XX] LONDON : VOYAGE TO SINGAPORE 313 



that Senhor Alfredo gave him, and that he is still living a 

 poor wanderer with his friend Lima." 



On reaching London in the condition described in my 

 letter to Dr. Spruce, and my only clothing a suit of the 

 thinnest calico, I was met by my kind friend and agent, Mr. 

 Samuel Stevens, who took me first to the nearest ready-made 

 clothes shop, where I got a warm suit, then to his own tailor, 

 where I was measured for what clothes I required, and 

 afterwards to a haberdasher's to get a small stock of other 

 necessaries. Having at that time no relatives in London, his 

 mother, with whom he lived in the south of London — I think 

 in Kennington — had invited me to stay with her. Here I 

 lived most comfortably for a week, enjoying the excellent 

 food and delicacies Mrs. Stevens provided for me, which 

 quickly restored me to my usual health and vigour. 



Since I left home, and after my brother John had gone to 

 California in 1849, my sister had married Mr. Thomas Sims, 

 the elder son of my former host at Neath. Mr. Sims had 

 taught himself the then rapidly advancing art of photography, 

 and as my sister could draw very nicely in water-colours, 

 they had gone to live at Weston-super-Mare, and established 

 a small photographic business. As I wished to be with my 

 sister and mother during my stay in England, I took a house 

 then vacant in Upper Albany Street (No. 44), where there 

 was then no photographer, so that we might all live together. 

 While it was getting ready I took lodgings next door, as the 

 situation was convenient, being close to the Regent's Park 

 and Zoological Gardens, and also near the Society's offices in 

 Hanover Square, and within easy access to Mr. Stevens's office 

 close to the old British Museum. At Christmas we were all 

 comfortably settled, and I was able to begin the work which 

 I had determined to do before again leaving England. 



In the small tin box which I had saved from the wreck 

 I fortunately had a set of careful pencil drawings of all the 

 different species of palms I had met with, together with notes 

 as to their distribution and uses. I had also a large number 

 of drawings of fish, as already stated, carefully made to scale, 



