the other, named after his lost friend, lived to write the Memoir which
will always be the chief authority for our knowledge of the man. His
homes soon became household words--so great was the spell which Tennyson
cast over the hearts of his readers. Farringford, at the western end of
the Isle of Wight, was first tenanted by him in 1853, and was bought in
1856. Here the poet enjoyed perfect quiet, a genial climate and the
proximity of the sea, for which his love never failed. It was a very
different coast to the bleak sandhills and wide flats of Mablethorpe.
Above Freshwater the noble line of the Downs rises and falls as it runs
westward to the Needles, where it plunges abruptly into the sea; and
here on the springy turf, a tall romantic figure in wide-brimmed hat and
flowing cloak, the poet would often walk. But Farringford, lying low in
the shelter of the hills, proved too hot in summer; Freshwater was
discovered by tourists too often inquisitive about the great; and so,
after ten or twelve years, he was searching for another home, some
remoter fastness set on higher ground. This he discovered on the borders
of Surrey and Sussex near Haslemere, where Black Down rises to a height
of 900 feet above the sea and commands a wide prospect over the blue
expanse of the weald. Here he found copses and commons haunted by the
song of birds, here he raised plantations close at hand to shelter him
from the rude northern winds, and here he built the stately house of
Aldworth where, some thirty years later, he was to die.

To both houses came frequent guests. For, shy as he was of paying
visits, he loved to see in his own house men and women who could talk to
him as equals--nor was he always averse to those of reverent temper, so
they were careful not to jar on his fastidious tastes. In some ways it
was a pity that he did not come to closer quarters with the rougher
forces that were fermenting in the industrial districts. It might have
helped him to a better understanding of the classes that were pushing to
the front, who were to influence so profoundly the England of the
morrow. But the strain of kindly sympathy in Tennyson's nature can be
seen at its best in his intercourse with cottagers, sailors, and other
humble folk who lived near his doors. The stories which his son tells us
show how the poet was able to obtain an insight into their minds and to
write poems like 'The Grandmother' with artistic truth. And no visitor
received