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Stanley

Stanley image
Parent Issue
Day
13
Month
September
Year
1878
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

The obscurity surrounding the birth and parentage of Henry M. Stanley is cleared away by a publication in Every Saturday, a literary journal publishec in Baltimore. The statement, it saya, is on the very best evidence, that of his own mother. The letter ia dated High Park street, Sefton Square, Liverpool, Aug. 13, and from it it is learned that the explorer, whose right name is Henry M. Eastaway, was born in New York on the Ü6thof October, 1843, and wasehristened by the Rev. Father Smith, at the James Street Koman Catholic Church. His mother was born in Treland, bnt forsome time resided in Baltimore. His fatlier was a sea Captain, and, when the child was still very yoimg, the family wenl back to Europe. During a voyage in 1858 the father died, and the boy, soon after, whilo sojonrning at liis aunt's farm at Clay Castle, had some words with his mother, and, in a fit of anger, she said to him: " Wonld to God you were somewhere from me, " to which he replied: "Never mind, mother; as soon as I can get a ship I will take care that I sh 11 not come back. Should I get to America I can claim it as my birthplace." The boy was as good as his word, and in the same year (1858) he sailed from Queenstown in a bark ca lied the Jacob Killerd, and a few lines for his mother from Lime Rock asking for her prayers, and acknowledging the filial love he had for her, were the last she has ever heard from him. Nor did she ever lay eyes on him again until the day of Livingstone's funeral at Westminster Abbey. In company with a friend, Oapt. Lamont, she recognized him among the six pall-bearers, and the Captain, to satisfy her, asked some one standing by who the person was, and the replycame, " Why, that is Henry M. Stanley, the man whó discovered Livingstone." "I see by what you say that the people in Liverpool will not allow Mr. Stanley to be your lost son, but I think if they were present at the interview we had with him at Mr. Livingstone's funeral they would be of a different opinión." The poor woman sought her ungrateful eon at the Langham Hotel, in London, and was shown into the parlor. Mrs. Eastaway describes the sceno in the following words: "He put out his hand tome, and, said I, ' Are you not a nice son ?' 'Wel!,' he auswered, 'I fancy there must be some mistake here. ' 'Then,' said I, 'You can rectify it?' 'Well,' he auswered, ' any rnoney you want you can have.' 'Why,' said I, 'do you offer me money if I am not your mother ? Did I not write to you and Mr. James Gordon Bennett, sayiug that I needed no aid, only to relieve my distracted mind ?' Mrs. Eastaway has a comfortable home and two sons to depend on. One of them is second officer of the steamship La Place, now bound from liio de Janeiro to New York, and the other ono is an explorer in Australia.

Article

Subjects
Old News
Michigan Argus