LOUIS AGASSIZ

HIS LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

EDITED BY

ELIZABETH CARY AGASSIZ. 

PREFACE. 

I am aware that this book has neither the fullness of personalnarrative, nor the closeness of scientific analysis, which its toocomprehensive title might lead the reader to expect. A word ofexplanation is therefore needed. I thought little at first of thegeneral public, when I began to weave together in narrative formthe facts, letters, and journals contained in this volume. My chiefobject was to prevent the dispersion and final loss of scatteredpapers which had an unquestionable family value. But, as my workgrew upon my hands, I began to feel that the story of anintellectual life, which was marked by such rare coherence andunity of aim, might have a wider interest and usefulness; might, perhaps, serve as a stimulus and an encouragement to others. Forthis reason, and also because I am inclined to believe that theEuropean portion of the life of Louis Agassiz is little known inhis adopted country, while its American period must be unfamiliarto many in his native land, I have determined to publish thematerial here collected. 

The book labors under the disadvantage of being in great part atranslation. The correspondence for the first part was almostwholly in French and German, so that the choice lay between apatch-work of several languages or the unity of one, burdened as itmust be with the change of version. I have accepted what seemed tome the least of these difficulties. 

Besides the assistance of my immediate family, including therevision of the text by my son Alexander Agassiz, I have beenindebted to my friends Dr. And Mrs. Hagen and to the late ProfessorGuyot for advice on special points. As will be seen from the listof illustrations, I have also to thank Mrs. John W. Elliot for hervaluable aid in that part of the work. 

On the other side of the water I have had most faithful andefficient collaborators. Mr. Auguste Agassiz, who survived hisbrother Louis several years, and took the greatest interest inpreserving whatever concerned his scientific career, confided to myhands many papers and documents belonging to his brother's earlierlife. After his death, his cousin and brother-in-law, Mr. AugusteMayor, of Neuchatel, continued the same affectionate service. Without their aid I could not have completed the narrative as itnow stands. 

The friend last named also selected from the glacier of the Aar, atthe request of Alexander Agassiz, the boulder which now marks hisfather's grave. With unwearied patience Mr. Mayor passed hours oftoilsome search among the blocks of the moraine near the site ofthe old "Hotel des Neuchatelois, " and chose at last a stone somonumental in form that not a touch of the hammer was needed to fitit for its purpose. In conclusion I allow myself the pleasure ofrecording here my gratitude to him and to all who have aided me inmy work. 

ELIZABETH C. AGASSIZ. 

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts, June 11, 1885. 

CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER 1. 

1807-1827: TO AGE 20. 

Birthplace. --Influence of his Mother. --Early Love of NaturalHistory. --Boyish Occupations. --Domestic Education. --First School. --Vacations. --Commercial Life renounced. --College of Lausanne. --Choice of Profession. --Medical School of Zurich. --Life andStudies there. --University of Heidelberg. --Studies interrupted byIllness. --Return to Switzerland. --Occupations during Convalescence. 

CHAPTER 2. 

1827-1828: AGE 20-21. 

Arrival in Munich. --Lectures. --Relations with the Professors. --Schelling, Martius, Oken, Dollinger. --Relations withFellow-Students. --The Little Academy. --Plans for Traveling. --Advicefrom his Parents. --Vacation Journey. --Tri-Centennial Durer Festivalat Nuremberg. 

CHAPTER 3. 

1828-1829: AGE 21-22. 

First Important Work in Natural History. --Spix's Brazilian Fishes. --Second Vacation Trip. --Sketch of Work during University Year. --Extracts from the Journal of Mr. Dinkel. --Home Letters. --Hope ofjoining Humboldt's Asiatic Expedition. --Diploma of Philosophy. --Completion of First Part of the Spix Fishes. --Letter concerningit from Cuvier. 

CHAPTER 4. 

1829-1830: AGE 22-23. 

