The national Republican. [volume] (Washington City [D.C.]) 1866-1870, 1868-04-22
The Dickens Dinner.

This great author, Charles Dickens, has
visited the United states, and for some four
months or more has delighted and entertained
our people by reading to them portions Of his
own writings. He has finished his allotted
task and will leave In day or two for his
home In England
II was a commendable thing on the part Of
the members OF the press In this country that
they should extend to Charles Dickens an In
vitation to dine with them ere he left these
shores, and right gloriously did the members
Of the craft entertain him.
We have read the account a. furnished In
the great New York dailies, and would be glad
could we End space to transfer to our columns
all the fine things that were said on that grand
occasion By the entertainers and their guest.
We must content ourselves with few ex-
tracts.
Mr.. Greeley presided, and made a character.
istic speech. We give a single extract. Mr..
Greeley said;
at Is now little more than "a years since
I, young printer, re ,ently located In the city
| of New York, had the audacity to undertake
| the editing and publishing a weekly newsps
per for the r;, tint Locking stO1ns that
gsging appearance before the public, among
the London magazines which purchased for
the occasion was the old Monthly, containing
story by then unknown writer-known to US
only BY the quaint designation OF Boz,
tqreat applausc.l That story, entitled,
think, at that time, Delicate Attentions, but
In Its present form entitled Mr.. Watkins
Tottle, / selected and published In the nrst
number of the hrst journal with which my
name wa, was connected: tApPls,gSse piskwick
character. tLaughter.l Sam Weller had not
yet arisen to increase the mirth of the Anglo
Saxon race. tCheers.l We had not heard, as
we have since heard, of the writer Of those
have In some sort commenced with my own,
tgreat laughter;l and the relation OF admirer
and admired has continued from that day to
the present" tApplausel
MI, Dickens speech was the great feature OF
the occasion. We can give only two short
extracts. In speaking Of a lasting peace be-
tween this country and England, Mr.. Dickens
said:
~ do believe that from the great majority
of honest minds on both sides, there cannot
be absent the conviction that 1t would be bet
ter for this globe to be riven by an earthquake,
hred by comet, overrun by an iceberg, and
abandoned to the Arctic fox and bear, than
that 1t should present the spectacle OF these
two great nations, each Of whom has, in Its
own way and hour, striyen so hard and so sue.
cessfully for freedom, ever again being ar
rayed the one against the other"
The following remarks will be appreciated,
we trust, as they should be. He said that he
was resolved
"To print, in his own journal, his impress
sions Of the gigantic changes which he had
noticed here; and his acknowledgment OF the
kind reception he had met with in the United
States. This testimony he added, so long
as Ire, and so long as my descendants have
any legal right in my books, l shall cause to
be rcpublished, as an appendix to every copy
Of those two books OF mine In which have
referred to America. And this will do and
cause to be done, not in mere love and thank.
fqlness, but because l regard 1t as an act Of
plain Justice aud honor.'n