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THE TERCENTENARY OF SIR THOMASBROWNE.

STATUE UNVEILED BY LORD AVEBURY AT NORWICH.

THE tercentenary of the birthday of Sir Thomas Browneof Norwich, physician and philosopher, who was born onOct. 19th, 1605, and died Oct. 19th, 1682, was celebratedin Norwich on Oct. 19th last and was the occasion of aremarkable display of enthusiasm and interest in thatancient city. It has long been felt by the citizens ofNorwich that it was a reproach to their city that it containednothing of the nature of an adequate monument to one oftheir great men which might testify sufficiently to the pridefelt by the inhabitants of Norwich in the most famous of itscitizens who lived in their city some 40 years and wascelebrated as a philosopher, as a man of science, and as anauthor and who was buried in the church of St. Peter Man-croft in that city. It was thought that the tablet on thefront of some buildings in Orford-place, Norwich, statingthat the house which Sir Thomas Browne occupied usedto stand near the spot where the tablet is placed, didnot signify enough the pride which the city felt in re-

gard to his memory, and although it was true that in thechancel of St. Peter Mancroft there was a tablet erected inhis memory and that there was an ornamented casket at theNorfolk and Norwich Hospital containing the skull of SirThomas Browne it was nevertheless a very generallyreceived opinion that some more worthy monument shouldbe raised to his memory. Several years ago a representative I

i

The statue of Sir Thomas Browne.

committee was appointed by the citizens of Norwich toundertake the preliminalÍes necessary for such a work andsubsequently an appropriate appeal was issued by the com-mittee asking for funds for the purpose. The result of the

appeal revealed the fact that the fame of Sir Thomas Brownehad spread all the world over, for from every part of theglobe subscriptions poured in and an executive committeewas constituted in order to carry the work to a successfulissue. During the South African war the question of thememorial faded somewhat into the background but themovement later gathered force and the committee was

finally able to commission Mr. Henry Pegram, A.R.A., toproceed with the work of producing a statue of Sir ThomasBrowne to be placed as a memorial to his life and work inthe city of Norwich.The particular site which has been chosen for the monu-

ment is on a piece of rising ground in what is known as theHaymarket and consists of a clear space of ample propor-tions, the statue being situated under the shadow almost ofthe church of St. Peter Mancroft and close to the place Iwhere the house stood in which Sir Thomas Browne lived for

many years in Norwich. It would be possible to write muchon the artistic merit of this latest addition to the city ofNorwich.The ceremony of unveiling the statue took place shortly

after midday. The memorial executive- committee formallyreceived the representatives of the Royal College of Phy-sicians of London, who were the President, Sir Richard

Douglas Powell ; the treasurer, Sir Dyce Duckworth ; and thesenior censor, Dr. J. F. Payne. The Royal College of Surgeonsof England was represented by one of the Vice- Presidents,Mr. Edmund Owen, and by Profe.-sor Howard Marsh of

Cambridge, who is a member of the Council of the College.The University of Oxford was represented by ProfessorW. Osier, Regius Professor, and the University of Cam-

bridge by Professor T. Clifford Allbutt, Regius Professor.Dr. F. W. Burton-Fanning represented the Norwich Medico-Cbirurgical Society. The mayor, the sheriff, the deputy-mayor, and the town clerk appeared next before the monu-ment and then, under the direction of the secretary of theexecutive committee, Mr. F. R. Eaton, the ceremony of

unveiling the statue commenced with the reading of a collectby the Rev. F. J. Meyrick, the vicar of St. Peter Mancroft.The SECRETARY read the following letter from Yale

University :-New Haven, Connecticut, 6th October, 1905.

F. R. Eaton, Esq., Hon. Secretary, Sir Thomas Browne Memorial.My DEAR SIR,-With great regret I am obliged to decline the invita-

tion with which your committee has honoured me. In doing so, how-ever, I am not wholly deprived of participation in the memorialobservances, for on the day which finds you assembled in Norwich it isproposed in this city, under the auspices of the Yale University, tocelebrate the tercentenary of the birth of your renowned citizen, andI have been honoured by the appointment to deliver an address on thatoccasion.With congratulations upon the completion of your meritorious

labours, I remain, yours sincerely,F. BACON.

The SECRETARY also announced that the following replyhad been sent :-

Browne’s old city rejoices with an illustrious university in per-petuating the life and work of a great and good man.