Scientific Meeting at Heidelberg. --Visit at Home. --Illness andDeath of his Grandfather. --Return to Munich. --Plans for FutureScientific Publications. --Takes his Degree of Medicine. --Visit toVienna. --Return to Munich. --Home Letters. --Last Days at Munich. --Autobiographical Review of School and University Life. 

CHAPTER 5. 

1830-1832: AGE 23-25. 

Year at Home. --Leaves Home for Paris. --Delays on the Road. --Cholera. --Arrival in Paris. --First Visit to Cuvier. --Cuvier'sKindness. --His Death. --Poverty in Paris. --Home Letters concerningEmbarrassments and about his Work. --Singular Dream. 

CHAPTER 6. 

1832: AGE 25. 

Unexpected Relief from Difficulties. --Correspondence with Humboldt. --Excursion to the Coast of Normandy. --First Sight of the Sea. --Correspondence concerning Professorship at Neuchatel. --BirthdayFete. --Invitation to Chair of Natural History at Neuchatel. --Acceptance. --Letter to Humboldt. 

CHAPTER 7. 

1832-1834: AGE 25-27. 

Enters upon his Professorship at Neuchatel. --First Lecture. --Success as a Teacher. --Love of Teaching. --Influence upon theScientific Life of Neuchatel. --Proposal from University ofHeidelberg. --Proposal declined. --Threatened Blindness. --Correspondence with Humboldt. --Marriage. --Invitation fromCharpentier. --Invitation to visit England. --Wollaston Prize. --FirstNumber of "Poissons Fossiles. "--Review of the Work. 

CHAPTER 8. 

1834-1837: AGE 27-30. 

First Visit to England. --Reception by Scientific Men. --Work onFossil Fishes there. --Liberality of English Naturalists. --FirstRelations with American Science. --Farther Correspondence withHumboldt. --Second Visit to England. --Continuation of "FossilFishes. "--Other Scientific Publications. --Attention drawn toGlacial Phenomena. --Summer at Bex with Charpentier. --Sale ofOriginal Drawings for "Fossil Fishes. "--Meeting of HelveticSociety. --Address on Ice-Period. --Letters from Humboldt and VonBuch. 

CHAPTER 9. 

1837-1839: AGE 30-32. 

Invitation to Professorships at Geneva and Lausanne. --Death of hisFather. --Establishment of Lithographic Press at Neuchatel. --Researches upon Structure of Mollusks. --Internal Casts of Shells. --Glacial Explorations. --Views of Buckland. --Relations with ArnoldGuyot. --Their Work together in the Alps. --Letter to Sir PhilipEgerton concerning Glacial Work. --Summer of 1839. --Publication of"Etudes sur les Glaciers. "

CHAPTER 10. 

1840-1842: AGE 33-35. 

Summer Station on the Glacier of the Aar. --Hotel des Neuchatelois. --Members of the Party. --Work on the Glacier. --Ascent of theStrahleck and the Siedelhorn. --Visit to England. --Search forGlacial Remains in Great Britain. --Roads of Glen Roy. --Views ofEnglish Naturalists concerning Agassiz's Glacial Theory. --Letterfrom Humboldt. --Winter Visit to Glacier. --Summer of 1841 on theGlacier. --Descent into the Glacier. --Ascent of the Jungfrau. 

CHAPTER 11. 

1842-1843: AGE 35-36. 

Zoological Work uninterrupted by Glacial Researches. --VariousPublications. --"Nomenclator Zoologicus. "--"Bibliographia Zoologiaeet Geologiae. "--Correspondence with English Naturalists. --Correspondence with Humboldt. --Glacial Campaign of 1842. --Correspondence with Prince de Canino concerning Journey to UnitedStates. --Fossil Fishes from the Old Red Sandstone. --GlacialCampaign of 1843. --Death of Leuthold, the Guide. 

CHAPTER 12. 

1843-1846: AGE 36-39. 

