BOSTON TO WASHINGTON 125 



object glass, properly mounted, and which can be used when- 

 ever the conditions are good, will afford more pleasure and 

 instruction than chance visits to the largest instruments. 



Early in January I had an engagement to lecture before the 

 American Geographical Society at New York, the subject 

 being " Oceanic Islands and the Permanence of Continental 

 and Oceanic Areas." I stayed with my kind friend, Mr. A. 

 G. Browne, who took me after the lecture to the Century Club, 

 where I met Clarence King, the geologist, and some other 

 scientific men. Next morning I visited the American Museum 

 of Natural History, where I met Dr. J. B. Holder, Mr. J. A. 

 Allen, the well-known w r riter on birds and mammals, and 

 some other naturalists ; and returned to Washington in the 

 afternoon. 



On Sunday evening, March 6, I started on a ten days' visit 

 to Canada to fulfil some lecture engagements. I went by a 

 circuitous route by Williamsport, where I breakfasted ; then 

 on by Seneca lake and Rochester to Niagara. All this coun- 

 try was very picturesque — much like Wales, but no walls or 

 hedges, and wooden houses. Willows with bright yellow bark 

 were conspicuous, and very handsome. Near the lake were 

 abundant vineyards, deep gullies in horizontal shaly rock, with 

 numerous waterfalls. I reached the Niagara old suspension 

 bridge at 5 p. m., and had just time to see the rapids by going 

 down the cliffs in an elevator about two hundred feet. The 

 leaping, irregular waves were fine, but hardly up to my expec- 

 tation. I had an excellent supper at a small hotel, and then 

 went on to Toronto, which I reached at 12:20, going on next 

 morning to Kingston, which I reached at 2 130 p. m v where 

 Principal Grant met me and took me in a sleigh to the college. 

 In the evening I lectured on " Darwinism ' to a good and 

 attentive audience. 



After the lecture some friends of Principal Grant came in, 

 and we had much conversation. A lady who was interested 

 in spiritualism spoke to me, and asked me if I knew that 

 Romanes was a spiritualist, and had tried to convert Darwin. 

 I told her that I knew he was interested in the phenomena 

 of spiritualism, but that I thought it most improbable that he 



