The New York herald., 1868-04-22
Dickens, Dinner spceeh.

IeatureS LII tne extraordinary atCehtlOn palu 10 |
his claims as reporter of the treasures in the
mine of fiction newly opened if not originally |
discovered by him. He appeared incapable of
appreciating the hearty If rude welcome ex-
tended to him by an entire people. Or if he
could appreciate this he nevertheless allowed
himself TO be so much vexed at his failure to
secure one main object of his visit, and it must
be conceded just and worthy object-the |
passage of an international copyright law
that he got fairly angry with us, and wilfully
shut his eyes to everything but the faults and
blemishes of the people. He therefore satirized
the Americans merclessly, but, on the whole,
not more unjustly than he was in the habit of
satirizing his own people. There was, in fact,
80 much truth in some of his criticisms that 1t
seemed like work Of supererogation when, in
his dinner speech the other evening, Mr..
Dickens attempted sort of apology for stric-
lures which were held to be offensive, or at
least in bad taste, at time when Americans
were more thin skinned and less Indifferent to
European criticism than they happily are at
present.
A second visit had opened his eyes to the
mighty changes which quarter of century
has wrought in this country and given him a
glimpse Of those which begin to loom up in a
future not far distant. After successful lee
turing tour which has put hundreds ofthousands
of dollars in his purse Mr.. Dickens made an
anaende honorable much less suspicious than it
might have seemed If he had proAfered it at
the commencement of his tour After a din
ner at elmonico's-which even London alder
man might have enjoyed, however much mys-
titled by the fantastic names conferred on some
of the dishes-it is not surprising that the i'll
humor which embittered the american Notes"
and 'Martin Chuzzlewit" should have given
way to more amiable emotions. Mr.. Dickens
very amiably, but also very patronizingly,
admitted that not only his youthful views but
the manners of the Americans had changed
considerably. He intimated that although no
earthly consideration could induce him to write
another book about America, yet he would
with great pleasure prepare an appendix to the
two unlucky books which he had already writ
ten. In this appendix he would cheerfully GER
tify to the gratifying fact that Americans have
so greatly improved in their manners as not to
have bored him so much as during his previous
visit. He has been pestered with no invita-
tions either to balls or to church. He has not
been forced to shake hands until his fingers
became as sore and swollen as those of Presi-
dent Of the United States on an electioneering
tour Nobody has mistaken his hat for spit
toon; nobody has invaded the privacy of his
bedchamber, ransacked his trunks, counted his
rings and watch chains, upset his bottle of
macassar or borrowed his tooth brush. With
his previous conceptions al this is 80 conflict
frankly acknowledges 1t and graciously pro-
misses to have his apologies reprinted 80 long
as his descendants shall retain any legal right
in his books. Such extreme amiability dis
arms as we'll as overwhelms us, and we should
be unamiable indeed to comment with severity
on the patronizing air with which Mr.. Dickens,
like every genuine John Bull, seems bound to
season his sweetest batteries.
But we cannot fail to recognize the extremely
condescending manner which characterizes Mr..
Dickens note of acceptance of the invitation to
dine with certain members Of the press on Sat
urday, the only day which he found it con-
venient to fix upon for the exhibition of this
British lion at feeding hours. How very kind
il was of him to submit to The exhibition at all
He had growled before at having been dined to
excess, and yet with patient long suffering he
yields again to the inhiction, gout to the con-
(. l,o
hour and half too late it may have been only
out of Difference to the notorious lack of pune
tuality which he had himself satirized on the
part of his American hosts. He could not have
been aware how hungriy punctual his Bohe-
mian friends would be on this extraordinary
occasion. 1t may have chanced, however, that
either he or they mistook the appointed hour.
AT all events, they must gratefully acknow-
ledge that he has promised to find no more
fault with their lack of punctuality or OF any
other trait Of good manners He pats them on
the back and will eulogize them without reser-
vation in his "appendlx" he can secure the
copyright of it for his descendants.
We must not omit to thank Mr. Dickens for
the munifcent donation Of one hundred and
fifty dollars which he has made to the Dramatic
Fund, in answer TO the letter begging him to
bestow upon it the proceeds Of his last nights
reading. A cool request, II is true; but the
response Of Mr. Dickens, through Mr. Dolby,
Is equally cool and characteristic. Dolby added
q hundred dollars to the contribution. Well
done Dolby.
We are glad that Mr.. Dickens finds 1t 80
laughable an idea 10 look upon an American as
a foreigner in England. Our impression, then,
must have been erroneous that Americans were
regarded as ''outsidc barbarians' by almost
all Englishmen, including, particularly, those
..-, <u.c.Jorata honda