self--I dedicate,
I dedicate, I consecrate with tears--
These Idylls.

Like Arthur, 'the flower of kings,' he was a man of ideals, above
petty jealousies and small ambitions:

Hereafter, thro' all times, Albert the Good.

The _Idylls_ produced such a deep impression upon the Prince that
he wrote to the author, asking him to inscribe his name in the volume.
The book remained always a great favourite with him, and Princess
Frederick William was engaged upon a series of pictures illustrating
her favourite passages at the time of his death.

An enumeration of the varied activities of Prince Albert during his
lifetime would need a volume. His position was always a difficult
one and was seldom made easier by the section of the Press which
singled him out as a target for its poisoned arrows. Only a strong
sense of duty and an unwavering belief in his wife's love could have
sustained him through the many dark hours of tribulation and sorrow.
He rose early all the year round, and prepared drafts of answers to
the Queen's Ministers, wrote letters and had cleared off a
considerable amount of work before many men would have thought of
beginning the day's tasks.

[Illustration: THE ALBERT MEMORIAL]

No article of any importance in the newspapers or magazines escaped
his attention. Every one appealed to him for help or advice, and none
asked in vain. His wide knowledge and judgment were freely used by
the Queen's statesmen, and the day proved all too short for the
endless amount of work which had to be done.

In spite of increasing burdens and poor health he was always in good
spirits. "At breakfast and at luncheon, and also at our family
dinners, he sat at the top of the table, and kept us all enlivened
by his interesting conversation, by his charming anecdotes, and
droll stories without end of his childhood, of people at Coburg, of
our good people in Scotland, which he would repeat with a wonderful
power of mimicry, and at which he would himself laugh most heartily.
Then he would at other times entertain us with his talk about the
most interesting and important topics of the present and of former
days, on which it was ever a pleasure to hear him speak."[10]

[Footnote 10: Queen Victoria's _Journal_.]

His rule in life was to make his position entirely a part of the
Queen's, "to place all his time and powers at her command." Every
speech which he made in public was carefully considered beforehand,
and then w