The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-11-07

the ambassador. Mr.. Page. who pre-
sided, paid a high tribute to the former
ambassador at Washington.
! Mr.. Bryce served during the time OF
E. three American Presidents. the pre-
siding officer said. and all three had
expressed to Mr.. Page the high opin-
ion and sineerest esteem in which they
held him.
4 welcome him home," Mr.. Page said
"as the ambassador emeritus to the
American people. All his blushing hon
ors have been nobly won"
The American ambassador then spoke
of Mr.. Bryce's great popularity in every
state, all of which the former ambassa-
dor had visited.
The only honors America could con-
fer, he said, We're academic and Mr.
Bryce had more of these from Ameri-
! can colleges than "even that least quiet
academician, who is now harvesting q
crop of such honors in South America. "
After thanking the pilgrims for their
welcome back to England, Mr.. Bryce
said that when he resigned his place
in the cabinet more than six years ago
and went to the United States in order
to try to settle a number of long out
standing questions. he foresaw a diff
ficult task.
Felt at Home
Everybody had made him feel at
home in America" the speaker said
He had been treated like one of their
own citizens, indeed better perhaps he
said, for he had been spared the criti-
cism which In all modern countries is
so literally bestowed upon public men.
When Secretary Root and l." Mr..
Bryce said, 'began to bring about treat
les the first thing we did was to make
friends with one another, and friendship
is great aid in making treaties. I
| found in Mr.. Foot not only a brilliant
intellect, but what is even better and
perhaps more rare, an eminently fair
mind, capable of seeing both sides to
every question, and a sincere lover of
peace.
Here the good will of the two ma
tions was behind the negotiations. 1t
was our good fortune to settle all the
questions that had been outstanding be-
tween us, and among those old and
thorny controversies over the North At
lantic fisheries questions with England,
threatening their good relations
Almost all these questions related
to Canada. | have always felt that it
is the duty of an ambassador to re-
gard and maintain the interests of Can
ada and the other diminions no less
than of Great Britain itself
Two Things to Add
Returning hither from the United
States, 1 have two things to add to the
British pilgrims gathered here as
friends of the American people, One
is that you must not take too seriously
the lurid pictures of American life
drawn in some organs of the European
press.
In Washington I used to be struck
with the dark view which the press
news from England conveyed of British
events and conditions. a view which 1
knew to be mistaken and misleading.
This Is another.
Here the same thing happens Ca
Diagrams and vivid pens of correspond
ents inevitably hearten the color be-
sides heightening 1t. Unlike stocks
news would be the better off being wa
tered when they cross the sea. My other
message is to assure you that the
friendship you entertain for the people
of the United States is reciprocated far
more universally and far more hearth
ly than. ever before imagined. There is
friendship of governments and a
friendship of nationalities. The former
may change with the shifting of ma
terial interests or be affected by the
subtle relations of each power with
other powers. The latter, however, rests
on solid and permanent foundations.
with our two peoples it is, based on
community of speech, of literature, of
institutions of belief, of traditions from
past centuries, of ideals for the future
action.
I'm all of these things the British
and American peoples are closer than
any two other peoples can be- Nature
and history have meant them TO be
friends"
Mr.. Bryce said it was the duty of the
two peoples to show others the way
into their peaceful understanding.