weeks I wrote my first Russian letter to a Russian in London, and I was able to converse fluently in this language with the Russian merchants who had come to Amsterdam for the indigo auctions.
After I had concluded my study of the Russian language, I began to occupy myself seriously with the literatures of the languages which I had learnt.
In the beginning of the year 1846, my worthy principals sent me as their agent to St. Petersburg, where a year later I established a mercantile house on my own account; but, during the first eight or nine years that I spent in Russia, I was so overwhelmed with work that I could not continue my linguistic studies, and it was not till the year 1854 that I found it possible to acquire the Swedish and Polish languages.
Great as was my wish to learn Greek, I did not venture upon its study till I had acquired a moderate fortune; for I was afraid that this language would exercise too great a fascination upon me and estrange me from my commercial business. When, however, I could no longer restrain my desire for learning, I at last set vigorously to work at Greek in January 1856; first with Mr. N. Pappadakes, and then with Mr. Th. Vimpos of Athens, always following my old method. It did not take me more than six weeks to master the difficulties of modern Greek, and I then applied myself to the ancient language, of which in three months I learned sufficient to understand some of the ancient authors, and especially Homer, whom I read and re-read with the most lively enthusiasm.
I then occupied myself for two years exclusively with the ancient Greek literature; and during this time I read almost all the old authors cursorily, and the Iliad and Odyssey several times.
In the year 1858 I travelled to Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Italy and Egypt, where I sailed up the Nile as far as the second cataract in Nubia. I availed myself of this opportunity to learn Arabic, and I afterwards travelled across the desert from Cairo to Jerusalem. I visited Petra, traversed the whole of Syria, and in this manner I had abundant opportunity of acquiring a practical knowledge of Arabic, the deeper study of which I afterwards continued in St. Petersburg. After leaving Syria, I visited Athens in the summer