Completion of Fossil Fishes. --Followed by Fossil Fishes of the OldRed Sandstone. --Review of the Later Work. --Identification of Fishesby the Skull. --Renewed Correspondence with Prince Canino aboutJourney to the United States. --Change of Plan owing to the Interestof the King of Prussia in the Expedition. --Correspondence betweenProfessor Sedgwick and Agassiz on Development Theory. --FinalScientific Work in Neuchatel and Paris. --Publication of "SystemeGlaciaire. "--Short Stay in England. --Farewell Letter from Humboldt. --Sails for United States. 

CHAPTER 13. 

1846: AGE 39. 

Arrival at Boston. --Previous Correspondence with Charles Lyell andMr. John A. Lowell concerning Lectures at the Lowell Institute. --Relations with Mr. Lowell. --First Course of Lectures. --Characterof Audience. --Home Letter giving an Account of his first Journey inthe United States. --Impressions of Scientific Men, ScientificInstitutions and Collections. 

CHAPTER 14. 

1846-1847: AGE 39-40. 

Course of Lectures in Boston on Glaciers. --Correspondence withScientific Friends in Europe. --House in East Boston. --Household andHousekeeping. --Illness. --Letter to Elie de Beaumont. --Letter toJames D. Dana. 

CHAPTER 15. 

1847-1850: AGE 40-43. 

Excursions on Coast Survey Steamer. --Relations with Dr. Bache, theSuperintendent of the Coast Survey. --Political Disturbances inSwitzerland. --Change of Relations with Prussia. --Scientific Schoolestablished in Cambridge. --Chair of Natural History offered toAgassiz. --Acceptance. --Removal to Cambridge. --Literary andScientific Associations there and in Boston. --Household inCambridge. --Beginning of Museum. --Journey to Lake Superior. --"Report, with Narration. "--"Principles of Zoology, " by Agassiz andGould. --Letters from European Friends respecting thesePublications. --Letter from Hugh Miller. --Second Marriage. --Arrivalof his Children in America. 

CHAPTER 16. 

1850-1852: AGE 43-45. 

Proposition from Dr. Bache. --Exploration of Florida Reefs. --Letterto Humboldt concerning Work in America. --Appointment toProfessorship of Medical College in Charleston, S. C. --Life at theSouth. --Views concerning Races of Men. --Prix Cuvier. 

CHAPTER 17. 

1852-1855: AGE 45-48. 

Return to Cambridge. --Anxiety about Collections. --Purchase ofCollections. --Second Winter in Charleston. --Illness. --Letter toJames D. Dana concerning Geographical Distribution and GeologicalSuccession of Animals. --Resignation of Charleston Professorship. --Propositions from Zurich. --Letter to Oswald Heer. --Decision toremain in Cambridge. --Letters to James D. Dana, S. S. Haldeman, andOthers respecting Collections illustrative of the Distribution ofFishes, Shells, etc. , in our Rivers. --Establishment of School forGirls. 

CHAPTER 18. 

1855-1860: AGE 48-53. 

"Contributions to Natural History of the United States. "--Remarkable Subscription. --Review of the Work. --Its Reception inEurope and America. --Letters from Humboldt and Owen concerning it. --Birthday. --Longfellow's Verses. --Laboratory at Nahant. --Invitation to the Museum of Natural History in Paris. --Foundingof Museum of Comparative Zoology in Cambridge. --Summer Vacation inEurope. 

CHAPTER 19. 

1860-1863: AGE 53-56. 

Return to Cambridge. --Removal of Collection to New Museum Building. --Distribution of Work. --Relations with his Students. --Breaking outof the War between North and South. --Interest of Agassiz in thePreservation of the Union. --Commencement of Museum Publications. --Reception of Third and Fourth Volumes of "Contributions. "--CopleyMedal. --General Correspondence. --Lecturing Tour in the West. --Circular Letter concerning Anthropological Collections. --Letterto Mr. Ticknor concerning Geographical Distribution of Fishes inSpain. 

CHAPTER 20. 

1863-1864: AGE 56-57. 

Correspondence with Dr. S. G. Howe. --Bearing of the War on thePosition of the Negro Race. --Affection for Harvard College. --Interest in her General Progress. --Correspondence with Emersonconcerning Harvard. --Glacial Phenomena in Maine. 

