﻿Roland 
  Trimen. 
  

  

  xxi 
  

  

  may 
  have 
  been 
  in 
  Common-room 
  — 
  to 
  attract 
  men 
  with 
  widely 
  different 
  

   tastes 
  and 
  interests. 
  

  

  As 
  I 
  write 
  this 
  and 
  think 
  of 
  those 
  pleasant 
  times, 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  experiences 
  

   he 
  described 
  with 
  such 
  humour 
  come 
  back 
  to 
  me. 
  

  

  On 
  one 
  of 
  his 
  visits- 
  to 
  a 
  European 
  Congress 
  he 
  met 
  a 
  distinguished 
  

   German 
  astronomer, 
  who, 
  as 
  soon 
  as 
  he 
  realised 
  Trimen's 
  position 
  at 
  the 
  

   Cape, 
  began 
  a 
  fervent 
  entreaty, 
  with 
  the 
  words 
  : 
  — 
  " 
  Ach, 
  mein 
  frient, 
  I 
  am 
  

   not 
  what 
  the 
  world 
  beliefs 
  : 
  the 
  world 
  knows 
  me 
  as 
  an 
  astronomer, 
  but 
  my 
  

   heart 
  is 
  mit 
  peetles 
  ! 
  " 
  Trimen 
  could 
  not 
  resist 
  the 
  appeal, 
  and 
  the 
  " 
  peetles 
  " 
  

   were 
  sent. 
  

  

  The 
  Perpetual 
  Secretary 
  of 
  the 
  French 
  Academy 
  was 
  expected 
  to 
  visit 
  

   London 
  just 
  about 
  the 
  time 
  that 
  Trimen 
  returned 
  from 
  the 
  Cape 
  after 
  his 
  

   election 
  as 
  an 
  F.R.S. 
  He 
  was 
  sitting 
  quietly 
  in 
  the 
  tea-room 
  of 
  the 
  Eoyal 
  

   Society, 
  when 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  Officers 
  suddenly 
  hurried 
  up 
  and 
  circled 
  admiringly 
  

   round 
  him, 
  with 
  : 
  — 
  " 
  Ah 
  ! 
  Mon 
  cher 
  ami 
  je 
  suis 
  enchante 
  de 
  vous 
  voir 
  ! 
  " 
  

   His 
  blunt 
  " 
  What 
  do 
  you 
  mean 
  ? 
  I'm 
  Trimen," 
  was 
  received 
  with 
  obvious 
  

   disappointment 
  and 
  some 
  annoyance. 
  

  

  Annoyance, 
  too, 
  was 
  felt 
  by 
  a 
  visitor 
  who 
  was 
  terrified 
  by 
  the 
  sight 
  of 
  a 
  

   living 
  Death's 
  Head 
  Moth 
  in 
  the 
  Curator's 
  Eoom 
  at 
  the 
  South 
  African 
  

   Museum. 
  As 
  he 
  kept 
  backing 
  away, 
  Trimen, 
  with 
  the 
  harmless 
  insect 
  in 
  

   his 
  hand, 
  followed 
  him, 
  and, 
  as 
  he 
  still 
  refused 
  to 
  be 
  reassured, 
  could 
  not 
  

   resist 
  the 
  temptation 
  to 
  give 
  -him 
  an 
  experimental 
  proof 
  — 
  by 
  throwing 
  it 
  

   at 
  him 
  ! 
  On 
  another 
  occasion 
  the 
  sight 
  of 
  the 
  same 
  object 
  of 
  superstitious 
  

   dread 
  in 
  his 
  hand 
  stampeded 
  a 
  party 
  of 
  fifty 
  or 
  sixty 
  Dutch 
  men 
  and 
  women 
  

   on 
  their 
  way 
  to 
  a 
  " 
  Nacht-Mahl 
  " 
  (Lord's 
  Supper). 
  

  

  On 
  one 
  occasion 
  he 
  went 
  to 
  see 
  a 
  friend 
  in 
  the 
  Cape 
  Town 
  Post-office, 
  and 
  

   found 
  him 
  in 
  the 
  diamond 
  strong-room. 
  His 
  friend 
  was 
  called 
  away, 
  and 
  

   there 
  was 
  Trimen 
  alone, 
  surrounded 
  by 
  little 
  parcels 
  — 
  a 
  small 
  pocketful 
  

   would 
  have 
  meant 
  comfort 
  for 
  life 
  ! 
  It 
  was 
  a 
  humorous 
  situation, 
  and 
  as 
  

   such 
  made 
  its 
  appeal 
  to 
  him. 
  

  

  Trimen's 
  own 
  account 
  of 
  the 
  meeting 
  between 
  the 
  young 
  German 
  naturalist, 
  

   Pt. 
  von 
  Willemoes-Suhm, 
  of 
  the 
  "Challenger," 
  and 
  a 
  member 
  of 
  the 
  Council 
  

   of 
  the 
  newly 
  founded 
  University 
  of 
  the 
  Cape, 
  has 
  been 
  quoted 
  elsewhere,* 
  

   but 
  I 
  repeat 
  the 
  conversation, 
  for 
  it 
  is 
  not 
  devoid 
  of 
  significance 
  even 
  in 
  

   these 
  later 
  years. 
  The 
  " 
  Challenger 
  " 
  was 
  received 
  with 
  the 
  warmest 
  

   hospitality, 
  so 
  much 
  so, 
  indeed, 
  that, 
  as 
  Trimen 
  told 
  me, 
  the 
  epoch-making 
  

   discovery 
  of 
  the 
  structure 
  and 
  synthetic 
  position 
  of 
  Peripatus 
  was 
  only 
  

   rendered 
  possible 
  by 
  Moseley's 
  stern 
  refusal 
  of 
  all 
  invitations, 
  in 
  order 
  that 
  

   he 
  might 
  hunt 
  for 
  living 
  examples 
  of 
  this 
  extraordinary 
  animal. 
  

  

  At 
  a 
  dinner 
  given 
  by 
  the 
  Governor, 
  the 
  Councillor 
  remarked 
  to 
  the 
  

   German 
  : 
  — 
  " 
  You'll 
  be 
  interested, 
  perhaps, 
  to 
  learn 
  that 
  the 
  Colony 
  now 
  

   possesses 
  its 
  own 
  University." 
  

  

  "Ah! 
  an 
  University; 
  that 
  is 
  good! 
  Tell 
  me, 
  then, 
  who 
  are 
  your 
  

   Professors 
  ? 
  " 
  

  

  * 
  ' 
  John 
  Viriamu 
  Jones 
  and 
  other 
  Oxford 
  Memories.' 
  Poulton, 
  London, 
  1911, 
  pp. 
  24-26. 
  

  

  