136 WITH MR. CHAMBERLAIN IN THE 



merely remarking that I think Mr. Chamberlain is 

 what may be termed " lucky." The occasions on 

 which he gambles are few and far between, but he 

 has often told me that when he has once or twice 

 punted a louis at roulette at Monte Carlo, he has 

 invariably won a maximum. Moreover, he is a 

 strong believer in his luck. As to my own luck it 

 varies considerably, but on the whole I have not 

 much to complain of. But I did think the other 

 day, when a bicycle I was riding in the Brompton 

 Road skidded in front of a motor bus, that Miss 

 Gwynn's forecast of my final exit was about to be 

 realised ! 



At the period of which I am writing, the phono- 

 graph was in its infancy. Dr. Graham Bell was, 

 in conjunction with an expert, Mr. Tainter, carrying 

 out some experiments at the Volta Laboratory in 

 Washington, while Mr. Edison was working on similar 

 lines at Philadelphia. On Sunday, January 22, 

 Mr. Chamberlain, Bergne, and I accepted an invita- 

 tion from Dr. Bell to inspect his instruments, into 

 one of which we all three said something, about our 

 impressions of America and the Americans. The 

 record was, I believe, duly deposited in some museum 

 at Washington, and if ever I again visit that Capital, 



