name with the friends of freedom in
+the New World.<!-- Page 312 --><a name="Page_312" id="Page_312" title="312" class="pagenum"></a></p>
+
+
+
+
+<div class="footnotes"><h3>FOOTNOTES:</h3>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_A_1" id="Footnote_A_1"></a><a href="#FNanchor_A_1"><span class="label">[A]</span></a> This letter is rather out of its proper place here.
+I had mislaid the MS., and my distance from the printer prevented
+the matter being rectified. In another edition, the transposition
+can be effected.</p></div>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_B_2" id="Footnote_B_2"></a><a href="#FNanchor_B_2"><span class="label">[B]</span></a> George Combe, Esq.</p></div>
+
+</div>
+
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<div><!-- Page 163 --><a name="Page_163" id="Page_163" title="163" class="pagenum"></a></div>
+<h2><a name="LETTER_XIII" id="LETTER_XIII"></a>LETTER XIII.</h2>
+
+
+<h3>Edinburgh&mdash;The Royal Institute&mdash;Scott's Monument&mdash;John
+Knox's Pulpit&mdash;Temperance
+Meeting&mdash;Glasgow&mdash;Great Meeting in the
+City Hall.</h3>
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Edinburgh</span>, <i>January 1, 1851</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">You</span> will see by the date of this that I am spending
+my New-Year's-Day in the Scottish Capital,
+in company with our friend, William Craft. I
+came by invitation to attend a meeting of the
+Edinburgh Ladies' Emancipation Society.</p>
+
+<p>The meeting was held on Monday evening
+last, at which William Craft gave, for the first
+time, since his arrival in this country, a history
+of his escape from Georgia, two years ago,
+together with his recent flight from Boston.</p>
+
+<p>Craft's reception was one of deep enthusiasm,
+and his story was well told, and made a powerful
+impression on the audience. I would that the
+slaveholders, Hughes and Knight, could have been
+present and heard the thundering applause with
+<!-- Page 164 --><a name="Page_164" id="Page_164" title="164" class="pagenum"></a>which our friend was received on the following
+evening. Craft attended a meeting of the Edinburgh
+Total Abstinence Society, before which I
+lectured, and his appearance here was also hailed
+with much enthusiasm. Our friend bids fair to
+become a favourite with the Scotch.</p>
+
+<p>Much regret was expressed that Ellen was not
+present. She was detained in Liverpool by indisposition.
+But Mrs. Craft has so far recovered,
+that we expect her here to-morrow.</p>
+
+<p>The appearance of these two fugitives in Great
+Britain, at this time, and under the circumstances,
+will aid our cause, and create a renewed hatred to
+the abominable institution of American slavery. I
+have received letters from a number of the friends
+of the slave, in which they express a wish to aid
+the Crafts; and among the first of these, were our
+good friends, John B. Estlin, Esq., of Bristol, and
+Harriet Martineau.</p>
+
+<p>But I must give you my impression of this fine
+city. Edinburgh is the most picturesque of all
+the towns which I have visited since my arrival in
+the father-land. Its situation has been compared
+to that of Athens, but it is said that the modern
+<!-- Page 165 --><a name="Page_165" id="Page_165" title="165" class="pagenum"></a>Athens is superior to the ancient. I was deeply
+impressed with the idea that I had seen the most
+beautiful of cities, after beholding those fashionable
+resorts, Paris and Versailles. I have seen
+nothing in the way of public grounds to compare
+with the gardens of Versailles, or the <i>Champs
+<ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;Elyses&quot; in the original text">Elysees</ins> </i> at Paris; and as for statuary, the latter
+place is said to take the lead of the rest of the
+world.</p>
+
+<p>The general appearance of Edinburgh prepossesses
+one in its favour. The town being built
+upon the brows of a large terrace, presents the
+most wonderful perspective. Its first appearance
+to a stranger, and the first impression, can scarcely
+be but favourable. In my first walk through
+the town, I was struck with the difference in the
+appearance of the people from the English. But
+the difference between the Scotch and the
+Americans, is very great. The cheerfulness
+depicted in the countenances of the people here,
+and their free and easy appearance, is very striking
+to a stranger. He who taught the sun to
+shine, the flowers to bloom, the birds to sing, and
+blesses us with rain, never intended that his
+<!-- Page 166 --><a name="Page_166" id="Page_166" title="166" class="pagenum"></a>creatures should look sad. There is a wide
+difference between the Americans and any other
+people which I have seen. The Scotch are
+healthy and robust, unlike the long-faced, sickly-looking
+Americans.</p>
+
+<p>While on our journey from London to Paris, to
+attend the Peace Congress, I could not but observe
+the marked difference between the English and
+American delegates. The former looked as if
+their pockets had been filled with sandwiches,
+made of good bread and roast beef, while the
+latter appeared as if their pockets had been filled
+with Holloway's Pills, and Mrs. Kidder's Cordial.</p>
+
+<p>I breakfasted this morning in a room in which
+the Poet Burns, as I was informed, had often sat.
+The conversation here turned upon Burns.
+The lady of the house pointed to a scrap of
+poetry which was in a frame hanging on the
+wall, written, as she said, by the Poet, on hearing
+the people rejoicing in a church over the
+intelligence of a victory. I copied it and will
+give it to you:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<div><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&quot;Ye hypocrites! are these your pranks,</span></div>
+<div>To murder men and give God thanks?</div>
+<div><!-- Page 167 --><a name="Page_167" id="Page_167" title="167" class="pagenum"></a>For shame! give o'er, proceed no further,</div>
+<div>God won't accept your thanks for murder.&quot;</div>
+</div></div>
+
+
+<p>The fact that I was in the room where Scotland's
+great national poet had been a visitor,
+caused me to feel that I was on classic, if not
+hallowed ground. On returning from our morning
+visit, we met a gentleman with a coloured lady
+on each arm. Craft remarked in a very dry
+manner, &quot;If they were in Georgia, the slaveholders
+would make them walk in a more hurried
+gait than they do.&quot; I said to my friend, that if
+he meant the pro-slavery prejudice would not
+suffer them to walk peaceably through the
+streets, they need go no further than the pro-slavery
+cities of New York and Philadelphia. When
+walking through the streets, I amused myself, by
+watching Craft's countenance; and in doing so,
+imagined I saw the changes experienced by every
+fugitive slave in his first month's residence in
+this country. A sixteen months' residence has
+not yet familiarized me with the change.</p>
+
+<hr style='width: 45%;' />
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><!-- Page 168 --><a name="Page_168" id="Page_168" title="168" class="pagenum"></a><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Laurel Bank</span>, <i>Jan. 18, 1851</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Dear Douglass</span>,&mdash;I remained in Edinburgh a
+day or two after the date of my last letter, which
+gave me an opportunity of seeing some of the
+lions in the way of public buildings, &amp;c., in
+company with our friend Wm. Craft. I paid a
+visit to the Royal Institute, and inspected the
+very fine collection of paintings, statues, and
+other productions of art. The collection in the
+Institute is not to be compared to the British
+Museum at London, or the Louvre at Paris, but is
+probably the best in Scotland. Paintings from
+the hands of many of the masters, such as Sir A.
+Vandyke, Tiziano, Vercellio and Van Dellen,
+were hanging on the wall, and even the names of
+Reubens, and Titian, were attached to some of
+the finer specimens. Many of these represent
+some of the nobles, and distinguished families of
+Rome, Athens, Greece, &amp;c. A beautiful one
+representing a group of the Lomellini family of
+Genoa, seemed to attract the attention of most of
+the visitors.</p>
+
+<p>In visiting this place, we passed close by the
+monument of Sir Walter Scott. This is the
+<!-- Page 169 --><a name="Page_169" id="Page_169" title="169" class="pagenum"></a>most exquisite thing of the kind that I have seen
+since coming to this country. It is said to be
+the finest monument in Europe. There sits the
+author of &quot;Waverley,&quot; with a book and pencil in
+hand, taking notes. A beautiful dog is seated by
+his side. Whether this is meant to represent his
+favourite dog, Camp, at whose death the Poet shed
+so many tears, we were not informed; but I was of
+opinion that it might be the faithful Percy,
+whose monument stands in the grounds at Abbotsford.
+Scott was an admirer of the canine
+tribe. One may form a good idea of the appearance
+of this distinguished writer, when living, by
+viewing this remarkable statue. The statue is
+very beautiful, but not equal to the one of
+Lord Byron, which was executed to be placed
+by the side of Johnson, Milton, and Addison,
+in Poets' Corner, Westminster Abbey; but the
+Parliament not allowing it a place there, it now
+stands in one of the Colleges at Cambridge.
+While viewing the statue of Byron, I thought
+he, too, should have been represented with a
+dog by his side, for he, like Scott, was remarkably
+fond of dogs, so much so that he in<!-- Page 170 --><a name="Page_170" id="Page_170" title="170" class="pagenum"></a>tended
+to have his favourite, Boatswain, interred
+by his side.</p>
+
+<p>We paid a short visit to the monuments of
+Burns and Allan Ramsay, and the renowned old
+Edinburgh Castle. The Castle is now used as
+a barrack for Infantry. It is accessible only from
+the High Street, and must have been impregnable
+before the discovery of gunpowder. In the wars
+with the English, it was twice taken by stratagem;
+once in a very daring manner, by climbing
+up the most inaccessible part of the rock upon
+which it stands, and where a foe was least expected,
+and putting the guard to death; and
+another time, by a party of soldiers disguising
+themselves as merchants, and obtaining admission
+inside the Castle gates. They succeeded
+in preventing the gates from being closed, until
+reinforced by a party of men under Sir Wm.
+Douglas, who soon overpowered the occupants of
+the Castle.</p>
+
+<p>We could not resist the temptation held out to
+see the Palace of Holyrood. It was in this place
+that the beautiful, but unfortunate Mary, Queen
+of Scots, resided for a number of years. On
+<!-- Page 171 --><a name="Page_171" id="Page_171" title="171" class="pagenum"></a>reaching the palace, we were met at the door by
+an elderly looking woman, with a red face, garnished
+with a pair of second-hand curls, the
+whole covered with a cap having the widest border
+that I had seen for years. She was very kind
+in showing us about the premises, especially as
+we were foreigners, no doubt expecting an extra
+fee for politeness. The most interesting of the
+many rooms in this ancient castle, is the one
+which was occupied by the Queen, and where her
+Italian favourite, Rizzio, was murdered.</p>
+
+<p>But by far the most interesting object which
+we visited while in Edinburgh, was the house
+where the celebrated Reformer, John Knox, <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;re-resided&quot; in the original text">resided</ins>.
+It is a queer-looking old building, with
+a pulpit on the outside, and above the door are
+the nearly obliterated remains of the following
+inscription:&mdash;&quot;Lufe. God. Above. Al. And. your.
+Nichbour. As you. Self.&quot; This was probably
+traced under the immediate direction of the great
+Reformer. Such an inscription put upon a house
+of worship at the present day, would be laughed
+at. I have given it to you, punctuation and all,
+just as it stands.</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page 172 --><a name="Page_172" id="Page_172" title="172" class="pagenum"></a>The general architecture of Edinburgh is very
+imposing, whether we regard the picturesque
+disorder of the buildings, in the Old Town, or the
+symmetrical proportions of the streets and squares
+in the New. But on viewing this city which has
+the reputation of being the finest in Europe, I
+was surprised to find that it had none of those
+sumptuous structures, which like St. Paul's, or
+Westminster Abbey, York Minster, and some other
+of the English provincial Cathedrals, astonish the
+beholder alike by their magnitude and their
+architectural splendour. But in no city which I
+have visited in the kingdom, is the general
+standard of excellence better maintained than in
+Edinburgh.</p>
+
+<p>I am not sure, my dear friend, whether or not
+I mentioned in my last letter the attendance
+of Wm. Craft and myself at a splendid Soiree of
+the Edinburgh Temperance Society, and our being
+voted in life members, in the most enthusiastic
+manner, by the whole audience. I will here give
+you a part of the speech of the President, as
+reported in the <i>Christian News</i>. This should
+cause the pro-slavery whites, and especially negro-<!-- Page 173 --><a name="Page_173" id="Page_173" title="173" class="pagenum"></a>hating
+Sons of Temperance, who refuse the
+coloured man a place in their midst, to feel
+ashamed of their unchristian conduct. Here it is,
+let them judge for themselves:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>&quot;A great feature in our meeting to-night, is
+that we have beside us two individuals, who, according
+to the immaculate laws of immaculate
+Yankeedom, have been guilty of the tremendous
+crime of stealing themselves. (Applause.) Mr.
+Craft, who sits beside me, has stolen his good
+wife, and Mrs. Craft has stolen her worthy husband;
+and our respected friend, Mr. Brown, has
+cast a covetous eye on his own person. In the
+name of the Temperance reformers of Edinburgh&mdash;in
+the name of universal Scotland, I would
+welcome these two victims of the white man's
+pride, ambition, selfishness, and cupidity. I welcome
+them as our equals in every respect. (Great
+applause.) What a humiliating thought it will
+be, surely, for our American friends on the other
+side of the water, when they hear (and we shall
+endeavour to let them hear) that the very man
+whom they consider not worthy to sit in a third
+class carriage along with a white man, and that
+<!-- Page 174 --><a name="Page_174" id="Page_174" title="174" class="pagenum"></a>too in a district of country where the very aristocracy
+deal in cheap cheese&mdash;(great applause)
+traffic in tallow candles, and spend their nights
+and days among raw hides and train oil&mdash;(applause)&mdash;what
+a humbling thought it will be for
+them to know that these very men in the centre
+of educated Scotland, in the midst of educated
+Edinburgh, are thought fit to hold even the first
+rank upon our aristocratic platform. Let us, then,
+my friends, lift our voices this evening in one
+swelling chorus for the down-trodden slave. Let
+us publish abroad the fact to the world, that the
+sympathies of Scotland are with the bondsman
+everywhere. Let us unite our voices to cry, Down
+with the iniquitous Slave Bill!&mdash;Down with the aristocracy
+of the skin!&mdash;Perish forever the deepest-dyed,
+the hardest-hearted system of abomination
+under heaven!&mdash;Perish the sum of all villanies!
+Perish American slavery. (Great applause.)&quot;</p>
+
+<p>But I must leave the good and hospitable people
+of the Scottish Capital for the present. I have
+taken an elaborate stock of notes, and may speak
+of Edinburgh again.</p>
+
+<p>I left William and Ellen Craft (the latter of
+<!-- Page 175 --><a name="Page_175" id="Page_175" title="175" class="pagenum"></a>whom has just come to Edinburgh), and took the
+Glasgow train, and after a ride of two hours
+through a beautiful country, with its winding hills
+on either side&mdash;its fertile fields, luxuriant woods,
+and stately mansions lying around us, arrived in
+the muddy, dirty, smoky, foggy city of Glasgow.
+As I had had a standing invitation from a distinguished
+gentleman with whom I became acquainted
+in London, to partake of his hospitality,
+should I ever visit Glasgow, and again received
+a note while in Edinburgh renewing the invitation,
+I proceeded to his residence at Partick, three
+miles from Glasgow. This is one of the loveliest
+spots which I have yet seen. Our mansion is on
+the side of Laurel Bank, a range of the Kilpatrick
+hills. We have a view of the surrounding country.</p>
+
+<p>On Monday evening, Jan. 6, a public meeting
+was held in the City Hall, to extend a welcome
+to the American fugitive slaves. The hall, one of
+the largest in the kingdom, was filled at an early
+hour. At the appointed time, Alex. Hastie, Esq.,
+M.P., entered the great room, followed by the
+fugitives and most of the leading abolitionists, amid
+<!-- Page 176 --><a name="Page_176" id="Page_176" title="176" class="pagenum"></a>rapturous applause. With a Member of Parliament
+in the chair, and almost any number of
+clergymen on the platform, the meeting had an
+influential appearance. From report, I had
+imbibed the opinion that the Scotch were not
+easily moved, but if I may judge from the enthusiasm
+which characterised the City Hall demonstration,
+I should place them but little behind the
+English. After an excellent speech from the
+Chairman, and spirited addresses from several
+clergymen, William Craft was introduced to the
+meeting, and gave an account of the escape of
+himself and wife from slavery, and their subsequent
+flight from Boston. Any description of
+mine would give but a poor idea of the intense
+feeling that pervaded the meeting. I think all
+who were there, left the hall after hearing that
+noble fugitive, with a greater abhorrence of
+American slavery than they previously entertained.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<div><!-- Page 177 --><a name="Page_177" id="Page_177" title="177" class="pagenum"></a></div>
+<h2><a name="LETTER_XIV" id="LETTER_XIV"></a>LETTER XIV.</h2>
+
+<h3>Stirling&mdash;Dundee&mdash;Dr. Dick&mdash;Geo. Gilfillan&mdash;Dr.
+Dick at home.</h3>
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Perth, Scotland</span>, <i>Jan. 31, 1851</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">I am</span> glad once more to breathe an atmosphere
+uncontaminated by the fumes and smoke of a
+city with its population of three hundred thousand
+inhabitants. In company with our friends Wm.
+and Ellen Craft, I left Glasgow on the afternoon
+of the 23d inst., for Dundee, a beautiful town
+situated on the banks of the river Tay. One like
+myself, who has spent the best part of an eventful
+life in cities, and who prefers, as I do, a country
+to a town life, feels a greater degree of freedom
+when surrounded by forest trees, or country
+dwellings, and looking upon a clear sky, than when
+walking through the thronged thoroughfares of a
+city, with its dense population, meeting every
+moment a new or strange face which one has
+never seen before, and never expects to see again.
+Although I had met with one of the warmest
+<!-- Page 178 --><a name="Page_178" id="Page_178" title="178" class="pagenum"></a>public receptions with which I have been greeted
+since my arrival in the country, and had had
+an opportunity of shaking hands with many noble
+friends of the slave, whose names I had often seen
+in print, yet I felt glad to see the tall chimneys
+and smoke of Glasgow receding in the distance,
+as our 'iron horse' was taking us with almost
+lightning speed from the commercial capital of
+Scotland.</p>
+
+<p>The distance from Glasgow to Dundee is some
+seventy or eighty miles, and we passed through
+the finest country which I have seen in this
+portion of the Queen's dominions. We passed
+through the old town of Stirling, which lies
+about thirty miles distant from Glasgow, and
+is a place much frequented by those who travel
+for pleasure. It is built on the brow of a hill,
+and the Castle from which it most probably
+derived its name, may be seen from a distance.
+Had it not been for a &quot;professional&quot; engagement
+the same evening at Dundee, I would most
+assuredly have halted to take a look at the old
+building.</p>
+
+<p>The Castle is situated or built on an isolated
+<!-- Page 179 --><a name="Page_179" id="Page_179" title="179" class="pagenum"></a>rock, which seems as if Nature had thrown it
+there for that purpose. It was once the retreat
+of the Scottish Kings, and famous for its historical
+associations. Here the &quot;Lady of the Lake,&quot;
+with the magic ring, sought the monarch to
+intercede for her father; here James II. murdered
+the Earl of Douglas; here the beautiful but
+unfortunate Mary was made Queen; and here
+John Knox, the Reformer, preached the coronation
+sermon of James VI. The Castle Hill rises
+from the valley of the Forth, and makes an
+imposing and picturesque appearance. The windings
+of the noble river till lost in the distance,
+present pleasing contrasts, scarcely to be surpassed.</p>
+
+<p>The speed of our train, after passing Stirling,
+brought before us, in quick succession, a number
+of fine valleys and farm houses. Every spot
+seemed to have been arrayed by Nature for the
+reception of the cottage of some happy family.
+During this ride, we passed many sites where the
+lawns were made, the terraces defined and
+levelled, the groves tastefully clumped, the ancient
+trees, though small when compared to our
+<!-- Page 180 --><a name="Page_180" id="Page_180" title="180" class="pagenum"></a>great forest oaks, were beautifully sprinkled here
+and there, and in everything the labour of art
+seemed to have been anticipated by Nature.
+Cincinnatus could not have selected a prettier
+situation for a farm, than some which presented
+themselves, during this delightful journey.
+At last we arrived at the place of our
+destination, where our friends were in waiting
+for us.</p>
+
+<p>As I have already forwarded to you a paper
+containing an account of the Dundee meeting, I
+shall leave you to judge from these reports the character
+of the demonstration. Yet I must mention
+a fact or two connected with our first evening's
+visit to this town. A few hours after our arrival
+in the place, we were called upon by a gentleman
+whose name is known wherever the English language
+is spoken&mdash;one whose name is on the
+tongue of every student and school-boy in this
+country and America, and what lives upon their
+lips will live and be loved for ever.</p>
+
+<p>We were seated over a cup of strong tea, to
+revive our spirits for the evening, when our friend
+entered the room, accompanied by a gentleman,
+<!-- Page 181 --><a name="Page_181" id="Page_181" title="181" class="pagenum"></a>small in stature, and apparently seventy-five
+years of age, yet he appeared as active as one
+half that age. Feeling half drowsy from riding in
+the cold, and then the sudden change to a warm
+fire, I was rather inclined not to move on the
+entrance of the stranger. But the name of
+Thomas Dick, LL.D., roused me in a moment,
+from my lethargy; I could scarcely believe that I
+was in the presence of the &quot;Christian Philosopher.&quot;
+Dr. Dick is one of the men to whom the age is
+indebted. I never find myself in the presence of
+one to whom the world owes so much as Dr.
+Dick, without feeling a thrilling emotion, as
+if I were in the land of spirits. Dr. Dick had
+come to our lodgings to see and congratulate
+Wm. and Ellen Craft upon their escape from the
+republican Christians of the United States; and
+as he pressed the hand of the &quot;white slave,&quot; and
+bid her &quot;welcome to British soil,&quot; I saw the
+silent tear stealing down the cheek of this man of
+genius. How I wished that the many slaveholders
+and pro-slavery professed Christians of
+America, who have read and pondered the
+philosophy of this man, could have been present.
+<!-- Page 182 --><a name="Page_182" id="Page_182" title="182" class="pagenum"></a>Thomas Dick is an abolitionist&mdash;one who is willing
+that the world should know that he hates
+the &quot;peculiar institution.&quot; At the meeting that
+evening, Dr. Dick was among the most prominent.
+But this was not the only distinguished man who
+took part on that occasion.</p>
+
+<p>Another great mind was on the platform, and
+entered his solemn protest in a manner long to
+be remembered by those present. This was the
+Rev. George Gilfillan, well known as the author
+of the &quot;Portraits of Literary Men.&quot; Mr. Gilfillan
+is an energetic speaker, and would have
+been the lion of the evening, even if many others
+who are more distinguished as platform orators
+had been present. I think it was Napoleon who
+said that the enthusiasm of others abated his own.
+At any rate, the spirit with which each speaker
+entered upon his duty for the evening, abated my
+own enthusiasm for the time being. The last day
+of our stay in Dundee, I paid a visit, by invitation,
+to Dr. Dick, at his residence in the little
+village of Broughty Ferry. We found the great
+astronomer in his parlour waiting for us. From
+the parlour we went to the new study, and here I
+<!-- Page 183 --><a name="Page_183" id="Page_183" title="183" class="pagenum"></a>felt more at ease, for I went to see the Philosopher
+in his study, and not in his drawing-room. But
+even this room had too much the look of nicety
+to be an author's <i>sanctum</i>; and I inquired and
+was soon informed by Mrs. Dick, that I should
+have a look at the &quot;<i>old study</i>.&quot;</p>
+
+<p>During a sojourn of eighteen months in Great
+Britain, I have had the good fortune to meet with
+several distinguished literary characters, and have
+always managed, while at their places of abode,
+to see the table and favourite chair. Wm. and
+Ellen Craft were seeing what they could see
+through a microscope, when Mrs. Dick returned
+to the room, and intimated that we could now
+see the old literary workshop. I followed, and
+was soon in a room about fifteen feet square,
+with but one window, which occupied one side of
+the room. The walls of the other three sides
+were lined with books. And many of these
+looked the very personification of age. I took
+my seat in the &quot;<i>old arm chair</i>;&quot; and here,
+thought I, is the place and the seat in which this
+distinguished man sat, while weaving the radiant
+wreath of renown which now in his old age sur<!-- Page 184 --><a name="Page_184" id="Page_184" title="184" class="pagenum"></a>rounds
+him, and whose labours will be more appreciated
+by future ages than the present.</p>
+
+<p>I took a farewell of the author of the &quot;Solar
+System,&quot; but not until I had taken a look
+through the great telescope in the observatory.
+This instrument, through which I tried to see
+the heavens, was not the one invented by Galileo,
+but an improvement upon the original. On
+leaving this learned man, he shook hands with
+us, and bade us &quot;God speed&quot; in our mission;
+and I left the philosopher, feeling I had not
+passed an hour more agreeably, with a literary
+character, since the hour which I spent with
+Poet Montgomery a few months since. And, by-the-bye,
+there is a resemblance between the poet
+and the philosopher. In becoming acquainted
+with great men, I have become a convert to the
+opinion, that a big nose is an almost necessary
+appendage to the form of a man with a giant
+intellect. If those whom I have seen be a criterion,
+such is certainly the case. But I have
+spun out this too long, and must close.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<div><!-- Page 185 --><a name="Page_185" id="Page_185" title="185" class="pagenum"></a></div>
+<h2><a name="LETTER_XV" id="LETTER_XV"></a>LETTER XV.</h2>
+
+<h3>Melrose Abbey&mdash;Abbotsford&mdash;Dryburgh Abbey&mdash;The
+Grave of Sir Walter Scott&mdash;Hawick&mdash;Gretna
+Green&mdash;Visit to the Lakes.</h3>
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">York</span>, <i>March 26, 1851</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">I closed</span> my last letter in the ancient town of
+Melrose, on the banks of the Tweed, and within
+a stone's throw of the celebrated ruins from which
+the town derives its name. The valley in which
+Melrose is situated, and the surrounding hills,
+together with the Monastery, have so often been
+made a theme for the Scottish bards, that this has
+become the most interesting part of Scotland.
+Of the many gifted writers who have taken up
+the pen, none have done more to bring the Eildon
+Hills and Melrose Abbey into note, than the
+author of &quot;Waverley.&quot; But who can read his
+writings without a regret, that he should have so
+woven fact and fiction together, that it is almost
+impossible to discriminate between the one and
+the other.</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page 186 --><a name="Page_186" id="Page_186" title="186" class="pagenum"></a>We arrived at Melrose in the evening, and
+proceeded to the chapel where our meeting was to
+be held, and where our friends, the Crafts, were
+warmly greeted. On returning from the meeting,
+we passed close by the ruins of Melrose, and, very
+fortunately, it was a moonlight night. There is
+considerable difference of opinion among the
+inhabitants of the place as regards the best time
+to view the Abbey. The author of the &quot;Lay of
+the Last Minstrel,&quot; says:&mdash;</p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<div><span style="margin-left: -.5em;">&quot;If thou wouldst view fair Melrose aright,</span></div>
+<div>Go visit it by the pale moonlight:</div>
+<div>For the gay beams of lightsome day</div>
+<div>Gild but to flout the ruins gray.&quot;</div>
+</div></div>
+
+
+<p>In consequence of this admonition, I was informed
+that many persons remain in town to see
+the ruins by moonlight. Aware that the moon
+did not send its rays upon the old building every
+night in the year, I asked the keeper what he did
+on dark nights. He replied that he had a large
+lantern, which he put upon the end of a long
+pole, and with this he succeeded in lighting up
+the ruins. This good man laboured hard to convince
+me that his invention was nearly, if not
+<!-- Page 187 --><a name="Page_187" id="Page_187" title="187" class="pagenum"></a>quite as good, as Nature's own moon. But having
+no need of an application of his invention to the
+Abbey, I had no opportunity of judging of its
+effect. I thought, however, that he had made a
+moon to some purpose, when he informed me that
+some nights, with his pole and lantern, he earned
+his four or five shillings. Not being content
+with a view by &quot;moonlight alone,&quot; I was up the
+next morning before the sun, and paid my respects
+to the Abbey. I was too early for the keeper,
+and he handed me the key through the window,
+and I entered the rooms alone. It is one
+labyrinth of gigantic arches and dilapidated halls,
+the ivy growing and clinging wherever it can
+fasten its roots, and the whole as fine a picture of
+decay as imagination could create. This was the
+favourite resort of Sir Walter Scott, and furnished
+him much matter for the &quot;Lay of the Last
+Minstrel.&quot; He could not have selected a more
+fitting place for solitary thought than this ancient
+abode of monks and priests. In passing through
+the cloisters, I could not but remark the carvings
+of leaves and flowers, wrought in stone in the most
+exquisite manner, looking as fresh as if they were
+<!-- Page 188 --><a name="Page_188" id="Page_188" title="188" class="pagenum"></a>just from the hands of the artist. The lapse of
+centuries seems not to have made any impression
+upon them, or changed their appearance in the
+least. I sat down among the ruins of the Abbey.
+The ground about was piled up with magnificent
+fragments of stone, representing various
+texts of Scripture, and the quaint ideas of the
+priests and monks of that age. Scene after scene
+swept through my fancy as I looked upon the
+surrounding objects. I could almost imagine I
+saw the bearded monks going from hall to hall,
+and from cell to cell. In visiting these dark cells,
+the mind becomes oppressed by a sense of the
+utter helplessness of the victims who once passed
+over the thresholds and entered these religious
+prisons. There was no help or hope but
+in the will that ordered their fate. How painful
+it is to gaze upon these walls, and to think how
+many tears have been shed by their inmates, when
+this old Monastery was in its glory. I ascended
+to the top of the ruin by a circuitous stairway,
+whose stone steps were worn deep from use by
+many who, like myself, had visited them to gratify
+a curiosity. From the top of the Abbey, I had a
+<!-- Page 189 --><a name="Page_189" id="Page_189" title="189" class="pagenum"></a>splendid view of the surrounding hills and the
+beautiful valley through which flows the Gala
+Water and Tweed. This is unquestionably the
+most splendid specimen of Gothic architectural
+ruin in Scotland. But any description of mine
+conveys but a poor idea to the fancy. To be
+realized, it must be seen.</p>
+
+<p>During the day, we paid a visit to Abbotsford,
+the splendid mansion of the late Sir Walter Scott,
+Bart. This beautiful seat is situated on the
+banks of the Tweed, just below its junction with
+the Gala Water. It is a dreary looking spot,
+and the house from the opposite side of the river
+has the appearance of a small, low castle. In a
+single day's ride through England, one may see
+half a dozen cottages larger than Abbotsford
+House. I was much disappointed in finding the
+premises undergoing repairs and alterations, and
+that all the trees between the house and the river
+had been cut down. This is to be regretted the
+more, because they were planted, nearly every
+one of them, by the same hand that waved its
+wand of enchantment over the world. The fountain
+had been removed from where it had been
+<!-- Page 190 --><a name="Page_190" id="Page_190" title="190" class="pagenum"></a>placed by the hands of the Poet to the centre of
+the yard; and even a small stone that had been
+placed over the favourite dog &quot;Percy,&quot; had been
+taken up and thrown among some loose stones.
+One visits Abbotsford because of the genius of
+the man that once presided over it. Everything
+connected with the great Poet is of interest to
+his admirers, and anything altered or removed,
+tends to diminish that interest. We entered the
+house, and were conducted through the great Hall,
+which is hung all round with massive armour of
+all descriptions, and other memorials of ancient
+times. The floor is of white and black marble.
+In passing through the hall, we entered a narrow
+arched room, stretching quite across the building,
+having a window at each end. This little or
+rather narrow room is filled with all kinds of
+armour, which is arranged with great taste. We
+were next shown into the Dining-room, whose
+roof is of black oak, richly carved. In this room
+is a painting of the head of Queen Mary, in a
+charger, taken the day after the execution.
+Many other interesting portraits grace the walls
+of this room. But by far the finest apartment
+<!-- Page 191 --><a name="Page_191" id="Page_191" title="191" class="pagenum"></a>in the building is the Drawing-room, with a lofty
+ceiling, and furnished with antique ebony furniture.
+After passing through the Library, with its
+twenty thousand volumes, we found ourselves in
+the Study, and I sat down in the same chair where
+once sat the Poet; while before me was the table
+upon which was written the &quot;Lady of the Lake,&quot;
+&quot;Waverley,&quot; and other productions of this gifted
+writer. The clothes last worn by the Poet were
+shown to us. There was the broad skirted blue
+coat, with its large buttons, the plaid trousers,
+the heavy shoes, the black vest and white hat.
+These were all in a glass case, and all looked the
+poet and novelist. But the inside of the buildings
+had undergone alterations as well as the outside.
+In passing through the Library, we saw a granddaughter
+of the Poet. She was from London,
+and was only on a visit of a few days. She
+looked pale and dejected, and seemed as if she
+longed to leave this secluded spot and return to
+the metropolis. She looked for all the world like
+a hothouse plant. I don't think the Scotch
+could do better than to purchase Abbotsford,
+while it has some imprint of the great magician,
+<!-- Page 192 --><a name="Page_192" id="Page_192" title="192" class="pagenum"></a>and secure its preservation; for I am sure that, a
+hundred years hence, no place will be more frequently
+visited in Scotland than the home of the
+late Sir Walter Scott. After sauntering three
+hours about the premises, I left, but not without
+feeling that I had been well paid for my trouble
+in visiting Abbotsford.</p>
+
+<p>In the afternoon of the same day, in company
+with the Crafts, I took a drive to Dryburgh
+Abbey. It is a ruin of little interest, except as
+being the burial place of Scott. The poet lies
+buried in St. Mary's Aisle. His grave is in the
+left transept of the cross, and close to where the
+high altar formerly stood. Sir Walter Scott
+chose his own grave, and he could not have
+selected a sunnier spot if he had roamed the wide
+world over. A shaded window breaks the sun as
+it falls upon his grave. The ivy is creeping and
+clinging wherever it can, as if it would shelter
+the poet's grave from the weather. The author
+lies between his wife and eldest son, and there is
+only room enough for one grave more, and the
+son's wife has the choice of being buried here.</p>
+
+<p>The four o'clock train took us to Hawick;
+<!-- Page 193 --><a name="Page_193" id="Page_193" title="193" class="pagenum"></a>and after a pleasant visit in this place, and the
+people registering their names against American
+Slavery, and the Fugitive Bill in particular, we set
+out for Carlisle, passing through the antique town
+of Langholm. After leaving the latter place, we
+had to travel by coach. But no matter how one
+travels here, he travels at a more rapid rate than
+in America. The distance from Langholm to
+Carlisle, twenty miles, occupied only two and
+a-half hours in the journey. It was a cold day and
+I had to ride on the outside, as the inside had
+been taken up. We changed horses, and took in
+and put out passengers with a rapidity which
+seems almost incredible. The road was as smooth
+as a mirror.</p>
+
+<p>We bid farewell to Scotland, as we reached the
+little town of Gretna Green. This town being on
+the line between England and Scotland, is noted
+as the place where a little cross-eyed, red-faced
+blacksmith, by the name of Priestly, first set up
+his own altar to Hymen, and married all who
+came to him, without regard to rank or station,
+and at prices to suit all. It was worth a ride
+through this part of the country, if for no other
+<!-- Page 194 --><a name="Page_194" id="Page_194" title="194" class="pagenum"></a>purpose than to see the town where more clandestine
+marriages have taken place than in any other
+part in the world. A ride of eight or nine
+miles brought us in sight of the Eden, winding
+its way slowly through a beautiful valley, with
+farms on either side, covered with sheep and
+cattle. Four very tall chimneys, sending forth
+dense columns of black smoke, announced to us
+that we were near Carlisle. I was really glad of
+this, for Ulysses was never more tired of the
+shores of Ilion than I of the top of that coach.</p>
+
+<p>We remained over night at Carlisle, partaking
+of the hospitality of the prince of bakers, and left
+the next day for the Lakes, where we had a standing
+invitation to pay a visit to a distinguished
+literary lady. A cold ride of about fifty miles
+brought us to the foot of Lake Windermere, a
+beautiful sheet of water, surrounded by mountains
+that seemed to vie with each other which should
+approach nearest the sky. The margin of the
+lake is carved out <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;and and&quot; in the original text">and</ins> built up into terrace
+above terrace, until the slopes and windings are
+lost in the snow-capped peaks of the mountains.
+It is not surprising that such men as Southey,
+<!-- Page 195 --><a name="Page_195" id="Page_195" title="195" class="pagenum"></a>Coleridge, Wordsworth, and others, resorted to
+this region for inspiration. After a coach ride of
+five miles (passing on our journey the &quot;Dove's
+Nest,&quot; home of the late Mrs. Hemans), we were
+put down at the door of the Salutation Hotel,
+Ambleside, and a few minutes after found ourselves
+under the roof of the authoress of &quot;Society
+in America.&quot; I know not how it is with others,
+but for my own part, I always form an opinion of
+the appearance of an author whose writings I am at
+all familiar with, or a statesman whose speeches I
+have read. I had pictured in my own mind a tall,
+stately-looking lady of about sixty years, as the authoress
+of &quot;Travels in the East,&quot; and for once I was
+right, with the single exception that I had added on
+too many years by twelve. The evening was spent
+in talking about the United States; and William
+Craft had to go through the narrative of his escape
+from slavery. When I retired for the night, I
+found it almost impossible to sleep. The idea that
+I was under the roof of the authoress of &quot;The
+Hour and the Man,&quot; and that I was on the banks
+of the sweetest lake in Great Britain, within half a
+mile of the residence of the late poet Wordsworth,
+<!-- Page 196 --><a name="Page_196" id="Page_196" title="196" class="pagenum"></a>drove sleep from my pillow. But I must leave an
+account of my visit to the Lakes for a future
+letter.</p>
+
+<p>When I look around and see the happiness
+here, even among the poorer classes, and that too
+in a country where the soil is not at all to be
+compared with our own, I mourn for our down-trodden
+countrymen, who are plundered, oppressed,
+and made chattels of, to enable an ostentatious
+aristocracy to vie with each other in splendid
+extravagance.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="LETTER_XVI" id="LETTER_XVI"></a>LETTER XVI.</h2>
+
+<h3>Miss Martineau&mdash;&quot;The Knoll&quot;&mdash;&quot;Ridal Mount&quot;&mdash;&quot;The
+Dove's Nest&quot;&mdash;Grave of William
+Wordsworth, Esq.&mdash;The English Peasant.</h3>
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><i>May 30, 1851</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">A series</span> of public meetings, one pressing
+close upon the heel of another, must be an
+apology for my six or eight weeks' silence.
+<!-- Page 197 --><a name="Page_197" id="Page_197" title="197" class="pagenum"></a>But I hope that no temporary suspense on my
+part will be construed into a want of interest in
+our cause, or a wish to desist from giving occasionally
+a scrap (such as it is) to the <i>North Star</i>.</p>
+
+<p>My last letter left me under the hospitable
+roof of Harriet Martineau. I had long had an
+invitation to visit this distinguished friend of our
+race, and as the invitation was renewed during
+my tour through the North, I did not feel disposed
+to decline it, and thereby lose so favourable
+an opportunity of meeting with one who had
+written so much in behalf of the oppressed of our
+land. About a mile from the head of Lake
+Windermere, and immediately under Wonsfell,
+and encircled by mountains on all sides, except
+the south-west, lies the picturesque little town of
+Ambleside, and the brightest spot in the place is
+&quot;The Knoll,&quot; the residence of Miss Martineau.</p>
+
+<p>We reached &quot;The Knoll&quot; a little after nightfall,
+and a cordial shake of the hand by Miss M.,
+who was waiting for us, soon assured us that we
+had met with a warm friend.</p>
+
+<p>It is not my intention to lay open the scenes of
+domestic life at &quot;The Knoll,&quot; nor to describe the
+<!-- Page 198 --><a name="Page_198" id="Page_198" title="198" class="pagenum"></a>social parties of which my friends and I were
+partakers during our sojourn within the hospitable
+walls of this distinguished writer; but the name
+of Miss M. is so intimately connected with the
+Anti-slavery movement, by her early writings, and
+those have been so much admired by the friends
+of the slave in the United States, that I deem it
+not at all out of place for me to give the readers
+of the <i>North Star</i> some idea of the authoress
+of &quot;Political Economy,&quot; &quot;Travels in the East,&quot;
+&quot;The Hour and the Man,&quot; &amp;c.</p>
+
+<p>The dwelling is a cottage of moderate size,
+built after Miss M.'s own plan, upon a rise of land
+from which it derives the name of &quot;The Knoll.&quot;
+The Library is the largest room in the building,
+and upon the walls of it were hung some beautiful
+engravings and a continental map. On a
+long table which occupied the centre of the room,
+were the busts of Shakspere, Newton, Milton,
+and a few other literary characters of the past.
+One side of the room was taken up with a large
+case, filled with a choice collection of books, and
+everything indicated that it was the home of
+genius and of taste.</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page 199 --><a name="Page_199" id="Page_199" title="199" class="pagenum"></a>The room usually occupied by Miss M., and
+where we found her on the evening of our arrival,
+is rather small and lighted by two large windows.
+The walls of this room were also decorated with
+prints and pictures, and on the mantle-shelf were
+some models in <i>terra cottia</i> of Italian groups.
+On a circular table lay casts, medallions, and
+some very choice water-colour drawings. Under
+the south window stood a small table covered
+with newly opened letters, a portfolio and several
+new books, with here and there a page turned
+down, and one with a paper knife between its
+leaves as if it had only been half read. I took
+up the last mentioned, and it proved to be the
+&quot;Life and Poetry of Hartly Coleridge,&quot; son of
+S.T. Coleridge. It was just from the press, and
+had, a day or two before, been forwarded to her
+by the publisher. Miss M. is very deaf and
+always carries in her left hand a trumpet; and I
+was not a little surprised on learning from her
+that she had never enjoyed the sense of smell,
+and only on one occasion the sense of taste, and
+that for a single moment. Miss M. is loved with
+a sort of idolatry by the people of Ambleside, and
+<!-- Page 200 --><a name="Page_200" id="Page_200" title="200" class="pagenum"></a>especially the poor, to whom she gives a course of
+lectures every winter gratuitously. She finished
+her last course the day before our arrival. She
+was much pleased with Ellen Craft, and appeared
+delighted with the story of herself and husband's
+escape from slavery, as related by the latter&mdash;during
+the recital of which I several times saw
+the silent tear stealing down her cheek, and
+which she tried in vain to hide from us.</p>
+
+<p>When Craft had finished, she exclaimed, &quot;I
+would that every woman in the British Empire,
+could hear that tale as I have, so that they might
+know how their own sex was treated in that
+boasted land of liberty.&quot; It seems strange to
+the people of this county, that one so white
+and so lady-like as Mrs. Craft, should have been
+a slave and forced to leave the land of her nativity
+and seek an asylum in a foreign country. The
+morning after our arrival, I took a stroll by a
+circuitous pathway to the top of Loughrigg Fell.
+At the foot of the mount I met a peasant, who
+very kindly offered to lend me his donkey, upon
+which to ascend the mountain. Never having
+been upon the back of one of these long eared
+<!-- Page 201 --><a name="Page_201" id="Page_201" title="201" class="pagenum"></a>animals, I felt some hesitation about trusting
+myself upon so diminutive <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;a looking&quot; in the original text">looking a</ins> creature.
+But being assured that if I would only resign
+myself to his care and let him have his own way,
+I would be perfectly safe, I mounted, and off
+we set. We had, however, scarcely gone fifty
+rods, when, in passing over a narrow part of the
+path and overlooking a deep chasm, one of the
+hind feet of the donkey slipped, and with an involuntary
+shudder, I shut my eyes to meet my
+expected doom; but fortunately the little fellow
+gained his foothold, and in all probability saved
+us both from a premature death. After we had
+passed over this dangerous place, I dismounted,
+and as soon as my feet had once more gained
+<i>terra firma</i>, I resolved that I would never again
+yield my own judgment to that of any one, not
+even to a donkey.</p>
+
+<p>It seems as if Nature has amused herself in
+throwing these mountains together. From the
+top of the Loughrigg Fell, the eye loses its power
+in gazing upon the objects below. On our left,
+lay Rydal Mount, the beautiful seat of the late
+poet Wordsworth. While to the right, and away
+<!-- Page 202 --><a name="Page_202" id="Page_202" title="202" class="pagenum"></a>in the dim distance, almost hidden by the native
+trees, was the cottage where once resided Mrs.
+Hemans. And below us lay Windermere, looking
+more like a river than a lake, and which, if
+placed by the side of our own Ontario, Erie or
+Huron, would be lost in the fog. But here it
+looks beautiful in the extreme, surrounded as it
+is by a range of mountains that have no parallel
+in the United States for beauty. Amid a sun of
+uncommon splendour, dazzling the eye with the
+reflection upon the water below, we descended
+into the valley, and I was soon again seated by
+the fireside of our hospitable hostess. In the
+afternoon of the same day, we took a drive to the
+&quot;Dove's Nest,&quot; the home of the late Mrs. Hemans.</p>
+
+<p>We did not see the inside of the house, on account
+of its being occupied by a very eccentric
+man, who will not permit a woman to enter the
+house, and it is said that he has been known to
+run when a female had unconsciously intruded
+herself upon his premises. And as our company
+was in part composed of ladies, we had to share
+their fate, and therefore were prevented from seeing
+the interior of the Dove's Nest. The exhibitor
+<!-- Page 203 --><a name="Page_203" id="Page_203" title="203" class="pagenum"></a>of such a man would be almost sure of a prize at
+the great Exhibition.</p>
+
+<p>At the head of Grassmere Lake, and surrounded
+by a few cottages, stands an old gray, antique-looking
+Parish Church, venerable with the lapse
+of centuries, and the walls partly covered with
+ivy, and in the rear of which is the parish burial-ground.
+After leaving the Dove's Nest, and
+having a pleasant ride over the hills and between
+the mountains, and just as the sun was disappearing
+behind them, we arrived at the gate of
+Grassmere Church; and alighting and following
+Miss M., we soon found ourselves standing over a
+grave, marked by a single stone, and that, too,
+very plain, with a name deeply cut. This announced
+to us that we were standing over the
+grave of William Wordsworth. He chose his
+own grave, and often visited the spot before his
+death. He lies in the most sequestered spot in
+the whole grounds, and the simplicity and beauty
+of the place was enough to make one in love
+with it, to be laid so far from the bustle of the
+world, and in so sweet a place. The more one
+becomes acquainted with the literature of the old
+<!-- Page 204 --><a name="Page_204" id="Page_204" title="204" class="pagenum"></a>world, the more he must love her poets. Among
+the teachers of men, none are more worthy of
+study than the poets; and, as teachers, they
+should receive far more credit than is yielded to
+them. No one can look back upon the lives of
+Dante, Shakspere, Milton, Goethe, Cowper, and
+many others that we might name, without being
+reminded of the sacrifices which they made for
+mankind, and which were not appreciated until
+long after their deaths. We need look no farther
+than our own country to find men and women
+wielding the pen practically and powerfully for
+the right. It is acknowledged on all hands in
+this country, that England has the greatest dead
+poets, and America the greatest living ones. The
+poet and the true Christian have alike a hidden
+life. Worship is the vital element of each.
+Poetry has in it that kind of utility which good
+men find in their Bible, rather than such convenience
+as bad men often profess to draw from it.
+It ennobles the sentiments, enlarges the affections,
+kindles the imagination, and gives to us the enjoyment
+of a life in the past, and in the future, as
+well as in the present. Under its light and
+<!-- Page 205 --><a name="Page_205" id="Page_205" title="205" class="pagenum"></a>warmth, we wake from our torpidity and coldness,
+to a sense of our capabilities. This impulse once
+given, a great object is gained. Schiller has
+truly said, &quot;Poetry can be to a man, what love is
+to a hero. It can neither counsel him nor smite
+him, nor perform any labour for him, but it can
+bring him up to be a hero, can summon him to
+deeds, and arm him with strength for all he ought
+to be.&quot; I have often read with pleasure the
+sweet poetry of our own Whitfield of Buffalo,
+which has appeared from time to time in the
+columns of the <i>North Star</i>. I have always felt
+ashamed of the fact that he should be compelled
+to wield the razor instead of the pen for a
+living. Meaner poets than James M. Whitfield,
+are now living by their compositions; and were he
+a white man he would occupy a different position.</p>
+
+<p>After remaining a short time, and reading the
+epitaphs of the departed, we again returned to
+&quot;The Knoll.&quot; Nothing can be more imposing than
+the beauty of English park scenery, and especially
+in the vicinity of the lakes. Magnificent <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: Erratum applied, &quot;towns&quot; in the original text">lawns</ins>
+that extend like sheets of vivid green, with here
+<!-- Page 206 --><a name="Page_206" id="Page_206" title="206" class="pagenum"></a>and there a sprinkling of fine trees, heaping up
+rich piles of foliage, and then the forests with the
+hare, the deer, and the rabbit, bounding away to
+the covert, or the pheasant suddenly bursting
+upon the wing&mdash;the <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;artifical&quot; in the original text">artificial</ins> stream, the brook
+taught to wind in natural meanderings, or expand
+into the glassy lake, with the yellow leaf sleeping
+upon its bright waters, and occasionally a rustic
+temple or sylvan statue grown green and dark
+with age, give an air of sanctity and picturesque
+beauty to English scenery that is unknown in the
+United States. The very labourer with his
+thatched cottage and narrow slip of ground-plot
+before the door, the little flower-bed, the woodbine
+trimmed against the wall, and hanging its
+blossoms about the windows, and the peasant
+seen trudging home at nightfall with the avails of
+the toil of the day upon his back&mdash;all this tells
+us of the happiness both of rich and poor in this
+country. And yet there are those who would
+have the world believe that the labourer of
+England is in a far worse condition than the
+slaves of America. Such persons know nothing
+of the real condition of the working classes of this
+<!-- Page 207 --><a name="Page_207" id="Page_207" title="207" class="pagenum"></a>country. At any rate, the poor here, as well as
+the rich, are upon a level, as far as the laws of
+the country are concerned. The more one becomes
+acquainted with the English people, the
+more one has to admire them. They are so
+different from the people of our own country.
+Hospitality, frankness, and good humour, are
+always to be found in an Englishman. After a
+ramble of three days about the lakes, we mounted
+the coach, bidding Miss Martineau farewell, and
+quitted the lake district.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="LETTER_XVII" id="LETTER_XVII"></a>LETTER XVII.</h2>
+
+<h3>A Day in the Crystal Palace.</h3>
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">London</span>, <i>June 27th, 1851</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Presuming</span> that you will expect from me some
+account of the great World's Fair, I take my pen
+to give you my own impressions, although I
+am afraid that anything which I may say about
+this &quot;Lion of the day,&quot; will fall far short of a
+<!-- Page 208 --><a name="Page_208" id="Page_208" title="208" class="pagenum"></a>description. On Monday last, I quitted my
+lodgings at an early hour, and started for the
+Crystal Palace. This day was fine, such as we
+seldom experience in London, with a clear sky,
+and invigorating air, whose vitality was as rousing
+to the spirits as a blast from the &quot;horn of Astolpho.&quot;
+Although it was not yet 10 o'clock when
+I entered Piccadilly, every omnibus was full,
+inside and out, and the street was lined with one
+living stream, as far as the eye could reach, all
+wending their way to the &quot;Glass-House.&quot; No
+metropolis in the world presents such facilities as
+London for the reception of the Great Exhibition,
+now collected within its walls. Throughout its
+myriads of veins, the stream of industry and toil
+pulses with sleepless energy. Every one seems
+to feel that this great Capital of the world, is the
+fittest place wherein they might offer homage to
+the dignity of toil. I had already begun to feel
+fatigued by my pedestrian excursion as I passed
+&quot;Apsley House,&quot; the residence of the Duke of
+Wellington, and emerged into Hyde Park.</p>
+
+<p>I had hoped that on getting into the Park, I
+would be out of the crowd that seemed to press so
+<!-- Page 209 --><a name="Page_209" id="Page_209" title="209" class="pagenum"></a>heavily in the street. But in this I was mistaken.
+I here found myself surrounded by and moving
+with an overwhelming mass, such as I had never
+before witnessed. And, away in the distance, I
+beheld a dense crowd, and above every other object,
+was seen the lofty summit of the Crystal
+Palace. The drive in the Park was lined with
+princely-looking vehicles of every description.
+The drivers in their bright red and gold uniforms,
+the pages and footmen in their blue trousers and
+white silk stockings, and the horses dressed up
+in their neat, silver-mounted harness, made the
+scene altogether one of great splendour. I was
+soon at the door, paid my shilling, and entered
+the building at the south end of the Transept.
+For the first ten or twenty minutes I was so lost
+in astonishment, and absorbed in pleasing wonder,
+that I could do nothing but gaze up and down the
+vista of the noble building. The Crystal Palace
+resembles in some respects, the interior of the
+cathedrals of this country. One long avenue from
+east to west is intersected by a Transept, which
+divides the building into two nearly equal parts.
+This is the greatest building the world ever saw,
+<!-- Page 210 --><a name="Page_210" id="Page_210" title="210" class="pagenum"></a>before which the Pyramids of Egypt, and the Colossus
+of Rhodes must hide their diminished
+heads. The palace was not full at any time during
+the day, there being only 64,000 persons present.
+Those who love to study the human countenance
+in all its infinite varieties, can find ample
+scope for the indulgence of their taste, by a visit
+to the World's Fair. All countries are there represented&mdash;Europeans,
+Asiatics, Americans and
+Africans, with their numerous subdivisions. Even
+the exclusive Chinese, with his hair braided, and
+hanging down his back, has left the land of his
+nativity, and is seen making long strides through
+the Crystal Palace, in his wooden-bottomed shoes.
+Of all places of curious costumes and different
+fashions, none has ever yet presented such a variety
+as this Exhibition. No dress is too absurd to be
+worn in this place.</p>
+
+<p>There is a great deal of freedom in the Exhibition.
+The servant who walks behind his mistress
+through the Park feels that he can crowd against
+her in the Exhibition. The Queen and the day
+labourer, the Prince and the merchant, the peer
+and the pauper, the Celt and the Saxon, the
+<!-- Page 211 --><a name="Page_211" id="Page_211" title="211" class="pagenum"></a>Greek and the Frank, the Hebrew and the Russ,
+all meet here upon terms of perfect equality.
+This amalgamation of rank, this kindly blending
+of interests, and forgetfulness of the cold formalities
+of ranks and grades, cannot but be attended
+with the very best results. I was pleased to see
+such a goodly sprinkling of my own countrymen in
+the Exhibition&mdash;I mean coloured men and
+women&mdash;well-dressed, and moving about with
+their fairer brethren. This, some of our pro-slavery
+Americans did not seem to relish very well.
+There was no help for it. As I walked through
+the American part of the Crystal Palace, some of
+our Virginian neighbours eyed me closely and
+with jealous looks, especially as an English lady
+was leaning on my arm. But their sneering
+looks did not disturb me in the least. I remained
+the longer in their department, and criticised
+the bad appearance of their goods the more.
+Indeed, the Americans, as far as appearance goes,
+are behind every other country in the Exhibition.
+The &quot;Greek Slave&quot; is the only production of
+Art which the United States has sent. And it
+would have been more to their credit had they
+<!-- Page 212 --><a name="Page_212" id="Page_212" title="212" class="pagenum"></a>kept that at home. In so vast a place as the
+Great Exhibition one scarcely knows what to
+visit first, or what to look upon last. After
+wandering about through the building for five
+hours, I sat down in one of the galleries and
+looked at the fine marble statue of Virginius,
+with the knife in his hand and about to take the
+life of his beloved and beautiful daughter, to save
+her from the hands of Appius Claudius. The
+admirer of genius will linger for hours among the
+great variety of statues in the long avenue.
+Large statues of Lords Eldon and Stowell, carved
+out of solid marble, each weighing above twenty
+tons, are among the most gigantic in the building.</p>
+
+<p>I was sitting with my 400 paged guide-book
+before me, and looking down upon the moving
+mass, when my attention was called to a small
+group of gentlemen standing near the statue of
+Shakspere, one of whom wore a white coat and
+hat, and had flaxen hair, and trousers rather short
+in the legs. The lady by my side, and who had
+called my attention to the group, asked if I could
+tell what country this odd-looking gentleman was
+from? Not wishing to run the risk of a mistake,
+<!-- Page 213 --><a name="Page_213" id="Page_213" title="213" class="pagenum"></a>I was about declining to venture an opinion,
+when the reflection of the sun against a mirror, on
+the opposite side, threw a brilliant light upon the
+group, and especially on the face of the gentleman
+in the white coat, and I immediately recognized
+under the brim of the white hat, the
+features of Horace Greeley, Esq., of the New
+York &quot;Tribune.&quot; His general appearance was as
+much out of the English style as that of the Turk
+whom I had seen but a moment before&mdash;in his
+bag-like trousers, shuffling along in his slippers.
+But oddness in dress, is one of the characteristics
+of the Great Exhibition.</p>
+
+<p>Among the many things in the Crystal Palace,
+there are some which receive greater attention
+than others, around which may always be seen
+large groups of the visitors. The first of these is
+the Koh-i-noor, the &quot;Mountain of Light.&quot; This
+is the largest and most valuable diamond in the
+world, said to be worth &pound;2,000,000 sterling. It
+is indeed a great source of attraction to those who
+go to the Exhibition for the first time, but it is
+doubtful whether it obtains such admiration afterwards.
+We saw more than one spectator turn
+<!-- Page 214 --><a name="Page_214" id="Page_214" title="214" class="pagenum"></a>away with the idea that after all it was only a
+piece of glass. After some jamming, I got a look
+at the precious jewel, and although in a brass-grated
+cage, strong enough to hold a lion, I found
+it to be no larger than the third of a hen's egg.
+Two policemen remain by its side day and night.</p>
+
+<p>The finest thing in the Exhibition, is the &quot;Veiled
+Vestal,&quot; a statue of a woman carved in marble,
+with a veil over her face, and so neatly done, that
+it looks as if it had been thrown over after it was
+finished. The Exhibition presents many things
+which appeal to the eye and touch the heart,
+and altogether, it is so decorated and furnished,
+as to excite the dullest mind, and satisfy the most
+fastidious.</p>
+
+<p>England has contributed the most useful and
+substantial articles; France, the most beautiful;
+while Russia, Turkey, and the West Indies, seem
+to vie with each other in richness. China and
+Persia are not behind. Austria has also contributed
+a rich and beautiful stock. Sweden, Norway,
+Denmark, and the smaller states of Europe,
+have all tried to outdo themselves in sending
+goods to the World's Fair. In Machinery, Eng<!-- Page 215 --><a name="Page_215" id="Page_215" title="215" class="pagenum"></a>land
+has no competitor. In Art, France is almost
+alone in the Exhibition, setting aside England.</p>
+
+<p>In natural productions and provisions, America
+stands alone in her glory. There lies her pile of
+canvassed hams; whether they were wood or real,
+we could not tell. There are her barrels of salt,
+beef, and pork, her beautiful white lard, her Indian-corn
+and corn-meal, her rice and tobacco,
+her beef tongues, dried peas, and a few bags of
+cotton. The contributors from the United States
+seemed to have <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;forgotton&quot; in the original text">forgotten</ins> that this was an exhibition
+of Art, or they most certainly would not
+have sent provisions. But the United States
+takes the lead in the contributions, as no other
+country has sent in provisions. The finest thing
+contributed by our countrymen, is a large piece
+of silk with an eagle painted upon it, surrounded
+by stars and stripes.</p>
+
+<p>After remaining more than five hours in the
+great temple, I turned my back upon the richly
+laden stalls and left the Crystal Palace. On my
+return home I was more fortunate than in the
+morning, inasmuch as I found a seat for my
+friend and myself in an omnibus. And even my
+<!-- Page 216 --><a name="Page_216" id="Page_216" title="216" class="pagenum"></a>ride in the close omnibus was not without
+interest. For I had scarcely taken my seat, when
+my friend, who was seated opposite me, with
+looks and gesture informed me that we were in
+the presence of some distinguished person. I
+eyed the countenances of the different persons,
+but in vain, to see if I could find any one who by
+his appearance showed signs of superiority over
+his fellow-passengers. I had given up the hope
+of selecting the person of note when another
+look from my friend directed my attention to a
+gentlemen seated in the corner of the omnibus.
+He was a tall man with strongly marked
+features, hair dark and coarse. There was a
+slight stoop of the shoulder&mdash;that bend which is
+almost always a characteristic of studious men.
