Morning journal and courier., 1880-12-30
Great Britain.

A Grand Banquet-Feasting an Ameri-
can Railroad K1ng-Prominent Persons
i'm Attendance.
LONDON, Dec. 29.-It Is now said by Mr..
Governs friends that the meeting of the
| shareholders of the Reading Railroad COM
pany held on Thursday at the Canon Street
Hotel was practically a great success, thor
ough unanimity and enthusiasm in favor of
Mr.. Gowen prevailing throughout the entire
meeting. Even the Times and other jour-
nails which were previously disposed to pre-
dict the failure of Governs efforts are now
acknowledging the great ability of Mr.. Cow
en-, and are expressing a unanimous approval
of his plan for the regeneration of the COM
panies under his management. Governs
time has been to great extent occupied in
receiving and paying social visits. Last night
Mr.. John Henry Puleston, M. P. for Devon
port and formerly member of the famous
banking house of Jay Cooke, Mccullough
& Co., and later of the recognized firm
of Mccullough & Co., gave grand
dinner at the Conservative club, "A
st. James street, in honor of Mr.
Gowen. MIR. Puleston is well known for his
generous hospitality and the efusion of his
personal manners, but on this occasion these
traits in his character shone forth most con-
spicuously. The banquet was notable and
brilliant success. There were forty guests.
The principal bankers, merchants, editors
and lawyers of the metropolis were well rep
resented. There were also present EarlDun-
more a Scotch nobleman, who sits and votes
in the House of Lords as Baron Dunmore,
Viscount Bury, Lord Ashley the Lord Mayor
of London, who is not often found at
private dinners during the year of
his Office and many other prominent men.
his guest, referred to his public spirit and
read from letter which he had just received
from the Hon. John Russell Lowell, the
American minister, who regretted his inabili-
ty to attend, but who said, ITO Mr.. Gowen,
we must attribute the great work of putting
down the Molly Mcguire conspiracy in Penn
sylvania, and of bringing to Justice and the
villains who composed that illegal and blood
thirsty organization Mr.. Puleston also
read letter from an influential member of
Parliament who expressed his wish that Mr..
Gowen had plenary power given to him to
deal with the Irish Land Leaguers who were
now converting one of Her Majesty's provin-
ces into camp of armed sand bloodthirsty
rebels, for no one knew better than Mr..
Gowen how to deal with such people.
Mr.. Gowen replied in short speech in which
he expressed his pleasure in thus receiving
the appreciation of the representatives of the
landed and wealthy classes of England, who
as he himself had no sympathy whatever
with those communistic sentiments which
now in America as well as in Ireland, Germa-
ny and England, threaten to overthrow the
foundations of society. Mr.. Governs brief
remarks were received with applause. Other
speeches followed from the Lord Mayor and
some of the other gentlemen present. Sir
Henry Drummond Wolf in his speech stated
that when in the East he often found far
more good had been accomplished there by
American missionaries than by any other
class of preachers of the Gospel The
banquet continued until midnight, when it
ended. It was one of the most gratifying
incidents connected with Mr.. Governs pres
emit visit to London, and in an international
sense such gatherings are productive of most
pleasant and lasting recollections.