270 FIRST JOURNEY IN EUROPE. [1839, 
the Michigan University, and shall be mostly thus 
employed ae ing the remainder of my stay. . 
19th Bentenaee, —I saw Dr. Richardson ‘ithe day 
before yesterday, who informed me that the Erebus 
was still lying at Chatham, and (what I was not 
aware of) that I could reach Chatham in three or 
four hours. So I arranged at once to go down and 
see Joseph before he started, but the next day I 
learned that the vessels had dropped down from that 
rt. 
I expect to sail in the Toronto from Portsmouth on 
the Ist October. ... I have yet very much to do. 
Yesterday I dined with Dr. Lindley and visited the 
Garden. One wing of the conservatory is erected 
and nearly covered with glass. It is entirely glass 
and iron, about 130 feet long, and will be very fine. 
. Believe me, my very dear friend, most truly 
yours, 
A. Gray. 
New York, 5th November, 1839. 
My pear Fatuer, — Through the favors of a kind 
Providence, my journey is safely brought to a close. 
I am happy to inform you that I reached New York 
last evening in the ship Toronto, after a passage of 
thirty-five days. I left London on the last of Sep- 
tember, and Portsmouth on the Ist ult. The steam- 
ship Great Western, which left on the 19th of last 
month, reached New York two days before us! Our 
voyage was a rather pleasant one, although we had 
nearly forty passengers. It was rather rough, but no 
very hard gales. I was sea-sick but a single day, and 
then but slightly. I have brought with me nearly the 
full amount of my purchases of “books for the Michi- 