CHAPTER 21. 

1865-1868: AGE 58-61. 

Letter to his Mother announcing Journey to Brazil. --Sketch ofJourney. --Kindness of the Emperor. --Liberality of the BrazilianGovernment. --Correspondence with Charles Sumner. --Letter to hisMother at Close of Brazil Journey. --Letter from Martius concerningJourney in Brazil. --Return to Cambridge. --Lectures in Boston andNew York. --Summer at Nahant. --Letter to Professor Peirce on theSurvey of Boston Harbor. --Death of his Mother. --Illness. --Correspondence with Oswald Heer. --Summer Journey in the West. --Cornell University. --Letter from Longfellow. 

CHAPTER 22. 

1868-1871: AGE 61-64. 

New Subscription to Museum. --Additional Buildings. --Arrangement ofNew Collections. --Dredging Expedition on Board the Bibb. --Addressat the Humboldt Centennial. --Attack on the Brain. --Suspension ofWork. --Working Force at the Museum. --New Accessions. --Letter fromProfessor Sedgwick. --Letter from Professor Deshayes. --RestoredHealth. --Hassler Voyage proposed. --Acceptance. --ScientificPreparation for the Voyage. 

CHAPTER 23. 

1871-1872: AGE 64-65. 

Sailing of the Hassler. --Sargassum Fields. --Dredging at Barbados. --From the West Indies to Rio de Janeiro. --Monte Video. --Quarantine. --Glacial Traces in the Bay of Monte Video. --The Gulfof Mathias. --Dredging off Gulf of St. George. --Dredging off CapeVirgens. --Possession Bay. --Salt Pool. --Moraine. --Sandy Point. --Cruise through the Straits. --Scenery. --Wind Storm. --Borja Bay. --Glacier Bay. --Visit to the Glacier. --Chorocua Bay. 

CHAPTER 24. 

1872: AGE 65. 

Picnic in Sholl Bay. --Fuegians. --Smythe's Channel. --Comparison ofGlacial Features with those of the Strait of Magellan. --Ancud. --Port of San Pedro. --Bay of Concepcion. --Three Weeks inTalcahuana. --Collections. --Geology. --Land Journey to Santiago. --Scenes along the Road. --Report on Glacial Features to Mr. Peirce. --Arrival at Santiago. --Election as Foreign Associate of theInstitute of France. --Valparaiso. --The Galapagos. --Geological andZoological Features. --Arrival at San Francisco. 

CHAPTER 25. 

1872-1873: AGE 65-66. 

Return to Cambridge. --Summer School proposed. --Interest of Agassiz. --Gift of Mr. Anderson. --Prospectus of Penikese School. --Difficulties. --Opening of School. --Summer Work. --Close of School. --Last Course of Lectures at Museum. --Lecture before Board ofAgriculture. --Illness. --Death. --Place of Burial. 

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 

1. PORTRAIT OF LOUIS AGASSIZ AT THE AGE OF NINETEEN; copied by Mrs. John W. Elliot from a pastel drawing by Cecile Braun. 

2. THE STONE BASIN AT MOTIER; drawn by Mrs. Elliot from aphotograph. 

3. THE LABORATORY AT NAHANT; from a drawing by Mrs. Elliot. 

4. THE BIRTHPLACE OF LOUIS AGASSIZ; from a photograph. 

5. HOTEL DES NEUCHATELOIS; copied by Mrs. Elliot from an oil sketchmade on the spot by J. Burkhardt. 

6. PORTRAIT OF JACOB LEUTHOLD; from a portrait by Burkhardt. 

7. SECOND STATION ON THE AAR GLACIER; Copied by Mrs. Elliot from asketch in oil by J. Burkhardt. 

8. PORTRAIT OF LOUIS AGASSIZ AT THE AGE OF FIFTY-FIVE; originallypublished in "Nature". 

9. COTTAGE AT NAHANT; from a photograph. 

10. MUSEUM OF COMPARATIVE ZOOLOGY; from a photograph. 

11. PORTRAIT BUST OF AGASSIZ BY POWERS AT THE MUSEUM OF COMPARATIVEZOOLOGY; from a photograph. 

12. VIEW OF PENIKESE; from a photograph. 

***

LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

PART 1. IN EUROPE. 

