150 SIR HUMPHREY DAVY. 



death ; and I trust they can never be destroyed by 

 fortune, chance, or accident." 



Thus his sweet, kindly nature was an inspiration 

 to others. He believed in amiability. He said, 

 later, of temper in the marriage state : " Upon 

 points of affection it is only for the parties them- 

 selves to form just opinions of what is really nec- 

 essary to ensure the felicity of the marriage state. 

 Riches appear to me not at all necessary; but 

 competence, I think, is ; and after this more de- 

 pends upon the temper of the individual than upon 

 personal or even intellectual circumstances. The 

 finest spirits, the most exquisite wines, the nectars 

 and ambrosias of modern tables, will be all spoilt by 

 a few drops of bitter extract ; and a bad temper has 

 the same effect in life, which is made up, not of 

 great sacrifices or duties, but of little things, in 

 which smiles and kindness, and small obligations 

 iven habitually, are what win and preserve the 

 heart and secure comfort." 



When Davy was twenty-three, a brilliant opening 

 came to him ; came as it did to Cuvier, Newton, 

 and others, through the influence of a friend. Count 

 Rumford had been instrumental in founding the 

 Royal Philosophical Institution for the diffusion of 

 a knowledge of science. Through his works on 

 heat, nitrous oxide, and galvanic electricity, Davy 

 had made the acquaintance of Dr. Hope, the dis- 

 tinguished professor of chemistry in the University 

 of Edinburgh. He recommended Davy to Count 

 Rumford, as fitted for the professorship of chemis- 



