The Reawakening: Scientific Exploration 217 



and before the writer of these lines ; they indicate very fully the 

 thoroughness with which he now went to work. Of the sketches we 

 reproduce some in the Plates of this chapter, but it is not our intention 

 here to rewrite or even to abstract the account of the African journey ; 

 we propose to bring the reader again in touch with Galton himself, chiefly 

 by printing in part his letters home. They bear the mark of the 

 immediate impression made upon him by his environment, and are 

 largely written in the old playful strain of the Cambridge days. 

 Individual occui-rences are coloured with the feeling of the moment 

 and by the writer's relation to the recipient, in a manner which must 

 be set aside, when a serious narrative is written a year afterwards 

 for the public eyes. 



We now turn to the letters of this period. 



Friday night [22nd March, 1850]. 

 Dearest Mother, I shall turn up some day next week but I cannot tell when. 

 The " Dalhousie," my ship, is at anchor in the river now. The Captain's name is 

 Butterworth and my books are at the Pantechnicon, Belgrave Square. Ever in great 

 haste, AflFectionately, F. G. 



The Dalhousie. 

 Plymouth Harbour, Tuesday [Ajyril 2]. 

 Dearest Mother, T sha'nt, hang the ship, be of!' till Friday I fear, so I will write 

 again. I came down from London by last night's mail train and am now fairly settled 

 on board. It's blowing hard. Ever affectionately, Frank Galton. 



Off rL mouth Harbour, Api-il 5, 1850. 

 Dearest Mother, At length we are off. You will soon receive 4 copies of my 

 Telotype; keep one, send one to Darwin, one to Emma, and one to my most useful 

 amanuensis and draughtswoman Anne Broadley'. The weather has been very wild 

 here, but has now reformed. Good bye for 4^ months when you will get my next letter. 

 Ever affectionately, Frank G. 



outward journey (p. 200). The superstitions about it are like those of the Mummelsee 

 in the Schwarzwald — i.e. no living thing which gets in ever gets out again. Galton, 

 Andersson and Allen swam about the lake and astonished the natives, who had never 

 seen swimming before. "We had great fun at Otchikoto, there was a cave there 

 full of bats and owls, which we swam to and explored." The position appears tx) 

 be about I^ng. 17°-5 E. and Lat. 19°-25 S. Professor H. H. W. Pearson of the South 

 African College, most kindly reported to me in 1912, that the name GALTON had 

 been recently found painted on a rock, only accessible by swimming, above a small 

 lake in Damaraland. The letters appeared still quite fresh. I think this must be 

 at Omutchikoto, otherwise Otchikoto : see Plate LVII. 



' See p. 98. 



P. G. 28 