+But he wore upon his countenance a forbidding
+and disdainful frown, that seemed to tell one that
+he thought himself better than those about him.
+His dress did not indicate a man of high rank;
+and had we been in America, I would have taken
+him for an Ohio farmer.</p>
+
+<p>While I was scanning the features and general
+appearance of the gentleman, the Omnibus
+<!-- Page 217 --><a name="Page_217" id="Page_217" title="217" class="pagenum"></a>stopped and put down three or four of the passengers,
+which gave me an opportunity of getting
+a seat by the side of my friend, who, in a low
+whisper, informed me that the gentleman whom I
+had been eyeing so closely, was no less a person
+than Thomas Carlyle. I had read his &quot;Hero-worship,&quot;
+and &quot;Past and Present,&quot; and had
+formed a high opinion of his literary abilities.
+But his recent attack upon the emancipated
+people of the West Indies, and his laborious
+article in favour of the re-establishment of the
+lash and slavery, had created in my mind a dislike
+for the man, and I almost regretted that we were
+in the same Omnibus. In some things, Mr.
+Carlyle is right: but in many, he is entirely
+wrong. As a writer, Mr. Carlyle is often monotonous
+and extravagant. He does not exhibit a
+new view of nature, or raise insignificant objects
+into importance, but generally takes commonplace
+thoughts and events, and tries to express
+them in stronger and statelier language than
+others. He holds no communion with his kind,
+but stands alone without mate or fellow. He is
+like a solitary peak, all access to which is cut off.
+<!-- Page 218 --><a name="Page_218" id="Page_218" title="218" class="pagenum"></a>He exists not by sympathy but by antipathy.
+Mr. Carlyle seems chiefly to try how he shall
+display his own powers, and astonish mankind, by
+starting new trains of speculation or by expressing
+old ones so as not to be understood. He cares
+little what he says, so as he can say it differently
+from others. To read his works, is one thing; to
+understand them, is another. If any one thinks
+that I exaggerate, let him sit for an hour over
+&quot;<ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;Sartar&quot; in the original text">Sartor</ins> Resartus,&quot; and if he does not rise from its
+pages, place his three or four dictionaries on the
+shelf, and say I am right, I promise never again
+to say a word against Thomas Carlyle. He
+writes one page in favour of Reform, and ten
+against it. He would hang all prisoners to get
+rid of them, yet the inmates of the prisons and
+&quot;work-houses are better off than the poor.&quot;
+His heart is with the poor; yet the blacks of the
+West Indies should be taught, that if they will
+not raise sugar and cotton by their own free will,
+&quot;Quashy should have the whip applied to him.&quot;
+He frowns upon the Reformatory speakers upon
+the boards of Exeter Hall, yet he is the prince of
+reformers. He hates heroes and assassins, yet
+<!-- Page 219 --><a name="Page_219" id="Page_219" title="219" class="pagenum"></a>Cromwell was an angel, and Charlotte Corday a
+saint. He scorns everything, and seems to be
+tired of what he is by nature, and tries to be what
+he is not. But you will ask, what has Thomas
+Carlyle to do with a visit to the Crystal Palace?
+My only reply is, &quot;Nothing,&quot; and if my remarks
+upon him have taken up the space that should
+have been devoted to the Exhibition, and what I
+have written not prove too burdensome to read,
+my next will be &quot;a week in the Crystal Palace.&quot;</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="LETTER_XVIII" id="LETTER_XVIII"></a>LETTER XVIII.</h2>
+
+<h3>The London Peace Congress&mdash;Meeting of Fugitive
+Slaves&mdash;Temperance Demonstration&mdash;The Great
+Exhibition: last visit.</h3>
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">London</span>, <i>August 20</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">The</span> past six weeks have been of a stirring nature
+in this great metropolis. It commenced with the
+Peace Congress, the proceedings of which have
+long since reached you. And although that
+<!-- Page 220 --><a name="Page_220" id="Page_220" title="220" class="pagenum"></a>event has passed off, it may not be out of place
+here to venture a remark or two upon its deliberations.</p>
+
+<p>A meeting upon the subject of Peace, with the
+support of the monied and influential men who
+rally around the Peace standard, could scarcely
+have been held in Exeter Hall without creating
+some sensation. From all parts of the world
+flocked delegates to this practical protest against
+war. And among those who took part in
+the proceedings, were many men whose names
+alone would, even on ordinary occasions, have
+filled the great hall. The speakers were
+chosen from among the representatives of the
+various countries, without regard to dialect or
+complexion; and the only fault which seemed to
+be found with the Committee's arrangement was,
+that in their desire to get foreigners and Londoners,
+they forgot the country delegates, so that
+none of the large provincial towns were at
+all represented in the Congress, so far as
+speaking was concerned. Manchester, Leeds,
+Newcastle, and all the important towns in
+Scotland and Ireland, were silenced in the
+<!-- Page 221 --><a name="Page_221" id="Page_221" title="221" class="pagenum"></a>great meeting. I need not say that this was
+an oversight of the Committee, and one, too,
+that has done some injury. Such men as the
+able Chairman of the late Anti-Corn Law
+League, cannot be forgotten in such a meeting,
+without giving offence to those who sent him,
+especially when the Committee brought forward,
+day after day, the same speakers, chosen from
+amongst the metropolitan delegation. However,
+the meeting was a glorious one, and will long be
+remembered with delight as a step onward in the
+cause of Peace. Burritt's Brotherhood Bazaar
+followed close upon the heels of the Peace Congress;
+and this had scarcely closed, when that
+ever-memorable meeting of the American Fugitive
+Slaves took place in the Hall of Commerce.</p>
+
+<p>The Temperance people made the next reformatory
+move. This meeting took place in Exeter
+Hall, and was made up of delegates from the various
+towns in the kingdom. They had come
+from the North, East, West, and South. There
+was the quick-spoken son of the Emerald Isle,
+with his pledge suspended from his neck; there,
+too, the Scot, speaking his broad dialect; also the
+<!-- Page 222 --><a name="Page_222" id="Page_222" title="222" class="pagenum"></a>representatives from the provincial towns of England
+and Wales, who seemed to speak anything
+but good English.</p>
+
+<p>The day after the meeting had closed in Exeter
+Hall, the country societies, together with those of
+the metropolis, assembled in Hyde Park, and then
+walked to the Crystal Palace. Their number
+while going to the Exhibition, was variously estimated
+at from 15,000 to 20,000, and was said to
+have been the largest gathering of Teetotalers ever
+assembled in London. They consisted chiefly of
+the working classes, their wives and children&mdash;clean,
+well-dressed and apparently happy: their
+looks indicating in every way those orderly habits
+which, beyond question, distinguish the devotees
+of that cause above the common labourers of this
+country. On arriving at the Exhibition, they
+soon distributed themselves among the departments,
+to revel in its various wonders, eating
+their own lunch, and drinking from the Crystal
+Fountain.</p>
+
+<p>And now I am at the world's wonder, I will
+remain here until I finish this sheet. I have
+spent fifteen days in the Exhibition, and have con<!-- Page 223 --><a name="Page_223" id="Page_223" title="223" class="pagenum"></a>versed
+with those who have spent double that
+number amongst its beauties, and the general
+opinion appears to be, that six months would not
+be too long to remain within its walls to enable
+one to examine its laden stalls. Many persons
+make the Crystal Palace their home, with the exception
+of night. I have seen them come in the
+morning, visit the dressing-room, then go to the
+refreshment room, and sit down to breakfast as
+if they had been at their hotel. Dinner and tea
+would be taken in turn.</p>
+
+<p>The Crystal Fountain is the great place of
+meeting in the Exhibition. There you may see
+husbands looking for lost wives, wives for stolen
+husbands, mothers for their lost children, and
+towns-people for their country friends; and unless
+you have an appointment at a certain place
+at an hour, you might as well prowl through the
+streets of London to find a friend, as in the Great
+Exhibition. There is great beauty in the &quot;Glass
+House.&quot; Here, in the transept, with the glorious
+sunlight coming through that wonderful glass
+roof, may the taste be cultivated and improved, the
+mind edified, and the feelings chastened. Here,
+<!-- Page 224 --><a name="Page_224" id="Page_224" title="224" class="pagenum"></a>surrounded by noble creations in marble and
+bronze, and in the midst of an admiring throng,
+one may gaze at statuary which might fitly decorate
+the house of the proudest prince in Christendom.</p>
+
+<p>He who takes his station in the gallery, at
+either end, and looks upon that wondrous nave,
+or who surveys the matchless panorama around
+him from the intersection of the nave and transept,
+may be said, without presumption or exaggeration,
+to see all the kingdoms of this world
+and the glory of them. He sees not only a
+greater collection of fine articles, but also a
+greater as well as more various assemblage of the
+human race, than ever before was gathered under
+one roof.</p>
+
+<p>One of the beauties of this great international
+gathering is, that it is not confined to rank or
+grade. The million toilers from mine, and factory,
+and workshop, and loom, and office, and
+field, share with their more wealthy neighbours
+the feast of reason and imagination spread out in
+the Crystal Palace.</p>
+
+<p>It is strange indeed to see so many nations
+<!-- Page 225 --><a name="Page_225" id="Page_225" title="225" class="pagenum"></a>assembled and represented on one spot of British
+ground. In short, it is one great theatre, with
+thousands of performers, each playing his own
+part. England is there, with her mighty engines
+toiling and whirring, indefatigable in her enterprises
+to shorten labour. India spreads her
+glitter and paint. France, refined and fastidious,
+is there every day, giving the last touch to her
+picturesque group; and the other countries, each
+in their turn, doing what they can to show off.
+The distant hum of thousands of good humoured
+people, with occasionally a national anthem
+from some gigantic organ, together with the
+noise of the machinery, seems to send life into
+every part of the Crystal Palace.</p>
+
+<p>When you get tired of walking, you can sit
+down and write your impressions, and there is
+the &quot;post&quot; to receive your letter, or if it be Friday
+or Saturday, you may, if you choose, rest yourself
+by hearing a lecture from Professor Anstead; and
+then before leaving take your last look, and see
+something that you have not before seen. Every
+thing which is old in cities, new in colonial life,
+splendid in courts, useful in industry, beautiful
+<!-- Page 226 --><a name="Page_226" id="Page_226" title="226" class="pagenum"></a>in nature, or ingenious in invention, is there represented.
+In one place we have the Bible translated
+into one hundred and fifty languages; in
+another, we have saints and archbishops painted
+on glass; in another, old palaces and the
+altars of a John Knox, a Baxter, or some
+other divines of olden time. In the old Temple
+of Delphi, we read that every state of the
+civilized world had its separate treasury, where
+Herodotus, born two thousand years before
+his time, saw and observed all kinds of prodigies
+in gold and silver, brass and iron, and
+even in linen. The nations all met there on one
+common ground, and the peace of the earth was
+not a little promoted by their common interest
+in the sanctity and splendour of that shrine.
+As long as the Exhibition lasts, and its memory
+endures, we hope and trust that it may shed the
+same influence. With this hasty scrap, I take
+leave of the Great Exhibition.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<div><!-- Page 227 --><a name="Page_227" id="Page_227" title="227" class="pagenum"></a></div>
+<h2><a name="LETTER_XIX" id="LETTER_XIX"></a>LETTER XIX.</h2>
+
+<h3>Oxford&mdash;Martyrs' Monument&mdash;Cost of the Burning
+of the Martyrs&mdash;The Colleges&mdash;Dr.
+Pusey&mdash;Energy, the Secret of Success.</h3>
+
+
+<p class="quotdate"><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Oxford</span>, <i>September 10th, 1851</i>.</p>
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">I have</span> just finished a short visit to the far famed
+city of Oxford, which has not unaptly been styled
+the City of Palaces. Aside from this being one of
+the principal seats of learning in the world, it is
+distinguished alike for its religious and political
+changes in times past. At one time it was the
+seat of Popery; at another, the uncompromising
+enemy of Rome. Here the tyrant, Richard the
+Third, held his court, and when James the First,
+and his son Charles the First, found their capital
+too hot to hold them, they removed to their loyal
+city of Oxford. The writings of the great
+Republicans were here committed to the flames.
+At one time Popery sent Protestants to the stake
+and faggot; at another, a Papist King found no
+favour with the people. A noble monument now
+<!-- Page 228 --><a name="Page_228" id="Page_228" title="228" class="pagenum"></a>stands where Cranmer, Ridley, and Latimer, proclaimed
+their sentiments and faith, and sealed them
+with their blood. And now we read upon the
+Town Treasurer's book&mdash;for three loads of wood,
+one load of faggots, one post, two chains and
+staples, to burn Ridley and Latimer, &pound;1 5s. 1d.
+Such is the information one gets by looking over
+the records of books written three centuries ago.</p>
+
+<p>It was a beautiful day on which I arrived at
+Oxford, and instead of remaining in my hotel, I
+sallied forth to take a survey of the beauties of
+the city. I strolled into Christ Church Meadows,
+and there spent the evening in viewing the
+numerous halls of learning which surround that
+splendid promenade. And fine old buildings they
+are: centuries have rolled over many of them,
+hallowing the old walls, and making them grey
+with age. They have been for ages the chosen
+homes of piety and philosophy. Heroes and
+scholars have gone forth from their studies here,
+into the great field of the world, to seek their
+fortunes, and to conquer and be conquered. As
+I surveyed the exterior of the different Colleges,
+I could here and there see the reflection of the
+<!-- Page 229 --><a name="Page_229" id="Page_229" title="229" class="pagenum"></a>light from the window of some student, who was
+busy at his studies, or throwing away his time
+over some trashy novel, too many of which find
+their way into the trunks or carpet bags of the
+young men on setting out for College. As I
+looked upon the walls of these buildings, I thought
+as the rough stone is taken from the quarry to
+the finisher, there to be made into an ornament,
+so was the young mind brought here to be cultivated
+and developed. Many a poor unobtrusive
+young man, with the appearance of little or no
+ability, is here moulded into a hero, a scholar, a
+tyrant, or a friend of humanity. I never look
+upon these monuments of education, without a
+feeling of regret, that so few of our own race can
+find a place within their walls. And this being
+the fact, I see more and more the need of our
+people being encouraged to turn their attention
+more seriously to self-education, and thus to take
+a respectable position before the world, by virtue
+of their own cultivated minds and moral standing.</p>
+
+<p>Education, though obtained by a little at a
+time, and that, too, over the midnight lamp, will
+<!-- Page 230 --><a name="Page_230" id="Page_230" title="230" class="pagenum"></a>place its owner in a position to be respected by
+all, even though he be black. I know that the
+obstacles which the laws of the land, and of society,
+place between the coloured man and
+education in the United States, are very great, yet
+if <i>one</i> can break through these barriers, more
+can; and if our people would only place the
+right appreciation upon education, they would
+find these obstacles are easier to be overcome than
+at first sight appears. A young man once asked
+Carlyle, what was the secret of success. His
+reply was, &quot;Energy; whatever you undertake,
+do it with all your might.&quot; Had it not been for
+the possession of energy, I might now have been
+working as a servant for some brainless fellow
+who might be able to command my labour with
+his money, or I might have been yet toiling in
+chains and slavery. But thanks to energy, not
+only for my being to-day in a land of freedom,
+but also for my dear girls being in one of the
+best seminaries in France, instead of being in an
+American school, where the finger of scorn
+would be pointed at them by those whose superiority
+rests entirely upon their having a whiter
+<!-- Page 231 --><a name="Page_231" id="Page_231" title="231" class="pagenum"></a>skin. But I am straying too far from the purpose
+of this letter.</p>
+
+<p>Oxford is indeed one of the finest located
+places in the kingdom, and every inch of ground
+about it seems hallowed by interesting associations.
+The University, founded by the good
+King Alfred, still throws its shadow upon the
+side-walk; and the lapse of ten centuries seems to
+have made but little impression upon it. Other
+seats of learning may be entitled to our admiration,
+but Oxford claims our veneration. Although
+the lateness of the night compelled me, yet I
+felt an unwillingness to tear myself from the
+scene of such surpassing interest. Few places in
+any country as noted as Oxford is, but what has
+some distinguished person residing within its
+precincts. And knowing that the City of Palaces
+was not an exception to this rule, I resolved to
+see some of its lions. Here, of course, is the
+head quarters of the Bishop of Oxford, a son of
+the late William Wilberforce, Africa's noble
+champion. I should have been glad to have seen
+this distinguished pillar of the Church, but I soon
+learned that the Bishop's residence was out of
+<!-- Page 232 --><a name="Page_232" id="Page_232" title="232" class="pagenum"></a>town, and that he seldom visited the city except
+on business. I then determined to see one who,
+although a lesser dignitary in the church, is
+nevertheless, scarcely less known than the Bishop
+of Oxford. This was the Rev. Dr. Pusey, a divine,
+whose name is known wherever the religion of
+Jesus is known and taught, and the acknowledged
+head of the Puseyites. On the second morning
+of my visit, I proceeded to Christ Church Chapel,
+where the rev. gentleman officiates. Fortunately
+I had an opportunity of seeing the Dr., and
+following close in his footsteps to the church.
+His personal appearance is anything but that of
+one who is the leader of a growing and powerful
+party in the church. He is rather under the
+middle size, and is round shouldered, or rather
+stoops. His profile is more striking than his
+front face, the nose being very large and prominent.
+As a matter of course, I expected to see
+a large nose, for all great men have them. He
+has a thoughtful, and somewhat sullen brow, a
+firm and somewhat pensive mouth, a cheek pale,
+thin, and deeply furrowed. A monk fresh from
+the cloisters of <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;Tinterran&quot; in the original text">Tintern</ins> Abbey, in its proudest
+<!-- Page 233 --><a name="Page_233" id="Page_233" title="233" class="pagenum"></a>days, could scarcely have made a more ascetic
+and solemn appearance than did Dr. Pusey on
+this occasion. He is not apparently above forty-five,
+or at most fifty years of age, and his whole
+aspect renders him an admirable study for an
+artist. Dr. Pusey's style of preaching is cold and
+tame, and one looking at him would scarcely
+believe that such an apparently uninteresting man
+could cause such an eruption in the Church as he
+has. I was glad to find that a coloured young
+man was among the students at Oxford.</p>
+
+<p>A few months since, I paid a visit to our
+countryman, Alexander Crummel, who is still
+pursuing his studies at Cambridge&mdash;a place,
+though much inferior to Oxford as far as appearance
+is concerned, is yet said to be greatly its superior as
+a place of learning. In an hour's walk through the
+Strand, Regent, or Piccadilly Streets in London,
+one may meet half a dozen coloured young men,
+who are inmates of the various Colleges in the
+metropolis. These are all signs of progress in the
+cause of the sons of Africa. Then let our people
+take courage, and with that courage let them
+apply themselves to learning. A determination
+<!-- Page 234 --><a name="Page_234" id="Page_234" title="234" class="pagenum"></a>to excel is the sure road to greatness, and that
+is as open to the black man as the white. It was
+that which has accomplished the <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;mightest&quot; in the original text">mightiest</ins> and
+noblest triumphs in the intellectual and physical
+world. It was that which has made such rapid
+strides towards civilization, and broken the chains
+of ignorance and superstition, which have so long
+fettered the human intellect. It was determination
+which raised so many worthy individuals
+from the humble walks of society, and from
+poverty, and placed them in positions of trust and
+renown. It is no slight barrier that can
+effectually oppose the determination of the will&mdash;success
+must ultimately crown its efforts. &quot;The
+world shall hear of me,&quot; was the exclamation of
+one whose name has become as familiar as household
+words. A Toussaint, once laboured in the
+sugar field with his spelling-book in his pocket,
+amid the combined efforts of a nation to keep him
+in ignorance. His name is now recorded among
+the list of statesmen of the past. A Soulouque
+was once a slave, and knew not how to read. He
+now sits upon the throne of an Empire.</p>
+
+<p>In our own country, there are men who once
+<!-- Page 235 --><a name="Page_235" id="Page_235" title="235" class="pagenum"></a>held the plough, and that too without any
+compensation, who are now presiding at the
+editor's table. It was determination that brought
+out the genius of a Franklin, and a Fulton, and that
+has distinguished many of the American Statesmen,
+who but for their energy and determination
+would never have had a name beyond the precincts
+of their own homes.</p>
+
+<p>It is not always those who have the best advantages,
+or the greatest talents, that eventually
+succeed in their undertakings; but it is those who
+strive with untiring diligence to remove all obstacles
+to success, and who, with unconquerable
+resolution, labour on until the rich reward of
+perseverance is within their grasp. Then again
+let me say to our young men&mdash;Take courage;
+&quot;There is a good time coming.&quot; The darkness
+of the night appears greatest just before the dawn
+of day.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<div><!-- Page 236 --><a name="Page_236" id="Page_236" title="236" class="pagenum"></a></div>
+<h2><a name="LETTER_XX" id="LETTER_XX"></a>LETTER XX.</h2>
+
+<h3>Fugitive Slaves in England.</h3>
+
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">The</span> love of freedom is one of those natural
+impulses of the human breast which cannot be
+extinguished. Even the brute animals of the
+creation feel and show sorrow and affection when
+deprived of their liberty. Therefore is a distinguished
+writer justified in saying, &quot;Man is free,
+even were he born in chains.&quot; The Americans
+boast, and justly, too, that Washington was the
+hero and model patriot of the American Revolution&mdash;the
+man whose fame, unequalled in his own
+day and country, will descend to the end of time,
+the pride and honour of humanity. The
+American speaks with pride of the battles of
+Lexington and Bunker Hill; and when standing
+in Faneuil Hall, he points to the portraits of
+Otis, Adams, Hancock, Quincy, Warren, and
+Franklin, and tells you that their names will go
+down to posterity among the world's most devoted
+and patriotic friends of human liberty.</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page 237 --><a name="Page_237" id="Page_237" title="237" class="pagenum"></a>It was on the first of August, 1851, that a number
+of men, fugitives from that boasted land of freedom,
+assembled at the Hall of Commerce in the City of
+London, for the purpose of laying their wrongs
+before the British nation, and at the same time,
+to give thanks to the God of Freedom for the
+liberation of their West India brethren, on the
+first of August, 1834. Little notice had been
+given of the intended meeting, yet it seemed to
+be known in all parts of the city. At the hour
+of half-past seven, for which the meeting had been
+called, the spacious hall was well filled, and the
+fugitives, followed by some of the most noted
+English Abolitionists, entered the hall, amid the
+most deafening applause, and took their seats on
+the platform. The appearance of the great hall
+at this juncture was most splendid. Besides the
+committee of fugitives, on the platform there were
+a number of the oldest and most devoted of the
+Slave's friends. On the left of the chair sat Geo.
+Thompson, Esq., M.P.; near him was the Rev.
+Jabez Burns, D.D.; and by his side the Rev.
+John Stevenson, M.A., Wm. Farmer, Esq., R.
+Smith, Esq.; while on the other side were the
+<!-- Page 238 --><a name="Page_238" id="Page_238" title="238" class="pagenum"></a>Rev. Edward Mathews, John Cunliff, Esq.,
+Andrew Paton, Esq., J.P. Edwards, Esq., and a
+number of coloured gentlemen from the West
+Indies. The body of the hall was not without its
+distinguished guests. The Chapmans and
+Westons of Boston, U.S., were there. The
+Estlins and Tribes had come all the way from
+Bristol to attend the great meeting. The Patons
+of Glasgow had delayed their departure, so as to
+be present. The Massies had come in from
+Upper Clapton. Not far from the platform sat
+Sir Francis Knowles, Bart., still farther back was
+Samuel Bowly, Esq., while near the door were to
+be seen the greatest critic of the age, and
+England's best living poet. Macaulay had laid
+aside the pen, entered the hall, and was standing
+near the central door, while not far from the
+historian stood the newly-appointed Poet Laureat.
+The author of &quot;In Memoriam&quot; had been swept
+in by the crowd, and was standing with his arms
+folded, and beholding for the first time (and probably
+the last) so large a number of coloured
+men in one room. In different parts of the hall
+were men and women from nearly all parts of
+<!-- Page 239 --><a name="Page_239" id="Page_239" title="239" class="pagenum"></a>the kingdom, besides a large number who, drawn
+to London by the Exhibition, had come in to see
+and hear these oppressed people plead their own
+cause.</p>
+
+<p>The writer of this sketch was chosen Chairman
+of the meeting, and commenced its proceedings
+by delivering the following address, which we cut
+from the columns of the <i>Morning Advertiser</i>:&mdash;</p>
+
+
+<p>&quot;The Chairman, in opening the proceedings,
+remarked that, although the metropolis had of
+late been inundated with meetings of various
+character, having reference to almost every
+variety of subject, yet that the subject they were
+called upon that evening to discuss differed from
+them all. Many of those by whom he was
+surrounded, like himself, had been victims to the
+inhuman institution of Slavery, and were in consequence
+exiled from the land of their birth.
+They were fugitives from their native land, but
+not fugitives from justice, and they had not fled
+from a monarchical, but from a so-called republican
+government. They came from amongst a
+people who declared, as part of their creed, that
+<!-- Page 240 --><a name="Page_240" id="Page_240" title="240" class="pagenum"></a>all men were born free, but who, while they did
+so, made slaves of every sixth man, woman, and
+child in the country (hear, hear). He must not,
+however, forget that one of the purposes for which
+they were met that night was to commemorate the
+emancipation of their brothers and sisters in the
+isles of the sea. That act of the British Parliament,
+and he might add in this case with peculiar
+emphasis, of the British nation, passed on the 12th
+day of August, 1833, to take effect on the first
+day of August, 1834, and which enfranchised
+800,000 West Indian slaves, was an event sublime
+in its nature, comprehensive and mighty in its
+immediate influences and remote consequences,
+precious beyond expression to the cause of freedom,
+and encouraging beyond the measure of any
+government on earth to the hearts of all
+enlightened and just men. This act was the
+commencement of a long course of philanthropic
+and Christian efforts on the part of some of the
+best men that the world ever produced. It was not
+his intention to go into a discussion or a calculation
+of the rise and fall of property, or whether
+sugar was worth more or less by the act of
+<!-- Page 241 --><a name="Page_241" id="Page_241" title="241" class="pagenum"></a>emancipation. But the abolition of Slavery
+in the West Indies, was a blow struck in the
+right direction, at that most inhuman of all
+traffics, the slave trade&mdash;a trade which would
+never cease so long as slavery existed, for where
+there was a market there would be merchandise;
+where there was demand there would be a supply;
+where there were carcases there would be vultures;
+and they might as well attempt to turn the
+water, and make it run up the Niagara river, as
+to change this law. It was often said by the
+Americans that England was responsible for the
+existence of slavery there, because it was introduced
+into that country while the colonies were
+under the British Crown. If that were the case,
+they must come to the conclusion that, as England
+abolished Slavery in the West Indies, she
+would have done the same for the American
+States if she had had the power to do
+it; and if that was so, they might safely
+say that the separation of the United States
+from the mother country was (to say the least)
+a great misfortune to one-sixth of the population
+of that land. England had set a noble
+<!-- Page 242 --><a name="Page_242" id="Page_242" title="242" class="pagenum"></a>example to America, and he would to heaven his
+countrymen would follow the example. The
+Americans boasted of their superior knowledge,
+but they needed not to boast of their superior
+guilt, for that was set upon a hill top, and that
+too, so high, that it required not the lantern of
+Diogenes to find it out. Every breeze from the
+western world brought upon its wings the groans
+and cries of the victims of this guilt. Nearly all
+countries had fixed the seal of disapprobation on
+slavery, and when, at some future age, this stain
+on the page of history shall be pointed at,
+posterity will blush at the discrepancy between
+American profession and American practice.
+What was to be thought of a people boasting of
+their liberty, their humanity, their Christianity,
+their love of justice, and at the same time keeping
+in slavery nearly four millions of God's children,
+and shutting out from them the light of the
+Gospel, by denying the Bible to the slave!
+(Hear, hear.) No education, no marriage, everything
+done to keep the mind of the slave in
+darkness. There was a wish on the part of the
+people of the northern States to shield themselves
+<!-- Page 243 --><a name="Page_243" id="Page_243" title="243" class="pagenum"></a>from the charge of slave-holding, but as they
+shared in the guilt, he was not satisfied with
+letting them off without their share in the odium.
+And now a word about the Fugitive Slave Bill.
+That measure was in every respect an <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;unconsitutional&quot; in the original text">unconstitutional</ins>
+measure. It set aside the right formerly
+enjoyed by the fugitive of trial by jury&mdash;it
+afforded to him no protection, no opportunity of
+proving his right to be free, and it placed every
+free coloured person at the mercy of any unprincipled
+individual who might wish to lay claim
+to him. (Hear.) That law is opposed to the
+principles of Christianity&mdash;foreign alike to the
+laws of God and man, it had converted the whole
+population of the free States into a band of slave-catchers,
+and every rood of territory is but so
+much hunting ground, over which they might
+chase the fugitive. But while they were speaking
+of slavery in the United States, they must not
+omit to mention that there was a strong feeling
+in that land, not only against the Fugitive Slave
+Law, but also against the existence of slavery in
+any form. There was a band of fearless men and
+women in the city of Boston, whose labours for
+<!-- Page 244 --><a name="Page_244" id="Page_244" title="244" class="pagenum"></a>the slave had resulted in good beyond calculation.
+This noble and heroic class had created an agitation
+in the whole country, until their principles
+have taken root in almost every association in
+the land, and which, with God's blessing, will, in
+due time, cause the Americans to put into
+practice what they have so long <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;professsd&quot; in the original text">professed</ins>. (Hear,
+hear.) He wished it to be continually held up
+before the country, that the northern States are
+as deeply implicated in the guilt of slavery as the
+South. The north had a population of 13,553,328
+freemen; the south had a population of only
+6,393,756 freemen; the north has 152 representatives
+in the house, the south only 81; and it would
+be seen by this, that the balance of power was with
+the free States. Looking, therefore, at the
+question in all its aspects, he was sure that
+there was no one in this country but who
+would find out, that the slavery of the United
+States of America was a system the most
+abandoned and the most tyrannical. (Hear,
+hear.)&quot;</p>
+
+<p>At the close of this address, the Rev. Edward
+Matthews, last from Bristol, but who had
+<!-- Page 245 --><a name="Page_245" id="Page_245" title="245" class="pagenum"></a>recently returned from the United States, where
+he had been maltreated on account of his fidelity
+to the cause of freedom, was introduced, and
+made a most interesting speech. The next
+speaker was George Thompson, Esq., M.P.;
+and we need only say that his eloquence, which
+has seldom or ever been equalled, and never surpassed,
+exceeded, on this occasion, the most
+sanguine expectations of his friends. All
+who sat under the thundering anathemas which he
+hurled against slavery, seemed instructed, delighted,
+and animated. No one could scarcely
+have remained unmoved by the pensive sympathies
+that pervaded the entire assembly.
+There were many in the meeting who had never
+seen a fugitive slave before, and when any of the
+speakers would refer to those on the platform,
+the whole audience seemed moved to tears. No
+meeting of the kind held in London for years
+created a greater sensation than this gathering of
+refugees from the &quot;Land of the free, and the
+home of the brave.&quot; The following appeal, which
+I had <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;writen&quot; in the original text">written</ins> for the occasion, was unanimously
+adopted at the close of the meeting, and thus
+<!-- Page 246 --><a name="Page_246" id="Page_246" title="246" class="pagenum"></a>ended the great Anti-Slavery demonstration of
+1851.</p>
+
+<div class="ctr">
+<h4>AN APPEAL TO THE PEOPLE OF GREAT BRITAIN
+AND THE WORLD.</h4>
+</div>
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">We</span> consider it just, both to the people of the
+United States and to ourselves, in making an
+appeal to the inhabitants of other countries,
+against the laws which have exiled us from our
+native land, to state the ground upon which we
+make our appeal, and the causes which impel us
+to do so. There are in the United States of
+America, at the present time, between three and
+four millions of persons, who are held in a state
+of slavery which has no parallel in any other part
+of the world; and whose numbers have, within the
+last fifty years, increased to a fearful extent. These
+people are not only deprived of the rights to
+which the laws of Nature and Nature's God
+entitle them, but every avenue to knowledge is
+closed against them. The laws do not recognise
+the family relation of a slave, and extend to him
+protection in the enjoyment of domestic endearments.
+Brothers and sisters, parents and children,
+<!-- Page 247 --><a name="Page_247" id="Page_247" title="247" class="pagenum"></a>husbands and wives, are torn asunder, and
+permitted to see each other no more. The
+shrieks and agonies of the slave are heard in the
+markets at the seat of government, and within
+hearing of the American Congress, as well as on
+the cotton, sugar and rice plantations of the far
+South.</p>
+
+<p>The history of the negroes in America is but a
+history of repeated injuries and acts of oppression
+committed upon them by the whites. It is not
+for ourselves that we make this appeal, but
+for those whom we have left behind.</p>
+
+<p>In their Declaration of Independence, the
+Americans declare that &quot;all men are created
+equal; that they are endowed by their Creator
+with certain inalienable rights; that among these
+are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.&quot;
+Yet one-sixth of the inhabitants of the great
+Republic are slaves. Thus they give the lie to
+their own professions. No one forfeits his or her
+character or standing in society by being engaged
+in holding, buying or selling a slave; the details
+of which, in all their horror, can scarcely be told.</p>
+
+<p>Although the holding of slaves is confined to
+<!-- Page 248 --><a name="Page_248" id="Page_248" title="248" class="pagenum"></a>fifteen of the thirty-one States, yet we hold that
+the non-slave-holding States are equally guilty
+with the slave-holding. If any proof is needed on
+this point, it will be found in the passage of the
+inhuman Fugitive Slave Law, by Congress; a law
+which could never have been enacted without the
+votes of a portion of the representatives from the
+free States, and which is now being enforced,
+in many of the States, with the utmost
+alacrity. It was the passing of this law that
+exiled us from our native land, and it has driven
+thousands of our brothers and sisters from the free
+States, and compelled them to seek a refuge in
+the British possessions in North America. The
+Fugitive Slave Law has converted the entire
+country, North and South, into one vast hunting-ground.
+We would respectfully ask you to
+expostulate with the Americans, and let them
+know that you regard their treatment of the
+coloured people of that country as a violation of
+every principle of human brotherhood, of natural
+right, of justice, of humanity, of Christianity, of
+love to God and love to man.</p>
+
+<p>It is needless that we should remind you that
+<!-- Page 249 --><a name="Page_249" id="Page_249" title="249" class="pagenum"></a>the religious sects of America, with but few exceptions,
+are connected with the sin of slavery&mdash;the
+churches North as well as South. We would
+have you tell the professed Christians of that land,
+that if they would be respected by you, they must
+separate themselves from the unholy alliance with
+men who are daily committing deeds which, if
+done in England, would cause the perpetrator to
+be sent to a felon's doom; that they must refuse
+the right hand of Christian fellowship, whether
+individually or collectively, to those implicated, in
+any way, in the guilt of slavery.</p>
+
+<p>We do not ask for a forcible interference on
+your part, but only that you will use all lawful
+and peaceful means to restore to this much
+injured race their God-given rights. The moral
+and religious sentiment of mankind must be
+arrayed against slave-holding, to make it infamous,
+ere we can hope to see it abolished. We would
+ask you to set them the example, by excluding
+from your pulpits, and from religious communion,
+the slave-holding and pro-slavery ministers who
+may happen to visit this country. We would
+even go further, and ask you to shut your doors
+<!-- Page 250 --><a name="Page_250" id="Page_250" title="250" class="pagenum"></a>against either ministers or laymen, who are at all
+guilty of upholding and sustaining this monster
+sin. By the cries of the slave, which come from
+the fields and swamps of the far South, we ask
+you to do this! By that spirit of liberty and
+equality of which you all admire, we would ask
+you to do this. And by that still nobler, higher,
+and holier spirit of our beloved Saviour, we would
+ask you to stamp upon the head of the slaveholder,
+with a brand deeper than that which
+marks the victim of his wrongs, the infamy of
+theft, adultery, man-stealing, piracy, and murder,
+and, by the force of public opinion, compel him to
+&quot;unloose the heavy burden, and let the oppressed
+go free.&quot;</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="LETTER_XXI" id="LETTER_XXI"></a>LETTER XXI.</h2>
+
+<h3>A Chapter on American Slavery.</h3>
+
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">The</span> word Englishman is but another name for
+an American, and the word American is but an<!-- Page 251 --><a name="Page_251" id="Page_251" title="251" class="pagenum"></a>other
+name for an Englishman&mdash;England is the
+father, America the son. They have a common
+origin and identity of language; they hold the
+same religious and political opinions; they study
+the same histories, and have the same literature.
+Steam and mechanical ingenuity have brought
+the two countries within nine days sailing of each
+other. The Englishman on landing at New-York
+finds his new neighbours speaking the same language
+which he last heard on leaving Liverpool,
+and he sees the American in the same dress that
+he had been accustomed to look upon at home,
+and soon forgets that he is three thousand miles
+from his native land, and in another country.
+The American on landing at Liverpool, and
+taking a walk through the great commercial
+city, finding no difficulty in understanding the
+people, supposes himself still in New-York; and
+if there seems any doubt in his own mind,
+growing out of the fact that the people have
+a more healthy look, seem more polite, and
+that the buildings have a more substantial
+appearance than those he had formerly looked
+upon, he has only to imagine, as did Rip Van
+<!-- Page 252 --><a name="Page_252" id="Page_252" title="252" class="pagenum"></a>Winkle, that he has been asleep these hundred
+years.</p>
+
+<p>If the Englishman who has seen a Thompson
+silenced in Boston, or a Macready mobbed in New-York,
+upon the ground that they were foreigners,
+should sit in Exeter Hall and hear an American
+orator until he was hoarse, and wonder why the
+American is better treated in England than the
+Englishman in America, he has only to attribute it
+to John Bull's superior knowledge of good manners,
+and his being a more law-abiding man than brother
+Jonathan. England and America has each its
+reforms and its reformers, and they have more or
+less sympathy with each other. It has been said
+that one generation commences a reform in
+England, and that another generation finishes it.
+I would that so much could be said with regard to
+the great object of reform in America&mdash;the system
+of slavery!</p>
+
+<p>No evil was ever more deeply rooted in a
+country than is slavery in the United States.
+Spread over the largest and most fertile States in
+the Union, with decidedly the best climate,
+and interwoven, as it is, with the religious,
+<!-- Page 253 --><a name="Page_253" id="Page_253" title="253" class="pagenum"></a>political, commercial, and social institutions of
+the country, it is scarcely possible to estimate its
+influence. This is the evil which claims the attention
+of American Reformers, over and above
+every other evil in the land, and thanks to a kind
+providence, the American slave is not without
+his advocates. The greatest enemy to the
+Anti-Slavery Society, and the most inveterate
+opposer of the men whose names stand at the
+head of the list as officers and agents of that
+association, will, we think, assign to William
+Lloyd Garrison, the first place in the ranks of the
+American Abolitionists. The first to proclaim
+the doctrine of immediate emancipation to
+the slaves of America, and on that account an
+object of hatred to the slave-holding interest of
+the country, and living for years with his life
+in danger, he is justly regarded by all, as the
+leader of the Anti-Slavery movement in the New
+World. Mr. Garrison is at the present time but
+little more than forty-five years of age, and of the
+middle size. He has a high and prominent forehead,
+well developed, with no hair on the top of
+the head, having lost it in early life; with a pierc<!-- Page 254 --><a name="Page_254" id="Page_254" title="254" class="pagenum"></a>ing
+eye, a pleasant, yet anxious countenance,
+and of a most loveable disposition; tender,
+and blameless in his family affections, devoted
+to his friends; simple and studious,
+upright, guileless, distinguished, and worthy,
+like the distinguished men of antiquity, to be
+immortalized by another Plutarch. How many
+services never to be forgotten, has he not rendered
+to the cause of the slave, and the welfare of
+mankind! As a speaker, he is forcible, clear, and
+logical, yet he will not rank with the many who
+are less known. As a writer, he is regarded as
+one of the finest in the United States, and
+certainly the most prominent in the Anti-Slavery
+cause. Had Mr. Garrison wished to serve
+himself, he might, with his great talents, long
+since, have been at the head of either of the great
+political parties. Few men can withstand the
+allurements of office, and the prize-money that
+accompanies them. Many of those who were with
+him fifteen years ago, have been swept down
+with the current of popular favour, either
+in Church or State. He has seen a Cox
+on the one hand, and a Stanton on the
+<!-- Page 255 --><a name="Page_255" id="Page_255" title="255" class="pagenum"></a>other, swept away like so much floating wood
+before the tide. When the sturdiest characters
+gave way, when the finest geniuses passed one after
+another under the yoke of slavery, Garrison stood
+firm to his convictions, like a rock that stands
+stirless amid the conflicting agitation of the
+waves. He is not only the friend and advocate
+of freedom with his pen and his tongue, but to
+the oppressed of every clime he opens his purse,
+his house, and his heart: yet he is not a man of
+money. The fugitive slave, fresh from the whips
+and chains, who is turned off by the politician,
+and experiences the cold shoulder of the
+divine, finds a bed and a breakfast under the hospitable
+roof of Mr. Lloyd Garrison.</p>
+
+<p>The party of which he is the acknowledged
+head, is one of no inconsiderable influence in the
+United States. No man has more bitter enemies
+or stauncher friends than he. There are those
+among his friends who would stake their all upon
+his veracity and integrity; and we are sure that
+the coloured people throughout America, bond
+and free, in whose cause he has so long laboured,
+will, with one accord, assign the highest niche in
+<!-- Page 256 --><a name="Page_256" id="Page_256" title="256" class="pagenum"></a>their affection to the champion of universal
+emancipation. Every cause has its writers and
+its orators. We have drawn a hasty and imperfect
+sketch of the greatest writer in the Anti-Slavery
+field: we shall now call attention to the
+most distinguished public speaker. The name of
+Wendell Phillips is but another name for eloquence.
+Born in the highest possible position in
+America, Mr. Phillips has all the advantages that
+birth can give to one in that country. Educated
+at the first University, graduating with all the
+honours which the College could bestow on him,
+and studying the law and becoming a member of
+the bar, he has all the accomplishments that
+these advantages can give to a man of a great
+mind. Nature has treated him as a favourite.
+His stature is not tall, but handsome; his expressive
+countenance paints and reflects every emotion
+of his soul. His gestures are wonderfully
+graceful, like his delivery. There is a
+fascination in the soft gaze of his eyes,
+which none can but admire. Being a great
+reader, and endowed by nature with a good
+memory, he supplies himself with the most com<!-- Page 257 --><a name="Page_257" id="Page_257" title="257" class="pagenum"></a>plicated
+dates and historical events. Nothing can
+equal the variety of his matter. I have heard him
+more than twenty different times on the same
+subject, but never heard the same speech. He is
+personal, but there is nothing offensive in his
+personalities. He extracts from a subject all that
+it contains, and does it as none but Wendell
+Phillips can. His voice is beautifully musical,
+and it is calculated to attract wherever it is heard.
+He is a man of calm intrepidity, of a patriotic
+and warm heart, with manners the most affable,
+temper the most gentle, a rectitude of principle
+entirely natural, a freedom from ambition, and
+a modesty quite singular. As Napoleon kept
+the Old Guard in reserve, to turn the tide in
+battle, so do the Abolitionists keep Mr. Phillips in
+reserve when opposition is expected in their great
+gatherings. We have seen the meetings turned
+into a bedlam, by the mobocratic slave-holding
+spirit, and when the speakers had one after
+another left the platform without a hearing, and
+the chairman had lost all control of the assembly,
+the appearance of this gentleman upon the platform
+would turn the tide of events. He would
+<!-- Page 258 --><a name="Page_258" id="Page_258" title="258" class="pagenum"></a>not beg for a hearing, but on the contrary, he
+would lash them as no preceding speaker had
+done. If, by their groans and yells, they stifled
+his voice, he would stand unmoved with his arms
+folded, and by the very eloquence of his looks put
+them to silence. His speeches against the Fugitive
+Slave Law, and his withering rebukes of Daniel
+Webster and other northern men who supported
+that measure, are of the most splendid character,
+and will compare in point of composition with anything
+ever uttered by Chatham or Sheridan in
+their palmiest days. As a public speaker, Mr.
+Phillips is, without doubt, the first in the United
+States. Considering his great talent, his high
+birth, and the prospects which lay before him, and
+the fact that he threw everything aside to plead
+the slave's cause, we must be convinced that no
+man has sacrificed more upon the altar of humanity
+than Wendell Phillips.</p>
+
+<p>Within the past ten years, a great impetus has
+been given to the anti-slavery movement in
+America by coloured men who have escaped from
+slavery. Coming as they did from the very
+house of bondage, and being able to speak from
+<!-- Page 259 --><a name="Page_259" id="Page_259" title="259" class="pagenum"></a>sad experience, they could speak as none others
+could.</p>
+
+<p>The gentleman to whom we shall now call
+attention is one of this class, and doubtless the
+first of his race in America. The name of
+Frederick Douglass is well known throughout this
+country as well as America. Born and brought
+up as a slave, he was deprived of a mother's
+care and of early education. Escaping when
+he was little more than twenty years of age,
+he was thrown upon his own resources in the free
+states, where prejudice against colour is but
+another name for slavery. But during all this
+time he was educating himself as well as circumstances
+would admit. Mr. Douglass commenced
+his career as a public speaker some ten years since,
+as an agent of the American or Massachusetts Anti-Slavery
+Societies. He is tall and well made.
+His vast and well-developed forehead announces
+the power of his intellect. His voice is full and
+sonorous. His attitude is dignified, and his
+gesticulation is full of noble simplicity. He is a
+man of lofty reason, natural, and without pretension,
+always master of himself, brilliant in the
+<!-- Page 260 --><a name="Page_260" id="Page_260" title="260" class="pagenum"></a>art of exposing and of abstracting. Few persons
+can handle a subject with which they are familiar
+better than Mr. Douglass. There is a kind of
+eloquence issuing from the depth of the soul,
+as from a spring, rolling along its copious floods,
+sweeping all before it, overwhelming by its very
+force, carrying, upsetting, engulphing its adversaries,
+and more dazzling and more thundering
+than the bolt which leaps from crag to crag.
+This is the eloquence of Frederick Douglass. He
+is one of the greatest mimics of the age. No
+man can put on a sweeter smile or a more sarcastic
+frown than he: you cannot put him off his guard.
+He is always in good humour. Mr. Douglass
+possesses great dramatic powers; and had he
+taken up the sock and buskin, instead of becoming
+a lecturer, he would have made as fine a Coriolanus
+as ever trod the stage.</p>
+
+<p>However, Mr. Douglass was not the first
+coloured man that became a lecturer, and thereby
+did service to the cause of his countrymen. The
+earliest and most effective speaker from among
+the coloured race in America, was Charles Lennox
+Remond. In point of eloquence, this gentleman
+<!-- Page 261 --><a name="Page_261" id="Page_261" title="261" class="pagenum"></a>is not inferior to either Wendell Phillips or
+Frederick Douglass. Mr. Remond is of small
+stature, and neat figure, with a head well developed,
+but a remarkably thin face. As an elocutionist,
+he is, without doubt, the first on the anti-slavery
+platform. He has a good voice, a pleasing
+countenance, a prompt intelligence, and when
+speaking, is calculated to captivate and carry
+away an audience by the very force of his
+eloquence. Born in the freest state of the Union,
+and of most respectable parents, he prides himself
+not a little on his birth and descent. One can
+scarcely find fault with this, for, in the United
+States, the coloured man is deprived of the advantages
+which parentage gives to the white man.
+Mr. Remond is a descendant of one of those
+coloured men who stood side by side with white
+men on the plains of Concord and Lexington, in
+the battles that achieved the independence of
+the colonies from the mother country, in the war
+of the Revolution. Mr. Remond has felt deeply,
+(probably more so than any other coloured man),
+the odious prejudice against colour. On this point
+he is sensitive to a fault. If any one will sit for
+<!-- Page 262 --><a name="Page_262" id="Page_262" title="262" class="pagenum"></a>an hour and hear a lecture from him on this subject,
+if he is not converted, he will at least become
+convinced, that the boiling cauldron of anti-slavery
+discussion has never thrown upon its surface
+a more fiery spirit than Charles Lennox Remond.</p>
+
+<p>There are some men who neither speak nor
+write, but whose lives place them in the foremost
+ranks in the cause which they espouse. One of
+these is Francis Jackson. He was one of the
+earliest to give countenance and support to the
+anti-slavery movement. In the year 1835, when
+a mob of more than 5000 merchants and others,
+in Boston, broke up an anti-slavery meeting of
+females, at which William Lloyd Garrison and
+George Thompson were to deliver addresses, and
+when the Society had no room in which to hold
+its meetings (having been driven from their own
+room by the mob), Francis Jackson, with a moral
+courage scarcely ever equalled, came forward and
+offered his private dwelling to the ladies, to hold
+their meeting in. The following interesting
+passage occurs in a letter from him to the
+Secretary of the Society a short time after, on
+receiving a vote of thanks from its members:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>&quot;<!-- Page 263 --><a name="Page_263" id="Page_263" title="263" class="pagenum"></a>If a large majority of this community choose
+to turn a deaf ear to the wrongs which are
+inflicted upon their countrymen in other portions
+of the land&mdash;if they are content to turn
+away from the sight of oppression, and 'pass by
+on the other side'&mdash;so it must be.</p>
+
+<p>&quot;But when they undertake in any way to
+impair or annul my right to speak, write, and
+publish upon any subject, and more especially
+upon enormities, which are the common concern
+of every lover of his country and his kind&mdash;so it
+must not be&mdash;so it shall not be, if I for one can
+prevent it. Upon this great right let us hold on
+at all hazards. And should we, in its exercise,
+be driven from public halls to private dwellings,
+one house at least shall be consecrated to its
+preservation. And if, in defence of this sacred
+privilege, which man did not give me, and shall
+not (if I can help it) take from me, this roof
+and these walls shall be levelled to the earth,
+let them fall if they must; they cannot crumble
+in a better cause. They will appear of very
+little value to me after their owner shall have
+been whipt into silence.&quot;</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page 264 --><a name="Page_264" id="Page_264" title="264" class="pagenum"></a>There are among the contributors to the Anti-Slavery
+cause, a few who give with a liberality
+which has never been surpassed by the donors
+to any benevolent association in the world, according
+to their means&mdash;the chief of these is Francis
+Jackson.</p>
+
+<p>In the month of May, <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: Erratum applied, &quot;1834&quot; in the original text">1844</ins>, while one evening
+strolling up Broadway, New York, I saw a
+crowd making its way into the Minerva Rooms,
+and, having no pressing engagement, I followed,
+and was soon in a splendid hall, where some
+twelve or fifteen hundred persons were seated,
+and listening to rather a strange-looking man.
+The speaker was tall and slim, with long arms,
+long legs, and a profusion of auburn or reddish
+hair hanging in ringlets down his shoulders;
+while a huge beard of the same colour fell upon
+his breast. His person was not at all improved
+by his dress. The legs of his trousers were
+shorter than those worn by smaller men: the
+sleeves of his coat were small and short, the
+shirt collar turned down in Byronic style, beard
+and hair hid his countenance, so that no redeeming
+feature could be found there; yet there was
+<!-- Page 265 --><a name="Page_265" id="Page_265" title="265" class="pagenum"></a>one redeeming quality about the man&mdash;that was
+the stream of fervid eloquence which escaped
+from his lips. I inquired his name, and was informed
+that it was Charles C. Burleigh. Nature
+has been profuse in showering her gifts upon Mr.
+Burleigh, but all has been bestowed upon his
+head and heart. There is a kind of eloquence
+which weaves its thread around the hearer, and
+gradually draws him into its web, fascinating him
+with its gaze, entangling him as the spider does
+the fly, until he is fast: such is the eloquence of
+C.C. Burleigh. As a debater he is unquestionably
+the first on the Anti-slavery platform. If he
+did not speak so fast, he would equal Wendell
+Phillips; if he did not reason his subject out of
+existence, he would surpass him. However, one
+would have to travel over many miles, and look in
+the faces of many men, before he would find one
+who has made more personal sacrifices, or done
+more to bring about the Emancipation of the
+American Slaves, than Mr. Charles C. Burleigh.</p>
+
+<p>Whoever the future historian of the Anti-Slavery
+movement may be, he will not be able to
+compile a correct history of this great struggle,
+<!-- Page 266 --><a name="Page_266" id="Page_266" title="266" class="pagenum"></a>without consulting the writings of Edmund
+Quincy, a member of one of the wealthiest, patriotic,
+and aristocratic families in New England:
+the prestige of his name is a passport to all that
+the heart could wish. Descended from a family,
+whose name is connected with all that was glorious
+in the great American Revolution, the son
+of one who has again and again represented his
+native State, in the National Congress, he too,
+like Wendell Phillips, threw away the pearl of political
+preferment, and devoted his distinguished
+talents to the cause of the Slave. Mr. Quincy is
+better known in this country as having filled
+the editorial chair of <i>The Liberator</i>, during the
+several visits of its Editor to Great Britain. As
+a speaker, he does not rank as high as some who
+are less known; as a writer, he has few equals.
+The &quot;Annual Reports&quot; of the American and
+Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Societies for the past
+fifteen or twenty years, have emanated from his
+pen. When posterity, in digging among the tombs
+of the friends of mankind, and of universal freedom,
+shall fail to find there the name of Edmund Quincy,
+it will be because the engraver failed to do his duty.</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page 267 --><a name="Page_267" id="Page_267" title="267" class="pagenum"></a>Were we sent out to find a man who should
+excel all others in collecting together new facts
+and anecdotes, and varnishing up old ones so that
+they would appear new, and bringing them into a
+meeting and emptying out, good or bad, the
+whole contents of his sack, to the delight and
+admiration of the audience, we would unhesitatingly
+select James N. Buffum as the man. If
+Mr. Buffum is not a great speaker, he has what
+many accomplished orators have not&mdash;<i>i.e.</i>, a noble
+and generous heart. If the fugitive slave, fresh
+from the cotton-field, should make his appearance
+in the town of Lynn, in Massachusetts, and
+should need a night's lodging or refreshments,
+he need go no farther than the hospitable door
+of James N. Buffum.</p>
+
+<p>Most men who inherit large fortunes, do little
+or nothing to benefit mankind. A few, however,
+spend their means in the best possible manner:
+one of the latter class is Gerrit Smith. The
+name of this gentleman should have been
+brought forward among those who are first mentioned
+in this chapter. Some eight or ten years
+ago, Mr. Smith was the owner of large tracts of
+<!-- Page 268 --><a name="Page_268" id="Page_268" title="268" class="pagenum"></a>land, lying in twenty-nine counties in the State
+of New York, and came to the strange conclusion
+to give the most of it away. Consequently,
+three thousand lots of land, containing from
+thirty to one hundred acres each, were given
+to coloured men residing in the State&mdash;the
+writer of this being one of the number.</p>
+
+<p>Although universal suffrage is enjoyed by the
+whites in the State of New York, a property-qualification
+is imposed on coloured men; and
+this act of Mr. Smith's not only made three
+thousand men the owners of land, but created
+also three thousand voters. The ability to give,
+and the willingness to do so, is not by any means
+the greatest quality of this gentleman. As a
+public speaker, Mr. Smith has few equals; and
+certainly no man in his State has done more to
+forward the cause of Negro Emancipation than he.</p>
+
+<p>We have already swelled the pages of this
+chapter beyond what we intended when we commenced,
+but yet we have called attention to only
+one branch of American Reformers. The Temperance
+Reformers are next to be considered.
+This cause has many champions, and yet
+<!-- Page 269 --><a name="Page_269" id="Page_269" title="269" class="pagenum"></a>none who occupy a very prominent position
+before the world. The first temperance newspaper
+published in the United States, was edited
+by William Lloyd Garrison. Gerrit Smith has
+also done much in promulgating temperance
+views. But the most noted man in the movement
+at the present time, and the one best known
+to the British public, is John B. Gough. This
+gentleman was at one time an actor on the stage,
+and subsequently became an inebriate of the most
+degraded kind. He was, however, reclaimed
+through the great Washingtonian movement that
+swept over the United States a few years since.
+In stature, Mr. Gough is tall and slim, with black
+hair, which he usually wears too long. As an
+orator, he is considered among the first in the
+United States. Having once been an actor,
+he throws all his dramatic powers into his
+addresses. He has a facility of telling strange
+and marvellous stories which can scarcely be
+surpassed; and what makes them still more
+interesting, he always happens to be an eyewitness.
+While speaking, he acts the drunkard,
+and does it in a style which could not
+<!-- Page 270 --><a name="Page_270" id="Page_270" title="270" class="pagenum"></a>be equalled on the boards of the Lyceum or
+Adelphi. No man has obtained more signatures
+to the temperance pledge than he. After all, it
+is a question whether he has ever been of any
+permanent service to this reform or not. Mr.
+Gough has more than once fallen from his
+position as a teetotaler; more than once he has
+broken his pledge, and when found by his friends,
+was in houses of a questionable character. However,
+some are of opinion that these defects have
+been of use to him; for when he has made his
+appearance after one of these debaucheries, the
+people appear to sympathize more with him, and
+some thought he spoke better. If we believe
+that a person could enjoy good health with water
+upon the brain, we would be of opinion that Mr.
+Gough's cranium contained a greater quantity
+than that of any other living man. When speaking
+before an audience, he can weep when he pleases;
+and the tears shed on these occasions are none of
+your make-believe kind&mdash;none of your small
+drops trickling down the cheeks one at a time;&mdash;but
+they come in great showers, so as even to
+sprinkle upon the paper which he holds in his
+<!-- Page 271 --><a name="Page_271" id="Page_271" title="271" class="pagenum"></a>hand. Of course, he is not alone in shedding
+tears in his meetings, many of his hearers usually
+join him; especially the ladies, as these showers
+are intended for them. However, no one can sit
+for an hour and hear John. B. Gough, without
+coming to the conclusion that he is nothing more
+than a theatrical mountebank.</p>
+
+<p>The ablest speaker on the subject of Peace, is
+Charles Sumner. Standing more than six feet
+in height, and well proportioned, Mr. Sumner
+makes a most splendid and commanding appearance
+before an assembly. It is not his looks
+alone that attract attention&mdash;his very countenance
+indicates a superior mind. Born in
+the upper circle, educated in the first College in
+the country, and finally becoming a member of
+the Bar, he is well qualified to take the highest
+possible position as a public speaker. As an
+orator, Charles Sumner has but one superior in
+the United States, and that is Wendell Phillips.
+Mr. Sumner is an able advocate for the liberation
+of the American Slaves as well as of the cause of
+Peace, and has rendered great aid to the abolition
+movement.</p>
+
+<p><!-- Page 272 --><a name="Page_272" id="Page_272" title="272" class="pagenum"></a>The name of Elihu Burritt, for many reasons,
+should be placed at the head of the Peace Movement.
+No man was ever more devoted to one
+idea than he is to that of peace. If he is an
+advocate of Temperance, it is because it will promote
+peace. If he opposes Slavery, it is upon the
+grounds of peace. Ask him why he wants an
+&quot;Ocean Penny Postage,&quot; he will tell you to
+engender the principles of peace. Everything
+with him hinges upon the doctrine of peace. As
+a speaker, Mr. Burritt does not rank amongst the
+first. However, his speeches are of a high order,
+some think them too high, and complain that he
+is too much of a cloud-traveller, and when he
+descends from these aerial flights and cloudy
+thrones, they are unwilling to admit that he can
+be practical. If Mr. Burritt should prove as good
+a statesman as a theorist, he would be an exception
+to most who belong to the aerial school. As
+a writer he stands deservedly high. In his
+&quot;Sparks from the Anvil,&quot; and &quot;Voice from the
+Forge,&quot; are to be found as fine pieces as
+have been produced by any writer of the day.
