Gladstone has been the most enthusiastic of Etonians."
Eton of to-day is not in all respects the Eton of three-quarters of a
century ago, and yet in some particulars it is as it was when young
"Billy" Gladstone studied within its walls. The system of education and
discipline pursued has undergone some modifications in recent
years--notably during the provostship of the Rev. Francis Hodgson; but
radical defects are still alleged against it. It is not remarkable,
however, that every Eton boy becomes deeply attached to the school,
notwithstanding the apprenticeship to hardships he may have been
compelled to undergo.
The "hardships" there must have been particularly great when young
Gladstone entered Eton, at the close of the summer holidays of 1821. The
school was under the head-mastership of "the terrific Dr. Keate." He was
not the man to spare even the scholar who, upon the emphatic testimony
of Sir Roderick Murchison, was "the prettiest boy that ever went to
Eton," and who was as studious and well-behaved as he was good-looking.
The town of Eton, in which the school is located, about 22 miles from
London, in Berkshire, is beautifully situated on the banks of the river
Thames, opposite Windsor Castle, the residence of the Queen of England.
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