 Riley’s last poem as Harry Dashboard was published in 1860.His fate is not known with certainty, but the evidence of his former pupil Mary Bozzom Kennedy, daughter of Francis Rawdon Hume, suggests that Riley died "alone and friendless" around that year.Despite the fact that his work was confined to the newspapers, Riley’s output shows him to be a fine humourist, an adroit rhymester and a sharp commentator on matters local and national.