Children and Reputation
By his wife, who predeceased him, he left several children, daughters and sons, one of whom, a major in the artillery, won the Victoria Cross in South Africa in 1900. His life was written by his daughter, Mrs Fred. Egerton, (1896). Although almost his entire career was spent in peacetime, Hornby was regarded as not only an able administrator but also a brilliant handler of ships who did most to evolve new tactics as the navy finally abandoned sail for steam power, turret ships, and the threat of the torpedo. Sir John Fisher, who served under him in the Mediterranean, wrote that he was 'the finest Admiral afloat since Nelson. There never lived a more noble character or a greater seaman. He was incomparable'. He was also regarded as an intellectual among naval officers, very widely read. The naval historian Sir William Laird Clowes, who knew him well, wrote that '... he was a natural diplomatist, and an unrivalled tactician; and, to a singular independence and uprightness of character, he added a mastery of technical detail, and a familiarity with contemporary thought and progress that were unusual in those days among officers of his standing'.
Read more about this topic: Geoffrey Hornby
Famous quotes containing the words children and, children and/or reputation:
“There are few places outside his own play where a child can contribute to the world in which he finds himself. His world: dominated by adults who tell him what to do and when to do it—benevolent tyrants who dispense gifts to their “good” subjects and punishment to their “bad” ones, who are amused at the “cleverness” of children and annoyed by their “stupidities.””
—Viola Spolin (b. 1911)
“The Supreme Court would have pleased me more if they had concerned themselves about enforcing the compulsory education provisions for Negroes in the South as is done for white children. The next ten years would be better spent in appointing truant officers and looking after conditions in the homes from which the children come. Use to the limit what we already have.”
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““What have I earned for all that work,” I said,
“For all that I have done at my own charge?
The daily spite of this unmannerly town,
Where who has served the most is most defamed,
The reputation of his lifetime lost
Between the night and morning....””
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