152 GEOEGE JOHN EOMANES issi- 



once, without any delay ; and as the idea of writing 

 you a letter was entirely her own, I do as I was told. 

 You may take it as a definite expression of the 

 emotions, even though it be not a very intelhgible 

 expression of ideas. 



She wants to know why you are going away, and 

 whether you will write to her when you are away, and 

 a heap of other questions of the same kind. 



We are all well now, and I am just going with 

 the two Ethels to a children's service, which they 

 .both enjoy. It is very pretty to hear the httle one 

 singing with the other children, which she does per- 

 fectly in tune. 



They are waiting for me now, so with best love 



from all, ^r ,-, 



' Yours ever the same, 



Geoege. 



In 1886 came the first warnings of ill-health. Mr. 

 Eomanes had a short but very sharp illness, and after 

 that year he suffered frequently from gout, which 

 necessitated visits to various foreign ' cures.' He was a 

 perfect travelling companion, he liked to have arrange- 

 ments made for him, and was never discomposed if 

 anything went wrong, never put out by any of the 

 ordinary mischances of travel. Although he always 

 professed indifference to architecture and art, he would 

 grow quite bojdshly enthusiastic over some cathedral, 

 as his sonnets to Amiens, and Christ Church, Oxford,^ 

 testify, and for sculpture he had a real love. 



In May 188S came the first marked public utter- 

 ance which showed that Mr. Eomanes was now in a 

 very different mental attitude to that in which he 

 wrote his ' Candid Examination of Theism.' 



^ See sonnets, The Bible of Amiens, and Christ Church, Oxford. 



