eems like a very old story to tell anything
to-day of this event, and to Dr. Talmage it was chiefly a repetition of
the many Fairs he had seen in his life, but he found time to write a
description of it at the time, which recalls his impressions. He
regarded it as "An Object Lesson of Peace and a Tableau of the
Millennium."

His defence of General Peck, the American Commissioner-General, who was
criticised by the American exhibitors, was made at length. He considered
these criticisms unjust, and said so. During our stay in Paris Dr.
Talmage preached at the American churches.

Fearing that it would be difficult to secure rooms in Paris during the
Exposition, the Doctor had written from Washington during the winter and
engaged them at the hotel which a few years before had been one of the
best in Paris. Many changes had occurred since he had last been abroad,
however, and we found that the hotel where we had engaged rooms was far
from being suitable for us. The mistake caused some amusement among our
American friends, who were surprised to find Dr. Talmage living in the
midst of a Parisian gaiety entirely too promiscuous for his calling. We
soon moved away from this zone of oriental music and splendour to a
quieter and more remote hotel in the Rue Castiglione.

Dr. Talmage was restless, however, to reach the North Cape in the best
season to see the Midnight Sun in its glory, and we only remained in
Paris a few days, going from there to the Hague, Amsterdam, and thence
to Copenhagen in Denmark. In all the cities abroad we were always the
guests of the American Embassy one evening during our stay, and this
frequently led to private dinner parties with some of the prominent
residents, which the Doctor greatly enjoyed, because it gave him an
opportunity to know the foreign people in their homes. I remember one of
these invitations particularly because as we drove into the grounds of
our host's home he ordered the American flag to be hoisted as we
entered. The garden was beautiful with a profusion of yellow blossoms, a
national flower in Denmark known as "Golden Rain." We admired them so
much that our host wanted to present me with sprigs of the trees to
plant in our home at East Hampton. Dr. Talmage said he was sure that
they would not grow out there so near the sea. Remembering Judge
Collier's grounds in Pittsburg, where every sort of flower grows, I
suggested that they would thrive there. Our host took my father-in-law's