294 LIFE OF SIR JOHN LUBBOCK ch. 



very seriously ill. But all the first part of that 

 year he was in tolerable health and very busy. 

 They had a dance in the house at High Elms for 

 the young people as usual, on the 11th, Lady 

 Avebury's birthday, and on the same day he had 

 been to London for a meeting of the Costa Rica 

 bondholders. Indeed, the later years of this 

 long and busy life were by no means the least 

 cheerful and peaceful. As one who knew him 

 intimately writes : "It was a great pleasure to 

 his friends to see how happy and serene were the 

 closing years of one whose sensitive nature must 

 often have suffered deep pain in the harsh things 

 of life." It was a pain wonderfully concealed 

 by the habit of self-control in which he had 

 educated himself, but it was always a keenly sensi- 

 tive nature which underlay that outward serenity. 

 The Anglo -German Friendship Committee, 

 which developed during the year into a wider 

 " Association," continued to take up a good deal 

 of his time. He was in the Chair on January 18 

 at a meeting of the Committee when it was 

 resolved that they should merge in the larger 

 body. On March 20 he interviewed the Lord 

 Mayor respecting an inaugural meeting of the 

 Association at the Mansion House in May. On 

 the 26th he saw Sir F. Lascelles, and on April 2 

 the Duke of Argyll, on business connected with 

 the forthcoming meeting. As a matter of fact a 

 small inaugural meeting, previously to that at 

 the Mansion House, was held, rather contrary to 

 his wishes, on April 5. The big meeting was held 

 in the Egyptian Hall at the Mansion House on 

 May 1. 



