Faraday to Julius Plücker   29 March 1860

Royal Institution | 29 March 1860

My dear Professor

It is a long while since I have written to you¹ - too long but the fact is that the writing a letter or any action that calls upon memory is a burden to me - and not merely that but often makes my head ache and obliges me to cease - I am fit for nothing now but small gentle acts of thinking - I have just read over your last letter² and the description therein given of the light of the discharge in narrow tubes & the spectra which you obtain. They seem to me very wonderful but I cannot as I read retain the case of each vapour sufficiently to compare one with the other in my mind - or the phenomena altogether with - the luminous phenomena before known. In fact the luminous phenomena of the Electric discharge across very rare media are so numerous so varied so indicative and yet as it appears to me so little understood in respect of their law of fundamental principle that I can not retain them in my mind - for I have no memory & memory only can keep hold of them.

But though I cannot discuss these beautiful phenomena with you I can enjoy them & your success in the development of them & I doubt not that some day the whole beautiful encircling cloud of luminous results will open out into perfect order & intelligence & you will either produce that result or be a chief leader in obtaining it[.]

In the mean time I commend myself to you as an old worker in science one that loves to look on the present bands of worker[s] & as far as he can to keep up a relation with them if it be only be reminiscences & the memory of past times. And so it is that I write you now though I have no science to send you and am ashamed that I have not written before to thank you for yours & to say how heartily I am

My dear Professor | Your Obliged | M. Faraday

Profr. Plucker | &c &c &c