FROM MRS. SOMERVILLE TO WORONZOW GREIG, ESQ.Rome, Palazzo Lepri, Via Dei Condotti,27th October, 1848.My dearest Woronzow,... We had a beautiful journey to Rome, with fine weather and no annoyance, notwithstanding the disturbed state of the country. At Padua we only remained long enough to see the churches, and it was impossible to pass within a few miles of Arquà without paying a visit to the house of Petrarch. At Ferrara we had a letter to the Cardinal Legate, who was very civil. His palace is the ancient abode of the house of Este.... We had a long visit from him in the evening, and found him most agreeable; he regretted that there was no opera, as he would have been happy to offer us his box. Fourteen of those unfortunate men who have been making an attempt to raise an insurrection were arrested the day before; and the night before we slept at Lugo, the Carabineers had searched the inn during the night, entering the rooms where the people were sleeping. We should have been more than surprised to have been wakened by armed men at midnight. In travelling through Italy thereliquesand history of the early Christians and of the Middle Ages have a greater attraction for me than those of either the Romans or Etruscans, interesting though these latter be, and in this journey my taste was amply gratified, especially at Ravenna, where the church of San Vitale and the Basilica of St. Apollinare in Classis, both built early in the 6th century, are the most magnificent specimens imaginable. Here also is the tomb of Theodore, a most wonderful building; the remains of his palace and numberless other objects of interest, too tedious to mention. Every church is full of them, and most valuable MSS. abound in the libraries. I like the history of the Middle Ages, because one feels that there is something in common between them and us; their names still exist in their descendants, who often inhabit the very palaces they dwelt in, and their very portraits, by the great masters, still hang in their halls; whereas we know nothing about the Greeks and Romans except theirpublic deeds—their private life is a blank to us. Our journey through the Apennines was most beautiful, passing for days under the shade of magnificent oak forests or valleys rich in wine, oil, grain, and silk. We deviated from the main road for a short distance to Gubbio, to see the celebrated Eugubian tables, which are as sharp as if they had been engraved yesterday, but in a lost language. We stopped to rest at Perugia, but all our friends were at their country seats, which we regretted. The country round Perugia is unrivalled for richness and beauty, but it rained the morning we resumed our journey. It signified the less as we had been previously at Città della Pieve and Chiusi; so we proceeded to Orvieto in fine weather, still through oak forests. Orvieto is situated on the top of an escarped hill, very like the hill forts of India, and apparently as inaccessible; yet, by dint of numberless turns and windings, we did get up, but only in time for bed. Next morning we saw the sun rise on the most glorious cathedral. After all we had seen we were completely taken by surprise, and were filled with the highest admiration at the extreme beauty and fine taste of this remarkable building....Your affectionate mother,Mary Somerville.
FROM MRS. SOMERVILLE TO WORONZOW GREIG, ESQ.
Rome, Palazzo Lepri, Via Dei Condotti,27th October, 1848.
... We had a beautiful journey to Rome, with fine weather and no annoyance, notwithstanding the disturbed state of the country. At Padua we only remained long enough to see the churches, and it was impossible to pass within a few miles of Arquà without paying a visit to the house of Petrarch. At Ferrara we had a letter to the Cardinal Legate, who was very civil. His palace is the ancient abode of the house of Este.... We had a long visit from him in the evening, and found him most agreeable; he regretted that there was no opera, as he would have been happy to offer us his box. Fourteen of those unfortunate men who have been making an attempt to raise an insurrection were arrested the day before; and the night before we slept at Lugo, the Carabineers had searched the inn during the night, entering the rooms where the people were sleeping. We should have been more than surprised to have been wakened by armed men at midnight. In travelling through Italy thereliquesand history of the early Christians and of the Middle Ages have a greater attraction for me than those of either the Romans or Etruscans, interesting though these latter be, and in this journey my taste was amply gratified, especially at Ravenna, where the church of San Vitale and the Basilica of St. Apollinare in Classis, both built early in the 6th century, are the most magnificent specimens imaginable. Here also is the tomb of Theodore, a most wonderful building; the remains of his palace and numberless other objects of interest, too tedious to mention. Every church is full of them, and most valuable MSS. abound in the libraries. I like the history of the Middle Ages, because one feels that there is something in common between them and us; their names still exist in their descendants, who often inhabit the very palaces they dwelt in, and their very portraits, by the great masters, still hang in their halls; whereas we know nothing about the Greeks and Romans except theirpublic deeds—their private life is a blank to us. Our journey through the Apennines was most beautiful, passing for days under the shade of magnificent oak forests or valleys rich in wine, oil, grain, and silk. We deviated from the main road for a short distance to Gubbio, to see the celebrated Eugubian tables, which are as sharp as if they had been engraved yesterday, but in a lost language. We stopped to rest at Perugia, but all our friends were at their country seats, which we regretted. The country round Perugia is unrivalled for richness and beauty, but it rained the morning we resumed our journey. It signified the less as we had been previously at Città della Pieve and Chiusi; so we proceeded to Orvieto in fine weather, still through oak forests. Orvieto is situated on the top of an escarped hill, very like the hill forts of India, and apparently as inaccessible; yet, by dint of numberless turns and windings, we did get up, but only in time for bed. Next morning we saw the sun rise on the most glorious cathedral. After all we had seen we were completely taken by surprise, and were filled with the highest admiration at the extreme beauty and fine taste of this remarkable building....
Your affectionate mother,Mary Somerville.
FROM MISS JOANNA BAILLIE TO MRS. SOMERVILLEHampstead,December 27th, 1843.My dear Mrs. Somerville,Besides being proud of receiving a letter from you, I was much pleased to know that I am, though at such a distance, sometimes in your thoughts. I was muchpleased, too, with what you have said of the health and other gratifications you enjoy in Italy. I should gladly have thanked you at the time, had I known how to address my letter; and after receiving your proper direction from our friend Miss Montgomery, I have been prevented from using it by various things.... But though so long silent I have not been ungrateful, and thank you with all my heart. The account you give of Venice is very interesting. There is something affecting in still seeing the descendants of the former Doges holding a diminished state in their remaining palaces with so much courtesy. I am sure you have found yourself a guest in their saloons, hung with paintings of their ancestors, with very mixed feelings. However, Venice to the eye, as you describe it, is Venice still; and with its lights at night gleaming upon the waters makes a very vivid picture to my fancy. You no doubt have fixed it on canvas, and can carry it about with you for the delight of your friends who may never see the original.In return to your kind inquiries after us, I have, all things considered, a very good account to give. Ladies of four score and upwards cannot expect to be robust, and need not be gay. We sit by the fire-side with our books (except when those plaguy notes are to be written) and receive the visits of our friendly neighbours very contentedly, and, I ought to say, and trust I may say, very thankfully.... This morning brought one in whom I feel sure that you and your daughters take some interest, Maria Edgeworth. She has been dangerously ill, but is now nearly recovered, and is come from Ireland to pass the winter months with her sisters in London: weak in body, but the mind as clear and the spirits as buoyant as ever. You will be glad to hear that she even has it in her thoughts to write a new work, and has the plan of it nearly arranged. There will be nothing new in the story itself, but the purpose and treating of it will be new, which is, perhaps, a better thing. In our retired way of living, we know little of what goes on in the literary world.... I was, however, in town for a few hours the other day, and called upon a lady of rank who hasfashionablelearned folks coming about her, and she informed me that there are new ideas regarding philosophy entertained in the world, and that Sir John Herschel was now considered as a slight, second-rate man, or person. Who are the first-rate she did not say, and, I suppose, you will not be much mortified to hear that your name was not mentioned at all. So much for our learning. My sister was much disappointed the other day when, in expectation of a ghost story from Mr. Dickens, she only got a grotesque moral allegory; now, as she delights in a ghost and hates an allegory, this was very provoking.Believe me,My dear Mrs. Somerville,Yours with admiration and esteem,J. Baillie.
