This Is The Centenary Of The Consecration
Of The First American Bishop, Dr. Siebury, Bishop Of Connecticut, Who,
After Having
Implored _our_ Bishops in London to consecrate him,
went at last to Scotland, and "there in an upper room received
Apostolic
orders from the Scotch Bishops, then called non-jurors." We were all
struck with the handsome features of both men and women in church. In
company with a great many others, we remained to Holy Communion, and I
don't think I ever enjoyed it more than among these brethren - strangers,
and separated by the wide Atlantic from our English Church, but joined
to us by "one Lord, one faith," &c. After luncheon John had a chat with
a French scientist, and Mr. Rutherford and his handsome son, and General
and Mrs. Strachy, and Professor Adams, the astronomer; many of these
people are here in conclave about _Greenwich_ time, &c. John and
E - - are now gone driving about with his friend. It is _very hot_,
and poor Hedley is quite knocked down, but we took a little walk.
_Later_. - After dinner a good many adjourned to the drawing-room,
Captain and Mrs. Ray, the Strachys, Rutherfords, &c. We had a scientific
experiment with the shadow of the moon. Mr. Ray told a curious story of
a wasp. He saw it advance slowly to a great _spider_, which the
wasp apparently completely mesmerised, and then the wasp carried him off
to a little house he had made, and deposited the spider next an
_egg_, then another _egg_, and again another spider, till
there was a long row alternately, then the larvae awoke to life, and
_lived_ upon the spiders, who remained fat and well-liking, and
apparently alive up to that point. Captain Ray says he believes Mr.
Scott is right in saying that the American side will never be able to
give us warning of storms which will be of any use, for not more than
one in ten of their storms reach us; our storms come from the North and
Mid-Atlantic. Captain Ray fills the same post here that Mr. Scott does
in London, meteorological and weather prophet. Presently a nigger of
fine appearance, with a companion, played the banjo and sung. It was
really very pretty, and we stood at the porch listening, and numbers of
white-robed figures appeared on the opposite side (the young women so
arrayed walk about a good deal these hot nights), and a little crowd
gathered round us. It is surprising how little music and amusement they
seem to have.
Letter No 8.
_Washington, Wormley's Hotel, Monday, 6th._
The weather has been "exceptionally" hot, they say, for the time of
year, Hedley quite unable to do anything. John went up the Monument,
five hundred feet, and I went with Gibson to see the Capitol. The dome
looks pretty from a distance, but the whole thing strikes me as large,
handsome, uninteresting and vulgar; we inspected the Congress Hall and
Senate Chamber.
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