The Indiana State sentinel., 1879-12-03
DICKENS In AMERICA.
An Inter. sting Batch of Unpublished
Letters.
.fBoz" Among His Familiars-Letters Cover
ing the Novelist's Two Visits to
America-Comical Experiences
Among His American
Friends
New York Herald.l

a man than through his private letters. |
Dickens wrote very freely to his correspond
ents, and in his letters shows himself to be
man with warm attachments. and one who,
while engaged in the busy life of an editor
and author, gave his attention to the smallest
details of domestic life, and was as much in
terested in the papering and painting of Gad's
Hill place, as he was in the contents Of a
number of Household Words The letters
covers period of "a years.
THE PrcKwIcK COMMISSION.
One of the first of the letters is dated EUR
nival's Inn, Wednesday evening, 1885" and
is written to his wife, then Miss Hogarth. 1t
begins, MY dearest Kate" and tells of an
offer from Chapman & Hall of IA pounds a
month to .write and edit a new publication
they contemplate, entirely by myself. to be
published monthly, and each number to con-
tam four wood cuts" The work will be no
Joke" he writes, .sbut the employment is too
tempting to resist" He began "Pickwick"
and entered upon married life at about this
time.
HIS FIRST AMERICAN VISIT.
In January of the year 1912 Dickens, ac-
companied by his wife, made his first visit to
America They had a very unpleasant voy
age from which Mrs. Dickens suffered
severely. Dickens welcome in America is
best described in letter to his friend Nit
ton:
81 can give you no conception of my well
come here. There never was king or em-
peror upon the earth SO cheered and followed
by crowds. and entertained in public at
hall md and xratfad m bu
public bodies and deputations of all kinds.
1 have had one from the Far West-a jour-
new of 1000 miles. IL go out in carriage
the crowd surround it and escort me home;
if go to the the theater. the whole house
crowd to the door, rise as one man, and the
timbers ring again. You can not imagine
what it is. / have five great public dinners
on hand at this moment, and invitations
from every town and village and city in the
States
There is great deal afoat here in the
way of subjects for description. | keep my
eyes open pretty wide, and hope to have
| done so to some purpose by the time / come
home.
| Down at Gad's Hill, near Rochester. in
| -Shakespeare's Gad's Hill, where Fal-
| staff engaged in the robbery-is quaint lit
| tie countrys house of Queen Annes time.
happened to be walking past, year and a
half or so ago, with my sub editor of House
hold Words, when / said to him: "You see
| that house? 1t has always a curious interest
| for me, because when was small boy down
in these parts 1 thought it the most beautiful
house II suppose because of its famous old
cedar trees) ever seen. And my poor father
used to bring me to look at it. and used to say
that if ever grew up to bea clever man per-
haps might own that house or such another
house. In remembrance of which have al
ways in passing looked to see if it was to be
sold or let, and it has never been to me like
any other house, and it has never changed a,
all" We came back to town and my friend
went out to dinner. Next morning he came
to me in great excitement and said: sIt i:
written that you were to have that house al
Gads Hill The lady / had allotted to me
to take down to dinner yesterday began tc
speak of that neighborhood. You know it?
1 said: 4 have been there to-day 'Oh, yes,
said she, Il know it very we'll. l was a child
there in the house they call Gad's Hill Place
My father was the rector and lived there
many years. He has just died, has left it t.
mes.and want to sellit So says the sub
editor, you must buy it. Now or neverp
| I did, and hope to pass next summer there
though may, perhaps, let it afterward, fur
nished from time to time.
MISS HoGARTH.
Miss Hogarth's position in the Dickens
family is thus alluded to:
Miss Hogarth, always Miss Hogarth, is tn,
guide, philosopher and friend of all the party
and very close affection exists between he
and the girls. doubt if she will ever marry
don't know whether to be glad of it o
sorry for it.
THE SECOND VISIT TO AMERICA.
The great value of these letters is that the,
cover the incidents of Dickens life SO closel,
as to make an autobiography. The second
volume is perhaps the strongest in interest
The American reader will be particularly in
terested in that part which treats of his las
visit to this country. His readings through
out Great Britain was so successful that b.
was beset to come here, and he finally sen
Mr.. George Dolby over to canvass the pros
poets. Mr.. Dolby's report was so favorabl
that Dickens agreed to come-his success j
we'll known. He arrived at Boston on No
vember 10, 1867, and writes to his daughte
under date of November 81:
l dine to day with Longfellow, Emerson
Holmes. and Agassiz. Longfellow was her
yesterday. Perfectly white hair and beard
but remarkably handsome and notabl
, looking man. The city has increased enor
mously in five and twenty years. 1t ha
, grown more mercantile it is like Iced
mixed with Preston and favored with Ne,
Brighton; but for smoke and fog yo
Substitute an exquisite bright light air.
found my room beautifully decorate
by Mrs. Fields with choice flowers, and sc
off by number Of good books. 1 am nc
persecuted by people in general, as Doll
has happily made up his mind that the les
l am exhibited for nothing the better. So ou
men sit outside the door and wrestle wit
| svA oasJ -
a very quiet audience here, appreciativ
but not demonstrative. / shall try to chang
their character little.
l have been going on very well. A no
rible custom obtains in these parts of askin
YOU to dinner somewhere at half.past 2. an