After a statement had been read concerning the history ofthe movement for the erection of the monument, Sir PETEREADE, president of the memorial executive committee,invited Lord Avebury to unveil the statue.Lord AVEBURY then advancing in front of the statue said :

I appreciate very highly the honour you have conferred onme in inviting me to unveil the statue that you have sowisely erected to Sir Thomas Browne and which he so richlydeserved. He has long been a great honour to Norwich ; itis fitting that Norwich should do honour to him. The lateLord Chief Justice Coleridge has told us that he foundNorwich juries the most intelligent he ever came across andMr. Havelock Ellis in an interesting article on the distribu-tion of British ability, founded on the Dictionary of NationalBiography, tells us that East Anglia is far the most importantcentre of British genius-that Norfolk " stands clearly at thehead of our counties in the production of eminent men," andI may add, of famous women. I could quote a long list ofsaints, divines, statesmen, generals, admirals, philosophers,artists, and authors. Among the latter Sir Thomas Browneholds a unique place, not only in English libraries but in theliterature of the world. Lowell regarded him as "our most

imaginative mind since Shakespeare." It is to be hoped thatthe sight of his statue may induce many to read his books.They will not be disappointed. His monument in yourcathedral describes him as " vir prudentissimus, integerri-mus, doctissimus." We can well believe the two first com-mendations ; indeed, we can judge for ourselves how wellthe third was deserved, and can the more readily believe thatthe others were true. Sir Thomas Browne was one of themost distinguished citizens of this noble and ancient city.That he was prudent I think is shown by the fact that helived so prosperously through the disturbed times ofCharles I., of Cromwell, and of Charles II. ; that he wasexcellent is shown by the universal respect which was feltfor him in this city of Norwich, and still more by the loveand affection felt for him in his own family ; and that he wasmost learned I have no doubt, having read his books, and Ihope that you will take the advice which I offer you to readhis books also. He was an honour to your city and Norwichto-day does honour to itself in erecting this monument toone of its most distinguished citizens.Lord Avebury, approaching close to the statue, pulled a

silken cord attached to a white sheet enveloping themonument and immediately the covtrings fell away from

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the bronze figure and the statue stood unveiled, upon whichloud cheers were raised by the great crowd gathered in theHaymarket.A vote of thanks to Lord Avebury for attending the cere-

mony was moved by Sir SAMUEL HoARE, M.P., and this wasseconded by Professor CLIFFORD ALLBUTT who said thatthey had that day to celebrate the memory of a man greatin Norwich but no less great far beyond the realms even ofGreat Britain. He was great as a man of science, great asa naturalist, and was greater still as a man of letters; it wastherefore with singular fitness that the memorial executivecommittee had been able to obtain that day the presidencyof Lord Avebury who was a great man of science and whowas also a great naturalist and who, distinguished as he wasin those branches, was also no less renowned as a man ofletters.Speaking on behalf of the memorial executive committee

Mr. G. WHITE, M.P., also supported the motion for the voteof thanks to Lord Avebury.The vote of thanks was passed amid loud cheers and Lord

AVEBURY, in acknowledging the compliment, assured themthat his gratitude was a great deal warmer than the day onwhich they were met together.

Sir PETER EADE then turned towards the Mayor ofNorwich and, in asking him to accept the statue on behalfof the city of Norwich, said : The statue being now unveiled,and open to the world, and placed as it is upon an ideal site,it is my pleasant duty to ask the Mayor of Norwich, whomwe are most pleased to see here this morning, to accept itfrom the large and eminent body of subscribers to it onbehalf of this ancient city over which he so well reigns. Wehope the statue will be, what it is intended to be, a monu-ment to departed learning and genius and moral greatness-a monument to a man of whom even his contemporaries werewont to speak in superlatives, as Lord Avebury has pointedout, and on whose monument in the adjoining church we findthe words, " Per Orbem Notissimus," and who was describedby his daughter, Mrs. Littleton, as of " universal learningand sublime virtue." It has been said that Sir ThomasBrowne was not a Norwich citizen. But he lived here nearlyhalf a century, his life-work was chiefly done here, he diedand was buried here, and we are proud to be sure that hewill be known for all time as Sir Thomas Browne ofNorwich.

Sir CHARLES GILMAN also spoke in support of the requestmade by Sir Peter Eade, and the MAYOR of NORWICH in agraceful speech accepted the statue on behalf of the city ofNorwich. This was a signal for the chiming of the bells ofSt. Peter Mancroft and the company separated.The vicar of St. Peter Mancroft. the Rev. F. J. Meyriek,

afterwards conducted a distinguished group of visitors overhis church.

