ion
made every obscure point clear to me directly, but the notes
themselves are necessarily very fragmentary in places. It astonishes
me that any diary at all should have been kept amid the enthusiasm
which greeted the arrival and departure of the 'Sunbeam' at every
port, the hurry and confusion of constant travelling, and, saddest of
all, the evidences of daily increasing weakness. Great also has been
my admiration for the indomitable spirit which lifted the frail body
above and beyond all considerations of self. I need not here call
attention to Lady Brassey's devotion to the cause of suffering shown
in her unceasing efforts to establish branches of the St. John
Ambulance Association all over the world. It will be seen that the
last words of the Journal refer to this subject, so near the writer's
heart.

I have thought it best to allow the mere rough outline diary of the
first part of the Indian journey to appear exactly as it stands,
instead of attempting to enlarge it, which could have been done from
Lord Brassey's notes. But, unhappily, the chief interest now of every
word of this volume will consist, not in any information conveyed--for
that could easily be supplied from other sources--but in the fact of
its being Lady Brassey's own impression jotted hastily down at the
moment. After reaching Hyderabad there was more leisure and an
interval of better health; consequently each day's record is fuller.
After August 29th the brief jottings of the first Indian days are
resumed, but I have not felt able to lay these notes before the
public, for they are simple records of suffering and helpless
weakness, too private and sacred for publication. They extend up to
September 10th, only four days before the end.

No one but Lord Brassey could take up the story after that date, and
it is therefore to his pen that we owe the succeeding pages. All
through the Journal I found constant references to what are called in
the family the 'Sunbeam Papers,' a journal kept by Lord Brassey and
printed for private circulation. With his permission, I have availed
myself of these notes wherever I could do so, and I believe that this
is what Lady Brassey would have wished. There were also, with the
MSS., many interesting newspaper extracts referring to public
utterances of Lord Brassey, but of these want of space compels me only
to give three, specially alluded to by his wife, which will be found
in the Appendix.

Lady Brassey had created