Explorations in Bible lands during the 19th century - H. V. Hilprecht

DURING 19 CENTURY: ASSYRIA AND BABYLONIA 89
and archaeology, and that characteristic love for travel and
adventure which prepared him so well for his later nomadic
life and career as an explorer. When about sixteen vears
of age he was sent to the house of his uncle in
London to
study law. But, to quote his own words, "after spending
nearly six years in the office of a solicitor, and in the chambers
of an eminent conveyancer, I determined for various
reasons to leave England and to seek a career elsewhere."
From his childhood well acquainted with several European
languages, and familiar with the manners of men in various
European lands, he now longed to see the fascinating Orient
itself, the land of the " Arabian Nights," which had often
inflamed his youthful mind. With the greatest eagerness
he had devoured every volume of Eastern travel that fell
in his way. The reading of the works of Morier, Malcolm,
and Rich, and the personal acquaintance with men like
Baillie Fraser (comp. pp. 54, seqq. y
above) and Sir Charles
Fellowes, favorably known from his discoveries
ruined cities
among the
of Asia Minor, had inspired him with an ardent
desire to follow in their footsteps.
In order to prepare himself
for his journey, he had mastered the Arabic letters,
picked up a little of the Persian language, taken lessons in
the use of the sextant from a retired captain of the merchant
service, and even hastily acquired a superficial
medical
knowledge of the treatment of wounds and certain Oriental
diseases.
In the company of another enthusiastic traveller, E. L.
Mitford, who, like Layard himself, 1 has left us a narrative
1
Comp. Layard, " Early Adventures in Persia, Susiana, and Babylonia,
including a Residence among the Bakhtiyari and other Wild Tribes before
the Discovery of Nineveh," 1st ed., London, 1887, 2 vols. The second
edition (London, 1894, 1 vol.), an abridgment of the first, and omitting a
description of the countries through which Layard and Mitford travelled
together, has an introductory chapter on the author's life and work by his
surviving friend, Lord Aberdare.
8