CHAPTER 1. 

1807-1827: TO AGE 20. 

Birthplace. Influence of his Mother. Early Love of Natural History. Boyish Occupations. Domestic Education. First School. Vacations. Commercial Life renounced. College of Lausanne. Choice of Profession. Medical School of Zurich. Life and Studies there. University of Heidelberg. Studies interrupted by Illness. Return to Switzerland. Occupations during Convalescence. 

JEAN LOUIS RODOLPHE AGASSIZ was born May 28, 1807, at the villageof Motier, on the Lake of Morat. His father, Louis RodolpheAgassiz, was a clergyman; his mother, Rose Mayor, was the daughterof a physician whose home was at Cudrefin, on the shore of the Lakeof Neuchatel. 

The parsonages in Switzerland are frequently pretty andpicturesque. That of Motier, looking upon the lake and sheltered bya hill which commands a view over the whole chain of the BerneseAlps, was especially so. It possessed a vineyard large enough toadd something in good years to the small salary of the pastor; anorchard containing, among other trees, an apricot famed the countryaround for the unblemished beauty of its abundant fruit; a goodvegetable garden, and a delicious spring of water flowing alwaysfresh and pure into a great stone basin behind the house. Thatstone basin was Agassiz's first aquarium; there he had his firstcollection of fishes. * (* After his death a touching tribute waspaid to his memory by the inhabitants of his birthplace. Withappropriate ceremonies, a marble slab was placed above the door ofthe parsonage of Motier, with this inscription, "J. Louis Agassiz, celebre naturaliste, est ne dans cette maison, le 28 Mai, 1807. ")

It does not appear that he had any precocious predilection forstudy, and his parents, who for the first ten years of his lifewere his only teachers, were too wise to stimulate his mind beyondthe ordinary attainments of his age. Having lost her first fourchildren in infancy, his mother watched with trembling solicitudeover his early years. It was perhaps for this reason that she wasdrawn so closely to her boy, and understood that his love ofnature, and especially of all living things, was an intellectualtendency, and not simply a child's disposition to find friends andplaymates in the animals about him. In later years her sympathygave her the key to the work of his manhood, as it had done to thesports of his childhood. She remained his most intimate friend tothe last hour of her life, and he survived her but six years. 

Louis's love of natural history showed itself almost from infancy. When a very little fellow he had, beside his collection of fishes, all sorts of pets: birds, field-mice, hares, rabbits, guinea-pigs, etc. , whose families he reared with the greatest care. Guided byhis knowledge of the haunts and habits of fishes, he and hisbrother Auguste became the most adroit of young fishermen, --usingprocesses all their own and quite independent of hook, line, ornet. Their hunting grounds were the holes and crevices beneath thestones or in the water-washed walls of the lake shore. No suchshelter was safe from their curious fingers, and they acquired suchdexterity that when bathing they could seize the fish even in theopen water, attracting them by little arts to which the fishsubmitted as to a kind of fascination. Such amusements are no doubtthe delight of many a lad living in the country, nor would they beworth recording except as illustrating the unity of Agassiz'sintellectual development from beginning to end. His pet animalssuggested questions, to answer which was the task of his life; andhis intimate study of the fresh-water fishes of Europe, later thesubject of one of his important works, began with his firstcollection from the Lake of Morat. 

As a boy he amused himself also with all kinds of handicrafts on asmall scale. The carpenter, the cobbler, the tailor, were then asmuch developed in him as the naturalist. In Swiss villages it wasthe habit in those days for the trades-people to go from house tohouse in their different vocations. The shoemaker came two or threetimes a year with all his materials, and made shoes for the wholefamily by the day; the tailor came to fit them for garments whichhe made in the house; the cooper arrived before the vintage, torepair old barrels and hogsheads or to make new ones, and toreplace their worn-out hoops; in short, to fit up the cellar forthe coming season. Agassiz seems to have profited by these lessonsas much as by those he learned from his father; and when a verylittle fellow, he could cut and put together a well-fitting pair ofshoes for his sisters' dolls, was no bad tailor, and could make aminiature barrel that was perfectly water-tight. He rememberedthese trivial facts as a valuable part of his incidental education. He said he owed much of his dexterity in manipulation, to thetraining of eye and hand gained in these childish plays. 

