THE task of preparing the Memoir of Phillips Brooks has
been delayed by circumstances which could not be controlled,
until it is now more than seven years since the world was sud.
denly called upon to mourn his departure. There came a sad
interruption, in the death of the Rev. Arthur Brooks, in July,
1895, who had made such progress in the short time he had
been engaged on the biography that, had he lived, he would
soon have completed it. When the materials for writing the
life were placed in my hands, in the fall of 1895, I was occu-
pied with other work, and this was not finished till the fall
of 1897. From the moment that I was free to begin the
task, I have devoted to it all the time that could be spared
from my professional duties, and have labored to hasten its
completion, keenly aware that the popular interest in Phillips
Brooks impatiently demanded the appearance of the book
which should tell to the world the story of the life by whose
greatness it had been so profoundly moved.

When I began to write, I supposed that my task would be
easier than I have found it. The study of the material con-
vinced me that I was dealing with a character singularly com-
plex despite its simplicity, a career wherein there were epochs
and distinct phases of development. There was danger of
doing injustice, or of failing to appreciate motives of action.
The full meaning of events and deeds did not at once appear.
Time was required before the insight was gained revealing
the relative significance of what was obscure. It was neces-
sary to search for further material, by correspondence and by

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