Page:The life and letters of Sir John Henniker Heaton bt. (IA lifelettersofsi00port).pdf/182

 for the entire dispersal of his celebrated herd of Shorthorn Cattle. You may remember that the late Duke of Devonshire had sales from time to time, when the prices realized were fabulous. At one of the sales Sir Wilfrid Lawson gave 600 guineas for a bull, and two or three days after it was found dead in its stall, whereupon Sir Wilfrid took up a piece of chalk and wrote on the wall:

I am afraid I shall bore you with this long letter, if it ever reaches you, although there are many subjects I should have touched upon if there had been time.

I look forward, however, to many opportunities of having a chat with you when you return:

With my warmest regards to you, Lady Henniker Heaton, your daughter, and indeed all your family.

It might truly be said that H. H.'s circle of acquaintances stretched from the Tropics to the Arctic Ocean. We find H. M. Stanley writing to H. H. in 1897: "It is warm and uncomfortable in London and I pant for fresh air." That Stanley of Africa should find London too warm, is one of those endearing touches that link him with his fellow-men only less agreeably than the fact that even his gift of locality was occasionally at fault.

Mr Reginald Geard, the Honorary Secretary of