Upon his arrival at Skibo after this address we talked it over.  I referred to his tribute to Burns and his six lines, and he replied that he didn’t need to tell me what lines these were.

“No,” I said, “I know them by heart.”

In a subsequent address, unveiling a statue of Burns in the park at Montrose, I repeated the lines I supposed he referred to, and he approved them.  He and I, strange to say, had received the Freedom of Montrose together years before, so we are fellow-freemen.

At last I induced Morley to visit us in America, and he made a tour through a great part of our country in 1904.  We tried to have him meet distinguished men like himself.  One day Senator Elihu Root called at my request and Morley had a long interview with him.  After the Senator left Morley remarked to me that he had enjoyed his companion greatly, as being the most satisfactory American statesman he had yet met.  He was not mistaken.  For sound judgment and wide knowledge of our public affairs Elihu Root has no superior.

Morley left us to pay a visit to President Roosevelt at the White House, and spent several fruitful days in company with that extraordinary man.  Later, Morley’s remark was: 

“Well, I’ve seen two wonders in America, Roosevelt and Niagara.”

That was clever and true to life—­a great pair of roaring, tumbling, dashing and splashing wonders, knowing no rest, but both doing their appointed work, such as it is.

Morley was the best person to have the Acton library and my gift of it to him came about in this way.  When Mr. Gladstone told me the position Lord Acton was in, I agreed, at his suggestion, to buy Acton’s library and allow it to remain for his use during life.  Unfortunately, he did not live long to enjoy it—­only a few years—­and then I had the library upon my hands.  I decided that Morley could make the best use of it for himself and would certainly leave it eventually to the proper institution.  I began to tell him that I owned it when he interrupted me, saying: 

“Well, I must tell you I have known this from the day you bought it.  Mr. Gladstone couldn’t keep the secret, being so overjoyed that Lord Acton had it secure for life.”

Here were he and I in close intimacy, and yet never had one mentioned the situation to the other; but it was a surprise to me that Morley was not surprised.  This incident proved the closeness of the bond between Gladstone and Morley—­the only man he could not resist sharing his happiness with regarding earthly affairs.  Yet on theological subjects they were far apart where Acton and Gladstone were akin.

The year after I gave the fund for the Scottish universities Morley went to Balmoral as minister in attendance upon His Majesty, and wired that he must see me before we sailed.  We met and he informed me His Majesty was deeply impressed with the gift to the universities and the others I had made to my native land, and wished him to ascertain whether there was anything in his power to bestow which I would appreciate.