impressed by the character of his sister Dorothy, who exercised
upon his mind and heart a lasting influence. He describes her as
the blessing of his boyhood as well as of his manhood. Though two
years younger than himself, her tenderness and sweetness
contributed greatly to mould his nature, and open his mind to the
influences of poetry:

"She gave me eyes, she gave me ears,
And humble cares, and delicate fears;
A heart, the fountain of sweet tears,
And love and thought and joy."

Thus the gentlest natures are enabled, by the power of affection
and intelligence, to mould the characters of men destined to
influence and elevate their race through all time.

Sir William Napier attributed the early direction of his
character, first to the impress made upon it by his mother, when a
boy; and afterwards to the noble example of his commander, Sir
John Moore, when a man. Moore early detected the qualities of the
young officer; and he was one of those to whom the General
addressed the encouragement, "Well done, my majors!" at Corunna.
Writing home to his mother, and describing the little court by
which Moore was surrounded, he wrote, "Where shall we find such a
king?" It was to his personal affection for his chief that the
world is mainly indebted to Sir William Napier for his great book,
'The History of the Peninsular War.' But he was stimulated to
write the book by the advice of another friend, the late Lord
Langdale, while one day walking with him across the fields on
which Belgravia is now built. "It was Lord Langdale," he says,