Although he could draw and sketch well, he did not take much pleasure in
it, and only exercised his skill when there was a definite object in
view. His sketches show a very delicate touch, and denote painstaking
accuracy, while some are quite artistic. He much preferred drawing with
compasses and squares, there being a practical object in his mind for
which the plans or drawings were only the first steps. Even in his
ninety-first year he found much enjoyment in drawing plans, and spent
many hours in designing alterations to a small cottage which his
daughter had bought.
He was interested in literary puzzles and humorous stories, and he
preserved in an old scrap-book any that appealed to him. He would
sometimes read some of them on festive occasions, or when we had
children's parties, and sometimes he laughed so heartily himself that he
could not go on reading.
In reviewing the years during which Dr. Wallace lived at Broadstone, the
last decade, when he was between eighty and ninety years of age, this
period seems to have been one of the most eventful, and as full of work
and mental activity as any previous period. He never tired of his
garden, in which he succeeded in growing a number of rare and curious
shrubs and plants. Our mother shared his delight and interest in the
garden, and knew a great deal about flowers. She had an excellent memory
for their botanical names, and he often asked her the name of some
plant which he was pointing out to a friend and which for the moment he
had forgotten.
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