BARON VON HUMBOLDT. 19 



view of travelling, and visited part of Italy and 

 Switzerland. About this time his active mind was 

 attracted by the discoveries of Galvani, upon which 

 he was one of the first that made improvements. 

 Not satisfied with repeating Galvani's experiments 

 upon animals, he subjected himself personally to 

 several, both laborious and painful. The results 

 w^ere given in a work published in 1796, and en- 

 riched with notes by Professor Blumenbach. In 

 the previous year he had gone to Vienna, where he 

 remained some time, ardently engrossed in the study 

 of a fine collection of exotic plants. He next tra- 

 velled through several cantons of Salzburg and Styria 

 with the celebrated Leopold von Buch, but was pre- 

 vented by the war, which then raged in Italy, from 

 revisiting that country. 



In 1797? accompanied by his brother* and Mr. 

 Fischer, he visited Paris, where he formed an inti- 

 mate acquaintance with M. Aime Bonpland, a pupil 



* Charles William Baron Humboldt, who was two years older 

 than the traveller, having been born at Berlin in 1767. In his 

 Personal Nan-ative, our author says, — " I separated myself from 

 a brother, who, by his advice and example, had hitherto exer- 

 cised a great influence on the direction of my thoughts. He 

 approved the motives which determined me to quit Eiurope ; 

 a secret voice assured me that we should meet again ; and that 

 hope, which has not proved delusive, softened the pain of a 

 long separation." This estimable brother of the traveller at- 

 tained to great distinction, having served the King of Prussia 

 in a diplomatic capacity at various courts, and been a privy 

 councillor and a minister of state. He was deeply versed in the 

 philosophy of languages and in ancient literature, as his various 

 publications testify. He died on the 8th April, 1835. 



