240 SIR WILLIAM RAMSAY 



way to utilise this munificent gift that Ramsay was 

 asked to go out for the six months of the next "cold 

 weather." 



The visit to India to study the problem, and the inter- 

 esting nature of the proposed scheme, strongly attracted 

 Ramsay, but he felt he could not leave his work for so 

 long, and declined the invitation. The offer was, how- 

 ever, again made for as long a time as he could spare ; 

 and ultimately, and with the consent of the Univeisity 

 College authorities, it was arranged that after starting 

 the session he should devote a little over three months 

 to the expedition. 



At first he hoped that he would have been accompanied 

 by Professor Fitzgerald, as there was an idea that a second 

 expert would be wanted ; but that was given up. Ram- 

 say was greatly disappointed at the time, but very 

 thankful afterwards, as it was while they were still 

 away that Fitzgerald was seized with the illness that 

 proved fatal in the early spring. During 1900 Mr. Tata 

 was in London and had many conversations with Ram- 

 say, and in November Ramsay and his wife started to 

 join the P. and steamer at Marseilles. By leaving 

 London a day earlier than the special train they had a 

 day in Paris, and travelling by the ordinary night train 

 they arrived in Marseilles in the early morning. The 

 town was in a state of great excitement, President 

 Kruger, having succeeded in leaving South Africa, 

 being expected. The Ramsays saw his arrival. In a 

 letter to Dr. Travers the incident is thus described : 



