Evening star., 1941-08-10
Great Britain Honors
Americans
BIZ Frederic J. HdSkin.

pie for reasons other than being the
home of democracy. The homeland
OF the British is dotted here and there
with memorials that honor many great
Americans, and these places have been
pointed to with pride by every citizen Of
the United States who has had an cppor-
tunity of seeing them. Located, not in
out-of-way places. but in public parks,
buildings and churches, the English peo-
pie show these statues and markers
with pride.
In London's famous Trafalgar Square
there is statue of George Washington
bearing the inscription: Presented to
the people of Great Britain and Ireland
by the Commonwealth of Virginia, 1921"
and in the same year a bust of Washing
ton presented by American subscribers,
was placed in the crypt of st. Paul's Ca
thedral. This bust is surrounded by
memorials of Britain's distinguished
statesmen, poets and other men of letters.
Sulgrave, in Northamptonshire, the an
cestral home OF Washington. is only so
miles from London. In Brighton Church
near this historical site are two sepul-
chral stones, one dated 1911 over the
grave of the father of John Washington
who emigrated 10 America, on which his
heraldic arms appear impaled with those
OF his wife. The other stone covers the
! remains of the uncle Of the emigrant
and presents on brass the simple WASH
ington family shield, with the eXtraneous
crescent, the distinguishing badge in
NJ :
that the stars and stripes of the Ameri-
can flag were taken from the shield OF
| the Washington family In the WASH
! ington family coat of arms the stripes
/ are alternate red and white, as are those
of this countrys flag.
England by acts and words. honored
| and respected Washington throughout
his career. For example, at the time OF
! the Revolutionary War, only a small
minority of men in England had votes,
| Parliament being dominated by the great
| landhOlders. With the extension of the
/ parliamentary franchise in later years
and the growth of the press and democ-
/ racy, the British appreciation of WASH
| ingtOn also grew This appreciation is
| attested by the words of Lord Brougham,
great English barrister at the time. when
he proclaimed the test Of the progress
of mankind will be their appreciation Of
! the character of George Washington"
To this. the British historian, Green,
added: 1T was almost unconsciously that
men learned to cling 10 Washington with
a trust and faith such as few other
men have won.'
There is statue of Abraham Lincoln
facing Westminster Abbey, the final rest
ing place Of many of Britains illustrious
dead. Lincolns English ancestor was
Samuel Lincoln from Norwich, who set
tied in bingham Mass. in 1888.
In the Royal Exchange, which dates
back to 1866, along with statues of Queen
Elizabeth, Queen Victoria, the Duke OF
Wellington and others. there is a statue
of George Peabody, American philan-
thropist. who, having made his fortune
in London. left 81 100000 to ameliorate
the condition of the London poor by the
construction Of modern houses with mod
crate rents. Peabody is best remembered
in the United States for the educational
institutions which he established in Bal
timore. Md, and Nashville. Tenn.
But London honored George Peabody
not alone for his generous gift to aid the
poor. Peabody's English ancestor was
Francis Peabody, who emigrated from st.
Adams, Hertfordshire, in 1865 and SET
tied in Topsfeld, Mass, two years later.
! The distinguished American states
man, Benjamin Franklin, had quite an
| interesting experience in London. Ar
| irving there about 1928 without re-
sources other than his ability to work
for his own living, in his emergency,
/ he took lodging in Little Britain
/ Smithfield, at shillings and pence
| a week The locality in which he
lived being the center Of the book
selling and printing trade, Franklin
obtained employment in the art with
which his name is always associated.
Later he became postmaster for the
English colonies in this country, and
subsequently the first Postmaster Gen.
eral of the United States Every Lon
doner takes pride in pointing TO the
marker on the little house in which
! Franklin lived in the days before the
world knew his greatness
In the Middle Ages in England the
word franklin meant a freeholder as
distinguished from the great feudal
! landholders and their tenants Benjamin
FranklinS ancestors lived in the village
OF Ecton, NorthamptonShire, for at
least 300 years on a freehold of about
| 80 acres, the head of the family being
| blacksmith, the eldest son always hav-
ing been trained in the trade. Benja-
min Franklin's father came TO New
England in 1852.
The churches of London furnish many
associations with America. John Quincy
| Adams, while under appointment OF
President George Washington as min
| ister to The Hague, visited London and
| there met Louise Catherine Johnson
whom he married at All Hallows Church,
| October 81, 1894. In this old church
William Penn was christened and tab
let marks the date of that event.
At the fashionable church of st.
Georges, Hanover Square, on December
2, 1886, Theodore Roosevelt married
Edith Kermit Carow. daughter of Isaac
Carow a wealthy shipping merchant Of
New York City. On July T. 1876, Christ
Church, Westminster Bridge road, was
opened on the centenary of American
independence.
In Westminster Abbey there is bust
of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and
colored window and tablet honoring