168 A Century of Family Letters [CHAP, xn 



my short-comings be not too severely criticised. When I 

 had the honour of being asked to speak to-night I was most 

 kindly given a free field, with no limitations or directions of 

 any kind; but it was clear to me that it would be utterly 

 unfitting and presumptuous on my part if I attempted, 

 before such an audience as this, to speak of my father in 

 regard to his scientific career, even if I were in other respects 

 qualified. Therefore I can only speak of him as a man and 

 as I knew him from a child. 



I have been thinking over the characteristics of my 

 father which are quite apart from the qualities on which his 

 influence and his success as a man of science depended, and I 

 think the quality which stands out in my mind most pre- 

 eminently is his abhorrence of anything approaching to 

 oppression or cruelty, and especially of slavery; combined 

 with this he had an enthusiasm for liberty of the indi- 

 vidual and for liberal principles. I can give you one or 

 two illustrations, which are very slight in themselves, but 

 one of them has remained impressed on my memory since 

 early boyhood. There was living very near us at Down a 

 gentleman farmer, with whom nay father was slightly 

 acquainted. It became reported that this man had allowed 

 some sheep to die of starvation. My father heard of it and at 

 once took up the matter, and though he was ill and weak and 

 it was most painf ul to attack a near neighbour, he went round 

 the whole parish, collected all the evidence himself, and had 

 the case brought before the magistrates, and as far as I can 

 recollect he got the man convicted. This, I remember, 

 as a boy impressed me immensely; he took it so seriously 

 and devoted himself to it, though his health was in such 

 a bad state. The next case is a personal matter, if you 

 will excuse my referring to myself. At the tune of the trial 

 of Governor Eyre I had come from Southampton, where there 

 had lately been held a public meeting in favour of Governor 

 Eyre. One day at Down I made some flippant and deroga- 

 tory remarks about the Committee which was prosecuting 

 him. My father instantly turned on me in a fury of indigna- 

 tion and told me I had better go back to Southampton. The 



