November 7th.—Lady Montefiore passed a restless night. She had been very weak during the day, and somewhat feverish. The doctor came and saw her. He told Sir Moses they were making no progress, and he must determine at once to leave England within ten days, or make arrangements at Park Lane for the winter. "It would not do," he said, "for Sir Moses to be going to and from London every week."
Sir Moses was now in a state of great uneasiness. "Lady Montefiore," he says, "appears to me falling away." He hoped to leave England Thursday, the 15th, but, finding that Lady Montefiore had become worse, he determined at once to try the effect of a change to their house at Park Lane.
Sir Moses apprised Dr Hodgkin of the change in his plans, which would postpone their leaving England perhaps for a month or more.
The same day Sir Moses and Lady Montefiore left East Cliff for Park Lane. Soon after their arrival at the latter place, Sir Moses was told of the serious illness of Alderman Wire, his former Under Sheriff.
November 9th.—On sending to enquire after his health, he was greatly shocked and pained by the answer: "He expired this morning." Sir Moses most sincerely lamented his decease. A month later, he suffered another loss. "I heard with deep regret," he writes, "of the death of Sir George Carroll. He survived but a very short time the death of poor Alderman Wire. We acted with great harmony and friendship together during the whole time of our serving together the office of Sheriff; indeed we have been on terms of friendship, since I first knew him, more than fifty years ago."
Lady Montefiore continued very ill, requiring the consultations of Dr Hodgkin and Dr Rees.
December 15th.—The entry is, "I cannot make up my mind to leave England, and from day to day postpone positively fixing the time for our departure. At any rate," he says, "it now cannot be before the end of this month. May the God of Israel in His mercy direct us!"
December 17th.—The Rev. D. Cardall called on him from Sir Culling Eardly, saying he had received on the previous night a telegram from Paris, stating that the deputation from the "Alliance Israelite" would arrive in London on the following Wednesday evening; and Sir C. Eardly wished to know if a deputation from the Board of Deputies of the British Jews would join him and the gentlemen from Paris on Friday to wait on the Lord Mayor, to have a public meeting at the Mansion-House regarding the child "Mortara." Sir Moses told Mr Cardall that he would endeavour to have a meeting of the Deputies the next afternoon, and would let him know their decision.
It appears that the idea of the Board's acting conjointly with Sir Culling Eardly and his party with regard to a public meeting was not favourably entertained by some Deputies, who were apprehensive that strong language might be used against certain persons differing in religious views with Sir Culling, of which they could not approve. They had no objection of signing a temperately worded Memorial, jointly with the Christians, to the Emperor of the French, to pray for his influence with the Pope for the restoration of the child to his parents.