ch. iv.] REMINISCENCES. 91 



and the most perfect sympathiser. Indeed it is impossible 

 adequately to describe how delightful a relation his was to 

 his family, whether as children or in their later life. 



" It is a proof of the terms on which we were, and also 

 of how much he was valued as a play-fellow, that one of his 

 sons when about four years old tried to bribe him with 

 sixpence to come and play in working hours. 



" He must have been the most patient and delightful of 

 nurses. I remember the haven of peace and comfort it 

 seemed to me when I was unwell, to be tucked up on the 

 study sofa, idly considering the old geological map hung on 

 the wall. This must have been in his working hours, for I 

 always picture him sitting in the horse hair arm chair by 

 the corner of the fire. 



" Another mark of his unbounded patience was the way 

 in which we were suffered to make raids into the study when 

 we had an absolute need of sticking plaster, string, pins, scis- 

 sors, stamps, foot rule, or hammer. These and other such 

 necessaries were always to be found in the study, and it was 

 the only place where this was a certainty. We used to feel 

 it wrong to go in during work time ; still, when the neces- 

 sity was great, we did so. I remember his patient look when 

 he said once, ' Don't you think you could not come in again, 

 I have been interrupted very often. ' We used to dread go- 

 ing in for sticking plaster, because he disliked to see that 

 we had cut ourselves, both for our sakes and on account of 

 his acute sensitiveness to the sight of blood. I well remem- 

 ber lurking about the passage till he was safe away, and then 

 stealing in for the plaster. 



" Life seems to me, as I look back upon it, to have been 

 very regular in those early days, and except relations (and a 

 few intimate friends), I do not think any one came to the 

 house. After lessons, we were always free to go where we 

 would, and that was chiefly in the drawing-room and about 

 the garden, so that we were very much with both my father 

 and mother. We used to think it most delightful when he 

 told us any stories about the Beagle, or about early Shrews- 

 bury days little bits about school life and his boyish tastes. 



" He cared for all our pursuits and interests, and lived 

 our lives with us in a way that very few fathers do. But I 

 am certain that none of us felt that this intimacy interfered 

 the least with our respect and obedience. Whatever he said 

 was absolute truth and law to us. He always put his whole 

 mind into answering any of our questions. One trifling in- 



