1837-38. OUK COUKT OF RICHMOND. 149 



don't know what you could make of my last epistle, so hurriedly, 

 confusedly, and stupidly written was it ; and so conscious of this 

 was I, that as soon as I wrote it, I sealed it, for fear of being 

 tempted to look over it, and put it in the fire. Busy as I am, I 

 have not been unforgetful, my dear brother, of your interests. . . . 



" This day on which I write, Saturday morning, is very beau- 

 tiful, a great thunder-storm last night having swept away the 

 darkness and gloom and mist. I write away busily to you, 

 intending, when done, to get my chemical labours on a bit, as 

 the thunder-plump of last night was so severe that I could not 

 stir out, and the day before I was almost suffocated with 

 chlorine gas, and obliged to come home and recline on some 

 chairs for a couple of hours ; my headache has scarcely left me 

 yet, and a snuff of the fumes brings it back, but it would never 

 do to retreat for that. That's quite enough of a letter to be full 

 of sense ; I must now see if I have no nonsense to fish up for 

 you, of some kind or other. I get strange visits at my Eichmond 

 Court, from friends, I presume, of the previous resident. Yes- 

 terday, a dumb man knocked at the door, and looked with 

 amazement when I opened it. I tried to speak on my fingers, 

 but found I had forgotten the dumb alphabet. I hailed him, 

 and took pen and paper to write, but he could not read writing ; 

 however, he whipped out of his pocket a bit of chalk, and 

 snatching up a black tray, wrote on it with his left hand, back- 

 wards, ' Friend of way/ which I suppose stood for my friend is 

 away. I saw him in the street, and begged the chalk to write 

 his friend's address, but he would not give it me. 



When I took possession of my royal apartments, 1 I saw lying 

 on the window-sill one of those large buttons which livery-ser- 

 vants wear, with their master's crest on it. The eye being 

 broken off, I doubted not it must be a button pitched up by 

 some of the players at pitch and toss, this being the season ; 

 accordingly, a rap came to my door, and two laddies put their 

 heads in; 'Will you gie's our button, Sir?' Just think of the 

 simplicity ; they never seemed to dream I could be ignorant of 

 the place where the button lay, nor did they preface their re-- 



i A book containing notes of experiments made in them, has for title-page ' Impic 

 Archives of Labours performed at our Court of Richmond in Aiigust 1838.' 



