Note 36 — Chapter XI · 1882. ‘MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING’—AMERICAN VISIT ARRANGED.

It is said that the origin of the acquaintance between Irving and this statesman was an accidental encounter in the street, when the latter, with a sympathetic impulsiveness, stopped Irving and introduced himself. He has since been an assiduous frequenter of the Lyceum, and in his eighty-third year was seen in the stalls or behind the scenes, following the course of ‘Henry VIII.’ with unabated interest.