PORTRAITS 289 



their being taken along the King's Parade. Often on 

 his way from the Museums he would walk down the 

 middle of the street from Benet Street to Market Hill 

 deaf to the tinkling bell behind him ; speed mattered 

 little to the old horse-drawn trams of Cambridge, and 

 he hardly lived to see the day of motor 'busses. 



Two attempts were made to paint his portrait. The 

 first was by the distinguished artist Charles Furse, who 

 both in his origins and in his tastes had much in 

 common with Newton, but for some reason they failed 

 to get on together, and the picture was never finished. 



For the last five days I have been surrendering my 

 body wholly to my Apelles, and I fear that his job is 

 not much more than half done. Some people think 

 that the result will be satisfactory ; but for my own 

 part I as yet fail to recognise in the performance any 

 trace of the expression of chastened resignation which 

 I know I wear while the process is going on, and I sit 

 staring at a blessed gas bracket, which is the object 

 chosen for me to fix my eyes upon. However, I occa- 

 sionally cast furtive glances at some papers that lie 

 before me, and thus the whole of the 20 hours the 

 operation has so far taken has not been wholly wasted, 

 for I have to some extent revised the MS. " Birds of 

 Sussex," which good old Borrer submitted to me.* 



He complains later (June 14) that the " thorny 

 Furse has made my hand look like an overgrown 

 baby's — fat and fubsy, which may be artistic, but I 

 know to be untrue." 



The second portrait was painted by Mr. Lowes 

 Dickinson, and was considered good enough to be 

 hung in the Combination Room at Magdalene. 



Honours came to him late in life : he had been 

 elected F.R.S. in 1870. In 1900 he was awarded one 



♦ l^etter to Lord Lilford, May 31, 1890. 



T7 



