1893 THE EOMANES LECTUEE 303 



20^7^. — The Huxleys' visit has been most delight- 

 ful. He was most genial and 'mellow,' and his lecture 

 has, of course, aroused great interest. Various people 

 to meet them. Mr. Gore and Professor Froude one 

 day to lunch. Somewhat heterogeneous elements. 

 When the former had gone, Mr. Huxley suddenly 

 awakened to the fact that it was the Principal of the 

 Pusey House whom he had met. 



Count and Countess Balzani have been here, and 

 we had an ' historical ' dinner for them. 



This was the last bit of the old pleasant life which 

 Mr. Eomanes had so much enjoyed. He was busy 

 arranging experiments on heHotropism and on the 

 power of germination in dry seeds after precautions 

 had been taken to prevent any ordinary processes 

 of respiration, which were worked up into a Boyal 

 Society paper. He writes : 



To F. Darwin, Esq. 



St. Aldate's, Oxford : June 14. 



My dear Darwin, — There has been no hurry 

 about answering my letter because I cannot pubhsh 

 until I shall have ascertained what has already been 

 done upon the subject, and for this purpose I have 

 had to write to Germany. I am greatly obhged to 

 you for the substantial assistance which your letter 

 has given me. 



My modus operandi was to give nine different 

 kinds of seeds to Crookes,^ to place them in one of his 

 10000 00^ atmosphere vacuums for three months last 

 year (viz. February, March, and April). He then 



' Professor W. Crookes, F.E.S. 