+His &quot;Drunkard's Wife&quot; is the most splendid
+<!-- Page 273 --><a name="Page_273" id="Page_273" title="273" class="pagenum"></a>thing of the kind in the language. His stature is
+of the middle size, head well developed, with eyes
+deeply set, and a prepossessing countenance,
+though not handsome; he wears an exterior of
+remarkable austerity, and everything about him
+is grave, even to his smile. Being well versed in
+the languages, ancient and modern, he does not
+lack <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: Erratum applied, &quot;vanity&quot; in the original text">variety</ins> or imagination, either in his public
+addresses or private conversation; yet it would be
+difficult to find a man with a better heart, or
+sweeter spirit, than Elihu Burritt.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><a name="LETTER_XXII" id="LETTER_XXII"></a>LETTER XXII.</h2>
+
+<h3>A Narrative of American Slavery.</h3>
+
+
+<p><span style="font-variant: small-caps;">Although</span> the first slaves, introduced into the
+American Colonies from the coast of Africa, were
+negroes of a very dark complexion with woolly hair,
+and it was thought that slavery would be confined
+to the blacks, yet the present slave population of
+America is far from being black. This change in
+<!-- Page 274 --><a name="Page_274" id="Page_274" title="274" class="pagenum"></a>colour, is attributable, solely to the unlimited
+power which the slave owner exercises over his
+victim. There being no lawful marriage amongst
+slaves, and no encouragement to slave women to
+be virtuous and chaste, there seems to be no
+limits to the system of amalgamation carried on
+between master and slave. This accounts for the
+fact, that most persons who go from Europe, or
+from the Free States, into Carolina or Virginia, are
+struck with the different shades of colour amongst
+the slaves. On a plantation employing fifty
+slaves, it is not uncommon to see one third of
+them mulattoes, and some of these nearly white.</p>
+
+<p>In the year 1831, there resided in the state of
+Virginia, a slave who was so white, that no one
+would suppose for a moment that a drop of
+African blood coursed through his veins. His
+skin was fair, hair soft, straight, fine and white;
+his eyes blue, nose prominent, lips thin; his
+head well formed, forehead high and prominent;
+and he was often taken for a white free person, by
+those who did not know him. This made his condition
+as a slave still more intolerable; for one so
+white, seldom ever receives fair treatment at the
+<!-- Page 275 --><a name="Page_275" id="Page_275" title="275" class="pagenum"></a>hands of his fellow slaves; and the whites usually
+regard such slaves as persons, who, if not often
+flogged and otherwise ill treated, to remind them
+of their condition, would soon &quot;forget&quot; that they
+were slaves, and &quot;think themselves as good as
+white folks.&quot; During that year, an insurrection
+broke out amongst the slave population,
+known as the Southampton Rebellion, or the
+&quot;Nat Turner Insurrection.&quot; Five or six hundred
+slaves, believing in the doctrine that
+&quot;all men are created equal,&quot; armed with such
+weapons as they could get, commenced a war for
+freedom. Amongst these was George, the white
+slave of whom we have spoken. He had been
+employed as a house servant, and had heard his
+master and visiters speak of the down-trodden
+and oppressed Poles; he heard them talk of going
+to Greece to fight for Grecian liberty, and against
+the oppressors of that ill-fated people. George,
+fired with the love of freedom, and zeal for the
+cause of his enslaved countrymen, joined the insurrection.
+The result of that struggle for liberty
+is well known. The slaves were defeated, and
+those who were not taken prisoners, took refuge
+<!-- Page 276 --><a name="Page_276" id="Page_276" title="276" class="pagenum"></a>in the dismal swamps. These were ordered to
+surrender; but instead of doing so, they challenged
+their proud oppressors to take them, and
+immediately renewed the war. A ferocious struggle
+now commenced between the parties; but
+not until the United States troops were called
+in, did they succeed in crushing a handful of men
+and women who were fighting for freedom. The
+negroes were hunted with dogs, and many who
+were caught were burnt alive; while some were
+hung, and others flogged and banished from the
+State.</p>
+
+<p>Among those who were sentenced to be hanged,
+was George. He was placed in prison to await
+the day of execution, which would give him ten
+days to prepare for his doom. George was the
+son of a member of the American Congress, his
+mother being a servant in the principal hotel in
+Washington, where members of Congress usually
+put up. After the birth of George, his mother
+was sold to a negro trader, and he to a Virginian,
+who sent agents through the country to buy
+up young slaves to raise for the market. George
+was only about nineteen years of age, when
+<!-- Page 277 --><a name="Page_277" id="Page_277" title="277" class="pagenum"></a>he unfortunately became connected with the
+insurrection. Mr. Green, who owned George,
+was a comparatively good master, and prided
+himself on treating his slaves better than most
+men. This gentleman was also the owner of a
+girl who was perfectly white, with straight hair and
+prominent features. This girl was said to be the
+daughter of her own master. A feeling of attachment
+sprang up between Mary and George,
+which proved to be more than mere friendship,
+and upon which we base the burden of this narrative.</p>
+
+<p>After poor George had been sentenced to
+death and cast into prison, Mary begged and obtained
+leave to visit George, and administer to
+him the comforts of religion, as she was a
+member of a religious body, while George was not.
+As George had been a considerable favourite with
+Mrs. Green, Mary had no difficulty in obtaining
+permission to pay a daily visit to him, to whom
+she had pledged her heart and hand. At one of
+these meetings, and only four days from the time
+fixed for the execution, while Mary was seated in
+George's cell, it occurred to her that she might
+<!-- Page 278 --><a name="Page_278" id="Page_278" title="278" class="pagenum"></a>yet save him from a felon's doom. She revealed
+to him the secret that was then occupying her
+thoughts, viz., that George should exchange
+clothes with her, and thus attempt his escape in
+disguise. But he would not for a single moment
+listen to the proposition. Not that he feared
+detection; but he would not consent to place
+an innocent and affectionate girl in a position
+where she might have to suffer for him.
+Mary pleaded, but in vain&mdash;George was inflexible.
+The poor girl left her lover with a heavy
+heart, regretting that her scheme had proved unsuccessful.</p>
+
+<p>Towards the close of the next day, Mary again
+appeared at the prison door for admission, and
+was soon by the side of him whom she so ardently
+loved. While there, the clouds which had overhung
+the city for some hours, broke, and the rain
+fell in torrents amid the most terrific thunder and
+lightning. In the most persuasive manner
+possible, Mary again importuned George to avail
+himself of her assistance to escape from an ignominious
+death. After assuring him that she not
+being the person condemned, would not receive
+<!-- Page 279 --><a name="Page_279" id="Page_279" title="279" class="pagenum"></a>any injury, he at last consented, and they began
+to exchange apparel. As George was of small
+stature, and both were white, there was no
+difficulty in his passing out without detection:
+and as she usually left the cell weeping, with
+handkerchief in hand, and sometimes at her face,
+he had only to adopt this mode and his escape
+was safe. They had kissed each other, and Mary
+had told George where he would find a small
+parcel of provisions which she had placed in a
+secluded spot, when the prison-keeper opened the
+door, and said, &quot;Come, girl, it is time for you
+to go.&quot; George again embraced Mary, and passed
+out of the gaol. It was already dark and the
+street lamps were lighted, so that our hero in his
+new dress had no dread of detection. The provisions
+were sought out and found, and poor
+George was soon on the road towards Canada.
+But neither of them had once thought of a change
+of dress for George when he should have escaped,
+and he had walked but a short distance before he
+felt that a change of his apparel would facilitate
+his progress. But he dared not go amongst even
+his coloured associates for fear of being betrayed.
+<!-- Page 280 --><a name="Page_280" id="Page_280" title="280" class="pagenum"></a>However, he made the best of his way on towards
+Canada, hiding in the woods during the day, and
+travelling by the guidance of the North Star at
+night.</p>
+
+<p>One morning, George arrived on the banks of
+the Ohio river, and found his journey had terminated,
+unless he could get some one to take
+him across the river in a secret manner, for he
+would not be permitted to cross in any of the
+ferry boats; it being a penalty for crossing a slave,
+besides the value of the slave. He concealed
+himself in the tall grass and weeds near the river,
+to see if he could embrace an opportunity to cross.
+He had been in his hiding-place but a short
+time, when he observed a man in a small boat,
+floating near the shore, evidently fishing. His
+first impulse was to call out to the man and ask
+him to take him over to the Ohio side, but the
+fear that the man was a slaveholder, or one who
+might possibly arrest him, deterred him from it.
+The man after rowing and floating about for some
+time fastened the boat to the root of a tree, and
+started to a neighbouring farm-house. This was
+George's moment, and he seized it. Running
+<!-- Page 281 --><a name="Page_281" id="Page_281" title="281" class="pagenum"></a>down the bank, he unfastened the boat, jumped
+in, and with all the expertness of one accustomed
+to a boat, rowed across the river and landed on
+the Ohio side.</p>
+
+<p>Being now in a free state, he thought he might
+with perfect safety travel on towards Canada. He
+had, however, gone but a few miles, when he discovered
+two men on horseback coming behind
+him. He felt sure that they could not be in pursuit
+of him, yet he did not wish to be seen by
+them, so he turned into another road, leading to
+a house near by. The men followed, and were
+but a short distance from George, when he ran
+up to a farm house, before which was standing a
+farmer-looking man, in a broad-brimmed hat and
+straight collared coat, whom he implored to
+save him from the &quot;slave-catchers.&quot; The farmer
+told him to go into the barn near by; he entered
+by the front door, the farmer following, and
+closing the door behind George, but remaining
+outside, and gave directions to his hired man
+as to what should be done with George. The
+slaveholders by this time had dismounted, and
+were in the front of the barn demanding ad<!-- Page 282 --><a name="Page_282" id="Page_282" title="282" class="pagenum"></a>mittance,
+and charging the farmer with secreting
+their slave woman, for George was
+still in the dress of a woman. The Friend, for
+the farmer proved to be a member of the Society
+of Friends, told the slave-owners that if they
+wished to search his barn, they must first get an
+officer and a search warrant. While the parties
+were disputing, the farmer began nailing up the
+front door, and the hired man served the back
+door in the same way. The slaveholders, finding
+that they could not prevail on the Friend to allow
+them to get the slave, determined to go in search
+of an officer. One was left to see that the slave
+did not escape from the barn, while the other
+went off at full speed to Mount Pleasant, the
+nearest town. George was not the slave of either
+of these men, nor were they in pursuit of him,
+but they had lost a woman who had been seen in
+that vicinity, and when they saw poor George in
+the disguise of a female, and attempting to elude
+pursuit, they felt sure they were close upon their
+victim. However, if they had caught him, although
+he was not their slave, they would have
+taken him back and placed him in <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;goal&quot; in the original text">gaol</ins>, and
+<!-- Page 283 --><a name="Page_283" id="Page_283" title="283" class="pagenum"></a>there he would have remained until his owner
+arrived.</p>
+
+<p>After an absence of nearly two hours, the slave
+owner returned with an officer and found the
+Friend still driving large nails into the door. In
+a triumphant tone, and with a corresponding gesture,
+he handed the search-warrant to the Friend,
+and said, &quot;There, Sir, now I will see if I can't get
+my Nigger.&quot; &quot;Well,&quot; said the Friend, &quot;thou
+hast gone to work according to law, and thou can
+now go into my barn.&quot; &quot;Lend me your hammer
+that I may get the door open,&quot; said the slaveholder.
+&quot;Let me see the warrant again.&quot; And
+after reading it over once more, he said, &quot;I see
+nothing in this paper which says I must supply
+thee with tools to open my door; if thou wishes
+to go in, thou must get a hammer elsewhere.&quot;
+The sheriff said, &quot;I will go to a neighbouring
+farm and borrow something which will introduce
+us to Miss Dinah;&quot; and he immediately went in
+search of tools. In a short time the officer returned,
+and they commenced an assault and
+battery upon the barn door, which soon yielded;
+and in went the slaveholder and officer, and
+<!-- Page 284 --><a name="Page_284" id="Page_284" title="284" class="pagenum"></a>began turning up the hay and using all other
+means to find the lost property; but, to their
+astonishment, the slave was not there. After all
+hope of getting Dinah was gone, the slave-owner
+in a rage, said to the Friend, &quot;My Nigger is not
+here.&quot; &quot;I did not tell thee there was any one
+here.&quot; &quot;Yes, but I saw her go in, and you shut
+the door behind her, and if she was not in the
+barn, what did you nail the door for?&quot; &quot;Can't I
+do what I please with my own barn door? Now
+I will tell thee; thou need trouble thyself no
+more, for the person thou art after entered the
+front door and went out at the back door, and is
+a long way from here by this time. Thou
+and thy friend must be somewhat fatigued by
+this time, wont thou go in and take a little dinner
+with me?&quot; We need not say that this cool
+invitation of the good Quaker was not accepted
+by the slaveholders. George, in the meantime,
+had been taken to a Friend's dwelling some miles
+away, where, after laying aside his female attire,
+and being snugly dressed up in a straight
+collared coat, and pantaloons to match, was
+again put on the right road towards Canada.
+<!-- Page 285 --><a name="Page_285" id="Page_285" title="285" class="pagenum"></a>Two weeks after this found him in the town of
+St. Catharines, working on the farm of Colonel
+Strut, and attending a night school.</p>
+
+<p>George, however, did not forget his promise to
+use all means in his power to get Mary out of
+slavery. He, therefore, laboured with all his
+might, to obtain money with which to employ
+some one to go back to Virginia for Mary. After
+nearly six months' labour at St. Catharines, he
+employed an English missionary to go and see if
+the girl could be purchased, and at what price.
+The missionary went accordingly, but returned
+with the sad intelligence that on account of
+Mary's aiding George to escape, the court had
+compelled Mr. Green to sell her out of the State,
+and she had been sold to a Negro trader and
+taken to the New Orleans market. As all hope
+of getting the girl was now gone, George resolved
+to quit the American continent for ever. He
+immediately took passage in a vessel laden with
+timber, bound for Liverpool, and in five weeks
+from that time he was standing on the quay of the
+great English seaport. With little or no education,
+he found many difficulties in the way of
+<!-- Page 286 --><a name="Page_286" id="Page_286" title="286" class="pagenum"></a>getting a respectable living. However, he obtained
+a situation as porter in a large house in
+Manchester, where he worked during the day,
+and took private lessons at night. In this way
+he laboured for three years, and was then raised
+to the situation of a clerk. George was so white
+as easily to pass for a white man, and being somewhat
+ashamed of his African descent, he never
+once mentioned the fact of his having been a
+slave. He soon became a partner in the firm
+that employed him, and was now on the road to
+wealth.</p>
+
+<p>In the year 1842, just ten years after George
+Green (for he adopted his master's name) arrived
+in England, he visited France, and spent some
+days at Dunkirk. It was towards sunset, on a
+warm day in the month of October, that Mr.
+Green, after strolling some distance from the
+Hotel de Leon, entered a burial ground and wandered
+long alone among the silent dead, gazing
+upon the many green graves and marble tombstones
+of those who once moved on the theatre of
+busy life, and whose sounds of gaiety once fell
+upon the ear of man. All nature around was
+<!-- Page 287 --><a name="Page_287" id="Page_287" title="287" class="pagenum"></a>hushed in silence, and seemed to partake of the
+general melancholy which hung over the quiet
+resting place of departed mortals. After tracing
+the varied inscriptions which told the characters
+or conditions of the departed, and viewing
+the mounds 'neath which the dust of mortality
+slumbered, he had now reached a secluded
+spot, near to where an aged weeping
+willow bowed its thick foliage to the ground, as
+though anxious to hide from the scrutinizing gaze
+of curiosity the grave beneath it. Mr. Green
+seated himself upon a marble tomb, and began to
+read Roscoe's Leo X., a copy of which he had under
+his arm. It was then about twilight, and he
+had scarcely gone through half a page, when he
+observed a lady in black, leading a boy some
+five years old up one of the paths; and as
+the lady's black veil was over her face, he felt
+somewhat at liberty to eye her more closely.
+While looking at her, the lady gave a scream and
+appeared to be in a fainting position, when Mr.
+Green sprang from his seat in time to save her
+from falling to the ground. At this moment, an
+elderly gentleman was seen approaching with a
+<!-- Page 288 --><a name="Page_288" id="Page_288" title="288" class="pagenum"></a>rapid step, who from his appearance was evidently
+the lady's father, or one intimately connected with
+her. He came up, and in a confused manner, asked
+what was the matter. Mr. Green explained as
+well as he could. After taking up the smelling
+bottle which had fallen from her hand, and holding
+it a short time to her face, she soon began to
+revive. During all this time, the lady's veil had
+so covered her face, that Mr. Green had not seen
+it. When she had so far recovered as to be able
+to raise her head, she again screamed, and fell
+back into the arms of the old man. It now appeared
+quite certain, that either the countenance
+of George Green, or some other object, was the
+cause of these fits of fainting; and the old gentleman,
+thinking it was the former, in rather a petulant
+tone said, &quot;I will thank you, Sir, if you will
+leave us alone.&quot; The child whom the lady was
+leading had now set up a squall; and amid the
+death-like appearance of the lady, the harsh look
+of the old man, and the cries of the boy, Mr.
+Green left the grounds and returned to his hotel.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst seated by the window, and looking out
+upon the crowded street, with every now and then
+<!-- Page 289 --><a name="Page_289" id="Page_289" title="289" class="pagenum"></a>the strange scene in the grave-yard vividly before
+him, Mr. Green thought of the book he had been
+reading, and, remembering that he had left it on
+the tomb, where he had suddenly dropped it when
+called to the assistance of the lady, he immediately
+determined to return in search of it.
+After a walk of some twenty minutes, he was
+again over the spot where he had been an hour
+before, and from which he had been so unceremoniously
+expelled by the old man. He looked
+in vain for the book; it was no where to be
+found: nothing save a bouquet which the lady
+had dropped, and which lay half-buried in the
+grass from having been trodden upon, indicated
+that any one had been there that evening. Mr.
+Green took up the bunch of flowers, and again
+returned to the hotel.</p>
+
+<p>After passing a sleepless night, and hearing the
+clock strike six, he dropped into a sweet sleep,
+from which he did not awake until roused by the
+rap of a servant, who, entering his room, handed
+him a note which ran as follows:&mdash;&quot;Sir,&mdash;I owe
+you an apology for the inconveniences to which
+you were subjected last evening, and if you will
+<!-- Page 290 --><a name="Page_290" id="Page_290" title="290" class="pagenum"></a>honour us with your presence to dinner to-day at
+four o'clock, I shall be most happy to give you
+due satisfaction. My servant will be in waiting
+for you at half-past three. I am, sir, your obedt.
+servant, J. Devenant. October 23, to George
+Green, Esq.&quot;</p>
+
+<p>The servant who handed this note to Mr.
+Green, informed him that the bearer was waiting
+for a reply. He immediately resolved to
+accept the invitation, and replied accordingly.
+Who this person was, and how his name and
+the hotel where he was stopping had been found
+out, was indeed a mystery. However, he waited
+impatiently for the hour when he was to see this
+new acquaintance, and get the mysterious meeting
+in the grave-yard solved.</p>
+
+<p>The clock on a neighbouring church had
+scarcely ceased striking three, when the servant
+announced that a carriage had called for Mr.
+Green. In less than half an hour, he was seated
+in a most sumptuous barouch, drawn by two
+beautiful iron greys, and rolling along over a
+splendid gravel road, completely shaded by large
+trees which appeared to have been the accumula<!-- Page 291 --><a name="Page_291" id="Page_291" title="291" class="pagenum"></a>ting
+growth of many centuries. The carriage soon
+stopped in front of a low villa, and this too was
+imbedded in magnificent trees covered with moss.
+Mr. Green alighted and was shown into a superb
+drawing room, the walls of which were hung with
+fine specimens from the hands of the great Italian
+painters, and one by a German artist representing
+a beautiful monkish legend connected with &quot;The
+Holy Catherine,&quot; and illustrious lady of Alexandria.
+The furniture had an antique and dignified
+appearance. High backed chairs stood around
+the room; a venerable mirror stood on the mantle-shelf;
+rich curtains of crimson damask hung in
+folds at either side of the large windows; and a
+rich Turkey carpet covered the floor. In the centre
+stood a table covered with books, in the midst
+of which was an old fashioned vase filled with
+fresh flowers, whose fragrance was exceedingly
+pleasant. A faint light, together with the quietness
+of the hour gave beauty beyond description to
+the whole scene.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Green had scarcely seated himself upon
+the sofa, when the elderly gentleman whom he
+had met the previous evening made his appear<!-- Page 292 --><a name="Page_292" id="Page_292" title="292" class="pagenum"></a>ance,
+followed by the little boy, and introduced
+himself as Mr. Devenant. A moment more, and
+a lady&mdash;a beautiful brunette&mdash;dressed in black,
+with long curls of a chesnut colour hanging down
+her cheeks, entered the room. Her eyes were of
+a dark hazel, and her whole appearance indicated
+that she was a native of a southern clime. The
+door at which she entered was opposite to where
+the two gentlemen were seated. They immediately
+rose; and Mr. Devenant was in the act of
+introducing her to Mr. Green, when he observed
+that the latter had sunk back upon the sofa, and
+the last word that he remembered to have heard
+was, &quot;It is her.&quot; After this, all was dark and
+dreamy: how long he remained in this condition
+it was for another to tell. When he awoke, he
+found himself stretched upon the sofa, with his
+boots off, his neckerchief removed, shirt collar
+unbuttoned, and his head resting upon a pillow.
+By his side sat the old man, with the smelling
+bottle in the one hand, and a glass of water in the
+other, and the little boy standing at the foot of
+the sofa. As soon as Mr. Green had so far recovered
+as to be able to speak, he said, &quot;Where
+<!-- Page 293 --><a name="Page_293" id="Page_293" title="293" class="pagenum"></a>am I, and what does this mean?&quot; &quot;Wait a
+while,&quot; replied the old man, &quot;and I will tell you
+all.&quot; After the lapse of some ten minutes he
+rose from the sofa, adjusted his apparel, and said,
+&quot;I am now ready to hear anything you have to
+say.&quot; &quot;You were born in America,&quot; said the old
+man. &quot;Yes,&quot; he replied. &quot;And you were
+acquainted with a girl named Mary,&quot; continued
+the old man. &quot;Yes, and I loved her as I can
+love none other.&quot; &quot;The lady whom you met
+so mysteriously last evening is Mary,&quot; replied
+Mr. Devenant. George Green was silent,
+but the fountains of mingled grief and
+joy stole out from beneath his eye lashes,
+and glistened like pearls upon his pale and
+marble-like cheeks. At this juncture the lady
+again entered the room. Mr. Green sprang
+from the sofa, and they fell into each other's arms,
+to the surprise of the old man and little George,
+and to the amusement of the servants who had
+crept up one by one, and were hid behind the doors
+or loitering in the hall. When they had given
+vent to their feelings, they resumed their seats and
+each in turn related the adventures through which
+<!-- Page 294 --><a name="Page_294" id="Page_294" title="294" class="pagenum"></a>they had passed. &quot;How did you find out my
+name and address,&quot; asked Mr. Green? &quot;After
+you had left us in the grave-yard, our little
+George said, 'O, mamma, if there aint a book!' and
+picked it up and brought it to us. Papa opened
+it, and said 'the gentleman's name is written in it,
+and here is a card of the Hotel de Leon, where I
+suppose he is stopping.' Papa wished to leave the
+book, and said it was all a fancy of mine that I
+had ever seen you before, but I was perfectly
+convinced that you were my own George Green.
+Are you married?&quot; &quot;No, I am not.&quot; &quot;Then,
+thank God!&quot; exclaimed Mrs. Devenant. The old
+man who had been silent all this time, said,
+&quot;Now, Sir, I must apologize for the trouble you
+were put to last evening.&quot; &quot;And you are single
+now.&quot; &quot;Yes,&quot; she replied. &quot;This is indeed the
+Lord's doings,&quot; said Mr. Green, at the same time
+bursting into a flood of tears. Although Mr.
+Devenant was past the age when men should
+think upon matrimonial subjects, yet this scene
+brought vividly before his eyes the days when he
+was a young man, and had a wife living, and he
+thought it time to call their attention to dinner,
+<!-- Page 295 --><a name="Page_295" id="Page_295" title="295" class="pagenum"></a>which was then waiting. We need scarcely add,
+that Mr. Green and Mrs. Devenant did very little
+towards diminishing the dinner that day.</p>
+
+<p>After dinner the lovers (for such we have to
+call them) gave their experience from the time
+that George Green left the gaol, dressed in Mary's
+clothes. Up to that time, Mr. Green's was substantially
+as we have related it. Mrs. Devenant's
+was as follows:&mdash;&quot;The night after you left the
+prison,&quot; said she, &quot;I did not shut my eyes in
+sleep. The next morning, about 8 o'clock, Peter,
+the gardener, came to the gaol to see if I had
+been there the night before, and was informed
+that I had, and that I left a little after dark.
+About an hour after, Mr. Green came himself,
+and I need not say that he was much surprised
+on finding me there, dressed in your clothes.
+This was the first tidings they had of your escape.&quot;
+&quot;What did Mr. Green say when he found that
+I had fled?&quot; &quot;O!&quot; continued Mrs. Devenant,
+&quot;he said to me when no one was near, I
+hope George will get off, but I fear you will
+have to suffer in his stead. I told him that if it
+must be so I was willing to die if you could live.&quot;
+<!-- Page 296 --><a name="Page_296" id="Page_296" title="296" class="pagenum"></a>At this moment George Green burst into tears,
+threw his arms around her neck, and exclaimed,
+&quot;I am glad I have waited so long, with the hope
+of meeting you again.&quot;</p>
+
+<p>Mrs. Devenant again resumed her story:&mdash;&quot;I
+was kept in <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;goal&quot; in the original text">gaol</ins> three days, during
+which time I was visited by the Magistrates
+and two of the Judges. On the third day
+I was taken out, and master told me that I
+was liberated, upon condition that I be immediately
+sent out of the State. There happened to
+be just at that time in the neighbourhood a
+negro-trader, and he purchased me, and I was
+taken to New Orleans. On the steam-boat we
+were kept in a close room where slaves are
+usually confined, so that I saw nothing of the
+passengers on board or the towns we passed.
+We arrived at New Orleans and were all put into
+the slave-market for sale. I was examined by
+many persons, but none seemed willing to
+purchase me; as all thought me too white, and said
+I would run away and pass as a free white woman.
+On the second day while in the slave-market,
+and while planters and others were examining
+<!-- Page 297 --><a name="Page_297" id="Page_297" title="297" class="pagenum"></a>slaves and making their purchases, I observed a
+tall young man with long black hair eyeing me
+very closely, and then talking to the trader. I
+felt sure that my time had now come, but the
+day closed without my being sold. I did not
+regret this, for I had heard that foreigners made
+the worst of masters, and I felt confident that
+the man who eyed me so closely was not an
+American.</p>
+
+<p>&quot;The next day was the Sabbath. The bells
+called the people to the different places of
+worship. Methodists sang, and Baptists immersed,
+and Presbyterians sprinkled, and Episcopalians
+read their prayers, while the ministers of
+the various sects preached that Christ died for
+all; yet there were some twenty-five or thirty
+of us poor creatures confined in the '<i>Negro
+Pen</i>' awaiting the close of the Holy Sabbath,
+and the dawn of another day, to
+be again taken into the market, there to be examined
+like so many beasts of burden. I need
+not tell you with what anxiety we waited for the
+advent of another day. On Monday we were
+again brought out, and placed in rows to be in<!-- Page 298 --><a name="Page_298" id="Page_298" title="298" class="pagenum"></a>spected;
+and fortunately for me, I was sold
+before we had been on the stand an hour. I was
+purchased by a gentleman residing in the city, for
+a waiting-maid for his wife, who was just on the
+eve of starting for Mobile, to pay a visit to a near
+relation. I was then dressed to suit the situation
+of a maid-servant; and, upon the whole, I
+thought that in my new dress I looked as much
+the lady as my mistress.</p>
+
+<p>&quot;On the passage to Mobile, who should I
+see among the passengers, but the tall, long-haired
+man that had eyed me so closely in
+the slave-market a few days before. His eyes
+were again on me, and he appeared anxious
+to speak to me, and I as reluctant to be
+spoken to. The first evening after leaving New
+Orleans, soon after twilight had let her curtain
+down, and pinned it with a star, and while I was
+seated on the deck of the boat, near the ladies'
+cabin, looking upon the rippled waves, and the
+reflection of the moon upon the sea, all at once I
+saw the tall young man standing by my side. I
+immediately rose from my seat, and was in the
+act of returning to the cabin, when he in a bro<!-- Page 299 --><a name="Page_299" id="Page_299" title="299" class="pagenum"></a>ken
+accent said, 'Stop a moment; I wish to
+have a word with you. I am your friend.' I
+stopped and looked him full in the face, and he
+said, 'I saw you some days since in the slave-market,
+and I intended to have purchased you to
+save you from the condition of a slave. I called
+on Monday, but you had been sold and had left
+the market. I inquired and learned who the
+purchaser was, and that you had to go to Mobile,
+so I resolved to follow you. If you are willing, I
+will try and buy you from your present owner,
+and you shall be free.' Although this was said
+in an honest and off-hand manner, I could not
+believe the man to be sincere in what he
+said. 'Why should you wish to set <i>me</i>
+free?' I asked. 'I had an only sister,' he replied,
+'who died three years ago in France, and you are
+so much like her, that had I not known of her
+death, I would most certainly have taken you for
+her.' 'However much I may resemble your sister,
+you are aware that I am not her, and why
+take so much interest in one whom you never saw
+before?' 'The love,' said he, 'which I had for
+my sister is transferred to you.' I had all along
+<!-- Page 300 --><a name="Page_300" id="Page_300" title="300" class="pagenum"></a>suspected that the man was a knave, and this profession
+of love confirmed me in my former belief,
+and I turned away and left him.</p>
+
+<p>&quot;The next day, while standing in the cabin
+and looking through the window, the French
+gentleman (for such he was) came to the window
+while walking on the guards, and again
+commenced as on the previous evening. He
+took from his pocket a bit of paper and put
+into my hand, and at the <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;sametime&quot; in the original text">same time</ins> saying,
+'Take this, it may some day be of service to
+you, remember it is from a friend,' and left me
+instantly. I unfolded the paper, and found it to
+be a 100 dols. <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: 'Bank' in the original text">bank</ins> note, on the United States
+Branch Bank, at Philadelphia. My first impulse
+was to give it to my mistress, but upon a second
+thought, I resolved to seek an opportunity, and to
+return the hundred dollars to the stranger. Therefore,
+I looked for him, but in vain; and had almost
+given up the idea of seeing him again, when
+he passed me on the guards of the boat and
+walked towards the stem of the vessel. It being
+now dark, I approached him and offered the
+money to him. He declined, saying at the
+<!-- Page 301 --><a name="Page_301" id="Page_301" title="301" class="pagenum"></a>same time, 'I gave it to you&mdash;keep it.' 'I
+do not want it,' I said. 'Now,' said he, 'you
+had better give your consent for me to purchase
+you, and you shall go with me to France.'
+'But you cannot buy me now,' I replied, 'for
+my master is in New Orleans, and he purchased
+me not to sell, but to retain in his own family.'
+'Would you rather remain with your present
+mistress, than be free?' 'No,' said I.
+'Then fly with me to-night; we shall be in
+Mobile in two hours from this, and, when
+the passengers are going on shore, you can
+take my arm, and you can escape unobserved.
+The trader who brought you to New Orleans
+exhibited to me a certificate of your good
+character, and one from the Minister of the
+Church to which you were attached in Virginia;
+and upon the faith of these assurances, and the
+love I bear you, I promise before high heaven
+that I will marry you as soon as it can be done.'
+This solemn promise, coupled with what had
+already transpired, gave me confidence in the man;
+and rash as the act may seem, I determined in an
+instant to go with him. My mistress had been
+<!-- Page 302 --><a name="Page_302" id="Page_302" title="302" class="pagenum"></a>put under the charge of the captain; and as it
+would be past ten o'clock when the steamer would
+land, she accepted an invitation of the captain
+to remain on board with several other ladies till
+morning. I dressed myself in my best clothes,
+and put a veil over my face, and was ready on the
+landing of the boat. Surrounded by a number of
+passengers, we descended the stage leading to the
+wharf and were soon lost in the crowd that thronged
+the quay. As we went on shore we encountered
+several persons announcing the names of hotels,
+the starting of boats for the interior, and vessels
+bound for Europe. Among these was the ship
+<i>Utica</i>, Captain Pell, bound for Havre. 'Now,'
+said Mr. Devenant, 'this is our chance.' The
+ship was to sail at 12 o'clock that night, at high
+tide; and following the men who were seeking
+passengers, we went immediately on board.
+Devenant told the Captain of the ship that I was
+his sister, and for such we passed during the
+voyage. At the hour of twelve the <i>Utica</i> set sail,
+and we were soon out at sea.</p>
+
+<p>&quot;The morning after we left Mobile, Devenant
+met me as I came from my state-room and
+<!-- Page 303 --><a name="Page_303" id="Page_303" title="303" class="pagenum"></a>embraced me for the first time. I loved him,
+but it was only that affection which we have
+for one who has done us a lasting favour: it
+was the love of gratitude rather than that of the
+heart. We were five weeks on the sea, and yet
+the passage did not seem long, for Devenant was
+so kind. On our arrival at Havre, we were
+married and came to Dunkirk, and I have resided
+here ever since.&quot;</p>
+
+<p>At the close of this narrative, the clock
+struck ten, when the old man, who was accustomed
+to retire at an early hour, rose to
+take leave, saying at the same time, &quot;I hope
+you will remain with us to-night.&quot; Mr. Green
+would fain have excused himself, on the ground
+that they would expect him and wait at the hotel,
+but a look from the lady told him to accept the
+invitation. The old man was the father of Mrs. Devenant's
+deceased husband, as you will no doubt
+long since have supposed. A fortnight from the day
+on which they met in the grave-yard, Mr. Green
+and Mrs. Devenant were joined in holy wedlock;
+so that George and Mary, who had loved each
+other so ardently in their younger days, were now
+<!-- Page 304 --><a name="Page_304" id="Page_304" title="304" class="pagenum"></a>husband and wife. Without becoming responsible
+for the truthfulness of the above narrative, I give
+it to you, reader, as it was told to me in January
+last, in France, by George Green himself.</p>
+
+<p>A celebrated writer has justly said of woman:
+&quot;A woman's whole life is a history of the affections.
+The heart is her world; it is there her
+ambition strives for empire; it is there her
+avarice seeks for hidden treasures. She sends
+forth her sympathies on adventure; she embarks
+her whole soul in the traffic of affection; and if
+shipwrecked, her case is hopeless&mdash;for it is a
+bankruptcy of the heart.&quot;</p>
+
+<p>Mary had every reason to believe that she
+would never see George again; and although she
+confesses that the love she bore him was never
+transferred to her first husband, we can scarcely
+find fault with her for marrying Mr. Devenant.
+But the adherence of George Green to the <ins class="correction" title="Transcriber's Note: &quot;re-resolution&quot; in the original text">resolution</ins>
+never to marry, unless to his Mary, is,
+indeed, a rare instance of the fidelity of man
+in the matter of love. We can but blush for our
+country's shame, when we recall to mind the fact,
+that while George and Mary Green, and numbers
+<!-- Page 305 --><a name="Page_305" id="Page_305" title="305" class="pagenum"></a>of other fugitives from American slavery, can
+receive protection from any of the Governments of
+Europe, they cannot return to their native land
+without becoming slaves.</p>
+
+
+
+<h2>FINIS.</h2>
+
+
+<p style="text-align: center">AYR: PRINTED AT THE ADVERTISER OFFICE.
+</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<pre>
+<b>Transcriber's notes:</b>
+
+ERRATA from the original volume, applied to the text.
+======
+
+Page 8, eleventh line from bottom, <i>for</i> villages <i>read</i> villas
+The beautiful villages [**Erratum: villas] on the opposite side of the
+
+145, fourth line from top, <i>for</i> Dante <i>read</i> Whittier
+our own Dante? [**Erratum: Whittier?]
+
+205, second line from bottom, <i>for</i> towns <i>read</i> lawns
+in the vicinity of the lakes. Magnificent towns [**Erratum: lawns]
+
+264, seventh line from top, <i>for</i> 1834 <i>read</i> 1844
+In the month of May, 1834, [**Erratum: 1844,] while one evening
+
+273, eighth line from top, <i>for</i> vanity <i>read</i> variety
+lack vanity [**Erratum: variety] or imagination, either in his public
+
+Letter XXIII displaced to be between XII and XIII, as per editor's footnote.
+
+TYPOS
+=====
+
+All "Mr" replaced with "Mr." (~10%).  Similarly for "Mrs".
+
+play,&quot; was to flag [**typo: flog] his slaves severely, and
+
+tyranny in Great Britian [**typo: Britain] found social and
+
+passengers, forty of whom were the &quot;Vienneise [**typo: Viennese]
+
+we were in sight of the land of Emmitt [**typo: Emmett] and
+
+Rev. Dr. Ritchie, of Edinburgh. [** quote deleted] &quot;It is indeed a
+
+by M. Duguery, [**typo: Duguerry,] cur&eacute; of the Madeleine,
+
+The column is in imitation of the Trojan [**typo: Trajan]
+
+XVI. and Marie Antionette [**typo: Antoinette] were driven from it by
+
+building. [** full-stop added] The speaker, in the delivery of one of
+
+F&egrave;te. [**typo: F&ecirc;te.]
+
+soir&egrave;e [**typo: soir&eacute;e] by M. de Tocqueville, Minister for
+
+to the whole scene out of doors. The soir&egrave;e [**typo: soir&eacute;e]
+
+announced, and after a good deal of jambing [**typo: jamming] and
+
+same basket, without any regard to birth or station. [** full-stop added]
+
+had more interesting incidents occuring [**typo: occurring] in it than
+
+of Raphael and David&mdash;Arc de Triomphe&mdash;Beranger [** final em-dash added]
+
+Jardin des Plantes, and spent an hour and a-half [**typo: a half]
+
+Were [**typo: were] at the time continually running through my
+
+meeted [**typo: meted] out to me while at Hartwell. And the
+
+I will see you.&quot; [** missing quote inserted] In looking across the street, I
+
+great contrast beetween [**typo: between] the monster Institution,
+
+The Tower is surounded [**typo: surrounded] by a high wall, and
+
+skilful muscians; [**typo: musicians;] I have listened with delight
+
+history, and the accumulated discoveries of byegone [**typo: bygone]
+
+acquiline, [**typo: aquiline] his mouth rather small, and not at all
+
+and died at Newstead Abbey, November 18, 1808.&quot; [**missing quote inserted]
+
+with the poet and saying:&mdash; [**colon added]
+
+had such ruins in view when he exclaimed:&mdash; [**colon added]
+
+Elyses [**typo: Elysees] at Paris; and as for statuary, the latter
+
+where the celebrated Reformer, John Knox, re-resided.[**typo: resided.]
+
+lake is carved out and and [**typo: deleted second "and"] built up into terrace
+
+through to the north gallery, and and [**typo: deleted second "and"] thence to
+
+myself upon so diminutive a looking [**typo: looking a] creature.
+
+upon the wing&mdash;the artifical [**typo: artificial] stream, the brook
+
+seemed to have forgotton [**typo: forgotten] that this was an exhibition
+
+&quot;Sartar [**typo: Sartor] Resartus,&quot; and if he does not rise from its
+
+the cloisters of Tinterran [**typo: Tintern] Abbey, in its proudest
+
+that which has accomplished the mightest [**typo: mightiest] and
+
+That measure was in every respect an unconsitutional [**typo: unconstitutional]
+
+practice what they have so long professsd [**typo: professed]. (Hear,
+
+I had writen [**typo: written] for the occasion, was unanimously
+
+taken him back and placed him in goal [**typo: gaol], and
+
+was kept in goal [**typo: gaol] three days, during
+
+into my hand, and at the sametime [**typo: same time] saying,
+
+be a 100 dols. Bank [**typo?: bank] note, on the United States
+
+But the adherence of George Green to the re-resolution [**typo: resolution]
+
+
+Apparent errata, but possibly acceptable period words: (left as-is in text).
+===============
+
+without the least difficulty, and his jestures, [**typo: gestures,]
+   Per OED, jesture obs. form of gesture. May be typo?
+
+motion, and the variagated [**typo: variegated] lamps with their many
+   Per OED, verb variagate was known variant of variegate up to the 19th century
+
+enemies on the 13th Vendimaire [**typo: Vend&eacute;miaire]. The Hotel de
+  May be British variant used at the period
+
+observed visiters [**typo: visitors] lingering about it, as if they
+  May be valid past spelling
+
+being conveyed to them by means of a pully-basket, [**typo: pulley-basket,]
+   Per OED, pully known variant of pulley, 15th-19th centuries
+
+under heaven!&mdash;Perish the sum of all villanies! [**typo: villainies!]
+   Per OED, known alternate spelling, 16th-19th centuries
+
+force, carrying, upsetting, engulphing [**typo: engulfing] its adversaries,
+   Per OED, known alternate spelling (along with ingulf and ingulph);
+   an example of engulph quoted from an 1871 source.
+
+master and visiters [**typo: visitors] speak of the down-trodden
+  May be valid past spelling
+
+with long curls of a chesnut [**typo: chestnut] colour hanging down
+   Per OED, chesnut was the most common spelling as late as 1820.
+   Johnson set &quot;chestnut&quot; as the standard...
+
+Others found to be acceptable variants:
+   Bastile,
+   plebians,
+   laureat,
+   trode,
+   Shakspere.
+
+</pre>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<hr class="full" />
+<p>***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THREE YEARS IN EUROPE***</p>
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+The Project Gutenberg eBook, Three Years in Europe, by William Wells
+Brown, et al
+
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+
+
+
+Title: Three Years in Europe
+       Places I Have Seen and People I Have Met
+
+
+Author: William Wells Brown
+
+Release Date: May 15, 2005  [eBook #15830]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII)
+
+
+***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THREE YEARS IN EUROPE***
+
+
+E-text prepared by Suzanne Shell, Michael Punch, and the Project Gutenberg
+Online Distributed Proofreading Team from page images generously made
+available by the Bibliotheque nationale de France (http://gallica.bnf.fr)
+
+
+
+Note: Images of the original pages are available through the
+      Bibliotheque nationale de France. See
+      http://visualiseur.bnf.fr/Visualiseur?Destination=Gallica&O=NUMM-103524
+
+
+
+
+
+THREE YEARS IN EUROPE;
+
+Or, Places I Have Seen and People I Have Met
+
+by
+
+W. WELLS BROWN
+A Fugitive Slave.
+
+With
+
+A MEMOIR OF THE AUTHOR
+
+by
+
+WILLIAM FARMER, Esq.
+
+London:
+Charles Gilpin, 5, Bishopsgate Street, Without.
+Edinburgh: Oliver and Boyd.
+
+1852
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration: W. Wells Brown.]
+
+
+
+CONTENTS.
+
+
+MEMOIR OF WILLIAM WELLS BROWN,                           _Page_ ix-xxix
+
+AUTHOR'S PREFACE,                                            xxxi-xxxii
+
+LETTER I.
+
+Departure from Boston--the Passengers--Halifax--the Passage--
+First Sight of Land--Liverpool,                                     1-9
+
+LETTER II.
+
+Trip to Ireland--Dublin--Her Majesty's Visit--Illumination of the
+City--the Birth-Place of Thomas Moore--a Reception,                9-21
+
+LETTER III.
+
+Departure from Ireland--London--Trip to Paris--Paris--The Peace
+Congress: first day--Church of the Madeleine--Column Vendome--
+the French,                                                       21-38
+
+LETTER IV.
+
+Versailles--The Palace--Second Session of the Congress--Mr.
+Cobden--Henry Vincent--M. Girardin--Abbe Duguerry--Victor Hugo:
+his Speech,                                                       38-49
+
+LETTER V.
+
+M. de Tocqueville's Grand Soiree--Madame de Tocqueville--Visit of
+the Peace Delegates to Versailles--The Breakfast--Speechmaking--
+The Trianons--Waterworks--St. Cloud--The Fete,                    50-59
+
+LETTER VI.
+
+The Tuileries--Place de la Concorde--The Egyptian Obelisk--Palais
+Royal--Residence of Robespierre--A Visit to the Room in which
+Charlotte Corday killed Marat--Church de Notre Dame--Palais de
+Justice--Hotel des Invalids--National Assembly--The Elysee,       59-73
+
+LETTER VII.
+
+The Chateau at Versailles--Private Apartments of Marie
+Antoinette--The Secret Door--Paintings of Raphael and David--
+Arc de Triomphe--Beranger the Poet,                               73-82
+
+LETTER VIII.
+
+Departure from Paris--Boulogne--Folkstone--London--Geo. Thompson,
+Esq., M.P.--Hartwell House--Dr. Lee--Cottage of the
+Peasant--Windsor Castle--Residence of Wm. Penn--England's First
+Welcome--Heath Lodge--The Bank of England,                       83-104
+
+LETTER IX.
+
+The British Museum--A Portrait--Night Reading--A Dark Day--A
+Fugitive Slave on the Streets of London--A Friend in the time
+of need,                                                        104-116
+
+LETTER X.
+
+The Whittington Club--Louis Blanc--Street Amusements--Tower of
+London--Westminster Abbey--National Gallery--Dante--Sir Joshua
+Reynolds,                                                       117-134
+
+LETTER XI.
+
+York-Minster--The Great Organ--Newcastle-on-Tyne--The Labouring
+Classes--The American Slave--Sheffield--James Montgomery,       134-145
+
+LETTER XII.
+
+Kirkstall Abbey--Mary the Maid of the Inn--Newstead Abbey:
+Residence of Lord Byron--Parish Church of Hucknall--Burial Place
+of Lord Byron--Bristol: "Cook's Folly"--Chepstow Castle and
+Abbey--Tintern Abbey--Redcliffe Church,                         145-162
+
+LETTER XIII.
+
+Edinburgh--The Royal Institute--Scott's Monument--John Knox's
+Pulpit--Temperance Meeting--Glasgow--Great Meeting in the City
+Hall,                                                           163-176
+
+LETTER XIV.
+
+Stirling--Dundee--Dr. Dick--Geo. Gilfillan--Dr. Dick at home,   177-184
+
+LETTER XV.
+
+Melrose Abbey--Abbotsford--Dryburgh Abbey--The Grave of Sir
+Walter Scott--Hawick--Gretna Green--Visit to the Lakes,         185-196
+
+LETTER XVI.
+
+Miss Martineau--"The Knoll"--"Ridal Mount"--"The Dove's
+Nest"--Grave of William Wordsworth, Esq.--The English Peasant,  196-207
+
+LETTER XVII.
+
+A Day in the Crystal Palace,                                    207-219
+
+LETTER XVIII.
+
+The London Peace Congress--Meeting of Fugitive Slaves--
+Temperance Demonstration--The Great Exhibition: Last Visit,     219-226
+
+LETTER XIX.
+
+Oxford--Martyrs' Monument--Cost of the Burning of the Martyrs--
+The Colleges--Dr. Pusey--Energy, the Secret of Success,         227-235
+
+LETTER XX.
+
+Fugitive Slaves in England,                                     236-250
+
+LETTER XXI.
+
+A Chapter on American Slavery,                                  250-273
+
+LETTER XXII.
+
+A Narrative of American Slavery,                                273-305
+
+LETTER XXIII.
+
+Aberdeen--Passage by Steamer--Edinburgh--Visit to the
+College--William and Ellen Craft,                               305-312
+
+
+
+
+MEMOIR OF WILLIAM WELLS BROWN.
+
+
+A narrative of the life of the author of the present work has been most
+extensively circulated in England and America. The present memoir will,
+therefore, simply comprise a brief sketch of the most interesting
+portion of Mr. Brown's history while in America, together with a short
+account of his subsequent cisatlantic career. The publication of his
+adventures as a slave, and as a fugitive from slavery in his native
+land, has been most valuable in sustaining a sound anti-slavery spirit
+in Great Britain. His honourable reception in Europe may be equally
+serviceable in America, as another added to the many practical protests
+previously entered from this side of the Atlantic, against the absolute
+bondage of three millions and a quarter of the human race, and the
+semi-slavery involved in the social and political proscription of
+600,000 free coloured people in that country.
+
+William Wells Brown was born at Lexington, in the state of Kentucky, as
+nearly as he can tell in the autumn of 1814. In the Southern States of
+America, the pedigree and age of a horse or a dog are carefully
+preserved, but no record is kept of the birth of a slave. All that Mr.
+Brown knows upon the subject is traditionally, that he was born "about
+corn-cutting time" of that year. His mother was a slave named Elizabeth,
+the property of Dr. Young, a physician. His father was George Higgins, a
+relative of his master.
+
+The name given to our author at his birth, was "William"--no second or
+surname being permitted to a slave. While William was an infant, Dr.
+Young removed to Missouri, where, in addition to his profession as a
+physician, he carried on the--to European notions--incongruous
+avocations of miller, merchant, and farmer. Here William was employed as
+a house servant, while his mother was engaged as a field hand. One of
+his first bitter experiences of the cruelties of slavery, was his
+witnessing the infliction of ten lashes upon the bare back of his
+mother, for being a few minutes behind her time at the field--a
+punishment inflicted with one of those peculiar whips in the
+construction of which, so as to produce the greatest amount of torture,
+those whom Lord Carlisle has designated "the chivalry of the South" find
+scope for their ingenuity.
+
+Dr. Young subsequently removed to a farm near St. Louis, in the same
+State. Having been elected a Member of the Legislature, he devolved the
+management of his farm upon an overseer, having, what to his unhappy
+victims must have been the ironical name of "Friend Haskall." The mother
+and child were now separated. The boy was levied to a Virginian named
+Freeland, who bore the military title of Major, and carried on the
+plebeian business of a publican. This man was of an extremely brutal
+disposition, and treated his slaves with most refined cruelty. His
+favourite punishment, which he facetiously called "Virginian play," was
+to flog his slaves severely, and then expose their lacerated flesh to
+the smoke of tobacco stems, causing the most exquisite agony. William
+complained to his owner of the treatment of Freeland, but, as in almost
+all similar instances, the appeal was in vain. At length he was induced
+to attempt an escape, not from that love of liberty which subsequently
+became with him an unconquerable passion, but simply to avoid the
+cruelty to which he was habitually subjected. He took refuge in the
+woods, but was hunted and "traced" by the blood-hounds of a Major
+O'Fallon, another of "the chivalry of the South," whose gallant
+occupation was that of keeping an establishment for the hire of
+ferocious dogs with which to hunt fugitive slaves. The young slave
+received a severe application of "Virginia play" for his attempt to
+escape. Happily the military publican soon afterwards failed in
+business, and William found a better master and a more congenial
+employment with Captain Cilvers, on board a steam-boat plying between
+St. Louis and Galena. At the close of the sailing season he was levied
+to an hotel-keeper, a native of a free state, but withal of a class
+which exist north as well as south--a most inveterate negro hater. At
+this period of William's history, a circumstance occurred, which,
+although a common incident in the lives of slaves, is one of the keenest
+trials they have to endure--the breaking up of his family circle. Her
+master wanted money, and he therefore sold Elizabeth and six of her
+children to seven different purchasers. The family relationship is
+almost the only solace of slavery. While the mother, brothers, and
+sisters are permitted to meet together in the negro hut after the hour
+of labour, the slaves are comparatively content with their oppressed
+condition; but deprive them of this, the only privilege which they as
+human beings are possessed of, and nothing is left but the animal part
+of their nature--the living soul is extinguished within them. With them
+there is nothing to love--everything to hate. They feel themselves
+degraded to the condition not only of mere animals, but of the most
+ill-used animals in the creation.
+
+Not needing the services of his young relative, Dr. Young hired him to
+the proprietor of the _St. Louis Times_, the best master William ever
+had in slavery. Here he gained the scanty amount of education he
+acquired at the South. This kind treatment by his editorial master
+appears to have engendered in the heart of William a consciousness of
+his own manhood, and led him into the commission of an offence similar
+to that perpetrated by Frederick Douglass, under similar
+circumstances--the assertion of the right of self-defence. He gallantly
+defended himself against the attacks of several boys older and bigger
+than himself, but in so doing was guilty of the unpardonable sin of
+lifting his hand against white lads; and the father of one of them,
+therefore, deemed it consistent with his manhood to lay in wait for the
+young slave, and beat him over the head with a heavy cane till the
+blood gushed from his nose and ears. From the effects of that treatment
+the poor lad was confined to his bed for five weeks, at the end of which
+time he found that, to his personal sufferings, were superadded the
+calamity of the loss of the best master he ever had in slavery.
+
+His next employment was that of waiter on board a steam-boat plying on
+the Mississippi. Here his occupation again was pleasant, and his
+treatment good; but the freedom of action enjoyed by the passengers in
+travelling whithersoever they pleased, contrasted strongly in his mind
+with his own deprivation of will as a slave. The natural result of this
+comparison was an intense desire for freedom--a feeling which was never
+afterwards eradicated from his breast. This love of liberty was,
+however, so strongly counteracted by affection for his mother and
+sisters, that although urgently entreated by one of the latter to take
+advantage of his present favourable opportunity for escape, he would not
+bring himself to do so at the expense of a separation for life from his
+beloved relatives.
+
+His period of living on board the steamer having expired, he was again
+remitted to field labour, under a burning sun. From that labour, from
+which he suffered severely, he was soon removed to the lighter and more
+agreeable occupation of house-waiter to his master. About this time Dr.
+Young, in the conventional phraseology of the locality, "got religion."
+The fruit of his alleged spiritual gain, was the loss of many material
+comforts to the slaves. Destitute of the resources of education, they
+were in the habit of employing their otherwise unoccupied minds on the
+Sunday in fishing and other harmless pursuits; these were now all put an
+end to. The Sabbath became a season of dread to William: he was required
+to drive the family to and from the church, a distance of four miles
+either way; and while they attended to the salvation of their souls
+within the building, he was compelled to attend to the horses without
+it, standing by them during divine service under a burning sun, or
+drizzling rain. Although William did not get the religion of his master,
+he acquired a family passion which appears to have been strongly
+intermixed with the devotional exercises of the household of Dr.
+Young--a love of sweet julep. In the evening, the slaves were required
+to attend family worship. Before commencing the service, it was the
+custom to hand a pitcher of the favourite beverage to every member of
+the family, not excepting the nephew, a child of between four and five
+years old. William was in the habit of watching his opportunity during
+the prayer and helping himself from the pitcher, but one day letting it
+fall, his propensity for this intoxicating drink was discovered, and he
+was severely punished for its indulgence.
+
+In 1830, being then about sixteen years of age, William was hired to a
+slave-dealer named Walker. This change of employment led the youth away
+south and frustrated, for a time, his plans for escape. His experience
+while in this capacity furnishes some interesting, though painful,
+details of the legalized traffic in human beings carried on in the
+United States. The desperation to which the slaves are driven at their
+forced separation from husband, wife, children, and kindred, he found to
+be a frequent cause of suicide. Slave-dealers he discovered were as
+great adepts at deception in the sale of their commodity as the most
+knowing down-easter, or tricky horse dealer. William's occupation on
+board the steamer, as they steamed south, was to prepare the stock for
+the market, by shaving off whiskers and blacking the grey hairs with a
+colouring composition.
+
+At the expiration of the period of his hiring with Walker, William
+returned to his master rejoiced to have escaped an employment so
+repugnant to his feelings. But this joy was not of long duration. One of
+his sisters who, although sold to another master had been living in the
+same city with himself and mother, was again sold to be sent away south,
+never in all probability to meet her sorrowing relatives. Dr. Young
+also, wanting money, intimated to his young kinsman that he was about to
+sell him. This intimation determined William, in conjunction with his
+mother, to attempt their escape. For ten nights they travelled
+northwards, hiding themselves in the woods by day. The mother and son at
+length deemed themselves safe from re-capture, and, although weary and
+foot-sore, were laying down sanguine plans for the acquisition of a farm
+in Canada, the purchase of the freedom of the six other members of the
+family still in slavery, and rejoicing in the anticipated happiness of
+their free home in Canada. At that moment three men made up to and
+seized them, bound the son and led him, with his desponding mother,
+back to slavery. Elizabeth was sold and sent away south, while her son
+became the property of a merchant tailor named Willi. Mr. Brown's
+description of the final interview between himself and his mother, is
+one of the most touching portions of his narrative. The mother, after
+expressing her conviction of the speedy escape from slavery by the hand
+of death, enjoined her child to persevere in his endeavours to gain his
+freedom by flight. Her blessing was interrupted by the kick and curse
+bestowed by her dehumanized master upon her beloved son.
+
+After having been hired for a short time to the captain of the
+steam-boat _Otto_, William was finally sold to Captain Enoch Price for
+650 dollars. That the quickness and intelligence of William rendered him
+very valuable as a slave, is favoured by the evidence of Enoch Price
+himself, who states that he was offered 2000 dollars for Sanford (as he
+was called), in New Orleans. William was strongly urged by his new
+mistress to marry. To facilitate this object, she even went so far as to
+purchase a girl for whom she fancied he had an affection. He himself,
+however, had secretly resolved never to enter into such a connexion
+while in slavery, knowing that marriage, in the true and honourable
+sense of the term, could not exist among slaves. Notwithstanding the
+multitude of petty offences for which a slave is severely punished, it
+is singular that one crime--bigamy--is visited upon a white with
+severity, while no slave has ever yet been tried for it. In fact, the
+man is allowed to form connections with as many women, and the women
+with as many men, as they please.
+
+At St. Louis, William was employed as coachman to Mr. Price; but when
+that gentleman subsequently took his family up the river to Cincinnati,
+Sanford acted as appointed steward. While lying off this city, the
+long-looked-for opportunity of escape presented itself; and on the 1st
+of January, 1834--he being then almost twenty years of age--succeeded in
+getting from the steamer to the wharf, and thence to the woods, where he
+lay concealed until the shades of night had set in, when he again
+commenced his journey northwards. While with Dr. Young, a nephew of that
+gentleman, whose christian name was William, came into the family: the
+slave was, therefore, denuded of the name of William, and thenceforth
+called Sanford. This deprivation of his original name he had ever
+regarded as an indignity, and having now gained his freedom he resumed
+his original name; and as there was no one by whom he could be addressed
+by it, he exultingly enjoyed the first-fruits of his freedom by calling
+himself aloud by his old name "William!" After passing through a variety
+of painful vicissitudes, on the eighth day he found himself destitute of
+pecuniary means, and unable, from severe illness, to pursue his journey.
+In that condition he was discovered by a venerable member of the Society
+of Friends, who placed him in a covered waggon and took him to his own
+house. There he remained about fifteen days, and by the kind treatment
+of his host and hostess, who were what in America are called
+"Thompsonians," he was restored to health, and supplied with the means
+of pursuing his journey. The name of this, his first kind benefactor,
+was "Wells Brown." As William had risen from the degradation of a slave
+to the dignity of a man, it was expedient that he should follow the
+customs of other men, and adopt a second name. His venerable friend,
+therefore, bestowed upon him his own name, which, prefixed by his former
+designation, made him "William Wells Brown," a name that will live in
+history, while those of the men who claimed him as property would, were
+it not for his deeds, have been unknown beyond the town in which they
+lived. In nine days from the time he left Wells Brown's house, he
+arrived at Cleveland, in the State of Ohio, where he found he could
+remain comparatively safe from the pursuit of the man-stealer. Having
+obtained employment as a waiter, he remained in that city until the
+following spring, when he procured an engagement on board a steam-boat
+plying on Lake Erie. In that situation he was enabled, during seven
+months, to assist no less than sixty-nine slaves to escape to Canada.
+While a slave he had regarded the whites as the natural enemies of his
+race. It was, therefore, with no small pleasure that he discovered the
+existence of the salt of America, in the despised Abolitionists of the
+Northern States. He read with assiduity the writings of Benjamin Lundy,
+William Lloyd Garrison, and others; and after his own twenty years'
+experience of slavery, it is not surprising that he should have
+enthusiastically embraced the principles of "total and immediate
+emancipation," and "no union with slaveholders."
+
+In proportion as his mind expanded under the more favourable
+circumstances in which he was placed, he became anxious, not merely for
+the redemption of his race from personal slavery, but for the moral
+elevation of those among them who were free. Finding that habits of
+intoxication were too prevalent amongst his coloured brethren, he, in
+conjunction with others, commenced a temperance reformation in their
+body. Such was the success of their efforts that in three years, in the
+city of Buffalo alone, a society of upwards of 500 members was raised
+out of a coloured population of 700. Of that society Mr. Brown was
+thrice elected President.
