May 1 8, 1882] 



NA TURE 



5i 



sagaciously directing the first love and the early study 

 of natural science in the mind of Darwin. No one 

 can be more deeply moved by a sense of this gratitude 

 than was Mr. Darwin himself. His letters, written to 

 Mr. Henslow during his voyage round the world, over- 

 flow with feelings of affection, veneration, and obliga- 

 tion to his accomplished master and dearest friend — 

 feelings which throughout his life he retained with un- 

 diminished intensity. As he used himself to say, before 

 he knew Prof. Henslow, the only objects of natural history 

 for which he cared were foxes and partridges. But 

 owing to the impulse which he derived from the field 

 excursions of the Henslow class, he became while at 

 Cambridge an ardent collector, especially in the region 

 of entomology ; and we remember having heard him 

 observe that the first time he ever saw his own name in 

 print was in connection with the capture of an insect in 

 the fens. 



During one of these excursions Prof. Henslow told him 

 that he had been commissioned (through Prof. Peacock) 

 to offer any competent young naturalist the opportunity of 

 accompanying Capt. Fitzroy as a guest on the surveying 

 voyage of the Beagle, and that he would strongly urge its 

 acceptance on him. Mr. Darwin had already formed a 

 desire to travel, having been stimulated thereto by reading 

 Humboldt's " Personal Narrative ; " so after a short hesi- 

 tation on the part of his father, who feared that the 

 voyage might " unsettle " him for the Church, the matter 

 was soon decided, and in December of 1831 the expedi- 

 tion started. During the voyage he suffered greatly from 

 sea-sickness, which, together wilh the fasting and fatigue 

 incidental to long excursions over-land, was probably in- 

 strumental in producing the dyspepsia to which, during 

 the remainder of his life, he was a victim. Three years 

 after returning from this voyage of circumnavigation, he 

 married, and in 1842 settled at Down in Kent. The 

 work which afterwards emanated from that quiet and 

 happy English home, which continued up to the day of 

 'his death, and which has been more effectual than any 

 other in making the nineteenth century illustrious, will 

 form the subject of our subsequent articles. 

 (To be continued.) 



ECLIPSE NOTES 1 

 II. 



ON the present occasion these notes will be more 

 geographical than astronomical, for since the last 

 notes were written, the English Government Eclipse Ex- 

 pedition has traversed through storm and sunshine the 

 distance separating London from Cairo, and is now at 

 the latter place, making final arrangements before it starts 

 to-night up the great river. 



The first thing I have to say, is, that the arrangements 

 made for astronomers of all nations by His Highness the 

 Khedive and by his government have been all that could 

 have been desired. Indeed, so universal has been the 

 wish to do everything that could in any way tend to the 

 success of the observations, that it is almost invidious to 

 mention names ; but still it is impossible not to recognise 

 that the sympathy for everything scientific which dis- 



1 Continued From vol. xxv. p. 578. 



tinguishes Stone Pasha, the chief of the staff, and the 

 important influence which his high position gives him, has 

 done much in kindling the enthusiasm which we find, — 

 an enthusiasm shared in a great degree by the Khedive 

 himself, who has insisted that the astronomers shall be 

 his personal guests during their sojourn on the Nile. But 

 this is to anticipate; it will be better perhaps, in order to 

 give an idea of the thoroughness with which the arrange- 

 ments have been carried out, to begin at the beginning of 

 our stay in Egypt. 



When the Kaisar-i-Hind got into harbour at Suez, 

 after a rapid passage through the canal, a passage accele- 

 rated at the request of the Egyptian Government, as the 

 canal had been blocked for three days, the Governor of 

 Suez and Ismatt Effendi at once came on board to wel- 

 come the party. A special train had been provided with 

 a car for the instruments, which were at once sealed up 

 and guarded after their arrival at the station in Suez 

 Town. Nothing could exceed the kindness of the autho- 

 rities ; the Custom House, which sometimes gives trouble 

 to those who land in Egypt, was never once even thought 

 of , and after spending the night at Suez, a train brought 

 us yesterday to Cairo, his Excellency Stone Pasha himself, 

 with some of his officers detailed for service with the 

 Expedition, being on the platform to welcome the 

 scientific party. The instruments were at once taken 

 to the river-side, where provision had been made to 

 ferry the car containing them, still sealed, across the 

 Nile. 



Acting on a suggestion made some time ago, the exact 

 latitude and longitude of Sohaghas been absolutely deter- 

 mined ; on the old French map its position had been got 

 by rough traverses from Siut. With this new position 

 and a rapid reconnaissance, a new map has been prepared 

 by General Stone, a copy of which I hope to be able to 

 send with these notes. This shows the point at which the 

 line of central eclipse will cross the Nile with no doubt 

 the greatest possible exactitude. In order to prevent any 

 mischance or delay owing to the low Nile interfering with 

 the arrangements, and causing a loss of time, the steamer 

 placed at the disposal of the astronomers by the 

 Egyptian Government is already moored at Sohag, 

 close to the central line, and indeed the French party 

 are already aboard. Communication between Siut and 

 Sohag will be kept up by the Postal steamers, for the 

 Nile is no longer a river of mystery, and a regular postal 

 service is kept up for thousands of miles. But the hotel 

 steamer, as it is called here, will likewise be locomotive. 

 The French party has already erected its instruments to 

 the south of the arm of the Nile shown below Sohag, and 

 in all probability the English party will occupy the high 

 ground shown on the map to the north of Akmim ; a 

 position desirable on account of the Khamseen — the ter- 

 rible dust-laden desert wind — which, however, this year, 

 up to the present moment, has been very merciful; this we 

 may regard as a good or bad presage during the next 

 fortnight, to which its devastating effects are generally 

 confined. 



Between these stations the special boat will keep up 

 constant communication. 



The Italian Expedition is under the charge of Prof. 

 Tacchini, of Rome, whose long-continued observations 

 of the spectra of prominences are so widely known and 



