156 SIR HUMPHREY DAVY. 



among the chemists of this or of any other age." 

 The National Institute of France had awarded him 

 the prize given by Napoleon to the greatest dis- 

 covery by the means of galvanism. 



And yet all this fame and honor had been won 

 by incessant labor. He writes to his mother : " At 

 present, except when I resolve to be idle for 

 health's sake, I devote every moment to labors 

 which I hope will not be wholly ineffectual in 

 benefiting society, and which will not be wholly 

 inglorious for my country hereafter ; and the feel- 

 ing of this is the reward which will continue to 

 keep me employed/' 



His brother John, who had been for three years 

 at the Royal Institution, now went to Edinburgh 

 to study medicine. Davy writes him : " Let no 

 difficulties alarm you, you may be what you please. 

 Trust me, I know what your powers are. Preserve 

 the dignity of your mind, and the purity of your 

 moral conduct. You set sail with a fair wind on 

 the ocean of life. You have great talents, good 

 feelings, and an unbroken and an uncorrupted spirit. 

 Move straight forward on to moral and intellectual 

 excellence. Let no example induce you to violate 

 decorum, no ridicule prevent you from guarding 

 against sensuality or vice. Live in such a way that 

 you can always say, the whole world may know 

 what I am doing." 



In 1812 Davy was knighted by the Prince Regent. 

 Only thirty-three, and he had come to great renown ! 



And now an important change was to come into 



