166 THE REV. J. G. WOOD. 



clearly my father's duty to retire in favour of a younger 

 man. And then he remarked that he himself was a 

 younger man, and that, as he was very anxious to take 

 up public lecturing as a profession, he would venture to 

 ask my father to rest contented with what he had done, 

 and to transfer to himself " the goodwill of the 

 business ! " 



I do not know whether my father ever replied to 

 this modest and unassuming epistle, but certainly he 

 always treasured it as one of the greatest curiosities 

 which he had ever received. 



The 1881-82 season began rather later than usual 

 with a lecture before the Gipsy Hill Band of Hope on 

 September 19th. This was followed by " The Horse " 

 at Tonbridge Grammar School ten days later, and a 

 somewhat prolonged tour followed immediately after, be- 

 ginning with " Jelly-fish " at Altrincham near Bowdon, 

 on October 3rd, and ending with " Life under Water " 

 at Brighton on the 27th of the same month. Between 

 these dates fifteen lectures were given, with the same 

 invariable success. Then came " Life under Water" at 

 Newbury, which behaved rather better than on the 

 occasion of his former visit ; then three lectures were 

 given at Dover on successive evenings, while a second 

 lecture at Brighton followed on November 5th, and a 

 third a week later, the series being organised by the 

 local Ladies' Committee of the Royal Society for the 

 Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. 



Travelling all day on the 13th (Sunday), Southport 

 was reached late at night ; and on each afternoon of 



