THE EUROPEAN JOURNALS 237 



showed me the old mansion where poor Charles the First 

 was delivered up to be beheaded. He could have escaped 

 through a conduit to the river, where a boat was waiting, 

 but the conduit was all darkness and his heart failed him. 

 Now I should say that he had no heart, and was very unfit 

 for a king. At Mr. Donkin's house I was presented to 

 his partners, and we had a good dinner; the conversation 

 ran much on politics, and they supported the King and Mr. 

 Canning. I left early, as I had promised to take a cup of 

 tea with old Bewick. The old gentleman was seated as 

 usual with his night-cap on, and his tobacco pouch in one 

 hand ready to open ; his countenance beamed with pleas- 

 ure as I shook hands with him. " I could not bear the 

 idea of your going off without telling you in written 

 words what I think of your 'Birds of America; ' here it is 

 in black and white, and make whatever use you may of 

 it, if it be of use at all," he said, and put an unsealed 

 letter in my hand. We chatted away on natural-history 

 subjects, and he would now and then exclaim : " Oh that 

 I was young ^ again! I would go to America. What a 

 country it will be." " It is now, Mr. Bewick," I would 

 retort, and then we went on. The young ladies enjoyed 

 the sight and remarked that for years their father had 

 not had such a flow of spirits. 



April 19. This morning I paid a visit of farewell to Mr. 

 Bewick and his family; as we parted he held my hand 

 closely and repeated three times, " God preserve you." 

 I looked at him in such a manner that I am sure he under- 

 stood I could not speak. I walked slowly down the hilly 

 lane, and thought of the intrinsic value of this man to the 

 world, and compared him with Sir Walter Scott. The 

 latter will be forever the most eminent in station, being 

 undoubtedly the most learned and most brilliant of the 

 two ; but Thomas Bewick is a son of Nature. Nature 



1 Thomas Bewick was at this time nearly seventy-four. He died Nov. 8, 

 1828, being then past seventy-five. 



