He
Recognised Me; And It Was My Fault, And Not His, That I Saw No More Of
Him Till 1857, By Which Time, No Doubt, He Had Forgotten Me.
Still our
conversation in 1852 about America, and especially as to slavery, and
the probability of a separation of North and South, will always dwell
in my memory.
Lord Lincoln had studied De Tocqueville; but he had not,
yet, seen America. He had, therefore, at that time many erroneous
views, which could only be corrected by the actual and personal
opportunity of seeing and measuring, on the spot, the country, which
always really means the people. This opportunity was given to him by
the visit of the Prince of Wales to Canada and the United States, in
1860. He accompanied the Prince in his capacity of Colonial Minister.
These casual glimpses of Lord Lincoln were followed by an interview
between us in 1857. In the meantime, it is true, he had had my name
brought before him during his term of office pending the Crimean War
Some one had suggested to the Government to send me out to the Crimea
to take charge of the Stores Department, at a time when all was
confusion and mess, out there, and I was asked to call on the Minister
about it. It seemed to me, however, a duty impossible of execution by a
civilian, unless the condition of "full powers" were conceded, - and the
matter came to nothing.
In 1856 I was the Manager of the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire
Railway.
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