FROM MISS JOANNA BAILLIE TO MRS. SOMERVILLE
Hampstead,December 27th, 1843.
Besides being proud of receiving a letter from you, I was much pleased to know that I am, though at such a distance, sometimes in your thoughts. I was muchpleased, too, with what you have said of the health and other gratifications you enjoy in Italy. I should gladly have thanked you at the time, had I known how to address my letter; and after receiving your proper direction from our friend Miss Montgomery, I have been prevented from using it by various things.... But though so long silent I have not been ungrateful, and thank you with all my heart. The account you give of Venice is very interesting. There is something affecting in still seeing the descendants of the former Doges holding a diminished state in their remaining palaces with so much courtesy. I am sure you have found yourself a guest in their saloons, hung with paintings of their ancestors, with very mixed feelings. However, Venice to the eye, as you describe it, is Venice still; and with its lights at night gleaming upon the waters makes a very vivid picture to my fancy. You no doubt have fixed it on canvas, and can carry it about with you for the delight of your friends who may never see the original.
In return to your kind inquiries after us, I have, all things considered, a very good account to give. Ladies of four score and upwards cannot expect to be robust, and need not be gay. We sit by the fire-side with our books (except when those plaguy notes are to be written) and receive the visits of our friendly neighbours very contentedly, and, I ought to say, and trust I may say, very thankfully.... This morning brought one in whom I feel sure that you and your daughters take some interest, Maria Edgeworth. She has been dangerously ill, but is now nearly recovered, and is come from Ireland to pass the winter months with her sisters in London: weak in body, but the mind as clear and the spirits as buoyant as ever. You will be glad to hear that she even has it in her thoughts to write a new work, and has the plan of it nearly arranged. There will be nothing new in the story itself, but the purpose and treating of it will be new, which is, perhaps, a better thing. In our retired way of living, we know little of what goes on in the literary world.... I was, however, in town for a few hours the other day, and called upon a lady of rank who hasfashionablelearned folks coming about her, and she informed me that there are new ideas regarding philosophy entertained in the world, and that Sir John Herschel was now considered as a slight, second-rate man, or person. Who are the first-rate she did not say, and, I suppose, you will not be much mortified to hear that your name was not mentioned at all. So much for our learning. My sister was much disappointed the other day when, in expectation of a ghost story from Mr. Dickens, she only got a grotesque moral allegory; now, as she delights in a ghost and hates an allegory, this was very provoking.
Believe me,My dear Mrs. Somerville,Yours with admiration and esteem,J. Baillie.
FROM MISS JOANNA BAILLIE TO MRS. SOMERVILLEHampstead,January 9th, 1851.My dear Friend,My dear Mary Somerville, whom I am proud to call my friend, and that she so calls me. I could say much on this point, but I dare not. I received yourletter from Mr. Greig last night, and thank you very gratefully. If my head were less confused I should do it better, but the pride I have in thinking of you as philosopher and a woman cannot be exceeded. I shall read your letter many times over. My sister and myself at so great an age are waiting to be called away in mercy by an Almighty Father, and we part with our earthly friends as those whom we shall meet again. My great monster book is now published, and your copy I shall send to your son who will peep into it, and then forward it to yourself. I beg to be kindly and respectfully remembered to your husband; I offer my best wishes to your daughters....Yours, my dear Friend,Very faithfully,Joanna Baillie.My sister begs of you and all your family to accept her best wishes.
FROM MISS JOANNA BAILLIE TO MRS. SOMERVILLE
Hampstead,January 9th, 1851.
My dear Mary Somerville, whom I am proud to call my friend, and that she so calls me. I could say much on this point, but I dare not. I received yourletter from Mr. Greig last night, and thank you very gratefully. If my head were less confused I should do it better, but the pride I have in thinking of you as philosopher and a woman cannot be exceeded. I shall read your letter many times over. My sister and myself at so great an age are waiting to be called away in mercy by an Almighty Father, and we part with our earthly friends as those whom we shall meet again. My great monster book is now published, and your copy I shall send to your son who will peep into it, and then forward it to yourself. I beg to be kindly and respectfully remembered to your husband; I offer my best wishes to your daughters....
Yours, my dear Friend,Very faithfully,Joanna Baillie.
My sister begs of you and all your family to accept her best wishes.
FROM SIR JOHN HERSCHEL TO MRS. SOMERVILLE.18th March, 1844.My dear Mrs. Somerville,To have received a letter from you so long ago, and not yet to have thanked you for it, is what I could hardly have believed myself—if the rapid lapse of time in the uniform retirement in which we live were not pressed upon me in a variety of ways which convince me that as a man grows older, his sand, as the grains get low in the glass, slips through more glibly, and steals away with accelerated speed. I wish I could either send you a copy of my Cape observations, or tell you they are publishedor even in the press. Far from it—I do not expect to "go to press" before another year has elapsed, for though I have got my catalogues of Southern nebulæ and Double stars reduced and arranged, yet there is a great deal of other matter still to be worked through, and I have every description of reduction entirely to execute myself. These are very tedious, and I am a very slow computer, and have been continually taken off the subject by other matter, forced upon me by "pressure from without." What I am now engaged on is the monograph of theprincipalSouthern Nebulæ, the object of which is to put on record every ascertainable particular of their actual appearance and the stars visible in them, so as to satisfy future observers whethernew starshave appeared, or changes taken place in the nebulosity. To what an extent this work may go you may judge from the fact that the catalogue of visible stars actually mapped down in their places within the space of less than a square degree in the nebula about η Argus which I have just completed comprises between 1300 and 1400 stars. This is indeed a stupendous object. It is a vastly extensive branching and looped nebula, in the centre of the densest part of which is η Argus, itself a most remarkable star, seeing that from the fourth magnitude which it had in Ptolemy's time, it has risen (bysudden starts, and not gradually) to such a degree of brilliancy asnowactually to surpass Canopus, and to be second only to Sirius. One of theseleapsI myself witnessed when in the interval of ceasing to observe it in one year, and resuming its observation in two or three months after in the next, it had sprung over the heads ofall the stars of the firstmagnitude, from Fomalhaut and Regulus (the two least of them) to α Centauri, which it then justequalled, and which is the brightest of all but Canopus and Sirius! It has since made a fresh jump—and who can say it will be the last?One of the most beautiful objects in the southern hemisphere is a pretty large, perfectly round, and very well-defined planetary nebula, of a fine, fullindependentblue colour—the only object I have ever seen in the heavens fairly entitled to be calledindependentlyblue,i.e., not by contrast. Another superb and most striking object is Lacaille's 30 Doradus, a nebula of great size in the larger nubicula, of which it is impossible to give a better idea than to compare it to a "true lover's knot," or assemblage of nearly circular nebulous loops uniting in a centre, in or near which is an exactly circular round dark hole. Neither this nor the nebula about η Argus have any, the slightest, resemblance to the representations given of them by Dunlop.... As you are so kind as to offer to obtain information on any points interesting to me at Rome, here is one on which I earnestly desire to obtain the means of forming a correct opinion,i.e., therealpowers and merits of De Vico's great refractor at the Collegio Romano. De Vico's accounts of it appear to me to have not a little of the extra-marvellous in them. Saturn'stwoclose satellites regularly observed—eight stars in the trapezium of Orion! α Aquilæ (as Schumacher inquiringly writes to me) divided into three! the supernumerary divisions of Saturn's ring well seen, &c., &c. And all by a Cauchoix refractor of eight inches? I fear me that these wonders are not forfemale eyes, the good monks are too well aware of the penetrating qualities of such optics to allow them entry within the seven-fold walls of their Collegio. Has Somerville ever looked through it? On his report I know I could quite rely. As for Lord Rosse's great reflector, I can only tell you what I hear, having never seen it, or even his three feet one. The great one is not yet completed. Of the other, those whohavelooked through it speak in raptures. I met not long since an officer who, at Halifax in Nova Scotia, sawthe cometat noon close to the sun, and very conspicuous the day after the perihelion passage.Your account of the pictures and otherdeliciæof Venice makes our mouths water; but it is of no use, so we can only congratulate those who are in the full enjoyment of such things.Ever yours most truly,J. Herschel.,
FROM SIR JOHN HERSCHEL TO MRS. SOMERVILLE.
