He had a taste for machinery of every kind, and his sharp eye had more than once detected, with the precision of an expert, a missing cog-wheel in some vast and complicated engine.

A visit to Liverpool, where he opened the Albert Dock, impressed upon his mind the immensity of modern industrial forces, though in a letter to Victoria describing his experiences, he was careful to retain his customary lightness of touch.

"As I write," he playfully remarked, "you will be making your evening toilette, and not be ready in time for dinner.

I must set about the same task, and not, let me hope, with the same result...

The loyalty and enthusiasm of the inhabitants are great; but the heat is greater still.