Book contents
- Frontmatter
- CONTENTS
- Dedication
- Acknowledgements
- List of Figures
- Preface
- Introduction
- 1 First Considerations of an American Tour
- 2 Underway to America
- 3 An Auspicious Welcome: New York City
- 4 The Tour Begins: Upstate New York
- 5 Readings and Responses: Philadelphia, Boston and New York
- 6 The Second Swing: Baltimore and Washington
- 7 A Change of Managers: The Northeast
- 8 The ‘Double Difficulty’: Montreal, Toronto and Buffalo
- 9 The Final Circuit: Cleveland, Detroit and Chicago
- 10 Arguments and Accolades: Return to New England
- 11 Winding Down: New York and Wallingford
- Conclusion: Wilkie Collins and the American People
- Appendix A ‘The Dream Woman’
- Appendix B Performance Summary
- Appendix C Itinerary
- Appendix D Contacts
- Appendix E Press Portraits
- Notes
- Works Cited
- Index
3 - An Auspicious Welcome: New York City
- Frontmatter
- CONTENTS
- Dedication
- Acknowledgements
- List of Figures
- Preface
- Introduction
- 1 First Considerations of an American Tour
- 2 Underway to America
- 3 An Auspicious Welcome: New York City
- 4 The Tour Begins: Upstate New York
- 5 Readings and Responses: Philadelphia, Boston and New York
- 6 The Second Swing: Baltimore and Washington
- 7 A Change of Managers: The Northeast
- 8 The ‘Double Difficulty’: Montreal, Toronto and Buffalo
- 9 The Final Circuit: Cleveland, Detroit and Chicago
- 10 Arguments and Accolades: Return to New England
- 11 Winding Down: New York and Wallingford
- Conclusion: Wilkie Collins and the American People
- Appendix A ‘The Dream Woman’
- Appendix B Performance Summary
- Appendix C Itinerary
- Appendix D Contacts
- Appendix E Press Portraits
- Notes
- Works Cited
- Index
Summary
Two days after his arrival, on a Saturday evening, Collins was honoured at a reception and dinner at the Lotos Club. Chartered in 1870, the Club's purpose was to ‘promote social intercourse among journalists, literary men, artists and members of the music and dramatic professions, and such merchants and professional gentlemen of artistic tastes and inclinations as would naturally be attracted by such a club’. Over the years, the Club had entertained such distinguished visitors as Charles Dickens and composer Jacques Offenbach. The engraved invitation to the Dinner to Wilkie Collins indicated that the evening was to be held at the Club House at No. 2 Irving Place and would begin at 9.00 p.m. Whitelaw Reid, President of the Lotos, would preside.
In attendance were ‘many persons of distinction’, including poets, novelists, editors, painters, operatic stars and actors. Among the guests were author Bret Harte, Italian tragedian Tommaso Salvini and Charles Bradlaugh. Collins's US promoter, Charles S. Brelsford, a Lotos member, was also present; ‘a scrawny, sickly Yankee, but a good fellow and capable manager’ according to Lotos historian, John Elderkin. Numerous newspaper accounts both at home and abroad covered an event that brought out the best and the brightest of American and European culture, albeit all male. As one newspaper described the evening, it was ‘a stag affair, and cigar smoke replaced the perfumed air which indicates the presence of the sex’.
Although it was reported that the evening started out ‘thin’ at 9.00, by 10.30 ‘every part of the club house was crowded’. The guest of honour showed up at 11.00 and was welcomed by President Reid. He introduced Collins and spoke of him ‘in the most gracious and flattering terms as a writer’, saying,
We have met tonight to greet a visitor from the other side, of whom nothing is unknown to us but his face. May he give us long and frequent opportunity for better acquaintance with that. Thackeray once closed a charming paper on an American author with words which we may fitly take up and apply in turn to our English guest: ‘It has been his fortunate lot to give great happiness and delight to the world, which thanks him in return with an immense kindliness, respect, affection’. [Applause.] […]
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Wilkie Collins's American Tour, 1873–4 , pp. 19 - 26Publisher: Pickering & ChattoFirst published in: 2014