William yohn Chute, Esq, J2> 



might have been induced to read. I have been told 

 that he wrote the following graceful and appropri- 

 ate epitaph on his sister, Miss Chute, still to be seen, 

 I suppose, in the churchyard of Oakley, in which 

 village she had spent the latter years of her life : — 



With all who did her bounties know or share 



A decent sorrow ever will remain : 

 A grateful village owns her fostering care ; 



A grateful village mourns her loss in vain. 



I know that, to the very last, he would occasionally 

 send me Latin verses, of which perhaps neither the 

 grammar nor the prosody would be quite defensible, 

 on any sporting event which had taken hold of his 

 fancy — the last lingering relics of his Harrow school- 

 days ! ' Servabit odorem Testa diu.' 



Under his light and joyous manners, Mr. Chute 

 concealed much sensibility of feeling, and strong 

 family affections. His attachment to his surviving 

 brother was great ; and he could never speak of his 

 deceased brother Chaloner without emotion ; but such 

 feelings were seldom displayed by him, grave and 

 painful thoughts were alien from his disposition. He 

 loved rather to extract amusement for himself and for 

 others out of the daily occurrences of life, and to 

 diffuse cheerfulness around him. His influence on 

 the home circle was well expressed to me, almost in 

 the words of the old song, by one who had lived with 

 him from childhood — ' the very sound of his step upon 

 * the stairs was like music in the house.' 



He was exceedingly temperate in his habits. Few 

 men, who take such strong exercise, eat or drink so 

 sparingly as he did. A few slices of thin bread and 



