1 Obituary Notices of Fellows deceased, 



expired he did not return to India, but was placed on special duty at Kew, Co 

 assist Sir J. D. Hooker in preparing the 'Flora of British India.' This 

 deputation continued till 1883, when Clarke reverted to duty in Bengal as 

 Inspector of Schools in the Presidency Division, and temporarily as a 

 Professor in the Calcutta Presidency College. In December, 1884, Clarke 

 was appointed to officiate as Director of Public Instruction in Bengal, and in 

 March, 1885, his services were placed at the disposal of the Government 

 of Assam, where he served as Inspector of Schools, with his headquarters at 

 Shillong, till his retirement, at the age of 55, in June, 1887. 



On. his return to England, Clarke settled at Kew, to be near the Herbarium 

 at the Eoyal Gardens, where he worked without a break as a volunteer till 

 within a few days of his death, which took place, after a short illness, on 

 August 25, 1906. 



The influence of Mr. Tomlinson on Clarke's intellectual development 

 seems to have been considerable, and the foundations of the interest which 

 he took in geographical and historical studies appear to have been laid at 

 his preparatory school. At King's College School he was much impressed 

 by the teaching of Mr. Hann, a man of marked individuality, who was 

 mathematical master. 



As an undergraduate at Cambridge, Clarke, from his King's College 

 connection, was one of a circle of close friends which included John (after- 

 wards Sir J.) Bigby, a Member of his College and subsequently Second 

 Wrangler in Clarke's year, and Henry Fawcett, also of the same year but 

 a Member of Peterhouse. Clarke, who, both as an undergraduate and as 

 a resident Fellow, was Fawcett's especial intimate, had not known the latter, 

 or only knew him by sight, in his school days. Though a native of 

 Salisbury, Fawcett did not attend the same preparatory school ; Fawcett was, 

 besides, a year Clarke's junior, and though they were contemporaries at 

 King's College School, they were not class fellows. But from Easter, 1851, 

 till they went to Cambridge, both attended the same mathematical lectures 

 at King's College, and during this period began their lifelong friendship. 

 The migration of Fawcett to Trinity Hall brought him and, as a consequence, 

 his friend Clarke, into contact with Leslie Stephen, who had also been at 

 King's College. As a result, Stephen was drawn into their circle and 

 became a lifelong friend of both. Characteristic of the members of this 

 brilliant coterie was an interest in discussions bearing on political economy 

 and a foible for unconventionality in matters of dress. In the case of 

 Clarke the interest continued to the last ; the foible became second nature. 



That a group of thoughtful undergraduates should take pleasure in the 

 discussion of intricate social problems is, fortunately, not unusual ; nor is it 

 surprising that the feelings of youth should often induce the adoption of 

 advanced views. The outlook, however, not infrequently alters when the 

 realities of life are faced and the discussion of such problems are too frequently 

 left to the professional philanthropist and the party politician, whose inter- 

 pretation of economic truths is occasionally unconsciously affected by a natural 



