“Will you permit me to supplement the articles concerning the late Bruce Ismay, which have already appeared in your columns, by the publication of a short personal tribute by an old friend?
In the world at large Bruce Ismay may possibly have appeared as a somewhat austere and taciturn man, as has been suggested, but to his devoted family and to the circle of his intimate friends he was known to be the possessor of all the attributes of a most vivid and lovable personality interested in a wide range of subjects and gifted with a delightfully keen sense of humour, his companionship was at all times a thing to be greatly valued. Of a reserved and extremely sensitive nature, he shrank from exposing to the world the kindness and sympathy which were in him, and no one but those very close to him was permitted to be aware of his innumerable kindly and generous actions. Of outstanding physique, he excelled naturally at every form of sport; a first-rate shot, especially at high pheasants, and a first-class fisherman, he yielded to no one in the higher ethics of sportsmanship in the finest sense of the word.
In later years his heart was in the wonderful sporting estate which he owned in Galway, with his superb fishing; but keen fisherman as he was, he still had time to spare for the wants of the needy inhabitants of that part of the country, and there must be many there who are sorrowing very greatly at his passing and who will maintain a deeply affectionate memory of “his Honour” for many years to come. His passing leaves a blank in the hearts, not only of his devoted family, but of those of his many friends who were able to appreciate the sterling and lovable qualities which he possessed”.
