This book is a biography of Richard Clarke Sommerville, an educator, amateur actor, and artist, whose life spanned the last quarter of the nineteenth century and six decades of the twentieth century. His dedication to the fine arts was not just a passing interest, but was central to his definition of the right way to live. Education was the key to his positive attitude. He held definite views about what an education should do for the individual. His education within the home environment, his experiences within the educational settings of his day, and his ultimate acceptance of his own lot in life helped him, in part, to formulate these views. Many of his views are as timely today as they were then. His message is to all students from a very special teacher. Contents: "The Jewel on the South Branch"; The Hampden-Sydney Years; The Restless Young Man; A Return to the Classroom; A Return to Virginia; "As a Man Thinketh..."; The Professional and the Employee; "Friend of the Student"; The Man and His Art; The Emeritus Years.