Though fond of quiet, in-door occupation, he was an active, daringboy. One winter day when about seven years of age, he was skatingwith his little brother Auguste, two years younger than himself, and a number of other boys, near the shore of the lake. They weretalking of a great fair held that day at the town of Morat, on theopposite side of the lake, to which M. Agassiz had gone in themorning, not crossing upon the ice, however, but driving around theshore. The temptation was too strong for Louis, and he proposed toAuguste that they should skate across, join their father at thefair, and come home with him in the afternoon. They startedaccordingly. The other boys remained on their skating ground tilltwelve o'clock, the usual dinner hour, when they returned to thevillage. Mme. Agassiz was watching for her boys, thinking themrather late, and on inquiring for them among the troop of urchinscoming down the village street she learned on what errand they hadgone. Her anxiety may be imagined. The lake was not less than twomiles across, and she was by no means sure that the ice was safe. She hurried to an upper window with a spy-glass to see if she coulddescry them anywhere. At the moment she caught sight of them, already far on their journey, Louis had laid himself down across afissure in the ice, thus making a bridge for his little brother, who was creeping over his back. Their mother directed a workman, anexcellent skater, to follow them as swiftly as possible. Heovertook them just as they had gained the shore, but it did notoccur to him that they could return otherwise than they had come, and he skated back with them across the lake. Weary, hungry, anddisappointed, the boys reached the house without having seen thefair or enjoyed the drive home with their father in the afternoon. 

When he was ten years old, Agassiz was sent to the college for boysat Bienne, thus exchanging the easy rule of domestic instructionfor the more serious studies of a public school. He found himselfon a level with his class, however, for his father was an admirableteacher. Indeed it would seem that Agassiz's own passion forteaching, as well as his love of young people and his sympathy withintellectual aspiration everywhere, was an inheritance. Whereverhis father was settled as pastor, at Motier, at Orbe, and later atConcise, his influence was felt in the schools as much as in thepulpit. A piece of silver remains, a much prized heir-loom in thefamily, given to him by the municipality of Orbe in acknowledgmentof his services in the schools. 

The rules of the school at Bienne were rather strict, but the lifeled by the boys was hardy and invigorating, and they played asheartily as they worked. Remembering his own school-life, Agassizoften asked himself whether it was difference of climate or ofmethod, which makes the public school life in the United States somuch more trying to the health of children than the one under whichhe was brought up. The boys and girls in our public schools aresaid to be overworked with a session of five hours, and anadditional hour or two of study at home. At the College of Biennethere were nine hours of study, and the boys were healthy andhappy. Perhaps the secret might be found in the frequentinterruption, two or three hours of study alternating with aninterval for play or rest. Agassiz always retained a pleasantimpression of the school and its teachers. Mr. Rickly, thedirector, he regarded with an affectionate respect, which ripenedinto friendship in maturer years. 

The vacations were, of course, hailed with delight, and as Motierwas but twenty miles distant from Bienne, Agassiz and his youngerbrother Auguste, who joined him at school a year later, were in thehabit of making the journey on foot. The lives of these brotherswere so closely interwoven in their youth that for many years thestory of one includes the story of the other. They had everythingin common, and with their little savings they used to buy books, chosen by Louis, the foundation, as it proved, of his futurelibrary. 

