In the evening I presided in Grand Lodge and carried in a very triumphant way my proposal to establish in perpetuity two life boats in record of the Prince of Wales's return from India.574 It was undoubtedly a successful speech, as it convinced a divided and rather reluctant body.

My successor, Sir M. Beach, is appointed. He called on me and I gave him all the information that I could.618 The principal subjects on which I spoke were:

I dined with Lady Abercromby alone and heard a great deal from her that was interesting to me. The Queen, when she told her that I had made a speech in support of the Government and the Zulu War,684 said, “Oh, but you know it is his war.” This is another indication of the line that Disraeli has taken. He has, I think it is clear, laid the responsibility of the war on me as the result of my annexation of the Transvaal.685 Salisbury is, I hear, in much favour with the Queen, and Lady S. is perpetually retailing all sorts of gossip and scandal to the Queen. What is really bad, she tells frequent stories against the Derbys. This is only what I believe she did last summer in London but it is not the less odious.

I came up to town for the Employers’ Liability bill712 and a question on Cape affairs which I had intended to ask, but which I found had never been placed on the Orders of the day in consequence of the House not sitting yesterday. I spoke however on the Employers’ bill. Whilst in the House D[israeli] wrote on a slip of paper the following “do you think you could meet a few of our friends tomorrow morning at 11 o'clock at No. 1 Seamore Place? Beaconsfield”. I nodded assent and so in this brief fashion I once more return to the councils of the Party, a curious little episode.

Called again at Lord Beaconsfield [sic] to enquire and had a talk with Barrington.719 He told me a characteristic story of Disraeli, when very ill, if not at quite the worst stage. The Queen wrote a letter to him about himself 720 but at that time as no one was allowed to see him but the doctors: so Barrington, to whom it was sent under flying seal, handed it to the doctors to read. Whereupon Disraeli insisted on seeing Barrington, who found him with the letter crushed up in his hand, and refusing to allow it to be read by the doctor. He said, “I have sent for you as the only person in the house who is a Privy Councillor and who ought to read this to me” – very curious and characteristic, with some humour but on the whole more reality.

I received a note from Northcote asking me to attend a small ex-cabinet meeting. I went to his house by mistake and was summoned as from there to Salisbury's where the meeting was. Present Salisbury, Northcote, Cross, Smith, J. Manners and Gibson.

I went early to the House where we had a long debate on the Agricultural Holdings bill. I spoke and voted for it. Richmond was very keen for it, Salisbury spoke against it but did not vote, Elcho's speech was very dismissive, Carlingford's feeble.784

Poor Phillimore was much pleased to see me. He remains much the same, the mind very clear.

Wrote an important letter to Salisbury and one to Sir G. Duffy.897

The beginning of the New Year; and politically it opens darkly. We as a Government are entering on a course of policy which can only end in failure and may lead to great disaster; and on the other hand I have the deepest distrust of everything which Gladstone will do. Self pervades the whole of his course; but I expect that as death does not come to those who court it, so we shall stay on to follow the unreasoning impulses of men who are wholly ignorant of the facts of the case.

A long conversation with Stead. He told me some curious things, amongst others that the remarkable report of the Cabinet meeting in the Pall Mall Gazette of . . .1104 upon R. Churchill's resignation was a transcript verbatim from an autograph letter of Salisbury's to him. S. gave him this information with his own hand, but on condition that it should not be known that it had in any way come from him. Stead did not know at first how under such conditions he would make any use of it, but at last it occurred to him that he could publish it as his own report of the Cabinet meeting leaving everyone to guess how far it was true and if so how he had got it. Randolph of course was furious at this publication as it contained Salisbury's version of the quarrel, whilst he, Randolph, was bound not to give his statement till Parliament met. At the same time he did not know how such a report had got into the paper, not knowing of this secret communication. It was a very pretty piece of jockeying.

Dined with the Jeunes and met Buckle1109 with whom I had a long talk as to my intended explanation in the House on Parnell's allegations and also as to my public statement in the form of a letter.1110

For the last few days all London has been concentrating on the Parnell Commission where the question whether or no the famous letters were forgeries have been tried. For some days the matter has [been] very critical, and the whole affair has turned on the evidence of Pigott,1122 a very great rascal who supplied the letters to The Times. Today after a vast amount of lying Pigott has absconded, having previously made and signed a confession to Labouchere1123 that the letters were forged by him.1124 The excitement has been great – the exultation of the Parnell party unbounded, the despondency of the Unionists great. It is anyhow a tremendous blow to The Times, and from the Government having tied themselves on to The Times, to them also. It is hardly possible to anticipate the full force of the reverse: and it remains to be seen whether the system of party which is now established in England or the democratic impulsiveness of the constituencies will prevail. A few years ago when party influences and organisation were much less it would have been easy to foretell the result. It is now more difficult. It is anyhow likely to create still more violence and bitterness on both sides.

Il capo d'anno, and after a spell of unusually good health I am laid up by a sharp pain in my side, great malaise, difficulty to draw breath, altogether poorly and in pain. I was kept in bed till late and felt very miserable when up. Meanwhile nothing could exceed, for winter, the beauty of the day – a brilliant sun and blue Italian sky.