MEMOIR. xix 



pathetic patience with which they bore the burden of 

 their joyless, suffering lives. His own happy constitution 

 and experience never led him to adopt the cheap optimism 

 with which so many of us cheat our conscience, and justify 

 to ourselves our own selfish inertness. The more ample 

 income of his last years made no difference in the simple 

 ordering of his household, it did make difference in his 

 charities. He gave money, and what is better, gave his 

 personal labour to many works for the good of others, 

 some of which he himself had inaugurated. 



John Sedding was an artist by a necessity of his nature. 

 God made him so, and he could not but exercise his gift, 

 but apart from the satisfaction that comes by doing what 

 we are meant for, it filled him with thankfulness to have 

 been born to a craft with ends so noble as are the ends of 

 Art. To give pleasure and to educate are aims good indeed 

 to be bound by, especially when by education we under- 

 stand, not mind-stuffing, but mind-training, in this case the 

 training of faculty to discern and be moved by the poetry, 

 the spiritual suggestiveness of common everyday life. 

 This brought his calling into touch with working folk. 



As a man, John Sedding impressed us all by the singular 

 and beautiful simplicity and childlikeness of his character, 

 a childlikeness which never varied, and nothing, not even 

 the popularity and homage which at last surrounded him, 

 seemed able to spoil it. He never lost his boyish spon- 

 taneity and frankness, the unrestrained brightness of his 

 manners and address, his boyish love of fun, and hearty, 

 ringing laugh. Mr Walter Crane speaks of his " indomit- 

 able gaiety and spirits which kept all going, especially in 

 our country outings." " He always led the fun," writes 

 Mr Lethaby, "at one time at the head of a side at 'tug 

 of war,' at another, the winner in an ' egg and spoon 

 race.' " His very faults were the faults of childhood, the 

 impulsiveness, the quick and unreflecting resentment 



