466 Voyage of the Novara. 



brief address, touching on tlie cliief aims of the Expedition and 

 its scientific objects, stating that its chief purpose was less 

 the promotion of purely scientific ^knowledge, than by ample, 

 long-continued practice to provide material of suitable quality 

 for our youthful budding navy, to unfurl the standard of 

 Austria in localities where it had never before been seen, to 

 effect treaties of commerce with foreign nations, to knit tlie 

 various jcapitals which we should visit in our cruise by the 

 tie of science, to open correspondence with their various 

 institutes, and to make collections, cliiefly of those objects 

 of natural history, the acquisition of which, owing to their 

 great value or the difficulty of transport, is almost impossible 

 to the single traveller. The hearty reception which had been 

 accorded the Expedition in Shanghai rendered it doubly in- 

 cumbent on us to explain the various purposes we had in 

 view, and tlie original points of inquiry to which we were 

 restricted by the track definitely assigned to us, as also to 

 account for the shortness of our stay in each port, and the 

 fact that our prescribed route led us sometimes to visit places 

 either politically or nautically well known. 



After the close of this short lecture, several of those present 

 rose to speak, amongst others the United States Plenipoten- 

 tiary, Mr. Reed, who expressed his sincere j^leasure at having 

 been privileged during his stay in China to meet with the 

 commander of an Austrian frisfate en2:af>:ed with his gallant 

 companions in so grand a mission. 



Mr. Reed spoke in high terms of the scientific exertions 