Long before dawn on the first day of vacation the two bright, active boys would be on their homeward way, as happy as holidaycould make them, especially if they were returning for the summerharvest or the autumn vintage. The latter was then, as now, aseason of festivity. In these more modern days something of itsprimitive picturesqueness may have been lost; but when Agassiz wasa boy, all the ordinary occupations were given up for thisimportant annual business, in which work and play were so happilycombined. On the appointed day the working people might be seentrooping in from neighboring cantons, where there were novineyards, to offer themselves for the vintage. They either campedout at night, sleeping in the open air, or found shelter in thestables and outhouses. During the grape gathering the floor of thebarn and shed at the parsonage of Motier was often covered in theevening with tired laborers, both men and women. Of course, whenthe weather was fine, these were festival days for the children. Abushel basket, heaped high with white and amber bunches, stood inthe hall, or in the living room of the family, and young and oldwere free to help themselves as they came and went. Then there werethe frolics in the vineyard, the sweet cup of must (unfermentedjuice of the grape), and, the ball on the last evening at the closeof the merry-making. 

Sometimes the boys passed their vacations at Cudrefin, with theirgrandfather Mayor. He was a kind old man, much respected in hisprofession, and greatly beloved for his benevolence. His littlewhite horse was well known in all the paths and by-roads of thecountry around, as he went from village to village among the sick. The grandmother was frail in health, but a great favorite among thechildren, for whom she had an endless fund of stories, songs, andhymns. Aunt Lisette, an unmarried daughter, who long lived tomaintain the hospitality of the old Cudrefin house and to bebeloved as the kindest of maiden aunts by two or three generationsof nephews and nieces, was the domestic providence of these familygatherings, where the praises of her excellent dishes were annuallysung. The roof was elastic; there was no question about numbers, for all came who could; the more, the merrier, with no diminutionof good cheer. 

The Sunday after Easter was the great popular fete. Then everyhouse was busy coloring Easter eggs and making fritters. The younggirls and the lads of the village, the former in their prettiestdresses and the latter with enormous bouquets of artificial flowersin their hats, went together to church in the morning. In theafternoon the traditional match between two runners, chosen fromthe village youths, took place. They were dressed in white, andadorned with bright ribbons. With music before them, and followedby all the young people, they went in procession to the place wherea quantity of Easter eggs had been distributed upon the ground. Ata signal the runners separated, the one to pick up the eggsaccording to a prescribed course, the other to run to the nextvillage and back again. The victory was to the one who accomplishedhis task first, and he was proclaimed king of the feast. Hand inhand the runners, followed as before by all their companions, returned to join in the dance now to take place before the house ofDr. Mayor. After a time the festivities were interrupted by alittle address in patois from the first musician, who concluded byannouncing from his platform a special dance in honor of the familyof Dr. Mayor. In this dance the family with some of their friendsand neighbors took part, --the young ladies dancing with the peasantlads and the young gentlemen with the girls of the village, --whilethe rest formed a circle to look on. 

Thus, between study and recreation, the four years which Agassiz'sfather and mother intended he should pass at Bienne drew to aclose. A yellow, time-worn sheet of foolscap, on which during thelast year of his school-life he wrote his desiderata in the way ofbooks, tells something of his progress and his aspirations atfourteen years of age. "I wish, " so it runs, "to advance in thesciences, and for that I need d'Anville, Ritter, an Italiandictionary, a Strabo in Greek, Mannert and Thiersch; and also theworks of Malte-Brun and Seyfert. I have resolved, as far as I amallowed to do so, to become a man of letters, and at present I cango no further: 1st, in ancient geography, for I already know all mynotebooks, and I have only such books as Mr. Rickly can lend me; Imust have d'Anville or Mannert; 2nd, in modern geography, also, Ihave only such books as Mr. Rickly can lend me, and the Osterwaldgeography, which does not accord with the new divisions; I musthave Ritter or Malte-Brun; 3rd, for Greek I need a new grammar, andI shall choose Thiersch; 4th, I have no Italian dictionary, exceptone lent me by Mr. Moltz; I must have one; 5th, for Latin I need alarger grammar than the one I have, and I should like Seyfert; 6th, Mr. Rickly tells me that as I have a taste for geography he willgive me a lesson in Greek (gratis), in which we would translateStrabo, provided I can find one. For all this I ought to have abouttwelve louis. I should like to stay at Bienne till the month ofJuly, and afterward serve my apprenticeship in commerce atNeuchatel for a year and a half. Then I should like to pass fouryears at a university in Germany, and finally finish my studies atParis, where I would stay about five years. Then, at the age oftwenty-five, I could begin to write. "

