Last night I had the great pleasure of receiving four letters - one from
you, and one from C - - and Mary, and Margaret.
We left Dick behind at
Washington, but he arrived last night; the journey was a pleasant one
and the scenery pretty, especially Chesapeake Bay. I hear mosquitos
swarm at Baltimore and so I am glad we did not go there. This is a very
large hotel and I am on seventh floor, No. 750! Close to me is a fire
escape, which I carefully investigated. We got cheated coming here from
the station, and _so did Dick_, to our great triumph! The country
coming here was more English and well populated than any we have seen.
Going up in the lift who should I find there but Dr. Gladstone, one of
our fellow passengers on the "Parisian;" we all laughed. Since I began
this a very kind note has come by hand from Mr. Childs, of the _Public
Ledger_, saying Mrs. C - - is at New York, but he will try to get her
back on Saturday; he is coming to call at a quarter-past two, and offers
us carriages to drive about.
_Half-past One_. - We have just come back from seeing the Roman
Catholic Cathedral - not much worth seeing excepting a beautiful picture
of our Lord as a Child among the doctors. We also saw the Academy of
Arts, but there was nothing we cared for. I have had a kind note from
Mrs. James Neilson, who hopes to see us at New Brunswick, _en
route_ for New York.
_Sunday, 12th_. - Mr. Childs came, a short, stout man, and very
kind; he sent the carriage at three, and we drove in Fairmount Park, the
largest park in the world, and really very pretty; saw conservatories
and gardens with bright, but only _foliage_, plants - wonderful
perillas, alternantheras, tresine, &c. It was a most lovely evening and
we enjoyed the three hours' airing; it was perfectly clear and still,
with sunshine and fresh balmy air. Yesterday (Saturday) directly after
breakfast we went as by appointment to Mr. Childs' office; he has a
beautifully fitted-up room, filled with all kinds of curiosities, - Tom
Moore's harp, Washington's chair, Louis Napoleon's cup and saucer,
splendid clocks of all kinds; one of them belonged to Lord Howe, which
he had to leave behind him when he was "obliged to run away from the
States in such a hurry!" Mr. Childs' seemed to think I must know all
about this, but I am afraid I had quite forgotten that humiliation. This
reminds me of a story I heard lately of an American lionizing an
Englishman about; they came within sight of Bunker's Hill, and the
American as delicately and modestly as he could announced: "_That_,
sir, is Bunker's Hill," the Englishman put up his glass and looked, and
then said: "And who was Bunker, and what did he do on his hill?" Imagine
the American's indignation at this gross ignorance!
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 50 of 75
Words from 25726 to 26228
of 39002
