1 88 SIR GEORGE DARWIN 



Canterbury Tales. He used often to read 

 Shakespeare to himself, I think generally the 

 historical plays ; also Chaucer, Don Quixote in 

 Spanish, and all kind of books Hke Joinville's 

 Life of St. Louis in the old French. 



I remember the story of the death of 

 Gordon told so that we all cried, I think ; 

 and Gladstone could hardly be mentioned in 

 consequence. All kinds of wars and battles 

 interested him, and I think he liked archery 

 more because it was romantic than because it 

 was a game. 



During his last illness his interest in the 

 Balkan war never failed. Three weeks before 

 his death he was so ill that the doctor thought 

 him dyin^. Suddenly he rallied from the 

 half-unconscious state in which he had been 

 lying for many hours, and the first words he 

 spoke on opening his eyes were, " Have they 

 got to Constantinople yet ? " This was very 

 • characteristic. I often wish he was alive now, 

 because his understanding and appreciation 

 of the glory and tragedy of this war would 

 be like no one else's. 



His daughter Margaret writes : 



He was absolutely unselfconscious, and it 

 never seemed to occur to him to wonder what 

 impression he was making on others. I think 

 it was this simplicity which made him so good 

 with children. He seemed to understand their 

 point of view, and to enjoy with them in a way 

 that is not common with grown-up people. I 

 shall never forget how when our dog had to be 

 killed he seemed to feel the horror of it just 

 as I did, and how this sense of his really sharing 



