as it were through a mist. After no long time, however, the mist begins to clear away, and whoever has advanced thus far finds no diffi.. culty afterwards. Every case is an interesting subject of enquiry. A great game is being played, in which the stake is often neither more nor less than the life or death of a fellow-creature, and in which those among the students who devote themselves to their business perform a humble yet not unimportant part without any painful feeling of responsibility. Not many months elapsed before I became sensible of the good effect of these new studies, and of the wisdom of Dr. Baillie's advice that I should make myself a tolerably complete anatomist before I commenced my attendance at the hospital; as I found that I was able to comprehend many things that were passing under my observation which I could never have properly comprehended otherwise, and in which those who were less prepared in this respect were little able to understand.

During the summer of 1803 I never failed to pass the early part of the day in the wards of

the hospital. In the afternoon I usually dined by myself at my lodgings in Knightsbridge, and in the evening read some Latin classics, and other books which formed my scanty library, or a novel from a small circulating library at Brompton, or walked in Kensington Gardens. As the season advanced, most of my friends left London. A few, however, remained, whom I met occasionally; among them was Dibdin, since known by his works on Bibliography, who at that time resided at Kensington, not very far from my lodgings at Knightsbridge, and with whom I occasionally wandered to hear the nightingales in the lane beyond Holland House. September I returned to my father's house at Winterslow, intending to remain there only for a short time, and to be in London again when the lectures in Windmill Street were resumed on the 1st of October. I had not, however, been long in the country before I had an attack of fever, which confined me for some time to my bed. On my recovery, my father took me to the seaside at Mudeford, in Hampshire, from whence I returned to London at the end of Oc

In

tober. This was the last opportunity I had of seeing my father. He drove me in his phaeton. to Lymington, where I found the mail-coach which conveyed me to Southampton. On the following morning I embarked in one of the long stage-coaches then in use (like a modern omnibus), which conveyed me to London. It was a melancholy journey. My father's health was visibly failing; though, as far as my bodily powers were concerned, I had pretty well recovered from the effects of my illness, my animal spirits were at a very low ebb. I had never before, and have never since then, been in so desponding a state of mind; and I shall never forget the feelings which oppressed me as I passed through the romantic scenery of the New Forest, or as I sate on the following day, with eleven other passengers, in the slow-going long coach. It seemed as if I was not equal to climbing the mountain which lay before me; yet I was sensible that I had no alternative, and that I must either climb it or starve. This state of mind, however, was not of long duration: I was soon hard at work, and forgot my anxieties.

I now removed to some lodgings in May Fair, which, being situated between Hyde Park Corner and Great Windmill Street, enabled me more easily to divide my studies between the hospital and the school of anatomy. At the latter I had obtained some credit with Mr. Wilson and his colleague Mr. Thomas. The latter only delivered a few of the anatomical lectures, but it was understood that he was to superintend the dissections, and give an anatomical demonstration for an hour daily in the dissectingroom. He was not very fond of his vocation as a teacher, and as he was acquiring a considerable share of private practice, he was led to play truant a good deal. When he did so, he was accustomed to ask me to give the demonstration in his place; an arrangement which was attended with no difficulty, as both Mr. Wilson and the students were, or seemed to be, well satisfied with it, and as I felt myself sufficiently rewarded for the trouble which it gave me by the position in which it placed me above that of the ordinary students.

During this winter (1803-1804) I still con

tinued to attend the meetings of the Academical Society, and kept up my intercourse with my former friends about the Inns of Court. By great prudence I continued to live with sufficient comfort without making more than a very moderate demand on my father's limited means, and was never once in debt. I felt, however, that it would be very convenient to me indeed to have a little more money at my disposal. Some of my friends at this time obtained some additions to their incomes by writing for magazines and other publications. Ellis especially in great measure maintained himself in that way, and it came into my mind that I might follow his example. I offered a disquisition on the study of metaphysics to Richard Phillips, who published the Monthly Magazine' (and who was afterwards Sir Richard Phillips, and himself the author of a crazy work on Natural Philosophy). Phillips declined to accept it, in which he was quite right; it was a very absurd production. He did not, however, altogether decline my services. One of his speculations was the publication of a book under the name of 'The Annual

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