LUXCHEON IX THE BLACKFRIARS HALL.

In the afternoon the members of the memorial executivecommittee gave a luncheon party in the Blackfriars Hall tothe representatives of the various universities and collegesand other bodies and societies. The chair was taken by SirPETRR EADE who had seated on his right hand the Mayorof Norwich and on his left Lord Avebury. After the usual

loyal toasts had been duly honoured the health of Lord

Avebury was proposed by the High Sheriff of Norfolk,Mr. H. G. BARCLAY.Lord AVEBURY, in reply, delivered an intere-iting speech

on Sir Thomas Browne. He said : East Anglia is justly proudof Sir Thomas Browne and it is pleasant to see how widelyhis tercentenary has been celebrated in the press. In additionto Mr. Southwell’s volume on Browne’s Natural History ofNorfolk, there is Mr. Goose’s volume in the English Men ofLetters Series. Mr. Gosse is no indiscriminate admirer. Heprotests against the long and pedantic words whichSir Thomas Browne was so fond of coining and whichI confess that I myself regret, but we mut rememberthat some of his works were left as more or less dis-jointed notes. They had not the benefit of his re-

vision and perhaps he would have omitted some of thelongest words. Moreover, Mr. Gosse himself compares In-!style to light "shot with all the colours of the spectrumflashed out against a firmament of romantic gloom." Somemay perhaps consider that his writings have not, accordingto our present taste. the literary perfection which delightsus in the prose of Roskin or Matthew Arnold, or, to quoteliving authors, of Mr. Morley or Mr. Frederic Harrison, SirG. Trevelyan or Professor Bryce ; but all must admit that

they have a peculiar charm of their own, a stateliness,quaintness, and raciness of expression which is unique.They offer us a succession of pleasant surprises and sparklewith exquisite wild flowers of speech, not without a rich

supply of facts and picturesque stores of wise sayings.He charmed Dr. Johnson who wrote his life, and Pater,certainly a first-rate authority, compares him to Jean PaulRichter among Germans and Montaigne among Frenchmen.Browne, however, as Johnson well says, has been intenselyrather than extensively admired. Perhaps his mostcelebrated work was the " Religio Medici." It was copiedin various forms over and over again-Religio Philosophi,Religio Laici, Religio Jurisconsulti, Religio Clerici, ReligioMilitis, and so on. It is written in a reverent but broad andinquiring spirit, for as he says in his quaint language " everyman’s own reason is his best GEdipus." He has by Wille been,most incorrectly, accused of incredulity and even of atheism,and yet assures us that " he is of the reformed religion ; ofthe same belief as our Saviour taught, the Apostles dis-seminated, the Father authorised, and the martyrs con-

firmed," though I am not sure that if he had lived in Italyor Spain instead of East Anglia he might not himself havebeen called upon to confirm his faith by martyrdom. Nodoubt, however, he was a sincere member of the Church ofEngland, which, in accordance with his habit of quotingauthority, he assures us with evident satisfaction, was

"approved by Grotius." Still he felt that "those who doconfine the Church of God either to particular nations,churches, or families, have made it far narrower than ourSaviour ever meant it to be;

" and elsewhere he observes that" persecution is a bad w ry to plant religion," and that " ’Ve ebeing all Christians, and not divided by such detested

impieties as might profane our prayers or the place whereinwe make them, or that a resolved conscience may not adorehis Creator anywhere, especially in places devoted to hisservice." His religion was one of cheerfulness and he

always sees the happy rather than the gloomy side of life.It was a Christian mood, a state of mind, an atmosphere ofreverence and gratitude rather than a creed. He felt deeplythe mystery of existence. To thoughtful observers he says,"The whole world is a phylactery; and everything we seean item of the wondrous power and goodness of God." Hedwells more on the hope of heaven than on the horrors ofbell. " I have so fixed my contemplation on heaven that Ihave almost forgot the idea of hell ...... I can hardly thinkthere was ever anyone scared into heaven." Indeed, " werethe happiness of the next world as clearly apprehended asthe felicities of this, it were a martyrdom to live." Notthat he undervalued life. In fact, he tells us that his lifewas "a miracle of 30 years, which to relate were not

history but a piece of poetry and would sound like a

fable." Dr. Johnson in his life cf Browne criticisesthis as an instance of " self-love cooperating with a

