Friday m[orni]ng
My dear Tom.
I have delivered your message to Mrs. Tunstal.2 Debus is here with me at present—My health is quite good—all I need is to live according to the law of Reason to keep it good. The Juveniles are past;3 and thank the gods without a failure. I at first thought I should have no audience. The American affair4 & the Prince Consorts death5 turned peoples minds away from science—But to my surprise the audience amounted to nearly 500—The felicitations have been general—Everybody says that every body was gratified and thus this piece of work has rolled pleasantly off my hands.
Debus will be here when you return on Sunday.6 Until then believe me
Yours affectionately | John
RI MS JT/1/T/972
[10 January 1862]: see n. 3 and 6 for rationale.
Mrs Tunstal: Hirst and Tyndall’s housekeeper at 14 Waverley Place.
The Juveniles are past: Tyndall gave his last of six Christmas Lectures for a juvenile audience on Tuesday 7 January 1862.
The American affair: This may refer to the Trent affair that had threatened to precipitate a war between the United Kingdom and America, then in the throes of the civil war. See letter 1855, n. 3.
The Prince Consorts death: Prince Albert died on 14 December 1861.
when you return on Sunday: Hirst did return on Sunday 12 January and found Debus with Tyndall. See Hirst Journal, 19 January 1862, RI MS JT/2/32c/1600.
Please cite as “Tyndall1856,” in Ɛpsilon: The John Tyndall Collection accessed on