cedar in front of
it, which adjoins the church. He had a large sitting-room, looking out
at the back over trees and gardens, with a tiny bedroom adjoining. He
had now the command of more money, and the fitting up of his rooms was a
great delight to him; he bought some fine old oak furniture, and fitted
the walls with green hangings, above which he set the horns of deer,
which he had at various times stalked and shot--he was always a keen
sportsman. I told him it was too secular an ornament, but he would not
hear me.

Canon Scott, the rector, the kindest and most hospitable of men,
welcomed me to the rectory, and I was often there; and our Sunday walks
continued. Hugh became known at once as the best preacher in Cambridge,
and great congregations flocked to hear him. I do not think he had much
pastoral work to do; but now a complication ensued. A good many
undergraduates used to go to hear him, ask to see him, discuss religious
problems with him. Moreover, before he left the Anglican communion, Hugh
had conducted a mission at Cambridge, with the result that several of
his hearers became Roman Catholics. A certain amount of orthodox alarm
was felt and expressed at the new and attractive religious element which
his sermons provided, and eventually representations were made to one
that I should use my influence with Hugh that he should leave Cambridge.
This I totally declined to do, and suggested that the right way to meet
it was to get an Anglican preacher to Cambridge of persuasive eloquence
and force. I did eventually speak to Hugh about it, and he was
indignant. He said: "I have not attempted, and shall not attempt, any
sort of proselytisation of undergraduates--I do not think it fair, or
even prudent. I have never started the subject of religion on any
occasion with any undergraduate. But I must preach what I believe; and,
of course, if undergraduates consult me, I shall tell them what I think
and why I think it." This rule he strictly adhered to; and I do not know
of any converts that he made.

Moreover, it was at this time that strangers, attracted by his sermons
and his books, began to consult him by letter, and seek interviews with
him. In this relation he showed himself, I have reason to know,
extraordinarily kind, sympathetic, and straightforward. He wrote fully
and as often as he was consulted; he saw an ever-increasing number of
inquirers. He used to groan over the amount of time he had to spend in
letters a