vigorous imagination." He admits, indeed, that the state-ment in a sense is true of all lives, and it was in this,I think, that Browne intended it. He meant to point outthe value of lire, not specially of his own life. There is nodoubt that Browne believed in witches. This has beendescribed as a blot on his life and led to the one act of hislife for which he has been severely blamed. In 1664 twowretched women were charged with witchcraft. Sir ThomasBrowne took no part in the prosecution but he was, unfor-tunately, in court and the judge called upon him to expresshis opinion. He could hardly refuse to do so and the unfor-tunate women were convicted. Mr. Gosse says that theirblood was on his head. But is this fair ? Belief inwitchcraft was general at the time. Sir Thomas Brownewas in many respects in advance of his time but un-

fortunately in this respect he shared the belief which hadfor ages been the general belief of mankind. We mayregret it, we may feel surprised that sensible men couldhave believed such nonsense, but we can hardly blamehim for sharing a superstition which was general atthe time, and held by Luther and Calvin and even bythe great and good Wesley. It was an unfortunate error of

judgment but ought not to be taken as a stain upon hischaracter. Another of his most celebrated works wason vulgar and common errors. Many of them would seemchildish to us but they were widely prevalent at thetime and some are, perhaps, even now not quite extinct. Asa naturalist myself I should naturally like to say somethingof Sir Thomas Browne’s notes and letters on the naturalhistory of Norfolk and as an entomologist 1 heartily sub-cribeto his dictum about ants and bees that "in the!-e narrow

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-engines there is more curiouse mathematics.; and the civilityof these little citizens more neatly sets forth the wisdom oftheir Maker." Geniuses are not always good to live with butBrowne was no solemn and melancholy autoorat. On the

contrary, all we know of his domestic life is charming. It isnot then by any means merely for his style, however striking,or for his language, however quaint and rich, but for themoral excellence and noble principles contained in them thatBrowne’s writings will always hold a high place not only inEnglish literature but in the libraries of the world, that we inEast Anglia are justly proud of him, and that Norwichhonours herself in erecting a monument to one of her mostdistinguished citizens.The toast of " The Memory of Sir Thomas Browne " was

then proposed by Professor JAMES STUART who confinedhimself to considering his subject from the point of view ofSir Thomas Browne as a citizen of Norwich.The honourable office of responding to this toast was

intrusted to Sir RiCHARD DOUGLAS POAVELL, President ofthe Royal College of Physicians of London, who said : I amdeeply honoured in having to respond to this toast, and asrepresenting the Royal College of Physicians I must expressthe gratitude of the College to the memorial committee forgiving this opportunity of doing honour to the memory of ourFellow in the city where he lived his life of scholar,physician, and Christian gentleman. Sir Thomas Brownewas a distinguished Englishman, a man of noble thoughts,which he expressed in the rich and stately language of his-day. Although not born in this city of Norwich yet he foundhis sphere of work and greatest influence here, and it was inconnexion with some ancient Roman relics found here thathe wrote what is perhaps the most subtle and charming ofhis essays. It has not escaped notice how averse Sir ThomasBrowne himself was to tombstone and other memorials. "At

my death," he says, " I mean to take a total adieu of theworld, not caring for a monument, history, or epitaph ; notso much as the bare memory of my name to be found

anywhere but in the universal register of God." " Andthis shrinking from posthumous fame, which is manifestedin passages not only in his earlier but also in hislater writings, has been respected for eight generationssince his death. It may well be said that now it is some-what late to be unveiling a memorial to him. But I thinkthat such belated monuments find their justification ratherin the survival than in the perpetuation of their subject’smemory. There are many reputations, perhaps brilliant atthe moment, yet so urgent in their need of perpetuation and- so quickly evanescent that they are fittingly memorialised inwaxen effigies, which, quickly moulded, may endure for a fewweeks, months, or years, and will then boil down to bereconstructed in the likeness of the next recipient of fame.Other statues urgently constructed but of more enduringmaterial may long and inconveniently outlast the oblivionof the subject whose fame they would fain preserve. It isnot so with Thomas Browne. We to-day celebrate thatSir Thomas Browne has lived three centuries in our memoryand our continued appreciation of his works ; and his statueis here erected for the honour of the town and to remind itscitizens of his great example. The Psalmist in a strikingbut sombre passage says : "When the breath goeth outof a man he returns to his dust, and all his thoughtsperish." I know not how Sir Thomas Browne would haveinterpreted this text. But surely such thoughts as cometo us through the great men of all ages are disembodied,immortal spirits, divine inspirations, which rule theworld, and, finding lodgment and expression in the wingedwords of men, quicken the conceptions of literature, science,and art for successive generations. They are surely notwithin the meaning of the Psalmist as of the earth and asperishing with earthly things. It cannot be said that SirThomas Browne-excellent physician as he was-contributedanything to the science of medicine. Steeped in the learningof the centuries his writings must be classics for all time.But his period was behind the seventeenth century, as thatof his great contemporary Harvev was in front of it. His

