110 FIRST JOURNEY IN EUROPE. [1839, 



the death of Captain Smith, the first and second mate, 

 and some of the passengers, I hardly yet know how 

 many. I had grown much attached to this ship, and 

 thought highly of its officers, who had been kind to 

 me. . . . 



LONDON, January 17, 1839, Thursday evening. 



This is dated at this modern Babylon, where I arrived 

 about nine o'clock last evening. I stopped at the 

 White Boar, Coventry Street, Piccadilly ; had a quiet 

 night's sleep; rose early this morning, and had 

 breakfasted and was on my way to Dr. Boott's 1 (24 

 Gower Street) before ten o'clock. I found Doctor B. 

 at home ; was kindly received and was introduced to his 

 wife, mother, children, and a brother from Boston who 

 is now with him ; spent an hour or two with him ; 

 heard that Hooker was in town. Though not a pub- 

 lic day went to the British Museum; inquired for 

 Brown (Mr. Brown, for he does not like to be called 

 Dr.), and was so fortunate as to find not only the man 

 himself I was so anxious to set my eyes on, but also 

 Hooker, Joseph Hooker, Bennett, 2 and Dr. Richard- 

 son. 3 Passed an hour or^two. Brown invited Hooker 

 and me to breakfast with him on Saturday morning ; 

 went out with Hooker ; first to -the Linnasan Society ; 

 introduced to David Don, 4 a stout Scotchman, and 



1 Francis Boott, 1792-1863. Born in Boston, United States. Early 

 removed to London, where he studied and practiced medicine a few 

 years. " A good botanist, and in his later life devoted to the study of 

 Carices " [A. G.]. 



2 John Joseph Bennett, 1801-1876 ; keeper of the herbarium of 

 the British Museum. " One of the most learned and modest of 

 men" [A. G.]. 



3 Sir John Richardson, M. D., 1787-1865. " The well-known Arc- 

 tic explorer, zoologist, and botanist " [A. G.]. 



4 David Don, 1795-1856; librarian of the Limuean Society; pro- 

 fessor of botany in King's College, London. 



