42 SIR WILLIAM RAMSAY 



The professor at that time was Gustav Bischof, son 

 of the well-known geologist. The professor's knowledge 

 of English was very imperfect and the instruction of 

 the few laboratory students was left to Ramsay. Otto 

 Hehner, now one of the best known public analysts in 

 London, was the professor's private assistant and a close 

 intimacy soon sprang up between the two young men. 

 Ramsay acknowledges his obligation to Hehner 's advice. 

 The latter had been a student under Fresenius and was 

 an excellent analyst. On the other hand, in a sym- 

 pathetic and interesting obituary contributed to the 

 pages of the Analyst in November 1916 by Mr. Hehner, 

 the following passage shows a pleasant picture of 

 family life and hospitable friendliness toward the young 

 foreigner : 



"His kindly silent father and his most gentle and saintly 

 mother who showed me innumerable acts of kindness while I 

 had upon me the homesickness of a youngster, who prior to his 

 emigration to Scotland had never left the parental house, I hold 

 in affectionate and reverent memory. 



I spent many evenings at their home, where William enlivened 

 the company with songs, which in later years were greeted with 

 enthusiastic applause by his students at social evenings of the 

 University College Students' Club 'Marlbrouk s'en va-t-en 

 guerre/ and such like. He had a very good voice, played his 

 own accompaniment and was an expert whistler. He spoke 

 German fluently, with occasional comic lapses which I endeavoured 

 to correct in return for services rendered to me by his rough- 

 hewing my efforts in English. . . . 



William Ramsay soon became my intimate friend. We were 

 both full of enthusiasm, and as neither of us could obtain advice 



