THE EMPEROR OF BRAZIL 195 



iked my mother to point him out the stars, often going out 

 in the evening on purpose to learn them. I have heard him 

 express regret at the neglect of scientific knowledge in the 

 army ; and I remember he would say, ' Oh, how much 

 suffering might have been spared on that expedition, if only 

 the men had had a little scientific knowledge.' 



We often went with him to scientific parties at his friends' 

 houses or the Royal Institution. I remember one party at 

 Dr. Busk's in Harley Street, where he was greatly interested 

 in an experiment shown us, a pith ball moved by light — 

 proving, I suppose, that light is a mode of motion. He took 

 the greatest trouble to explain the phenomenon to his 

 daughter Harriet and myself. I also remember going with 

 him to the Royal Institution, and Dr. Tyndall showing us a 

 ray of light in which he held a bottle which did not impede 

 the light at all. He then made a vacuum in the bottle, put 

 it again in the ray of light, and showed the inside of the 

 bottle in unillumined darkness — proving, I imagine, that 

 light in itself is invisible. 



A great friend of his in the medical world was Sir James 

 Paget, the well-known surgeon. We often went to lunch 

 with him ; and I recollect Cousin Joseph's naive enjoyment 

 of the Norfolk biscuits that always figured on the menu, 

 making a prelude to pleasant reminiscences of his mother's 

 native county. 



Many royal visitors came to Kew to see the famous 

 gardens. I forget the date of the Emperor of Brazil's visit, 

 but I remember Harriet Hooker and I were sleeping in a room 

 looking on to Kew Green, when we were awakened by the 

 noise of a carriage being driven round the Green at six o'clock 

 in the morning. There were four gentlemen in the carriage, 

 and when the front door bell rang, we guessed it was the 

 Emperor and his suite, as we had been told he was a very 

 early riser. 



Cousin Joseph went down as quickly as he could, but 

 not before the bell had rung more than once, and a Brazilian 

 parrot we had in the hall had given the Emperor a warm, if 

 hardly polite welcome. Then he accompanied the Emperor 

 and his party round the gardens, while we waited their return 

 for breakfast". 



To our surprise the Emperor took the head of the table, 