18th March, 1844.
To have received a letter from you so long ago, and not yet to have thanked you for it, is what I could hardly have believed myself—if the rapid lapse of time in the uniform retirement in which we live were not pressed upon me in a variety of ways which convince me that as a man grows older, his sand, as the grains get low in the glass, slips through more glibly, and steals away with accelerated speed. I wish I could either send you a copy of my Cape observations, or tell you they are publishedor even in the press. Far from it—I do not expect to "go to press" before another year has elapsed, for though I have got my catalogues of Southern nebulæ and Double stars reduced and arranged, yet there is a great deal of other matter still to be worked through, and I have every description of reduction entirely to execute myself. These are very tedious, and I am a very slow computer, and have been continually taken off the subject by other matter, forced upon me by "pressure from without." What I am now engaged on is the monograph of theprincipalSouthern Nebulæ, the object of which is to put on record every ascertainable particular of their actual appearance and the stars visible in them, so as to satisfy future observers whethernew starshave appeared, or changes taken place in the nebulosity. To what an extent this work may go you may judge from the fact that the catalogue of visible stars actually mapped down in their places within the space of less than a square degree in the nebula about η Argus which I have just completed comprises between 1300 and 1400 stars. This is indeed a stupendous object. It is a vastly extensive branching and looped nebula, in the centre of the densest part of which is η Argus, itself a most remarkable star, seeing that from the fourth magnitude which it had in Ptolemy's time, it has risen (bysudden starts, and not gradually) to such a degree of brilliancy asnowactually to surpass Canopus, and to be second only to Sirius. One of theseleapsI myself witnessed when in the interval of ceasing to observe it in one year, and resuming its observation in two or three months after in the next, it had sprung over the heads ofall the stars of the firstmagnitude, from Fomalhaut and Regulus (the two least of them) to α Centauri, which it then justequalled, and which is the brightest of all but Canopus and Sirius! It has since made a fresh jump—and who can say it will be the last?
One of the most beautiful objects in the southern hemisphere is a pretty large, perfectly round, and very well-defined planetary nebula, of a fine, fullindependentblue colour—the only object I have ever seen in the heavens fairly entitled to be calledindependentlyblue,i.e., not by contrast. Another superb and most striking object is Lacaille's 30 Doradus, a nebula of great size in the larger nubicula, of which it is impossible to give a better idea than to compare it to a "true lover's knot," or assemblage of nearly circular nebulous loops uniting in a centre, in or near which is an exactly circular round dark hole. Neither this nor the nebula about η Argus have any, the slightest, resemblance to the representations given of them by Dunlop.... As you are so kind as to offer to obtain information on any points interesting to me at Rome, here is one on which I earnestly desire to obtain the means of forming a correct opinion,i.e., therealpowers and merits of De Vico's great refractor at the Collegio Romano. De Vico's accounts of it appear to me to have not a little of the extra-marvellous in them. Saturn'stwoclose satellites regularly observed—eight stars in the trapezium of Orion! α Aquilæ (as Schumacher inquiringly writes to me) divided into three! the supernumerary divisions of Saturn's ring well seen, &c., &c. And all by a Cauchoix refractor of eight inches? I fear me that these wonders are not forfemale eyes, the good monks are too well aware of the penetrating qualities of such optics to allow them entry within the seven-fold walls of their Collegio. Has Somerville ever looked through it? On his report I know I could quite rely. As for Lord Rosse's great reflector, I can only tell you what I hear, having never seen it, or even his three feet one. The great one is not yet completed. Of the other, those whohavelooked through it speak in raptures. I met not long since an officer who, at Halifax in Nova Scotia, sawthe cometat noon close to the sun, and very conspicuous the day after the perihelion passage.
Your account of the pictures and otherdeliciæof Venice makes our mouths water; but it is of no use, so we can only congratulate those who are in the full enjoyment of such things.
Ever yours most truly,J. Herschel.,
On returning to Rome I was elected Associate of the College of Risurgenti, and in the following April I became an honorary member of the Imperial and Royal Academy of Science, Literature and Art at Arezzo. I finished an edition of the Physical Sciences, at which I had been working, and in spring Somerville hired a small house belonging to the Duca Sforza Cesarini, at Genzano, close to and with a beautiful view of the Lake of Nemi; but as I had not seen my son for some time, I now availed myself of the opportunity of travelling with our friend Sir Frederick Adam to England. We crossed the Channel at Ostend, and at the mouth of the Thames lay the old "Venerable," in which my father was flag-captain at thebattle of Camperdown. I had a joyful meeting with my son and his wife, and we went to see many things that were new to me. One of our first expeditions was to the British Museum. I had already seen the Elgin marbles, and the antiquities collected at Babylon by Mr. Rich, when he was Consul at Bagdad, but now the Museum had been enriched by the marbles from Halicarnassus, and by the marvellous remains excavated by Mr. Layard from the ruins of Nineveh, the very site of which had been for ages unknown.
I frequently went to Turner's studio, and was always welcomed. No one could imagine that so much poetical feeling existed in so rough an exterior. The water-colour exhibitions were very good; my countrymen still maintained their superiority in that style of art, and the drawings of some English ladies were scarcely inferior to those of first-rate artists, especially those of my friend, Miss Blake, of Danesbury.
While in England I made several visits; the first was to my dear friends Sir John and Lady Herschel, at Collingwood, who received me with the warmest affection. I cannot express the pleasure it gave me to feel myself at home in a family where not only the highest branches of science were freely discussed, but where the accomplishments and graces of lifewere cultivated. I was highly gratified and proud of being godmother to Rosa, the daughter of Sir John and Lady Herschel. Among other places near Collingwood I was taken to see an excellent observatory formed by Mr. Dawes, a gentleman of independent fortune; and here I must remark, to the honour of my countrymen, that at the time I am writing, there are twenty-six private observatories in Great Britain and Ireland, furnished with first-rate instruments, with which some of the most important astronomical discoveries have been made.
