ii8 Edivard Livms'stoJt Yo7iinans. 



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ful and reserved manner. Fancy Joe Wood handsome, a 

 little taller, a little slenderer, like Newbury Loomis, and 

 with the old-school style of Uncle Good, and all these 

 characteristics will, of course, mislead you. The English 

 are reserved. Mr. Spencer was reserved. He remarked 

 that Herbert talks but little of his friends. With his con- 

 stitutional quietude and lack of enthusiasm, I could not ex- 

 pect he would take me in his arms, or scream or faint at 

 my momentous arrival. Don't mistake. I am not apolo- 

 gizing for a cool reception, but for not having a hot one. 

 It was as warm as the correlation of forces would permit, 

 and was eminently agreeable and satisfactory. We became 

 quickly well acquainted. He brought wine, which I tasted, 

 and then Mrs. Spencer came in. She is about Ma's size ; 

 Herbert's mouth exactly, but I guess handsomer; wears 

 spectacles ; was blind of cataracts, and was operated on 

 successfully ; is pleasant, communicative ; has read the Ed- 

 ucation and Essays, but can't understand the other books. 

 They appreciate their wonderful son, and of course love 

 him and worry about him. His father says he is apt to 

 overdo himself in exercise. He is now on an expedition in 

 the north of Scotland, fishing, rambling, botanizing, to be 

 absent till mid-October. I saw a very fine morocco-bound 

 copy of First Principles, to be presented to the person 

 whom Herbert frequently visits in Scotland. Conversation 

 was free and rambling, but I brought it back to Herbert as 

 often as possible, and there was no difficulty about it. He 

 did not like his business of civil engineering [this is a mis- 

 take ; he did like it], but was very successful in it. His 

 father showed us his herbarium, twenty years old, and a 

 beautiful coloured drawing of a locomotive, which he had 

 been begging his son to allow him to frame, but could not 

 get his consent. They brought me a little shred of a pho- 

 tograph, faint and yellow; the father told me it was taken 

 just before the Psychology was finished, when he was in 



