New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1905-05-06
FAREWELL TO Mr.. CHOATE
IORD MAYORS DINNER.
a Notable Gathering Pays Honor.to
american ambassador.

lish stage
So Joseph H. Choate characterized the fare
ali dinner at the Mansion House tonight, at
,rrinh undoubtedly was the most remarkable
gsfhering OF notable men ever assembled at the
.-ss,dence OF the Lord Mayor of London In the
vords Of Sir Henry Campbell Zimmerman, 'It
,rId be impossible to collect a more repre-
esntative gathering" All parties, classes pro-
..sslors and opinions, from the metropolis, rep
scented by the Lord Mayor himself. to the
,overnment, represented by Arthur ]. Balfour
"a the Marquis of Lansdowne. together with
few Of the American community, there.
~, cboate sat at the right hand Of the Lord
,,.-or. next TO him was Mr.. Balfour, and then
"a 1ansdowne. At the left of the Lord
,r.,or were the Archbishop of Canterbury and
.hs Duke Of wellington
T,sre were present the Earls Of Mimic, Dart
ruth. Aberdeen. Denbigh. Kintore, Jersey.
orslovv and Crewe. Among the lords
c+-s+bcona, Hereford, AIountstephen, Lawrence.
Hurh Cecil. Balfour OF Burleigh, N1acnaghten,
.lrsrstone and Rothschild, besides Viscounts
coscben and Churchill, Srs Frederick Treves.
77-,o harrington, Conan Doyle. Thomas Upton,
lawrence Alna-Tadema. Purdon Clarke and
otbers. John Morley, James Bryce, Austen
~bsnberlain and Percy Wyndham- The Lord
,rovors Of Liverpool, Manchester. Birmingham
"a other cities came to London for the occa-
80, and there were present Noberly Bell. Of
.erbe Times" and the editors OF other London
dsilies Rudyard Kipling, Alfred Austin. An
.bo,x Hope and other authors, many members
=, she House OF Commons OF all political parties
and many others. together numbering three hun
dred Among the Americans were the entire
staff Of the embassy, Consul General Robert J.
Wvnne Vice Consul Carnegie and Senator
s,ooner. OF Wisconsin. The wife Of the Lord
Mayor entertained a dozen guests, who sat high
above the assembly in the circular music gallery.
The carrla ges arrived in a long stream, headed
by the aldermen in the Corporation coaches
massive. gilded and ornamented vehicles, drawn
by caparisoned horses and attended by knicker-
1,ocl,ered gaudily coated and powdered footmen.
The dinner was held in the Egyptian Hail.
which was draped with the banners Of former
Lord Mayors and the flags Of colonies. Ar
ranged behind the Lord Mayor and Mr.. Choate
were the Corporation plate centrepiece, crossed
bv a huge sword and mace, while the smaller
pieces Of this wonderful silver service, including
the enormous loving cup were used on the
tables The uniforms Of army officers together
with these of members of the municipal govern
Inent and a vast staff of red coated, powdered
household attendants, made the scene brilliant.
The Archbishop Of Canterbury pronounced
grace and the beneiiction. The aged Lord
Mayor, a white bearded, picturesque figure, in
his rich costume, rose and toasted the King and
Queen Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman pro-
posed The President" eulogtzing him as "a
genuine. typical character, characteristic of
America, a firm friend Of peace, though not,
perhaps, of a quiescent disposition"
Premier Balfour in toasting Mr.. Choate, said:
s'No greater honor could have been done me
than TO have proposed this toast" He congratu-
lated the Lord Mayor on being the host Of Great
Britain on this memorable occasion. Mr.. Choate,
he said. had been with Britons in days of
mourning and Of rejoicing of disaster and Of
victory. not only as the representative of a
great State but ever ready to take his part in
any phase Of British public life not connected
with politics, and had ever played his part with
distinction. He hoped Mr.. Choate would carry
away with him much more than merely diplo-
matte ideas.
Mr.. Balfour dilated on the close relations be-
tween the two countries and the common senti-
ment Of amity which survived always despite
the mistakes OF official leaders. He said that
with the lapse of decades the old bitterness had
been lost in the historic past; that all causes of
difficulty had vanished, and that there had
emerged slowly but surely, a feeling OF COM
mon brotherhood, the surest prospect, he vent
ured TO think. Of international peace and prog
ress.
In conclusion Mr.. Balfour said that their fare
well TO Mr. Choate was not formal and official,
but came from their hearts.
On rising Mr.. Choate was greeted with rounds
Of applause. He spoke at considerable length
and with much feeling. He said that he was
homesck and glad TO be returning to his native
land where old friends were diminishing as fast
new ones were making here. If he remained
much longer, he said, he would have worse
disease than inconsistencies, namely, Anglomania.
An American President had once wisely said
that he would not trust Ambassador in Eng
land more than four years. because the English
would spoil him. They would not spoil him as
the children of Israel spoiled the Midantes, buc,
contrarywise. by heaping compliments and ben
efts upon him. He said he did not dare trust
himself to speak of the honor he felt in being
the guest Of such an assembly gathered to say
farewell, adding:
Altogether too much credit has been at
tributed TO me for the happy and delightful re-
letors now existing between the two countries
II I have contributed TO maintain what 1ound
taking up my post the last six years VII!
be the proudest Of my life. But ule real
reason for the happy state Of affairs between
the countries does not belong to any Anbassa-
dor, but the two men responsible for their rela-
tons are Lord Lansdowne and MI Hay.
have never been called into the presence OF the
King his ilustrious consort without nHu-iiS
them also full of friendship for the country
represent The Kings instincts lot peace aIe
uner!ing and his genius for Cancellation per
1ect, as he has shown the world IN recent
weeks
Before concluding Mr.. Choate paid tribute
10 Whitelaw Reid, his successor as Ambassa-
Cor at the Court of St James and read part
Of his recent speech in New-York as q worthy
Introduction Of the new Ambassador. He said
the British people would find that his successor
and old friend had been a lifelong advocate Of
friendly relations between Great Britain and