e the bashful youth awarded
the gold medal of the Royal Astronomical Society for his work.

The term of Holden's administration extended through some ten
years. To me its most singular feature was the constantly growing
unpopularity of the director. I call it singular because, if we
confine ourselves to the record, it would be difficult to assign
any obvious reason for it. One fact is indisputable, and that
is the wonderful success of the director in selecting young men
who were to make the institution famous by their abilities and
industry. If the highest problem of administration is to select
the right men, the new director certainly mastered it. So far as
liberty of research and publication went, the administration had
the appearance of being liberal in the extreme. Doubtless there
was another side to the question. Nothing happens spontaneously,
and the singular phenomenon of one who had done all this becoming a
much hated man must have an adequate cause. I have several times,
from pure curiosity, inquired about the matter of well-informed men.
On one occasion an instance of maladroitness was cited in reply.

"True," said I, "it was not exactly the thing to do, but, after all,
that is an exceedingly small matter."

"Yes," was the answer, "that was a small thing, but put a thousand
small things like that together, and you have a big thing."

A powerful factor in the case may have been his proceeding, within
a year of his appointment, to file an astounding claim for the sum
of $12,000 on account of services rendered to the observatory in
the capacity of general adviser before his appointment as director.
These services extended from the beginning of preparations in 1874
up to the completion of the work. The trustees in replying to the
claim maintained that I had been their principal adviser in preparing
the plans. However true this may have been, it was quite evident,
from Holden's statement, that they had been consulting him on a much
larger scale than I had been aware of. This, however, was none of
my concern. I ventured to express the opinion that the movement
was made merely to place on record a statement of the director's
services; and that no serious intention of forcing the matter to a
legal decision was entertained. This surmise proved to be correct,
as nothing more was heard of the claim.

Much has been said of the effect of the comparative isolation of such
a community, which is apt to be p