Characteristics 



to no trouble or pecuniary responsibility. That my father- 

 in-law arranged, long ago. 



To dissociate yourself from the K.S. really amounts now- 

 adays to doing it an injury. And I am sure you do not wish 

 that. 



With all good wishes, believe me yours sincerely, 



W. T. Thiselton-Dyer. 



To Sir W. T. Thiselton-Dyer 



Parkstone, Dorset. January 17, 1893. 



Dear Mr. Thiselton-Dyer, — I have been rather unwell 

 myself the last few days or should have answered your 

 very kind letter sooner. I feel really overpowered. I can- 

 not understand why you or anyone should care about my 

 being an F.R.S., because I have really done so little of 

 what is usually considered scientific work to deserve it. I 

 have for many years felt almost ashamed of the amount of 

 reputation and honour that has been awarded me. I can 

 understand the general public thinking too highly of me, 

 because I know that I have the power of clear exposi- 

 tion, and, I think, also, of logical reasoning. But all the 

 work I have done is more or less amateurish and founded 

 almost wholly on other men's observations; and I always 

 feel myself dreadfully inferior to men like Sir J. Hooker, 

 Huxley, Flower, and scores of younger men who have ex- 

 tensive knowledge of whole departments of biology of 

 which I am totally ignorant. I do not wish, however, to 

 be thought ungrateful for the many honours that have been 

 given me by the Eoyal and other Societies, and will there- 

 fore place myself entirely in your hands as regards my 

 election to the F.R.S. 



I am much pleased to hear that Huxley has taken to 

 gardening. I have no doubt he will do some good work 

 with his saxifrages. For myself the personal attention to 

 my plants occupies all my spare time, and I derive con- 

 stant enjoyment from the mere contemplation of the in- 

 finite variety of forms of leaf and flower, and modes of 

 growth, and strange peculiarities of structure which are 

 the source of fresh puzzles and fresh delights year by year. 



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