172 FRANCIS ORPEN MORRIS 



of the educational movement in more recent years. 

 As it was, they were unaltered, either in outward 

 form or as regards their subject-matter, from the 

 date of their publication down to the time of Mr. 

 Morris's death. The late Lord Selborne, for whom 

 my father had a profound admiration, showed no 

 slight interest in this series of schoolbooks, and 

 highly approved of the idea. It was stated in the 

 preface that the series was intended to be supple- 

 mentary to ordinary school reading-books, "and was 

 only thought of to supply lessons on the great duty 

 of humanity to animals, while at the same time the 

 danger of monotony, if the lessons had been con- 

 fined to that one subject, has been avoided by the 

 introduction of other topics for the encouragement 

 of every good word and work." Among those to 

 whom the editor expressed his obligation for per- 

 mission to make extracts from their writings was 

 the Rev. Richard Wilton, rector of Londesborough, 

 " my good friend and neighbour," as he called him, 

 many of whose beautiful sonnets and poems graced 

 the pages of volumes. The sale of these reading- 

 books more than realised Mr. Morris's expectations, 

 and thus to a great extent fulfilled the object for 

 which they were intended in many of our large 

 and populous centres, as well as in remote country 

 villages. 



It must not be supposed that the large demands 

 made upon his time by his incessant literary work 

 cut Mr. Morris off from taking an interest in his 

 neighbours and the events of everyday life that 



