40 THE ANTARCTIC VOYAGE.: PRELIMINARIES 



some Van Diemen's Land plants which the boy had been 

 studying with considerable attention. We dined yesterday 

 at the Royal Soc. Club and attended the meeting in the 

 evening. 



Thus he can add : 



My journey has been fully answered in respect to Joseph. 

 . . . Humanly speaking, his way is clear before him for an 

 honourable scientific career. 



And on June 18 : 



Should it please God that Joseph returns safe from his 

 present expedition, and if I have the same friends I have 

 now, it may be in my power to keep this appointment [the 

 Glasgow professorship] in the family by applying to have it 

 made over to Joseph. 



As it turned out the preparations took nearly five months 

 longer ; part of this time Hooker spent at Haslar, ' a most 

 improving situation under Dr. Richardson's eye,' just as his 

 future friend, Huxley, was to do seven years later, while waiting 

 for his appointment, so long delayed because the discerning 

 Richardson kept him back till a scientific post offered in the 

 Rattlesnake. The remainder of the time from the middle 

 of June, Hooker spent as Assistant Surgeon attached to the 

 Erebus at Chatham, where the ships were fitting out Assist- 

 ant Surgeon and Botanist for it was in this capacity that 

 he went after all, not Naturalist to the expedition, as he had 

 confidently hoped. For that responsible post Ross finally 

 determined to take a man of longer standing and some estab- 

 lished repute, albeit the young Hooker pressed him very 

 shrewdly, as appears from the following descriptions of some 

 official interviews. 



physiological as well as systematic botany. In 1810, on the death of Dr. 

 Dryander, he succeeded to his post as librarian to Banks, who, dying in 1820, 

 left Brown his library and herbarium, with reversion to the British Museum, 

 and 200 per annum, with his house in Soho Square. In 1827 he arranged 

 for the library and herbarium to pass immediately to the British Museum, 

 while he was appoii-ted Curator. In this position he had an official influence 

 comparable to the influence of his strong character and intellectual powers 

 among his friends. 