I received the following letter from my mother while we were at Genzano. It is one of several which record in her natural and unaffected words my mother's profound admiration for Sir John Herschel.
MRS. SOMERVILLE TO MISS SOMERVILLE.Sydenham,1st September, 1844.Sunday Night.My dear Martha,... We go to the Herschels' to-morrow, and there I shall finish this letter, as it is impossible to get it in time for Tuesday's post, but I have so much to do now that you must not expect a letter every post, and I had no time to begin this before, and I am too tired to sit up later to-night....Collingwood,Monday.This appears to be a remarkably beautiful place, with abundance of fine timber.... W. brought your dear niceletter; it makes me long to be with you, and, please God, I shall be so before long, as I set off this day fortnight.Wednesday.Yesterday I had a great deal of scientific talk with Sir John, and a long walk in the grounds which are extensive, and very pretty. Then the Airys arrived, and we had a large party at dinner.... I think, now, as I always have done, that Sir John is by much the highest and finest character I have ever met with; the most gentlemanly and polished mind, combined with the most exalted morality, and the utmost of human attainment. His view of everything is philosophic, and at the same time highly poetical, in short, he combines every quality that is admirable and excellent with the most charming modesty, and Lady Herschel is quite worthy of such a husband, which is the greatest praise I can give her. Their kindness and affection for me has been unbounded. Lady H. told me she heard such praises of you two that she is anxious to know you, and she hopes you will always look upon her and her family as friends. The christening went off as well as possible. Mr. Airy was godfather, and Mrs. Airy and I godmothers, but I had the naming of the child—Matilda Rose, after Lady Herschel's sister. I assure you I was quite adroit in taking the baby from the nurse and giving her to the clergyman. Sir John took Mrs. Airy and me a drive to see a very fine picturesque castle a few miles off.... I have got loads of things for experiments on light from Sir John with a variety of papers, and you may believe that I have profited not a little by his conversation, and have a thousand projects for study and writing, so I think painting will be at a standstill, only that I have promised to paint something for Lady Herschel. Sir John computes four or five hours every day, and yet his Cape observations will not be finished for two years. I have seen everything he is or has been doing.Your affectionate mother,Mary Somerville.
MRS. SOMERVILLE TO MISS SOMERVILLE.
Sydenham,1st September, 1844.Sunday Night.My dear Martha,
... We go to the Herschels' to-morrow, and there I shall finish this letter, as it is impossible to get it in time for Tuesday's post, but I have so much to do now that you must not expect a letter every post, and I had no time to begin this before, and I am too tired to sit up later to-night....
Collingwood,Monday.
This appears to be a remarkably beautiful place, with abundance of fine timber.... W. brought your dear niceletter; it makes me long to be with you, and, please God, I shall be so before long, as I set off this day fortnight.
Wednesday.
Yesterday I had a great deal of scientific talk with Sir John, and a long walk in the grounds which are extensive, and very pretty. Then the Airys arrived, and we had a large party at dinner.... I think, now, as I always have done, that Sir John is by much the highest and finest character I have ever met with; the most gentlemanly and polished mind, combined with the most exalted morality, and the utmost of human attainment. His view of everything is philosophic, and at the same time highly poetical, in short, he combines every quality that is admirable and excellent with the most charming modesty, and Lady Herschel is quite worthy of such a husband, which is the greatest praise I can give her. Their kindness and affection for me has been unbounded. Lady H. told me she heard such praises of you two that she is anxious to know you, and she hopes you will always look upon her and her family as friends. The christening went off as well as possible. Mr. Airy was godfather, and Mrs. Airy and I godmothers, but I had the naming of the child—Matilda Rose, after Lady Herschel's sister. I assure you I was quite adroit in taking the baby from the nurse and giving her to the clergyman. Sir John took Mrs. Airy and me a drive to see a very fine picturesque castle a few miles off.... I have got loads of things for experiments on light from Sir John with a variety of papers, and you may believe that I have profited not a little by his conversation, and have a thousand projects for study and writing, so I think painting will be at a standstill, only that I have promised to paint something for Lady Herschel. Sir John computes four or five hours every day, and yet his Cape observations will not be finished for two years. I have seen everything he is or has been doing.
Your affectionate mother,Mary Somerville.
My mother continues her recollections of this journey.
My next visit was to Lord and Lady Charles Percy at Guy's Cliff, in Warwickshire, a pretty picturesque place of historical and romantic memory. The society was pleasant, and I was taken to Kenilworth and Warwick Castle, on the banks of the Avon, a noble place, still bearing marks of the Wars of the Roses. I never saw such magnificent oak-trees as those on the Leigh estate, near Guy's Cliff.
I then visited my maiden namesake, Mrs. Fairfax, of Gilling Castle, Yorkshire. She was a highly cultivated person, had been much abroad, and was a warm-hearted friend. I was much interested in the principal room, for a deep frieze surrounds the wall, on which are painted the coats of arms of all the families with whom the Fairfaxes have intermarried, ascending to very great antiquity; besides, every pane of glass in a very large bay window in the same room is stained with one of these coats of arms. Every morning after breakfasta prodigious flock of pea-fowl came from the woods around to be fed.
I now went to the vicinity of Kelso to visit my brother and sister-in-law, General and Mrs. Elliot, who lived on the banks of the Tweed. We went to Jedburgh, the place of my birth. After many years I still thought the valley of the Jed very beautiful; I fear the pretty stream has been invaded by manufactories: there is a perpetual war between civilization and the beauty of nature. I went to see the spot from whence I once took a sketch of Jedburgh Abbey and the manse in which I was born, which does not exist, I believe, now. When I was a very young girl I made a painting from this sketch. Our next excursion was to a lonely village called Yetholm, in the hills, some miles from Kelso, belonging to the gipsies. The "king" and the other men were absent, but the women were civil, and some of them very pretty. Our principal object in going there was to see a stone in the wall of a small and very ancient church at Linton, nearly in ruins, on which is carved in relief the wyvern and wheel, the crest of the Somervilles.
From Kelso I went to Edinburgh to spend a few days with Lord Jeffrey and his family. No one who had seen his gentle kindness in domestic life and the warmth of his attachment to his friends, couldhave supposed he possessed that power of ridicule and severity which made him the terror of authors. His total ignorance of science may perhaps excuse him for having admitted into the "Review" Brougham's intemperate article on the undulatory theory of light, a discovery which has immortalized the name of Dr. Young. I found Edinburgh, the city of my early recollections, picturesque and beautiful as ever, but enormously increased both to the north and to the south. Queen Street, which in my youth was open to the north and commanded a view of the Forth and the mountains beyond, was now in the middle of the new town. All those I had formerly known were gone—a new generation had sprung up, living in all the luxury of modern times. On returning to London I spent a pleasant time with my son and his wife, who invited all those to meet me whom they thought I should like to see.
My mother returned to Rome in autumn in company with an old friend and her daughter.
