The party arrived in Brussels precisely two hours and a half from the time they left the farmer's house. Of course it was too late for the afternoon performance, and hundreds of people had been turned away disappointed. CHAPTER XIV. IN ENGLAND AGAIN. EGYPTIAN HALL AND THE ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS--THE SPECIAL TRAIN--OXFORD--STRATFORD-ON-AVON--GUY OF WARWICK RELICS--PURCHASE OF THE "HAPPY FAMILY"--RETURN TO AMERICA. In London the General again opened his levees in Egyptian Hall, with increased success. His unbounded popularity on the Continent, and his receptions by King Louis Philippe, of France, and King Leopold, of Belgium, had added greatly to his prestige and fame. Those who had seen him when he was in London months before came to see him again, and new visitors crowded by thousands to the General's levees. Besides giving these daily entertainments, the General appeared occasionally for an hour, during the intermissions, at some place in the suburbs; and for a long time he appeared every day at the Surrey Zoological Gardens, under the direction of the proprietor, Mr. W. Tyler. This place subsequently became celebrated for its great music hall, in which Spurgeon, the sensational preacher, first attained his notoriety. The place was always crowded, and when the General had gone through with his performances on the little stage, in order that all might see him, he was put into a balloon, which, secured by ropes, was then passed around the ground, just above the people's heads. Some forty men managed the ropes and prevented the balloon from rising; but, one day, a sudden gust of wind took the balloon fairly out of the hands of half the men who had hold of the ropes, while others were lifted from the ground, and had not an alarm been instantly given, which called at least two hundred to the rescue, the little General would have been lost. In October Barnum made a flying visit to America, remaining long enough to renew the lease of the Museum building, and to attend to various other business matters. When he returned he was accompanied by his wife and daughters. They took a furnished house, which, during all their three months' residence, was the scene of constant hospitality, all the distinguished people in London being entertained there. When the engagement at Egyptian Hall expired they made an extensive tour through England and Scotland, going as far north as Aberdeen. The General's Scotch costumes, his national dances and the "bit of dialect" which he had acquired had long been a feature of the performance and was especially admired in Scotland. The party travelled much of the time in Barnum's own carriage, the General's carriage, ponies and other properties being conveyed in a huge van. They found this way of travelling more comfortable than the other, besides enabling them to visit out of the way places, where often the most successful exhibitions were given.