OF ROBERT LESLIE ELLIS. xxm 



to leave his bones amongst us, and he trusted we should " give 

 him a little earth for charity." During his lingering illness 

 I saw him not unfrequently, and am able to record, from 

 personal recollection, some few things which may be pleasant 

 to those who knew him, and not unprofitable perhaps to the 

 general readers of this volume. In the early [part of his 

 residence in Anstey Hall, he was well enough to enjoy" the 

 society of his friends to a very considerable extent ; he sat in 

 his invalid chair, with sometimes two or three persons present, 

 pouring forth his varied stores of knowledge as in olden days ; 

 in fact, it should be stated here once for all, that during the 

 whole of his lingering sickness his mental powers never ap- 

 peared to be in the smallest degree impaired ; it was a wonder 

 to note the perfect action of the mind, at a time when the body 

 was a mere distorted and attenuated heap of skin and bones. 

 But this brightness of intellect doubtless made the suffering 

 more acute. His life for several years was a constant looking 

 of death in the face, with scarcely an interval of ease or ob- 

 liviousness. By degrees the resource of the society of his 

 friends began to be diminished ; frequently we called and 

 found him unable to see us ; and even relatives staying in the 

 house could not be admitted into his chamber for days 

 together. 



In the earlier part of his illness he was able to give some 

 attention, but not much, to Bacon; some of the notes which 

 have been since printed were dictated at this time. The thought 

 of leaving his work imperfect could not fail to be painful to 

 him, and the pain would be increased by the very high standard 

 of excellence which he set up for himself in all matters which 

 he undertook. Latterly he could not bear the subject of Bacon 

 to be alluded to: if it happened to be introduced, he would 



intention of engaging Anstey Hall, in order that lie might be near his son, 

 whose health even then was, as we have seen, not strong. This circumstance 

 had made Ellis always feel an interest in the house. 