The winter passed without any marked event, but always agreeably; new people came, making a pleasant variety in the society, which, though still refined, was beginning to be very mixed, as was amusingly seen at Torlonia's balls and tableaux,where many of the guests formed a singular contrast with the beautiful Princess, who was of the historical family of the Colonnas. I was often ashamed of my countrymen, who, all the while speaking of the Italians with contempt, tried to force themselves into their houses. Prince Borghese refused the same person an invitation to a ball five times. I was particularly scrupulous about invitations, and never asked for one in my life; nor did I ever seek to make acquaintances with the view of being invited to their houses.
The following letters give a sketch of life during the summer months at Rome:—
MRS. SOMERVILLE TO W. GREIG, ESQ.Rome,3rd August, 1845.My dear Woronzow,... I am glad you are so much pleased with my bust, and that it is so little injured after having been at the bottom of the sea. You will find Macdonald a very agreeable and original person. As to spending the summer in Rome, you may make yourself quite easy, for the heat is very bearable, the thermometer varying between 75° and 80° in our rooms during the day, which are kept in darkness, and at night it always becomes cooler. Thank God, we are all quite well, and Somerville particularly so; he goes out during the day to amusehimself, and the girls paint in the Borghese gallery. As for myself I have always plenty to do till half past three, when we dine, and after dinner I sleep for an hour or more, and when the sun is set we go out to wander a little, for a long walk is too fatiguing at this season. We have very little society, the only variety we have had was a very pretty supper party given by Signore Rossi, the French minister, to the Prince and Princess de Broglie, son and daughter-in-law of the duke. The young lady is extremely beautiful, and as I knew the late Duchesse de Broglie (Madame de Staël's daughter) we soon got acquainted. They are newly married, and have come to spend part of the summer in Rome, so you see people are not so much alarmed as the English.... We went yesterday evening to see the Piazza Navona full of water; it is flooded every Saturday and Sunday at this season; there is music, and the whole population of Rome is collected round it, carts and carriages splashing through it in all directions. I think it must be about three feet deep. It was there the ancient Romans had their naval games; and the custom of filling it with water in summer has lasted ever since. The fountain is one of the most beautiful in Rome, which is saying a great deal; indeed the immense gush of the purest water from innumerable fountains in every street and every villa is one of the peculiarities of Rome. I fear from what I have heard of those in Trafalgar Square that the quantity of water will be very miserable.The papers (I mean the Times), are full of abuse of Mr. Sedgwick and Dr. Buckland, but their adversaries write such nonsense that it matters little. I do not think I have anything to add to my new edition. If you hear of anything of moment let me know. Perhaps something may have transpired at the British Association....Your affectionate mother,Mary Somerville.
MRS. SOMERVILLE TO W. GREIG, ESQ.
Rome,3rd August, 1845.
... I am glad you are so much pleased with my bust, and that it is so little injured after having been at the bottom of the sea. You will find Macdonald a very agreeable and original person. As to spending the summer in Rome, you may make yourself quite easy, for the heat is very bearable, the thermometer varying between 75° and 80° in our rooms during the day, which are kept in darkness, and at night it always becomes cooler. Thank God, we are all quite well, and Somerville particularly so; he goes out during the day to amusehimself, and the girls paint in the Borghese gallery. As for myself I have always plenty to do till half past three, when we dine, and after dinner I sleep for an hour or more, and when the sun is set we go out to wander a little, for a long walk is too fatiguing at this season. We have very little society, the only variety we have had was a very pretty supper party given by Signore Rossi, the French minister, to the Prince and Princess de Broglie, son and daughter-in-law of the duke. The young lady is extremely beautiful, and as I knew the late Duchesse de Broglie (Madame de Staël's daughter) we soon got acquainted. They are newly married, and have come to spend part of the summer in Rome, so you see people are not so much alarmed as the English.... We went yesterday evening to see the Piazza Navona full of water; it is flooded every Saturday and Sunday at this season; there is music, and the whole population of Rome is collected round it, carts and carriages splashing through it in all directions. I think it must be about three feet deep. It was there the ancient Romans had their naval games; and the custom of filling it with water in summer has lasted ever since. The fountain is one of the most beautiful in Rome, which is saying a great deal; indeed the immense gush of the purest water from innumerable fountains in every street and every villa is one of the peculiarities of Rome. I fear from what I have heard of those in Trafalgar Square that the quantity of water will be very miserable.
The papers (I mean the Times), are full of abuse of Mr. Sedgwick and Dr. Buckland, but their adversaries write such nonsense that it matters little. I do not think I have anything to add to my new edition. If you hear of anything of moment let me know. Perhaps something may have transpired at the British Association....
Your affectionate mother,Mary Somerville.
MRS. SOMERVILLE TO W. GREIG, ESQ.Rome,May 28th, 1845.My dear Woronzow,I don't know why I have so long delayed writing to you. I rather think it is because we have been living so quiet a life, one day so precisely similar to the preceding, that there has been nothing worth writing about. This is our first really summer-like day, and splendid it is; but we are sitting in a kind of twilight. The only means of keeping the rooms cool is by keeping the house dark and shutting out the external air, and then in the evening we have a delightful walk; the country is splendid, the Campagna one sheet of deep verdure and flowers of every kind in abundance. We generally have six or seven large nosegays in the room; we have only to go to some of the neighbouring villas and gather them. Most of the English are gone; people make a great mistake in not remaining during the hot weather, this is the time for enjoyment. We are busy all the morning, and in the afternoon we take our book or drawing materials and sit on the grass in some of the lovely villas for hours; then we come home to tea, and are glad to see anyone who will come in for an hour or two. We have had a son of Mr. Babbage here. He is employed in making the railway that is to go from Genoa to Milan, and he was travelling with eight other Englishmen who came to makearrangements for covering Italy with a network of these iron roads, connecting all the great cities and also the two seas from Venice to Milan and Genoa and from Ancona by Rome to Civita Vecchia. However the Pope is opposed to the latter part, but they say the cardinals and people wish it so much that he will at last consent.... Many thanks for theVestiges, &c. I think it a powerful production, and was highly pleased with it, but I can easily see that it will offend in some quarters; however it should be remembered that there has been as much opposition to the true system of astronomy and to geological facts as there can be to this. At all events free and open discussion of all natural and moral phenomena must lead to truth at last. Is Babbage the author? I rather think he would not be so careful in concealing his name....
MRS. SOMERVILLE TO W. GREIG, ESQ.
Rome,May 28th, 1845.
I don't know why I have so long delayed writing to you. I rather think it is because we have been living so quiet a life, one day so precisely similar to the preceding, that there has been nothing worth writing about. This is our first really summer-like day, and splendid it is; but we are sitting in a kind of twilight. The only means of keeping the rooms cool is by keeping the house dark and shutting out the external air, and then in the evening we have a delightful walk; the country is splendid, the Campagna one sheet of deep verdure and flowers of every kind in abundance. We generally have six or seven large nosegays in the room; we have only to go to some of the neighbouring villas and gather them. Most of the English are gone; people make a great mistake in not remaining during the hot weather, this is the time for enjoyment. We are busy all the morning, and in the afternoon we take our book or drawing materials and sit on the grass in some of the lovely villas for hours; then we come home to tea, and are glad to see anyone who will come in for an hour or two. We have had a son of Mr. Babbage here. He is employed in making the railway that is to go from Genoa to Milan, and he was travelling with eight other Englishmen who came to makearrangements for covering Italy with a network of these iron roads, connecting all the great cities and also the two seas from Venice to Milan and Genoa and from Ancona by Rome to Civita Vecchia. However the Pope is opposed to the latter part, but they say the cardinals and people wish it so much that he will at last consent.... Many thanks for theVestiges, &c. I think it a powerful production, and was highly pleased with it, but I can easily see that it will offend in some quarters; however it should be remembered that there has been as much opposition to the true system of astronomy and to geological facts as there can be to this. At all events free and open discussion of all natural and moral phenomena must lead to truth at last. Is Babbage the author? I rather think he would not be so careful in concealing his name....
