The Henson Journals

[168]

Tuesday, September 4th, 1917.

1128th day

A beautiful autumnal morning – bright sun, faint haze, dew drops, & no wind. Riga has fallen! The Russians are too demoralized to fight, & break up in confusion as the enemy approaches. After Mattins I worked at the "Memoir" until lunch. There lunched with me Pemberton, Knowling, Ellershaw, and Wrenn (an Oxonian who is a candidate for an English lectureship), & Hughes. After lunch I attended the meeting of Council for the election, & proposed Wrenn, who was unanimously elected for one year's probation. Then I walked round Houghall Wood with Logic. On my return I wrote cheques for the month's domestic accounts, & a series of letters. After dinner I wrote to Ella, Radcliffe, Norman Henderson, & Mr Hack. The last, who had been chaplain of the prison in Oxford when the Warden was Chairman of Quarter Sessions, sent me an interesting letter on the Warden's care for the prisoners, & efforts to assist their reclamation. In forming an estimate of Anson's character importance should surely be ascribed to conduct which attracted no public notice, served no obvious interest, involved the expenditure of much time, and was itself tiresome & unattractive. Only a good heart & a high sense of duty could explain that kind of activity.

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