lection of books is the largest in the kingdom,
and valuable beyond calculation. It amounts to seven hundred thousand.
We looked at illuminated gospels, Bibles, missals, till we were
bewildered with the gold and purple splendor; and then we walked from
one glass case to another, gazing upon autographs that made us
heart-sick when we thought of our juvenile treasures in this line. If
ever I did covet any thing, it was some old scraps of paper which had
the handwriting of Milton, Cromwell, Luther, Melancthon, Erasmus, and a
long _et caetera_ of such worthies. You know how much we love medals and
coins; well, here we revelled to our heart's delight. Country after
country has its history here, beautifully illustrated. The museum has
two spacious rooms devoted to reading, and the access to these treasures
is very liberal.

If I could stay in London one year, I should certainly propose to spend
three or four months in study and research at the British Museum; nor do
I imagine that it would be lost time. It seems to me that such a place
must make scholars; but I know, by my own painful recollection, that
opportunities for improvement are not always valued as they should be. I
have been much struck lately with the thought that men of leisure are
not the men who do much in literature. It never has been so. Here and
there a rich man cultivates his mind; but it is your busy men who leave
the mark upon the age.

While in the museum, we were shown Lord Chief Justice Campbell, the
author of the Lives of the Chancellors, &c. He is a working-man, if
there be one in England, and yet he finds time to elaborate volume upon
volume. I feel ashamed when I think how little I have acquired, how very
little I know that I might have understood, and what immensely larger
acquisitions have been made by those who have never enjoyed half my
advantages. There is a boy, only fifteen, who resorts to this museum,
and is said to understand its contents better than most of its visitors;
and a livery servant, some few years ago, used to spend all his hours of
leisure here, and wrote some excellent papers upon historical subjects.
If I have gained any good by my journey yet, it is the conviction, I
feel growing stronger every day, that I must work, and that every one
must work, in order to excel. It seems to me that we are in a fair way
to learn much in our present tour, for every day's excursion becomes a
matter of regular study when we come to our journa