works, and those of Harvey, furnish us with instructive.illustrations of the overlapping of the old mystical medicineand the new learning by way of experiment. The two greatpersonalities seem to stand upon the watershed of Time,looking different ways. Let us treasure the memory andexample of the one ; the other lives with us.

Mr. EDMUND OWEN, Vice-President of the Royal Collegeof Surgeons of England, said that Sir Thomas Browne didnot allow his devotion to cramp his thought or place a check,

upon a fearless investigation into the meaning of things.More people like Sir Thomas Browne were wanted at the

present day.The Dean of NORWICH dwelt on the great value Sir

Thomas Browne placed upon the proper use of time andobserved in regard to the religion of Sir Thomas Brownethat a religion from which mystery was excluded forfeitedevery claim to supernatural origin, it never could riseabove humanity, and it never could elevate humanity thatinvented it.

Professor W. OSLER, who also replied to the toast, pointedout that there were three lessons to be learned from the lifeof Sir Thomas Browne. The first was the importance ofan ideal education, the second was the example he gaveof a member of the medical profession who mingled thesuccessful waters of science with the oil of faith, and thethird was that it was possible to lead the perfect life in avery simple way.

MEMORIAL SERVICE.

A memorial service was held in the evening at St. PeterMancroft Church and the sermon was preached by theMaster of Pembroke College, Oxford, Bishop MITCHINSON,who remarked on the present resting-place of the skull ofSir Thomas Browne and declared that he could hardly con-ceive it possible that the citizens of Norwich should haveinflicted upon one of their most distinguished fellow citizenssuch an indignity as to have removed his skull from wherehis body lay buried within the church.

THE FEEDING OF SCHOOL CHILDRENIN SWITZERLAND.

(FROM A CORRESPONDENT.)

EVER since the days of Pestalozzi the care of destitute

children has occupied a prominent position in the minds ofthe Swiss people. Proud as they are that the world deemstheir countryman the founder of the modern YoZksscl/’1lle, theyare more impressed by the philanthropic work at Neuhofand Stans than by the pedagogic triumphs of Burgdorf andYverdon. The care bestowed on poor children by school

managers has gained in value from the complexity of localconditions and the independence of local government. It

may be safely asserted that, in some commune or other,every feasible plan of relief has been tried. Though theresults cannot be elaborated into a system sufficient materialhas been accumulated to form a basis for any body, publicor private, which desires to attack the subject.For many years relief depended on individual effort. Well-

to-do families inquired at school for the children of theirpoorer neighbours and invited them to share the middaymeal. The presence of these regular guests was not resentedby the younger members of the family with whom they grewup in companionship. In some parishes church collectionswere made for the supply of food and clothing. A villageChristmas tree was often prepared and tastefully decked withpresents. In the town of Basle a sum of 25,000 francs wascollected in 1856 which now forms a fund for the relief ofpoor children. In many communes small foundations haveaccumulated from surplus fees, settlement charges, andoffertories, and the proceeds of these are now applied to thesame purpose.The Federal Constitution of 1874 made attendance at the

Yolkssch1tlc obligatory and gratuitous. Before this date

arrangements for the relief of hungry school children hadbeen made in Unterwalden, the canton in which Pestalozziearned the name of Yater der Waisen. But the cantonsendeavoured to make the supply of books and material freebefore they paid attention to the feeding of the children.Now that this- difficulty has been overcome more effort isbeing made to insure that the child is physically able toprofit by instruction. This is due in part to the spread ofsocialism, but socialism is not the only importantmotive. The age at which a child begins to earn

money has been gradually increasing. So long as schoolattendance is compulsory, factory labour is forbiddenand in many cases a child is not permitted to workfor casual wages. Assistance may be rendered at homein house work and at the parent’s trade. The child is there-fore a worker but not a wage-earner. In many districts