178 EETUKN TO ENGLAND: AND VISIT TO PARIS 
Paris and Berlin, and ho gave up the idea of a longer journey. 
Finally, time growing short, he contented himself with Brussels 
and the Dutch towns instead of Berlin. 
He reached Paris on January 30, travelling by way of 
Southampton and Havre. 
This route takes me through Rouen, which I should hope 
to be able to see a little of, though the object of my journey 
is so entirely to see men more than things, that I cannot 
afford to delay much. 
His promised fellow-travellers did not make their appear- 
ance ; but he scraped acquaintance with other travellers, 
including one Reimers from St. Domingo, whose brother he 
had met at Rio, and a Frenchman from Rio, who could not 
speak a word of English ; ' a very shrewd fellow and liked 
everything English but Sundays, which w^ere quite insupport- 
able, there being no innocent amusements in which he could 
take part on that day.' Leaving at 2.30, they reached Havre 
at 1.30 A.M., when 
we were immediately roused out of our beds, no one, 
according to Customs Laws, being allowed to remain on 
board after arrival. . . . Havre is very dirty, the houses 
very narrow and tall ; those along the quays are composed 
of sundry bits of all the (rotten?) vessels that ever were 
stranded ; the air of the whole place was that of Greenock, 
. though not quite so noisome. 
The Customs next morning had troubles of their own. 
My things were overhauled in a house and turned out 
for me to repack in the street. . . . They charged for Brown's 
Bafflesia books, against my earnest remonstrances, — I 
showed them the names of the illustrious Bobby himself, of 
Humboldt, Ehrenberg, &c., &c., written in one or other, but 
they were inexorable ; it was the plates they charged for, 
and if I had told them that I deserved a premium for im- 
porting the works of Bauer, they would not, I expect, have 
regarded it. 
[On the dihgence to Rouen.] The stages are about three 
leagues long on an average, and a new driver to every one. 
