*Z\)c 5)ruib' 319 



was seen crossing the street holding a brass candlestick, 

 with the candle lighted, which he had taken up under 

 the impression that it was his handbag. 



But, paradoxical as the statement may sound, ' The 

 Druid's ' presence of mind was as conspicuous as his 

 absence of mind. Perhaps he never displayed the 

 former quality in a more remarkable fashion than the 

 following. He had been inspecting a herd in the north 

 of England, and, having wandered away from the herds- 

 man, he entered a building, the sole occupant of which 

 was a surly bull. The savage brute made for him 

 without a moment's delay. ' The Druid,' preserving 

 complete presence of mind, backed against the wall and 

 awaited the bull's rush. Fortunately the beast's horns 

 were wide enough to encircle ' The Druid's ' body without 

 wounding him ; and there he stood, pinned to the wall, 

 but uninjured, until the bull's keeper arrived and rescued 

 him from his perilous position. 



His calm, resolute temper was seldom roused, but, 

 when it was, Henry Hall Dixon was an awkward 

 customer to face. His eldest son, Henry Sydenham, 

 who inherits his father's sporting tastes, tells the 

 following story. 



' Only on one occasion can I remember to have seen 

 my father fairly lose his temper, sadly as our false 

 quantities tried him when he assisted us in preparing 

 our lessons for the following day. He had taken my 

 mother and three or four of us children to a firework 

 night at the Crystal Palace. There was the usual crush 

 on the way to the railway station when the time came 

 to return home, and at one point this was made worse 

 by the foolish action of a little man who placed one of 

 his arms across a narrow doorway. Seeing that my 



