AT HOME AND ABROAD 23 



spoke of England with great admiration — our conduct 

 in India unique in history, quite marvellous. France 

 ought to ally herself with us. Thought, like Simon, that 

 it was useless to attempt to arrive at any understanding 

 about armaments." 



Thursday, March 1. Heard from Macmillans that 

 they must print a sixth edition of the Beauties of Nature. 

 Called at the Corap' Nat. d'Escompte and had a talk 

 with M. De Normandie and M. Vlasto on the Greek 

 business. Went to see the Consul D'Etat with Dr. R. 

 Worms and lunched with him. Then to the Chamber — 

 a Workmen's question — rather violent speeches. Went 

 in the evening to the Theatre Francais. 



The above may serve as a type of the pithy, 

 vivid entries of which his diary is composed ; and 

 the pessimistic utterances, happily not destined 

 for speedy fulfilment, of some of the distin- 

 guished Frenchmen mentioned, have their own 

 interest. 



Immediately on returning home he was im- 

 mersed in parliamentary and other work, speak- 

 ing frequently in the House, attending meetings 

 of finance committees and so on. It is also to be 

 seen from the accounts of the Paris visit that he 

 worked nearly as hard at social functions. In 

 London he and Lady Lubbock were constantly 

 dining out or entertaining at their own house, 

 and to the more usual dinner-party he added that 

 form of hospitality which, as has been noticed 

 before, some of the guests found it not quite 

 so easy to enjoy as they should — his breakfast- 

 parties. It was a full life in every sense of the 

 phrase. 



On March 16 he was invited to move the adop- 

 tion of a valedictory address presented to Mr. 

 Gladstone, on his retirement from public life, by 