My mother made some curious experiments upon the effect of the solar spectrum on juices of plants and other substances, of which she sent an account to Sir John Herschel, who answered telling her that he had communicated her account of her experiments to the Royal Society.
SIR JOHN HERSCHEL TO MRS. SOMERVILLE.Collingwood,November 21st, 1845.My dear Mrs. Somerville,I cannot express to you the pleasure I experienced from the receipt of your letter and the perusal of the elegant experiments it relates, which appear to me of the highest interest and show (what I always suspected), that there is a world of wonders awaiting disclosure inthe solar spectrum, and that influences widely differing from either light, heat or colour are transmitted to us from our central luminary, which are mainly instrumental in evolving and maturing the splendid hues of the vegetable creation and elaborating the juices to which they owe their beauty and their vitality. I think it certain that heat goes for something in evaporating your liquids and thereby causing some of your phenomena; but there is a difference ofqualityas well as ofquantityof heat brought into view which renders it susceptible of analysis by the coloured juices so that in certain parts of the spectrum it is retained and fixed, in others reflected according as the nature of the tint favours the one or the other. Pray go on with these delightful experiments. I wish you could save yourself the fatigue of watching and directing your sunbeam by a clock work. If I were at your elbow I could rig you out a heliotrope quite sufficient with the aid of any common wooden clock.... Now I am going to take a liberty (but not till after duly consulting Mr. Greig with whose approbation I act, and you are not to gainsay our proceedings) and that is to communicate your results in the form of "an extract of a letter" to myself—to the Royal Society. You may be very sure that I would not do this if I thought that the experiments were not intrinsically quite deserving to be recorded in the pages of the Phil. Trans. and if I were not sure that they will lead to a vast field of curious and beautiful research; and as you have already once contributed to the Society, (on a subject connected with the spectrum and the sunbeam) this will, I trust, not appear in your eyes in a formidable or a repulsive light, and it will be a great matter of congratulation to us all to know that these subjects continue toengage your attention, and that you can turn your residence in that sunny clime to such admirable account. So do not call upon me to retract (for before you get this the papers will be in the secretary's hands).I am here nearly as much out of the full stream of scientific matters as you at Rome. We had a full and very satisfactory meeting at Cambridge of the British Association, with a full attendance of continental magnetists and meteorologists, and within these few days I have learned that our Government meant to grant all our requests and continue the magnetic and meteorological observations. Humboldt has sent me his Cosmos (Vol. I.), which is good, all but the first 60 pages, which are occupied in telling his readers what his book isnotto be. Dr. Whewell has just publishedanotherbook on the Principles of Morals, and alsoanotheron education, in which he cries up the geometrical processes in preference to analysis....Yours very faithfully,J. Herschel.
SIR JOHN HERSCHEL TO MRS. SOMERVILLE.
Collingwood,November 21st, 1845.
I cannot express to you the pleasure I experienced from the receipt of your letter and the perusal of the elegant experiments it relates, which appear to me of the highest interest and show (what I always suspected), that there is a world of wonders awaiting disclosure inthe solar spectrum, and that influences widely differing from either light, heat or colour are transmitted to us from our central luminary, which are mainly instrumental in evolving and maturing the splendid hues of the vegetable creation and elaborating the juices to which they owe their beauty and their vitality. I think it certain that heat goes for something in evaporating your liquids and thereby causing some of your phenomena; but there is a difference ofqualityas well as ofquantityof heat brought into view which renders it susceptible of analysis by the coloured juices so that in certain parts of the spectrum it is retained and fixed, in others reflected according as the nature of the tint favours the one or the other. Pray go on with these delightful experiments. I wish you could save yourself the fatigue of watching and directing your sunbeam by a clock work. If I were at your elbow I could rig you out a heliotrope quite sufficient with the aid of any common wooden clock.... Now I am going to take a liberty (but not till after duly consulting Mr. Greig with whose approbation I act, and you are not to gainsay our proceedings) and that is to communicate your results in the form of "an extract of a letter" to myself—to the Royal Society. You may be very sure that I would not do this if I thought that the experiments were not intrinsically quite deserving to be recorded in the pages of the Phil. Trans. and if I were not sure that they will lead to a vast field of curious and beautiful research; and as you have already once contributed to the Society, (on a subject connected with the spectrum and the sunbeam) this will, I trust, not appear in your eyes in a formidable or a repulsive light, and it will be a great matter of congratulation to us all to know that these subjects continue toengage your attention, and that you can turn your residence in that sunny clime to such admirable account. So do not call upon me to retract (for before you get this the papers will be in the secretary's hands).
I am here nearly as much out of the full stream of scientific matters as you at Rome. We had a full and very satisfactory meeting at Cambridge of the British Association, with a full attendance of continental magnetists and meteorologists, and within these few days I have learned that our Government meant to grant all our requests and continue the magnetic and meteorological observations. Humboldt has sent me his Cosmos (Vol. I.), which is good, all but the first 60 pages, which are occupied in telling his readers what his book isnotto be. Dr. Whewell has just publishedanotherbook on the Principles of Morals, and alsoanotheron education, in which he cries up the geometrical processes in preference to analysis....
Yours very faithfully,J. Herschel.
The Prince and Princesse de Broglie came to Rome in 1845, and Signore Pellegrino Rossi, at this time French Minister at the Vatican, gave them a supper party, to which we were invited. We had met with him long before at Geneva, where he had taken refuge after the insurrection of 1821. He was greatly esteemed there and admired for his eloquence in the lectures he gave in the University. It wasa curious circumstance, that he, who was a Roman subject, and was exiled, and, if I am not mistaken, condemned to death, should return to Rome as French Minister. He had a remarkably fine countenance, resembling some ancient Roman bust. M. Thiers had brought in a law in the French Chambers to check the audacity of the Jesuits, and Rossi was sent to negotiate with the Pope. We had seen much of him at Rome, and were horrified, in 1848, to hear that he had been assassinated on the steps of the Cancelleria, at Rome, where the Legislative Assembly met, and whither he was proceeding to attend its first meeting. No one offered to assist him, nor to arrest the murderers except Dr. Pantaleone, a much esteemed Roman physician, and member of the Chamber, who did what he could to save him, but in vain; he was a great loss to the Liberal cause.
