HIS DECLINING YEARS. 423 



Gregory, who was Sir William's second wife, be- 

 came at once a great favourite in London society, 

 and her little salon at 3 St George's Place, Hyde 

 Park Corner, soon became one of the most agreeable 

 in London. During the concluding years of his 

 life, offers from diverse constituencies, both Eng- 

 lish and Irish, poured in upon Sir William, but in 

 vain. He was equally deaf to overtures made to 

 him by Secretaries for the Colonies that he would 

 accept another Governorship. Fond of society, an 

 admirable diner-out, and blessed with an Irish- 

 man's high spirits, Sir William's declining years 

 were undoubtedly the happiest that he ever passed. 

 In 1884 he revisited Ceylon, accompanied by Lady 

 Gregory, and the crowning honour of his life was 

 the erection of the statue, from Sir Edgar Boehm's 

 hand, to which I have above alluded. " Life to 

 the last enjoyed," with memory, hearing, and eye- 

 sight unimpaired, full of years and honours, Sir 

 William went to his well - earned rest without 

 leaving an enemy behind him. During his last 

 two winters, the cold of London tried him se- 

 verely, and it was his intention to escape to a 

 warmer climate, when death overtook him. The 

 last letter that I ever received from him was 

 couched in the following pathetic terms : 



" 3 ST GEORGE'S PLACE, 

 HYDE PARK CORNER, S.W., 14th Feb. 1892. 



" I have to thank you for your review of Lord 

 Eosebery's ' Pitt/ which is a fine biography, and 