+
+The intellectual powers of our author, coupled with his intimate
+acquaintance with the workings of the slave system, recommended him to
+the Abolitionists as a man eminently qualified to arouse the attention
+of the people of the Northern States to the great national sin of
+America. In 1843 he was engaged as a lecturer by the Western New-York
+Anti-Slavery Society. From 1844 to 1847 he laboured in the anti-slavery
+cause in connection with the American Anti-Slavery Society, and from
+that period up to the time of his departure for Europe, in 1849, he was
+an agent of the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society. The records of those
+societies furnish abundant evidence of the success of his labours. From
+the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society he early received the following
+testimony:--
+
+"Since Mr. Brown became an agent of the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery
+Society, he has lectured in very many of the towns of this
+Commonwealth, and won for himself general respect and approbation. He
+combines true self-respect with true humility, and rare judiciousness
+with great moral courage. Himself a fugitive slave, he can
+experimentally describe the situation of those in bonds as bound with
+them; and he powerfully illustrates the diabolism of that system which
+keeps in chains and darkness a host of minds, which, if free and
+enlightened, would shine among men like stars in a firmament."
+
+Another member of that Society speaks thus of him:--"I need not attempt
+any description of the ability and efficiency which characterized his
+speaking throughout the meetings. To you who know him so well, it is
+enough to say that his lectures were worthy of himself. He has left an
+impression on the minds of the people, that few could have done. Cold,
+indeed, must be the heart that could resist the appeals of so noble a
+specimen of humanity, in behalf of a crushed and despised race."
+
+Notwithstanding the celebrity Mr. Brown had acquired in the north, as a
+man of genius and talent, and the general respect his high character had
+gained him, the slave spirit of America denied him the rights of a
+citizen. By the constitution of the United States, he was every moment
+liable to be seized and sent back to slavery. He was in daily peril of a
+gradual legalized murder, under a system one of whose established
+economical principles is, that it is more profitable to work up a slave
+on a plantation in a short time, by excessive labour and cheap food,
+than to obtain a lengthened remuneration by moderate work and humane
+treatment. His only protection from such a fate was the anomaly of the
+ascendancy of the public opinion over the law of the country. So
+uncertain, however, was that tenure of liberty, that even before the
+passage of the Fugitive Slave Law, it was deemed expedient to secure the
+services of Frederick Douglass to the anti-slavery cause by the purchase
+of his freedom. The same course might have been taken to secure the
+labours of Mr. Brown, had he not entertained an unconquerable repugnance
+to its adoption. On the 10th of January, 1848, Enoch Price wrote to Mr.
+Edmund Quincy offering to sell Mr. Brown to himself or friends for 325
+dollars. To this communication the fugitive returned the following pithy
+and noble reply:--
+
+"I cannot accept of Mr. Price's offer to become a purchaser of my body
+and soul. God made me as free as he did Enoch Price, and Mr. Price shall
+never receive a dollar from me or my friends with my consent."
+
+There were, however, other reasons besides his personal safety which led
+to Mr. Brown's visit to Europe. It was thought desirable always to have
+in England some talented man of colour who should be a living lie to the
+doctrine of the inferiority of the African race: and it was moreover
+felt that none could so powerfully advocate the cause of "those in
+bonds" as one who had actually been "bound with them." This had been
+proved in the extraordinary effect produced in Great Britain by
+Frederick Douglass in 1845 and 1846. The American Committee in
+connection with the Peace Congress were also desirous of sending to
+Europe coloured representatives of their Society, and Mr. Brown was
+selected for that purpose, and duly accredited by them to the Paris
+Congress.
+
+On the 18th of July, 1849, a large meeting of the coloured citizens of
+Boston was held in Washington Hall to bid him farewell. At that meeting
+the following resolutions were unanimously adopted:--
+
+"_Resolved_,--That we bid our brother, William Wells Brown, God speed in
+      his mission to Europe, and commend him to the hospitality and
+      encouragement of all true friends of humanity.
+
+"_Resolved_,--That we forward by him our renewed protest against the
+      American Colonization Society; and invoke for him a candid hearing
+      before the British public, in reply to the efforts put forth there
+      by the Rev. Mr. Miller, or any other agent of said Society."
+
+Two days afterwards he sailed for Europe, encountering on his voyage his
+last experience of American prejudice against colour.
+
+On the 28th of August he landed at Liverpool, a time and place memorable
+in his life as the first upon which he could truly call himself a free
+man upon God's earth. In the history of nations, as of individuals,
+there is often singular retributive mercy as well as retributive
+justice. In the seventeenth century the victims of monarchical tyranny
+in Great Britain found social and political freedom when they set foot
+upon Plymouth Rock in New England: in the nineteenth century the victims
+of the oppressions of the American Republic find freedom and social
+equality upon the shores of monarchical England. Liverpool, which
+seventy years back was so steeped in the guilt of negro slavery that
+Paine expressed his surprise that God did not sweep it from the face of
+the earth, is now to the hunted negro the Plymouth Rock of Old England.
+From Liverpool he proceeded to Dublin where he was warmly received by
+Mr. Haughton, Mr. Webb, and other friends of the slave, and publicly
+welcomed at a large meeting presided over by the first named gentleman.
+
+The reception of Mr. Brown at the Peace Congress in Paris was most
+flattering. In a company, comprising a large portion of the _elite_ of
+Europe, he admirably maintained his reputation as a public speaker. His
+brief address, upon that "war spirit of America which holds in bondage
+three million of his brethren," produced a profound sensation. At its
+conclusion the speaker was warmly greeted by Victor Hugo, the Abbe
+Duguerry, Emile de Girardin, the Pastor Coquerel, Richard Cobden, and
+every man of note in the Assembly. At the soiree given by M. De
+Tocqueville, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, and the other fetes given
+to the Members of the Congress, Mr. Brown was received with marked
+attention.
+
+Having finished his Peace mission in France, he commenced an
+Anti-slavery tour in England and Scotland. With that independence of
+feeling which those who are acquainted with him know to be his chief
+characteristic, he rejected the idea of anything like eleemosynary
+support. He determined to maintain himself and family by his own
+exertions--by his literary labours, and the honourable profession of a
+public lecturer. His first metropolitan reception in England was at a
+large, influential, and enthusiastic meeting in the Music Hall, Stone
+Street. The members of the Whittington Club--an institution numbering
+nearly 2000 members, among whom are Lords Brougham, Dudley Coutts
+Stuart, and Beaumont; Charles Dickens, Douglass Jerrold, Martin
+Thackeray, Charles Lushington, M.P., Monckton Milnes, M.P., and several
+other of the most distinguished legislators and literary men and women
+in this country--elected Mr. Brown an honorary member of the Club, as a
+mark of respect to his character; and, as the following extract from the
+Secretary, Mr. Stundwicke, will show, as a protest against the
+distinctions made between man and man on account of colour in
+America:--"I have much pleasure in conveying to you the best thanks of
+the managing committee of this institution for the excellent lecture you
+gave here last evening on the subject of 'Slavery in America,' and also
+in presenting you in their names with an honorary membership of the
+Club. It is hoped that you will often avail yourself of its privileges
+by coming amongst us. You will then see, by the cordial welcome of the
+members, that they protest against the odious distinctions made between
+man and man, and the abominable traffic of which you have been the
+victim."
+
+For the last three years Mr. Brown has been engaged in visiting and
+holding meetings in nearly all the large towns in the kingdom upon the
+question of American Slavery, Temperance, and other subjects. Perhaps no
+coloured individual, not excepting that extraordinary man, Frederick
+Douglass, has done more good in disseminating anti-slavery principles in
+England, Scotland, and Ireland.
+
+In the spring of 1851, two most interesting fugitives, William and Ellen
+Craft, arrived in England. They had made their escape from the South,
+the wife disguised in male attire, and the husband in the capacity of
+her slave. William Craft was doing a thriving business in Boston, but in
+1851 was driven with his wife from that city by the operation of the
+Fugitive Slave Law. For several months they travelled in company with
+Mr. Brown in this country, deepening the disgust created by Mr. Brown's
+eloquent denunciation of slavery by their simple but touching narrative.
+At length they were enabled to gratify their thirst for education by
+gaining admission to Lady Byron's school at Oakham, Surrey. In the month
+of May, Mr. Brown and Mr. and Mrs. Craft were taken by a party of
+anti-slavery friends to the Great Exhibition. The honourable manner in
+which they were received by distinguished persons to whom their history
+was known, and the freedom with which they perambulated the American
+department, was a salutary rebuke to the numerous Americans present, in
+regard to the great sin of their country--slavery; and its great
+folly--prejudice of colour. A curious circumstance occurred during the
+Exhibition. Among the hosts of American visitors to this country was Mr.
+Brown's late master, Enoch Price, who made diligent inquiry after his
+lost piece of property--not, of course, with any view to its
+reclamation--but, to the mutual regret of both parties, without success.
+It is gratifying to state that the master spoke highly of, and expressed
+a wish for the future prosperity of, his fugitive slave; a fact which
+tends to prove that prejudice of colour is to a very great extent a
+thing of locality and association. Had Mr. Price, however, left behind
+him letters of manumission for Mr. Brown, enabling him, if he chose, to
+return to his native land, he would have given a more practical proof of
+respect, and of the sincerity of his desire for the welfare of Mr.
+Brown.
+
+It would extend these pages far beyond their proposed length were
+anything like a detailed account of Mr. Brown's anti-slavery labours in
+this country to be attempted. Suffice it to say that they have
+everywhere been attended with benefit and approbation. At Bolton an
+admirable address from the ladies was presented to him, and at other
+places he has received most honourable testimonials.
+
+Since Mr. Brown left America, the condition of the fugitive slaves in
+his own country has, through the operation of the Fugitive Slave Law,
+been rendered so perilous as to preclude the possibility of return
+without the almost certain loss of liberty. His expatriation has,
+however, been a gain to the cause of humanity in this country, where an
+intelligent representative of the oppressed coloured Americans is
+constantly needed, not only to describe, in language of fervid
+eloquence, the wrongs inflicted upon his race in the United States, but
+to prevent their bonds being strengthened in this country by holding
+fellowship with slave-holding and slave-abetting ministers from America.
+In his lectures he has clearly demonstrated the fact, that the sole
+support of the slavery of the United States is its churches. This
+knowledge of the standing of American ministers in reference to slavery
+has, in the case of Dr. Dyer, and in many other instances, been most
+serviceable, preventing their reception into communion with British
+churches. Last year Mr. Brown succeeded in getting over to this country
+his daughters, two interesting girls twelve and sixteen years of age
+respectively, who are now receiving an education which will qualify them
+hereafter to become teachers in their turn--a description of education
+which would have been denied them in their native land. In 1834 Mr.
+Brown married a free coloured woman, who died in January of the present
+year.
+
+The condition of escaped slaves has engaged much of his attention while
+in this country. He found that in England no anti-slavery organization
+existed whose object was to aid fugitive slaves in obtaining an
+honourable subsistence in the land of their exile. In most cases they
+are thrown upon the support of a few warm-hearted anti-slavery advocates
+in this country, pre-eminent among whom stands Mr. Brown's earliest
+friend, Mr. George Thompson, M.P., whose house is rarely free from one
+or more of those who have acquired the designation of his "American
+constituents." This want has recently been attempted to be supplied,
+partly through Mr. Brown's exertions, and partly by the establishment of
+the Anglo-American Anti-Slavery Association.
+
+On the 1st of August, 1851, a meeting of the most novel character was
+held at the Hall of Commerce, London, being a soiree given by fugitive
+slaves in this country to Mr. George Thompson, on his return from his
+American mission on behalf of their race. That meeting was most ably
+presided over by Mr. Brown, and the speeches made upon the occasion by
+fugitive slaves were of the most interesting and creditable description.
+Although a residence in Canada is infinitely preferable to slavery in
+America, yet the climate of that country is uncongenial to the
+constitutions of the fugitive slaves, and their lack of education is an
+almost insuperable barrier to their social progress. The latter evil Mr.
+Brown attempted to remedy by the establishment of a Manual Labour School
+in Canada.
+
+A public meeting, attended by between 3000 and 4000 persons, was
+convened by Mr. Brown, on the 6th of January, 1851, in the City Hall,
+Glasgow, presided over by Mr. Hastie, one of the representatives of that
+city, at which meeting a resolution was unanimously passed approving of
+Mr. Brown's scheme, which scheme, however, never received that amount of
+support which would have enabled him to bring it into practice; and the
+plan at present only remains as an evidence of its author's ingenuity
+and desire for the elevation of his depressed race. Mr. Brown
+subsequently made, through the columns of the _Times_ newspaper, a
+proposition for the emigration of American fugitive slaves, under fair
+and honourable terms, to the West Indies, where there is a great lack of
+that tillage labour which they are so capable of undertaking. This
+proposition has hitherto met with no better fate than its predecessor.
+
+Mr. Brown's literary abilities may be partly judged of from the
+following pages. The amount of knowledge and education he has acquired
+under circumstances of no ordinary difficulty, is a striking proof of
+what can be done by combined genius and industry. His proficiency as a
+linguist, without the aid of a master, is considerable. His present work
+is a valuable addition to the stock of English literature. The honour
+which has hitherto been paid, and which, so long as he resides upon
+British soil, will no doubt continue to be paid to his character and
+talents, must have its influence in abating the senseless prejudice of
+colour in America, and hastening the time when the object of his
+mission, the abolition of the slavery of his native country, shall be
+accomplished, and that young Republic renouncing with penitence its
+national sin, shall take its proper place amongst the most free,
+civilized, and Christian nations of the earth.
+
+                              W.F.
+
+
+
+
+PREFACE.
+
+
+While I feel conscious that most of the contents of these Letters will
+be interesting chiefly to American readers, yet I may indulge the hope,
+that the fact of their being the first production of a Fugitive Slave,
+as a history of travels, may carry with them novelty enough to secure
+for them, to some extent, the attention of the reading public of Great
+Britain. Most of the letters were written for the private perusal of a
+few personal friends in America; some were contributed to "Frederick
+Douglass's paper," a journal published in the United States. In a
+printed circular sent some weeks since to some of my friends, asking
+subscriptions to this volume, I stated the reasons for its publication:
+these need not be repeated here. To those who so promptly and kindly
+responded to that appeal, I tender my most sincere thanks. It is with no
+little diffidence that I lay these letters before the public; for I am
+not blind to the fact, that they must contain many errors; and to those
+who shall find fault with them on that account, it may not be too much
+for me to ask them kindly to remember, that the author was a slave in
+one of the Southern States of America, until he had attained the age of
+twenty years; and that the education he has acquired, was by his own
+exertions, he never having had a day's schooling in his life.
+
+                              W. WELLS BROWN.
+
+  22, CECIL STREET, STRAND,
+     LONDON.
+
+
+
+
+
+LETTER I.
+
+_Departure from Boston--the Passengers--Halifax--the Passage--First
+Sight of Land--Liverpool._
+
+
+                    LIVERPOOL, _July 28_.
+
+On the 18th July, 1849, I took passage in the steam-ship _Canada_,
+Captain Judkins, bound for Liverpool. The day was a warm one; so much
+so, that many persons on board, as well as several on shore, stood with
+their umbrellas up, so intense was the heat of the sun. The ringing of
+the ship's bell was a signal for us to shake hands with our friends,
+which we did, and then stepped on the deck of the noble craft. The
+_Canada_ quitted her moorings at half-past twelve, and we were soon in
+motion. As we were passing out of Boston Bay, I took my stand on the
+quarter-deck, to take a last farewell (at least for a time), of my
+native land. A visit to the old world, up to that time had seemed but a
+dream. As I looked back upon the receding land, recollections of the
+past rushed through my mind in quick succession. From the treatment that
+I had received from the Americans as a victim of slavery, and the
+knowledge that I was at that time liable to be seized and again reduced
+to whips and chains, I had supposed that I would leave the country
+without any regret; but in this I was mistaken, for when I saw the last
+thread of communication cut off between me and the land, and the dim
+shores dying away in the distance, I almost regretted that I was not on
+shore.
+
+An anticipated trip to a foreign country appears pleasant when talking
+about it, especially when surrounded by friends whom we love; but when
+we have left them all behind, it does not seem so pleasant. Whatever may
+be the fault of the government under which we live, and no matter how
+oppressive her laws may appear, yet we leave our native land (if such
+it be) with feelings akin to sorrow. With the steamer's powerful engine
+at work, and with a fair wind, we were speedily on the bosom of the
+Atlantic, which was as calm and as smooth as our own Hudson in its
+calmest aspect. We had on board above one hundred passengers, forty of
+whom were the "Viennese children"--a troop of dancers. The passengers
+represented several different nations, English, French, Spaniards,
+Africans, and Americans. One man who had the longest pair of mustaches
+that mortal man was ever doomed to wear, especially attracted my
+attention. He appeared to belong to no country in particular, but was
+yet the busiest man on board. After viewing for some time the many
+strange faces around me, I descended to the cabin to look after my
+luggage, which had been put hurriedly on board. I hope that all who take
+a trip of so great a distance may be as fortunate as I was, in being
+supplied with books to read on the voyage. My friends had furnished me
+with literature, from "Macaulay's History of England" to "Jane Eyre," so
+that I did not want for books to occupy my time.
+
+A pleasant passage of about thirty hours, brought us to Halifax, at six
+o'clock in the evening. In company with my friend the President of the
+Oberlin Institute, I took a stroll through the town; and from what
+little I saw of the people in the streets, I am sure that the taking of
+the Temperance pledge would do them no injury. Our stay at Halifax was
+short. Having taken in a few sacks of coals, the mails, and a limited
+number of passengers, we were again out, and soon at sea. After a
+pleasant run of seven days more, and as I was lying in my bed, I heard
+the cry of "Land a-head." Although our passage had been unprecedentedly
+short, yet I need not inform you that this news was hailed with joy by
+all on board. For my own part, I was soon on deck. Away in the distance,
+and on our larboard quarter, were the grey hills of Ireland. Yes! we
+were in sight of the land of Emmett and O'Connell. While I rejoiced with
+the other passengers at the sight of land, and the near approach to the
+end of the voyage, I felt low spirited, because it reminded me of the
+great distance I was from home. But the experience of above twenty
+years' travelling, had prepared me to undergo what most persons must lay
+their account with, in visiting a strange country. This was the last day
+but one that we were to be on board; and as if moved by the sight of
+land, all seemed to be gathering their different things
+together--brushing up their old clothes and putting on their new ones,
+as if this would bring them any sooner to the end of their journey.
+
+The last night on board was the most pleasant, apparently, that we had
+experienced; probably, because it was the last. The moon was in her
+meridian splendour, pouring her broad light over the calm sea; while
+near to us, on our starboard side, was a ship with her snow-white sails
+spread aloft, and stealing through the water like a thing of life. What
+can present a more picturesque view, than two vessels at sea on a
+moonlight night, and within a few rods of each other? With a gentle
+breeze, and the powerful engine at work, we seemed to be flying to the
+embrace of our British neighbours.
+
+The next morning I was up before the sun, and found that we were within
+a few miles of Liverpool. The taking of a pilot on board at eleven
+o'clock, warned us to prepare to quit our ocean palace and seek other
+quarters. At a little past three o'clock, the ship cast anchor, and we
+were all tumbled, bag and baggage, into a small steamer, and in a few
+moments were at the door of the Custom-House. The passage had only been
+nine days and twenty-two hours, the quickest on record at that time, yet
+it was long enough. I waited nearly three hours before my name was
+called, and when it was, I unlocked my trunks and handed them over to
+one of the officers, whose dirty hands made no improvement on the work
+of the laundress. First one article was taken out, and then another,
+till an _Iron Collar_ that had been worn by a female slave on the banks
+of the Mississippi, was hauled out, and this democratic instrument of
+torture became the centre of attraction; so much so, that instead of
+going on with the examination, all hands stopped to look at the "Negro
+Collar."
+
+Several of my countrymen who were standing by, were not a little
+displeased at answers which I gave to questions on the subject of
+Slavery; but they held their peace. The interest created by the
+appearance of the Iron Collar, closed the examination of my luggage. As
+if afraid that they would find something more hideous, they put the
+Custom-House mark on each piece, and passed them out, and I was soon
+comfortably installed at Brown's Temperance Hotel, Clayton Square.
+
+
+No person of my complexion can visit this country without being struck
+with the marked difference between the English and the Americans. The
+prejudice which I have experienced on all and every occasion in the
+United States, and to some extent on board the _Canada_, vanished as
+soon as I set foot on the soil of Britain. In America I had been bought
+and sold as a slave, in the Southern States. In the so-called free
+States, I had been treated as one born to occupy an inferior
+position,--in steamers, compelled to take my fare on the deck; in
+hotels, to take my meals in the kitchen; in coaches, to ride on the
+outside; in railways, to ride in the "negro car;" and in churches, to
+sit in the "negro pew." But no sooner was I on British soil, than I was
+recognised as a man, and an equal. The very dogs in the streets
+appeared conscious of my manhood. Such is the difference, and such is
+the change that is brought about by a trip of nine days in an Atlantic
+steamer.
+
+I was not more struck with the treatment of the people, than with the
+appearance of the great seaport of the world. The grey appearance of the
+stone piers and docks, the dark look of the magnificent warehouses, the
+substantial appearance of every thing around, causes one to think
+himself in a new world instead of the old. Every thing in Liverpool
+looks old, yet nothing is worn out. The beautiful villas on the opposite
+side of the river, in the vicinity of Birkenhead, together with the
+countless number of vessels in the river, and the great ships to be seen
+in the stream, give life and animation to the whole scene.
+
+Every thing in and about Liverpool seems to be built for the future as
+well as the present. We had time to examine but few of the public
+buildings, the first of which was the Custom-House, an edifice that
+would be an ornament to any city in the world.
+
+For the first time in my life, I can say "I am truly free." My old
+master may make his appearance here, with the Constitution of the United
+States in his pocket, the Fugitive Slave Law in one hand and the chains
+in the other, and claim me as his property, but all will avail him
+nothing. I can here stand and look the tyrant in the face, and tell him
+that I am his equal! England is, indeed, the "land of the free, and the
+home of the brave."
+
+
+
+
+LETTER II.
+
+_Trip to Ireland--Dublin--Her Majesty's Visit--Illumination of the
+City--the Birth-Place of Thomas Moore--a Reception._
+
+
+                    DUBLIN, _August 6_.
+
+After remaining in Liverpool two days, I took passage in the little
+steamer _Adelaide_ for this city. The wind being high on the night of
+our voyage, the vessel had scarcely got to sea ere we were driven to
+our berths; and though the distance from Liverpool to Dublin is short,
+yet, strange to say, I witnessed more effects of the sea and rolling of
+the steamer upon the passengers, than was to be seen during the whole of
+our voyage from America. We reached Kingstown, five miles below Dublin,
+after a passage of nearly fifteen hours, and were soon seated on a car,
+and on our way to the city. While coming into the bay, one gets a fine
+view of Dublin and the surrounding country. Few sheets of water make a
+more beautiful appearance than Dublin Bay. We found it as still and
+smooth as a mirror, with a soft mist on its surface--a strange contrast
+to the boisterous sea that we had left a moment before.
+
+The curious phrases of the Irish sounded harshly upon my ear, probably,
+because they were strange to me. I lost no time on reaching the city in
+seeking out some to whom I had letters of introduction, one of whom gave
+me an invitation to make his house my home during my stay, an invitation
+which I did not think fit to decline.
+
+Dublin, the Metropolis of Ireland, is a city of above two hundred
+thousand inhabitants, and is considered by the people of Ireland to be
+the second city in the British Empire. The Liffey, which falls into
+Dublin Bay a little below the Custom-House, divides the town into two
+nearly equal parts. The streets are--some of them--very fine, especially
+upper Sackville Street, in the centre of which stands a pillar erected
+to Nelson, England's most distinguished Naval Commander. The Bank of
+Ireland, to which I paid a visit, is a splendid building, and was
+formerly the Parliament House. This magnificent edifice fronts College
+Green, and near at hand stands a bronze statue of William III. The Bank
+and the Custom-House are two of the finest monuments of architecture in
+the city; the latter of which stands near the river Liffey, and its
+front makes an imposing appearance, extending to three hundred and
+seventy-five feet. It is built of Portland stone, and is adorned with a
+beautiful portico in the centre, consisting of four Doric columns
+supporting an enriched entablature, decorated with a group of figures in
+alto-relievo, representing Hibernia and Britannia presenting emblems of
+peace and liberty. A magnificent dome, supporting a cupola, on whose
+apex stands a colossal figure of Hope, rises nobly from the centre of
+the building to a height of one hundred and twenty-five feet. It is,
+withal, a fine specimen of what man can do.
+
+From this noble edifice, we bent our steps to another part of the city,
+and soon found ourselves in the vicinity of St. Patrick's, where we had
+a heart-sickening view of the poorest of the poor. All the recollections
+of poverty which I had ever beheld, seemed to disappear in comparison
+with what was then before me. We passed a filthy and noisy market, where
+fruit and vegetable women were screaming and begging those passing by to
+purchase their commodities; while in and about the market-place were
+throngs of beggars fighting for rotten fruit, cabbage stocks, and even
+the very trimmings of vegetables. On the side walks, were great numbers
+hovering about the doors of the more wealthy, and following strangers,
+importuning them for "pence to buy bread." Sickly and emaciated-looking
+creatures, half naked, were at our heels at every turn. After passing
+through a half dozen, or more, of narrow and dirty streets, we returned
+to our lodgings, impressed with the idea that we had seen enough of the
+poor for one day.
+
+In our return home, we passed through a respectable looking street, in
+which stands a small three storey brick building, which was pointed out
+to us as the birth-place of Thomas Moore, the poet. The following verse
+from one of Moore's poems was continually in my mind while viewing this
+house:--
+
+    "Where is the slave, so lowly,
+    Condemn'd to chains unholy,
+    Who, could he burst
+    His bonds at first,
+    Would pine beneath them slowly?"
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Yesterday was the Sabbath, but it had more the appearance of a holiday
+than a day of rest. It had been announced the day before, that the Royal
+fleet was expected, and at an early hour on Sunday, the entire town
+seemed to be on the move towards Kingstown, and as the family with whom
+I was staying followed the multitude, I was not inclined to remain
+behind, and so went with them. On reaching the station we found it
+utterly impossible to get standing room in any of the trains, much less
+a seat, and therefore determined to reach Kingstown under the plea of a
+morning's walk; and in this we were not alone, for during the walk of
+five miles the road was filled with thousands of pedestrians and a
+countless number of carriages, phaetons, and vehicles of a more humble
+order.
+
+We reached the lower town in time to get a good dinner, and rest
+ourselves before going to make further searches for Her Majesty's fleet.
+At a little past four o'clock, we observed the multitude going towards
+the pier, a number of whom were yelling at the top of their voices,
+"It's coming, it's coming;" but on going to the quay, we found that a
+false alarm had been given. However, we had been on the look-out but a
+short time, when a column of smoke rising as it were out of the sea,
+announced that the Royal fleet was near at hand. The concourse in the
+vicinity of the pier was variously estimated at from eighty to one
+hundred thousand.
+
+It was not long before the five steamers were entering the harbour, the
+one bearing Her Majesty leading the way. As each vessel had a number of
+distinguished persons on board, the people appeared to be at a loss to
+know which was the Queen; and as each party made its appearance on the
+promenade deck, they were received with great enthusiasm, the party
+having the best looking lady being received with the greatest applause.
+The Prince of Wales, and Prince Alfred, while crossing the deck were
+recognised and greeted with three cheers; the former taking off his hat
+and bowing to the people, showed that he had had some training as a
+public man although not ten years of age. But not so with Prince Alfred;
+for, when his brother turned to him and asked him to take off his hat
+and make a bow to the people, he shook his head and said, "No." This was
+received with hearty laughter by those on board, and was responded to by
+the thousands on shore. But greater applause was yet in store for the
+young prince; for the captain of the steamer being near by, and seeing
+that the Prince of Wales could not prevail on his brother to take off
+his hat, stepped up to him and undertook to take it off for him, when,
+seemingly to the delight of all, the prince put both hands to his head
+and held his hat fast. This was regarded as a sign of courage and future
+renown, and was received with the greatest enthusiasm--many crying out,
+"Good, good: he will make a brave king when his day comes."
+
+After the greetings and applause had been wasted on many who had
+appeared on deck, all at once, as if by some magic power, we beheld a
+lady rather small in stature, with auburn or reddish hair, attired in a
+plain dress, and wearing a sky-blue bonnet, standing on the larboard
+paddle-box, by the side of a tall good-looking man, with mustaches. The
+thunders of applause that now rent the air, and cries of "The Queen, the
+Queen," seemed to set at rest the question of which was Her Majesty. But
+a few moments were allowed to the people to look at the Queen, before
+she again disappeared; and it was understood that she would not be seen
+again that evening. A rush was then made for the railway, to return to
+Dublin.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+                    _August 8_.
+
+Yesterday was a great day in Dublin. At an early hour the bells began
+their merry peals, and the people were soon seen in groups in the
+streets and public squares. The hour of ten was fixed for the procession
+to leave Kingstown, and it was expected to enter the city at eleven. The
+windows of the houses in the streets through which the Royal train was
+to pass, were at a premium, and seemed to find ready occupants.
+
+Being invited the day previous to occupy part of a window in Upper
+Sackville Street, I was stationed at my allotted place, at an early
+hour, with an out-stretched neck and open eyes. My own colour differing
+from those about me, I attracted not a little attention from many; and
+often, when gazing down the street to see if the Royal procession was in
+sight, would find myself eyed by all around. But neither while at the
+window, or in the streets, was I once insulted. This was so unlike the
+American prejudice, that it seemed strange to me. It was near twelve
+o'clock before the procession entered Sackville Street, and when it did
+all eyes seemed to beam with delight. The first carriage contained only
+Her Majesty and the Prince Consort; the second, the Royal children; and
+the third, the Lords in Waiting. Fifteen carriages were used by those
+that made up the Royal party. I had a full view of the Queen and all who
+followed in the train. Her Majesty--whether from actual love for her
+person, or the novelty of the occasion, I know not which--was received
+everywhere with the greatest enthusiasm. One thing, however, is certain,
+and that is--Queen Victoria is beloved by her subjects.
+
+But the grand _fete_ was reserved for the evening. Great preparations
+had been made to have a grand illumination on the occasion, and hints
+were thrown out that it would surpass anything ever witnessed in London.
+In this they were not far out of the way; for all who witnessed the
+scene admitted that it could scarcely have been surpassed. My own idea
+of an illumination, as I had seen it in the backwoods of my own native
+land, dwindled into nothing when compared with this magnificent affair.
+
+In company with a few friends, and a lady under my charge, I undertook
+to pass through Sackville and one or two other streets, about eight
+o'clock in the evening, but we found it utterly impossible to proceed.
+Masses thronged the streets, and the wildest enthusiasm seemed to
+prevail. In our attempt to cross the bridge, we were wedged in and lost
+our companions; and on one occasion I was separated from the lady, and
+took shelter under a cart standing in the street. After being jammed and
+pulled about for nearly two hours, I returned to my lodgings, where I
+found part of my company, who had come in one after another. At eleven
+o'clock we had all assembled, and each told his adventures and
+"hairbreadth escapes;" and nearly every one had lost a pocket
+handkerchief or something of the kind: my own was among the missing.
+However, I lost nothing; for a benevolent lady, who happened to be one
+of the company, presented me with one which was of far more value than
+the one I had lost.
+
+Every one appeared to enjoy the holiday which the Royal visit had
+caused. But the Irish are indeed a strange people. How varied their
+aspect--how contradictory their character. Ireland, the land of genius
+and degradation--of great resources and unparalleled poverty--noble
+deeds and the most revolting crimes--the land of distinguished poets,
+splendid orators, and the bravest of soldiers--the land of ignorance and
+beggary! Dublin is a splendid city, but its splendour is that of
+chiselled marble rather than real life. One cannot behold these
+architectural monuments without thinking of the great men that Ireland
+has produced. The names of Burke, Sheridan, Flood, Grattan, O'Connell,
+and Shiel, have become as familiar to the Americans as household words.
+Burke is known as the statesman; Sheridan for his great speech on the
+trial of Warren Hastings; Grattan for his eloquence; O'Connell as the
+agitator; and Shiel as the accomplished orator.
+
+But of Ireland's sons, none stands higher in America than Thomas Moore,
+the Poet. The vigour of his sarcasm, the glow of his enthusiasm, the
+coruscations of his fancy, and the flashing of his wit, seem to be as
+well understood in the new world as the old; and the support which his
+pen has given to civil and religious liberty throughout the world,
+entitled the Minstrel of Erin to this elevated position.
+
+Before leaving America I had heard much of the friends of my enslaved
+countrymen residing in Ireland; and the reception I met with on all
+hands while in public, satisfied me that what I had heard had not been
+exaggerated. To the Webbs, Allens, and Haughtons, of Dublin, the cause
+of the American slave is much indebted.
+
+I quitted Dublin with a feeling akin to leaving my native land.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER III.
+
+_Departure from Ireland--London--Trip to Paris--Paris--The Peace
+Congress: first day--Church of the Madeleine--Column Vendome--the
+French._
+
+
+                    PARIS, _August 23_.
+
+After a pleasant sojourn of three weeks in Ireland, I took passage in
+one of the mail steamers for Liverpool, and arriving there was soon on
+the road to the metropolis. The passage from Dublin to Liverpool was an
+agreeable one. The rough sea that we passed through on going to Ireland
+had given way to a dead calm, and our noble little steamer, on quitting
+the Dublin wharf, seemed to understand that she was to have it all her
+own way. During the first part of the evening, the boat appeared to feel
+her importance, and, darting through the water with majestic strides,
+she left behind her a dark cloud of smoke suspended in the air like a
+banner; while, far astern in the wake of the vessel, could be seen the
+rippled waves sparkling in the rays of the moon, giving strength and
+beauty to the splendour of the evening.
+
+On reaching Liverpool, and partaking of a good breakfast, for which we
+paid double price, we proceeded to the railway station, and were soon
+going at a rate unknown to those accustomed to travel on one of our
+American railways. At a little past two o'clock in the afternoon, we saw
+in the distance the out-skirts of London. We could get but an indistinct
+view, which had the appearance of one architectural mass, extending all
+round to the horizon, and enveloped in a combination of fog and smoke;
+and towering above every other object to be seen, was the dome of St.
+Paul's Cathedral.
+
+A few moments more, and we were safely seated in a "Hansom's Patent,"
+and on our way to Hughes's--one of the politest men of the George Fox
+stamp we have ever met. Here we found forty or fifty persons, who, like
+ourselves, were bound for the Peace Congress. The Sturges, the Wighams,
+the Richardsons, the Allens, the Thomases, and a host of others not less
+distinguished as friends of peace, were of the company--many of whom I
+had heard of, but none of whom I had ever seen; yet I was not an entire
+stranger to many, especially to the abolitionists. In company with a
+friend, I sallied forth after tea to take a view of the city. The
+evening was fine--the dense fog and smoke having to some extent passed
+away, left the stars shining brightly, while the gas light from the
+street lamps and the brilliant shop windows gave it the appearance of
+day-light in a new form. "What street is this?" we asked. "Cheapside,"
+was the reply. The street was thronged, and every body seemed to be
+going at a rapid rate, as if there was something of importance at the
+end of the journey. Flying vehicles of every description passing each
+other with a dangerous rapidity, men with lovely women at their sides,
+children running about as if they had lost their parents--all gave a
+brilliancy to the scene scarcely to be excelled. If one wished to get
+jammed and pushed about, he need go no farther than Cheapside. But every
+thing of the kind is done with a degree of propriety in London, that
+would put the New Yorkers to blush. If you are run over in London, they
+"beg your pardon;" if they run over you in New York, you are "laughed
+at:" in London, if your hat is knocked off it is picked up and handed to
+you; if, in New York, you must pick it up yourself. There is a lack of
+good manners among Americans that is scarcely known or understood in
+Europe. Our stay in the great metropolis gave us but little opportunity
+of seeing much of the place; for in twenty-four hours after our arrival
+we joined the rest of the delegates, and started on our visit to our
+Gallic neighbours.
+
+We assembled at the London Bridge Railway Station on Tuesday morning the
+21st, a few minutes past nine, to the number of 600. The day was fine,
+and every eye seemed to glow with enthusiasm. Besides the delegates,
+there were probably not less than 600 more, who had come to see the
+company start. We took our seats and appeared to be waiting for nothing
+but the iron-horse to be fastened to the train, when all at once, we
+were informed that we must go to the booking-office and change our
+tickets. At this news every one appeared to be vexed. This caused great
+trouble; for on returning to the train many persons got into the wrong
+carriages; and several parties were separated from their friends, while
+not a few were calling out at the top of their voices, "Where is my
+wife? Where is my husband? Where is my luggage? Who's got my boy? Is
+this the right train?" "What is that lady going to do with all these
+children?" asked the guard. "Is she a delegate: are all the children
+delegates?" In the carriage where I had taken my seat was a
+good-looking lady who gave signs of being very much annoyed. "It is just
+so when I am going anywhere: I never saw the like in my life," said she.
+"I really wish I was at home again."
+
+An hour had now elapsed, and we were still at the station. However, we
+were soon on our way, and going at express speed. In passing through
+Kent we enjoyed the scenery exceedingly, as the weather was altogether
+in our favour; and the drapery which nature hung on the trees, in the
+part through which we passed, was in all its gaiety. On our arrival at
+Folkstone, we found three steamers in readiness to convey the party to
+Boulogne. As soon as the train stopped, a general rush was made for the
+steamers; and in a very short time the one in which I had embarked was
+passing out of the harbour. The boat appeared to be conscious that we
+were going on a holy mission, and seemed to be proud of her load. There
+is nothing in this wide world so like a thing of life as a steamer, from
+the breathing of her steam and smoke, the energy of her motion, and the
+beauty of her shape; while the ease with which she is managed by the
+command of a single voice, makes her appear as obedient as the horse is
+to the rein.
+
+When we were about half way between the two great European Powers, the
+officers began to gather the tickets. The first to whom he applied, and
+who handed out his "Excursion Ticket," was informed that we were all in
+the wrong boat. "Is this not one of the boats to take over the
+delegates?" asked a pretty little lady, with a whining voice. "No,
+Madam," said the captain. "You must look to the committee for your pay,"
+said one of the company to the captain. "I have nothing to do with
+committees," the captain replied. "Your fare, Gentlemen, if you please."
+
+Here the whole party were again thrown into confusion. "Do you hear
+that? We are in the wrong boat." "I knew it would be so," said the Rev.
+Dr. Ritchie, of Edinburgh. "It is indeed a pretty piece of work," said a
+plain-looking lady in a handsome bonnet. "When I go travelling again,"
+said an elderly looking gent with an eye-glass to his face, "I will take
+the phaeton and old Dobbin." Every one seemed to lay the blame on the
+committee, and not, too, without some just grounds. However, Mr. Sturge,
+one of the committee, being in the boat with us, an arrangement was
+entered into, by which we were not compelled to pay our fare the second
+time.
+
+As we neared the French coast, the first object that attracted our
+attention was the Napoleon Pillar, on the top of which is a statue of
+the Emperor in the Imperial robes. We landed, partook of refreshment
+that had been prepared for us, and again repaired to the railway
+station. The arrangements for leaving Boulogne were no better than those
+at London. But after the delay of another hour, we were again in motion.
+
+It was a beautiful country through which we passed from Boulogne to
+Amiens. Straggling cottages which bespeak neatness and comfort abound on
+every side. The eye wanders over the diversified views with unabated
+pleasure, and rests in calm repose upon its superlative beauty. Indeed,
+the eye cannot but be gratified at viewing the entire country from the
+coast to the metropolis. Sparkling hamlets spring up as the steam horse
+speeds his way, at almost every point--showing the progress of
+civilization, and the refinement of the nineteenth century.
+
+We arrived at Paris a few minutes past twelve o'clock at night, when,
+according to our tickets, we should have been there at nine. Elihu
+Burritt, who had been in Paris some days, and who had the arrangements
+there pretty much his own way, was at the station waiting the arrival of
+the train, and we had demonstrated to us, the best evidence that he
+understood his business. In no other place on the whole route had the
+affairs been so well managed; for we were seated in our respective
+carriages and our luggage placed on the top, and away we went to our
+hotels without the least difficulty or inconvenience. The champion of an
+"Ocean Penny Postage" received, as he deserved, thanks from the whole
+company for his admirable management.
+
+The silence of the night was only disturbed by the rolling of the wheels
+of the omnibus, as we passed through the dimly lighted streets. Where, a
+few months before was to be seen the flash from the cannon and the
+musket, and the hearing of the cries and groans behind the barricades,
+was now the stillness of death--nothing save here and there a _gens
+d'arme_ was to be seen going his rounds in silence.
+
+The omnibus set us down at the hotel Bedford, Rue de L'Arend, where,
+although near one o'clock, we found a good supper waiting for us; and,
+as I was not devoid of an appetite, I did my share towards putting it
+out of the way.
+
+The next morning I was up at an early hour, and out on the Boulevards to
+see what might be seen. As I was passing from the Bedford to the Place
+de La Concord, all at once, and as if by some magic power, I found
+myself in front of the most splendid edifice imaginable, situated at the
+end of the Rue Nationale. Seeing a number of persons entering the church
+at that early hour, and recognising among them my friend the President
+of the Oberlin (Ohio) Institute, and wishing not to stray too far from
+my hotel before breakfast, I followed the crowd and entered the
+building. The church itself consisted of a vast nave, interrupted by
+four pews on each side, fronted with lofty fluted Corinthian columns
+standing on pedestals, supporting colossal arches, bearing up cupolas,
+pierced with skylights and adorned with compartments gorgeously gilt;
+their corners supported with saints and apostles in _alto relievo_. The
+walls of the church were lined with rich marble. The different paintings
+and figures, gave the interior an imposing appearance. On inquiry, I
+found that I was in the Church of the Madeleine. It was near this spot
+that some of the most interesting scenes occurred during the Revolution
+of 1848, which dethroned Louis Philippe. Behind the Madeleine is a small
+but well supplied market; and on an esplanade east of the edifice, a
+flower market is held on Tuesdays and Fridays.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The first session of the Peace Congress is over.
+
+
+The Congress met this morning at 11 o'clock, in the Salle St. Cecile,
+Rue de la St. Lazare. The Parisians have no "Exeter Hall:" in fact,
+there is no private hall in the city of any size, save this, where such
+a meeting could be held. This hall has been fitted up for the occasion.
+The room is long, and at one end has a raised platform; and at the
+opposite end is a gallery, with seats raised one above another. On one
+side of the hall was a balcony with sofas, which were evidently the
+"reserved seats."
+
+The hall was filled at an early hour with the delegates, their friends,
+and a good sprinkling of the French. Occasionally, small groups of
+gentlemen would make their appearance on the platform, until it soon
+appeared that there was little room left for others; and yet the
+officers of the Convention had not come in. The different countries
+were, many of them, represented here. England, France, Belgium, Germany,
+Switzerland, Greece, Spain, and the United States, had each their
+delegates. The Assembly began to give signs of impatience, when very
+soon the train of officials made their appearance amid great applause.
+Victor Hugo led the way, followed by M. Duguerry, cure of the Madeleine,
+Elihu Burritt, and a host of others of less note. Victor Hugo took the
+chair as President of the Congress, supported by Vice-presidents from
+the several nations represented. Mr. Richard, the Secretary, read a dry
+report of the names of societies, committees, &c., which was deemed the
+opening of the Convention.
+
+The President then arose, and delivered one of the most impressive and
+eloquent appeals in favour of peace that could possibly be imagined. The
+effect produced upon the minds of all present was such as to make the
+author of "_Notre Dame de Paris_" a great favourite with the Congress.
+An English gentleman near me said to his friend, "I can't understand a
+word of what he says, but is it not good?" Victor Hugo concluded his
+speech amid the greatest enthusiasm on the part of the French, which was
+followed by hurrahs in the old English style. The Convention was
+successively addressed by the President of the Brussels Peace Society;
+President Mahan of the Oberlin (Ohio) Institute, U.S.; Henry Vincent;
+and Richard Cobden. The latter was not only the _lion_ of the English
+delegation, but the great man of the Convention. When Mr. Cobden speaks,
+there is no want of hearers. The great power of this gentleman lies in
+his facts and his earnestness, for he cannot be called an eloquent
+speaker. Mr. Cobden addressed the Congress first in French, then in
+English; and, with the single exception of Mr. Ewart, M.P., was the only
+one of the English delegation that could speak to the French in their
+own language.
+
+The Congress was brought to a close at five o'clock, when the numerous
+audience dispersed--the citizens to their homes, and the delegates to
+see the sights.
+
+I was not a little amused at an incident that occurred at the close of
+the first session. On the passage from America, there were in the same
+steamer with me, several Americans, and among these, three or four
+appeared to be much annoyed at the fact that I was a passenger, and
+enjoying the company of white persons; and although I was not openly
+insulted, I very often heard the remark, that "That nigger had better be
+on his master's farm," and "What could the American Peace Society be
+thinking about to send a black man as a delegate to Paris." Well, at the
+close of the first sitting of the Convention, and just as I was leaving
+Victor Hugo, to whom I had been introduced by an M.P., I observed near
+me a gentleman with his hat in hand, whom I recognized as one of the
+passengers who had crossed the Atlantic with me in the _Canada_, and who
+appeared to be the most horrified at having a negro for a fellow
+passenger. This gentleman, as I left M. Hugo, stepped up to me and said,
+"How do you do, Mr. Brown?" "You have the advantage of me," said I. "Oh,
+don't you know me; I was a fellow passenger with you from America; I
+wish you would give me an introduction to Victor Hugo and Mr. Cobden." I
+need not inform you that I declined introducing this pro-slavery
+American to these distinguished men. I only allude to this, to show what
+a change comes over the dreams of my white American brother, by crossing
+the ocean. The man who would not have been seen walking with me in the
+streets of New York, and who would not have shaken hands with me with a
+pair of tongs while on the passage from the United States, could come
+with hat in hand in Paris, and say, "I was your fellow-passenger." From
+the Salle de St. Cecile, I visited the Column Vendome, from the top of
+which I obtained a fine view of Paris and its environs. This is the
+Bunker Hill Monument of Paris. On the top of this pillar is a statue of
+the Emperor Napoleon, eleven feet high. The monument is built with
+stone, and the outside covered with a metallic composition, made of
+cannons, guns, spikes, and other warlike implements taken from the
+Russians and Austrians by Napoleon. Above 1200 cannons were melted down
+to help to create this monument of folly, to commemorate the success of
+the French arms in the German Campaign. The column is in imitation of
+the Trajan pillar at Rome, and is twelve feet in diameter at the base.
+The door at the bottom of the pillar, and where we entered, was
+decorated above with crowns of oak, surmounted by eagles, each weighing
+500 lbs. The bas-relief of the shaft pursues a spiral direction to the
+capitol, and displays, in a chronological order, the principal actions
+of the French army, from the departure of the troops from Boulogne to
+the battle of Austerlitz. The figures are near three feet high, and
+their number said to be two thousand. This sumptuous monument stands on
+a plinth of polished granite, surmounted by an iron railing; and, from
+its size and position, has an imposing appearance when seen from any
+part of the city.
+
+Everything here appears strange and peculiar--the people not less so
+than their speech. The horses, carriages, furniture, dress, and manners,
+are in keeping with their language. The appearance of the labourers in
+caps, resembling nightcaps, seemed particularly strange to me. The women
+without bonnets, and their caps turned the right side behind, had
+nothing of the look of our American women. The prettiest woman I ever
+saw was without a bonnet, walking on the Boulevards. While in Ireland,
+and during the few days I was in England, I was struck with the marked
+difference between the appearance of the women from those of my own
+country. The American women are too tall, too sallow, and too
+long-featured to be called pretty. This is most probably owing to the
+fact that in America the people come to maturity earlier than in most
+other countries.
+
+My first night in Paris was spent with interest. No place can present
+greater street attractions than the Boulevards of Paris. The countless
+number of cafes, with tables before the doors, and these surrounded by
+men with long moustaches, with ladies at their sides, whose very smiles
+give indication of happiness, together with the sound of music from the
+gardens in the rear, tell the stranger that he is in a different country
+from his own.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER IV.
+
+_Versailles--The Palace--Second Session of the Congress--Mr.
+Cobden--Henry Vincent--M. Girardin--Abbe Duguerry--Victor Hugo: his
+Speech._
+
+
+                    VERSAILLES, _August 24_.
+
+After the Convention had finished its sittings yesterday, I accompanied
+Mrs. M. C---- and sisters to Versailles, where they are residing during
+the summer. It was really pleasing to see among the hundreds of strange
+faces in the Convention, those distinguished friends of the slave from
+Boston.
+
+Mrs. C----'s residence is directly in front of the great palace where
+so many kings have made their homes, the prince of whom was Louis XIV.
+The palace is now unoccupied. No ruler has dared to take up his
+residence here since Louis XVI. and Marie Antoinette were driven from it
+by the mob from Paris on the 8th of October, 1789. The town looks like
+the wreck of what it once was. At the commencement of the first
+revolution, it contained one hundred thousand inhabitants; now it has
+only about thirty thousand. It seems to be going back to what it was in
+the time of Louis XIII., when in 1624 he built a small brick chateau,
+and from it arose the magnificent palace which now stands here, and
+which attracts strangers to it from all parts of the world.
+
+I arose this morning before the sun, and took a walk through the grounds
+of the Palace, and remained three hours among the fountains and statuary
+of this more than splendid place. But as I intend spending some days
+here, and shall have better opportunities of seeing and judging, I will
+defer my remarks upon Versailles for the present.
+
+Yesterday was a great day in the Congress. The session was opened by a
+speech from M. Coquerel, the Protestant clergyman in Paris. His speech
+was received with much applause, and seemed to create great sensation in
+the Congress, especially at the close of his remarks, when he was seized
+by the hand by the Abbe Duguerry, amid the most deafening and
+enthusiastic applause of the entire multitude. The meeting was then
+addressed in English by a short gentleman, of florid complexion. His
+words seemed to come without the least difficulty, and his jestures,
+though somewhat violent, were evidently studied; and the applause with
+which he was greeted by the English delegation, showed that he was a man
+of no little distinction among them. His speech was one continuous flow
+of rapid, fervid eloquence, that seemed to fire every heart; and
+although I disliked his style, I was prepossessed in his favour. This
+was Henry Vincent, and his speech was in favour of disarmament.
+
+Mr. Vincent was followed by M. Emile de Girardin, the editor of _La
+Presse_, in one of the most eloquent speeches that I ever heard; and his
+exclamation of "Soldiers of Peace," drew thunders of applause from his
+own countrymen. M. Girardin is not only the leader of the French press,
+but is a writer on politics of great distinction, and a leader of no
+inconsiderable party in the National Assembly; although still a young
+man, apparently not more than thirty-eight or forty years of age.
+
+After a speech from Mr. Ewart, M.P., in French, and another from Mr.
+Cobden in the same language, the Convention was brought to a close for
+the day. I spent the morning yesterday, in visiting some of the lions of
+the French capital, among which was the Louvre. The French Government
+having kindly ordered, that the members of the Peace Congress should be
+admitted free, and without ticket, to all the public works, I had
+nothing to do but present my card of membership, and was immediately
+admitted.
+
+The first room I entered, was nearly a quarter of a mile in length; is
+known as the "Long Gallery," and contains some of the finest paintings
+in the world. On entering this superb palace, my first impression was,
+that all Christendom had been robbed, that the Louvre might make a
+splendid appearance. This is the Italian department, and one would
+suppose by its appearance that but few paintings had been left in Italy.
+The entrance end of the Louvre was for a long time in an unfinished
+state, but was afterwards completed by that master workman, the Emperor
+Napoleon. It was long thought that the building would crumble into
+decay, but the genius of the great Corsican rescued it from ruin.
+
+During our walk through the Louvre, we saw some twenty or thirty artists
+copying paintings; some had their copies finished and were going out,
+others half done, while many had just commenced. I remained some minutes
+near a pretty French girl, who was copying a painting of a dog rescuing
+a child from a stream of water into which it had fallen.
+
+I walked down one side of the hall and up the other, and was about
+leaving, when I was informed that this was only one room, and that a
+half-dozen more were at my service; but a clock on a neighbouring church
+reminded me that I must quit the Louvre for the Salle de St. Cecile.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+This morning the Hall was filled at an early hour with rather a more
+fashionable looking audience than on any former occasion, and all
+appeared anxious for the Congress to commence its session, as it was
+understood to be the last day. After the reading of several letters from
+gentlemen, apologising for their not being able to attend, the speech of
+Elihu Burritt was read by a son of M. Coquerel. I felt somewhat
+astonished that my countryman, who was said to be master of fifty
+languages, had to get some one to read his speech in French.
+
+The Abbe Duguerry now came forward amid great cheering, and said that
+"the eminent journalist, Girardin, and the great English logician, Mr.
+Cobden, had made it unnecessary for any further advocacy in that
+assembly of the Peace cause--that if the principles laid down in the
+resolutions were carried out, the work would be done. He said that the
+question of general pacification was built on truth--truth which
+emanated from God--and it were as vain to undertake to prevent air from
+expanding as to check the progress of truth. It must and would
+prevail."
+
+A pale, thin-faced gentleman next ascended the platform (or tribune, as
+it was called) amid shouts of applause from the English, and began his
+speech in rather a low tone, when compared with the sharp voice of
+Vincent, or the thunder of the Abbe Duguerry. An audience is not apt to
+be pleased or even contented with an inferior speaker, when surrounded
+by eloquent men, and I looked every moment for manifestations of
+disapprobation, as I felt certain that the English delegation had made a
+mistake in applauding this gentleman who seemed to make such an
+unpromising beginning. But the speaker soon began to get warm on the
+subject, and even at times appeared as if he had spoken before. In a
+very short time, with the exception of his own voice, the stillness of
+death prevailed throughout the building. The speaker, in the delivery of
+one of the most logical speeches made in the Congress, and despite of
+his thin, sallow look, interested me much more than any whom I had
+before heard. Towards the close of his remarks, he was several times
+interrupted by manifestations of approbation; and finally concluded amid
+great cheering. I inquired the gentleman's name, and was informed that
+it was Edward Miall, editor of the _Nonconformist_.
+
+After speeches from several others, the great Peace Congress of 1849,
+which had brought men together from nearly all the governments of
+Europe, and many from America, was brought to a final close by a speech
+from the President, returning thanks for the honour that had been
+conferred upon him. He said, "My address shall be short, and yet I have
+to bid you adieu! How resolve to do so? Here, during three days, have
+questions of the deepest import been discussed, examined, probed to the
+bottom; and during these discussions, counsels have been given to
+governments which they will do well to profit by. If these days'
+sittings are attended with no other result, they will be the means of
+sowing in the minds of those present, gems of cordiality which must
+ripen into good fruit. England, France, Belgium, Europe, and America,
+would all be drawn closer by these sittings. Yet the moment to part has
+arrived, but I can feel that we are strongly united in heart. But before
+parting I may congratulate you and myself on the result of our
+proceedings. We have been all joined together without distinction of
+country; we have all been united in one common feeling during our three
+days' communion. The good work cannot go back, it must advance, it must
+be accomplished. The course of the future may be judged of by the sound
+of the footsteps of the past. In the course of that day's discussion, a
+reminiscence had been handed up to one of the speakers, that this was
+the anniversary of the dreadful massacre of St. Bartholomew: the rev.
+gentleman who was speaking turned away from the thought of that
+sanguinary scene with pious horror, natural to his sacred calling. But
+I, who may boast of firmer nerve, I take up the remembrance. Yes, it was
+on this day, two hundred and seventy-seven years ago, that Paris was
+roused from slumber by the sound of that bell which bore the name of
+_cloche d'argent_. Massacre was on foot, seeking with keen eye for its
+victim--man was busy in slaying man. That slaughter was called forth by
+mingled passions of the worst description. Hatred of all kinds was there
+urging on the slayer--hatred of a religious, a political, a personal
+character. And yet on the anniversary of that same day of horror, and in
+that very city whose blood was flowing like water, has God this day
+given a rendezvous to men of peace, whose wild tumult is transformed
+into order, and animosity into love. The stain of blood is blotted out,
+and in its place beams forth a ray of holy light. All distinctions are
+removed, and Papist and Huguenot meet together in friendly communion.
+(Loud cheers.) Who that thinks of these amazing changes can doubt of the
+progress that has been made? But whoever denies the force of progress
+must deny God, since progress is the boon of Providence, and emanated
+from the great Being above. I feel gratified for the change that has
+been effected, and, pointing solemnly to the past, I say let this day be
+ever held memorable--let the 24th of August, 1572, be remembered only
+for the purpose of being compared with the 24th of August, 1849; and
+when we think of the latter, and ponder over the high purpose to which
+it has been devoted--the advocacy of the principles of peace--let us not
+be so wanting in reliance on Providence as to doubt for one moment of
+the eventful success of our holy cause."
+
+The most enthusiastic cheers followed this interesting speech. A vote of
+thanks to the government, and three times three cheers, with Mr. Cobden
+as "fugleman," ended the great Peace Congress of 1849.
+
+Time for separating had arrived, yet all seemed unwilling to leave the
+place, where for three days men of all creeds and of no creed had met
+upon one common platform. In one sense the meeting was a glorious
+one--in another, it was mere child's play; for the Congress had been
+restricted to the discussion of certain topics. They were permitted to
+dwell on the blessings of peace, but were not allowed to say anything
+about the very subjects above all others that should have been brought
+before the Congress. A French army had invaded Rome and put down the
+friends of political and religious freedom, yet not a word was said in
+reference to it. The fact is, the Committee permitted the Congress to
+be _gagged_, before it had met. They put padlocks upon their own mouths,
+and handed the keys to the government. And this was sorely felt by many
+of the speakers. Richard Cobden, who had thundered his anathemas against
+the Corn Laws of his own country, and against wars in every clime, had
+to sit quiet in his fetters. Henry Vincent, who can make a louder speech
+in favour of peace, than almost any other man, and whose denunciations
+of "all war," have gained him no little celebrity with peace men, had to
+confine himself to the blessings of peace. Oh! how I wished for a
+Massachusetts atmosphere, a New England Convention platform, with
+Wendell Phillips as the speaker, before that assembled multitude from
+all parts of the world.
+
+But the Congress is over, and cannot now be made different; yet it is to
+be hoped that neither the London Peace Committee, nor any other men
+having the charge of getting up such another great meeting, will commit
+such an error again.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER V.
+
+_M. de Tocqueville's Grand Soiree--Madame de Tocqueville--Visit of the
+Peace Delegates to Versailles--The Breakfast--Speechmaking--The
+Trianons--Waterworks--St. Cloud--The Fete._
+
+
+                    VERSAILLES, _August 24_.
+
+The day after the close of the Congress, the delegates and their friends
+were invited to a soiree by M. de Tocqueville, Minister for Foreign
+Affairs, to take place on the next evening (Saturday); and, as my
+coloured face and curly hair did not prevent my getting an invitation, I
+was present with the rest of my peace brethren.
+
+Had I been in America, where colour is considered a crime, I would not
+have been seen at such a gathering, unless as a servant. In company with
+several delegates, we left the Bedford Hotel for the mansion of the
+Minister of Foreign Affairs; and, on arriving, we found a file of
+soldiers drawn up before the gate. This did not seem much like peace:
+however, it was merely done in honour of the company. We entered the
+building through massive doors and resigned ourselves into the hands of
+good-looking waiters in white wigs; and, after our names were duly
+announced, were passed from room to room till I was presented to Madame
+de Tocqueville, who was standing near the centre of the large
+drawing-room, with a bouquet in her hand. I was about passing on, when
+the gentleman who introduced me intimated that I was an "American
+slave." At the announcement of this fact the distinguished lady extended
+her hand and gave me a cordial welcome--at the same time saying, "I hope
+you feel yourself free in Paris." Having accepted an invitation to a
+seat by the lady's side, who seated herself on a sofa, I was soon what I
+most dislike, "the observed of all observers." I recognised among many
+of my own countrymen, who were gazing at me, the American Consul, Mr.
+Walsh. My position did not improve his looks. The company present on
+this occasion were variously estimated at from one thousand to fifteen
+hundred. Among these were the Ambassadors from the different countries
+represented at the French metropolis, and many of the _elite_ of Paris.
