Davy makes a tour with Mr. Purkis, through Wales.--Beautiful phenomenon observed from the summit of Arran Benllyn.--Letter to Mr. Gilbert.--Journal of the Institution.--Davy's papers on Eudiometry, and other subjects.--His first communication to the Royal Society, on a new galvanic pile.--He is proposed as a Fellow, and elected into the Society.--His paper on astringent vegetable substances, and on their operation in tanning leather.--His letter to Mr. Poole.--He is appointed Chemical Lecturer to the Board of Agriculture.--He forms friendships with the Duke of Bedford, Mr. Coke, and many other celebrated agriculturists.--Attends the sheep-shearing at Holkham and Woburn.--Composes a Prologue to the "Honey-Moon." After the fatigues and anxieties of his first session, Davy sought relaxation and repose amidst the magnificent scenery of Wales. The following letter will serve more fully to exhibit the enthusiasm he experienced in contemplating Nature in her wild and simplest forms. TO SAMUEL PURKIS, ESQ. Matlock, August 15, 1802. MY DEAR FRIEND, Had I been alone, and perfectly independent as to my plans, I should probably have written to you long ago. I should have begged you to hasten your departure, so that we might have rejoiced together in Wales, under the influence of that moon which is now full in all its glory; for Derbyshire, taken as a whole, has not pleased me. A few beautiful valleys, placed at the distance of many miles from each other, do not compensate for the almost uniform wildness and brown barrenness of the hills and plains; and in the watering places, there is little amongst the _living beings_ to awaken deep moral feelings, or to call the nobler powers of the mind, which act in consequence of sympathy, into existence. I have longed for the mountain scenery, and for the free inhabitants of North Wales; and even the majestic valleys of the Wye and the Derwent have been to me but typical of something more perfect in beauty and grandeur. Whenever it shall seem fitting to you, I shall be prepared for our long contemplated journey, and do not delay your departure;--_before_ the 21st would be more agreeable to me than _after_ that period; and then we shall be able to view the horns of the next moon, where they are most beautiful. I have enquired much concerning Dove-dale, since I have been here, and, from the most accurate accounts, I am inclined to believe that it is inferior, in point of sublime scenery, to _Chee Tor_, near Bakewell, and in beauty, to the valley of the _Great Tor_, in which I am now writing. On the whole, I think your best plan will be to meet me at Matlock, which you must see, and then, in our route to Buxton, we can visit the valley of the Wye, and the most noble _Chee Tor_.