Page:Thoreau - His Home, Friends and Books (1902).djvu/72

52 necessitated reference to it, he became pale and faint. In the journal poem, already cited, he queried,—

Verily the Thoreaus, as a family, knew how to die as bravely as they lived!

Sophia, the youngest of the four children, destined to survive all her family, inherited the practical, mechanical ability and the cheerful spirit, combined with a strong talent for art. To her pen we owe the only authentic sketch of the Walden hut. She was especially fond of flowers and had a fine conservatory near the dining-room. Henry's letters to her testify to their common interest in botany and woodcraft; he recorded, in his journal, their joint pleasure in watching the evolution of a brilliant moth. During his later life they walked and rowed together and when strength for exercise failed Sophia became his companion on long drives and was his faithful scribe. Among some letters, now first published,