Calais; and here we determined to
pass a day, and look at a city which has been so celebrated both in the
history of France and England. We put up at Quillac's. The population is
about thirteen thousand. The town is strongly fortified, and has very
few external attractions. The gate built by Richelieu in 1685, and
delineated by Hogarth, still stands. You know that England held this
town from 1347 to 1558; and, as a result, you can find several specimens
of English Tudor architecture, especially the Hotel de Guise. The walks
upon the fortifications are fine, and afford commanding views of the
cliffs of the south coast of England. The place generally has some three
or four thousand English, many of whom are refugees on account of debt.
At eleven at night we went on board a French steamer for Dover; and the
_instant_ that she got outside the pier, she jumped like a mad thing. O,
Charley, that was a horrid night! We were all sick, very sick indeed. It
took us about three hours to get over, and we were thankful to land and
take refuge for three or four hours in the quiet of our bedrooms. At
eight we took the cars for London, and were at the Golden Cross, quietly
settled down in our old quarters, by twelve o'clock. I ought to tell you
that we hurried over in order to be here at the great entertainment
which Mr. George Peabody gives to his excellency Abbott Lawrence and his
lady, on the evening of the 4th of July. We were invited, and felt
anxious to be there; as, in addition to the other notable characters,
"the duke" was to be present. All that day the subject of the evening
was the great topic with Americans; and as more than nine hundred
acceptances were received to invitations issued, it was expected that
the party would be interesting, and that many, who failed to obtain
tickets, would be disappointed. The entertainment was given at Almack's,
Willis's Room, St. James's, and upon a scale of great magnificence. It
consisted of a concert at half past nine, a ball at eleven, and supper
at one. The idea of celebrating our national independence in London,
under the peculiar circumstances which London presents at this moment,
was a happy one; and though some wise men doubted the wisdom of the
measure, yet the result proved the prudence and practical good sense of
its originator; and perhaps few men possess more of this admirable
quality than Mr. Peabody. The rooms at Almack's are very spacious, so
that there was ample space for t