ISRAEL COOK RUSSELL 667 



of interpretation which might have been avoided by a more con- 

 servative practice, but he also enlarged his output of permanently 

 valuable material and avoided the reproach of resultless effort. 



In personal character he was of sterling quality, simple and 

 unassuming. His manner was quiet, and he often seemed diffident, 

 although he did not actually lack self-confidence. In lecturing he 

 held his audience rather by the interest of his subject than by vigor 

 of presentation. His conversation was not aggressive, but was 

 distinguished by occasional bits of humor, spontaneous, sudden and 

 peculiarly apt, so that his bon mot was not rarely the remembered 

 gem of a social evening. Of medium height and rather slightly 

 framed, his physique gave to the eye little suggestion of that capacity 

 for sustained effort and endurance without which his more strenuous 

 exploration would have been impossible. 



