Early Acquaintance with Humboldt. 391 



known that I was occasionally in the habit of ac- 

 companying Wilson in his researches in Ornithology r 

 and of spending my vacations and Saturdays in 

 Bartram's garden, the usual resort of botanists, I 

 was honored with an invitation to meet those who 

 were about to welcome this eminent philosopher 

 and naturalist to our country. I felt that I was not 

 deserving of the high honor of the invitation, and 

 mention the fact here, to show how scanty, in those 

 days, were the material in natural science. A din- 

 ner had been prepared for the occasion in Peal's 

 Museum. Among the few naturalists who attended 

 were the two Bartrams, Wilson, the Ornithologist, 

 Lawson, his engraver, George Ord, and a few 

 others, whose names have now escaped my recollec- 

 tion. To this small group was added a considerable 

 number of men who were eminent in the various 

 departments of literature and science. Few speeches 

 were made, and those were short there was no 

 formality. Humboldt was then, as he was after- 

 wards, in every society, "the observed of all ob- 

 servers/' ready to answer any question that was 

 propounded to him, and evidencing throughout a 

 spirit of gentleness and kindness, and great amia- 

 bility of character. I saw him every day during 

 the few days he remained in Philadelphia. He in- 

 serted my name in his note-book, and for the last 

 sixty years we corresponded at long intervals. His 

 publications, as they successively appeared, mostly 

 in the French language, with the exception of his 

 '* Aspects of Nature," which was in German, were 

 regularly sent to me. It would have been very 

 gratifying to me, and interesting to your societies, 

 if I could have exhibited to you his autograph in 

 some of his letters; but, alas ! my whole library and 

 all rny collections in Natural History, the accumu- 

 lation of the labors of a long life, were burnt by 