+One could not but be interested with the difference in dress, looks, and
+manners of this assemblage of strangers whose language was as different
+as their general appearance. Delight seemed to beam in every countenance
+as the living stream floated from one room to another. The house and
+gardens were illuminated in the most gorgeous manner. Red, yellow, blue,
+green, and many other coloured lamps, suspended from the branches of the
+trees in the gardens, gave life and animation to the whole scene out of
+doors. The soiree passed off satisfactorily to all parties; and by
+twelve o'clock I was again at my Hotel.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Through the politeness of the government the members of the Congress
+have not only had the pleasure of seeing all the public works free, and
+without special ticket, but the palaces of Versailles and St. Cloud,
+together with their splendid grounds, have been thrown open, and the
+water-works set to playing in both places. This mark of respect for the
+Peace movement is commendable in the French; and were I not such a
+strenuous friend of free speech, this act would cause me to overlook the
+padlocks that the government put upon our lips in the Congress.
+
+Two long trains left Paris at nine o'clock for Versailles; and at each
+of the stations the company were loudly cheered by the people who had
+assembled to see them pass. At Versailles, we found thousands at the
+station, who gave us a most enthusiastic welcome. We were blessed with a
+goodly number of the fair sex, who always give life and vigour to such
+scenes. The train had scarcely stopped, ere the great throng were
+wending their ways in different directions, some to the cafes to get
+what an early start prevented their getting before leaving Paris, and
+others to see the soldiers who were on review. But most bent their steps
+towards the great palace.
+
+At eleven o'clock we were summoned to the _dejeuner_, which had been
+prepared by the English delegates in honour of their American friends.
+About six hundred sat down at the tables. Breakfast being ended, Mr.
+Cobden was called to the chair, and several speeches were made. Many
+who had not an opportunity to speak at the Congress, thought this a
+good chance; and the written addresses which had been studied during the
+passage from America, with the hope that they would immortalize their
+authors before the great Congress, were produced at the breakfast table.
+But speech-making was not the order of the day. Too many thundering
+addresses had been delivered in the Salle de St. Cecile, to allow the
+company to sit and hear dryly written and worse delivered speeches in
+the Teniscourt.
+
+There was no limited time given to the speakers, yet no one had been on
+his feet five minutes, before the cry was heard from all parts of the
+house, "Time, time." One American was hissed down, another took his seat
+with a red face, and a third opened his bundle of paper, looked around
+at the audience, made a bow, and took his seat amid great applause. Yet
+some speeches were made, and to good effect, the best of which was by
+Elihu Burritt, who was followed by the Rev. James Freeman Clark. I
+regretted very much that the latter did not deliver his address before
+the Congress, for he is a man of no inconsiderable talent, and an
+acknowledged friend of the slave.
+
+The cry of "The water-works are playing," "The water is on," broke up
+the meeting, without even a vote of thanks to the Chairman; and the
+whole party were soon revelling among the fountains and statues of Louis
+XIV. Description would fail to give a just idea of the grandeur and
+beauty of this splendid place. I do not think that any thing can surpass
+the fountain of Neptune, which stands near the Grand Trianon. One may
+easily get lost in wandering through the grounds of Versailles, but he
+will always be in sight of some life-like statue. These monuments,
+erected to gratify the fancy of a licentious king, make their appearance
+at every turn. Two lions, the one overturning a wild boar, the other a
+wolf, both the production of Fillen, pointed out to us the fountain of
+Diana. But I will not attempt to describe to you any of the very
+beautiful sculptured gods and goddesses here.
+
+With a single friend I paid a visit to the two Trianons. The larger was,
+we were told, just as king Louis Philippe left it. One room was
+splendidly fitted up for the reception of Her Majesty Queen Victoria;
+who, it appeared, had promised a visit to the French Court; but the
+French Monarch ran away from his throne before the time arrived. The
+Grand Trianon is not larger than many noblemen's seats that may be seen
+in a day's ride through any part of the British empire. The building has
+only a ground floor, but its proportions are very elegant.
+
+We next paid our respects to the Little Trianon. This appears to be the
+most Republican of any of the French palaces. I inspected this little
+palace with much interest, not more for its beauty than because of its
+having been the favourite residence of that purest of Princesses, best
+of Queens, and most affectionate of mothers, Marie Antoinette. The
+grounds and building may be said to be only a palace in miniature, and
+this makes it still a more lovely spot. The building consists of a
+square pavilion two stories high, and separated entirely from the
+accessory buildings, which are on the left, and among them a pretty
+chapel. But a wish to be with the multitude, who were roving among the
+fountains, cut short my visit to the trianons.
+
+The day was very fine, and the whole party seemed to enjoy it. It was
+said that there were more than one hundred thousand persons at
+Versailles during the day. The company appeared to lose themselves with
+the pleasure of walking among the trees, flower beds, fountains, and
+statues. I met more than one wife seeking a lost husband, and _vice
+versa_. Many persons were separated from their friends and did not meet
+them again till at the hotels in Paris. In the train returning to Paris,
+an old gentleman who was seated near me said, "I would rest contented if
+I thought I should ever see my wife again!"
+
+At four o'clock we were _en route_ to St. Cloud, the much loved and
+favourite residence of the Emperor Napoleon. It seemed that all Paris
+had come out to St. Cloud to see how the English and Americans would
+enjoy the playing of the water-works. Many kings and rulers of the
+French have made St. Cloud their residence, but none have impressed
+their images so indelibly upon it as Napoleon. It was here he was first
+elevated to power, and here Josephine spent her most happy hours.
+
+The apartments where Napoleon was married to Marie Louise; the private
+rooms of Josephine and Marie Antoinette, were all in turn shown to us.
+While standing on the balcony looking at Paris one cannot wonder that
+the Emperor should have selected this place as his residence, for a more
+lovely spot cannot be found than St. Cloud.
+
+The palace is on the side of a hill, two leagues from Paris, and so
+situated that it looks down upon the French capital. Standing, as we
+did, viewing Paris from St. Cloud, and the setting sun reflecting upon
+the domes, spires, and towers of the city of fashion, made us feel that
+this was the place from which the monarch should watch his subjects.
+From the hour of arrival at St. Cloud till near eight o'clock, we were
+either inspecting the splendid palace or roaming the grounds and
+gardens, whose beautiful walks and sweet flowers made it appear a very
+Paradise on earth.
+
+At eight o'clock the water-works were put in motion, and the variagated
+lamps with their many devices, displaying flowers, stars, and wheels,
+all with a brilliancy that can scarcely be described, seemed to throw
+everything in the shade we had seen at Versailles. At nine o'clock the
+train was announced, and after a good deal of jamming and pushing about,
+we were again on the way to Paris.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER VI.
+
+_The Tuileries--Place de la Concorde--The Egyptian Obelisk--Palais
+Royal--Residence of Robespierre--A Visit to the Room in which Charlotte
+Corday killed Marat--Church de Notre Dame--Palais de Justice--Hotel des
+Invalids--National Assembly--The Elysee._
+
+
+                    PARIS, _August 28_.
+
+Yesterday morning I started at an early hour for the Palace of the
+Tuileries. A show of my card of membership of the Congress (which had
+carried me through so many of the public buildings) was enough to gain
+me immediate admission. The attack of the mob on the palace, on the 20th
+of June, 1792, the massacre of the Swiss guard on the 10th of August of
+the same year, the attack by the people in July 1830, together with the
+recent flight of king Louis Philippe and family, made me anxious to
+visit the old pile.
+
+We were taken from room to room, until the entire building had been
+inspected. In front of the Tuileries, are a most magnificent garden and
+grounds. These were all laid out by Louis XIV., and are left nearly as
+they were during that monarch's reign. Above fifty acres surrounded by
+an iron rail fence, fronts the Place de la Concorde, and affords a place
+of promenade for the Parisians. I walked the pleasing grounds, and saw
+hundreds of well dressed persons walking under the shade of the great
+chestnuts, or sitting on chairs which were kept to let at two sous a
+piece. Near by is the Place de Carrousel, noted for its historical
+remembrances. Many incidents connected with the several revolutions
+occurred here, and it is pointed out as the place where Napoleon
+reviewed that formidable army of his before its departure for Russia.
+
+From the Tuileries, I took a stroll through the Place de la Concorde,
+which has connected with it so many acts of cruelty, that it made me
+shudder as I passed over its grounds. As if to take from one's mind the
+old associations of this place, the French have erected on it, or rather
+given a place to, the celebrated obelisk of Luxor, which now is the
+chief attraction on the grounds. The obelisk was brought from Egypt at
+an enormous expense; for which purpose a ship was built, and several
+hundred men employed above three years in its removal. It is formed of
+the finest red syenite, and covered on each side with three lines of
+hieroglyphic inscriptions, commemorative of Sesostris--the middle lines
+being the most deeply cut and most carefully finished; and the
+characters altogether number more than 1600. The obelisk is of a single
+stone, is 72 feet in height, weighs 500,000 lbs., and stands on a block
+of granite that weighs 250,000 lbs. He who can read Latin will see that
+the monument tells its own story, but to me its characters were all
+blank.
+
+It would be tedious to follow the history of this old and venerated
+stone, which was taken from the quarry 1550 years before the birth of
+Christ; placed in Thebes; its removal; the journey to the Nile, and
+down the Nile; thence to Cherbourg, and lastly its arrival in Paris on
+the 23d of December, 1833--just one year before I escaped from slavery.
+The obelisk was raised on the spot where it now stands, on the 25th of
+October, 1836, in the presence of Louis Philippe and amid the greetings
+of 160,000 persons.
+
+Having missed my dinner, I crossed over to the Palais Royal, to a dining
+saloon, and can assure you that a better dinner may be had there for
+five francs, than can be got in New York for twice that sum, and
+especially if the person who wants the dinner is a coloured man. I found
+no prejudice against my complexion in the Palais Royal.
+
+Many of the rooms in this once abode of Royalty, are most splendidly
+furnished, and decorated with valuable pictures. The likenesses of
+Madame de Stael, J.J. Rousseau, Cromwell, and Francis I., are among
+them.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+After several unsuccessful attempts to-day, in company with R.D. Webb,
+Esq., to seek out the house where once resided the notorious
+Robespierre, I was fortunate enough to find it, but not until I had
+lost the company of my friend. The house is No. 396, Rue St. Honore,
+opposite the Church of the Assumption. It stands back, and is reached by
+entering a court. During the first revolution it was occupied by M.
+Duplay, with whom Robespierre lodged. The room used by the great man of
+the revolution, was pointed out to me. It is small, and the ceiling low,
+with two windows looking out upon the court. The pin upon which the blue
+coat once hung, is still in the wall. While standing there, I could
+almost imagine that I saw the great "Incorruptible," sitting at the
+small table composing those speeches which gave him so much power and
+influence in the Convention and the Clubs.
+
+Here, the disciple of Rousseau sat and planned how he should outdo his
+enemies and hold on to his friends. From this room he went forth,
+followed by his dog Brunt, to take his solitary walk in a favourite and
+neighbouring field, or to the fiery discussions of the National
+Convention. In the same street, is the house in which Madame Roland--one
+of Robespierre's victims--resided.
+
+A view of the residence of one of the master spirits of the French
+revolution inclined me to search out more, and therefore I proceeded to
+the old town, and after winding through several small streets--some of
+them so narrow as not to admit more than one cab at a time--I found
+myself in the Rue de L'Ecole de Medecine, and standing in front of house
+No. 20. This was the residence, during the early days of the revolution,
+of that bloodthirsty demon in human form, Marat.
+
+I said to a butcher, whose shop was underneath, that I wanted to see La
+Chambre de Marat. He called out to the woman of the house to know if I
+could be admitted, and the reply was, that the room was used as a
+sleeping apartment, and could not be seen.
+
+As this was private property, my blue card of membership to the Congress
+was not available. But after slipping a franc into the old lady's hand,
+I was informed that the room was now ready. We entered a court and
+ascended a flight of stairs, the entrance to which is on the right; then
+crossing to the left, we were shown into a moderate-sized room on the
+first floor, with two windows looking out upon a yard. Here it was where
+the "Friend of the People" (as he styled himself,) sat and wrote those
+articles that appeared daily in his journal, urging the people to "hang
+the rich upon lamp posts." The place where the bath stood, in which he
+was bathing at the time he was killed by Charlotte Corday, was pointed
+out to us; and even something representing an old stain of blood was
+shown as the place where he was laid when taken out of the bath. The
+window, behind whose curtains the heroine hid, after she had plunged the
+dagger into the heart of the man whom she thought was the cause of the
+shedding of so much blood by the guillotine, was pointed out with a
+seeming degree of pride by the old woman.
+
+With my Guide Book in hand, I again went forth to "hunt after new
+fancies."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+After walking over the ground where the guillotine once stood, cutting
+off its hundred and fifty heads per day, and then visiting the place
+where some of the chief movers in that sanguinary revolution once
+lived, I felt little disposed to sleep, when the time for it had
+arrived. However, I was out this morning at an early hour, and on the
+Champs Elysees; and again took a walk over the place where the
+guillotine stood, when its fatal blade was sending so many unprepared
+spirits into eternity. When standing here, you have the Palace of the
+Tuileries on one side, the arch on the other; on a third, the classic
+Madeleine; and on the fourth, the National Assembly. It caused my blood
+to chill, the idea of being on the identical spot where the heads of
+Louis XVI. and his Queen, after being cut off, were held up to satisfy
+the blood-thirsty curiosity of the two hundred thousand persons that
+were assembled on the Place de la Revolution. Here Royal blood flowed as
+it never did before or since. The heads of patricians and plebians, were
+thrown into the same basket, without any regard to birth or station.
+Here Robespierre and Danton had stood again and again, and looked their
+victims in the face as they ascended the scaffold; and here, these same
+men had to mount the very scaffold that they had erected for others. I
+wandered up the Seine, till I found myself looking at the statue of
+Henry the IV. over the principal entrance of the Hotel de Ville. When we
+take into account the connection of the Hotel de Ville with the
+different revolutions, we must come to the conclusion, that it is one of
+the most remarkable buildings in Paris. The room was pointed out where
+Robespierre held his counsels, and from the windows of which he could
+look out upon the Place de Greve, where the guillotine stood before its
+removal to the Place de la Concorde. The room is large, with gilded
+hangings, splendid old-fashioned chandeliers, and a chimney-piece with
+fine antiquated carvings, that give it a venerable appearance. Here
+Robespierre not only presided at the counsels that sent hundreds to the
+guillotine; but from this same spot, he, with his brother St. Just and
+others, were dragged before the Committee of Public Safety, and thence
+to the guillotine, and justice and revenge satisfied.
+
+The window from which Lafayette addressed the people in 1830, and
+presented to them Louis Philippe, as the king, was shown to us. Here the
+poet, statesman, philosopher and orator, Lamartine, stood in February
+1848, and, by the power of his eloquence, succeeded in keeping the
+people quiet. Here he forced the mob, braved the bayonets presented to
+his breast, and, by his good reasoning, induced them to retain the
+tri-coloured flag, instead of adopting the red flag, which he considered
+the emblem of blood.
+
+Lamartine is a great heroic genius, dear to liberty and to France; and
+successive generations, as they look back upon the revolution of 1848,
+will recall to memory the many dangers which nothing but his dauntless
+courage warded off. The difficulties which his wisdom surmounted, and
+the good service that he rendered to France, can never be adequately
+estimated or too highly appreciated. It was at the Hotel de Ville that
+the Republic of 1848 was proclaimed to the people.
+
+I next paid my respects to the Column of July that stands on the spot
+formerly occupied by the Bastile. It is 163 feet in height, and on the
+top is the Genius of Liberty, with a torch in his right hand, and in the
+left a broken chain. After a fatiguing walk up a winding stair, I
+obtained a splendid view of Paris from the top of the column.
+
+I thought I should not lose the opportunity of seeing the Church de
+Notre Dame while so near to it, and, therefore, made it my next rallying
+point. No edifice connected with religion has had more interesting
+incidents occurring in it than this old church. Here Pope Pius VII.
+placed the Imperial Crown on the head of the Corsican--or rather
+Napoleon took the Crown from his hands and placed it on his own head.
+Satan dragging the wicked to ----; the rider on the red horse at the
+opening of the second seal; the blessedness of the saints; and several
+other striking sculptured figures were among the many curiosities in
+this splendid place. A hasty view from the gallery concluded my visit to
+the Notre Dame.
+
+Leaving the old church I strayed off in a direction towards the Seine,
+and passed by an old looking building of stately appearance, and
+recognised, among a throng passing in and out, a number of the members
+of the Peace Congress. I joined a party entering, and was soon in the
+presence of men with gowns on, and men with long staffs in their
+hands--and on inquiry found that I was in the Palais de Justice;
+beneath which is the Conciergerie, a noted prison. Louis XVI. and Marie
+Antoinette were tried and condemned to death here.
+
+A bas-relief, by Cortat, representing Louis in conference with his
+Counsel, is here seen. But I had visited too many places of interest
+during the day to remain long in a building surrounded by officers of
+justice, and took a stroll upon the Boulevards.
+
+The Boulevards may be termed the Regent Street of Paris, or a New Yorker
+would call them Broadway. While passing a cafe, my German friend Faigo,
+whose company I had enjoyed during the passage from America, recognised
+me, and I sat down and took a cup of delicious coffee for the first time
+on the side walk, in sight of hundreds who were passing up and down the
+street every hour. From three till eleven o'clock, P.M., the Boulevards
+are lined with men and women sitting before the doors of the saloons
+drinking their coffee or wines, or both at the same time, as fancy may
+dictate. All Paris appeared to be on the Boulevards, and looking as if
+the great end of this life was enjoyment.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Anxious to see as much as possible of Paris in the limited time I had to
+stay in it, I hired a cab yesterday morning and commenced with the Hotel
+des Invalids, a magnificent building, within a few minutes' walk of the
+National Assembly. On each side of the entrance gate are figures
+representing nations conquered by Louis XIV., with colossal statues of
+Mars and Minerva. The dome on the edifice is the loftiest in Paris--the
+height from the ground being 323 feet.
+
+Immediately below the dome is the tomb of the man at whose word the
+world turned pale. A statue of the Emperor Napoleon stands in the second
+piazza, and is of the finest bronze.
+
+This building is the home of the pensioned soldiers of France. It was
+enough to make one sick at the idea of war, to look upon the mangled
+bodies of these old soldiers. Men with arms and no legs; others had legs
+but no arms; some with canes and crutches, and some wheeling themselves
+about in little hand carts. About three thousand of the decayed soldiers
+were lodged in the Hotel des Invalids, at the time of my visit. Passing
+the National Assembly on my return, I spent a moment or two in it. The
+interior of this building resembles an amphitheatre. It is constructed
+to accommodate 900 members, each having a separate desk. The seat upon
+which the Duchesse of Orleans, and her son, the Comte de Paris, sat,
+when they visited the National Assembly after the flight of Louis
+Philippe, was shown with considerable alacrity. As I left the building,
+I heard that the President of the Republic was on the point of leaving
+the Elysee for St. Cloud, and with the hope of seeing the "Prisoner of
+Ham," I directed my cabman to drive me to the Elysee.
+
+In a few moments we were between two files of soldiers, and entering the
+gates of the palace. I called out to the driver and told him to stop;
+but I was too late, for we were now in front of the massive doors of the
+palace, and a liveried servant opened the cab door, bowed, and asked if
+I had an engagement with the President. You may easily "guess" his
+surprise when I told him no. In my best French, I asked the cabman why
+he had come to the palace, and was answered, "You told me to." By this
+time a number had gathered round, all making inquiries as to what I
+wanted. I told the driver to retrace his steps, and, amid the shrugs of
+their shoulders, the nods of their heads, and the laughter of the
+soldiers, I left the Elysee without even a sight of the President's
+mustaches for my trouble. This was only one of the many mistakes I made
+while in Paris.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER VII.
+
+_The Chateau at Versailles--Private apartments of Marie Antoinette--The
+Secret Door--Paintings of Raphael and David--Arc de Triomphe--Beranger
+the Poet._
+
+
+                    VERSAILLES, _August 31_.
+
+Here I am, within ten leagues of Paris, spending the time pleasantly in
+viewing the palace and grounds of the great Chateau of Louis XIV.
+Fifty-seven years ago, a mob, composed of men, women, and boys, from
+Paris, stood in front of this palace and demanded that the king should
+go with them to the capital. I have walked over the same ground where
+the one hundred thousand stood on that interesting occasion. I have been
+upon the same balcony, and stood by the window from which Maria
+Antoinette looked out upon the mob that were seeking her life.
+
+Anxious to see as much of the palace as I could, and having an offer of
+the company of my young friend, Henry G. Chapman, to go through the
+palace with me, I set out early yesterday morning, and was soon in the
+halls that had often been trod by Royal feet. We passed through the
+private, as well as the public, apartments, through the secret door by
+which Marie Antoinette had escaped from the mob of 1792, and viewed the
+room in which her faithful guards were killed, while attempting to save
+their Royal mistress. I took my seat in one of the little parlour
+carriages that had been used in days of yore for the Royal children;
+while my friend, H.G. Chapman, drew me across the room. The superb
+apartments are not now in use. Silence is written upon these walls,
+although upon them are suspended the portraits of men of whom the world
+has heard.
+
+Paintings, representing Napoleon in nearly all his battles, are here
+seen; and wherever you see the Emperor, there you will also find Murat,
+with his white plume waving above. Callot's painting of the battle of
+Marengo, Hue's of the retaking of Genoa, and Bouchat's of the 18th
+Brumaire, are of the highest order; while David has transmitted his fame
+to posterity, by his splendid painting of the Coronation of Napoleon and
+Josephine in Notre Dame. When I looked upon the many beautiful paintings
+of the last named artist, that adorn the halls of Versailles, I did not
+wonder that his fame should have saved his life, when once condemned and
+sentenced to death during the reign of terror. The guillotine was robbed
+of its intended victim, but the world gained a great painter. As Boswell
+transmitted his own name to posterity with his life of Johnson, so has
+David left his, with the magnificent paintings that are now suspended
+upon the walls of the palaces of the Louvre, the Tuileries, St. Cloud,
+Versailles, and even the little Elysee.
+
+After strolling from room to room, we found ourselves in the Salle du
+Sacre, Diane, Salon de Mars, de Mercure, and d'Apollon. I gazed with my
+eyes turned to the ceiling till I was dizzy. The Salon de la Guerre is
+covered with the most beautiful representations that the mind of man
+could conceive, or the hand accomplish. Louis XIV. is here in all his
+glory. No Marie Antoinette will ever do the honours in these halls
+again.
+
+After spending a whole day in the Palace and several mornings in the
+Gardens, I finally bid adieu to the bronze statue of Louis XIV. that
+stands in front of the Palace, and left Versailles, probably for ever.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+                    PARIS, _September 2_.
+
+I am now on the point of quitting the French Metropolis. I have occupied
+the last two days in visiting places of note in the city. I could not
+resist the inclination to pay a second visit to the Louvre. Another hour
+was spent in strolling through the Italian Hall and viewing the
+master-workmanship of Raphael, the prince of painters. Time flies, even
+in such a place as the Louvre with all its attractions; and before I had
+seen half that I wished, a ponderous clock near by reminded me of an
+engagement, and I reluctantly tore myself from the splendours of the
+place.
+
+During the rest of the day I visited the Jardin des Plantes, and spent
+an hour and a half pleasantly in walking among plants, flowers, and in
+fact everything that could be found in any garden in France. From this
+place we passed by the column of the Bastile, and paid our respects to
+the Bourse, or Exchange, one of the most superb buildings in the city.
+The ground floor and sides of the Bourse, are of fine marble, and the
+names of the chief cities in the world are inscribed on the medallions,
+which are under the upper cornice. The interior of the edifice has a
+most splendid appearance as you enter it.
+
+The Cemetery of Pere la Chaise was too much talked of by many of our
+party at the Hotel for me to pass it by, so I took it after the Bourse.
+Here lie many of the great marshals of France--the resting place of each
+marked by the monument that stands over it, except one, which is marked
+only by a weeping willow and a plain stone at its head. This is the
+grave of Marshal Ney. I should not have known that it was his, but some
+unknown hand had written with black paint, "Bravest of the Brave," on
+the unlettered stone that stands at the head of the man who followed
+Napoleon through nearly all his battles, and who was shot after the
+occupation of Paris by the allied army. Peace to his ashes. During my
+ramble through this noted place, I saw several who were hanging fresh
+wreaths of everlasting flowers on the tombs of the departed.
+
+A ride in an omnibus down the Boulevards, and away up the Champs
+Elysees, brought me to the Arc de Triomphe; and after ascending a flight
+of one hundred and sixty-one steps, I was overlooking the city of
+statuary. This stupendous monument was commenced by Napoleon in 1806;
+and in 1811 it had only reached the cornice of the base, where it
+stopped, and it was left for Louis Philippe to finish. The first stone
+of this monument was laid on the 15th of August, 1806, the birth-day of
+the man whose battles it was intended to commemorate. A model of the
+arch was erected for Napoleon to pass through as he was entering the
+city with Maria Louisa, after their marriage. The inscriptions on the
+monument are many, and the different scenes here represented are all of
+the most exquisite workmanship. The genius of War is summoning the
+obedient nations to battle. Victory is here crowning Napoleon after his
+great success in 1810. Fame stands here recording the exploits of the
+warrior, while conquered cities lie beneath the whole. But it would take
+more time than I have at command to give anything like a description of
+this magnificent piece of architecture.
+
+That which seems to take most with Peace Friends, is the portion
+representing an old man taming a bull for agricultural labour; while a
+young warrior is sheathing his sword, a mother and children sitting at
+his feet, and Minerva crowned with laurels, stands shedding her
+protecting influence over them. The erection of this regal monument is
+wonderful, to hand down to posterity the triumphs of the man whom we
+first hear of as a student in the military school at Brienne, whom in
+1784 we see in the Ecole Militaire, founded by Louis XV. in 1751; whom
+again we find at No. 5, Quai de Court, near Rue de Mail; and in 1794 as
+a lodger at No. 19, Rue de la Michandere. From this he goes to the Hotel
+Mirabeau, Rue du Dauphin, where he resided when he defeated his enemies
+on the 13th Vendimaire. The Hotel de la Colonade, Rue Neuve des
+Capuchins is his next residence, and where he was married to Josephine.
+From this hotel he removed to his wife's dwelling in the Rue
+Chanteriene, No. 52. In 1796 the young general started for Italy, where
+his conquests paved the way for the ever memorable 18th Brumaire, that
+made him dictator of France. Napoleon was too great now to be satisfied
+with private dwellings, and we next trace him to the Elysee, St. Cloud,
+Versailles, the Tuileries, Fontainbleau, and finally, came his decline,
+which I need not relate to you.
+
+After visiting the Gobelins, passing through its many rooms, seeing here
+and there a half-finished piece of tapestry; and meeting a number of the
+members of the late Peace Congress, who, like myself had remained behind
+to see more of the beauties of the French capital than could be
+overtaken during the Convention week. I accepted an invitation to dine
+with a German gentleman at the Palais Royal, and was soon revelling amid
+the luxuries of the table. I was glad that I had gone to the Palais
+Royal, for here I had the honour of an introduction to M. Beranger, the
+poet; and although I had to converse with him through an interpreter, I
+enjoyed his company very much. "The people's poet," as he is called, is
+apparently about seventy years of age, bald on the top of the head, and
+rather corpulent, but of active look, and in the enjoyment of good
+health. Few writers in France have done better service to the cause of
+political and religious freedom, than Pierre Jean de Beranger. He is the
+dauntless friend and advocate of the down-trodden poor and oppressed,
+and has often incurred the displeasure of the Government by the arrows
+that he has thrown into their camp. He felt what he wrote; it came
+straight from his heart, and went directly to the hearts of the people.
+He expressed himself strongly opposed to slavery, and said, "I don't
+see how the Americans can reconcile slavery with their professed love of
+freedom." Dinner out of the way, a walk through the different
+apartments, and a stroll over the court, and I bade adieu to the Palais
+Royal, satisfied that I should partake of many worse dinners than I had
+helped to devour that day.
+
+Few nations are more courteous than the French. Here the stranger, let
+him come from what country he may, and be ever so unacquainted with the
+people and language, he is sure of a civil reply to any question that he
+may ask. With the exception of the egregious blunder I have mentioned of
+the cabman driving me to the Elysee, I was not laughed at once while in
+France.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER VIII.
+
+_Departure from Paris--Boulogne--Folkstone--London--Geo. Thompson, Esq.,
+M.P.--Hartwell House--Dr. Lee--Cottage of the Peasant--Windsor
+Castle--Residence of Wm. Penn--England's First Welcome--Heath Lodge--The
+Bank of England._
+
+
+                    LONDON, _Sept. 8th_.
+
+The sun had just appeared from behind a cloud and was setting, and its
+reflection upon the domes and spires of the great buildings in Paris
+made everything appear lovely and sublime, as the train, with almost
+lightning speed, was bringing me from the French metropolis. I gazed
+with eager eyes to catch a farewell glance of the tops of the regal
+palaces through which I had passed, during a stay of fifteen days in the
+French capital.
+
+A pleasant ride of four hours brought us to Boulogne, where we rested
+for the night. The next morning I was up at an early hour, and out
+viewing the town. Boulogne could present but little attraction, after a
+fortnight spent in seeing the lions of Paris. A return to the hotel, and
+breakfast over, we stepped on board the steamer, and were soon crossing
+the channel. Two hours more, and I was safely seated in a railway
+carriage, _en route_ to the English metropolis. We reached London at
+mid-day, where I was soon comfortably lodged at 22, Cecil Street,
+Strand. As the London lodging-houses seldom furnish dinners, I lost no
+time in seeking out a dining-saloon, which I had no difficulty in
+finding in the Strand. It being the first house of the kind I had
+entered in London, I was not a little annoyed at the politeness of the
+waiter. The first salutation I had, after seating myself in one of the
+stalls, was, "Ox tail, Sir; gravy soup; carrot soup, Sir; roast beef;
+roast pork; boiled beef; roast lamb; boiled leg of mutton, Sir, with
+caper sauce; jugged hare, Sir; boiled knuckle of veal and bacon; roast
+turkey and oyster sauce; sucking pig, Sir; curried chicken; harrico
+mutton, Sir." These, and many other dishes which I have forgotten, were
+called over with a rapidity that would have done credit to one of our
+Yankee pedlars, in crying his wares in a New England village. I was so
+completely taken by surprise, that I asked for a "bill of fare," and
+told him to leave me. No city in the world furnishes a cheaper, better,
+and quicker meal for the weary traveller, than a London eating-house.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+After spending a day in looking about through this great thoroughfare,
+the Strand, I sallied forth with letters of introduction, with which I
+had been provided by my friends before leaving America; and following
+the direction of one, I was soon at No. 6, A, Waterloo Place. A moment
+more, and I was in the presence of one of whom I had heard much, and
+whose name is as familiar to the friends of the slave in the United
+States, as household words. Although I had never seen him before, yet I
+felt a feeling akin to love for the man who had proclaimed to the
+oppressors of my race in America, the doctrine of _immediate
+emancipation_ for the slaves of the great Republic. On reaching the
+door, I sent in my letter; and it being fresh from the hands of William
+Lloyd Garrison, the champion of freedom in the New World, was calculated
+to insure me a warm reception at the hands of the distinguished M.P. for
+the Tower Hamlets. Mr. Thompson did not wait for the servant to show me
+in; but met me at the door himself, and gave me a hearty shake of the
+hand, at the same time saying, "Welcome to England. How did you leave
+Garrison." I need not add, that Mr. T. gave me the best advice, as to my
+course in Great Britain; and how I could best serve the cause of my
+enslaved countrymen. I never enjoyed three hours more agreeably than
+those I spent with Mr. T. on the occasion of my first visit. George
+Thompson's love of freedom, his labours in behalf of the American slave,
+the negroes of the West Indies, and the wronged millions of India, are
+too well known to the people of both hemispheres, to need a word of
+comment from me. With the single exception of the illustrious Garrison,
+no individual is more loved and honoured by the coloured people of
+America, and their friends than Mr. Thompson.
+
+A few days after my arrival in London, I received an invitation from
+John Lee, Esq., LL.D., whom I had met at the Peace Congress in Paris, to
+pay him a visit at his seat, near Aylesbury; and as the time was "fixed"
+by the Dr., I took the train on the appointed day, on my way to Hartwell
+House.
+
+I had heard much of the aristocracy of England, and must confess that I
+was not a little prejudiced against them. On a bright sunshine day,
+between the hours of twelve and two, I found myself seated in a
+carriage, my back turned upon Aylesbury, the vehicle whirling rapidly
+over the smooth macadamised road, and I on my first visit to an English
+gentleman. Twenty minutes' ride, and a turn to the right, and we were
+amid the fine old trees of Hartwell Park; one having suspended from its
+branches, the national banners of several different countries; among
+them, the "Stars and Stripes. I felt glad that my own country's flag had
+a place there, although Campbell's lines"--
+
+     "United States, your banner wears,
+      Two emblems,--one of fame;
+      Alas, the other that it bears,
+      Reminds us of your shame.
+      The white man's liberty in types,
+      Stands blazoned by your stars;
+      But what's the meaning of your stripes,
+      They mean your Negro-scars"--
+
+
+were at the time continually running through my mind. Arrived at the
+door, and we received what every one does who visits Dr. Lee--a hearty
+welcome. I was immediately shown into a room with a lofty ceiling, hung
+round with fine specimens of the Italian masters, and told that this was
+my apartment. Hartwell House stands in an extensive park, shaded with
+trees, that made me think of the oaks and elms in an American forest,
+and many of whose limbs had been trimmed and nursed with the best of
+care. This was for seven years the residence of John Hampden the
+patriot, and more recently that of Louis XVIII., during his exile in
+this country. The house is built on a very extensive scale, and is
+ornamented in the interior with carvings in wood of many of the kings
+and princes of bygone centuries. A room some 60 feet by 25 contains a
+variety of articles that the Dr. has collected together--the whole
+forming a museum that would be considered a sight in the Western States
+of America.
+
+The morning after my arrival at Hartwell I was up at an early hour--in
+fact, before any of the servants--wandering about through the vast
+halls, and trying to find my way out, in which I eventually succeeded,
+but not, however, without aid. It had rained the previous night, and the
+sun was peeping through a misty cloud as I strolled through the park,
+listening to the sweet voices of the birds that were fluttering in the
+tops of the trees, and trimming their wings for a morning flight. The
+silence of the night had not yet been broken by the voice of man; and I
+wandered about the vast park unannoyed, except by the dew from the grass
+that wet my slippers. Not far from the house I came abruptly upon a
+beautiful little pond of water, where the gold fish were flouncing
+about, and the gentle ripples glittering in the sunshine looked like so
+many silver minnows playing on the surface.
+
+While strolling about with pleasure, and only regretting that my dear
+daughters were not with me to enjoy the morning's walk, I saw the
+gardener on his way to the garden. I followed him, and was soon feasting
+my eyes upon the richest specimens of garden scenery. There were the
+peaches hanging upon the trees that were fastened to the wall;
+vegetables, fruit, and flowers were there in all their bloom and beauty;
+and even the variegated geranium of a warmer clime, was there in its
+hothouse home, and seemed to have forgotten that it was in a different
+country from its own. Dr. Lee shows great taste in the management of his
+garden. I have seldom seen a more splendid variety of fruits and flowers
+in the southern States of America, than I saw at Hartwell House.
+
+I should, however, state that I was not the only guest at Hartwell
+during my stay. Dr. Lee had invited several others of the American
+delegation to the Peace Congress, and two or three of the French
+delegates who were on a visit to England, were enjoying the Doctor's
+hospitality. Dr. Lee is a staunch friend of Temperance, as well as of
+the cause of universal freedom. Every year he treats his tenantry to a
+dinner, and I need not add that these are always conducted on the
+principle of total abstinence.
+
+During the second day we visited several of the cottages of the work
+people, and in these I took no little interest. The people of the United
+States know nothing of the real condition of the labouring classes of
+England. The peasants of Great Britain are always spoken of as belonging
+to the soil. I was taught in America that the English labourer was no
+better off than the slave upon a Carolina rice-field. I had seen the
+slaves in Missouri huddled together, three, four, and even five families
+in a single room not more than 15 by 25 feet square, and I expected to
+see the same in England. But in this I was disappointed. After visiting
+a new house that the Doctor was building, he took us into one of the
+cottages that stood near the road, and gave us an opportunity, of
+seeing, for the first time, an English peasant's cot. We entered a low
+whitewashed room, with a stone floor that showed an admirable degree of
+cleanness. Before us was a row of shelves filled with earthen dishes and
+pewter spoons, glittering as if they had just come from under the hand
+of a woman of taste. A Cobden loaf of bread, that had just been left by
+the baker's boy, lay upon an oaken table which had been much worn away
+with the scrubbing brush; while just above lay the old family bible that
+had been handed down from father to son, until its possession was
+considered of almost as great value as its contents. A half-open door,
+leading into another room, showed us a clean bed; the whole presenting
+as fine a picture of neatness, order, and comfort, as the most
+fastidious taste could wish to see. No occupant was present, and
+therefore I inspected everything with a greater degree of freedom. In
+front of the cottage was a small grass plot, with here and there a bed
+of flowers, cheated out of its share of sunshine by the tall holly that
+had been planted near it. As I looked upon the home of the labourer, my
+thoughts were with my enslaved countrymen. What a difference, thought I,
+there is between the tillers of the soil in England and America. There
+could not be a more complete refutation of the assertion that the
+English labourer is no better off than the American slave, than the
+scenes that were then before me. I called the attention of one of my
+American friends to a beautiful rose near the door of the cot, and said
+to him, "The law that will protect that flower will also guard and
+protect the hand that planted it." He knew that I had drank deep of the
+cup of slavery, was aware of what I meant, and merely nodded his head in
+reply. I never experienced hospitality more genuine, and yet more
+unpretending, than was meted out to me while at Hartwell. And the
+favourable impression made on my own mind, of the distinguished
+proprietor of Hartwell Park, was nearly as indelible as my humble name
+that the Doctor had engraven in a brick, in the vault beneath the
+Observatory in Hartwell House.
+
+On my return to London I accepted an invitation to join a party on a
+visit to Windsor Castle; and taking the train at the Waterloo Bridge
+Station, we were soon passing through a pleasant part of the country.
+Arrived at the castle, we committed ourselves into the hands of the
+servants, and were introduced into Her Majesty's State apartments,
+Audience Chamber, Vandyck Room, Waterloo Chambers, St. George's Hall,
+Gold Pantry, and many others whose names I have forgotten. In wandering
+about the different apartments I lost my company, and in trying to find
+them, passed through a room in which hung a magnificent portrait of
+Charles I., by Vandyck. The hum and noise of my companions had ceased,
+and I had the scene and silence to myself. I looked in vain for the
+king's evil genius (Cromwell), but he was not in the same room. The
+pencil of Sir Peter Lely has left a splendid full-length likeness of
+James II. George IV. is suspended from a peg in the wall, looking as if
+it was fresh from the hands of Sir Thomas Lawrence, its admirable
+painter. I was now in St. George's Hall, and I gazed upward to view the
+beautiful figures on the ceiling, until my neck was nearly out of joint.
+Leaving this room, I inspected with interest the ancient _keep_ of the
+castle. In past centuries this part of the palace was used as a prison.
+Here James the First of Scotland was detained a prisoner for eighteen
+years. I viewed the window through which the young prince had often
+looked to catch a glimpse of the young and beautiful Lady Jane,
+daughter of the Earl of Somerset, with whom he was enamoured.
+
+From the top of the Round Tower I had a fine view of the surrounding
+country. Stoke Park, once the residence of that great friend of humanity
+and civilization, William Penn, was among the scenes that I viewed with
+pleasure from Windsor Castle. Four years ago, when in the city of
+Philadelphia, and hunting up the places associated with the name of this
+distinguished man, and more recently when walking over the farm once
+occupied by him on the banks of the Delaware, examining the old malt
+house which is now left standing, because of the veneration with which
+the name of the man who built it is held, I had no idea that I should
+ever see the dwelling which he had occupied in the Old World. Stoke Park
+is about four miles from Windsor, and is now owned by the Right Hon.
+Henry Labouchere.
+
+The castle, standing as it does on an eminence, and surrounded by a
+beautiful valley covered with splendid villas, has the appearance of
+Gulliver looking down upon the Lilliputians. It rears its massive
+towers and irregular walls over and above every other object; it stands
+like a mountain in the desert. How full this old palace is of material
+for thought! How one could ramble here alone, or with one or two
+congenial companions, and enjoy a recapitulation of its history! But an
+engagement to be at Croydon in the evening cut short my stay at Windsor,
+and compelled me to return to town in advance of my party.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Having met with John Morland, Esq., of Heath Lodge, at Paris, he gave me
+an invitation to visit Croydon, and deliver a lecture on American
+Slavery; and last evening, at eight o'clock, I found myself in a fine
+old building in the town, and facing the first English audience that I
+had seen in the sea-girt isle. It was my first welcome in England. The
+assembly was an enthusiastic one, and made still more so by the
+appearance of George Thompson, Esq., M.P., upon the platform. It is not
+my intention to give accounts of my lectures or meetings in these pages.
+I therefore merely say, that I left Croydon with a good impression of
+the English, and Heath Lodge with a feeling that its occupant was one
+of the most benevolent of men.
+
+The same party with whom I visited Windsor being supplied with a card of
+admission to the Bank of England, I accepted an invitation to be one of
+the company. We entered the vast building at a little past twelve
+o'clock to-day. The sun threw into the large halls a brilliancy that
+seemed to light up the countenances of the almost countless number of
+clerks, who were at their desks, or serving persons at the counters. As
+nearly all my countrymen who visit London pay their respects to this
+noted institution, I shall sum up my visit to it, by saying that it
+surpassed my highest idea of a bank. But a stroll through this monster
+building of gold and silver brought to my mind an incident that occurred
+to me a year after my escape from slavery.
+
+In the autumn of 1835, having been cheated out of the previous summer's
+earnings, by the captain of the steamer in which I had been employed
+running away with the money, I was, like the rest of the men, left
+without any means of support during the winter, and therefore had to
+seek employment in the neighbouring towns. I went to the town of
+Monroe, in the state of Michigan, and while going through the principal
+streets looking for work, I passed the door of the only barber in the
+town, whose shop appeared to be filled with persons waiting to be
+shaved. As there was but one man at work, and as I had, while employed
+in the steamer, occasionally shaved a gentleman who could not perform
+that office himself, it occurred to me that I might get employment here
+as a journeyman barber. I therefore made immediate application for work,
+but the barber told me he did not need a hand. But I was not to be put
+off so easily, and after making several offers to work cheap, I frankly
+told him, that if he would not employ me I would get a room near to him,
+and set up an opposition establishment. This threat, however, made no
+impression on the barber; and as I was leaving, one of the men who were
+waiting to be shaved said, "If you want a room in which to commence
+business, I have one on the opposite side of the street." This man
+followed me out; we went over, and I looked at the room. He strongly
+urged me to set up, at the same time promising to give me his
+influence. I took the room, purchased an old table, two chairs, got a
+pole with a red stripe painted around it, and the next day opened, with
+a sign over the door, "Fashionable Hair-dresser from New York, Emperor
+of the West." I need not add that my enterprise was very annoying to the
+"shop over the way"--especially my sign, which happened to be the most
+expensive part of the concern. Of course, I had to tell all who came in
+that my neighbour on the opposite side did not keep clean towels, that
+his razors were dull, and, above all, he had never been to New York to
+see the fashions. Neither had I. In a few weeks I had the entire
+business of the town, to the great discomfiture of the other barber.
+
+At this time, money matters in the Western States were in a sad
+condition. Any person who could raise a small amount of money was
+permitted to establish a bank, and allowed to issue notes for four times
+the sum raised. This being the case, many persons borrowed money merely
+long enough to exhibit to the bank inspectors, and the borrowed money
+was returned, and the bank left without a dollar in its vaults, if,
+indeed, it had a vault about its premises. The result was, that banks
+were started all over the Western States, and the country flooded with
+worthless paper. These were known as the "Wild Cat Banks." Silver coin
+being very scarce, and the banks not being allowed to issue notes for a
+smaller amount than one dollar, several persons put out notes from 6 to
+75 cents in value; these were called "Shinplasters." The Shinplaster was
+in the shape of a promissory note, made payable on demand. I have often
+seen persons with large rolls of these bills, the whole not amounting to
+more than five dollars. Some weeks after I had commenced business on my
+"own hook," I was one evening very much crowded with customers; and
+while they were talking over the events of the day, one of them said to
+me, "Emperor, you seem to be doing a thriving business. You should do as
+other business men, issue your Shinplasters." This, of course, as it was
+intended, created a laugh; but with me it was no laughing matter, for
+from that moment I began to think seriously of becoming a banker. I
+accordingly went a few days after to a printer, and he, wishing to get
+the job of printing, urged me to put out my notes, and showed me some
+specimens of engravings that he had just received from Detroit. My head
+being already filled with the idea of a bank, I needed but little
+persuasion to set the thing finally afloat. Before I left the printer
+the notes were partly in type, and I studying how I should keep the
+public from counterfeiting them. The next day my Shinplasters were
+handed to me, the whole amount being twenty dollars, and after being
+duly signed were ready for circulation. At first my notes did not take
+well; they were too new, and viewed with a suspicious eye. But through
+the assistance of my customers, and a good deal of exertion on my own
+part, my bills were soon in circulation; and nearly all the money
+received in return for my notes was spent in fitting up and decorating
+my shop.
+
+Few bankers get through this world without their difficulties, and I was
+not to be an exception. A short time after my money had been out, a
+party of young men, either wishing to pull down my vanity, or to try
+the soundness of my bank, determined to give it "a run." After
+collecting together a number of my bills, they came one at a time to
+demand other money for them, and I, not being aware of what was going
+on, was taken by surprise. One day as I was sitting at my table,
+strapping some new razors I had just got with the avails of my
+"Shinplasters," one of the men entered and said, "Emperor, you will
+oblige me if you will give me some other money for these notes of
+yours." I immediately cashed the notes with the most worthless of the
+Wild Cat money that I had on hand, but which was a lawful tender. The
+young man had scarcely left when a second appeared with a similar
+amount, and demanded payment. These were cashed, and soon a third came
+with his roll of notes. I paid these with an air of triumph, although I
+had but half a dollar left. I began now to think seriously what I should
+do, or how to act, provided another demand should be made. While I was
+thus engaged in thought, I saw the fourth man crossing the street, with
+a handful of notes, evidently my "Shinplasters." I instantaneously shut
+the door, and looking out of the window, said, "I have closed business
+for the day: come to-morrow and I will see you." In looking across the
+street, I saw my rival standing in his shop-door, grinning and clapping
+his hands at my apparent downfall. I was completely "done _Brown_" for
+the day. However, I was not to be "used up" in this way; so I escaped by
+the back door, and went in search of my friend who had first suggested
+to me the idea of issuing notes. I found him, told him of the difficulty
+I was in, and wished him to point out a way by which I might extricate
+myself. He laughed heartily, and then said, "You must act as all bankers
+do in this part of the country." I inquired how they did, and he said,
+"When your notes are brought to you, you must redeem them, and then send
+them out and get other money for them; and, with the latter, you can
+keep cashing your own Shinplasters." This was indeed a new job to me. I
+immediately commenced putting in circulation the notes which I had just
+redeemed, and my efforts were crowned with so much success, that before
+I slept that night my "Shinplasters" were again in circulation, and my
+bank once more on a sound basis.
+
+As I saw the clerks shovelling out the yellow coin upon the counters of
+the Bank of England, and men coming in and going out with weighty bags
+of the precious metal in their hands, or on their shoulders, I could not
+but think of the great contrast between the monster Institution, within
+whose walls I was then standing, and the Wild Cat Banks of America!
+
+
+
+
+LETTER IX.
+
+_The British Museum--A Portrait--Night Reading--A Dark Day--A Fugitive
+Slave on the Streets of London,--A Friend in the time of need._
+
+
+                    LONDON, _Sept. 24_.
+
+I have devoted the past ten days to sight-seeing in the Metropolis--the
+first two of which were spent in the British Museum. After procuring a
+guide-book at the door as I entered, I seated myself on the first seat
+that caught my eye, arranged as well as I could in my mind the different
+rooms, and then commenced in good earnest. The first part I visited was
+the Gallery of Antiquities, through to the north gallery, and thence
+to the Lycian Room. This place is filled with tombs, bas-reliefs,
+statues, and other productions of the same art. Venus, seated, and
+smelling a lotus flower which she held in her hand, and attended by
+three graces, put a stop to the rapid strides that I was making through
+this part of the hall. This is really one of the most precious
+productions of the art that I have ever seen. Many of the figures in
+this room are very much mutilated, yet one can linger here for hours
+with interest. A good number of the statues are of uncertain date; they
+are of great value as works of art, and more so as a means of
+enlightening much that has been obscure with respect to Lycia, an
+ancient and celebrated country of Asia Minor.
+
+In passing through the eastern Zoological Gallery, I was surrounded on
+every side by an army of portraits suspended upon the walls; and among
+these was the Protector. The people of one century kicks his bones
+through the streets of London, another puts his portrait in the British
+Museum, and a future generation may possibly give him a place in
+Westminster Abbey. Such is the uncertainty of the human character.
+Yesterday, a common soldier--to-day, the ruler of an empire--to-morrow,
+suspended upon the gallows. In an adjoining room I saw a portrait of
+Baxter, which gives one a pretty good idea of the great Nonconformist.
+In the same room hung a splendid modern portrait, without any intimation
+in the guide-book of who it represented, or when it was painted. It was
+so much like one whom I had seen, and on whom my affections were placed
+in my younger days, that I obtained a seat from an adjoining room and
+rested myself before it. After sitting half an hour or more, I wandered
+to another part of the building, but only to return again to my "first
+love," where I remained till the throng had disappeared one after
+another, and the officer reminding me that it was time to close.
+
+It was eight o'clock before I reached my lodgings. Although fatigued by
+the day's exertions, I again resumed the reading of Roscoe's "Leo X.,"
+and had nearly finished seventy-three pages, when the clock on St.
+Martin's Church apprised me that it was two. He who escapes from slavery
+at the age of twenty years, without any education, as did the writer of
+this letter, must read when others are asleep, if he would catch up with
+the rest of the world. "To be wise," says Pope, "is but to know how
+little can be known." The true searcher after truth and knowledge is
+always like a child; although gaining strength from year to year, he
+still "learns to labour and to wait." The field of labour is ever
+expanding before him, reminding him that he has yet more to learn;
+teaching him that he is nothing more than a child in knowledge, and
+inviting him onward with a thousand varied charms. The son may take
+possession of the father's goods at his death, but he cannot inherit
+with the property the father's cultivated mind. He may put on the
+father's old coat, but that is all: the immortal mind of the first
+wearer has gone to the tomb.
+
+Property may be bequeathed, but knowledge cannot. Then let him who
+would be useful in his day and generation be up and doing. Like the
+Chinese student who learned perseverance from the woman whom he saw
+trying to rub a crow-bar into a needle, so should we take the experience
+of the past to lighten our feet through the paths of the future.
+
+The next morning at ten, I was again at the door of the great building;
+was soon within its walls seeing what time would not allow of the
+previous day. I spent some hours in looking through glass cases, viewing
+specimens of minerals, such as can scarcely be found in any place out of
+the British Museum. During this day I did not fail to visit the great
+Library. It is a spacious room, surrounded with large glass cases filled
+with volumes, whose very look tells you that they are of age. Around,
+under the cornice, were arranged a number of old black-looking
+portraits, in all probability the authors of some of the works in the
+glass cases beneath. About the room were placed long tables, with stands
+for reading and writing, and around these were a number of men busily
+engaged in looking over some chosen author. Old men with grey hairs,
+young men with mustaches--some in cloth, others in fustian, indicating
+that men of different rank can meet here. Not a single word was spoken
+during my stay, all appearing to enjoy the silence that reigned
+throughout the great room. This is indeed a retreat from the world. No
+one inquires who the man is who is at his side, and each pursues in
+silence his own researches. The racing of pens over the sheets of paper
+was all that disturbed the stillness of the occasion.
+
+From the Library I strolled to other rooms, and feasted my eyes on what
+I had never before seen. He who goes over this immense building, cannot
+do so without a feeling of admiration for the men whose energy has
+brought together this vast and wonderful collection of things, the like
+of which cannot be found in any other museum in the world. The
+reflection of the setting sun against a mirror in one of the rooms, told
+me that night was approaching, and I had but a moment in which to take
+another look at the portrait that I had seen the previous day, and then
+bade adieu to the Museum.
+
+Having published the narrative of my life and escape from slavery, and
+put it into the booksellers' hands--and seeing a prospect of a fair
+sale, I ventured to take from my purse the last sovereign to make up a
+small sum to remit to the United States, for the support of my daughter,
+who is at school there. Before doing this, however, I had made
+arrangements to attend a public meeting in the city of Worcester, at
+which the mayor was to preside. Being informed by the friends of the
+slave there, that I would, in all probability, sell a number of copies
+of my book, and being told that Worcester was only ten miles from
+London, I felt safe in parting with all but a few shillings, feeling
+sure that my purse would soon be again replenished. But you may guess my
+surprise when I learned that Worcester was above a hundred miles from
+London, and that I had not retained money enough to defray my expenses
+to the place. In my haste and wish to make up the ten pounds to send to
+my children, I had forgotten that the payment for my lodgings would be
+demanded before I should leave town. Saturday morning came; I paid my
+lodging bill, and had three shillings and fourpence left; and out of
+this sum I was to get three dinners, as I was only served with breakfast
+and tea at my lodgings. Nowhere in the British empire do the people
+witness as dark days as in London. It was on Monday morning, in the fore
+part of October, as the clock on St. Martin's Church was striking ten,
+that I left my lodgings, and turned into the Strand. The street lamps
+were yet burning, and the shops were all lighted as if day had not made
+its appearance. This great thoroughfare, as usual at this time of the
+day, was thronged with business men going their way, and women
+sauntering about for pleasure or for the want of something better to do.
+I passed down the Strand to Charing Cross, and looked in vain to see the
+majestic statue of Nelson upon the top of the great shaft. The clock on
+St. Martin's Church struck eleven, but my sight could not penetrate
+through the dark veil that hung between its face and me. In fact, day
+had been completely turned into night; and the brilliant lights from the
+shop windows almost persuaded me that another day had not appeared.
+Turning, I retraced my steps, and was soon passing through the massive
+gates of Temple Bar, wending my way to the city, when a beggar boy at my
+heels accosted me for a half-penny to buy bread. I had scarcely served
+the boy, when I observed near by, and standing close to a lamp post, a
+coloured man, and from his general appearance I was satisfied that he
+was an American. He eyed me attentively as I passed him, and seemed
+anxious to speak. When I had got some distance from him I looked back,
+and his eyes were still upon me. No longer able to resist the temptation
+to speak with him, I returned, and commencing conversation with him,
+learned a little of his history, which was as follows. He had, he said,
+escaped from slavery in Maryland, and reached New York; but not feeling
+himself secure there, he had, through the kindness of the captain of an
+English ship, made his way to Liverpool; and not being able to get
+employment there, he had come up to London. Here he had met with no
+better success; and having been employed in the growing of tobacco, and
+being unaccustomed to any other work, he could not get to labour in
+England. I told him he had better try to get to the West Indies; but he
+informed me that he had not a single penny, and that he had nothing to
+eat that day. By this man's story, I was moved to tears; and going to a
+neighbouring shop, I took from my purse my last shilling, changed it,
+and gave this poor brother fugitive one-half. The poor man burst into
+tears as I placed the sixpence in his hand, and said--"You are the first
+friend I have met in London." I bade him farewell, and left him with a
+feeling of regret that I could not place him beyond the reach of want. I
+went on my way to the city, and while going through Cheapside, a streak
+of light appeared in the east that reminded me that it was not night. In
+vain I wandered from street to street, with the hope that I might meet
+some one who would lend me money enough to get to Worcester. Hungry and
+fatigued I was returning to my lodgings, when the great clock of St
+Paul's Church, under whose shadow I was then passing, struck four. A
+stroll through Fleet Street and the Strand, and I was again pacing my
+room. On my return, I found a letter from Worcester had arrived in my
+absence, informing me that a party of gentlemen would meet me the next
+day on my reaching that place; and saying, "Bring plenty of books, as
+you will doubtless sell a large number." The last sixpence had been
+spent for postage stamps, in order to send off some letters to other
+places, and I could not even stamp a letter in answer to the one last
+from Worcester. The only vestige of money about me was a smooth farthing
+that a little girl had given to me at the meeting at Croydon, saying,
+"This is for the slaves." I was three thousand miles from home, with but
+a single farthing in my pocket! Where on earth is a man without money
+more destitute? The cold hills of the Arctic regions have not a more
+inhospitable appearance than London to the stranger with an empty
+pocket. But whilst I felt depressed at being in such a sad condition, I
+was conscious that I had done right in remitting the last ten pounds to
+America. It was for the support of those whom God had committed to my
+care, and whom I love as I can no others. I had no friend in London to
+whom I could apply for temporary aid. My friend, Mr. Thompson, was out
+of town, and I did not know his address. The dark day was rapidly
+passing away--the clock in the hall had struck six. I had given up all
+hopes of reaching Worcester the next day, and had just rung the bell for
+the servant to bring me some tea, when a gentle tap at the door was
+heard--the servant entered, and informed me that a gentleman below was
+wishing to see me. I bade her fetch a light and ask him up. The stranger
+was my young friend Frederick Stevenson, son of the excellent minister
+of the Borough Road Chapel. I had lectured in this chapel a few days
+previous; and this young gentleman, with more than ordinary zeal and
+enthusiasm for the cause of bleeding humanity, and respect for me, had
+gone amongst his father's congregation and sold a number of copies of my
+book, and had come to bring me the money. I wiped the silent tear from
+my eyes as the young man placed the thirteen half-crowns in my hand. I
+did not let him know under what obligation I was to him for this
+disinterested act of kindness. He does not know to this day what aid he
+has rendered to a stranger in a strange land, and I feel that I am but
+discharging in a trifling degree, my debt of gratitude to this young
+gentleman, in acknowledging my obligation to him. As the man who called
+for bread and cheese, when feeling in his pocket for the last threepence
+to pay for it, found a sovereign that he was not aware he possessed,
+countermanded the order for the lunch, and bade them bring him the best
+dinner they could get; so I told the servant when she brought the tea,
+that I had changed my mind, and should go out to dine. With the means in
+my pocket of reaching Worcester the next day, I sat down to dinner at
+the Adelphi with a good cut of roast beef before me, and felt myself
+once more at home. Thus ended a dark day in London.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER X.
+
+_The Whittington Club--Louis Blanc--Street Amusements--Tower of
+London--Westminster Abbey--National Gallery--Dante--Sir Joshua
+Reynolds._
+
+
+                    LONDON, _October 10_.
+
+For some days past, Sol has not shown his face, clouds have obscured the
+sky, and the rain has fallen in torrents, which has contributed much to
+the general gloom. However, I have spent the time in as agreeable a
+manner as I well could. Yesterday I fulfilled an engagement to dine with
+a gentleman at the Whittington Club. One who is unacquainted with the
+Club system as carried on in London, can scarcely imagine the
+conveniences they present. Every member appears to be at home, and all
+seem to own a share in the Club. There is a free-and-easy way with those
+who frequent Clubs, and a licence given there that is unknown in the
+drawing-room of the private mansion. I met the gentleman at the Club, at
+the appointed hour, and after his writing my name in the visitors'
+book, we proceeded to the dining-room, where we partook of a good
+dinner.
+
+We had been in the room but a short time, when a small man, dressed in
+black, with his coat buttoned up to the chin, entered the saloon, and
+took a seat at the table hard by. My friend in a low whisper informed me
+that this person was one of the French refugees. He was apparently not
+more than thirty years of age, and exceedingly good looking--his person
+being slight, his feet and hands very small and well shaped, especially
+his hands, which were covered with kid gloves, so tightly drawn on, that
+the points of the finger nails were visible through them. His face was
+mild and almost womanly in its beauty, his eyes soft and full, his brow
+open and ample, his features well defined, and approaching to the ideal
+Greek in contour; the lines about his mouth were exquisitely sweet, and
+yet resolute in expression; his hair was short--his having no mustaches
+gave him nothing of the look of a Frenchman; and I was not a little
+surprised when informed that the person before me was Louis Blanc. I
+could scarcely be persuaded to believe that one so small, so child-like
+in stature, had taken a prominent part in the Revolution of 1848. He
+held in his hand a copy of _La Presse_, and as soon as he was seated,
+opened it and began to devour its contents. The gentleman with whom I
+was dining was not acquainted with him, but at the close of our dinner
+he procured me an introduction through another gentleman.
