ALBANO. 313 



grammars of American dialects. These treasures he 

 gave to William, with the stipulation that he would oc- 

 casionally lend them to Professor Yater and Frederick 

 Schlegel, both noted philologists. 



The Humboldts were as much sought after at Albano, 

 as they had previously been at Paris, not only by their 

 own countrymen, of whom they knew a goodly number, 

 but by all the learned and great, residing in Pome and 

 the vicinity. They still gave dinner parties, esthetic teas, 

 etc., to which the elect were invited. Among those who 

 visited them at this time were the sculptors, Thorwaldsen 

 and Pauch, and Sismondi, A. W. Schlegel, and Madame 

 de Stael. The latter lived so near the Humboldts that 

 they might be said to form one household. 



Notwithstanding the gay life that he led at Albano, 

 Humboldt was far from idle ; for he contrived to find or 

 make time to visit the great libraries of Pome, especially 

 that of the Vatican, and the famous Museum of Cardinal 

 Borgia, of Velletri. This Museum was rich in hiero- 

 glyphical writings, especially those of Mexico, and he 

 renewed in it his acquaintance with his old friends, the 

 Aztecs, and copied some quaint specimens of their sin- 

 gular picture-language. And, better still, he was joined, 

 about this time, by Gay-Lussac, and Leopold Yon Buch. 

 Learning that Yesuvius was active, they had come to 

 Italy, the one from Paris, and the other from Germany, 

 to be present at the expected eruption. They witnessed 

 it with Humboldt on the 12th of August. As neither 

 have left a record of the impression it made upon them, 

 we conclude that it was not remarkable, or, what is quite 

 as likely, that they were preoccupied with other pursuits . 

 Gay-Lussac was still engaged with his magnetic experi- 



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