112 MEMOIR OF GEORGE WILSON. CHAP. III. 



vray, who insisted on trying his own way of impaling it, I know 

 not ; but suffice it to say, that he and I got three fingers apiece 

 burned, and here am I with a great blister on the neb of my 

 middle finger, prevented from going to Christison's, and thereby 

 enabled to write you an yepistle. We both deserved the punish- 

 ment ; and with my hand stuck in a jar of water, I spoke on for 

 a short while longer, but the phosphorus still sticking to my 

 fingers, I had soon to stop, and after a few remarks, closed the 

 scene ; the evening, however, had got on magnificently before, 

 and this was but a startling episode. With my one hand in a 

 jug of water, and my other across the table, I bade the ladies 

 good-bye, assuring them that if they would return next Friday, 

 I should promise them something better than even that night, 

 with which they expressed themselves pleased, and whispered 

 to Miss Gibson that I would only burn my own fingers, and not 

 theirs. Our digits wrapped in cotton, my fine young friend 

 Macgillivray and I sat quaffing our tea together in joyous and 

 laughable reminiscence, endeavouring to throw the blame 011 

 each other, but obliged at last to confess that we had both 

 neglected certain necessary precautions. We shall repeat the 

 experiment next night, we hope and confidently expect with full 

 success ; but fire is ' the goddess of the chemist/ and I don't 

 mind being burned in carrying on chemical researches. 



" Now, I am going to tell you another laboratory incident, for 

 unless I tell you them I shall have nothing to tell you at all, 

 for as far as concerns ' moving accidents,' my life lacks them : 

 the variety is change of thought, notion, or speculation, not of 

 place, personages, and scenes of action ; only, if 1 weary you, tell 

 me, and I will fish up some other thing for you. 



" It so happens that Dr. Christison's laboratory comprises 

 three huge rooms, at considerable distances from each other, and 

 all far removed from the outer door ; it generally happens that 

 we are spread through the rooms, most of us separated from the 

 entrance-door by two long passages and two flights of stairs. It 

 is therefore a great bother to us when people come to the door, 

 obliging us to follow this long circumbendibus of a way to let 

 some idler in ; for it unfortunately happens that the laboratory 

 is near the college gate, and vagabond strollers of all sorts come 



