1854-56.] FROM LO AND A TO QUILIMANE. 185 



Formerly, as we have seen, he had written through a 

 Fellow of the Society, his friend and former fellow- 

 traveller, Captain, now Colonel Steele ; but as the Colonel 

 had been called on duty to the Crimea, he now addressed 

 his letters to his countryman, Sir Roderick Murchison. 

 Sir Roderick was charmed with the compliment, and 

 was not slow to turn it to account, as appears from the 

 following letter, the first of very many communications 

 which he addressed to Livingstone : — 



"16 Belgrave Square, October 2, 1855. 



" My dear Sir, — Your most welcome letter reached me after I had 

 made a tour in the Highlands, and just as the meeting of the British 

 Association for the Advancement of Science commenced. 



"I naturally communicated your despatch to the Geographical 

 section of that body, and the reading of it called forth an unanimous 

 expression of admiration of your labours and researches. 



" In truth, you will long ago, I trust, have received the cordial 

 thanks of all British geographers for your unparalleled exertions, and 

 your successful accomplishment of the greatest triumph in geographical 

 research which has been effected in our times. 



" I rejoice that I was the individual in the Council of the British 

 Geographical Society who proposed that you should receive our first 

 gold medal of the past session, and I need not say that the award was 

 made by an unanimous and cordial vote. 



" Permit me to thank you sincerely for having selected me as your 

 correspondent in the absence of Colonel Steele, and to assure you that 

 I shall consider myself as much honoured, as I shall certainly be 

 gratified, by every fresh line which you may have leisure to write to me. 



" Anxiously hoping that I may make your personal acquaintance, 

 and that you may return to us in health to receive the homage of all 

 geographers, — I remain, my dear Sir, yours most faithfully, 



"Eod ck I. Murchison." 



The other subject that chiefly occupied Livingstone's 

 mind at this time was missionary labour. This, like all 

 other labour, required to be organised, on the principle 

 of making the very best use of all the force that was or 

 could be contributed for missionary effort. With his 

 fair, open mind, he weighed the old method of monastic 

 establishments, and, mutatis mutandis, he thought some- 

 thing of the kind might be very useful. He thought it 



