86 MEMOIR OF DR. HARVEY. 



to the narcissus. It is heavy and overpowering, nothing emitted 

 to make one long to be a bee, which I take to be the perfection 

 of odours. 



To J. Fennell, Esq. March, 1837. 



I have indeed taken so many excursions lately that I 

 almost fear I shall earn the soubriquet of her Majesty's pleasurer- 

 general, instead of the more dignified one of treasurer. Indeed 

 I am singularly undignified. 'Tis a melancholy fact, and so I 

 thought yesterday as I crossed the " Parade," up to my knees 

 in mud, with a large tin box in my hand, on my return from 

 a long mountain walk. But who cares ? Did I not gather 

 an abundance of HooJceria Isete-virens (which plant is much more 

 common here than at Killarney), and did I not also find the 

 beautiful HooJceria laricina f Surely these were worth forfeiting 

 some dignity for. I have lately found many new and beautiful 

 mosses, and am busily hunting for more. I have already 

 discovered two new genera of that tribe, and among the species 

 a new Andrsea, which is the first and only one of that species 

 found in the southern hemisphere. 



I have had so much of foolish flattery, that I am quite sick 

 of it, feeling that it is quite undeserved — and we all know what 

 praise undeserved is equal to. I met with a story some time 

 ago, either in " Blackwood's " or " Chambers' Mag.," which suits 

 my case admirably, exaggerated of course, but true in the spirit. 

 It is of a young man who was driven out of his senses by every 

 one about him continually harping on his being a genius. 

 Every anonymous publication was attributed to him. He could 

 not enter a room but every eye sought for the angelic fire in 

 his. When he opened his mouth, every one nabbed at his 

 commonest commonplaces, till at last they fairly drove him 

 mad with vexation ; for all this time he had a true and most 

 painful idea of his own insiguificance, and he was constantly 

 telling them so, but nobody would believe him. Now, though 

 people have more sense than to go on in this way with me, they 

 have only a grain more, for I am constantly plagued with the 

 name of genius, and talk about my abilities, &c, while I know 

 myself much better than they do, and that it is the profoundest 

 humbug imaginable. This began at school, and at Ballitore it 

 was blown to such a height that I got thoroughly disgusted. 



