To Thomas Archer Hirst   Tuesday evening | 28th. March 1854

Tuesday evening | 28th. March 1854.

My dear Tom

I have just reached home after the completion of my 11th. lecture.¹ I am tired, tired with the walk and tired with the talk, but it is a wholesome kind of weariness, a weariness to which rest is sweet and salutary. I have had my tea and slice of brown loaf the weather is wild without and my fire sparkles within – I have ink and paper and a friend to write to and have therefore reason to thank the gods for their bounty to me. I quite agree with your remark concerning DuBois,² it would be perfectly useless to write to him as I suggested, and if you have not done so, do not do it. It is only an indication of haste or weakness on my part when I evince any anxiety to set such matters right. It is not by logic that I ever expect to prove to DuBois or any body else the rectitude of my conduct. Surely there are rewards open to him who acts an upright part irrespective of the approbation of his fellows. Simply there are whispers sometimes audible to the human soul which reveal secret sources of support and encouragement of which the world seldom dreams. I am at peace when I trust these whispers fully, and am at war with myself when I try to gain the praise of men. Not that I contemn³ man’s good will; but there ought to be a power in the soul which shall enable it to hold things precious without longing for them – a great sacrificial capability to renounce the desired object without loss of serenity. But where am I wandering? DuBois has set me off. Now my feeling towards DuBois is twofold I wrote to him once for a testimonial⁴ and he sent me a capital one.⁵ We have spent many pleasant hours together in Berlin; when I think of this my heart softens and I deprecate the idea of a coolness establishing itself between us. Again I look upon circumstances which reveal to me his enormous avidity for scientific fame; and the utter absence of that [unhasting] trust which in my opinion is the first qualification of a great mind. When I dwell upon this side of the picture I am disposed to be indifferent. Or perhaps a dash of anger rises in my own heart and I say with a feeling which has a slight tincture of the diabolical in it ‘I will shew you some day that I had a right to volunteer an opinion upon your animal electricity.’ But such feelings are transitory, and as the spring advances and the trees begin to sprout into verdure⁶ my heart opens in sympathy with that of nature and all the gall⁷ runs away. Unfortunately I have not your letter⁸ beside me and I am not sure that I remember all its contents. The plan you propose seems to me a very good one. I think you said you break up on the 12th. and that you have a mutual improvement Society⁹ on the 8th. Well this is very tempting and then the stroll on Sunday would be worth gold to me. I am almost inclined to close with the plan. And then you have a concert¹⁰ on Tuesday. It would be harsh to judge of me from the last concert¹¹ I did not appear to enjoy it, but I did so until my head gave way in a rare and singular manner. A dull sleepiness beset my brain which must have been evident to every body. I have rarely before or since felt any thing in my head so peculiar and so sudden in its appearance as what I experienced that night. The probability therefore is if I go to Queenwood at all that I shall be only too glad to join your concert and sing you a song myself if such an honour be permitted to me. With regard to Ruhmkorff’s apparatus¹² I have myself only read a scrap or two in the Comptes Rendus¹³ from which you could derive no benefit. As regards induced currents generally I would recommend you to study the original investigation of Faraday upon the subject. It is the first paper in the first volume of his ‘Experimental Researches.’¹⁴ You must help yourself to experiments. If I go down I will shew you a number of the principal ones, and I doubt not you will readily contrive others. I don’t think you could get a shock through a glass handle unless it were wet. Perhaps you had the glass handle in one hand and touched the induction wire with the other; if so the glass is no protection to you: it is not necessary to lay hold with both hands to get the shock. If a single hand touch it is sufficient. For many experiments a good air pump is indispensable. I hope your pump is in good order.

Ginty is going to south America on the 9th. of April. He sails from Southampton¹⁵ in the Great Western. We might perhaps take a trip over and see him set sail.

The sirene¹⁶ reached me to day – it was addressed to the Revd. Dr. Hirst care of the Revd. Dr. Tyndall. I redirected it and probably it is sent to the carriers by this time.

I am now wandering into twaddle, forsaking by slow degrees the sentiment which actuated me at the outset of the letter. It is like turning from the song of a seraph¹⁷ to listen to the gossip of old women. But here my philosophy may be at fault. However I wont analyze it lest my head should ache. If I go to Queenwood Heinrich¹⁸ must be prepared to go through a number of those combustion experiments with me. I hope he will not forget this, but in his leisure moments put a little material aside so that it may be ready if I come. But a truce to science; it has invaded the sanctity of my thoughts while writing this letter and I will now expel it from my brain perforce.

Goodbye | Your affectionate | John

RI MS JT/1/HTYP/331–332

LT Typescript Only