Belzoni was a very interesting character, and a man of great natural refinement.  After the publication of his work, he became one of the fashionable lions of London, but was very sensitive about his early career, and very sedulous to sink the posture-master in the traveller.  He was often present at Mr. Murray’s receptions; and on one particular occasion he was invited to join the family circle in Albemarle Street on the last evening of 1822, to see the Old Year out and the New Year in.  All Mr. Murray’s young people were present, as well as the entire D’Israeli family and Crofton Croker.  After a merry game of Pope Joan, Mr. Murray presented each of the company with a pocket-book as a New Year’s gift.  A special bowl of punch was brewed for the occasion, and, while it was being prepared, Mr. Isaac D’Israeli took up Crofton Croker’s pocket-book, and with his pencil wrote the following impromptu words: 

“Gigantic Belzoni at Pope Joan and tea. 
What a group of mere puppets we seem beside thee;
Which, our kind host perceiving, with infinite zest,
Gives us Punch at our supper, to keep up the jest.”

The lines were pronounced to be excellent, and Belzoni, wishing to share in the enjoyment, desired to see the words.  He read the last line twice over, and then, his eyes flashing fire, he exclaimed, “I am betrayed!” and suddenly left the room.  Crofton Croker called upon Belzoni to ascertain the reason for his abrupt departure from Mr. Murray’s, and was informed that he considered the lines to be an insulting allusion to his early career as a showman.  Croker assured him that neither Murray nor D’Israeli knew anything of his former life; finally he prevailed upon Belzoni to accompany him to Mr. Murray’s, who for the first time learnt that the celebrated Egyptian explorer had many years before been an itinerant exhibitor in England.

In 1823 Belzoni set out for Morocco, intending to penetrate thence to Eastern Africa; he wrote to Mr. Murray from Gibraltar, thanking him for many acts of kindness, and again from Tangier.

M.G.  Belzoni to John Murray.

April 10, 1823.

“I have just received permission from H.M. the Emperor of Morocco to go to Fez, and am in hopes to obtain his approbation to enter the desert along with the caravan to Soudan.  The letter of introduction from Mr. Wilmot to Mr. Douglas has been of much importance to me; this gentleman fortunately finds pleasure in affording me all the assistance in his power to promote my wishes, a circumstance which I have not been accustomed to meet in some other parts of Africa.  I shall do myself the pleasure to acquaint you of my further progress at Fez, if not from some other part of Morocco.”

Belzoni would appear to have changed his intention, and endeavoured to penetrate to Timbuctoo from Benin, where, however, he was attacked by dysentery, and died a short time after the above letter was written.