me saying, "Welcome to England. How did you leave
Garrison." I need not add, that Mr. T. gave me the best advice, as to my
course in Great Britain; and how I could best serve the cause of my
enslaved countrymen. I never enjoyed three hours more agreeably than
those I spent with Mr. T. on the occasion of my first visit. George
Thompson's love of freedom, his labours in behalf of the American slave,
the negroes of the West Indies, and the wronged millions of India, are
too well known to the people of both hemispheres, to need a word of
comment from me. With the single exception of the illustrious Garrison,
no individual is more loved and honoured by the coloured people of
America, and their friends than Mr. Thompson.
A few days after my arrival in London, I received an invitation from
John Lee, Esq., LL.D., whom I had met at the Peace Congress in Paris, to
pay him a visit at his seat, near Aylesbury; and as the time was "fixed"
by the Dr., I took the train on the appointed day, on my way to Hartwell
House.
I had heard much of the aristocracy of England, and must confess that I
was not a little prejudiced against them. On a bright sunshine day,
between the hours of twelve and two, I found myself seated in a
carriage, my back turned upon Aylesbury, the vehicle whirling rapidly
over the smooth macadamised road, and I on my first visit to an English
gentleman. Twenty minutes' ride, and a turn to the right, and we were
amid the fine old trees of Hartwell Park; one having suspended from its
branches, the national banners of several different countries; among
them, the "Stars and Stripes. I felt glad that my own country's flag had
a place there, although Campbell's lines"--
"United States, your banner wears,
Two emblems,--one of fame;
Alas, the other that it bears,
Reminds us of your shame.
The white man's liberty in types,
Stands blazoned by your stars;
But what's the meaning of your stripes,
They mean your Negro-scars"--
were at the time continually running through my mind. Arrived at the
door, and we received what every one does who visits Dr. Lee--a hearty
welcome. I was immediately shown into a room with a lofty ceiling, hung
round with fine specimens of the Italian masters, and told that this was
my apartment. Hartwell House stands in an extensive park, shaded with
trees, that made me think of the oaks and elms in an American forest,
and many of whose limbs had be
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