+
+As we were returning to our lodgings, we saw in Exeter Street, Strand,
+one of those exhibitions that can be seen in almost any of the streets
+in the suburbs of the Metropolis, but which is something of a novelty to
+those from the other side of the Atlantic. This was an exhibition of
+"Punch and Judy." Everything was in full operation when we reached the
+spot. A puppet appeared eight or ten inches from the waist upwards, with
+an enormous face, huge nose, mouth widely grinning, projecting chin,
+cheeks covered with grog blossoms, a large protuberance on his back,
+another on his chest; yet with these deformities he appeared uncommonly
+happy. This was Mr. Punch. He held in his right hand a tremendous
+bludgeon, with which he amused himself by rapping on the head every one
+who came within his reach. This exhibition seems very absurd, yet not
+less than one hundred were present--children, boys, old men, and even
+gentlemen and ladies, were standing by, and occasionally greeting the
+performer with the smile of approbation. Mr. Punch, however, was not to
+have it all his own way, for another and better sort of Punch-like
+exhibition appeared a few yards off, that took away Mr. Punch's
+audience, to the great dissatisfaction of that gentleman. This was an
+exhibition called the Fantoccini, and far superior to any of the street
+performances which I have yet seen. The curtain rose and displayed a
+beautiful theatre in miniature, and most gorgeously painted. The organ
+which accompanied it struck up a hornpipe, and a sailor, dressed in his
+blue jacket, made his appearance and commenced keeping time with the
+utmost correctness. This figure was not so long as Mr. Punch, but much
+better looking. At the close of the hornpipe the little sailor made a
+bow, and tripped off, apparently conscious of having deserved the
+undivided applause of the bystanders. The curtain dropped; but in two
+or three minutes it was again up, and a rope was discovered, extended on
+two cross pieces, for dancing upon. The tune was changed to an air, in
+which the time was marked, a graceful figure appeared, jumped upon the
+rope with its balance pole, and displayed all the manoeuvres of an
+expert performer on the tight rope. Many who would turn away in disgust
+from Mr. Punch, will stand for hours and look at the performances of the
+Fantoccini. If people, like the Vicar of Wakefield, will sometimes
+"allow themselves to be happy," they can hardly fail to have a hearty
+laugh at the drolleries of the Fantoccini. There may be degrees of
+absurdity in the manner of wasting our time, but there is an evident
+affectation in decrying these humble and innocent exhibitions, by those
+who will sit till two or three in the morning to witness a pantomime at
+a theatre-royal.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+An autumn sun shone brightly through a remarkably transparent atmosphere
+this morning, which was a most striking contrast to the weather we have
+had during the past three days; and I again set out to see some of the
+lions of the city, commencing with the Tower of London. Every American,
+on returning home from a visit to the old world, speaks with pride of
+the places he saw while in Europe; and of the many resorts of interest
+he has read of, few have made a more lasting impression upon his memory
+than the Tower of London. The stories of the imprisoning of kings, and
+queens, the murdering of princes, the torturing of men and women,
+without regard to birth, education, or station, and of the burning and
+rebuilding of the old pile, have all sunk deep into his heart. A walk of
+twenty minutes, after being set down at the Bank by an omnibus, brought
+me to the gate of the Tower. A party of friends who were to meet me
+there had not arrived, so I had an opportunity of inspecting the grounds
+and taking a good view of the external appearance of the old and
+celebrated building. The Tower is surrounded by a high wall, and around
+this a deep ditch partly filled with stagnated water. The wall incloses
+twelve acres of ground on which stand the several towers, occupying,
+with their walks and avenues, the whole space. The most ancient part of
+the building is called the "White Tower," so as to distinguish it from
+the parts more recently built. Its walls are seventeen feet in
+thickness, and ninety-two in height, exclusive of the turrets, of which
+there are four. My company arrived, and we entered the tower through
+four massive gates, the innermost one being pointed out as the "Water,
+or Traitors' Gate"--so called from the fact that it opened to the river,
+and through it the criminals were usually brought to the prison within.
+But this passage is now closed up. We visited the various apartments in
+the old building. The room in the Bloody Tower, where the infant princes
+were put to death by the command of their uncle, Richard III.; also, the
+recess behind the gate where the bones of the young princes were
+concealed, were shown to us. The warden of the prison who showed us
+through, seemed to have little or no veneration for Henry VIII.; for he
+often cracked a joke, or told a story at the expense of the murderer of
+Anne Boleyn. The old man wiped the tear from his eye, as he pointed out
+the grave of Lady Jane Grey. This was doubtless one of the best as well
+as most innocent of those who lost their lives in the Tower; young,
+virtuous, and handsome, she became a victim to the ambition of her own
+and her husband's relations. I tried to count the names on the wall in
+"Beauchamp's Tower," but they were too numerous. Anne Boleyn was
+imprisoned here. The room in the "Brick Tower," where Lady Jane Grey was
+imprisoned, was pointed out as a place of interest. We were next shown
+into the "White Tower." We passed through a long room filled with many
+things having a warlike appearance; and among them a number of
+equestrian figures, as large as life, and clothed in armour and
+trappings of the various reigns from Edward I. to James II., or from
+1272 to 1685. Elizabeth, or the "Maiden Queen," as the warden called
+her, was the most imposing of the group; she was on a cream coloured
+charger. We left the Maiden Queen to examine the cloak upon which
+General Wolf died, at the storming of Quebec. In this room Sir Walter
+Raleigh was imprisoned, and here was written his "History of the
+World." In his own hand, upon the wall, is written, "Be thou faithful
+unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life." His Bible is still
+shown, with these memorable lines written in it by himself a short time
+before his death:--
+
+   "Even such is Time that takes on trust,
+    Our youth, our joy, our all we have,
+    And pays us but with age and dust;
+    Who in the dark and silent grave,
+    When we have wandered all our ways,
+    Shuts up the story of our days."
+
+
+Spears, battle-axes, pikes, helmets, targets, bows and arrows, and many
+instruments of torture, whose names I did not learn, grace the walls of
+this room. The block on which the Earl of Essex and Anne Boleyn were
+beheaded, was shown among other objects of interest. A view of the
+"Queen's Jewels" closed our visit to the Tower. The Gold Staff of St.
+Edward, and the Baptismal Font used at the Royal christenings, made of
+solid silver, and more than four feet high, were among the jewels here
+exhibited. The Sword of Justice was there, as if to watch the rest of
+the valuables. However, this was not the sword that Peter used. Our
+acquaintance with De Foe, Sir Walter Raleigh, Chaucer, and James
+Montgomery, through their writings, and the knowledge that they had been
+incarcerated within the walls of the bastile that we were just leaving,
+caused us to look back again and again upon its dark grey turrets.
+
+I closed the day with a look at the interior of St. Paul's Cathedral. A
+service was just over, and we met a crowd coming out as we entered the
+great building. "Service is over, and two pence for all that wants to
+stay," was the first sound that caught our ears. In the Burlesque of
+"Esmeralda," a man is met in the belfry of the Notre Dame at Paris, and
+being asked for money by one of the vergers says:--
+
+   "I paid three pence at the door,
+    And since I came in a great deal more:
+    Upon my honour you have emptied my purse,
+    St. Paul's Cathedral could not do worse."
+
+
+I felt inclined to join in this sentiment before I left the church. A
+fine statue of "Surly Sam" Johnson was one of the first things that
+caught our eyes on looking around. A statue of Sir Edward Packenham,
+who fell at the Battle of New Orleans, was on the opposite side of the
+great hall. As we had walked over the ground where this General fell, we
+viewed his statue with more than ordinary interest. We were taken from
+one scene of interest to another, until we found ourselves in the
+"Whispering Gallery." From the dome we had a splendid view of the
+Metropolis of the world. A scaffold was erected up here to enable an
+artist to take sketches from which a panorama of London was painted. The
+artist was three years at work. The painting is now exhibited at the
+Colosseum; but the brain of the artist was turned, and he died insane!
+Indeed, one can scarcely conceive how it could be otherwise. You in
+America have no idea of the immensity of this building. Pile together
+half-a-dozen of the largest churches in New York or Boston, and you will
+have but a faint representation of St. Paul's Cathedral.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I have just returned from a stroll of two hours through Westminster
+Abbey. We entered the building at a door near Poets' Corner, and,
+naturally enough, looked around for the monuments of the men whose
+imaginative powers have contributed so much to instruct and amuse
+mankind. I was not a little disappointed in the few I saw. In almost any
+church-yard you may see monuments and tombs far superior to anything in
+the Poets' Corner. A few only have monuments. Shakspere, who wrote of
+man to man, and for man to the end of time, is honoured with one.
+Addison's monument is also there; but the greater number have nothing
+more erected to their memories than busts or medallions. Poets' Corner
+is not splendid in appearance, yet I observed visiters lingering about
+it, as if they were tied to the spot by love and veneration for some
+departed friend. All seemed to regard it as classic ground. No sound
+louder than a whisper was heard during the whole time, except the verger
+treading over the marble floor with a light step. There is great
+pleasure in sauntering about the tombs of those with whom we are
+familiar through their writings; and we tear ourselves from their ashes,
+as we would from those of a bosom friend. The genius of these men
+spreads itself over the whole panorama of Nature, giving us one vast and
+varied picture, the colour of which will endure to the end of time. None
+can portray like the poet the passions of the human soul. The statue of
+Addison, clad in his dressing-gown, is not far from that of Shakspere.
+He looks as if he had just left the study, after finishing some chosen
+paper for the _Spectator_. This memento of a great man, was the work of
+the British public. Such a mark of national respect was but justice to
+one who has contributed more to purify and raise the standard of English
+literature, than any man of his day. We next visited the other end of
+the same transept, near the northern door. Here lie Mansfield, Chatham,
+Fox, the second William Pitt, Grattan, Wilberforce, and a few other
+statesmen. But, above all, is the stately monument to the Earl of
+Chatham. In no other place so small, do so many great men lie together.
+To these men, whose graves strangers from all parts of the world wish to
+view, the British public are in a great measure indebted for England's
+fame. The high pre-eminence which England has so long enjoyed and
+maintained in the scale of empire, has constantly been the boast and
+pride of the English people. The warm panegyrics that have been lavished
+on her constitution and laws--the songs chaunted to celebrate her
+glory--the lustre of her arms, as the glowing theme of her warriors--the
+thunder of her artillery in proclaiming her moral prowess, her flag
+being unfurled to every breeze and ocean, rolling to her shores the
+tribute of a thousand realms--show England to be the greatest nation in
+the world, and speak volumes for the great departed, as well as for
+those of the living present. One requires no company, no amusements, no
+books in such a place as this. Time and death have placed within those
+walls sufficient to occupy the mind, if one should stay here a week.
+
+On my return, I spent an hour very pleasantly in the National Academy,
+in the same building as the National Gallery. Many of the paintings here
+are of a fine order. Oliver Cromwell looking upon the headless corpse of
+King Charles I., appeared to draw the greatest number of spectators. A
+scene from "As You Like it," was one of the best executed pieces we saw.
+This was "Rosalind, Celia, and Orlando." The artist did himself and the
+subject great credit. Kemble, in Hamlet, with that ever memorable skull
+in his hand, was one of the pieces which we viewed with no little
+interest. It is strange that Hamlet is always represented as a thin,
+lean man, when the Hamlet of Shakspere was a fat, John Bull-kind of a
+man. But the best piece in the Gallery was "Dante meditating the episode
+of Francesca da Rimini and Paolo Malatesta, S'Inferno, Canto V." Our
+first interest for the great Italian poet was created by reading Lord
+Byron's poem, "The Lament of Dante." From that hour we felt like
+examining everything connected with the great Italian poet. The history
+of poets, as well as painters, is written in their works. The best
+written life of Goldsmith is to be found in his poem of "The Traveller,"
+and his novel of "The Vicar of Wakefield." Boswell could not have
+written a better life of himself than he has done in giving the
+Biography of Dr. Johnson. It seems clear that no one can be a great poet
+without having been sometime during life a lover, and having lost the
+object of his affection in some mysterious way. Burns had his Highland
+Mary, Byron his Mary, and Dante was not without his Beatrice. Whether
+there ever lived such a person as Beatrice seems to be a question upon
+which neither of his biographers have thrown much light. However, a
+Beatrice existed in the poet's mind, if not on earth. His attachment to
+Beatrice Portinari, and the linking of her name with the immortality of
+his great poem, left an indelible impression upon his future character.
+The marriage of the object of his affections to another, and her
+subsequent death, and the poet's exile from his beloved Florence,
+together with his death amongst strangers--all give an interest to the
+poet's writings, which could not be heightened by romance itself. When
+exiled and in poverty, Dante found a friend in the father of Francesca.
+And here, under the roof of his protector, he wrote his great poem. The
+time the painter has chosen is evening. Day and night meet in mid-air:
+one star is alone visible. Sailing in vacancy are the shadows of the
+lovers. The countenance of Francesca is expressive of hopeless agony.
+The delineations are sublime, the conception is of the highest order,
+and the execution admirable. Dante is seated in a marble vestibule, in a
+meditating attitude, the face partly concealed by the right hand upon
+which it is resting. On the whole, it is an excellently painted piece,
+and causes one to go back with a fresh relish to the Italian's
+celebrated poem. In coming out, we stopped a short while in the upper
+room of the Gallery, and spent a few minutes over a painting
+representing Mrs. Siddons in one of Shakspere's characters. This is by
+Sir Joshua Reynolds, and is only one of the many pieces that we have
+seen of this great artist. His genius was vast, and powerful in its
+grasp. His fancy fertile, and his inventive faculty inexhaustible in its
+resources. He displayed the very highest powers of genius by the
+thorough originality of his conceptions, and by the entirely new path
+that he struck out in art. Well may Englishmen be proud of his name. And
+as time shall step between his day and those that follow after him, the
+more will his works be appreciated. We have since visited his grave,
+and stood over his monument in St. Paul's.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XI.
+
+_York Minster--The Great Organ--Newcastle-on-Tyne--The Labouring
+Classes--The American Slave--Sheffield--James Montgomery._
+
+
+                    _January, 1850_.
+
+Some days since, I left the Metropolis to fulfil a few engagements to
+visit provincial towns; and after a ride of nearly eight hours, we were
+in sight of the ancient city of York. It was night, the moon was in her
+zenith, and there seemed nothing between her and the earth but
+glittering gold. The moon, the stars, and the innumerable gas-lights,
+gave the city a panoramic appearance. Like a mountain starting out of a
+plain, there stood the Cathedral in all its glory, looking down upon the
+surrounding buildings, with all the appearance of a Gulliver standing
+over the Lilliputians. Night gave us no opportunity to view the
+Minster. However, we were up the next morning before the sun, and
+walking round the Cathedral with a degree of curiosity seldom excited
+within us. It is thought that a building of the same dimensions would
+take fifty years to complete it at the present time, even with all the
+improvements of the nineteenth century, and would cost no less than the
+enormous sum of two millions of pounds sterling. From what I had heard
+of this famous Cathedral, my expectations were raised to the highest
+point; but it surpassed all the idea that I had formed of it. On
+entering the building, we lost all thought of the external appearance by
+the matchless beauty of the interior. The echo produced by the tread of
+our feet upon the floor as we entered, resounding through the aisles,
+seemed to say "Put off your shoes, for the place whereon you tread is
+holy ground." We stood with hat in hand, and gazed with wonder and
+astonishment down the incomparable vista of more than five hundred feet.
+The organ, which stands near the centre of the building, is said to be
+one of the finest in the world. A wall, in front of which is a screen
+of the most gorgeous and florid architecture and executed in solid
+stone, separates the nave from the service choir. The beautiful
+workmanship of this makes it appear so perfect, as almost to produce the
+belief that it is tracery work of wood. We ascended the rough stone
+steps through a winding stair to the turrets, where we had such a view
+of the surrounding country, as can be obtained from no other place. On
+the top of the centre and highest turret, is a grotesque figure of a
+fiddler; rather a strange looking object, we thought, to occupy the most
+elevated pinnacle on the house of God. All dwellings in the
+neighbourhood appear like so many dwarfs couching at the feet of the
+Minster; while its own vastness and beauty impress the observer with
+feelings of awe and sublimity. As we stood upon the top of this
+stupendous mountain of ecclesiastical architecture, and surveyed the
+picturesque hills and valleys around, imagination recalled the tumult of
+the sanguinary battles fought in sight of the edifice. The rebellion of
+Octavius near three thousand years ago, his defeat and flight to the
+Scots, his return and triumph over the Romans, and being crowned king
+of all Britain; the assassination of Oswald king of the Northumbrians;
+the flaying alive of Osbert; the crowning of Richard III; the siege by
+William the Conqueror; the siege by Cromwell, and the pomp and splendour
+with which the different monarchs had been received in York, all
+appeared to be vividly before me. While we were thus calling to our aid
+our knowledge of history, a sweet peal from the lungs of the ponderous
+organ below cut short our stay among the turrets, and we descended to
+have our organ of tune gratified, as well as to finish the inspection of
+the interior.
+
+I have heard the sublime melodies of Handel, Hayden, and Mozart,
+performed by the most skilful musicians; I have listened with delight
+and awe to the soul-moving compositions of those masters, as they have
+been chaunted in the most magnificent churches; but never did I hear
+such music, and played upon such an instrument, as that sent forth by
+the great organ in the Cathedral of York. The verger took much delight
+in showing us the Horn that was once mounted with gold, but is now
+garnished with brass. We viewed the monuments and tombs of the departed,
+and then spent an hour before the great north window. The designs on the
+painted glass, which tradition states was given to the church by five
+virgin sisters, is the finest thing of the kind in Great Britain. I felt
+a relief on once more coming into the open air and again beholding
+Nature's own sun-light. The splendid ruins of St. Mary's Abbey, with its
+eight beautiful light gothic windows, next attracted our attention. A
+visit to the Castle finished our stay in York; and as we were leaving
+the old city we almost imagined that we heard the chiming of the bells
+for the celebration of the first Christian Sabbath, with Prince Arthur
+as the presiding genius.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+England stands pre-eminently the first government in the world for
+freedom of speech and of the press. Not even in our own beloved America,
+can the man who feels himself oppressed speak as he can in Great
+Britain. In some parts of England, however, the freedom of thought is
+tolerated to a greater extent than in others; and of the places
+favourable to reforms of all kinds, calculated to elevate and benefit
+mankind, Newcastle-on-Tyne doubtless takes the lead. Surrounded by
+innumerable coal mines, it furnishes employment for a large labouring
+population, many of whom take a deep interest in the passing events of
+the day, and, consequently, are a reading class. The public debater or
+speaker, no matter what may be his subject, who fails to get an audience
+in other towns, is sure of a gathering in the Music Hall, or Lecture
+Room in Newcastle. Here I first had an opportunity of coming in contact
+with a portion of the labouring people of Britain. I have addressed
+large and influential meetings in Newcastle and the neighbouring towns,
+and the more I see and learn of the condition of the working-classes of
+England the more I am satisfied of the utter fallacy of the statements
+often made that their condition approximates to that of the slaves of
+America. Whatever may be the disadvantages that the British peasant
+labours under, he is free; and if he is not satisfied with his employer
+he can make choice of another. He also has the right to educate his
+children; and he is the equal of the most wealthy person before an
+English Court of Justice. But how is it with the American Slave? He has
+no right to himself, no right to protect his wife, his child, or his own
+person. He is nothing more than a living tool. Beyond his field or
+workshop he knows nothing. There is no amount of ignorance he is not
+capable of. He has not the least idea of the face of this earth, nor of
+the history or constitution of the country in which he dwells. To him
+the literature, science, and art--the progressive history, and the
+accumulated discoveries of bygone ages, are as if they had never been.
+The past is to him as yesterday, and the future scarcely more than
+to-morrow. Ancestral monuments, he has none; written documents fraught
+with cogitations of other times, he has none; and any instrumentality
+calculated to awaken and expound the intellectual activity and
+comprehension of a present or approaching generation, he has none. His
+condition is that of the leopard of his own native Africa. It lives, it
+propagates its kind; but never does it indicate a movement towards that
+all but angelic intelligence of man. The slave eats, drinks, and
+sleeps--all for the benefit of the man who claims his body as his
+property. Before the tribunals of his country he has no voice. He has no
+higher appeal than the mere will of his owner. He knows nothing of the
+inspired Apostles through their writings. He has no Sabbath, no Church,
+no Bible, no means of grace,--and yet we are told that he is as well off
+as the labouring classes of England. It is not enough that the people of
+my country should point to their Declaration of Independence which
+declares that "all men are created equal." It is not enough that they
+should laud to the skies a constitution containing boasting declarations
+in favour of freedom. It is not enough that they should extol the genius
+of Washington, the patriotism of Henry, or the enthusiasm of Otis. The
+time has come when nations are judged by the acts of the present instead
+of the past. And so it must be with America. In no place in the United
+Kingdom has the American Slave warmer friends than in Newcastle.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+I am now in Sheffield, and have just returned from a visit to James
+Montgomery, the poet. In company with James Wall, Esq., I proceeded to
+The Mount, the residence of Mr. Montgomery; and our names being sent in,
+we were soon in the presence of the "Christian Poet." He held in his
+left hand the _Eclectic Review_ for the month, and with the right gave
+me a hearty shake, and bade me "Welcome to old England." He was anything
+but like the portraits I had seen of him, and the man I had in my mind's
+eye. I had just been reading his "Pelican Island," and I eyed the poet
+with no little interest. He is under the middle size, his forehead high
+and well formed, the top of which was a little bald; his hair of a
+yellowish colour, his eyes rather small and deep set, the nose long and
+slightly aquiline, his mouth rather small, and not at all pretty. He was
+dressed in black, and a large white cravat entirely hid his neck and
+chin: his having been afflicted from childhood with salt-rhum, was
+doubtless the cause of his chin being so completely buried in the
+neckcloth. Upon the whole, he looked more like one of our American
+Methodist parsons, than any one I have seen in this country. He entered
+freely into conversation with us. He said he should be glad to attend my
+lecture that evening, but that he had long since quit going out at
+night. He mentioned having heard William Lloyd Garrison some years
+before, and with whom he was well pleased. He said it had long been a
+puzzle to him, how Americans could hold slaves and still retain their
+membership in the churches. When we rose to leave, the old man took my
+hand between his two, and with tears in his eyes said, "Go on your
+Christian mission, and may the Lord protect and prosper you. Your
+enslaved countrymen have my sympathy, and shall have my prayers." Thus
+ended our visit to the Bard of Sheffield. Long after I had quitted the
+presence of the poet, the following lines of his were ringing in my
+ears:--
+
+   "Wanderer, whither dost thou roam?
+    Weary wanderer, old and grey,
+    Wherefore has thou left thine home,
+    In the sunset of thy day.
+    Welcome wanderer as thou art,
+    All my blessings to partake;
+    Yet thrice welcome to my heart,
+    For thine injured people's sake.
+    Wanderer, whither would'st thou roam?
+    To what region far away?
+    Bend thy steps to find a home,
+    In the twilight of thy day.
+    Where a tyrant never trod,
+    Where a slave was never known--
+    But where Nature worships God
+    In the wilderness alone."
+
+
+Mr. Montgomery seems to have thrown his entire soul into his meditations
+on the wrongs of Switzerland. The poem from which we have just quoted,
+is unquestionably one of his best productions, and contains more of the
+fire of enthusiasm than all his other works. We feel a reverence almost
+amounting to superstition, for the poet who deals with nature. And who
+is more capable of understanding the human heart than the poet? Who has
+better known the human feelings than Shakspere; better painted than
+Milton, the grandeur of Virtue; better sighed than Byron over the subtle
+weaknesses of Hope? Who ever had a sounder taste, a more exact
+intellect than Dante? or who has ever tuned his harp more in favour of
+Freedom, than our own Whittier?
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XII.
+
+_Kirkstall Abbey--Mary the Maid of the Inn--Newstead Abbey: Residence of
+Lord Byron--Parish Church of Hucknall--Burial Place of Lord
+Byron--Bristol: "Cook's Folly"--Chepstow Castle and Abbey--Tintern
+Abbey--Redcliffe Church._
+
+
+                    _January 29_.
+
+In passing through Yorkshire, we could not resist the temptation it
+offered, to pay a visit to the extensive and interesting ruin of
+Kirkstall Abbey, which lies embosomed in a beautiful recess of Airedale,
+about three miles from Leeds. A pleasant drive over a smooth road,
+brought us abruptly in sight of the Abbey. The tranquil and pensive
+beauty of the desolate Monastery, as it reposes in the lap of pastoral
+luxuriance, and amidst the touching associations of seven centuries, is
+almost beyond description when viewed from where we first beheld it.
+After arriving at its base, we stood for some moments under the mighty
+arches that lead into the great hall, gazing at its old grey walls
+frowning with age. At the distance of a small field, the Aire is seen
+gliding past the foot of the lawn on which the ruin stands, after it has
+left those precincts, sparkling over a weir with a pleasing murmur. We
+could fully enter into the feelings of the Poet when he says:--
+
+   "Beautiful fabric! even in decay
+      And desolation, beauty still is thine;
+    As the rich sunset of an autumn day,
+      When gorgeous clouds in glorious hues combine
+    To render homage to its slow decline,
+      Is more majestic in its parting hour:
+    Even so thy mouldering, venerable shrine
+      Possesses now a more subduing power,
+    Than in thine earlier sway, with pomp and pride thy dower."
+
+
+The tale of "Mary, the Maid of the Inn," is supposed, and not without
+foundation, to be connected with this Abbey. "Hark to Rover," the name
+of the house where the key is kept, was, a century ago, a retired inn or
+pot-house, and the haunt of many a desperate highwayman and poacher. The
+anecdote is so well known, that it is scarcely necessary to relate it.
+It, however, is briefly this:--
+
+"One stormy night, as two travellers sat at the inn, each having
+exhausted his news, the conversation was directed to the Abbey, the
+boisterous night, and Mary's heroism; when a bet was at last made by one
+of them, that she would not go and bring back from the nave a slip of
+the alder-tree growing there. Mary, however, did go; but having nearly
+reached the tree, she heard a low, indistinct dialogue; at the same
+time, something black fell and rolled towards her, which afterwards
+proved to be a hat. Directing her attention to the place whence the
+conversation proceeded, she saw, from behind a pillar, two men carrying
+a murdered body: they passed near the place where she stood, a heavy
+cloud was swept from off the face of the moon, and Mary fell
+senseless--one of the murderers was her intended husband! She was
+awakened from her swoon, but--her reason had fled for ever." Mr. Southey
+wrote a beautiful poem founded on this story, which will be found in his
+published works. We spent nearly three hours in wandering through these
+splendid ruins. It is both curious and interesting to trace the early
+history of these old piles, which become the resort of thousands,
+nine-tenths of whom are unaware either of the classic ground on which
+they tread, or of the peculiar interest thrown around the spot by the
+deeds of remote ages.
+
+During our stay in Leeds, we had the good fortune to become acquainted
+with Wilson Armistead, Esq. This gentleman is well known as an able
+writer against Slavery. His most elaborate work is "A Tribute for the
+Negro." This is a volume of 560 pages, and is replete with facts
+refuting the charges of inferiority brought against the Negro race. Few
+English gentlemen have done more to hasten the day of the American
+slave's liberation, than Wilson Armistead.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+We have just paid a visit to Newstead Abbey, the far-famed residence of
+Lord Byron. I posted from Hucknall over to Newstead one pleasant
+morning, and, being provided with a letter of introduction to Colonel
+Wildman, I lost no time in presenting myself at the door of the Abbey.
+But, unfortunately for me, the Colonel was at Mansfield, in attendance
+at the Assizes--he being one of the County Magistrates. I did not
+however lose the object of my visit, as every attention was paid in
+showing me about the premises. I felt as every one must, who gazes for
+the first time upon these walls, and remembers that it was here, even
+amid the comparative ruins of a building once dedicated to the sacred
+cause of Religion and her twin sister, Charity, that the genius of Byron
+was first developed. Here that he paced with youthful melancholy the
+halls of his illustrious ancestors, and trode the walks of the
+long-banished monks. The housekeeper--a remarkably good looking and
+polite woman--showed us through the different apartments, and explained
+in the most minute manner every object of interest connected with the
+interior of the building. We first visited the Monks' Parlour, which
+seemed to contain nothing of note, except a very fine stained
+window--one of the figures representing St. Paul, surmounted by a cross.
+We passed through Lord Byron's Bedroom, the Haunted Chamber, the
+Library, and the Eastern Corridor, and halted in the Tapestry Bedroom,
+which is truly a magnificent apartment, formed by the Byrons for the use
+of King Charles II. The ceiling is richly decorated with the Byron arms.
+We next visited the grand Drawing-room, probably the finest in the
+building. This saloon contains a large number of splendid portraits,
+among which is the celebrated portrait of Lord Byron, by Phillips. In
+this room we took into our hand the Skull-cup, of which so much has been
+written, and that has on it a short inscription, commencing with--"Start
+not--nor deem my spirit fled." Leaving this noble room, we descended by
+a few polished oak steps into the West Corridor, from which we entered
+the grand Dining Hall, and through several other rooms, until we reached
+the Chapel. Here we were shown a stone coffin which had been found near
+the high altar, when the workmen were excavating the vault, intended by
+Lord Byron for himself and his dog. The coffin contained the skeleton of
+an Abbot, and also the identical skull from which the cup, of which I
+have made mention, was made. We then left the building, and took a
+stroll through the grounds. After passing a pond of cold crystal water,
+we came to a dark wood in which are two leaden statues of Pan, and a
+female satyr--very fine specimens as works of art. We here inspected the
+tree whereon Byron carved his own name and that of his sister, with the
+date, all of which are still legible. However, the tree is now dead, and
+we were informed that Colonel Wildman intended to have it cut down so as
+to preserve the part containing the inscription. After crossing an
+interesting and picturesque part of the gardens, we arrived within the
+precincts of the ancient Chapel, near which we observed a neat marble
+monument, and which we supposed to have been erected to the memory of
+some of the Byrons; but, on drawing near to it, we read the following
+inscription:--
+
+                "Near this spot
+        are deposited the remains of one
+      who possessed beauty without vanity,
+          strength without insolence,
+            courage without ferocity,
+    and all the virtues of man without his vices.
+  This praise, which would be unmeaning flattery,
+        if inscribed over human ashes,
+      is but a just tribute to the memory of
+              BOATSWAIN, a dog,
+    Who was born at Newfoundland, May, 1803,
+  and died at Newstead Abbey, November 18, 1808."
+
+
+By a will which his Lordship executed in 1811, he directed that his own
+body should be buried in a vault in the garden, near his faithful dog.
+This feeling of affection to his dumb and faithful follower, commendable
+in itself, seems here to have been carried beyond the bounds of reason
+and propriety.
+
+In another part of the grounds we saw the oak tree planted by the poet
+himself. It has now attained a goodly size, considering the growth of
+the oak, and bids fair to become a lasting memento to the Noble Bard,
+and to be a shrine to which thousands of pilgrims will resort in future
+ages, to do homage to his mighty genius. This tree promises to share in
+after times the celebrity of Shakspere's mulberry, and Pope's willow.
+Near by, and in the tall trees, the rooks were keeping up a tremendous
+noise. After seeing everything of interest connected with the great
+poet, we entered our chaise, and left the premises. As we were leaving,
+I turned to take a farewell look at the Abbey, standing in solemn
+grandeur, the long ivy clinging fondly to the rich tracery of a former
+age. Proceeding to the little town of Hucknall, we entered the old grey
+Parish Church, which has for ages been the last resting-place of the
+Byrons, and where repose the ashes of the Poet, marked only by a neat
+marble slab, bearing the date of the poet's birth, death, and the fact
+that the tablet was placed there by his sister. This closed my visit to
+the interesting scenes associated with Byron's strange eventful
+history--scenes that ever acquire a growing charm as the lapse of years
+softens the errors of the man, and confirms the genius of the poet.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+                    _May 10_.
+
+It was on a lovely morning that I found myself on board the little
+steamer _Wye_, passing out of Bristol harbour. In going down the river,
+we saw on our right, the stupendous rocks of St. Vincent towering some
+four or five hundred feet above our heads. By the swiftness of our fairy
+steamer, we were soon abreast of Cook's Folly, a singular tower, built
+by a man from whom it takes its name, and of which the following
+romantic story is told:--"Some years since a gentleman, of the name of
+Cook, erected this tower, which has since gone by the name of 'Cook's
+Folly.' A son having been born, he was desirous of ascertaining, by
+means of astrology, if he would live to enjoy his property. Being
+himself a firm believer, like the poet Dryden, that certain information
+might be obtained from the above science, he caused the child's
+horoscope to be drawn, and found, to his dismay, that in his third,
+sixteenth, or twenty-first year, he would be in danger of meeting with
+some fearful calamity or sudden death, to avert which he caused the
+turret to be constructed, and the child placed therein. Secure, as he
+vainly thought, there he lived, attended by a faithful servant, their
+food and fuel being conveyed to them by means of a pully-basket, until
+he was old enough to wait upon himself. On the eve of his twenty-first
+year, his parent's hopes rose high, and great were the rejoicings
+prepared to welcome the young heir to his home. But, alas! no human
+skill could avert the dark fate which clung to him. The last night he
+had to pass alone in the turret, a bundle of faggots was conveyed to him
+as usual, in which lay concealed a viper, which clung to his hand. The
+bite was fatal; and, instead of being borne in triumph, the dead body of
+his only son was the sad spectacle which met the sight of his father."
+
+We crossed the channel and soon entered the mouth of that most
+picturesque of rivers, the Wye. As we neared the town of Chepstow the
+old Castle made its appearance, and a fine old ruin it is. Being
+previously provided with a letter of introduction to a gentleman in
+Chepstow, I lost no time in finding him out. This gentleman gave me a
+cordial reception, and did what Englishmen seldom ever do, lent me his
+saddle horse to ride to the Abbey. While lunch was in preparation I took
+a stroll through the Castle which stood near by. We entered the Castle
+through the great door-way and were soon treading the walls that had
+once sustained the cannon and the sentinel, but were now covered with
+weeds and wild flowers. The drum and fife had once been heard within
+these walls--the only music now is the cawing of the rook and daw. We
+paid a hasty visit to the various apartments, remaining longest in those
+of most interest. The room in which Martin the Regicide was imprisoned
+nearly twenty years, was pointed out to us. The Castle of Chepstow is
+still a magnificent pile, towering upon the brink of a stupendous cliff,
+on reaching the top of which, we had a splendid view of the surrounding
+country. Time, however, compelled us to retrace our steps, and after
+partaking of a lunch, we mounted a horse for the first time in ten
+years, and started for Tintern Abbey. The distance from Chepstow to the
+Abbey is about five miles, and the road lies along the banks of the
+river. The river is walled in on either side by hills of much beauty,
+clothed from base to summit with the richest verdure. I can conceive of
+nothing more striking than the first appearance of the Abbey. As we
+rounded a hill, all at once we saw the old ruin standing before us in
+all its splendour. This celebrated ecclesiastical relic of the olden
+time is doubtless the finest ruin of its kind in Europe. Embosomed
+amongst hills, and situated on the banks of the most fairy-like river in
+the world, its beauty can scarcely be surpassed. We halted at the
+"Beaufort Arms," left our horse, and sallied forth to view the Abbey.
+The sun was pouring a flood of light upon the old grey walls, lighting
+up its dark recesses, as if to give us a better opportunity of viewing
+it. I gazed with astonishment and admiration at its many beauties, and
+especially at the superb gothic windows over the entrance door. The
+beautiful gothic pillars, with here and there a representation of a
+praying priest, and mailed knights, with saints and Christian martyrs,
+and the hundreds of Scriptural representations, all indicate that this
+was a place of considerable importance in its palmy days. The once
+stone floor had disappeared, and we found ourselves standing on a floor
+of unbroken green grass, swelling back to the old walls, and looking so
+verdant and silken that it seemed the very floor of fancy. There are
+more romantic and wilder places than this in the world, but none more
+beautiful. The preservation of these old abbeys should claim the
+attention of those under whose charge they are, and we felt like joining
+with the poet and saying:--
+
+                           "O ye who dwell
+    Around yon ruins, guard the precious charge
+    From hands profane! O save the sacred pile--
+    O'er which the wing of centuries has flown
+    Darkly and silently, deep-shadowing all
+    Its pristine honours--from the ruthless grasp
+    Of future violation."
+
+
+In contemplating these ruins more closely, the mind insensibly reverts
+to the period of feudal and regal oppression, when structures like that
+of Tintern Abbey necessarily became the scenes of stirring and
+highly-important events. How altered is the scene! Where were formerly
+magnificence and splendour; the glittering array of priestly prowess;
+the crowded halls of haughty bigots, and the prison of religious
+offenders; there is now but a heap of mouldering ruins. The oppressed
+and the oppressor have long since lain down together in the peaceful
+grave. The ruin, generally speaking, is unusually perfect, and the
+sculpture still beautifully sharp. The outward walls are nearly entire,
+and are thickly clad with ivy. Many of the windows are also in a good
+state of preservation; but the roof has long since fallen in. The
+feathered songsters were fluttering about, and pouring forth their
+artless lays as a tribute of joy; while the lowing of the herds, the
+bleating of flocks, and the hum of bees upon the farm near by, all burst
+upon the ear, and gave the scene a picturesque sublimity that can be
+easier imagined than described. Most assuredly Shakspere had such ruins
+in view when he exclaimed--
+
+   "The cloud-capp'd towers, the gorgeous palaces,
+    The solemn temples, the great globe itself,
+    Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve--
+    And, like the baseless fabric of a vision,
+    Leave not a wreck behind."
+
+
+In the afternoon we returned to Bristol, and I spent the greater part
+of the next day in examining the interior of Redcliffe Church. Few
+places in the West of England have greater claims upon the topographer
+and historian than the church of St. Mary's, Redcliffe. Its antiquity,
+the beauty of its architecture, and above all the interesting
+circumstances connected with its history, entitle it to peculiar notice.
+It is also associated with the enterprise of genius; for its name has
+been blended with the reputation of Rowley, of Canynge, and of
+Chatterton; and no lover of poetry and admirer of art can visit it
+without a degree of enthusiasm. And when the old building shall have
+mouldered into ruins, even these will be trodden with veneration as
+sacred to the recollection of genius of the highest order. Ascending a
+winding stair, we were shown into the Treasury Room. The room forms an
+irregular octagon, admitting light through narrow unglazed apertures
+upon the broken and scattered fragments of the famous Rowleian chests,
+that with the rubble and dust of centuries cover the floor. It is here
+creative fancy pictures forth the sad image of the spirit of the
+spot--the ardent boy, flushed and fed by hope, musing on the brilliant
+deception he had conceived--whose daring attempt has left his name unto
+the intellectual world as a marvel and a mystery.
+
+That a boy under twelve years of age should write a series of poems,
+imitating the style of the fifteenth century, and palm these poems off
+upon the world as the work of a monk, is indeed strange; and that these
+should become the object of interesting contemplation to the literary
+world, and should awaken inquiries, and exercise the talents of a
+Southey, a Bryant, a Miller, a Mathias, and others, savours more of
+romance than reality. I had visited the room in a garret in High
+Holborn, where this poor boy died. I had stood over a grave in the
+burial-ground of the Lane Workhouse, which was pointed out to me as the
+last resting-place of Chatterton; and now I was in the room where it was
+alleged he obtained the manuscripts that gave him such notoriety. We
+descended and viewed other portions of the church. The effect of the
+chancel, as seen behind the pictures, is very singular, and suggestive
+of many swelling thoughts. We look at the great east window, it is
+unadorned with its wonted painted glass; we look at the altar-screen
+beneath, on which the light of day again falls, and behold the injuries
+it has received at the hands of time. There is a dreary mournfulness in
+the scene which fastens on the mind, and is in unison with the time-worn
+mouldering fragments that are seen all around us. And this dreariness is
+not removed by our tracing the destiny of man on the storied pavements
+or on the graven brass, that still bears upon its surface the names of
+those who obtained the world's regard years back. This old pile is not
+only an ornament to the city, but it stands a living monument to the
+genius of its founder. Bristol has long sustained a high position as a
+place from which the American Abolitionists have received substantial
+encouragement in their arduous labours for the emancipation of the
+slaves of that land; and the writer of this received the best evidence
+that in this respect the character of the people had not been
+exaggerated, especially as regards the "Clifton Ladies' Anti-Slavery
+Society."
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XXIII.[A]
+
+[A] This letter is rather out of its proper place here. I had mislaid
+the MS., and my distance from the printer prevented the matter being
+rectified. In another edition, the transposition can be effected.
+
+_Aberdeen--Passage by Steamer--Edinburgh--Visit to the College--William
+and Ellen Craft._
+
+
+I have visited few places where I found more warm friends than in
+Aberdeen. This is the Granite City of Scotland.
+
+Aberdeen reminds one of Boston, especially in a walk down Union Street,
+which is said to be one of the finest promenades in Europe.
+
+The town is situated on a neck of land between the rivers Dee and Don,
+and is the most important place in the north of Scotland. During our
+third day in the city, we visited among other places the Old Bridge of
+Don, which is not only resorted to on account of its antique celebrity
+and peculiar appearance, but also because of the notoriety that it has
+gained by Lord Byron's poem of the "Bridge of Don."
+
+An engagement to be in Edinburgh and vicinity, cut short our stay in the
+north. The very mild state of the weather, and a wish to see something
+of the coast between Aberdeen and Edinburgh, induced us to make the
+journey by water.
+
+On Friday evening, the 14th, after delivering a lecture before the Total
+Abstinence Society, in company with William and Ellen Craft, I went on
+board the steamer bound for Edinburgh. On reaching the vessel, we found
+the drawing-room almost entirely at our service, and prejudice against
+colour being unknown, we had no difficulty in getting the best
+accommodation which the steamer could furnish. This is so unlike the
+pro-slavery, negro-hating spirit of America, that the Crafts seemed
+almost bewildered by the transition. I had been in the saloon but a
+short time, when, looking at the newspapers on the table, I discovered
+the _North Star_. It was like meeting with a friend in a strange land. I
+looked in vain on the margin for the name of its owner, but as I did not
+feel at liberty to take it, and as it appeared to be alone, I laid the
+_Liberator_ by its side to keep it company.
+
+The night was a glorious one. The sky was without a speck; and the
+clear, piercing air had a brilliancy I have seldom seen. The moon was in
+its zenith--the steamer and surrounding objects were beautiful in the
+extreme. The boat got under weigh at a little past twelve, and we were
+soon out at sea. The "Queen" is a splendid craft, and without the aid of
+sails, was able to make fifteen miles within the hour. I was up the next
+morning before the sun, and found the sea as on the previous night--as
+calm and smooth as a mirror. It was a delightful morning, more like
+April than February; and the sun, as it rose, seemed to fire every peak
+of the surrounding hills. On our left, lay the Island of May, while to
+the right was to be seen the small fishing town of Anstruther, twenty
+miles distant from Edinburgh. Beyond these, on either side, was a range
+of undulating blue mountains, swelling as they retired, into a bolder
+outline and a loftier altitude, until they terminated some twenty-five
+or thirty miles in the dim distance. A friend at my side pointed out a
+place on the right, where the remains of an old castle or look-out
+house, used in the time of the border wars, once stood, and which
+reminded us of the barbarism of the past.
+
+But these signs are fast disappearing. The plough and roller have passed
+over many of these foundations, and the time will soon come, when the
+antiquarian will look in vain for those places that history has pointed
+out to him, as connected with the political and religious struggles of
+the past. The steward of the vessel came round to see who of the
+passengers wished for breakfast, and as the keen air of the morning had
+given me an appetite, and there being no prejudice on the score of
+colour, I took my seat at the table and gave ample evidence that I was
+not an invalid. On returning to the deck again, I found we had entered
+the Forth, and that "Modern Athens" was in sight; and, far above every
+other object, with its turrets almost lost in the clouds, could be seen
+Edinburgh Castle. After landing, a pleasant ride over one of the finest
+roads in Scotland, with a sprinkling of beautiful villas on either side,
+brought us once more to Cannon's Hotel.
+
+In a city like Edinburgh, there is always something to keep the public
+alive, but during our three days' stay in the town, on this occasion,
+there were topics under discussion which seemed to excite the people,
+although I had been told that the Scotch were not excitable. Indeed all
+Edinburgh seemed to have gone mad about the Pope. If his Holiness should
+think fit to pay a visit to his new dominions, I would advise him to
+keep out of reach of the Scotch.
+
+In company with the Crafts, I visited the Calton Hill, from which we had
+a delightful view of the city and surrounding country. I had an
+opportunity during my stay in the city, of visiting the Infirmary, and
+was pleased to see among the two or three hundred students, three
+coloured young men, seated upon the same benches with those of a fairer
+complexion, and yet there appeared no feeling on the part of the whites
+towards their coloured associates, except of companionship and respect.
+One of the cardinal truths, both of religion and freedom, is the
+equality and brotherhood of man. In the sight of God and all just
+institutions, the whites can claim no precedence or privilege, on
+account of their being white; and if coloured men are not treated as
+they should be in the educational institutions in America, it is a
+pleasure to know that all distinction ceases by crossing the broad
+Atlantic. I had scarcely left the lecture room of the Institute and
+reached the street, when I met a large number of the students on their
+way to the college, and here again were seen coloured men arm in arm
+with whites. The proud American who finds himself in the splendid
+streets of Edinburgh, and witnesses such scenes as these, can but behold
+in them the degradation of his own country, whose laws would make slaves
+of these same young men, should they appear in the streets of
+Charleston or New Orleans.
+
+After all, our country is the most despotic in the wide world, and to
+expose and hold it up to the scorn and contempt of other nations, is the
+duty of every coloured man who would be true to himself and his race.
+
+
+During my stay in Edinburgh, I accepted an invitation to breakfast with
+the great champion of Philosophical Phrenology. Few foreigners are more
+admired in America, than the author of "The Constitution of Man."[B]
+Although not far from 70 years of age, I found him apparently as active
+and as energetic as many men of half that age. He was much pleased with
+Mr. and Mrs. Craft, who formed a part of the breakfast party. It may be
+a pleasure to the friends of these two fugitive slaves, to know that
+they are now the inmates of a good school where they are now being
+educated. For this, they are mainly indebted to that untiring friend of
+the Slave, John B. Estlin, Esq., of Bristol, whose zeal and co-operation
+with the American Abolitionists, have gained for him an undying name
+with the friends of freedom in the New World.
+
+[B] George Combe, Esq.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XIII.
+
+_Edinburgh--The Royal Institute--Scott's Monument--John Knox's
+Pulpit--Temperance Meeting--Glasgow--Great Meeting in the City Hall._
+
+
+                    EDINBURGH, _January 1, 1851_.
+
+You will see by the date of this that I am spending my
+New-Year's-Day in the Scottish Capital, in company with our friend,
+William Craft. I came by invitation to attend a meeting of the Edinburgh
+Ladies' Emancipation Society.
+
+The meeting was held on Monday evening last, at which William Craft
+gave, for the first time, since his arrival in this country, a history
+of his escape from Georgia, two years ago, together with his recent
+flight from Boston.
+
+Craft's reception was one of deep enthusiasm, and his story was well
+told, and made a powerful impression on the audience. I would that the
+slaveholders, Hughes and Knight, could have been present and heard the
+thundering applause with which our friend was received on the following
+evening. Craft attended a meeting of the Edinburgh Total Abstinence
+Society, before which I lectured, and his appearance here was also
+hailed with much enthusiasm. Our friend bids fair to become a favourite
+with the Scotch.
+
+Much regret was expressed that Ellen was not present. She was detained
+in Liverpool by indisposition. But Mrs. Craft has so far recovered, that
+we expect her here to-morrow.
+
+The appearance of these two fugitives in Great Britain, at this time,
+and under the circumstances, will aid our cause, and create a renewed
+hatred to the abominable institution of American slavery. I have
+received letters from a number of the friends of the slave, in which
+they express a wish to aid the Crafts; and among the first of these,
+were our good friends, John B. Estlin, Esq., of Bristol, and Harriet
+Martineau.
+
+But I must give you my impression of this fine city. Edinburgh is the
+most picturesque of all the towns which I have visited since my arrival
+in the father-land. Its situation has been compared to that of Athens,
+but it is said that the modern Athens is superior to the ancient. I was
+deeply impressed with the idea that I had seen the most beautiful of
+cities, after beholding those fashionable resorts, Paris and Versailles.
+I have seen nothing in the way of public grounds to compare with the
+gardens of Versailles, or the _Champs Elysees_ at Paris; and as for
+statuary, the latter place is said to take the lead of the rest of the
+world.
+
+The general appearance of Edinburgh prepossesses one in its favour. The
+town being built upon the brows of a large terrace, presents the most
+wonderful perspective. Its first appearance to a stranger, and the first
+impression, can scarcely be but favourable. In my first walk through the
+town, I was struck with the difference in the appearance of the people
+from the English. But the difference between the Scotch and the
+Americans, is very great. The cheerfulness depicted in the countenances
+of the people here, and their free and easy appearance, is very striking
+to a stranger. He who taught the sun to shine, the flowers to bloom, the
+birds to sing, and blesses us with rain, never intended that his
+creatures should look sad. There is a wide difference between the
+Americans and any other people which I have seen. The Scotch are healthy
+and robust, unlike the long-faced, sickly-looking Americans.
+
+While on our journey from London to Paris, to attend the Peace Congress,
+I could not but observe the marked difference between the English and
+American delegates. The former looked as if their pockets had been
+filled with sandwiches, made of good bread and roast beef, while the
+latter appeared as if their pockets had been filled with Holloway's
+Pills, and Mrs. Kidder's Cordial.
+
+I breakfasted this morning in a room in which the Poet Burns, as I was
+informed, had often sat. The conversation here turned upon Burns. The
+lady of the house pointed to a scrap of poetry which was in a frame
+hanging on the wall, written, as she said, by the Poet, on hearing the
+people rejoicing in a church over the intelligence of a victory. I
+copied it and will give it to you:--
+
+   "Ye hypocrites! are these your pranks,
+    To murder men and give God thanks?
+    For shame! give o'er, proceed no further,
+    God won't accept your thanks for murder."
+
+
+The fact that I was in the room where Scotland's great national poet had
+been a visitor, caused me to feel that I was on classic, if not hallowed
+ground. On returning from our morning visit, we met a gentleman with a
+coloured lady on each arm. Craft remarked in a very dry manner, "If they
+were in Georgia, the slaveholders would make them walk in a more hurried
+gait than they do." I said to my friend, that if he meant the
+pro-slavery prejudice would not suffer them to walk peaceably through
+the streets, they need go no further than the pro-slavery cities of New
+York and Philadelphia. When walking through the streets, I amused
+myself, by watching Craft's countenance; and in doing so, imagined I saw
+the changes experienced by every fugitive slave in his first month's
+residence in this country. A sixteen months' residence has not yet
+familiarized me with the change.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+                    LAUREL BANK, _Jan. 18, 1851_.
+
+Dear Douglass,--I remained in Edinburgh a day or two after the
+date of my last letter, which gave me an opportunity of seeing some of
+the lions in the way of public buildings, &c., in company with our
+friend Wm. Craft. I paid a visit to the Royal Institute, and inspected
+the very fine collection of paintings, statues, and other productions of
+art. The collection in the Institute is not to be compared to the
+British Museum at London, or the Louvre at Paris, but is probably the
+best in Scotland. Paintings from the hands of many of the masters, such
+as Sir A. Vandyke, Tiziano, Vercellio and Van Dellen, were hanging on
+the wall, and even the names of Reubens, and Titian, were attached to
+some of the finer specimens. Many of these represent some of the nobles,
+and distinguished families of Rome, Athens, Greece, &c. A beautiful one
+representing a group of the Lomellini family of Genoa, seemed to attract
+the attention of most of the visitors.
+
+In visiting this place, we passed close by the monument of Sir Walter
+Scott. This is the most exquisite thing of the kind that I have seen
+since coming to this country. It is said to be the finest monument in
+Europe. There sits the author of "Waverley," with a book and pencil in
+hand, taking notes. A beautiful dog is seated by his side. Whether this
+is meant to represent his favourite dog, Camp, at whose death the Poet
+shed so many tears, we were not informed; but I was of opinion that it
+might be the faithful Percy, whose monument stands in the grounds at
+Abbotsford. Scott was an admirer of the canine tribe. One may form a
+good idea of the appearance of this distinguished writer, when living,
+by viewing this remarkable statue. The statue is very beautiful, but not
+equal to the one of Lord Byron, which was executed to be placed by the
+side of Johnson, Milton, and Addison, in Poets' Corner, Westminster
+Abbey; but the Parliament not allowing it a place there, it now stands
+in one of the Colleges at Cambridge. While viewing the statue of Byron,
+I thought he, too, should have been represented with a dog by his side,
+for he, like Scott, was remarkably fond of dogs, so much so that he
+intended to have his favourite, Boatswain, interred by his side.
+
+We paid a short visit to the monuments of Burns and Allan Ramsay, and
+the renowned old Edinburgh Castle. The Castle is now used as a barrack
+for Infantry. It is accessible only from the High Street, and must have
+been impregnable before the discovery of gunpowder. In the wars with the
+English, it was twice taken by stratagem; once in a very daring manner,
+by climbing up the most inaccessible part of the rock upon which it
+stands, and where a foe was least expected, and putting the guard to
+death; and another time, by a party of soldiers disguising themselves as
+merchants, and obtaining admission inside the Castle gates. They
+succeeded in preventing the gates from being closed, until reinforced by
+a party of men under Sir Wm. Douglas, who soon overpowered the occupants
+of the Castle.
+
+We could not resist the temptation held out to see the Palace of
+Holyrood. It was in this place that the beautiful, but unfortunate Mary,
+Queen of Scots, resided for a number of years. On reaching the palace,
+we were met at the door by an elderly looking woman, with a red face,
+garnished with a pair of second-hand curls, the whole covered with a cap
+having the widest border that I had seen for years. She was very kind in
+showing us about the premises, especially as we were foreigners, no
+doubt expecting an extra fee for politeness. The most interesting of the
+many rooms in this ancient castle, is the one which was occupied by the
+Queen, and where her Italian favourite, Rizzio, was murdered.
+
+But by far the most interesting object which we visited while in
+Edinburgh, was the house where the celebrated Reformer, John Knox,
+re-resided. It is a queer-looking old building, with a pulpit on the
+outside, and above the door are the nearly obliterated remains of the
+following inscription:--"Lufe. God. Above. Al. And. your. Nichbour. As
+you. Self." This was probably traced under the immediate direction of
+the great Reformer. Such an inscription put upon a house of worship at
+the present day, would be laughed at. I have given it to you,
+punctuation and all, just as it stands.
+
+The general architecture of Edinburgh is very imposing, whether we
+regard the picturesque disorder of the buildings, in the Old Town, or
+the symmetrical proportions of the streets and squares in the New. But
+on viewing this city which has the reputation of being the finest in
+Europe, I was surprised to find that it had none of those sumptuous
+structures, which like St. Paul's, or Westminster Abbey, York Minster,
+and some other of the English provincial Cathedrals, astonish the
+beholder alike by their magnitude and their architectural splendour. But
+in no city which I have visited in the kingdom, is the general standard
+of excellence better maintained than in Edinburgh.
+
+I am not sure, my dear friend, whether or not I mentioned in my last
+letter the attendance of Wm. Craft and myself at a splendid Soiree of
+the Edinburgh Temperance Society, and our being voted in life members,
+in the most enthusiastic manner, by the whole audience. I will here give
+you a part of the speech of the President, as reported in the _Christian
+News_. This should cause the pro-slavery whites, and especially
+negro-hating Sons of Temperance, who refuse the coloured man a place in
+their midst, to feel ashamed of their unchristian conduct. Here it is,
+let them judge for themselves:--
+
+"A great feature in our meeting to-night, is that we have beside us two
+individuals, who, according to the immaculate laws of immaculate
+Yankeedom, have been guilty of the tremendous crime of stealing
+themselves. (Applause.) Mr. Craft, who sits beside me, has stolen his
+good wife, and Mrs. Craft has stolen her worthy husband; and our
+respected friend, Mr. Brown, has cast a covetous eye on his own person.
+In the name of the Temperance reformers of Edinburgh--in the name of
+universal Scotland, I would welcome these two victims of the white man's
+pride, ambition, selfishness, and cupidity. I welcome them as our equals
+in every respect. (Great applause.) What a humiliating thought it will
+be, surely, for our American friends on the other side of the water,
+when they hear (and we shall endeavour to let them hear) that the very
+man whom they consider not worthy to sit in a third class carriage along
+with a white man, and that too in a district of country where the very
+aristocracy deal in cheap cheese--(great applause) traffic in tallow
+candles, and spend their nights and days among raw hides and train
+oil--(applause)--what a humbling thought it will be for them to know
+that these very men in the centre of educated Scotland, in the midst of
+educated Edinburgh, are thought fit to hold even the first rank upon our
+aristocratic platform. Let us, then, my friends, lift our voices this
+evening in one swelling chorus for the down-trodden slave. Let us
+publish abroad the fact to the world, that the sympathies of Scotland
+are with the bondsman everywhere. Let us unite our voices to cry, Down
+with the iniquitous Slave Bill!--Down with the aristocracy of the
+skin!--Perish forever the deepest-dyed, the hardest-hearted system of
+abomination under heaven!--Perish the sum of all villanies! Perish
+American slavery. (Great applause.)"
+
+But I must leave the good and hospitable people of the Scottish Capital
+for the present. I have taken an elaborate stock of notes, and may speak
+of Edinburgh again.
+
+I left William and Ellen Craft (the latter of whom has just come to
+Edinburgh), and took the Glasgow train, and after a ride of two hours
+through a beautiful country, with its winding hills on either side--its
+fertile fields, luxuriant woods, and stately mansions lying around us,
+arrived in the muddy, dirty, smoky, foggy city of Glasgow. As I had had
+a standing invitation from a distinguished gentleman with whom I became
+acquainted in London, to partake of his hospitality, should I ever visit
+Glasgow, and again received a note while in Edinburgh renewing the
+invitation, I proceeded to his residence at Partick, three miles from
+Glasgow. This is one of the loveliest spots which I have yet seen. Our
+mansion is on the side of Laurel Bank, a range of the Kilpatrick hills.
+We have a view of the surrounding country.
+
+On Monday evening, Jan. 6, a public meeting was held in the City Hall,
+to extend a welcome to the American fugitive slaves. The hall, one of
+the largest in the kingdom, was filled at an early hour. At the
+appointed time, Alex. Hastie, Esq., M.P., entered the great room,
+followed by the fugitives and most of the leading abolitionists, amid
+rapturous applause. With a Member of Parliament in the chair, and
+almost any number of clergymen on the platform, the meeting had an
+influential appearance. From report, I had imbibed the opinion that the
+Scotch were not easily moved, but if I may judge from the enthusiasm
+which characterised the City Hall demonstration, I should place them but
+little behind the English. After an excellent speech from the Chairman,
+and spirited addresses from several clergymen, William Craft was
+introduced to the meeting, and gave an account of the escape of himself
+and wife from slavery, and their subsequent flight from Boston. Any
+description of mine would give but a poor idea of the intense feeling
+that pervaded the meeting. I think all who were there, left the hall
+after hearing that noble fugitive, with a greater abhorrence of American
+slavery than they previously entertained.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XIV.
+
+_Stirling--Dundee--Dr. Dick--Geo. Gilfillan--Dr. Dick at home._
+
+
+                    PERTH, SCOTLAND, _Jan. 31, 1851_.
+
+I am glad once more to breathe an atmosphere uncontaminated by the fumes
+and smoke of a city with its population of three hundred thousand
+inhabitants. In company with our friends Wm. and Ellen Craft, I left
+Glasgow on the afternoon of the 23d inst., for Dundee, a beautiful town
+situated on the banks of the river Tay. One like myself, who has spent
+the best part of an eventful life in cities, and who prefers, as I do, a
+country to a town life, feels a greater degree of freedom when
+surrounded by forest trees, or country dwellings, and looking upon a
+clear sky, than when walking through the thronged thoroughfares of a
+city, with its dense population, meeting every moment a new or strange
+face which one has never seen before, and never expects to see again.
