New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1897-07-20
ENGLAND'S VISITORS.
SPEECH OF wHITELAW REID AT CORD
WAIVERS BANQUET, LONDON, JULY 8.

WAIVERS BANQUET, LONDON, JULY 8.
There is a scriptural approval think, for
the man who said he wouldn't and tnen uiu.
l trust the theological opinions OF tne Mas'e 60
and Wardens Of the Worshiptui COMPANY an ~ ~
Cordwainers may be sufficiently liberal to per-
nit the stretching Of that approval 70 c9'e g.
my present case. Having first fatty refused TO
speak here | am speakingLw Wv hn,e no p0s'''''
excuse excepting that shall be Driel. AT,
Your toast ITO Our Visitors, means on TINS
occasion, l am told, the Coloniais anu .ie
Americans One Of our poets, VINO mas I'e .,,a
quite extraordinary appreciation on TINS slue
Of the water, Mr. Walt. Whitman put IL onee
in another form. He said 1--WE celebrate our
selves" Now the Coonials may perhaps ven'
ure to undertake that task but as for me. l
hesitate at II. We have high authority, no ieS'
than that Of the accomplished regular AM. .s.,
can Ambassador here. for the assurance Una nre
our National flower fitting America as per
fectly the thistle fits Scotland, Is the INQUEST
unobtrusive violet!
There Is another difficulty, and IN TINS hncW
I may speak for the Colonials as wen as loi
ourselves We are visitors, OF course, pu, We
have to pinch ourselves to keep from thihkihs'
all the while. that we are at nome. .,.r,
may venture to speak for all your visI'ois
on one other point You have drawn DeIore US,
day by day, a splendid historic pageant. You
have had wonderful and worthy ceiepi S
ton Of an anniversary altogether unique III . n
history Of the worlds civilization. But the
finest thing you have shown us was not .ne
brilliant military display, here or al AiaeIano.,
1t was not that gitterinS procession Oh ruiel
and princes and mobiles, of representatives OF
the four quarters of the globe, and OF all tneii
governments. that wound its stateiy way
through millions of your people up to the STEPS
OF st. Pauls. 1t was not the colossal cohcen ,'
tration Of sea-power, that showed how easily
and how magnifcently Britannia stili rues 'iie
waves. 1t was not even the amazing or ,,rr,r 20
London, and the magic control over surgins
crowds that lay in the gentlest wave OF sihsiv
policeman's hand. Far overshadowing an
these the one great fact OF the whole jubilee
was the obvious, the profound, the touching
devotion Of the people-of all the peopie-'o
their Queen. .,.
In this too no observer could fail to note that
the Colonies We'd with the mother country
Our friends the Premers here, are IN some
respects more English than the English thel,l.
selves They are proud, as they nave TIKI.
to be, OF their British origin and connection
and loyalty. Long may it last. But tney can
not escape their environment. Climate. clrcuh-
stances, the struggle with the forces OIL ha ma.
and Of savage man. have done their work on
you as they have on us. You will not take II
as unfrendly uncomplimentary Tor an
American to say. After all, what Yankees you
are,
Still the race which peoples these isles IS no
doubt in some ways an unchanging one lie.
hope that to whatever distant ciiihe IL
goes whatever fever in the blood may be en-
gendered by pioneer conflict or tropic sun, II
will remain unchanged in those things which
lie at the very foundation of all It has done IN
the world that was worth doing. l do not SPEAK
now merely of it's liberty, and the Watchtu,
care that must preserve it: That is secure: AL
of our race are Of one mind with our Yankee
philosopher about that:
or rG Ian %" or li neai il freedom DOM fa?
But ii is not freedom that has made our Ma
lions great. 1t may be that there are in these
very days of ours special reasons to remember
that the mighty National structures we nave
reared would crumble did they not repose
| on the solid characteristic Anglo-Saxon virtues
! Of morality, law, order, and equal justice anke
| to the richest and the poorest. The use OF I'D,
| erty is to guarantee and defend all these, ana
unless It does 1t is worthless, and must perish
! from the earth
| II is pleasant to see our Canadian neighbor
! here from the province which gave such
| stormy greeting to the young Queen sixty years
| ago. bearing now the peacefully crossed swords
| of Montcalm and Wolfe, and with them the
| hearts of all Canada. French and English allke
One Of our writer's had the temerity to de,
scribe the French Canadian as belonging stu
to the period Of Louis Quatorze lie was mis-
| taken The French Canadian as seen here TO-
| night belongs neither to the period OF LOUIS
QUA torze to the nineteenth century Wha
he really is is twentieth century American!
1t p may STRIKE IKE SUs al aso as our neigh
bors: but it isn't. The geographical centre o.
| the United States is not near the MISSISSIPPI
| as many suppose. 1t is not ~. LOUIS, no
| even Denver. in the Rockies. 1t is San fran
cisco. Measure eastward from that lovely har
| Dor on the Pacific to New York. ana measure
! westward to the EXTREMIST island belonging tC
the United States, and you will have traversed
about the same distance. But we would Ike
! to be a little more neighborly. We nope Una
soon. 'by and with the consent or the Senate,
when the Australian comes sailing eastward
home he may feel that he is at least beginning
to reach the estates of some of the family
! when in mid-Pacific. the Stars and stripes
| wave their welcome to him at Honolulu
| | am admonished that this toast to the Wis
itors includes the ladies' but some worthier per
| son should respond to that, from whose tongue
would come more trippingly what we all feel
| and | shall venture but word about it, we
! are very proud OF the American ladies' you are
| capturing and bringing over to England. bu
! we are also getting little uneasy. We value
your appreciation. but we are alarmed at your
| acquistiveness. We don't want to spare you
| so many, and If your conquests continue III the
present progressive ratio, the prospect at home
! grows serious.
| venture one word mOre-as respectfui as II
| Is sincere. The longest, wisest, most progress
| sive most prosperous. and the happiest reig!
| in the whole long history of the English mon
archy is that Of the gracious lady who now oc
cupies the throne. God keep her there fol
! many years yet to come