Towards the end of summer we spent a month most agreeably at Subiaco, receiving much civility from the Benedictine monks of the Sacro Speco, and visiting all the neighbouring towns, each one perched on some hill-top, and one more romantically picturesque than the other. It was in this part of the country that Claude Lorraine and Poussin studied and painted. I never saw more beautiful country, or one which afforded so many exquisite subjects fora landscape painter. We went all over the country on mules—to some of the towns, such as Cervara, up steep flights of steps cut in the rock. The people, too, were extremely picturesque, and the women still wore their costumes, which probably now they have laid aside for tweeds and Manchester cottons.
I often during my winters in Rome went to paint from nature in the Campagna, either with Somerville or with Lady Susan Percy, who drew very prettily. Once we set out a little later than usual, when, driving through the Piazza of the Bocca della Verità, we both called out, "Did you see that? How horrible! "It was the guillotine; an execution had just taken place, and had we been a quarter of an hour earlier we should have passed at the fatal moment. Under Gregory XVI. everything was conducted in the most profound secrecy; arrests were made almost at our very door, of which we knew nothing; Mazzini was busily at work on one side, the Jesuitical party actively intriguing, according to their wont, on the other; and in the mean time society went on gaily at the surface, ignorant of and indifferent to the course of events. We were preparing to leave Rome when Gregory died. We put off our journey to see his funeral, and the Conclave, which terminated, in the course of scarcely two days, in the election of Pius IX.We also saw the new Pope's coronation, and witnessed the beginning of that popularity which lasted so short a time. Much was expected from him, and in the beginning of his reign the moderate liberals fondly hoped that Italy would unite in one great federation, with Pius IX. at the head of it; entirely forgetting how incompatible a theocracy or government by priests ever must be with all progress and with liberal institutions. Their hopes were soon blighted, and after all the well-known events of 1848 and 1849, a reaction set in all over Italy, except in gallant little Piedmont, where the constitution was maintained, thanks to Victor Emmanuel, and especially to that great genius, Camillo Cavour, and in spite of the disastrous reverses at Novara. Once more in 1859 Piedmont went to war with Austria, this time with success, and with the not disinterested help of France. One province after another joined her, and Italy, freed from all the little petty princes, and last, not least, from the Bourbons, has become that one great kingdom which was the dream of some of her greatest men in times of old.
We went to Bologna for a short time, and there the enthusiasm for the new Pope was absolutely intolerable. "Viva Pio Nono!" was shouted night and day. There was no repose; bands of musicwent about the streets, playing airs composed for the occasion, and in the theatres it was even worse, for the acting was interrupted, and the orchestra called upon to play the national tunes in vogue, and repeat them again and again, amid the deafening shouts and applause of the excited audience. We found the Bolognese very sociable, and it was by far the most musical society I ever was in. Rossini was living in Bologna, and received in the evening, and there was always music, amateur and professional, at his house. Frequently there was part-singing or choruses, and after the music was over the evening ended with a dance. We frequently saw Rossini some years later, when we resided at Florence. He was clever and amusing in conversation, but satirical. He was very bitter against the modern style of opera-singing, and considered the singers of the present day, with some exceptions, as wanting in study and finish. He objected to much of the modern music, as dwelling too constantly on the highest notes of the voice, whereby it is very soon deteriorated, and the singer forced to scream; besides which, he considered the orchestral accompaniments too loud. I, who recollected Pasta, Malibran, Grisi, Rubini, and others of that epoch, could not help agreeing with him when I compared them to the singers I heard at thePergola and elsewhere. The theatre, too, was good at Bologna, and we frequently went to it.
One evening we were sitting on the balcony of the hotel, when we saw a man stab another in the back of the neck, and then run away. The victim staggered along for a minute, and then fell down in a pool of blood. He had been a spy of the police under Gregory XVI., and one of the principal agents of his cruel government. He was so obnoxious to the people that his assassin has never been discovered.
From Bologna we went for a few weeks to Recoaro, where I drank the waters, after which we travelled to England by the St. Gothard pass.
FOOTNOTES:[13]The vessel on board which this bust was shipped for England ran on a shoal and sank, but as the accident happened in shallow water, the bust was recovered, none the worse for its immersion in salt water.
[13]The vessel on board which this bust was shipped for England ran on a shoal and sank, but as the accident happened in shallow water, the bust was recovered, none the worse for its immersion in salt water.
[13]The vessel on board which this bust was shipped for England ran on a shoal and sank, but as the accident happened in shallow water, the bust was recovered, none the worse for its immersion in salt water.
We spent the autumn in visiting my relations on the banks of the Tweed. I was much out of health at the time. As winter came on I got better, and was preparing to print my "Physical Geography" when "Cosmos" appeared. I at once determined to put my manuscript in the fire when Somerville said, "Do not be rash—consult some of our friends—Herschel for instance." So I sent the MS. to Sir John Herschel, who advised me by all means to publish it. It was very favourably reviewed by Sir Henry Holland in the "Quarterly," which tendedmuch to its success. I afterwards sent a copy of a later edition to Baron Humboldt, who wrote me a very kind letter in return.
BARON HUMBOLDT TO MRS. SOMERVILLE.A Sans Souci,ce 12 Juillet, 1849.Madame,C'est un devoir bien doux à remplir, Madame, que de vous offrir l'hommage renouvellé de mon dévouement et de ma respectueuse admiration. Ces sentimens datent de bien loin chez l'homme antidiluvien auquel vous avez daigné adresser des lignes si aimables et la nouvelle édition de ce bel ouvrage qui m'a charmé etinstruitdès qu'il avait paru pour la première fois. A cette grande supériorité que vous possedez et qui a si noblement illustré votre nom, dans les hautes régions de l'analyse mathématique, vous joignez, Madame, une variété de connaissances dans toutes les parties de la physique et de l'histoire naturelle descriptive. Après votre "Mechanism of the Heavens," le philosophique ouvrage "Connexion of the Physical Sciences" avait été l'objet de ma constante admiration. Je l'ai lu en entier et puis relu dans la septième édition qui a paru en 1846 dans les tems où nous étions plus calme, où l'orage politique ne grondait que de loin. L'auteur de l'imprudent "Cosmos" devoit saluer plus que tout autre la "Géographie Physique" de Mary Somerville. J'ai su me la procurer dès les premières semaines par les soins de notre ami commun le Chev. Bunsen. Je ne connais dans aucune langue un ouvrage de Géographie physiqueque l'on pourrait comparer au votre. Je l'ai de nouveau étudié dans la dernière édition que je dois à votre gracieuse bienveillance. Le sentiment de précision que vos habitudes de "Géomètre" vous ont si profondement imprimé, pénètre tous vos travaux, Madame. Aucun fait, aucune des grandes vues de la nature vous échappent. Vous avez profité et des livres et des conversations des voyageurs dans cette malheureuse Italie où passe la grande route de l'Orient et de l'Inde. J'ai été surpris de la justice de vos aperçus sur la Géographie des plantes et des animaux. Vous dominez dans ces régions comme en astronomie, en météorologie, en magnetisme. Que n'ajoutez-vous pas la sphère céleste, l'uranologie, votre patrimoine, à la sphère terrestre? C'est vous seule qui pourriez donner à votre belle litérature un ouvrage cosmologique original, un ouvrage écrit avec cette lucidité et ce goût que distingue tout ce qui est émané de votre plume. On a, je le sais, beaucoup de bienveillance pour mon Cosmos dans votre patrie; mais il en est desformesde composition littéraires, comme de la variété des races et de la différence primitive des langues. Un ouvrage traduit manque de vie; ce que plait sur les bords du Rhin doit paraître bizarre sur les bords de la Tamise et de la Seine. Mon ouvrage est une production essentiellement allemande, et ce caractère même, j'en suis sûr, loin de m'en plaindre lui donne le goût du terroir. Je jouis d'une bonne fortune à laquelle (à cause de mon long séjour en France, de mes prédilections personnelles, de mes hérésies politiques) leLéopardne m'avait pas trop accoutumé. Je demande à l'illustre auteur du volume sur la Mécanique Céleste d'avoir le courage d'agrandir sa Géographie Physique. Je suis sûr que le grand homme que nous aimons le plus, vous et moi, SirJohn Herschel, serait de mon opinion. LeMonde, je me sers du titre que Descartes voulait donner à un livre dont nous n'avons que de pauvres fragmens; leMondedoit être écrit pour les Anglais par un auteur de race pure. Il n'y a pas de sève, pas de vitalité dans les traductions les mieux faites. Ma santé s'est conservé miraculeusement à l'âge de quatre-vingts ans, de mon ardeur pour le travail nocturne au milieu des agitations d'une position que je n'ai pas besoin de vous depeindre puisque l'excellente Mademoiselle de —— vous l'a fait connaître. J'ai bouleversé, changé mes deux volumes des "Ansichten." Il n'en est resté que 1/4. C'est comme un nouvel ouvrage que j'aurai bientôt le bonheur de vous adresser si M. Cotta pense pouvoir hasarder une publication dans ces tems où la force physique croit guérir un mal moral etvaccinerle contentement à l'Allemagne unitaire!! Le troisième volume de mon Cosmos avance, mais la sérénité manque aux âmes moins crédules.Agréez, je vous supplie, l'hommage de mon affectueuse et respectueuse reconnaissance,Alexandre de Humboldt.
