Authors, American -- 19th century -- Biography; Feminists -- United States -- Biography; Howe, Julia Ward, 1819-1910
We passed a Sunday at Melrose, and attended an open-air service in the
ruins of the ancient abbey. We saw little of Edinburgh besides its
buildings, the society people of the place being mostly in
_villeggiatura_. Mr. Sumner had given us letters to two of the law
lords. One of these invited us to a seaside dinner at some little
distance from town. The other entertained us at his city residence.
Of greater interest was our tour in Ireland. Lord Morpeth had given us
some introductions to friends in Dublin. At the same time he had written
Mr. Sumner that he hoped Dr. Howe would not in any way become
conspicuous as a friend to the Repeal measures which were then much in
the public mind. This Repeal portended nothing less than the disruption
of the existing political union between Ireland and England. The Dublin
Corn Exchange was the place in which Repeal meetings were usually held.
We attended one of these. My sister and I had seats in the gallery,
which was reserved for ladies. Dr. Howe remained on the floor. This
meeting had for one of its objects the acknowledgment of funds recently
sent from America. The women who sat near us in the gallery found out,
somehow, that we were Americans, and that an American gentleman had
accompanied us to the meeting. They insisted upon making this known, and
only forbore to do so at our earnest request.
These friends were vehement in their praise of O'Connell, who was the
principal speaker of the occasion. "He's the best man, the most
religious!" they said; "he communes so often." I remember his appearance
well, but can recall nothing of his address. He was tall, blond, and
florid, with remarkable vivacity of speech and of expression. His
popularity was certainly very great. While he was speaking, a gentleman
entered and approached him. "How d'ye do, Tom Steele?" said O'Connell,
shaking hands with the new-comer. The audience applauded loudly, Steele
being an intimate friend and ally of O'Connell, and, like him, an
earnest partisan of Repeal.
Mr. George Ticknor, of Boston, had given us a letter to Miss Edgeworth,
who resided at some distance from the city of Dublin. From her we soon
received an invitation to luncheon, of which we gladly availed
ourselves. Our hostess met us with a warm welcome. She had had some
correspondence with Dr. Howe, and seemed much pleased to make his
acquaintance. I remember her as a little old lady, with an old-fashioned
cap and curls. She was very vivacious, and had much to say to Dr. Howe
about Laura Bridgman. He in turn asked what she thought of the Repeal
movement. She said in reply, "I don't understand what O'Connell really
means."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account