incessantly from 2 a.m. till luncheon time, without even an interval for breakfast, Lord Canning 'fell back, quite exhausted, and could do no more. The action of the brain had ceased. This has happened before. ...' Lord Granville mentions that somewhat similar seizures had, at an earlier period of his life, befallen Lord Canning; once in the House of Lords, and once again when, shooting with the Prince Consort, he was apprehensive, for an instant, of having fired in the direction of the Prince of Wales. Whatever might be the cause, Lord Canning showed himself no mercy. A half-hour's stroll before dinner, a visit to some military hospital, an occasional ride, sometimes, by his doctor's injunction, a short drive at sunrise — such was the nearest approach to relaxation which zeal and conscience allowed him. Nor did he labour alone. Lady Canning shared his toil. General Stuart's diary makes more than one allusion to occasions on which that faithful companion laboured far into the night, copying letters or despatches which, for one reason or another, were not allowed to pass through the ordinary official channels.
In the meantime Indian affairs were attracting attention in England. In January, 1858, Lord Palmerston had introduced a Bill transferring the government of India from the East India Company to the Crown. The measure was one which, though not so intrinsically important as its form suggested, was grave enough to give the Governor-General some anxiety. He was apprehensive that, on the