BARON HUMBOLDT TO MRS. SOMERVILLE.
A Sans Souci,ce 12 Juillet, 1849.
C'est un devoir bien doux à remplir, Madame, que de vous offrir l'hommage renouvellé de mon dévouement et de ma respectueuse admiration. Ces sentimens datent de bien loin chez l'homme antidiluvien auquel vous avez daigné adresser des lignes si aimables et la nouvelle édition de ce bel ouvrage qui m'a charmé etinstruitdès qu'il avait paru pour la première fois. A cette grande supériorité que vous possedez et qui a si noblement illustré votre nom, dans les hautes régions de l'analyse mathématique, vous joignez, Madame, une variété de connaissances dans toutes les parties de la physique et de l'histoire naturelle descriptive. Après votre "Mechanism of the Heavens," le philosophique ouvrage "Connexion of the Physical Sciences" avait été l'objet de ma constante admiration. Je l'ai lu en entier et puis relu dans la septième édition qui a paru en 1846 dans les tems où nous étions plus calme, où l'orage politique ne grondait que de loin. L'auteur de l'imprudent "Cosmos" devoit saluer plus que tout autre la "Géographie Physique" de Mary Somerville. J'ai su me la procurer dès les premières semaines par les soins de notre ami commun le Chev. Bunsen. Je ne connais dans aucune langue un ouvrage de Géographie physiqueque l'on pourrait comparer au votre. Je l'ai de nouveau étudié dans la dernière édition que je dois à votre gracieuse bienveillance. Le sentiment de précision que vos habitudes de "Géomètre" vous ont si profondement imprimé, pénètre tous vos travaux, Madame. Aucun fait, aucune des grandes vues de la nature vous échappent. Vous avez profité et des livres et des conversations des voyageurs dans cette malheureuse Italie où passe la grande route de l'Orient et de l'Inde. J'ai été surpris de la justice de vos aperçus sur la Géographie des plantes et des animaux. Vous dominez dans ces régions comme en astronomie, en météorologie, en magnetisme. Que n'ajoutez-vous pas la sphère céleste, l'uranologie, votre patrimoine, à la sphère terrestre? C'est vous seule qui pourriez donner à votre belle litérature un ouvrage cosmologique original, un ouvrage écrit avec cette lucidité et ce goût que distingue tout ce qui est émané de votre plume. On a, je le sais, beaucoup de bienveillance pour mon Cosmos dans votre patrie; mais il en est desformesde composition littéraires, comme de la variété des races et de la différence primitive des langues. Un ouvrage traduit manque de vie; ce que plait sur les bords du Rhin doit paraître bizarre sur les bords de la Tamise et de la Seine. Mon ouvrage est une production essentiellement allemande, et ce caractère même, j'en suis sûr, loin de m'en plaindre lui donne le goût du terroir. Je jouis d'une bonne fortune à laquelle (à cause de mon long séjour en France, de mes prédilections personnelles, de mes hérésies politiques) leLéopardne m'avait pas trop accoutumé. Je demande à l'illustre auteur du volume sur la Mécanique Céleste d'avoir le courage d'agrandir sa Géographie Physique. Je suis sûr que le grand homme que nous aimons le plus, vous et moi, SirJohn Herschel, serait de mon opinion. LeMonde, je me sers du titre que Descartes voulait donner à un livre dont nous n'avons que de pauvres fragmens; leMondedoit être écrit pour les Anglais par un auteur de race pure. Il n'y a pas de sève, pas de vitalité dans les traductions les mieux faites. Ma santé s'est conservé miraculeusement à l'âge de quatre-vingts ans, de mon ardeur pour le travail nocturne au milieu des agitations d'une position que je n'ai pas besoin de vous depeindre puisque l'excellente Mademoiselle de —— vous l'a fait connaître. J'ai bouleversé, changé mes deux volumes des "Ansichten." Il n'en est resté que 1/4. C'est comme un nouvel ouvrage que j'aurai bientôt le bonheur de vous adresser si M. Cotta pense pouvoir hasarder une publication dans ces tems où la force physique croit guérir un mal moral etvaccinerle contentement à l'Allemagne unitaire!! Le troisième volume de mon Cosmos avance, mais la sérénité manque aux âmes moins crédules.
Agréez, je vous supplie, l'hommage de mon affectueuse et respectueuse reconnaissance,
Alexandre de Humboldt.
Somerville and I spent the Christmas at Collingwood with our friends the Herschels. The party consisted of Mr. Airy, Astronomer-Royal, and Mr. Adams, who had taken high honours at Cambridge. This young man and M. Leverrier, the celebrated French astronomer, had separately calculated the orbit of Neptune and announced it so nearly at thesame time, that each country claims the honour of the discovery. Mr. Adams told Somerville that the following sentence in the sixth edition of the "Connexion of the Physical Sciences," published in the year 1842, put it into his head to calculate the orbit of Neptune. "If after the lapse of years the tables formed from a combination of numerous observations should be still inadequate to represent the motions of Uranus, the discrepancies may reveal the existence, nay, even the mass and orbit of a body placed for ever beyond the sphere of vision." That prediction was fulfilled in 1846, by the discovery of Neptune revolving at the distance of 3,000,000,000 of miles from the sun. The mass of Neptune, the size and position of his orbit in space, and his periodic time, were determined from his disturbing action on Uranus before the planet itself had been seen.
We left Collingwood as ever with regret.
The following is an extract from a letter written by my mother during this visit:—