Talk:Harry Johnston

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The suggestion that Harry Johnston might be the model for Todd in Evelyn Waugh's Handful of Dust seems odd. Waugh said that he'd met an old man in the Latin American outback who inspired Todd -- Waugh realized the man could easily take him prisoner and nobody would ever know. Certainly, Todd is nothing like Harry Johnston. Todd is a crazy recluse who lives in the back of beyond. Obviously, he couldn't read (that's why he kept Tony Last prisoner -- so he could read Dickens to him). (His name, by the way, sounds the same as the German word for Dead - Tod; which some have suggested is its significance). Harry Johnston was an extraordinarily civilized man. He was a big Dickens fan, it's true, but in his retirement he lived in Kent (or somewhere close to London) and wrote books. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Olivercorlett (talk • contribs).

Relations and Eric Gill
Does anyone know/have a source for any family relationship between Harry Johnston and Edward Johnston? And whether this connection was what led to Eric Gill undertaking the memorial panel for Harry J? Any suggestions/sources gratefully received. KJP1 (talk) 13:03, 10 December 2023 (UTC)

manipulation

 * who travelled widely across Africa to manipulate and speak some of the languages spoken by people on that continent.

What does it mean to manipulate a language? —Tamfang (talk) 19:02, 11 December 2023 (UTC)