36 THE LIFE OF PHILIP HENRY GOSSE. 



"of the preceding autumn — a merry lampoon on the 

 " preachers, and most of the people of the place, on the 

 " occasion of their gathering. It was very smart and 

 "telling, and entertained us greatly. His favourite poet 

 "was Pope, whose Essay on Man he was continually 

 " citing, perhaps because it was dedicated to St. John, its 

 " opening lines running — 



" * Awake, my St. John, leave all meaner things 

 To low ambition, and the pride of Kings.' 



"The philosophy of this poem, such as it is, formed 

 " another of our staple subjects of discussion. His mode 

 " of thinking was somewhat loose, dashy, indefinite ; 

 " mine, on the other hand, precise, microscopic, according 

 "to rule. Withal, he was lithe and active in bodily 

 " exercises, a skilful and much-admired skater, a 

 " vigorous swimmer, a good leaper and runner. He 

 " possessed, too, an inexhaustible fund of good humour ; 

 "was a jovial boon-companion on occasion; and, to 

 " crown all, a great favourite with the ladies, being hand- 

 " some, gallant, attentive, with a fluent flattering tongue, 

 " ready wit, and a good store of frivolous conversation, 

 "the small-talk which is the spice of life and means 

 "nothing." 



William Charles St. John and Philip Henry Gosse not 

 only became knit in a warm friendship which lasted until 

 circumstances drew them apart, but the former had very 

 much to do in moulding the far from susceptible mind of 

 the latter. At least, their two minds grew very steadily 

 together, in the daily, hourly, momentary companionship of 

 several years of budding manhood. The two friends walked 

 together, read together, discussed and disputed together, 

 on every imaginable subject ; in the office they joked 

 together, and spent their spare moments in a never-ending 

 series of intellectual combats, so that the counting-house 



