Sir David Gill. 
219 
circumstance in this visit was that it l^rought Kapteyn to the Cape. 
It was at tliis meeting of the British Association that the celebrated 
Dutch astronomer first announced his great discovery of star streaming 
in space. Some of us can remember well the small room in the muni- 
cipal buildings, Cape Town, the scanty audience, the quiet speaker, the 
momentous announcement. 
The visit was shadowed for Gill by the death of his lifelong friend, 
Sir William Wharton. He became suddenly ill on his way down from 
the Victoria Falls. He was taken to the observatory, but typhoid fever 
supervened on pneumonia, and he passed away after a brief illness, 
"to my inexpressible grief," 
Wharton's death and the anxiety and worry consequent on being 
responsible for the success of the Association meetings affected Gill's 
health at this time. A great organizer he suffered like many another 
outstanding man from the serious weakness of keeping all details of work 
in his own hands. He would grow impatient of offers of help, and 
however much one was distressed to find him toiling away at petty 
tasks a clerk would do nearly as well, it was useless trying to come to 
his rescue. If you wish a thing rightly done, do it yourself ! was a hard 
taskmaster for him in his, physically, less active days. 
Towards the close of 1905 Gill's health began to fail, and in the early 
part of 1906 it had become a matter of great concern to his friends. 
Twice he had fainted without any apparent cause. The strenous work 
of many years, "laborious days, and toilsome nights," had undermined 
a constitution of exceptional vigour and vitality. 
His medical advisers strongly urged that he should retire from active 
service at once and spend the rest of his days in a more bracing climate. 
And so, to the profound regret of all sections of the community, and 
most of all to his colleagues, whom his character and his kindness had 
bound to him by ties of unchanging affection and reverence, in October, 
1906, he left the land he had served so royally for the space of twenty- 
seven years. 
On his arrival in England he at once entered into the active scientific 
life of the home-land. He served as President of the British Association 
for the year 1907, the meeting taking place at Leicester. His address 
on that occasion was considered as a remarkable exposition of our 
scientific and astronomical position. He was president also of the Eoyal 
Astronomical Society during the year 1909-1910, and on the death of Sir 
William Huggins he was elected Foreign Secretary of the Eoyal Society. 
He took a deep interest in all these and similar societies and 
associations for the furtherance of science, giving his services ungrudg- 
ingly in their interest. 
He frequently visited the various continental capitals, or university 
