The Calumet news., 1912-07-06
DICKENS VISIT
TO U.S.. RECALLED
At DINNER IN LONDON WHITE
LAW REID GIVES INTEREST
ING INCIDENTS.

London, July 8. 6.-Whitelaw Reid, the
United states Ambassador recalled
some interesting incidents of the visii
To America of Charles Dickens at
dinner given 10y the Boz Club in cele-
bration of the centenary of the birth OF
the great novelist. The dinner was
presided over 10y the Rshop of London
and the company included the surviv-
ing children grandchildren and other
relatives of Dickens.
AS 50 Otter happens at funo tions of
the kind in England, the United states
Ambassador was the chief speaker
After paylrg tribute TO Dickens who
be said was recognized in America al
most as soon as in his own country,
Mr. Reid mentincd that he was one
of small number who remembered
and participated in the farewell ban
duet to Charles Dickens in the old
Fourteenth street Delmonico's i'm New
York at the close of his second visit
to America in April, lSeS
TT was a banquet" said Mr.. Reid,
not only to a great novelist, who had
written many things about our people
too near the truth to be popular at The
time, but also to great editor IN his
own country from great editors i'm the
country which he visited; and IL was
presided over by the greatest cf them,
an editor Of immortal memory I'm the
history of the country which he served
IN its gravest crisis and in its grand
est achievement. Horace Greeley. At
his right sat Charles Dickens, and mex;
To the guest sat a spotlcss chevalier ir
The warfare of opinion that preceded
the civil war-GeorGe William Curtis,
man Of letters worthy TO be associat-
ed with Mr.. Dickens. and an orator
worthy 10 speak on the same platform.
| There was long list of representative
members of the profession ,ani ell cor
dial and eager To- make the honored
guest feel welcome and ut home-as
eager as If jefferson Brick had never
| heen painted from the life from the or-
cupant of New York editorial Of
hce"
Referring 10 the disregard. ir the alb
scncc Of international copyright, of
Dickens moral right to the receipts
from the sale of his books. Mr. Reid
asked: Docs anyone happen to re-
member the precise terms of the Brit
| sh copyright account with Mrs. Har-
1 rict Becchor stowe, for novel that
! was read here almost as widely -
some of Mr. Dickens and was credit
ed with almost as great an effect on
the progress of the world-a work tnat
was translated into all languages and
sold i'm all lands? Car we see the set
| tlement OF the English copyright fUT
| the works Of a poet named Henry
| NNadsWorth Longfellow, who sold here
as widely as Alfred Tennysor; or OF
The similar account for the contribu-
tions to our common noble English lit.
erature by Nathanie' Hawthorne
Washington Irving, Ralph Waldo En-
crson. James~Russell Lowell or John
fathrop Motley?"
The Ambassador thought it wiser "a
forget these mutual shortcomings and
recall instead the spirit in which Dick
| NliS Nfdll WITH liitiii At AiltiA Hbilh's ~
! oelmonico's forty years ago, and his
promise TO have reproduced in uvery
subsequent edition Of Martin Chuzale-
| wit and Of the American Notes the
words he used on that occasion - a
pledge most honorably kept by his
family lnd publishers to this day. The
spirit seems to me still of good omen
FOR both ENGLAND aud America:
"It would be better for this globe to
be riven by an earthquake. lired by a
comet, overrun by an iceberg, al,d
abandoned to the Arctic fox and bear
that it should present the spectacle OF
those two great nations, each of whom
has in its own way and hour, striveh
SO hard and successfully for freedom
ever again being arrayed the one
against the other"
Cottage life. which used to be a pic
turcsque feature of rural England
promises to become thing of the past
| The cottages are falling into ruins and
no new ones are being built. This con
dition is alsn having d serious effect
on marriage In the rural districts. Bri-
dal couples of the working classes can.
not find homes and the overcrowdiu6
has become SO bad that shm condi'
tions are reproduced IN the country
where space should be ample sor ali
residential requirements. II H. said
that the owners Of the land are declin.
ing TO build on the ground that the
newly enacted lane taxes make the ia
ture Of the holdings precarious.
In Esscx there are marshes where