Page:A Life of Matthew Fontaine Maury.pdf/301

Rh The following notice of his death appeared in Temple Bar of March, 1873:—

". . . . Of Maury's private character it is scarcely possible to speak in terms of too high eulogy. His unimpeachable integrity and strict sense of honour shed a halo of content over his whole life. He tried, through life, never to do anything of which his conscience disapproved, and he studied, even in minutest matters, exactitude and moderation. His general knowledge was very extensive, and in his own special science he excelled all other men. Yet his modesty was so great, and his simplicity so charming, that a child would feel at home in his company.

"His religious feeling was deep and personal. He never obtruded his views upon others, though he died, as he lived, in open profession and full communion of the Protestant Episcopal Church.

"On his death-bed, he bequeathed a prayer to his children which, like the famous one of Dr. Johnson, the great lexicographer, is touching and sublime in its simplicity.

"For the Bible he entertained the highest veneration, and its testimony, to his mind, was ever strengthened by the progress of scientific discovery.

"The Book of Job and the Psalms of David were his favourite parts of the Old Testament, especially the 107th Psalm. Very early in life he felt ' That they who go down to the sea in ships, and do business in great waters, see the works of the Lord, and His wonders in the deep.*

"This great pioneer of meteorological science passed away, in the calm dignity and faith of the Christian philosopher, at the ripe age of sixty-seven. 'His eye was not dimmed, nor his natural force abated.'"

In respect to the place of his interment, he expressed no definite wish, saying that his parents, brothers, and sisters