Lord Shaftesbury was in the chair, and the Duchess of Argyle
and the Marquis of Stafford were there. Miss Greenfield sang some
songs, and there were speeches in which each speaker said all the
obliging things he could think of to the rest. Rev. Mr. Binney
complimented the nobility, and Lord Shaftesbury complimented the
people, and all were but too kind in what they said to me--in fact,
there was general good humor in the whole scene.
The inkstand is a beautiful specimen of silverwork. It is eighteen
inches long, with a group of silver figures on it, representing
Religion with the Bible in her hand, giving liberty to the slave. The
slave is a masterly piece of work. He stands with his hands clasped,
looking up to heaven, while a white man is knocking the shackles from
his feet. But the prettiest part of the scene was the presentation of
a _gold pen_, by a band of beautiful children, one of whom made a
very pretty speech. I called the little things to come and stand
around me, and talked with them a few minutes, and this was all the
speaking that fell to my share. Now this, really, was too kind of
these ladies, and of our brotherly friend Mr.
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