The Portland daily press., 1865-04-27
etter from Distinguished Englishman
to his friend in Portland.
HAM1LroN, &c. WI April 20. 1856

~ HAMILTON, &c. W. April 20, 1865.
! have not heard from you for long, but
silence, now days, is almost guarantee Of
the well being of friends. In.news fly apace.
| And my affection for you leads me to believe
that the expression OF sympathy wrung from
me by the last horrible freight of the tele-
graph, will not be unacceptable. l was in
Kingston when the news reached Of the wick
| ed murder of President Lincoln. You can
but imagine the effect here, by what you have
seen around you. Men looked at one an
other, stupened and appalled,; horror, indig-
nation, pity could scarcely fnd utterance.
"a mans man for a, that, and zone touch
OF nature makes us all akin" While we stood
whispering. slowly, we saw, here, there,
around us, without one word of concert,
dag after flag, from tower and spire, float at
half mast, the spontaneity anc unconscious
consentaneousness of the demonstration was
very striking, and believe it was ;simulta-
neously the same throughout the British
Provinces. I met the Hen. John A. Nc
Donald, on his way to England, an hour after
"Yes," said he, swell may we all deplore this
great calamity. As member OF this govern
ment, tell you, never had Peace, England,
aud Canada, truer friend than Abraham
Lincoln. Mankind, on this continent, have
lost their best friend" Yesterday, on my way
up from Kingston here, at the time OF the funer-
al, the feeling shown was the same. Every
shop closed, every face saddened, every station,
E village, town, bore mournfuf testimony in flags
at half mast, OF the reality of the public sor-
row and sympathy. I had always felt that
under quaint manner, and an exterior OF
grotesque strength dignifed by the pow
or of earnestness, straightforwardness and
truth, we had in Lincoln very good man, and
his goodness constituted his greatness. 1t
would be difficult to exhaust subject, at this
moment, ifexhaustible; but / think need say
no more 10 assure you that we all feel "blood
is thicker than water" and that we shall be
glad indeed. if the knowledge that such feel
ing exists can conduce to your consolation.
Since writing the above have seen the
Hamilton Spectator, from which make the
following extract:
"One touch OF naturs makes the whole
world kin; and nothing exempli6es this more
s--s@AA euNh dPPoiihe CFcuts rs ludb WHICH We
have been called upon to lament. During the
progress OF the struggle between the North
anu south, Canadians have exercised their
as 70 mold and express what opinions they
9 H"s Sa proper on that bloody controversy.
~ ~ uvlng so has been too much misconstrued
If hatred n ~ o. hostility to the republic, and
~ ~ ncces;on its people Deeply as we lament
tne occasion lor the present Manifestations of
ebaseg that d onr gladly US we would have
have continued to be mscons.r,Isd , ra,In.
han S that this terrible event which ali SO deep.
this good TO come out of the ar;i Y.,ss.s es
should prove to our neighbors, that VIZ ua. .r y
not iorgetfuI, either of our common origin c c1
common interest, or the duties and oblga,, ous
Of good neighbornood. Blood Is indeed th ICIs
er than water, and in the spoDtans GUS and uni
versal sentiment Of sympathy, which has been
given utterance to from one end Of the British
Provinces to the other, the American naonla
can learn how false and foolish has been thai
prejudice which has taught them to believe
| emies.