128 ALEXANDER VON HUMBOLDT. 



ship, and expressions of deepest thankfulness for the variety of 

 instruction so happily conveyed. ' How sweet is the thought 

 to me, dear Freiesleben, that it is to you that I owe all this ; 

 it seems as if it bound me closer to you, as if I carried some- 

 thing about me that had been planted within me and culti- 

 vated by yourself. Do not write a syllable in reply to this. I 

 can easily imagine what your modesty would dictate, but leave 

 me in the enjoyment of my feelings, for I rejoice in them 

 inexpressibly.' 



In the midst of the daily routine of his new duties, Hum- 

 boldt's bent for historical research was soon apparent. 'In 

 addition to all this,' 'he writes, 6 1 am busily engaged in exa- 

 mining the ancient records of the mines. You know how much 

 I am set upon this. I have had three chests of mining docu- 

 ments belonging to the sixteenth century sent to me from the 

 fortress of Plassenburg, which I must read ex officio, since they 

 contain records of official inspections. They will make glorious 

 reading in the damp autumn weather of that wild region. As 

 I have already devised a plan for reworking the prince's mine 

 at Groldkronach, where we have come upon some gold in a seam 

 of antimony, I am anxious to make myself acquainted with the 

 past history of this mine, which has been abandoned since 1421. 

 I have already been, fortunate enough to come upon traces of 

 an old gallery which had not hitherto been suspected. Do not 

 feel anxious about my health, dear Freiesleben. I have kept 

 extremely well throughout the summer, and my delicacy seems 

 to be leaving me. I consider, as I used often to tell you at 

 Freiberg, that the improvement in my health is entirely due 

 to my mining occupations ; and though you were apprehensive 

 that my daily descents into the mines might prove injurious, I 

 am convinced that they were in fact highly beneficial.' 



Humboldt had in reality good grounds for satisfaction. 

 His services had met with the warmest recognition from 

 both ministers. In his official employment he encountered 

 no opposition to his plans or wishes, but was, on the con- 

 trary, solicited to undertake commissions of a most flattering 

 nature, in which his love of travel found gratification. Even 

 while the minister Von Heinitz was still at Bayreuth, the 

 commission originally planned to Franconia was, as he inti- 



