120 ALEXANDER VON HUMBOLDT. 



officers of state, generals, men of science, and distinguished 

 literati.' At the second lecture the king unexpectedly made 

 his appearance, accompanied by Princess Liegnitz ; the presence 

 of Crneisenau was also remarked, and it was noticed that the 

 attendance was larger than before. Varnhagen observes : ] 

 ( With wonderful tact, the lecturer adapted his remarks to his 

 unexpected auditors, and with consummate taste introduced his 

 enlightened views in reference to national civilisation, the 

 universal spread of knowledge, and the valuable services of his 

 fellow-countrymen, in a manner peculiarly appropriate for the 

 royal ear. At the third lecture the king was again present, 

 and announced his intention of attending the rest of the course.' 2 

 If we may credit the remark attributed to him by Varnhagen, 

 that the lectures seemed wanting in connection, and to consist 

 merely of a mass of isolated facts, this is to be explained by the 

 circumstance that he was himself no better able than the 

 maj ority of the audience to follow Humboldt's line of thought. 

 Respecting this very lecture, Bunsen wrote to his wife : 3 ' I have 

 never heard anyone in an hour and a half give expression to so 

 many new ideas and state so many interesting facts.' Even the 

 matter-of-fact Zelter felt touched with sympathetic emotion at 

 the gratifying spectacle presented by such universal interest in 

 science, and in writing to Goethe on January 28, 1828, 4 he 

 remarks : ' I must also mention the great pleasure I received 

 from Humboldt's magnificent lectures upon the wonders of 

 nature delivered before most distinguished audiences, to be 

 counted by the thousand. I felt that a man was before me who 

 was altogether after my own heart, who gives nothing but his 

 own, and that without stint. He makes no money by the trans- 

 action, has no preamble, no humbug, and no artifice. Even 

 when he errs one feels impelled to believe him.' It was 

 decided to commemorate the lectures by a medal, bearing the 

 device of the sun and encircled with the inscription ' Illustrans 

 totum radiis splendentibus orbem,' of which the first struck 

 was, on May 18, presented to Humboldt in the name of all his 



1 ' Blatter/ vol. iv. p. 349. 



2 Ibid. vol. iv. p. 352 ; he nevertheless did not attend regularly. 



3 C. C. J. Freiherr von Bunsen, vol. i. p. 304. 



4 'Briefwechsel,' vol. v. p. 16. 



