112 HAPPY HUNTING-GROUNDS 



as students. We sat on opposite sides of the House 

 of Commons, but the difference of our political views 

 never interfered with our friendship. Indeed it had 

 its conveniences, for in the Parliament of 1886, when 

 pairs were scarce, we established a "standing pair" 

 from 7.30 to 9.30, which enabled us to get home for 

 dinner. He was my junior by a year, and might have 

 hoped for a long career of usefulness on the Bench, 

 where his high honour and strong common sense 

 would have made him an admirable judge, but his 

 health began to fail early in 1897, and he died in 

 December of that year below the age at which most 

 judges are appointed. 



Since that Easter I have never visited Sark again. 

 I have heard that there are more hotels, but I hope 

 they are like those of my time, homely and comfort- 

 able quarters, clean and simple with good and whole- 

 some food and personal attention. I should be sorry 

 to hear that a monster palace with gold-laced porters 

 and charges to match sullied the simplicity of the 

 little island, even if it brought golf with it as an 

 additional attraction. There are not too many such 

 oases in the desert of civilisation. As I write, the 

 rich odour of the whins seems once more to delight 

 my nostrils, and the vision of the varied beauties 

 celebrated by the poet rises again before my eyes 



" O flower of all wind-flowers and sea-flowers, 

 Made lovelier by love of the sea 

 Than thy golden own field-flowers, or tree-flowers, 

 Like foam of the sea-facing tree 

 No foot but the sea-mew's there settles 

 On the spikes of thine anthers like horns, 

 With snow-coloured spray for thy petals, 

 Black rocks for thy thorns." 



