HOME LIFE. 355 



pension of 2,500 thalers, equal to 10,000 francs, with no con- 

 dition of service.' The appointment of Royal Chamberlain was 

 also conferred upon Huniboldt ; but in writing to Pictet he 

 requests : l ' Pray do not mention ' (in the introduction to the 

 English edition of his American Travels) 4 that on my return 

 to my country I was made a a Chamberlain ! Say something, 

 however, at the close complimentary to the king, for he has 

 really treated me with great distinction.' 2 



Though Humboldt might view distinctions of this kind with 

 tolerable indifference, he could not but be filled with abhorrence 

 and grief at the condition of things prevalent in official life 

 and society of every grade in Berlin, where it was evident 

 no improvement had taken place since his departure for 

 America. The inducements therefore that could have led 

 Humboldt to quit Paris for a visit to Berlin, at a time when 

 he had just commenced the publication of his travels in 

 America, must have been the yearning to meet with the early 

 friends of his youth, and the hope of inducing Willdenow to 

 undertake the editorship of a portion of the botanical depart- 

 ment of his work, in which case he hoped to procure for him 

 by personal influence the necessary leave of absence. Once 

 at Berlin he met with much to detain him, not only in ar- 

 ranging with Oltmanns for the reduction and publication of 

 his astronomical observations, to be completed in three years, 

 but in preparing many of the maps for his ' Atlas geographique 

 et physique de la Nouvelle-Espagne,' 3 executed under his super- 

 vision by Friessen, a talented young architect. 



The industry he displayed during this sojourn at Berlin 

 eclipsed anything he had before evinced. In addition to the 

 labour inseparablv Connected with the publication of his great 



1 < Le Globe/ &c. p. 189. 



2 Humboldt relates on this occasion an amusing conversation which took 

 place between a chamberlain and the celebrated traveller, Eeinhold Forster, 

 who, as is well known, was exceedingly bluff in manner. The Great 

 King himself was accustomed to say : ' Chambellan, ce n'est qu'im titre 

 chimerique,' and that ' Chamberlain, in plain German, meant nothing more 

 than court lackey.' (Preuss, ' Urkundenbuch zur Lebensgeschichte Fried- 

 richs des Grossen,' vol. iv. p. 302.) 



3 See Humboldt, ' Essai polit. s. 1. r. de la Nouv.-Espagne/ L, LXII. and 

 LXIV. ed. 1811, in 4to. j Deutsche Turnzeitung,' 1859, No. 2. 



