I am sorry to have to tell you that as a schoolboy Washington Irving was more fond of reading stories and books of travel than of the study of his lessons; indeed it is hinted that he read his favorite books slyly, during study hours. However that may be, he managed to pick up considerable knowledge of books and of the art of composition, though he did not at first choose literature as a profession, but took up the law and failing in this he undertook commercial pursuits; making a failure in this line also, he seemed driven into literature which had heretofore been only a pastime. I have spoken of a pathetic sketch which struck my childish fancy; but perhaps Irving is quite as well known through his humorous writings as any. "The History of New York by Diedrick Knickerbocker" has been called "the most original and humorous work of the age." He spent much time abroad and was honored by the friendship of even crowned heads and received many honors; among these was a gold medal bestowed by the British crown for eminence in historical composition. Irving never married, and when a little past fifty he settled at his country home, "Sunnyside," on the Hudson, his sister and her family his companions. But for all his devotion to a country life, Irving soon after accepted the office of Minister to the Court of Spain, and left his beautiful Sunnyside to spend four years at Madrid. During these four years he wrote delightful letters to his friends at home, telling his nieces who doted on their uncle, all about the dress and manners of the Spanish ladies. He returned home in 1846 to spend the remainder of his life in retirement, occupying himself upon his last and greatest work, _The Life of Washington_, the fifth volume of which appeared just before the author's death in 1859. We may not know the secrets of his life, but his biographers tell us that the lady whom he expected to marry died early and that he mourned her loss always and that upon his death bed his thoughts turned towards his early love. He was fond of horseback riding and kept up the habit of taking long rides until he was an old man, and one day, when he was about seventy, he was thrown from his horse, receiving severe injuries. However, he seemed to recover from the effects of this fall and lived to be seventy-six years old, failing gradually until the end came; the light went out and one of our greatest American writers had crossed over to the other side. CHAPTER XII. JUDSON, ADONIRAM. IN MEMORIAM. REV. ADONIRAM JUDSON. BORN AUG. 9, 1788, DIED APRIL 12, 1850. MALDEN HIS BIRTHPLACE THE OCEAN HIS SEPULCHRE. CONVERTED BURMANS, AND THE BURMAN BIBLE, HIS MONUMENT. HIS RECORD IS ON HIGH.