+Although I had met with one of the warmest public receptions with which
+I have been greeted since my arrival in the country, and had had an
+opportunity of shaking hands with many noble friends of the slave, whose
+names I had often seen in print, yet I felt glad to see the tall
+chimneys and smoke of Glasgow receding in the distance, as our 'iron
+horse' was taking us with almost lightning speed from the commercial
+capital of Scotland.
+
+The distance from Glasgow to Dundee is some seventy or eighty miles, and
+we passed through the finest country which I have seen in this portion
+of the Queen's dominions. We passed through the old town of Stirling,
+which lies about thirty miles distant from Glasgow, and is a place much
+frequented by those who travel for pleasure. It is built on the brow of
+a hill, and the Castle from which it most probably derived its name, may
+be seen from a distance. Had it not been for a "professional" engagement
+the same evening at Dundee, I would most assuredly have halted to take a
+look at the old building.
+
+The Castle is situated or built on an isolated rock, which seems as if
+Nature had thrown it there for that purpose. It was once the retreat of
+the Scottish Kings, and famous for its historical associations. Here the
+"Lady of the Lake," with the magic ring, sought the monarch to intercede
+for her father; here James II. murdered the Earl of Douglas; here the
+beautiful but unfortunate Mary was made Queen; and here John Knox, the
+Reformer, preached the coronation sermon of James VI. The Castle Hill
+rises from the valley of the Forth, and makes an imposing and
+picturesque appearance. The windings of the noble river till lost in the
+distance, present pleasing contrasts, scarcely to be surpassed.
+
+The speed of our train, after passing Stirling, brought before us, in
+quick succession, a number of fine valleys and farm houses. Every spot
+seemed to have been arrayed by Nature for the reception of the cottage
+of some happy family. During this ride, we passed many sites where the
+lawns were made, the terraces defined and levelled, the groves
+tastefully clumped, the ancient trees, though small when compared to our
+great forest oaks, were beautifully sprinkled here and there, and in
+everything the labour of art seemed to have been anticipated by Nature.
+Cincinnatus could not have selected a prettier situation for a farm,
+than some which presented themselves, during this delightful journey. At
+last we arrived at the place of our destination, where our friends were
+in waiting for us.
+
+As I have already forwarded to you a paper containing an account of the
+Dundee meeting, I shall leave you to judge from these reports the
+character of the demonstration. Yet I must mention a fact or two
+connected with our first evening's visit to this town. A few hours after
+our arrival in the place, we were called upon by a gentleman whose name
+is known wherever the English language is spoken--one whose name is on
+the tongue of every student and school-boy in this country and America,
+and what lives upon their lips will live and be loved for ever.
+
+We were seated over a cup of strong tea, to revive our spirits for the
+evening, when our friend entered the room, accompanied by a gentleman,
+small in stature, and apparently seventy-five years of age, yet he
+appeared as active as one half that age. Feeling half drowsy from riding
+in the cold, and then the sudden change to a warm fire, I was rather
+inclined not to move on the entrance of the stranger. But the name of
+Thomas Dick, LL.D., roused me in a moment, from my lethargy; I could
+scarcely believe that I was in the presence of the "Christian
+Philosopher." Dr. Dick is one of the men to whom the age is indebted. I
+never find myself in the presence of one to whom the world owes so much
+as Dr. Dick, without feeling a thrilling emotion, as if I were in the
+land of spirits. Dr. Dick had come to our lodgings to see and
+congratulate Wm. and Ellen Craft upon their escape from the republican
+Christians of the United States; and as he pressed the hand of the
+"white slave," and bid her "welcome to British soil," I saw the silent
+tear stealing down the cheek of this man of genius. How I wished that
+the many slaveholders and pro-slavery professed Christians of America,
+who have read and pondered the philosophy of this man, could have been
+present. Thomas Dick is an abolitionist--one who is willing that the
+world should know that he hates the "peculiar institution." At the
+meeting that evening, Dr. Dick was among the most prominent. But this
+was not the only distinguished man who took part on that occasion.
+
+Another great mind was on the platform, and entered his solemn protest
+in a manner long to be remembered by those present. This was the Rev.
+George Gilfillan, well known as the author of the "Portraits of Literary
+Men." Mr. Gilfillan is an energetic speaker, and would have been the
+lion of the evening, even if many others who are more distinguished as
+platform orators had been present. I think it was Napoleon who said that
+the enthusiasm of others abated his own. At any rate, the spirit with
+which each speaker entered upon his duty for the evening, abated my own
+enthusiasm for the time being. The last day of our stay in Dundee, I
+paid a visit, by invitation, to Dr. Dick, at his residence in the little
+village of Broughty Ferry. We found the great astronomer in his parlour
+waiting for us. From the parlour we went to the new study, and here I
+felt more at ease, for I went to see the Philosopher in his study, and
+not in his drawing-room. But even this room had too much the look of
+nicety to be an author's _sanctum_; and I inquired and was soon informed
+by Mrs. Dick, that I should have a look at the "_old study_."
+
+During a sojourn of eighteen months in Great Britain, I have had the
+good fortune to meet with several distinguished literary characters, and
+have always managed, while at their places of abode, to see the table
+and favourite chair. Wm. and Ellen Craft were seeing what they could see
+through a microscope, when Mrs. Dick returned to the room, and intimated
+that we could now see the old literary workshop. I followed, and was
+soon in a room about fifteen feet square, with but one window, which
+occupied one side of the room. The walls of the other three sides were
+lined with books. And many of these looked the very personification of
+age. I took my seat in the "_old arm chair_;" and here, thought I, is
+the place and the seat in which this distinguished man sat, while
+weaving the radiant wreath of renown which now in his old age surrounds
+him, and whose labours will be more appreciated by future ages than the
+present.
+
+I took a farewell of the author of the "Solar System," but not until I
+had taken a look through the great telescope in the observatory. This
+instrument, through which I tried to see the heavens, was not the one
+invented by Galileo, but an improvement upon the original. On leaving
+this learned man, he shook hands with us, and bade us "God speed" in our
+mission; and I left the philosopher, feeling I had not passed an hour
+more agreeably, with a literary character, since the hour which I spent
+with Poet Montgomery a few months since. And, by-the-bye, there is a
+resemblance between the poet and the philosopher. In becoming acquainted
+with great men, I have become a convert to the opinion, that a big nose
+is an almost necessary appendage to the form of a man with a giant
+intellect. If those whom I have seen be a criterion, such is certainly
+the case. But I have spun out this too long, and must close.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XV.
+
+_Melrose Abbey--Abbotsford--Dryburgh Abbey--The Grave of Sir Walter
+Scott--Hawick--Gretna Green--Visit to the Lakes._
+
+
+                    YORK, _March 26, 1851_.
+
+I closed my last letter in the ancient town of Melrose, on the banks of
+the Tweed, and within a stone's throw of the celebrated ruins from which
+the town derives its name. The valley in which Melrose is situated, and
+the surrounding hills, together with the Monastery, have so often been
+made a theme for the Scottish bards, that this has become the most
+interesting part of Scotland. Of the many gifted writers who have taken
+up the pen, none have done more to bring the Eildon Hills and Melrose
+Abbey into note, than the author of "Waverley." But who can read his
+writings without a regret, that he should have so woven fact and fiction
+together, that it is almost impossible to discriminate between the one
+and the other.
+
+We arrived at Melrose in the evening, and proceeded to the chapel where
+our meeting was to be held, and where our friends, the Crafts, were
+warmly greeted. On returning from the meeting, we passed close by the
+ruins of Melrose, and, very fortunately, it was a moonlight night. There
+is considerable difference of opinion among the inhabitants of the place
+as regards the best time to view the Abbey. The author of the "Lay of
+the Last Minstrel," says:--
+
+   "If thou wouldst view fair Melrose aright,
+    Go visit it by the pale moonlight:
+    For the gay beams of lightsome day
+    Gild but to flout the ruins gray."
+
+
+In consequence of this admonition, I was informed that many persons
+remain in town to see the ruins by moonlight. Aware that the moon did
+not send its rays upon the old building every night in the year, I asked
+the keeper what he did on dark nights. He replied that he had a large
+lantern, which he put upon the end of a long pole, and with this he
+succeeded in lighting up the ruins. This good man laboured hard to
+convince me that his invention was nearly, if not quite as good, as
+Nature's own moon. But having no need of an application of his invention
+to the Abbey, I had no opportunity of judging of its effect. I thought,
+however, that he had made a moon to some purpose, when he informed me
+that some nights, with his pole and lantern, he earned his four or five
+shillings. Not being content with a view by "moonlight alone," I was up
+the next morning before the sun, and paid my respects to the Abbey. I
+was too early for the keeper, and he handed me the key through the
+window, and I entered the rooms alone. It is one labyrinth of gigantic
+arches and dilapidated halls, the ivy growing and clinging wherever it
+can fasten its roots, and the whole as fine a picture of decay as
+imagination could create. This was the favourite resort of Sir Walter
+Scott, and furnished him much matter for the "Lay of the Last Minstrel."
+He could not have selected a more fitting place for solitary thought
+than this ancient abode of monks and priests. In passing through the
+cloisters, I could not but remark the carvings of leaves and flowers,
+wrought in stone in the most exquisite manner, looking as fresh as if
+they were just from the hands of the artist. The lapse of centuries
+seems not to have made any impression upon them, or changed their
+appearance in the least. I sat down among the ruins of the Abbey. The
+ground about was piled up with magnificent fragments of stone,
+representing various texts of Scripture, and the quaint ideas of the
+priests and monks of that age. Scene after scene swept through my fancy
+as I looked upon the surrounding objects. I could almost imagine I saw
+the bearded monks going from hall to hall, and from cell to cell. In
+visiting these dark cells, the mind becomes oppressed by a sense of the
+utter helplessness of the victims who once passed over the thresholds
+and entered these religious prisons. There was no help or hope but in
+the will that ordered their fate. How painful it is to gaze upon these
+walls, and to think how many tears have been shed by their inmates, when
+this old Monastery was in its glory. I ascended to the top of the ruin
+by a circuitous stairway, whose stone steps were worn deep from use by
+many who, like myself, had visited them to gratify a curiosity. From the
+top of the Abbey, I had a splendid view of the surrounding hills and
+the beautiful valley through which flows the Gala Water and Tweed. This
+is unquestionably the most splendid specimen of Gothic architectural
+ruin in Scotland. But any description of mine conveys but a poor idea to
+the fancy. To be realized, it must be seen.
+
+During the day, we paid a visit to Abbotsford, the splendid mansion of
+the late Sir Walter Scott, Bart. This beautiful seat is situated on the
+banks of the Tweed, just below its junction with the Gala Water. It is a
+dreary looking spot, and the house from the opposite side of the river
+has the appearance of a small, low castle. In a single day's ride
+through England, one may see half a dozen cottages larger than
+Abbotsford House. I was much disappointed in finding the premises
+undergoing repairs and alterations, and that all the trees between the
+house and the river had been cut down. This is to be regretted the more,
+because they were planted, nearly every one of them, by the same hand
+that waved its wand of enchantment over the world. The fountain had been
+removed from where it had been placed by the hands of the Poet to the
+centre of the yard; and even a small stone that had been placed over the
+favourite dog "Percy," had been taken up and thrown among some loose
+stones. One visits Abbotsford because of the genius of the man that once
+presided over it. Everything connected with the great Poet is of
+interest to his admirers, and anything altered or removed, tends to
+diminish that interest. We entered the house, and were conducted through
+the great Hall, which is hung all round with massive armour of all
+descriptions, and other memorials of ancient times. The floor is of
+white and black marble. In passing through the hall, we entered a narrow
+arched room, stretching quite across the building, having a window at
+each end. This little or rather narrow room is filled with all kinds of
+armour, which is arranged with great taste. We were next shown into the
+Dining-room, whose roof is of black oak, richly carved. In this room is
+a painting of the head of Queen Mary, in a charger, taken the day after
+the execution. Many other interesting portraits grace the walls of this
+room. But by far the finest apartment in the building is the
+Drawing-room, with a lofty ceiling, and furnished with antique ebony
+furniture. After passing through the Library, with its twenty thousand
+volumes, we found ourselves in the Study, and I sat down in the same
+chair where once sat the Poet; while before me was the table upon which
+was written the "Lady of the Lake," "Waverley," and other productions of
+this gifted writer. The clothes last worn by the Poet were shown to us.
+There was the broad skirted blue coat, with its large buttons, the plaid
+trousers, the heavy shoes, the black vest and white hat. These were all
+in a glass case, and all looked the poet and novelist. But the inside of
+the buildings had undergone alterations as well as the outside. In
+passing through the Library, we saw a granddaughter of the Poet. She was
+from London, and was only on a visit of a few days. She looked pale and
+dejected, and seemed as if she longed to leave this secluded spot and
+return to the metropolis. She looked for all the world like a hothouse
+plant. I don't think the Scotch could do better than to purchase
+Abbotsford, while it has some imprint of the great magician, and secure
+its preservation; for I am sure that, a hundred years hence, no place
+will be more frequently visited in Scotland than the home of the late
+Sir Walter Scott. After sauntering three hours about the premises, I
+left, but not without feeling that I had been well paid for my trouble
+in visiting Abbotsford.
+
+In the afternoon of the same day, in company with the Crafts, I took a
+drive to Dryburgh Abbey. It is a ruin of little interest, except as
+being the burial place of Scott. The poet lies buried in St. Mary's
+Aisle. His grave is in the left transept of the cross, and close to
+where the high altar formerly stood. Sir Walter Scott chose his own
+grave, and he could not have selected a sunnier spot if he had roamed
+the wide world over. A shaded window breaks the sun as it falls upon his
+grave. The ivy is creeping and clinging wherever it can, as if it would
+shelter the poet's grave from the weather. The author lies between his
+wife and eldest son, and there is only room enough for one grave more,
+and the son's wife has the choice of being buried here.
+
+The four o'clock train took us to Hawick; and after a pleasant visit in
+this place, and the people registering their names against American
+Slavery, and the Fugitive Bill in particular, we set out for Carlisle,
+passing through the antique town of Langholm. After leaving the latter
+place, we had to travel by coach. But no matter how one travels here, he
+travels at a more rapid rate than in America. The distance from Langholm
+to Carlisle, twenty miles, occupied only two and a-half hours in the
+journey. It was a cold day and I had to ride on the outside, as the
+inside had been taken up. We changed horses, and took in and put out
+passengers with a rapidity which seems almost incredible. The road was
+as smooth as a mirror.
+
+We bid farewell to Scotland, as we reached the little town of Gretna
+Green. This town being on the line between England and Scotland, is
+noted as the place where a little cross-eyed, red-faced blacksmith, by
+the name of Priestly, first set up his own altar to Hymen, and married
+all who came to him, without regard to rank or station, and at prices to
+suit all. It was worth a ride through this part of the country, if for
+no other purpose than to see the town where more clandestine marriages
+have taken place than in any other part in the world. A ride of eight or
+nine miles brought us in sight of the Eden, winding its way slowly
+through a beautiful valley, with farms on either side, covered with
+sheep and cattle. Four very tall chimneys, sending forth dense columns
+of black smoke, announced to us that we were near Carlisle. I was really
+glad of this, for Ulysses was never more tired of the shores of Ilion
+than I of the top of that coach.
+
+We remained over night at Carlisle, partaking of the hospitality of the
+prince of bakers, and left the next day for the Lakes, where we had a
+standing invitation to pay a visit to a distinguished literary lady. A
+cold ride of about fifty miles brought us to the foot of Lake
+Windermere, a beautiful sheet of water, surrounded by mountains that
+seemed to vie with each other which should approach nearest the sky. The
+margin of the lake is carved out and built up into terrace above
+terrace, until the slopes and windings are lost in the snow-capped peaks
+of the mountains. It is not surprising that such men as Southey,
+Coleridge, Wordsworth, and others, resorted to this region for
+inspiration. After a coach ride of five miles (passing on our journey
+the "Dove's Nest," home of the late Mrs. Hemans), we were put down at
+the door of the Salutation Hotel, Ambleside, and a few minutes after
+found ourselves under the roof of the authoress of "Society in America."
+I know not how it is with others, but for my own part, I always form an
+opinion of the appearance of an author whose writings I am at all
+familiar with, or a statesman whose speeches I have read. I had pictured
+in my own mind a tall, stately-looking lady of about sixty years, as the
+authoress of "Travels in the East," and for once I was right, with the
+single exception that I had added on too many years by twelve. The
+evening was spent in talking about the United States; and William Craft
+had to go through the narrative of his escape from slavery. When I
+retired for the night, I found it almost impossible to sleep. The idea
+that I was under the roof of the authoress of "The Hour and the Man,"
+and that I was on the banks of the sweetest lake in Great Britain,
+within half a mile of the residence of the late poet Wordsworth, drove
+sleep from my pillow. But I must leave an account of my visit to the
+Lakes for a future letter.
+
+When I look around and see the happiness here, even among the poorer
+classes, and that too in a country where the soil is not at all to be
+compared with our own, I mourn for our down-trodden countrymen, who are
+plundered, oppressed, and made chattels of, to enable an ostentatious
+aristocracy to vie with each other in splendid extravagance.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XVI.
+
+_Miss Martineau--"The Knoll"--"Ridal Mount"--"The Dove's Nest"--Grave of
+William Wordsworth, Esq.--The English Peasant._
+
+
+                    _May 30, 1851_.
+
+A series of public meetings, one pressing close upon the heel of
+another, must be an apology for my six or eight weeks' silence. But I
+hope that no temporary suspense on my part will be construed into a want
+of interest in our cause, or a wish to desist from giving occasionally a
+scrap (such as it is) to the _North Star_.
+
+My last letter left me under the hospitable roof of Harriet Martineau. I
+had long had an invitation to visit this distinguished friend of our
+race, and as the invitation was renewed during my tour through the
+North, I did not feel disposed to decline it, and thereby lose so
+favourable an opportunity of meeting with one who had written so much in
+behalf of the oppressed of our land. About a mile from the head of Lake
+Windermere, and immediately under Wonsfell, and encircled by mountains
+on all sides, except the south-west, lies the picturesque little town of
+Ambleside, and the brightest spot in the place is "The Knoll," the
+residence of Miss Martineau.
+
+We reached "The Knoll" a little after nightfall, and a cordial shake of
+the hand by Miss M., who was waiting for us, soon assured us that we had
+met with a warm friend.
+
+It is not my intention to lay open the scenes of domestic life at "The
+Knoll," nor to describe the social parties of which my friends and I
+were partakers during our sojourn within the hospitable walls of this
+distinguished writer; but the name of Miss M. is so intimately connected
+with the Anti-slavery movement, by her early writings, and those have
+been so much admired by the friends of the slave in the United States,
+that I deem it not at all out of place for me to give the readers of the
+_North Star_ some idea of the authoress of "Political Economy," "Travels
+in the East," "The Hour and the Man," &c.
+
+The dwelling is a cottage of moderate size, built after Miss M.'s own
+plan, upon a rise of land from which it derives the name of "The Knoll."
+The Library is the largest room in the building, and upon the walls of
+it were hung some beautiful engravings and a continental map. On a long
+table which occupied the centre of the room, were the busts of
+Shakspere, Newton, Milton, and a few other literary characters of the
+past. One side of the room was taken up with a large case, filled with a
+choice collection of books, and everything indicated that it was the
+home of genius and of taste.
+
+The room usually occupied by Miss M., and where we found her on the
+evening of our arrival, is rather small and lighted by two large
+windows. The walls of this room were also decorated with prints and
+pictures, and on the mantle-shelf were some models in _terra cottia_ of
+Italian groups. On a circular table lay casts, medallions, and some very
+choice water-colour drawings. Under the south window stood a small table
+covered with newly opened letters, a portfolio and several new books,
+with here and there a page turned down, and one with a paper knife
+between its leaves as if it had only been half read. I took up the last
+mentioned, and it proved to be the "Life and Poetry of Hartly
+Coleridge," son of S.T. Coleridge. It was just from the press, and had,
+a day or two before, been forwarded to her by the publisher. Miss M. is
+very deaf and always carries in her left hand a trumpet; and I was not a
+little surprised on learning from her that she had never enjoyed the
+sense of smell, and only on one occasion the sense of taste, and that
+for a single moment. Miss M. is loved with a sort of idolatry by the
+people of Ambleside, and especially the poor, to whom she gives a
+course of lectures every winter gratuitously. She finished her last
+course the day before our arrival. She was much pleased with Ellen
+Craft, and appeared delighted with the story of herself and husband's
+escape from slavery, as related by the latter--during the recital of
+which I several times saw the silent tear stealing down her cheek, and
+which she tried in vain to hide from us.
+
+When Craft had finished, she exclaimed, "I would that every woman in the
+British Empire, could hear that tale as I have, so that they might know
+how their own sex was treated in that boasted land of liberty." It seems
+strange to the people of this county, that one so white and so lady-like
+as Mrs. Craft, should have been a slave and forced to leave the land of
+her nativity and seek an asylum in a foreign country. The morning after
+our arrival, I took a stroll by a circuitous pathway to the top of
+Loughrigg Fell. At the foot of the mount I met a peasant, who very
+kindly offered to lend me his donkey, upon which to ascend the mountain.
+Never having been upon the back of one of these long eared animals, I
+felt some hesitation about trusting myself upon so diminutive looking a
+creature. But being assured that if I would only resign myself to his
+care and let him have his own way, I would be perfectly safe, I mounted,
+and off we set. We had, however, scarcely gone fifty rods, when, in
+passing over a narrow part of the path and overlooking a deep chasm, one
+of the hind feet of the donkey slipped, and with an involuntary shudder,
+I shut my eyes to meet my expected doom; but fortunately the little
+fellow gained his foothold, and in all probability saved us both from a
+premature death. After we had passed over this dangerous place, I
+dismounted, and as soon as my feet had once more gained _terra firma_, I
+resolved that I would never again yield my own judgment to that of any
+one, not even to a donkey.
+
+It seems as if Nature has amused herself in throwing these mountains
+together. From the top of the Loughrigg Fell, the eye loses its power in
+gazing upon the objects below. On our left, lay Rydal Mount, the
+beautiful seat of the late poet Wordsworth. While to the right, and away
+in the dim distance, almost hidden by the native trees, was the cottage
+where once resided Mrs. Hemans. And below us lay Windermere, looking
+more like a river than a lake, and which, if placed by the side of our
+own Ontario, Erie or Huron, would be lost in the fog. But here it looks
+beautiful in the extreme, surrounded as it is by a range of mountains
+that have no parallel in the United States for beauty. Amid a sun of
+uncommon splendour, dazzling the eye with the reflection upon the water
+below, we descended into the valley, and I was soon again seated by the
+fireside of our hospitable hostess. In the afternoon of the same day, we
+took a drive to the "Dove's Nest," the home of the late Mrs. Hemans.
+
+We did not see the inside of the house, on account of its being occupied
+by a very eccentric man, who will not permit a woman to enter the house,
+and it is said that he has been known to run when a female had
+unconsciously intruded herself upon his premises. And as our company was
+in part composed of ladies, we had to share their fate, and therefore
+were prevented from seeing the interior of the Dove's Nest. The
+exhibitor of such a man would be almost sure of a prize at the great
+Exhibition.
+
+At the head of Grassmere Lake, and surrounded by a few cottages, stands
+an old gray, antique-looking Parish Church, venerable with the lapse of
+centuries, and the walls partly covered with ivy, and in the rear of
+which is the parish burial-ground. After leaving the Dove's Nest, and
+having a pleasant ride over the hills and between the mountains, and
+just as the sun was disappearing behind them, we arrived at the gate of
+Grassmere Church; and alighting and following Miss M., we soon found
+ourselves standing over a grave, marked by a single stone, and that,
+too, very plain, with a name deeply cut. This announced to us that we
+were standing over the grave of William Wordsworth. He chose his own
+grave, and often visited the spot before his death. He lies in the most
+sequestered spot in the whole grounds, and the simplicity and beauty of
+the place was enough to make one in love with it, to be laid so far from
+the bustle of the world, and in so sweet a place. The more one becomes
+acquainted with the literature of the old world, the more he must love
+her poets. Among the teachers of men, none are more worthy of study than
+the poets; and, as teachers, they should receive far more credit than is
+yielded to them. No one can look back upon the lives of Dante,
+Shakspere, Milton, Goethe, Cowper, and many others that we might name,
+without being reminded of the sacrifices which they made for mankind,
+and which were not appreciated until long after their deaths. We need
+look no farther than our own country to find men and women wielding the
+pen practically and powerfully for the right. It is acknowledged on all
+hands in this country, that England has the greatest dead poets, and
+America the greatest living ones. The poet and the true Christian have
+alike a hidden life. Worship is the vital element of each. Poetry has in
+it that kind of utility which good men find in their Bible, rather than
+such convenience as bad men often profess to draw from it. It ennobles
+the sentiments, enlarges the affections, kindles the imagination, and
+gives to us the enjoyment of a life in the past, and in the future, as
+well as in the present. Under its light and warmth, we wake from our
+torpidity and coldness, to a sense of our capabilities. This impulse
+once given, a great object is gained. Schiller has truly said, "Poetry
+can be to a man, what love is to a hero. It can neither counsel him nor
+smite him, nor perform any labour for him, but it can bring him up to be
+a hero, can summon him to deeds, and arm him with strength for all he
+ought to be." I have often read with pleasure the sweet poetry of our
+own Whitfield of Buffalo, which has appeared from time to time in the
+columns of the _North Star_. I have always felt ashamed of the fact that
+he should be compelled to wield the razor instead of the pen for a
+living. Meaner poets than James M. Whitfield, are now living by their
+compositions; and were he a white man he would occupy a different
+position.
+
+After remaining a short time, and reading the epitaphs of the departed,
+we again returned to "The Knoll." Nothing can be more imposing than the
+beauty of English park scenery, and especially in the vicinity of the
+lakes. Magnificent lawns that extend like sheets of vivid green, with
+here and there a sprinkling of fine trees, heaping up rich piles of
+foliage, and then the forests with the hare, the deer, and the rabbit,
+bounding away to the covert, or the pheasant suddenly bursting upon the
+wing--the artificial stream, the brook taught to wind in natural
+meanderings, or expand into the glassy lake, with the yellow leaf
+sleeping upon its bright waters, and occasionally a rustic temple or
+sylvan statue grown green and dark with age, give an air of sanctity and
+picturesque beauty to English scenery that is unknown in the United
+States. The very labourer with his thatched cottage and narrow slip of
+ground-plot before the door, the little flower-bed, the woodbine trimmed
+against the wall, and hanging its blossoms about the windows, and the
+peasant seen trudging home at nightfall with the avails of the toil of
+the day upon his back--all this tells us of the happiness both of rich
+and poor in this country. And yet there are those who would have the
+world believe that the labourer of England is in a far worse condition
+than the slaves of America. Such persons know nothing of the real
+condition of the working classes of this country. At any rate, the poor
+here, as well as the rich, are upon a level, as far as the laws of the
+country are concerned. The more one becomes acquainted with the English
+people, the more one has to admire them. They are so different from the
+people of our own country. Hospitality, frankness, and good humour, are
+always to be found in an Englishman. After a ramble of three days about
+the lakes, we mounted the coach, bidding Miss Martineau farewell, and
+quitted the lake district.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XVII.
+
+_A Day in the Crystal Palace._
+
+
+                    LONDON, _June 27th, 1851_.
+
+Presuming that you will expect from me some account of the great World's
+Fair, I take my pen to give you my own impressions, although I am afraid
+that anything which I may say about this "Lion of the day," will fall
+far short of a description. On Monday last, I quitted my lodgings at an
+early hour, and started for the Crystal Palace. This day was fine, such
+as we seldom experience in London, with a clear sky, and invigorating
+air, whose vitality was as rousing to the spirits as a blast from the
+"horn of Astolpho." Although it was not yet 10 o'clock when I entered
+Piccadilly, every omnibus was full, inside and out, and the street was
+lined with one living stream, as far as the eye could reach, all wending
+their way to the "Glass-House." No metropolis in the world presents such
+facilities as London for the reception of the Great Exhibition, now
+collected within its walls. Throughout its myriads of veins, the stream
+of industry and toil pulses with sleepless energy. Every one seems to
+feel that this great Capital of the world, is the fittest place wherein
+they might offer homage to the dignity of toil. I had already begun to
+feel fatigued by my pedestrian excursion as I passed "Apsley House," the
+residence of the Duke of Wellington, and emerged into Hyde Park.
+
+I had hoped that on getting into the Park, I would be out of the crowd
+that seemed to press so heavily in the street. But in this I was
+mistaken. I here found myself surrounded by and moving with an
+overwhelming mass, such as I had never before witnessed. And, away in
+the distance, I beheld a dense crowd, and above every other object, was
+seen the lofty summit of the Crystal Palace. The drive in the Park was
+lined with princely-looking vehicles of every description. The drivers
+in their bright red and gold uniforms, the pages and footmen in their
+blue trousers and white silk stockings, and the horses dressed up in
+their neat, silver-mounted harness, made the scene altogether one of
+great splendour. I was soon at the door, paid my shilling, and entered
+the building at the south end of the Transept. For the first ten or
+twenty minutes I was so lost in astonishment, and absorbed in pleasing
+wonder, that I could do nothing but gaze up and down the vista of the
+noble building. The Crystal Palace resembles in some respects, the
+interior of the cathedrals of this country. One long avenue from east to
+west is intersected by a Transept, which divides the building into two
+nearly equal parts. This is the greatest building the world ever saw,
+before which the Pyramids of Egypt, and the Colossus of Rhodes must
+hide their diminished heads. The palace was not full at any time during
+the day, there being only 64,000 persons present. Those who love to
+study the human countenance in all its infinite varieties, can find
+ample scope for the indulgence of their taste, by a visit to the World's
+Fair. All countries are there represented--Europeans, Asiatics,
+Americans and Africans, with their numerous subdivisions. Even the
+exclusive Chinese, with his hair braided, and hanging down his back, has
+left the land of his nativity, and is seen making long strides through
+the Crystal Palace, in his wooden-bottomed shoes. Of all places of
+curious costumes and different fashions, none has ever yet presented
+such a variety as this Exhibition. No dress is too absurd to be worn in
+this place.
+
+There is a great deal of freedom in the Exhibition. The servant who
+walks behind his mistress through the Park feels that he can crowd
+against her in the Exhibition. The Queen and the day labourer, the
+Prince and the merchant, the peer and the pauper, the Celt and the
+Saxon, the Greek and the Frank, the Hebrew and the Russ, all meet here
+upon terms of perfect equality. This amalgamation of rank, this kindly
+blending of interests, and forgetfulness of the cold formalities of
+ranks and grades, cannot but be attended with the very best results. I
+was pleased to see such a goodly sprinkling of my own countrymen in the
+Exhibition--I mean coloured men and women--well-dressed, and moving
+about with their fairer brethren. This, some of our pro-slavery
+Americans did not seem to relish very well. There was no help for it. As
+I walked through the American part of the Crystal Palace, some of our
+Virginian neighbours eyed me closely and with jealous looks, especially
+as an English lady was leaning on my arm. But their sneering looks did
+not disturb me in the least. I remained the longer in their department,
+and criticised the bad appearance of their goods the more. Indeed, the
+Americans, as far as appearance goes, are behind every other country in
+the Exhibition. The "Greek Slave" is the only production of Art which
+the United States has sent. And it would have been more to their credit
+had they kept that at home. In so vast a place as the Great Exhibition
+one scarcely knows what to visit first, or what to look upon last. After
+wandering about through the building for five hours, I sat down in one
+of the galleries and looked at the fine marble statue of Virginius, with
+the knife in his hand and about to take the life of his beloved and
+beautiful daughter, to save her from the hands of Appius Claudius. The
+admirer of genius will linger for hours among the great variety of
+statues in the long avenue. Large statues of Lords Eldon and Stowell,
+carved out of solid marble, each weighing above twenty tons, are among
+the most gigantic in the building.
+
+I was sitting with my 400 paged guide-book before me, and looking down
+upon the moving mass, when my attention was called to a small group of
+gentlemen standing near the statue of Shakspere, one of whom wore a
+white coat and hat, and had flaxen hair, and trousers rather short in
+the legs. The lady by my side, and who had called my attention to the
+group, asked if I could tell what country this odd-looking gentleman was
+from? Not wishing to run the risk of a mistake, I was about declining
+to venture an opinion, when the reflection of the sun against a mirror,
+on the opposite side, threw a brilliant light upon the group, and
+especially on the face of the gentleman in the white coat, and I
+immediately recognized under the brim of the white hat, the features of
+Horace Greeley, Esq., of the New York "Tribune." His general appearance
+was as much out of the English style as that of the Turk whom I had seen
+but a moment before--in his bag-like trousers, shuffling along in his
+slippers. But oddness in dress, is one of the characteristics of the
+Great Exhibition.
+
+Among the many things in the Crystal Palace, there are some which
+receive greater attention than others, around which may always be seen
+large groups of the visitors. The first of these is the Koh-i-noor, the
+"Mountain of Light." This is the largest and most valuable diamond in
+the world, said to be worth L2,000,000 sterling. It is indeed a great
+source of attraction to those who go to the Exhibition for the first
+time, but it is doubtful whether it obtains such admiration afterwards.
+We saw more than one spectator turn away with the idea that after all
+it was only a piece of glass. After some jamming, I got a look at the
+precious jewel, and although in a brass-grated cage, strong enough to
+hold a lion, I found it to be no larger than the third of a hen's egg.
+Two policemen remain by its side day and night.
+
+The finest thing in the Exhibition, is the "Veiled Vestal," a statue of
+a woman carved in marble, with a veil over her face, and so neatly done,
+that it looks as if it had been thrown over after it was finished. The
+Exhibition presents many things which appeal to the eye and touch the
+heart, and altogether, it is so decorated and furnished, as to excite
+the dullest mind, and satisfy the most fastidious.
+
+England has contributed the most useful and substantial articles;
+France, the most beautiful; while Russia, Turkey, and the West Indies,
+seem to vie with each other in richness. China and Persia are not
+behind. Austria has also contributed a rich and beautiful stock. Sweden,
+Norway, Denmark, and the smaller states of Europe, have all tried to
+outdo themselves in sending goods to the World's Fair. In Machinery,
+England has no competitor. In Art, France is almost alone in the
+Exhibition, setting aside England.
+
+In natural productions and provisions, America stands alone in her
+glory. There lies her pile of canvassed hams; whether they were wood or
+real, we could not tell. There are her barrels of salt, beef, and pork,
+her beautiful white lard, her Indian-corn and corn-meal, her rice and
+tobacco, her beef tongues, dried peas, and a few bags of cotton. The
+contributors from the United States seemed to have forgotten that this
+was an exhibition of Art, or they most certainly would not have sent
+provisions. But the United States takes the lead in the contributions,
+as no other country has sent in provisions. The finest thing contributed
+by our countrymen, is a large piece of silk with an eagle painted upon
+it, surrounded by stars and stripes.
+
+After remaining more than five hours in the great temple, I turned my
+back upon the richly laden stalls and left the Crystal Palace. On my
+return home I was more fortunate than in the morning, inasmuch as I
+found a seat for my friend and myself in an omnibus. And even my ride
+in the close omnibus was not without interest. For I had scarcely taken
+my seat, when my friend, who was seated opposite me, with looks and
+gesture informed me that we were in the presence of some distinguished
+person. I eyed the countenances of the different persons, but in vain,
+to see if I could find any one who by his appearance showed signs of
+superiority over his fellow-passengers. I had given up the hope of
+selecting the person of note when another look from my friend directed
+my attention to a gentlemen seated in the corner of the omnibus. He was
+a tall man with strongly marked features, hair dark and coarse. There
+was a slight stoop of the shoulder--that bend which is almost always a
+characteristic of studious men. But he wore upon his countenance a
+forbidding and disdainful frown, that seemed to tell one that he thought
+himself better than those about him. His dress did not indicate a man of
+high rank; and had we been in America, I would have taken him for an
+Ohio farmer.
+
+While I was scanning the features and general appearance of the
+gentleman, the Omnibus stopped and put down three or four of the
+passengers, which gave me an opportunity of getting a seat by the side
+of my friend, who, in a low whisper, informed me that the gentleman whom
+I had been eyeing so closely, was no less a person than Thomas Carlyle.
+I had read his "Hero-worship," and "Past and Present," and had formed a
+high opinion of his literary abilities. But his recent attack upon the
+emancipated people of the West Indies, and his laborious article in
+favour of the re-establishment of the lash and slavery, had created in
+my mind a dislike for the man, and I almost regretted that we were in
+the same Omnibus. In some things, Mr. Carlyle is right: but in many, he
+is entirely wrong. As a writer, Mr. Carlyle is often monotonous and
+extravagant. He does not exhibit a new view of nature, or raise
+insignificant objects into importance, but generally takes commonplace
+thoughts and events, and tries to express them in stronger and statelier
+language than others. He holds no communion with his kind, but stands
+alone without mate or fellow. He is like a solitary peak, all access to
+which is cut off. He exists not by sympathy but by antipathy. Mr.
+Carlyle seems chiefly to try how he shall display his own powers, and
+astonish mankind, by starting new trains of speculation or by expressing
+old ones so as not to be understood. He cares little what he says, so as
+he can say it differently from others. To read his works, is one thing;
+to understand them, is another. If any one thinks that I exaggerate, let
+him sit for an hour over "Sartor Resartus," and if he does not rise from
+its pages, place his three or four dictionaries on the shelf, and say I
+am right, I promise never again to say a word against Thomas Carlyle. He
+writes one page in favour of Reform, and ten against it. He would hang
+all prisoners to get rid of them, yet the inmates of the prisons and
+"work-houses are better off than the poor." His heart is with the poor;
+yet the blacks of the West Indies should be taught, that if they will
+not raise sugar and cotton by their own free will, "Quashy should have
+the whip applied to him." He frowns upon the Reformatory speakers upon
+the boards of Exeter Hall, yet he is the prince of reformers. He hates
+heroes and assassins, yet Cromwell was an angel, and Charlotte Corday a
+saint. He scorns everything, and seems to be tired of what he is by
+nature, and tries to be what he is not. But you will ask, what has
+Thomas Carlyle to do with a visit to the Crystal Palace? My only reply
+is, "Nothing," and if my remarks upon him have taken up the space that
+should have been devoted to the Exhibition, and what I have written not
+prove too burdensome to read, my next will be "a week in the Crystal
+Palace."
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XVIII.
+
+_The London Peace Congress--Meeting of Fugitive Slaves--Temperance
+Demonstration--The Great Exhibition: last visit._
+
+
+                    LONDON, _August 20_.
+
+The past six weeks have been of a stirring nature in this great
+metropolis. It commenced with the Peace Congress, the proceedings of
+which have long since reached you. And although that event has passed
+off, it may not be out of place here to venture a remark or two upon its
+deliberations.
+
+A meeting upon the subject of Peace, with the support of the monied and
+influential men who rally around the Peace standard, could scarcely have
+been held in Exeter Hall without creating some sensation. From all parts
+of the world flocked delegates to this practical protest against war.
+And among those who took part in the proceedings, were many men whose
+names alone would, even on ordinary occasions, have filled the great
+hall. The speakers were chosen from among the representatives of the
+various countries, without regard to dialect or complexion; and the only
+fault which seemed to be found with the Committee's arrangement was,
+that in their desire to get foreigners and Londoners, they forgot the
+country delegates, so that none of the large provincial towns were at
+all represented in the Congress, so far as speaking was concerned.
+Manchester, Leeds, Newcastle, and all the important towns in Scotland
+and Ireland, were silenced in the great meeting. I need not say that
+this was an oversight of the Committee, and one, too, that has done some
+injury. Such men as the able Chairman of the late Anti-Corn Law League,
+cannot be forgotten in such a meeting, without giving offence to those
+who sent him, especially when the Committee brought forward, day after
+day, the same speakers, chosen from amongst the metropolitan delegation.
+However, the meeting was a glorious one, and will long be remembered
+with delight as a step onward in the cause of Peace. Burritt's
+Brotherhood Bazaar followed close upon the heels of the Peace Congress;
+and this had scarcely closed, when that ever-memorable meeting of the
+American Fugitive Slaves took place in the Hall of Commerce.
+
+The Temperance people made the next reformatory move. This meeting took
+place in Exeter Hall, and was made up of delegates from the various
+towns in the kingdom. They had come from the North, East, West, and
+South. There was the quick-spoken son of the Emerald Isle, with his
+pledge suspended from his neck; there, too, the Scot, speaking his broad
+dialect; also the representatives from the provincial towns of England
+and Wales, who seemed to speak anything but good English.
+
+The day after the meeting had closed in Exeter Hall, the country
+societies, together with those of the metropolis, assembled in Hyde
+Park, and then walked to the Crystal Palace. Their number while going to
+the Exhibition, was variously estimated at from 15,000 to 20,000, and
+was said to have been the largest gathering of Teetotalers ever
+assembled in London. They consisted chiefly of the working classes,
+their wives and children--clean, well-dressed and apparently happy:
+their looks indicating in every way those orderly habits which, beyond
+question, distinguish the devotees of that cause above the common
+labourers of this country. On arriving at the Exhibition, they soon
+distributed themselves among the departments, to revel in its various
+wonders, eating their own lunch, and drinking from the Crystal Fountain.
+
+And now I am at the world's wonder, I will remain here until I finish
+this sheet. I have spent fifteen days in the Exhibition, and have
+conversed with those who have spent double that number amongst its
+beauties, and the general opinion appears to be, that six months would
+not be too long to remain within its walls to enable one to examine its
+laden stalls. Many persons make the Crystal Palace their home, with the
+exception of night. I have seen them come in the morning, visit the
+dressing-room, then go to the refreshment room, and sit down to
+breakfast as if they had been at their hotel. Dinner and tea would be
+taken in turn.
+
+The Crystal Fountain is the great place of meeting in the Exhibition.
+There you may see husbands looking for lost wives, wives for stolen
+husbands, mothers for their lost children, and towns-people for their
+country friends; and unless you have an appointment at a certain place
+at an hour, you might as well prowl through the streets of London to
+find a friend, as in the Great Exhibition. There is great beauty in the
+"Glass House." Here, in the transept, with the glorious sunlight coming
+through that wonderful glass roof, may the taste be cultivated and
+improved, the mind edified, and the feelings chastened. Here,
+surrounded by noble creations in marble and bronze, and in the midst of
+an admiring throng, one may gaze at statuary which might fitly decorate
+the house of the proudest prince in Christendom.
+
+He who takes his station in the gallery, at either end, and looks upon
+that wondrous nave, or who surveys the matchless panorama around him
+from the intersection of the nave and transept, may be said, without
+presumption or exaggeration, to see all the kingdoms of this world and
+the glory of them. He sees not only a greater collection of fine
+articles, but also a greater as well as more various assemblage of the
+human race, than ever before was gathered under one roof.
+
+One of the beauties of this great international gathering is, that it is
+not confined to rank or grade. The million toilers from mine, and
+factory, and workshop, and loom, and office, and field, share with their
+more wealthy neighbours the feast of reason and imagination spread out
+in the Crystal Palace.
+
+It is strange indeed to see so many nations assembled and represented
+on one spot of British ground. In short, it is one great theatre, with
+thousands of performers, each playing his own part. England is there,
+with her mighty engines toiling and whirring, indefatigable in her
+enterprises to shorten labour. India spreads her glitter and paint.
+France, refined and fastidious, is there every day, giving the last
+touch to her picturesque group; and the other countries, each in their
+turn, doing what they can to show off. The distant hum of thousands of
+good humoured people, with occasionally a national anthem from some
+gigantic organ, together with the noise of the machinery, seems to send
+life into every part of the Crystal Palace.
+
+When you get tired of walking, you can sit down and write your
+impressions, and there is the "post" to receive your letter, or if it be
+Friday or Saturday, you may, if you choose, rest yourself by hearing a
+lecture from Professor Anstead; and then before leaving take your last
+look, and see something that you have not before seen. Every thing which
+is old in cities, new in colonial life, splendid in courts, useful in
+industry, beautiful in nature, or ingenious in invention, is there
+represented. In one place we have the Bible translated into one hundred
+and fifty languages; in another, we have saints and archbishops painted
+on glass; in another, old palaces and the altars of a John Knox, a
+Baxter, or some other divines of olden time. In the old Temple of
+Delphi, we read that every state of the civilized world had its separate
+treasury, where Herodotus, born two thousand years before his time, saw
+and observed all kinds of prodigies in gold and silver, brass and iron,
+and even in linen. The nations all met there on one common ground, and
+the peace of the earth was not a little promoted by their common
+interest in the sanctity and splendour of that shrine. As long as the
+Exhibition lasts, and its memory endures, we hope and trust that it may
+shed the same influence. With this hasty scrap, I take leave of the
+Great Exhibition.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XIX.
+
+_Oxford--Martyrs' Monument--Cost of the Burning of the Martyrs--The
+Colleges--Dr. Pusey--Energy, the Secret of Success._
+
+
+                    OXFORD, _September 10th, 1851_.
+
+I have just finished a short visit to the far famed city of Oxford,
+which has not unaptly been styled the City of Palaces. Aside from this
+being one of the principal seats of learning in the world, it is
+distinguished alike for its religious and political changes in times
+past. At one time it was the seat of Popery; at another, the
+uncompromising enemy of Rome. Here the tyrant, Richard the Third, held
+his court, and when James the First, and his son Charles the First,
+found their capital too hot to hold them, they removed to their loyal
+city of Oxford. The writings of the great Republicans were here
+committed to the flames. At one time Popery sent Protestants to the
+stake and faggot; at another, a Papist King found no favour with the
+people. A noble monument now stands where Cranmer, Ridley, and Latimer,
+proclaimed their sentiments and faith, and sealed them with their blood.
+And now we read upon the Town Treasurer's book--for three loads of wood,
+one load of faggots, one post, two chains and staples, to burn Ridley
+and Latimer, L1 5s. 1d. Such is the information one gets by looking over
+the records of books written three centuries ago.
+
+It was a beautiful day on which I arrived at Oxford, and instead of
+remaining in my hotel, I sallied forth to take a survey of the beauties
+of the city. I strolled into Christ Church Meadows, and there spent the
+evening in viewing the numerous halls of learning which surround that
+splendid promenade. And fine old buildings they are: centuries have
+rolled over many of them, hallowing the old walls, and making them grey
+with age. They have been for ages the chosen homes of piety and
+philosophy. Heroes and scholars have gone forth from their studies here,
+into the great field of the world, to seek their fortunes, and to
+conquer and be conquered. As I surveyed the exterior of the different
+Colleges, I could here and there see the reflection of the light from
+the window of some student, who was busy at his studies, or throwing
+away his time over some trashy novel, too many of which find their way
+into the trunks or carpet bags of the young men on setting out for
+College. As I looked upon the walls of these buildings, I thought as the
+rough stone is taken from the quarry to the finisher, there to be made
+into an ornament, so was the young mind brought here to be cultivated
+and developed. Many a poor unobtrusive young man, with the appearance of
+little or no ability, is here moulded into a hero, a scholar, a tyrant,
+or a friend of humanity. I never look upon these monuments of education,
+without a feeling of regret, that so few of our own race can find a
+place within their walls. And this being the fact, I see more and more
+the need of our people being encouraged to turn their attention more
+seriously to self-education, and thus to take a respectable position
+before the world, by virtue of their own cultivated minds and moral
+standing.
+
+Education, though obtained by a little at a time, and that, too, over
+the midnight lamp, will place its owner in a position to be respected
+by all, even though he be black. I know that the obstacles which the
+laws of the land, and of society, place between the coloured man and
+education in the United States, are very great, yet if _one_ can break
+through these barriers, more can; and if our people would only place the
+right appreciation upon education, they would find these obstacles are
+easier to be overcome than at first sight appears. A young man once
+asked Carlyle, what was the secret of success. His reply was, "Energy;
+whatever you undertake, do it with all your might." Had it not been for
+the possession of energy, I might now have been working as a servant for
+some brainless fellow who might be able to command my labour with his
+money, or I might have been yet toiling in chains and slavery. But
+thanks to energy, not only for my being to-day in a land of freedom, but
+also for my dear girls being in one of the best seminaries in France,
+instead of being in an American school, where the finger of scorn would
+be pointed at them by those whose superiority rests entirely upon their
+having a whiter skin. But I am straying too far from the purpose of
+this letter.
+
+Oxford is indeed one of the finest located places in the kingdom, and
+every inch of ground about it seems hallowed by interesting
+associations. The University, founded by the good King Alfred, still
+throws its shadow upon the side-walk; and the lapse of ten centuries
+seems to have made but little impression upon it. Other seats of
+learning may be entitled to our admiration, but Oxford claims our
+veneration. Although the lateness of the night compelled me, yet I felt
+an unwillingness to tear myself from the scene of such surpassing
+interest. Few places in any country as noted as Oxford is, but what has
+some distinguished person residing within its precincts. And knowing
+that the City of Palaces was not an exception to this rule, I resolved
+to see some of its lions. Here, of course, is the head quarters of the
+Bishop of Oxford, a son of the late William Wilberforce, Africa's noble
+champion. I should have been glad to have seen this distinguished pillar
+of the Church, but I soon learned that the Bishop's residence was out of
+town, and that he seldom visited the city except on business. I then
+determined to see one who, although a lesser dignitary in the church, is
+nevertheless, scarcely less known than the Bishop of Oxford. This was
+the Rev. Dr. Pusey, a divine, whose name is known wherever the religion
+of Jesus is known and taught, and the acknowledged head of the
+Puseyites. On the second morning of my visit, I proceeded to Christ
+Church Chapel, where the rev. gentleman officiates. Fortunately I had an
+opportunity of seeing the Dr., and following close in his footsteps to
+the church. His personal appearance is anything but that of one who is
+the leader of a growing and powerful party in the church. He is rather
+under the middle size, and is round shouldered, or rather stoops. His
+profile is more striking than his front face, the nose being very large
+and prominent. As a matter of course, I expected to see a large nose,
+for all great men have them. He has a thoughtful, and somewhat sullen
+brow, a firm and somewhat pensive mouth, a cheek pale, thin, and deeply
+furrowed. A monk fresh from the cloisters of Tintern Abbey, in its
+proudest days, could scarcely have made a more ascetic and solemn
+appearance than did Dr. Pusey on this occasion. He is not apparently
+above forty-five, or at most fifty years of age, and his whole aspect
+renders him an admirable study for an artist. Dr. Pusey's style of
+preaching is cold and tame, and one looking at him would scarcely
+believe that such an apparently uninteresting man could cause such an
+eruption in the Church as he has. I was glad to find that a coloured
+young man was among the students at Oxford.
+
+A few months since, I paid a visit to our countryman, Alexander Crummel,
+who is still pursuing his studies at Cambridge--a place, though much
+inferior to Oxford as far as appearance is concerned, is yet said to be
+greatly its superior as a place of learning. In an hour's walk through
+the Strand, Regent, or Piccadilly Streets in London, one may meet half a
+dozen coloured young men, who are inmates of the various Colleges in the
+metropolis. These are all signs of progress in the cause of the sons of
+Africa. Then let our people take courage, and with that courage let them
+apply themselves to learning. A determination to excel is the sure road
+to greatness, and that is as open to the black man as the white. It was
+that which has accomplished the mightiest and noblest triumphs in the
+intellectual and physical world. It was that which has made such rapid
+strides towards civilization, and broken the chains of ignorance and
+superstition, which have so long fettered the human intellect. It was
+determination which raised so many worthy individuals from the humble
+walks of society, and from poverty, and placed them in positions of
+trust and renown. It is no slight barrier that can effectually oppose
+the determination of the will--success must ultimately crown its
+efforts. "The world shall hear of me," was the exclamation of one whose
+name has become as familiar as household words. A Toussaint, once
+laboured in the sugar field with his spelling-book in his pocket, amid
+the combined efforts of a nation to keep him in ignorance. His name is
+now recorded among the list of statesmen of the past. A Soulouque was
+once a slave, and knew not how to read. He now sits upon the throne of
+an Empire.
+
+In our own country, there are men who once held the plough, and that
+too without any compensation, who are now presiding at the editor's
+table. It was determination that brought out the genius of a Franklin,
+and a Fulton, and that has distinguished many of the American Statesmen,
+who but for their energy and determination would never have had a name
+beyond the precincts of their own homes.
+
+It is not always those who have the best advantages, or the greatest
+talents, that eventually succeed in their undertakings; but it is those
+who strive with untiring diligence to remove all obstacles to success,
+and who, with unconquerable resolution, labour on until the rich reward
+of perseverance is within their grasp. Then again let me say to our
+young men--Take courage; "There is a good time coming." The darkness of
+the night appears greatest just before the dawn of day.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XX.
+
+_Fugitive Slaves in England._
+
+
+The love of freedom is one of those natural impulses of the human breast
+which cannot be extinguished. Even the brute animals of the creation
+feel and show sorrow and affection when deprived of their liberty.
+Therefore is a distinguished writer justified in saying, "Man is free,
+even were he born in chains." The Americans boast, and justly, too, that
+Washington was the hero and model patriot of the American
+Revolution--the man whose fame, unequalled in his own day and country,
+will descend to the end of time, the pride and honour of humanity. The
+American speaks with pride of the battles of Lexington and Bunker Hill;
+and when standing in Faneuil Hall, he points to the portraits of Otis,
+Adams, Hancock, Quincy, Warren, and Franklin, and tells you that their
+names will go down to posterity among the world's most devoted and
+patriotic friends of human liberty.
+
+It was on the first of August, 1851, that a number of men, fugitives
+from that boasted land of freedom, assembled at the Hall of Commerce in
+the City of London, for the purpose of laying their wrongs before the
+British nation, and at the same time, to give thanks to the God of
+Freedom for the liberation of their West India brethren, on the first of
+August, 1834. Little notice had been given of the intended meeting, yet
+it seemed to be known in all parts of the city. At the hour of half-past
+seven, for which the meeting had been called, the spacious hall was well
+filled, and the fugitives, followed by some of the most noted English
+Abolitionists, entered the hall, amid the most deafening applause, and
+took their seats on the platform. The appearance of the great hall at
+this juncture was most splendid. Besides the committee of fugitives, on
+the platform there were a number of the oldest and most devoted of the
+Slave's friends. On the left of the chair sat Geo. Thompson, Esq., M.P.;
+near him was the Rev. Jabez Burns, D.D.; and by his side the Rev. John
+Stevenson, M.A., Wm. Farmer, Esq., R. Smith, Esq.; while on the other
+side were the Rev. Edward Mathews, John Cunliff, Esq., Andrew Paton,
+Esq., J.P. Edwards, Esq., and a number of coloured gentlemen from the
+West Indies. The body of the hall was not without its distinguished
+guests. The Chapmans and Westons of Boston, U.S., were there. The
+Estlins and Tribes had come all the way from Bristol to attend the great
+meeting. The Patons of Glasgow had delayed their departure, so as to be
+present. The Massies had come in from Upper Clapton. Not far from the
+platform sat Sir Francis Knowles, Bart., still farther back was Samuel
+Bowly, Esq., while near the door were to be seen the greatest critic of
+the age, and England's best living poet. Macaulay had laid aside the
+pen, entered the hall, and was standing near the central door, while not
+far from the historian stood the newly-appointed Poet Laureat. The
+author of "In Memoriam" had been swept in by the crowd, and was standing
+with his arms folded, and beholding for the first time (and probably the
+last) so large a number of coloured men in one room. In different parts
+of the hall were men and women from nearly all parts of the kingdom,
+besides a large number who, drawn to London by the Exhibition, had come
+in to see and hear these oppressed people plead their own cause.
+
+The writer of this sketch was chosen Chairman of the meeting, and
+commenced its proceedings by delivering the following address, which we
+cut from the columns of the _Morning Advertiser_:--
+
+
+"The Chairman, in opening the proceedings, remarked that, although the
+metropolis had of late been inundated with meetings of various
+character, having reference to almost every variety of subject, yet that
+the subject they were called upon that evening to discuss differed from
+them all. Many of those by whom he was surrounded, like himself, had
+been victims to the inhuman institution of Slavery, and were in
+consequence exiled from the land of their birth. They were fugitives
+from their native land, but not fugitives from justice, and they had not
+fled from a monarchical, but from a so-called republican government.
+They came from amongst a people who declared, as part of their creed,
+that all men were born free, but who, while they did so, made slaves of
+every sixth man, woman, and child in the country (hear, hear). He must
+not, however, forget that one of the purposes for which they were met
+that night was to commemorate the emancipation of their brothers and
+sisters in the isles of the sea. That act of the British Parliament, and
+he might add in this case with peculiar emphasis, of the British nation,
+passed on the 12th day of August, 1833, to take effect on the first day
+of August, 1834, and which enfranchised 800,000 West Indian slaves, was
+an event sublime in its nature, comprehensive and mighty in its
+immediate influences and remote consequences, precious beyond expression
+to the cause of freedom, and encouraging beyond the measure of any
+government on earth to the hearts of all enlightened and just men. This
+act was the commencement of a long course of philanthropic and Christian
+efforts on the part of some of the best men that the world ever
+produced. It was not his intention to go into a discussion or a
+calculation of the rise and fall of property, or whether sugar was worth
+more or less by the act of emancipation. But the abolition of Slavery
+in the West Indies, was a blow struck in the right direction, at that
+most inhuman of all traffics, the slave trade--a trade which would never
+cease so long as slavery existed, for where there was a market there
+would be merchandise; where there was demand there would be a supply;
+where there were carcases there would be vultures; and they might as
+well attempt to turn the water, and make it run up the Niagara river, as
+to change this law. It was often said by the Americans that England was
+responsible for the existence of slavery there, because it was
+introduced into that country while the colonies were under the British
+Crown. If that were the case, they must come to the conclusion that, as
+England abolished Slavery in the West Indies, she would have done the
+same for the American States if she had had the power to do it; and if
+that was so, they might safely say that the separation of the United
+States from the mother country was (to say the least) a great misfortune
+to one-sixth of the population of that land. England had set a noble
+example to America, and he would to heaven his countrymen would follow
+the example. The Americans boasted of their superior knowledge, but they
+needed not to boast of their superior guilt, for that was set upon a
+hill top, and that too, so high, that it required not the lantern of
+Diogenes to find it out. Every breeze from the western world brought
+upon its wings the groans and cries of the victims of this guilt. Nearly
+all countries had fixed the seal of disapprobation on slavery, and when,
+at some future age, this stain on the page of history shall be pointed
+at, posterity will blush at the discrepancy between American profession
+and American practice. What was to be thought of a people boasting of
+their liberty, their humanity, their Christianity, their love of
+justice, and at the same time keeping in slavery nearly four millions of
+God's children, and shutting out from them the light of the Gospel, by
+denying the Bible to the slave! (Hear, hear.) No education, no marriage,
+everything done to keep the mind of the slave in darkness. There was a
+wish on the part of the people of the northern States to shield
+themselves from the charge of slave-holding, but as they shared in the
+guilt, he was not satisfied with letting them off without their share in
+the odium. And now a word about the Fugitive Slave Bill. That measure
+was in every respect an unconstitutional measure. It set aside the right
+formerly enjoyed by the fugitive of trial by jury--it afforded to him no
+protection, no opportunity of proving his right to be free, and it
+placed every free coloured person at the mercy of any unprincipled
+individual who might wish to lay claim to him. (Hear.) That law is
+opposed to the principles of Christianity--foreign alike to the laws of
+God and man, it had converted the whole population of the free States
+into a band of slave-catchers, and every rood of territory is but so
+much hunting ground, over which they might chase the fugitive. But while
+they were speaking of slavery in the United States, they must not omit
+to mention that there was a strong feeling in that land, not only
+against the Fugitive Slave Law, but also against the existence of
+slavery in any form. There was a band of fearless men and women in the
+city of Boston, whose labours for the slave had resulted in good beyond
+calculation. This noble and heroic class had created an agitation in the
+whole country, until their principles have taken root in almost every
+association in the land, and which, with God's blessing, will, in due
+time, cause the Americans to put into practice what they have so long
+professed. (Hear, hear.) He wished it to be continually held up before
+the country, that the northern States are as deeply implicated in the
+guilt of slavery as the South. The north had a population of 13,553,328
+freemen; the south had a population of only 6,393,756 freemen; the north
+has 152 representatives in the house, the south only 81; and it would be
+seen by this, that the balance of power was with the free States.
+Looking, therefore, at the question in all its aspects, he was sure that
+there was no one in this country but who would find out, that the
+slavery of the United States of America was a system the most abandoned
+and the most tyrannical. (Hear, hear.)"
