viii PEEFACE 



more. He was indeed a bom naturalist, and but for 

 the lameness, which came from an accident in early 

 boyhood, he would doubtless have become a dauntless 

 pioneer in zoological regions as yet unexplored. Few 

 bird-lovers could equal him in the quickness and sure- 

 ness of eye which, even at a considerable distance, 

 enabled him to distinguish a bird on the wing. The 

 lameness, much increased by an accident in later years, 

 greatly restricted the exploratory work which he might 

 have achieved. It was most heroically borne by him, 

 and was combated with two walking-sticks. He was 

 too independent, however, to accept assistance if he 

 could possibly do without it. In the yachting cruises 

 which for some years I enjoyed in his company along 

 the western coasts of Scotland, Ireland, and the Faroe 

 Isles, he generally would land at every place of interest, 

 even when a strong swell made it difficult to get into 

 the boat. One could not but admire the tact with 

 which he avoided the proffered hands of the crew, 

 and his dexterity in the manipulation of his two sticks. 

 His perfect coolness was remarkable on such occasions. 

 He used to tell how once at Spitzbergen the dinghy 

 slipped away before he had hold of the ship's ladder 

 and he plumped into the water, but kept his pipe in 

 his mouth, and so, as he said, lost nothing ! 



It was about 1863 that he made Cambridge his 

 permanent home. In 1866 he was elected Professor 

 of Zoology and Comparative Anatomy in the Uni- 

 versity. He then began at once with much ardour 

 to improve the Zoological Museum, which in his hands 

 became in the course of years one of the most important 

 in the country. His kindly nature led him to take 

 much interest in the undergraduates who showed a 

 love of natural history. His "Sunday evenings" at 

 Magdalene, when he received his students, academical 



