LAST DAYS 319 



him for a moment, and she was with him virtually 

 all the time until the Wednesday morning when 

 he died. The end was absolutely peaceful : he 

 passed from unconscious life to death. 



On the 30th his body was taken to High Elms. 

 Letters and telegrams of condolence poured in 

 from all parts of the globe. He was buried on 

 Saturday, May 31, in the Farnborough church- 

 yard. The ceremony was the most simple that 

 can be imagined. In the words of the Times 

 report, " There was no hearse, there were no 

 carriages ; all the mourners walked. The plain 

 oak coffin was borne on the shoulders of men 

 he had known, and was followed by his family, 

 a few intimate friends, and groups of tenantry 

 and servants. The procession from High Elms 

 wound in a long line down the drive, across the 

 public road, and, entering a wood, passed along 

 a wide grass lane, altogether some three-quarters 

 of a mile, to the church, which was crowded with 

 friends and neighbours." 



The service was read by Doctor Butler, the 

 Master of Trinity, assisted by the Rev. Herbert 

 Pelham and the Rev. E. J. Welch ; and he was 

 laid in a grave above which now stands a beauti- 

 ful cross, in full view, across the valley, from the 

 old home at High Elms. 



Accordingly as a man has lived wisely and 

 kindly, so must his death be mourned when his 

 wisdom and kindness are taken from those who 

 have relied upon them. No words can express 

 the sense of loss, as of an unfailing prop and 

 comfort, of a guide as sagacious as he was affec- 

 tionate, felt by Lord Avebury's family and, above 