+
+At the close of this address, the Rev. Edward Matthews, last from
+Bristol, but who had recently returned from the United States, where he
+had been maltreated on account of his fidelity to the cause of freedom,
+was introduced, and made a most interesting speech. The next speaker was
+George Thompson, Esq., M.P.; and we need only say that his eloquence,
+which has seldom or ever been equalled, and never surpassed, exceeded,
+on this occasion, the most sanguine expectations of his friends. All who
+sat under the thundering anathemas which he hurled against slavery,
+seemed instructed, delighted, and animated. No one could scarcely have
+remained unmoved by the pensive sympathies that pervaded the entire
+assembly. There were many in the meeting who had never seen a fugitive
+slave before, and when any of the speakers would refer to those on the
+platform, the whole audience seemed moved to tears. No meeting of the
+kind held in London for years created a greater sensation than this
+gathering of refugees from the "Land of the free, and the home of the
+brave." The following appeal, which I had written for the occasion, was
+unanimously adopted at the close of the meeting, and thus ended the
+great Anti-Slavery demonstration of 1851.
+
+
+AN APPEAL TO THE PEOPLE OF GREAT BRITAIN AND THE WORLD.
+
+We consider it just, both to the people of the United States and to
+ourselves, in making an appeal to the inhabitants of other countries,
+against the laws which have exiled us from our native land, to state the
+ground upon which we make our appeal, and the causes which impel us to
+do so. There are in the United States of America, at the present time,
+between three and four millions of persons, who are held in a state of
+slavery which has no parallel in any other part of the world; and whose
+numbers have, within the last fifty years, increased to a fearful
+extent. These people are not only deprived of the rights to which the
+laws of Nature and Nature's God entitle them, but every avenue to
+knowledge is closed against them. The laws do not recognise the family
+relation of a slave, and extend to him protection in the enjoyment of
+domestic endearments. Brothers and sisters, parents and children,
+husbands and wives, are torn asunder, and permitted to see each other
+no more. The shrieks and agonies of the slave are heard in the markets
+at the seat of government, and within hearing of the American Congress,
+as well as on the cotton, sugar and rice plantations of the far South.
+
+The history of the negroes in America is but a history of repeated
+injuries and acts of oppression committed upon them by the whites. It is
+not for ourselves that we make this appeal, but for those whom we have
+left behind.
+
+In their Declaration of Independence, the Americans declare that "all
+men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with
+certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the
+pursuit of happiness." Yet one-sixth of the inhabitants of the great
+Republic are slaves. Thus they give the lie to their own professions. No
+one forfeits his or her character or standing in society by being
+engaged in holding, buying or selling a slave; the details of which, in
+all their horror, can scarcely be told.
+
+Although the holding of slaves is confined to fifteen of the thirty-one
+States, yet we hold that the non-slave-holding States are equally guilty
+with the slave-holding. If any proof is needed on this point, it will be
+found in the passage of the inhuman Fugitive Slave Law, by Congress; a
+law which could never have been enacted without the votes of a portion
+of the representatives from the free States, and which is now being
+enforced, in many of the States, with the utmost alacrity. It was the
+passing of this law that exiled us from our native land, and it has
+driven thousands of our brothers and sisters from the free States, and
+compelled them to seek a refuge in the British possessions in North
+America. The Fugitive Slave Law has converted the entire country, North
+and South, into one vast hunting-ground. We would respectfully ask you
+to expostulate with the Americans, and let them know that you regard
+their treatment of the coloured people of that country as a violation of
+every principle of human brotherhood, of natural right, of justice, of
+humanity, of Christianity, of love to God and love to man.
+
+It is needless that we should remind you that the religious sects of
+America, with but few exceptions, are connected with the sin of
+slavery--the churches North as well as South. We would have you tell the
+professed Christians of that land, that if they would be respected by
+you, they must separate themselves from the unholy alliance with men who
+are daily committing deeds which, if done in England, would cause the
+perpetrator to be sent to a felon's doom; that they must refuse the
+right hand of Christian fellowship, whether individually or
+collectively, to those implicated, in any way, in the guilt of slavery.
+
+We do not ask for a forcible interference on your part, but only that
+you will use all lawful and peaceful means to restore to this much
+injured race their God-given rights. The moral and religious sentiment
+of mankind must be arrayed against slave-holding, to make it infamous,
+ere we can hope to see it abolished. We would ask you to set them the
+example, by excluding from your pulpits, and from religious communion,
+the slave-holding and pro-slavery ministers who may happen to visit this
+country. We would even go further, and ask you to shut your doors
+against either ministers or laymen, who are at all guilty of upholding
+and sustaining this monster sin. By the cries of the slave, which come
+from the fields and swamps of the far South, we ask you to do this! By
+that spirit of liberty and equality of which you all admire, we would
+ask you to do this. And by that still nobler, higher, and holier spirit
+of our beloved Saviour, we would ask you to stamp upon the head of the
+slaveholder, with a brand deeper than that which marks the victim of his
+wrongs, the infamy of theft, adultery, man-stealing, piracy, and murder,
+and, by the force of public opinion, compel him to "unloose the heavy
+burden, and let the oppressed go free."
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XXI.
+
+_A Chapter on American Slavery._
+
+
+The word Englishman is but another name for an American, and the word
+American is but another name for an Englishman--England is the father,
+America the son. They have a common origin and identity of language;
+they hold the same religious and political opinions; they study the same
+histories, and have the same literature. Steam and mechanical ingenuity
+have brought the two countries within nine days sailing of each other.
+The Englishman on landing at New-York finds his new neighbours speaking
+the same language which he last heard on leaving Liverpool, and he sees
+the American in the same dress that he had been accustomed to look upon
+at home, and soon forgets that he is three thousand miles from his
+native land, and in another country. The American on landing at
+Liverpool, and taking a walk through the great commercial city, finding
+no difficulty in understanding the people, supposes himself still in
+New-York; and if there seems any doubt in his own mind, growing out of
+the fact that the people have a more healthy look, seem more polite, and
+that the buildings have a more substantial appearance than those he had
+formerly looked upon, he has only to imagine, as did Rip Van Winkle,
+that he has been asleep these hundred years.
+
+If the Englishman who has seen a Thompson silenced in Boston, or a
+Macready mobbed in New-York, upon the ground that they were foreigners,
+should sit in Exeter Hall and hear an American orator until he was
+hoarse, and wonder why the American is better treated in England than
+the Englishman in America, he has only to attribute it to John Bull's
+superior knowledge of good manners, and his being a more law-abiding man
+than brother Jonathan. England and America has each its reforms and its
+reformers, and they have more or less sympathy with each other. It has
+been said that one generation commences a reform in England, and that
+another generation finishes it. I would that so much could be said with
+regard to the great object of reform in America--the system of slavery!
+
+No evil was ever more deeply rooted in a country than is slavery in the
+United States. Spread over the largest and most fertile States in the
+Union, with decidedly the best climate, and interwoven, as it is, with
+the religious, political, commercial, and social institutions of the
+country, it is scarcely possible to estimate its influence. This is the
+evil which claims the attention of American Reformers, over and above
+every other evil in the land, and thanks to a kind providence, the
+American slave is not without his advocates. The greatest enemy to the
+Anti-Slavery Society, and the most inveterate opposer of the men whose
+names stand at the head of the list as officers and agents of that
+association, will, we think, assign to William Lloyd Garrison, the first
+place in the ranks of the American Abolitionists. The first to proclaim
+the doctrine of immediate emancipation to the slaves of America, and on
+that account an object of hatred to the slave-holding interest of the
+country, and living for years with his life in danger, he is justly
+regarded by all, as the leader of the Anti-Slavery movement in the New
+World. Mr. Garrison is at the present time but little more than
+forty-five years of age, and of the middle size. He has a high and
+prominent forehead, well developed, with no hair on the top of the head,
+having lost it in early life; with a piercing eye, a pleasant, yet
+anxious countenance, and of a most loveable disposition; tender, and
+blameless in his family affections, devoted to his friends; simple and
+studious, upright, guileless, distinguished, and worthy, like the
+distinguished men of antiquity, to be immortalized by another Plutarch.
+How many services never to be forgotten, has he not rendered to the
+cause of the slave, and the welfare of mankind! As a speaker, he is
+forcible, clear, and logical, yet he will not rank with the many who are
+less known. As a writer, he is regarded as one of the finest in the
+United States, and certainly the most prominent in the Anti-Slavery
+cause. Had Mr. Garrison wished to serve himself, he might, with his
+great talents, long since, have been at the head of either of the great
+political parties. Few men can withstand the allurements of office, and
+the prize-money that accompanies them. Many of those who were with him
+fifteen years ago, have been swept down with the current of popular
+favour, either in Church or State. He has seen a Cox on the one hand,
+and a Stanton on the other, swept away like so much floating wood
+before the tide. When the sturdiest characters gave way, when the finest
+geniuses passed one after another under the yoke of slavery, Garrison
+stood firm to his convictions, like a rock that stands stirless amid the
+conflicting agitation of the waves. He is not only the friend and
+advocate of freedom with his pen and his tongue, but to the oppressed of
+every clime he opens his purse, his house, and his heart: yet he is not
+a man of money. The fugitive slave, fresh from the whips and chains, who
+is turned off by the politician, and experiences the cold shoulder of
+the divine, finds a bed and a breakfast under the hospitable roof of Mr.
+Lloyd Garrison.
+
+The party of which he is the acknowledged head, is one of no
+inconsiderable influence in the United States. No man has more bitter
+enemies or stauncher friends than he. There are those among his friends
+who would stake their all upon his veracity and integrity; and we are
+sure that the coloured people throughout America, bond and free, in
+whose cause he has so long laboured, will, with one accord, assign the
+highest niche in their affection to the champion of universal
+emancipation. Every cause has its writers and its orators. We have drawn
+a hasty and imperfect sketch of the greatest writer in the Anti-Slavery
+field: we shall now call attention to the most distinguished public
+speaker. The name of Wendell Phillips is but another name for eloquence.
+Born in the highest possible position in America, Mr. Phillips has all
+the advantages that birth can give to one in that country. Educated at
+the first University, graduating with all the honours which the College
+could bestow on him, and studying the law and becoming a member of the
+bar, he has all the accomplishments that these advantages can give to a
+man of a great mind. Nature has treated him as a favourite. His stature
+is not tall, but handsome; his expressive countenance paints and
+reflects every emotion of his soul. His gestures are wonderfully
+graceful, like his delivery. There is a fascination in the soft gaze of
+his eyes, which none can but admire. Being a great reader, and endowed
+by nature with a good memory, he supplies himself with the most
+complicated dates and historical events. Nothing can equal the variety
+of his matter. I have heard him more than twenty different times on the
+same subject, but never heard the same speech. He is personal, but there
+is nothing offensive in his personalities. He extracts from a subject
+all that it contains, and does it as none but Wendell Phillips can. His
+voice is beautifully musical, and it is calculated to attract wherever
+it is heard. He is a man of calm intrepidity, of a patriotic and warm
+heart, with manners the most affable, temper the most gentle, a
+rectitude of principle entirely natural, a freedom from ambition, and a
+modesty quite singular. As Napoleon kept the Old Guard in reserve, to
+turn the tide in battle, so do the Abolitionists keep Mr. Phillips in
+reserve when opposition is expected in their great gatherings. We have
+seen the meetings turned into a bedlam, by the mobocratic slave-holding
+spirit, and when the speakers had one after another left the platform
+without a hearing, and the chairman had lost all control of the
+assembly, the appearance of this gentleman upon the platform would turn
+the tide of events. He would not beg for a hearing, but on the
+contrary, he would lash them as no preceding speaker had done. If, by
+their groans and yells, they stifled his voice, he would stand unmoved
+with his arms folded, and by the very eloquence of his looks put them to
+silence. His speeches against the Fugitive Slave Law, and his withering
+rebukes of Daniel Webster and other northern men who supported that
+measure, are of the most splendid character, and will compare in point
+of composition with anything ever uttered by Chatham or Sheridan in
+their palmiest days. As a public speaker, Mr. Phillips is, without
+doubt, the first in the United States. Considering his great talent, his
+high birth, and the prospects which lay before him, and the fact that he
+threw everything aside to plead the slave's cause, we must be convinced
+that no man has sacrificed more upon the altar of humanity than Wendell
+Phillips.
+
+Within the past ten years, a great impetus has been given to the
+anti-slavery movement in America by coloured men who have escaped from
+slavery. Coming as they did from the very house of bondage, and being
+able to speak from sad experience, they could speak as none others
+could.
+
+The gentleman to whom we shall now call attention is one of this class,
+and doubtless the first of his race in America. The name of Frederick
+Douglass is well known throughout this country as well as America. Born
+and brought up as a slave, he was deprived of a mother's care and of
+early education. Escaping when he was little more than twenty years of
+age, he was thrown upon his own resources in the free states, where
+prejudice against colour is but another name for slavery. But during all
+this time he was educating himself as well as circumstances would admit.
+Mr. Douglass commenced his career as a public speaker some ten years
+since, as an agent of the American or Massachusetts Anti-Slavery
+Societies. He is tall and well made. His vast and well-developed
+forehead announces the power of his intellect. His voice is full and
+sonorous. His attitude is dignified, and his gesticulation is full of
+noble simplicity. He is a man of lofty reason, natural, and without
+pretension, always master of himself, brilliant in the art of exposing
+and of abstracting. Few persons can handle a subject with which they are
+familiar better than Mr. Douglass. There is a kind of eloquence issuing
+from the depth of the soul, as from a spring, rolling along its copious
+floods, sweeping all before it, overwhelming by its very force,
+carrying, upsetting, engulphing its adversaries, and more dazzling and
+more thundering than the bolt which leaps from crag to crag. This is the
+eloquence of Frederick Douglass. He is one of the greatest mimics of the
+age. No man can put on a sweeter smile or a more sarcastic frown than
+he: you cannot put him off his guard. He is always in good humour. Mr.
+Douglass possesses great dramatic powers; and had he taken up the sock
+and buskin, instead of becoming a lecturer, he would have made as fine a
+Coriolanus as ever trod the stage.
+
+However, Mr. Douglass was not the first coloured man that became a
+lecturer, and thereby did service to the cause of his countrymen. The
+earliest and most effective speaker from among the coloured race in
+America, was Charles Lennox Remond. In point of eloquence, this
+gentleman is not inferior to either Wendell Phillips or Frederick
+Douglass. Mr. Remond is of small stature, and neat figure, with a head
+well developed, but a remarkably thin face. As an elocutionist, he is,
+without doubt, the first on the anti-slavery platform. He has a good
+voice, a pleasing countenance, a prompt intelligence, and when speaking,
+is calculated to captivate and carry away an audience by the very force
+of his eloquence. Born in the freest state of the Union, and of most
+respectable parents, he prides himself not a little on his birth and
+descent. One can scarcely find fault with this, for, in the United
+States, the coloured man is deprived of the advantages which parentage
+gives to the white man. Mr. Remond is a descendant of one of those
+coloured men who stood side by side with white men on the plains of
+Concord and Lexington, in the battles that achieved the independence of
+the colonies from the mother country, in the war of the Revolution. Mr.
+Remond has felt deeply, (probably more so than any other coloured man),
+the odious prejudice against colour. On this point he is sensitive to a
+fault. If any one will sit for an hour and hear a lecture from him on
+this subject, if he is not converted, he will at least become convinced,
+that the boiling cauldron of anti-slavery discussion has never thrown
+upon its surface a more fiery spirit than Charles Lennox Remond.
+
+There are some men who neither speak nor write, but whose lives place
+them in the foremost ranks in the cause which they espouse. One of these
+is Francis Jackson. He was one of the earliest to give countenance and
+support to the anti-slavery movement. In the year 1835, when a mob of
+more than 5000 merchants and others, in Boston, broke up an anti-slavery
+meeting of females, at which William Lloyd Garrison and George Thompson
+were to deliver addresses, and when the Society had no room in which to
+hold its meetings (having been driven from their own room by the mob),
+Francis Jackson, with a moral courage scarcely ever equalled, came
+forward and offered his private dwelling to the ladies, to hold their
+meeting in. The following interesting passage occurs in a letter from
+him to the Secretary of the Society a short time after, on receiving a
+vote of thanks from its members:--
+
+"If a large majority of this community choose to turn a deaf ear to the
+wrongs which are inflicted upon their countrymen in other portions of
+the land--if they are content to turn away from the sight of oppression,
+and 'pass by on the other side'--so it must be.
+
+"But when they undertake in any way to impair or annul my right to
+speak, write, and publish upon any subject, and more especially upon
+enormities, which are the common concern of every lover of his country
+and his kind--so it must not be--so it shall not be, if I for one can
+prevent it. Upon this great right let us hold on at all hazards. And
+should we, in its exercise, be driven from public halls to private
+dwellings, one house at least shall be consecrated to its preservation.
+And if, in defence of this sacred privilege, which man did not give me,
+and shall not (if I can help it) take from me, this roof and these walls
+shall be levelled to the earth, let them fall if they must; they cannot
+crumble in a better cause. They will appear of very little value to me
+after their owner shall have been whipt into silence."
+
+There are among the contributors to the Anti-Slavery cause, a few who
+give with a liberality which has never been surpassed by the donors to
+any benevolent association in the world, according to their means--the
+chief of these is Francis Jackson.
+
+In the month of May, 1844, while one evening strolling up Broadway, New
+York, I saw a crowd making its way into the Minerva Rooms, and, having
+no pressing engagement, I followed, and was soon in a splendid hall,
+where some twelve or fifteen hundred persons were seated, and listening
+to rather a strange-looking man. The speaker was tall and slim, with
+long arms, long legs, and a profusion of auburn or reddish hair hanging
+in ringlets down his shoulders; while a huge beard of the same colour
+fell upon his breast. His person was not at all improved by his dress.
+The legs of his trousers were shorter than those worn by smaller men:
+the sleeves of his coat were small and short, the shirt collar turned
+down in Byronic style, beard and hair hid his countenance, so that no
+redeeming feature could be found there; yet there was one redeeming
+quality about the man--that was the stream of fervid eloquence which
+escaped from his lips. I inquired his name, and was informed that it was
+Charles C. Burleigh. Nature has been profuse in showering her gifts upon
+Mr. Burleigh, but all has been bestowed upon his head and heart. There
+is a kind of eloquence which weaves its thread around the hearer, and
+gradually draws him into its web, fascinating him with its gaze,
+entangling him as the spider does the fly, until he is fast: such is the
+eloquence of C.C. Burleigh. As a debater he is unquestionably the first
+on the Anti-slavery platform. If he did not speak so fast, he would
+equal Wendell Phillips; if he did not reason his subject out of
+existence, he would surpass him. However, one would have to travel over
+many miles, and look in the faces of many men, before he would find one
+who has made more personal sacrifices, or done more to bring about the
+Emancipation of the American Slaves, than Mr. Charles C. Burleigh.
+
+Whoever the future historian of the Anti-Slavery movement may be, he
+will not be able to compile a correct history of this great struggle,
+without consulting the writings of Edmund Quincy, a member of one of
+the wealthiest, patriotic, and aristocratic families in New England: the
+prestige of his name is a passport to all that the heart could wish.
+Descended from a family, whose name is connected with all that was
+glorious in the great American Revolution, the son of one who has again
+and again represented his native State, in the National Congress, he
+too, like Wendell Phillips, threw away the pearl of political
+preferment, and devoted his distinguished talents to the cause of the
+Slave. Mr. Quincy is better known in this country as having filled the
+editorial chair of _The Liberator_, during the several visits of its
+Editor to Great Britain. As a speaker, he does not rank as high as some
+who are less known; as a writer, he has few equals. The "Annual Reports"
+of the American and Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Societies for the past
+fifteen or twenty years, have emanated from his pen. When posterity, in
+digging among the tombs of the friends of mankind, and of universal
+freedom, shall fail to find there the name of Edmund Quincy, it will be
+because the engraver failed to do his duty.
+
+Were we sent out to find a man who should excel all others in
+collecting together new facts and anecdotes, and varnishing up old ones
+so that they would appear new, and bringing them into a meeting and
+emptying out, good or bad, the whole contents of his sack, to the
+delight and admiration of the audience, we would unhesitatingly select
+James N. Buffum as the man. If Mr. Buffum is not a great speaker, he has
+what many accomplished orators have not--_i.e._, a noble and generous
+heart. If the fugitive slave, fresh from the cotton-field, should make
+his appearance in the town of Lynn, in Massachusetts, and should need a
+night's lodging or refreshments, he need go no farther than the
+hospitable door of James N. Buffum.
+
+Most men who inherit large fortunes, do little or nothing to benefit
+mankind. A few, however, spend their means in the best possible manner:
+one of the latter class is Gerrit Smith. The name of this gentleman
+should have been brought forward among those who are first mentioned in
+this chapter. Some eight or ten years ago, Mr. Smith was the owner of
+large tracts of land, lying in twenty-nine counties in the State of New
+York, and came to the strange conclusion to give the most of it away.
+Consequently, three thousand lots of land, containing from thirty to one
+hundred acres each, were given to coloured men residing in the
+State--the writer of this being one of the number.
+
+Although universal suffrage is enjoyed by the whites in the State of New
+York, a property-qualification is imposed on coloured men; and this act
+of Mr. Smith's not only made three thousand men the owners of land, but
+created also three thousand voters. The ability to give, and the
+willingness to do so, is not by any means the greatest quality of this
+gentleman. As a public speaker, Mr. Smith has few equals; and certainly
+no man in his State has done more to forward the cause of Negro
+Emancipation than he.
+
+We have already swelled the pages of this chapter beyond what we
+intended when we commenced, but yet we have called attention to only one
+branch of American Reformers. The Temperance Reformers are next to be
+considered. This cause has many champions, and yet none who occupy a
+very prominent position before the world. The first temperance newspaper
+published in the United States, was edited by William Lloyd Garrison.
+Gerrit Smith has also done much in promulgating temperance views. But
+the most noted man in the movement at the present time, and the one best
+known to the British public, is John B. Gough. This gentleman was at one
+time an actor on the stage, and subsequently became an inebriate of the
+most degraded kind. He was, however, reclaimed through the great
+Washingtonian movement that swept over the United States a few years
+since. In stature, Mr. Gough is tall and slim, with black hair, which he
+usually wears too long. As an orator, he is considered among the first
+in the United States. Having once been an actor, he throws all his
+dramatic powers into his addresses. He has a facility of telling strange
+and marvellous stories which can scarcely be surpassed; and what makes
+them still more interesting, he always happens to be an eyewitness.
+While speaking, he acts the drunkard, and does it in a style which could
+not be equalled on the boards of the Lyceum or Adelphi. No man has
+obtained more signatures to the temperance pledge than he. After all, it
+is a question whether he has ever been of any permanent service to this
+reform or not. Mr. Gough has more than once fallen from his position as
+a teetotaler; more than once he has broken his pledge, and when found by
+his friends, was in houses of a questionable character. However, some
+are of opinion that these defects have been of use to him; for when he
+has made his appearance after one of these debaucheries, the people
+appear to sympathize more with him, and some thought he spoke better. If
+we believe that a person could enjoy good health with water upon the
+brain, we would be of opinion that Mr. Gough's cranium contained a
+greater quantity than that of any other living man. When speaking before
+an audience, he can weep when he pleases; and the tears shed on these
+occasions are none of your make-believe kind--none of your small drops
+trickling down the cheeks one at a time;--but they come in great
+showers, so as even to sprinkle upon the paper which he holds in his
+hand. Of course, he is not alone in shedding tears in his meetings,
+many of his hearers usually join him; especially the ladies, as these
+showers are intended for them. However, no one can sit for an hour and
+hear John. B. Gough, without coming to the conclusion that he is nothing
+more than a theatrical mountebank.
+
+The ablest speaker on the subject of Peace, is Charles Sumner. Standing
+more than six feet in height, and well proportioned, Mr. Sumner makes a
+most splendid and commanding appearance before an assembly. It is not
+his looks alone that attract attention--his very countenance indicates a
+superior mind. Born in the upper circle, educated in the first College
+in the country, and finally becoming a member of the Bar, he is well
+qualified to take the highest possible position as a public speaker. As
+an orator, Charles Sumner has but one superior in the United States, and
+that is Wendell Phillips. Mr. Sumner is an able advocate for the
+liberation of the American Slaves as well as of the cause of Peace, and
+has rendered great aid to the abolition movement.
+
+The name of Elihu Burritt, for many reasons, should be placed at the
+head of the Peace Movement. No man was ever more devoted to one idea
+than he is to that of peace. If he is an advocate of Temperance, it is
+because it will promote peace. If he opposes Slavery, it is upon the
+grounds of peace. Ask him why he wants an "Ocean Penny Postage," he will
+tell you to engender the principles of peace. Everything with him hinges
+upon the doctrine of peace. As a speaker, Mr. Burritt does not rank
+amongst the first. However, his speeches are of a high order, some think
+them too high, and complain that he is too much of a cloud-traveller,
+and when he descends from these aerial flights and cloudy thrones, they
+are unwilling to admit that he can be practical. If Mr. Burritt should
+prove as good a statesman as a theorist, he would be an exception to
+most who belong to the aerial school. As a writer he stands deservedly
+high. In his "Sparks from the Anvil," and "Voice from the Forge," are to
+be found as fine pieces as have been produced by any writer of the day.
+His "Drunkard's Wife" is the most splendid thing of the kind in the
+language. His stature is of the middle size, head well developed, with
+eyes deeply set, and a prepossessing countenance, though not handsome;
+he wears an exterior of remarkable austerity, and everything about him
+is grave, even to his smile. Being well versed in the languages, ancient
+and modern, he does not lack variety or imagination, either in his
+public addresses or private conversation; yet it would be difficult to
+find a man with a better heart, or sweeter spirit, than Elihu Burritt.
+
+
+
+
+LETTER XXII.
+
+_A Narrative of American Slavery._
+
+
+Although the first slaves, introduced into the American Colonies from
+the coast of Africa, were negroes of a very dark complexion with woolly
+hair, and it was thought that slavery would be confined to the blacks,
+yet the present slave population of America is far from being black.
+This change in colour, is attributable, solely to the unlimited power
+which the slave owner exercises over his victim. There being no lawful
+marriage amongst slaves, and no encouragement to slave women to be
+virtuous and chaste, there seems to be no limits to the system of
+amalgamation carried on between master and slave. This accounts for the
+fact, that most persons who go from Europe, or from the Free States,
+into Carolina or Virginia, are struck with the different shades of
+colour amongst the slaves. On a plantation employing fifty slaves, it is
+not uncommon to see one third of them mulattoes, and some of these
+nearly white.
+
+In the year 1831, there resided in the state of Virginia, a slave who
+was so white, that no one would suppose for a moment that a drop of
+African blood coursed through his veins. His skin was fair, hair soft,
+straight, fine and white; his eyes blue, nose prominent, lips thin; his
+head well formed, forehead high and prominent; and he was often taken
+for a white free person, by those who did not know him. This made his
+condition as a slave still more intolerable; for one so white, seldom
+ever receives fair treatment at the hands of his fellow slaves; and the
+whites usually regard such slaves as persons, who, if not often flogged
+and otherwise ill treated, to remind them of their condition, would soon
+"forget" that they were slaves, and "think themselves as good as white
+folks." During that year, an insurrection broke out amongst the slave
+population, known as the Southampton Rebellion, or the "Nat Turner
+Insurrection." Five or six hundred slaves, believing in the doctrine
+that "all men are created equal," armed with such weapons as they could
+get, commenced a war for freedom. Amongst these was George, the white
+slave of whom we have spoken. He had been employed as a house servant,
+and had heard his master and visiters speak of the down-trodden and
+oppressed Poles; he heard them talk of going to Greece to fight for
+Grecian liberty, and against the oppressors of that ill-fated people.
+George, fired with the love of freedom, and zeal for the cause of his
+enslaved countrymen, joined the insurrection. The result of that
+struggle for liberty is well known. The slaves were defeated, and those
+who were not taken prisoners, took refuge in the dismal swamps. These
+were ordered to surrender; but instead of doing so, they challenged
+their proud oppressors to take them, and immediately renewed the war. A
+ferocious struggle now commenced between the parties; but not until the
+United States troops were called in, did they succeed in crushing a
+handful of men and women who were fighting for freedom. The negroes were
+hunted with dogs, and many who were caught were burnt alive; while some
+were hung, and others flogged and banished from the State.
+
+Among those who were sentenced to be hanged, was George. He was placed
+in prison to await the day of execution, which would give him ten days
+to prepare for his doom. George was the son of a member of the American
+Congress, his mother being a servant in the principal hotel in
+Washington, where members of Congress usually put up. After the birth of
+George, his mother was sold to a negro trader, and he to a Virginian,
+who sent agents through the country to buy up young slaves to raise for
+the market. George was only about nineteen years of age, when he
+unfortunately became connected with the insurrection. Mr. Green, who
+owned George, was a comparatively good master, and prided himself on
+treating his slaves better than most men. This gentleman was also the
+owner of a girl who was perfectly white, with straight hair and
+prominent features. This girl was said to be the daughter of her own
+master. A feeling of attachment sprang up between Mary and George, which
+proved to be more than mere friendship, and upon which we base the
+burden of this narrative.
+
+After poor George had been sentenced to death and cast into prison, Mary
+begged and obtained leave to visit George, and administer to him the
+comforts of religion, as she was a member of a religious body, while
+George was not. As George had been a considerable favourite with Mrs.
+Green, Mary had no difficulty in obtaining permission to pay a daily
+visit to him, to whom she had pledged her heart and hand. At one of
+these meetings, and only four days from the time fixed for the
+execution, while Mary was seated in George's cell, it occurred to her
+that she might yet save him from a felon's doom. She revealed to him
+the secret that was then occupying her thoughts, viz., that George
+should exchange clothes with her, and thus attempt his escape in
+disguise. But he would not for a single moment listen to the
+proposition. Not that he feared detection; but he would not consent to
+place an innocent and affectionate girl in a position where she might
+have to suffer for him. Mary pleaded, but in vain--George was
+inflexible. The poor girl left her lover with a heavy heart, regretting
+that her scheme had proved unsuccessful.
+
+Towards the close of the next day, Mary again appeared at the prison
+door for admission, and was soon by the side of him whom she so ardently
+loved. While there, the clouds which had overhung the city for some
+hours, broke, and the rain fell in torrents amid the most terrific
+thunder and lightning. In the most persuasive manner possible, Mary
+again importuned George to avail himself of her assistance to escape
+from an ignominious death. After assuring him that she not being the
+person condemned, would not receive any injury, he at last consented,
+and they began to exchange apparel. As George was of small stature, and
+both were white, there was no difficulty in his passing out without
+detection: and as she usually left the cell weeping, with handkerchief
+in hand, and sometimes at her face, he had only to adopt this mode and
+his escape was safe. They had kissed each other, and Mary had told
+George where he would find a small parcel of provisions which she had
+placed in a secluded spot, when the prison-keeper opened the door, and
+said, "Come, girl, it is time for you to go." George again embraced
+Mary, and passed out of the gaol. It was already dark and the street
+lamps were lighted, so that our hero in his new dress had no dread of
+detection. The provisions were sought out and found, and poor George was
+soon on the road towards Canada. But neither of them had once thought of
+a change of dress for George when he should have escaped, and he had
+walked but a short distance before he felt that a change of his apparel
+would facilitate his progress. But he dared not go amongst even his
+coloured associates for fear of being betrayed. However, he made the
+best of his way on towards Canada, hiding in the woods during the day,
+and travelling by the guidance of the North Star at night.
+
+One morning, George arrived on the banks of the Ohio river, and found
+his journey had terminated, unless he could get some one to take him
+across the river in a secret manner, for he would not be permitted to
+cross in any of the ferry boats; it being a penalty for crossing a
+slave, besides the value of the slave. He concealed himself in the tall
+grass and weeds near the river, to see if he could embrace an
+opportunity to cross. He had been in his hiding-place but a short time,
+when he observed a man in a small boat, floating near the shore,
+evidently fishing. His first impulse was to call out to the man and ask
+him to take him over to the Ohio side, but the fear that the man was a
+slaveholder, or one who might possibly arrest him, deterred him from it.
+The man after rowing and floating about for some time fastened the boat
+to the root of a tree, and started to a neighbouring farm-house. This
+was George's moment, and he seized it. Running down the bank, he
+unfastened the boat, jumped in, and with all the expertness of one
+accustomed to a boat, rowed across the river and landed on the Ohio
+side.
+
+Being now in a free state, he thought he might with perfect safety
+travel on towards Canada. He had, however, gone but a few miles, when he
+discovered two men on horseback coming behind him. He felt sure that
+they could not be in pursuit of him, yet he did not wish to be seen by
+them, so he turned into another road, leading to a house near by. The
+men followed, and were but a short distance from George, when he ran up
+to a farm house, before which was standing a farmer-looking man, in a
+broad-brimmed hat and straight collared coat, whom he implored to save
+him from the "slave-catchers." The farmer told him to go into the barn
+near by; he entered by the front door, the farmer following, and closing
+the door behind George, but remaining outside, and gave directions to
+his hired man as to what should be done with George. The slaveholders by
+this time had dismounted, and were in the front of the barn demanding
+admittance, and charging the farmer with secreting their slave woman,
+for George was still in the dress of a woman. The Friend, for the farmer
+proved to be a member of the Society of Friends, told the slave-owners
+that if they wished to search his barn, they must first get an officer
+and a search warrant. While the parties were disputing, the farmer began
+nailing up the front door, and the hired man served the back door in the
+same way. The slaveholders, finding that they could not prevail on the
+Friend to allow them to get the slave, determined to go in search of an
+officer. One was left to see that the slave did not escape from the
+barn, while the other went off at full speed to Mount Pleasant, the
+nearest town. George was not the slave of either of these men, nor were
+they in pursuit of him, but they had lost a woman who had been seen in
+that vicinity, and when they saw poor George in the disguise of a
+female, and attempting to elude pursuit, they felt sure they were close
+upon their victim. However, if they had caught him, although he was not
+their slave, they would have taken him back and placed him in goal, and
+there he would have remained until his owner arrived.
+
+After an absence of nearly two hours, the slave owner returned with an
+officer and found the Friend still driving large nails into the door. In
+a triumphant tone, and with a corresponding gesture, he handed the
+search-warrant to the Friend, and said, "There, Sir, now I will see if I
+can't get my Nigger." "Well," said the Friend, "thou hast gone to work
+according to law, and thou can now go into my barn." "Lend me your
+hammer that I may get the door open," said the slaveholder. "Let me see
+the warrant again." And after reading it over once more, he said, "I see
+nothing in this paper which says I must supply thee with tools to open
+my door; if thou wishes to go in, thou must get a hammer elsewhere." The
+sheriff said, "I will go to a neighbouring farm and borrow something
+which will introduce us to Miss Dinah;" and he immediately went in
+search of tools. In a short time the officer returned, and they
+commenced an assault and battery upon the barn door, which soon yielded;
+and in went the slaveholder and officer, and began turning up the hay
+and using all other means to find the lost property; but, to their
+astonishment, the slave was not there. After all hope of getting Dinah
+was gone, the slave-owner in a rage, said to the Friend, "My Nigger is
+not here." "I did not tell thee there was any one here." "Yes, but I saw
+her go in, and you shut the door behind her, and if she was not in the
+barn, what did you nail the door for?" "Can't I do what I please with my
+own barn door? Now I will tell thee; thou need trouble thyself no more,
+for the person thou art after entered the front door and went out at the
+back door, and is a long way from here by this time. Thou and thy friend
+must be somewhat fatigued by this time, wont thou go in and take a
+little dinner with me?" We need not say that this cool invitation of the
+good Quaker was not accepted by the slaveholders. George, in the
+meantime, had been taken to a Friend's dwelling some miles away, where,
+after laying aside his female attire, and being snugly dressed up in a
+straight collared coat, and pantaloons to match, was again put on the
+right road towards Canada. Two weeks after this found him in the town
+of St. Catharines, working on the farm of Colonel Strut, and attending a
+night school.
+
+George, however, did not forget his promise to use all means in his
+power to get Mary out of slavery. He, therefore, laboured with all his
+might, to obtain money with which to employ some one to go back to
+Virginia for Mary. After nearly six months' labour at St. Catharines, he
+employed an English missionary to go and see if the girl could be
+purchased, and at what price. The missionary went accordingly, but
+returned with the sad intelligence that on account of Mary's aiding
+George to escape, the court had compelled Mr. Green to sell her out of
+the State, and she had been sold to a Negro trader and taken to the New
+Orleans market. As all hope of getting the girl was now gone, George
+resolved to quit the American continent for ever. He immediately took
+passage in a vessel laden with timber, bound for Liverpool, and in five
+weeks from that time he was standing on the quay of the great English
+seaport. With little or no education, he found many difficulties in the
+way of getting a respectable living. However, he obtained a situation
+as porter in a large house in Manchester, where he worked during the
+day, and took private lessons at night. In this way he laboured for
+three years, and was then raised to the situation of a clerk. George was
+so white as easily to pass for a white man, and being somewhat ashamed
+of his African descent, he never once mentioned the fact of his having
+been a slave. He soon became a partner in the firm that employed him,
+and was now on the road to wealth.
+
+In the year 1842, just ten years after George Green (for he adopted his
+master's name) arrived in England, he visited France, and spent some
+days at Dunkirk. It was towards sunset, on a warm day in the month of
+October, that Mr. Green, after strolling some distance from the Hotel de
+Leon, entered a burial ground and wandered long alone among the silent
+dead, gazing upon the many green graves and marble tombstones of those
+who once moved on the theatre of busy life, and whose sounds of gaiety
+once fell upon the ear of man. All nature around was hushed in silence,
+and seemed to partake of the general melancholy which hung over the
+quiet resting place of departed mortals. After tracing the varied
+inscriptions which told the characters or conditions of the departed,
+and viewing the mounds 'neath which the dust of mortality slumbered, he
+had now reached a secluded spot, near to where an aged weeping willow
+bowed its thick foliage to the ground, as though anxious to hide from
+the scrutinizing gaze of curiosity the grave beneath it. Mr. Green
+seated himself upon a marble tomb, and began to read Roscoe's Leo X., a
+copy of which he had under his arm. It was then about twilight, and he
+had scarcely gone through half a page, when he observed a lady in black,
+leading a boy some five years old up one of the paths; and as the lady's
+black veil was over her face, he felt somewhat at liberty to eye her
+more closely. While looking at her, the lady gave a scream and appeared
+to be in a fainting position, when Mr. Green sprang from his seat in
+time to save her from falling to the ground. At this moment, an elderly
+gentleman was seen approaching with a rapid step, who from his
+appearance was evidently the lady's father, or one intimately connected
+with her. He came up, and in a confused manner, asked what was the
+matter. Mr. Green explained as well as he could. After taking up the
+smelling bottle which had fallen from her hand, and holding it a short
+time to her face, she soon began to revive. During all this time, the
+lady's veil had so covered her face, that Mr. Green had not seen it.
+When she had so far recovered as to be able to raise her head, she again
+screamed, and fell back into the arms of the old man. It now appeared
+quite certain, that either the countenance of George Green, or some
+other object, was the cause of these fits of fainting; and the old
+gentleman, thinking it was the former, in rather a petulant tone said,
+"I will thank you, Sir, if you will leave us alone." The child whom the
+lady was leading had now set up a squall; and amid the death-like
+appearance of the lady, the harsh look of the old man, and the cries of
+the boy, Mr. Green left the grounds and returned to his hotel.
+
+Whilst seated by the window, and looking out upon the crowded street,
+with every now and then the strange scene in the grave-yard vividly
+before him, Mr. Green thought of the book he had been reading, and,
+remembering that he had left it on the tomb, where he had suddenly
+dropped it when called to the assistance of the lady, he immediately
+determined to return in search of it. After a walk of some twenty
+minutes, he was again over the spot where he had been an hour before,
+and from which he had been so unceremoniously expelled by the old man.
+He looked in vain for the book; it was no where to be found: nothing
+save a bouquet which the lady had dropped, and which lay half-buried in
+the grass from having been trodden upon, indicated that any one had been
+there that evening. Mr. Green took up the bunch of flowers, and again
+returned to the hotel.
+
+After passing a sleepless night, and hearing the clock strike six, he
+dropped into a sweet sleep, from which he did not awake until roused by
+the rap of a servant, who, entering his room, handed him a note which
+ran as follows:--"Sir,--I owe you an apology for the inconveniences to
+which you were subjected last evening, and if you will honour us with
+your presence to dinner to-day at four o'clock, I shall be most happy to
+give you due satisfaction. My servant will be in waiting for you at
+half-past three. I am, sir, your obedt. servant, J. Devenant. October
+23, to George Green, Esq."
+
+The servant who handed this note to Mr. Green, informed him that the
+bearer was waiting for a reply. He immediately resolved to accept the
+invitation, and replied accordingly. Who this person was, and how his
+name and the hotel where he was stopping had been found out, was indeed
+a mystery. However, he waited impatiently for the hour when he was to
+see this new acquaintance, and get the mysterious meeting in the
+grave-yard solved.
+
+The clock on a neighbouring church had scarcely ceased striking three,
+when the servant announced that a carriage had called for Mr. Green. In
+less than half an hour, he was seated in a most sumptuous barouch, drawn
+by two beautiful iron greys, and rolling along over a splendid gravel
+road, completely shaded by large trees which appeared to have been the
+accumulating growth of many centuries. The carriage soon stopped in
+front of a low villa, and this too was imbedded in magnificent trees
+covered with moss. Mr. Green alighted and was shown into a superb
+drawing room, the walls of which were hung with fine specimens from the
+hands of the great Italian painters, and one by a German artist
+representing a beautiful monkish legend connected with "The Holy
+Catherine," and illustrious lady of Alexandria. The furniture had an
+antique and dignified appearance. High backed chairs stood around the
+room; a venerable mirror stood on the mantle-shelf; rich curtains of
+crimson damask hung in folds at either side of the large windows; and a
+rich Turkey carpet covered the floor. In the centre stood a table
+covered with books, in the midst of which was an old fashioned vase
+filled with fresh flowers, whose fragrance was exceedingly pleasant. A
+faint light, together with the quietness of the hour gave beauty beyond
+description to the whole scene.
+
+Mr. Green had scarcely seated himself upon the sofa, when the elderly
+gentleman whom he had met the previous evening made his appearance,
+followed by the little boy, and introduced himself as Mr. Devenant. A
+moment more, and a lady--a beautiful brunette--dressed in black, with
+long curls of a chesnut colour hanging down her cheeks, entered the
+room. Her eyes were of a dark hazel, and her whole appearance indicated
+that she was a native of a southern clime. The door at which she entered
+was opposite to where the two gentlemen were seated. They immediately
+rose; and Mr. Devenant was in the act of introducing her to Mr. Green,
+when he observed that the latter had sunk back upon the sofa, and the
+last word that he remembered to have heard was, "It is her." After this,
+all was dark and dreamy: how long he remained in this condition it was
+for another to tell. When he awoke, he found himself stretched upon the
+sofa, with his boots off, his neckerchief removed, shirt collar
+unbuttoned, and his head resting upon a pillow. By his side sat the old
+man, with the smelling bottle in the one hand, and a glass of water in
+the other, and the little boy standing at the foot of the sofa. As soon
+as Mr. Green had so far recovered as to be able to speak, he said,
+"Where am I, and what does this mean?" "Wait a while," replied the old
+man, "and I will tell you all." After the lapse of some ten minutes he
+rose from the sofa, adjusted his apparel, and said, "I am now ready to
+hear anything you have to say." "You were born in America," said the old
+man. "Yes," he replied. "And you were acquainted with a girl named
+Mary," continued the old man. "Yes, and I loved her as I can love none
+other." "The lady whom you met so mysteriously last evening is Mary,"
+replied Mr. Devenant. George Green was silent, but the fountains of
+mingled grief and joy stole out from beneath his eye lashes, and
+glistened like pearls upon his pale and marble-like cheeks. At this
+juncture the lady again entered the room. Mr. Green sprang from the
+sofa, and they fell into each other's arms, to the surprise of the old
+man and little George, and to the amusement of the servants who had
+crept up one by one, and were hid behind the doors or loitering in the
+hall. When they had given vent to their feelings, they resumed their
+seats and each in turn related the adventures through which they had
+passed. "How did you find out my name and address," asked Mr. Green?
+"After you had left us in the grave-yard, our little George said, 'O,
+mamma, if there aint a book!' and picked it up and brought it to us.
+Papa opened it, and said 'the gentleman's name is written in it, and
+here is a card of the Hotel de Leon, where I suppose he is stopping.'
+Papa wished to leave the book, and said it was all a fancy of mine that
+I had ever seen you before, but I was perfectly convinced that you were
+my own George Green. Are you married?" "No, I am not." "Then, thank
+God!" exclaimed Mrs. Devenant. The old man who had been silent all this
+time, said, "Now, Sir, I must apologize for the trouble you were put to
+last evening." "And you are single now." "Yes," she replied. "This is
+indeed the Lord's doings," said Mr. Green, at the same time bursting
+into a flood of tears. Although Mr. Devenant was past the age when men
+should think upon matrimonial subjects, yet this scene brought vividly
+before his eyes the days when he was a young man, and had a wife living,
+and he thought it time to call their attention to dinner, which was
+then waiting. We need scarcely add, that Mr. Green and Mrs. Devenant did
+very little towards diminishing the dinner that day.
+
+After dinner the lovers (for such we have to call them) gave their
+experience from the time that George Green left the gaol, dressed in
+Mary's clothes. Up to that time, Mr. Green's was substantially as we
+have related it. Mrs. Devenant's was as follows:--"The night after you
+left the prison," said she, "I did not shut my eyes in sleep. The next
+morning, about 8 o'clock, Peter, the gardener, came to the gaol to see
+if I had been there the night before, and was informed that I had, and
+that I left a little after dark. About an hour after, Mr. Green came
+himself, and I need not say that he was much surprised on finding me
+there, dressed in your clothes. This was the first tidings they had of
+your escape." "What did Mr. Green say when he found that I had fled?"
+"O!" continued Mrs. Devenant, "he said to me when no one was near, I
+hope George will get off, but I fear you will have to suffer in his
+stead. I told him that if it must be so I was willing to die if you
+could live." At this moment George Green burst into tears, threw his
+arms around her neck, and exclaimed, "I am glad I have waited so long,
+with the hope of meeting you again."
+
+Mrs. Devenant again resumed her story:--"I was kept in gaol three days,
+during which time I was visited by the Magistrates and two of the
+Judges. On the third day I was taken out, and master told me that I was
+liberated, upon condition that I be immediately sent out of the State.
+There happened to be just at that time in the neighbourhood a
+negro-trader, and he purchased me, and I was taken to New Orleans. On
+the steam-boat we were kept in a close room where slaves are usually
+confined, so that I saw nothing of the passengers on board or the towns
+we passed. We arrived at New Orleans and were all put into the
+slave-market for sale. I was examined by many persons, but none seemed
+willing to purchase me; as all thought me too white, and said I would
+run away and pass as a free white woman. On the second day while in the
+slave-market, and while planters and others were examining slaves and
+making their purchases, I observed a tall young man with long black hair
+eyeing me very closely, and then talking to the trader. I felt sure that
+my time had now come, but the day closed without my being sold. I did
+not regret this, for I had heard that foreigners made the worst of
+masters, and I felt confident that the man who eyed me so closely was
+not an American.
+
+"The next day was the Sabbath. The bells called the people to the
+different places of worship. Methodists sang, and Baptists immersed, and
+Presbyterians sprinkled, and Episcopalians read their prayers, while the
+ministers of the various sects preached that Christ died for all; yet
+there were some twenty-five or thirty of us poor creatures confined in
+the '_Negro Pen_' awaiting the close of the Holy Sabbath, and the dawn
+of another day, to be again taken into the market, there to be examined
+like so many beasts of burden. I need not tell you with what anxiety we
+waited for the advent of another day. On Monday we were again brought
+out, and placed in rows to be inspected; and fortunately for me, I was
+sold before we had been on the stand an hour. I was purchased by a
+gentleman residing in the city, for a waiting-maid for his wife, who was
+just on the eve of starting for Mobile, to pay a visit to a near
+relation. I was then dressed to suit the situation of a maid-servant;
+and, upon the whole, I thought that in my new dress I looked as much the
+lady as my mistress.
+
+"On the passage to Mobile, who should I see among the passengers, but
+the tall, long-haired man that had eyed me so closely in the
+slave-market a few days before. His eyes were again on me, and he
+appeared anxious to speak to me, and I as reluctant to be spoken to. The
+first evening after leaving New Orleans, soon after twilight had let her
+curtain down, and pinned it with a star, and while I was seated on the
+deck of the boat, near the ladies' cabin, looking upon the rippled
+waves, and the reflection of the moon upon the sea, all at once I saw
+the tall young man standing by my side. I immediately rose from my seat,
+and was in the act of returning to the cabin, when he in a broken
+accent said, 'Stop a moment; I wish to have a word with you. I am your
+friend.' I stopped and looked him full in the face, and he said, 'I saw
+you some days since in the slave-market, and I intended to have
+purchased you to save you from the condition of a slave. I called on
+Monday, but you had been sold and had left the market. I inquired and
+learned who the purchaser was, and that you had to go to Mobile, so I
+resolved to follow you. If you are willing, I will try and buy you from
+your present owner, and you shall be free.' Although this was said in an
+honest and off-hand manner, I could not believe the man to be sincere in
+what he said. 'Why should you wish to set _me_ free?' I asked. 'I had an
+only sister,' he replied, 'who died three years ago in France, and you
+are so much like her, that had I not known of her death, I would most
+certainly have taken you for her.' 'However much I may resemble your
+sister, you are aware that I am not her, and why take so much interest
+in one whom you never saw before?' 'The love,' said he, 'which I had for
+my sister is transferred to you.' I had all along suspected that the
+man was a knave, and this profession of love confirmed me in my former
+belief, and I turned away and left him.
+
+"The next day, while standing in the cabin and looking through the
+window, the French gentleman (for such he was) came to the window while
+walking on the guards, and again commenced as on the previous evening.
+He took from his pocket a bit of paper and put into my hand, and at the
+same time saying, 'Take this, it may some day be of service to you,
+remember it is from a friend,' and left me instantly. I unfolded the
+paper, and found it to be a 100 dols. bank note, on the United States
+Branch Bank, at Philadelphia. My first impulse was to give it to my
+mistress, but upon a second thought, I resolved to seek an opportunity,
+and to return the hundred dollars to the stranger. Therefore, I looked
+for him, but in vain; and had almost given up the idea of seeing him
+again, when he passed me on the guards of the boat and walked towards
+the stem of the vessel. It being now dark, I approached him and offered
+the money to him. He declined, saying at the same time, 'I gave it to
+you--keep it.' 'I do not want it,' I said. 'Now,' said he, 'you had
+better give your consent for me to purchase you, and you shall go with
+me to France.' 'But you cannot buy me now,' I replied, 'for my master is
+in New Orleans, and he purchased me not to sell, but to retain in his
+own family.' 'Would you rather remain with your present mistress, than
+be free?' 'No,' said I. 'Then fly with me to-night; we shall be in
+Mobile in two hours from this, and, when the passengers are going on
+shore, you can take my arm, and you can escape unobserved. The trader
+who brought you to New Orleans exhibited to me a certificate of your
+good character, and one from the Minister of the Church to which you
+were attached in Virginia; and upon the faith of these assurances, and
+the love I bear you, I promise before high heaven that I will marry you
+as soon as it can be done.' This solemn promise, coupled with what had
+already transpired, gave me confidence in the man; and rash as the act
+may seem, I determined in an instant to go with him. My mistress had
+been put under the charge of the captain; and as it would be past ten
+o'clock when the steamer would land, she accepted an invitation of the
+captain to remain on board with several other ladies till morning. I
+dressed myself in my best clothes, and put a veil over my face, and was
+ready on the landing of the boat. Surrounded by a number of passengers,
+we descended the stage leading to the wharf and were soon lost in the
+crowd that thronged the quay. As we went on shore we encountered several
+persons announcing the names of hotels, the starting of boats for the
+interior, and vessels bound for Europe. Among these was the ship
+_Utica_, Captain Pell, bound for Havre. 'Now,' said Mr. Devenant, 'this
+is our chance.' The ship was to sail at 12 o'clock that night, at high
+tide; and following the men who were seeking passengers, we went
+immediately on board. Devenant told the Captain of the ship that I was
+his sister, and for such we passed during the voyage. At the hour of
+twelve the _Utica_ set sail, and we were soon out at sea.
+
+"The morning after we left Mobile, Devenant met me as I came from my
+state-room and embraced me for the first time. I loved him, but it was
+only that affection which we have for one who has done us a lasting
+favour: it was the love of gratitude rather than that of the heart. We
+were five weeks on the sea, and yet the passage did not seem long, for
+Devenant was so kind. On our arrival at Havre, we were married and came
+to Dunkirk, and I have resided here ever since."
+
+At the close of this narrative, the clock struck ten, when the old man,
+who was accustomed to retire at an early hour, rose to take leave,
+saying at the same time, "I hope you will remain with us to-night." Mr.
+Green would fain have excused himself, on the ground that they would
+expect him and wait at the hotel, but a look from the lady told him to
+accept the invitation. The old man was the father of Mrs. Devenant's
+deceased husband, as you will no doubt long since have supposed. A
+fortnight from the day on which they met in the grave-yard, Mr. Green
+and Mrs. Devenant were joined in holy wedlock; so that George and Mary,
+who had loved each other so ardently in their younger days, were now
+husband and wife. Without becoming responsible for the truthfulness of
+the above narrative, I give it to you, reader, as it was told to me in
+January last, in France, by George Green himself.
+
+A celebrated writer has justly said of woman: "A woman's whole life is a
+history of the affections. The heart is her world; it is there her
+ambition strives for empire; it is there her avarice seeks for hidden
+treasures. She sends forth her sympathies on adventure; she embarks her
+whole soul in the traffic of affection; and if shipwrecked, her case is
+hopeless--for it is a bankruptcy of the heart."
+
+Mary had every reason to believe that she would never see George again;
+and although she confesses that the love she bore him was never
+transferred to her first husband, we can scarcely find fault with her
+for marrying Mr. Devenant. But the adherence of George Green to the
+resolution never to marry, unless to his Mary, is, indeed, a rare
+instance of the fidelity of man in the matter of love. We can but blush
+for our country's shame, when we recall to mind the fact, that while
+George and Mary Green, and numbers of other fugitives from American
+slavery, can receive protection from any of the Governments of Europe,
+they cannot return to their native land without becoming slaves.
+
+
+
+                FINIS.
+
+
+  AYR: PRINTED AT THE ADVERTISER OFFICE.
+
+
+
+
+Transcriber's notes:
+====================
+
+ERRATA from the original volume, applied to the text.
+======
+
+Page 8, eleventh line from bottom, _for_ villages _read_ villas
+The beautiful villages [**Erratum: villas] on the opposite side of the
+
+145, fourth line from top, _for_ Dante _read_ Whittier
+our own Dante? [**Erratum: Whittier?]
+
+205, second line from bottom, _for_ towns _read_ lawns
+in the vicinity of the lakes. Magnificent towns [**Erratum: lawns]
+
+264, seventh line from top, _for_ 1834 _read_ 1844
+In the month of May, 1834, [**Erratum: 1844,] while one evening
+
+273, eighth line from top, _for_ vanity _read_ variety
+lack vanity [**Erratum: variety] or imagination, either in his public
+
+Letter XXIII displaced to be between XII and XIII, as per editor's
+footnote.
+
+TYPOS
+=====
+
+All "Mr" replaced with "Mr." (~10%).  Similarly for "Mrs".
+
+play," was to flag [**typo: flog] his slaves severely, and
+
+tyranny in Great Britian [**typo: Britain] found social and
+
+passengers, forty of whom were the "Vienneise [**typo: Viennese]
+
+we were in sight of the land of Emmitt [**typo: Emmett] and
+
+Rev. Dr. Ritchie, of Edinburgh. [** quote deleted] "It is indeed a
+
+by M. Duguery, [**typo: Duguerry,] cure of the Madeleine,
+
+The column is in imitation of the Trojan [**typo: Trajan]
+
+XVI. and Marie Antionette [**typo: Antoinette] were driven from it by
+
+building. [** full-stop added] The speaker, in the delivery of one of
+
+Fete. [**typo: Fete.]
+
+soiree [**typo: soiree] by M. de Tocqueville, Minister for
+
+to the whole scene out of doors. The soiree [**typo: soiree]
+
+announced, and after a good deal of jambing [**typo: jamming] and
+
+same basket, without any regard to birth or station. [** full-stop added]
+
+had more interesting incidents occuring [**typo: occurring] in it than
+
+of Raphael and David--Arc de Triomphe--Beranger  [** final em-dash added]
+
+Jardin des Plantes, and spent an hour and a-half [**typo: a half]
+
+Were [**typo: were] at the time continually running through my
+
+meeted [**typo: meted] out to me while at Hartwell. And the
+
+I will see you." [** missing quote inserted] In looking across the street, I
+
+great contrast beetween [**typo: between] the monster Institution,
+
+The Tower is surounded [**typo: surrounded] by a high wall, and
+
+skilful muscians; [**typo: musicians;] I have listened with delight
+
+history, and the accumulated discoveries of byegone [**typo: bygone]
+
+acquiline, [**typo: aquiline] his mouth rather small, and not at all
+
+and died at Newstead Abbey, November 18, 1808." [**missing quote inserted]
+
+with the poet and saying:-- [**colon added]
+
+had such ruins in view when he exclaimed:-- [**colon added]
+
+Elyses [**typo: Elysees] at Paris; and as for statuary, the latter
+
+where the celebrated Reformer, John Knox, re-resided.[**typo: resided.]
+
+lake is carved out and and [**typo: deleted second "and"] built up into terrace
+
+through to the north gallery, and and [**typo: deleted second "and"] thence to
+
+myself upon so diminutive a looking [**typo: looking a] creature.
+
+upon the wing--the artifical [**typo: artificial] stream, the brook
+
+seemed to have forgotton [**typo: forgotten] that this was an exhibition
+
+"Sartar [**typo: Sartor] Resartus," and if he does not rise from its
+
+the cloisters of Tinterran [**typo: Tintern] Abbey, in its proudest
+
+that which has accomplished the mightest [**typo: mightiest] and
+
+That measure was in every respect an unconsitutional [**typo: unconstitutional]
+
+practice what they have so long professsd [**typo: professed]. (Hear,
+
+I had writen [**typo: written] for the occasion, was unanimously
+
+taken him back and placed him in goal [**typo: gaol], and
+
+was kept in goal [**typo: gaol] three days, during
+
+into my hand, and at the sametime [**typo: same time] saying,
+
+be a 100 dols. Bank [**typo?: bank] note, on the United States
+
+But the adherence of George Green to the re-resolution [**typo: resolution]
+
+
+Apparent errata, but possibly acceptable period words: (left as-is in text).
+===============
+
+without the least difficulty, and his jestures, [**typo: gestures,]
+   Per OED, jesture obs. form of gesture. May be typo?
+
+motion, and the variagated [**typo: variegated] lamps with their many
+   Per OED, verb variagate was known variant of variegate up to the 19th century
+
+enemies on the 13th Vendimaire [**typo: Vendemiaire]. The Hotel de
+  May be British variant used at the period
+
+observed visiters [**typo: visitors] lingering about it, as if they
+  May be valid past spelling
+
+being conveyed to them by means of a pully-basket, [**typo: pulley-basket,]
+   Per OED, pully known variant of pulley, 15th-19th centuries
+
+under heaven!--Perish the sum of all villanies! [**typo: villainies!]
+   Per OED, known alternate spelling, 16th-19th centuries
+
+force, carrying, upsetting, engulphing [**typo: engulfing] its adversaries,
+   Per OED, known alternate spelling (along with ingulf and ingulph);
+   an example of engulph quoted from an 1871 source.
+
+master and visiters [**typo: visitors] speak of the down-trodden
+  May be valid past spelling
+
+with long curls of a chesnut [**typo: chestnut] colour hanging down
+   Per OED, chesnut was the most common spelling as late as 1820.
+   Johnson set "chestnut" as the standard...
+
+Others found to be acceptable variants:
+   Bastile,
+   plebians,
+   laureat,
+   trode,
+   Shakspere.
+
+
+
+***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THREE YEARS IN EUROPE***
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