428 Professor Tyndall [May 3, 10, and 17, 



teacher of Italian, named Albert! ; and the fifth, the before-mentioned 

 Dr. Haubenal, who was to look after her health. She did not at all 

 like the arrangement. She was i^articularlj surjmsed and shocked at 

 a doctor's offering his services before they were wanted. " Said I to 

 myself, surrounded by people who speak French — and all genteel 

 people speak it at Munich — and knowing considerable of the lan- 

 guage already, where is the use of my fatiguing myself with masters ? 

 Music the same." In fact the little dog " Cora " was the only wel- 

 come constituent of the gift. 



She describes with considerable spirit a ball which was organised 

 to celebrate her father's birthday. All united to do him honour. 

 Wreaths surrounded his bust ; his workhouse children, joined by 

 some children of the nobility, all dressed in white, handed addresses 

 to him, and sang in accompaniment to the swell of music of which 

 he was passionately fond. All this was arranged without his 

 knowledge, and possibly not without an intention to give dramatic 

 force to a revelation made at the time. It was observed that 

 Eumford had singled out from the children a little girl of eight, 

 who accompanied him when he w^alked, and took her place beside 

 him when he sat. The little girl was his illegitimate child. Sarah, 

 on learning this, was stunned, threw herself into the dance that 

 she had previously declined, and thus whirled away her indigna- 

 tion. Her partner was the young Count Taxis, Rumford's aide- 

 de-camp, between whom and Rumford's daughter a friendly intimacy 

 was obviously growing up. Eumford noticed this, and disapproved of it. 

 Being invited to dinner at the house of the Countess Lerchenfeld, 

 with her father's consent Miss Thompson went. Count Taxis hap- 

 pened to be one of the party, and on hearing this Eumford jumped to 

 the conclusion that a ladies' conspiracy was afoot to counteract his 

 wishes. With a lowering look he taxed his daughter with what ho 

 supposed to be an intrigue. At first she could only stare at him in 

 surprise. " After which, on knowing what it meant, like many young 

 people who laugh when there is nothing to laugh at, an irresistible 

 inclination seized me to laugh." She gave way to her inclination, 

 " and it ended in my father's boxing my ears." She was stunned by 

 the indignity and " quitted the room, without making an observation, 

 or trying to appease him by saying I was innocent." 



The elector put the seal to his esteem for Eumford by appointing 

 him as Plenipotentiary from Bavaria to the Court of London. King 

 George, however, declined to accept him in this capacity. Mr. Paget, 

 the minister at the court of Bavaria, was desired " to lose no time in 

 apprising the ministers of His Electoral Highness that such an 

 appointment would be by no means agreeable to His Majesty, and that 

 His Majesty relies therefore on the friendship and good understanding 

 which has always hitherto subsisted between himself and the Elector 

 of Bavaria, and that His Highness will have no hesitation in with- 

 drawing it." The King had made up his mind. " Should there 

 unexpectedly arise any difficulty about a compliance with the re- 



