That the Royal Institution is, indeed, well worth visiting it must be quite unnecessary to say. Even was there not much to be seen which is of itself interesting, the place would have an attraction as being the place where so much has been done for the advancement of science by Faraday, his predecessors, Davy, Rumford, and Brande, and by Tyndall, and other successors. [Illustration: _From photo by_] LECTURE-THEATRE, ROYAL INSTITUTION. [_H. Dixon & Son_.] On entering the building we find ourselves in a lofty hall; in front of us, at the head of a short flight of stone steps, is a large portrait of Sir Humphry Davy, while to the right we see Foley's fine and striking statue of Faraday, which was placed there as being the most fitting memorial of the great man's connection with the Institution. On going up the flight of steps to the right, we find ourselves in the well-appointed library, where we are shown under a glass case a beautiful little statuette of Faraday, and also a large photograph portrait of the philosopher. We next visit the lecture-theatre, our eyes being immediately drawn to the "seat over the clock," where Michael Faraday as a boy first sat, and listened and marvelled at the wonders of chemistry unfolded before him by the great Humphry Davy. This theatre it may be noted is one of the best for its acoustic properties in London. Well may we pause here--thinking of the great men who have lectured here, and of the great men who have come here to listen. It may be mentioned that the lectures are not strictly confined to scientific subjects, for it was here, in 1812, that Thomas Campbell gave his course of lectures on poetry, and that another poet--Thomas Moore--was also invited to lecture. From the lecture-theatre we are taken downstairs to see the room where all the numerous instruments and materials are kept. Here we are shown the primitive electrical machine, which Faraday early constructed for himself, and many of the things which he used in his work; here, too, we have pointed out to us a large glass-case running along one side of the room, and divided into sections, each section containing the tools and appliances used by one or other of the great men of the Institution, Davy and Brande and Faraday himself. In several of the smaller rooms through which we are permitted to pass, we notice among the many portraits several of the subjects of this little work. And among other interesting things especially pointed out to us there is a locked glass-case "presented to the Royal Institution by Michael and Sarah Faraday" (it was characteristic of Faraday thus to put his wife in as one of the donors). This case contains several books which Michael had himself bound in those days when, disliking trade, he was seeking to enter the service of science. There are, besides, several books of Davy's and several manuscripts of his also, which his assistant had carefully kept.