Agassiz's note-books, preserved by his parents, who followed theeducation of their children with the deepest interest, giveevidence of his faithful work both at school and college. They forma great pile of manuscript, from the paper copy-books of theschool-boy to the carefully collated reports of the collegestudent, begun when the writer was ten or eleven years of age andcontinued with little interruption till he was eighteen ornineteen. The later volumes are of nearly quarto size and verythick, some of them containing from four to six hundred closelycovered pages; the handwriting is small, no doubt for economy ofspace, but very clear. The subjects are physiological, pathological, and anatomical, with more or less of general naturalhistory. This series of books is kept with remarkable neatness. Even in the boy's copy-books, containing exercises in Greek, Latin, French and German, with compositions on a variety of topics, thewriting is even and distinct, with scarcely a blot or an erasure. From the very beginning there is a careful division of subjectsunder clearly marked headings, showing even then a tendency towardan orderly classification of facts and thoughts. 

It is evident from the boyish sketch which he drew of his futureplans that the hope of escaping the commercial life projected forhim, and of dedicating himself to letters and learning, was alreadydawning. He had begun to feel the charm of study, and hisscientific tastes, though still pursued rather as the pastimes of aboy than as the investigations of a student, were neverthelessbecoming more and more absorbing. He was fifteen years old and thetime had come when, according to a purpose long decided upon, hewas to leave school and enter the business house of his uncle, Francois Mayor, at Neuchatel. He begged for a farther delay, to bespent in two additional years of study at the College of Lausanne. He was supported in his request by several of his teachers, andespecially by Mr. Rickly, who urged his parents to encourage theremarkable intelligence and zeal already shown by their son in hisstudies. They were not difficult to persuade; indeed, only want ofmeans, never want of will, limited the educational advantages theygave to their children. 

It was decided, therefore, that he should go to Lausanne. Here hislove for everything bearing on the study of nature was confirmed. Professor Chavannes, Director of the Cantonal Museum, in whom hefound not only an interesting teacher, but a friend who sympathizedwith his favorite tastes, possessed the only collection of NaturalHistory in the Canton de Vaud. To this Agassiz now had access. Hisuncle, Dr. Mathias Mayor, his mother's brother and a physician ofnote in Lausanne, whose opinion had great weight with M. And Mme. Agassiz, was also attracted by the boy's intelligent interest inanatomy and kindred subjects. He advised that his nephew should beallowed to study medicine, and at the close of Agassiz's collegecourse at Lausanne the commercial plan was finally abandoned, andhe was permitted to choose the medical profession as the one mostakin to his inclination. 

Being now seventeen years of age, he went to the medical school ofZurich. Here, for the first time, he came into contact with menwhose instruction derived freshness and vigor from their originalresearches. He was especially indebted to Professor Schinz, a manof learning and ability, who held the chair of Natural History andPhysiology, and who showed the warmest interest in his pupil'sprogress. He gave Agassiz a key to his private library, as well asto his collection of birds. This liberality was invaluable to onewhose poverty made books an unattainable luxury. Many an hour didthe young student pass at that time in copying books which werebeyond his means, though some of them did not cost more than adollar a volume. His brother Auguste, still his constant companion, shared this task, a pure labor of love with him, for the books weremore necessary to Louis's studies than to his own. 

During the two years passed by Agassiz in Zurich he saw little ofsociety beyond the walls of the university. His brother and he hada pleasant home in a private house, where they shared the familylife of their host and hostess. In company with them, Agassiz madehis first excursion of any importance into the Alps. They ascendedthe Righi and passed the night there. At about sunset a fearfulthunder-storm gathered below them, while on the summit of themountain the weather remained perfectly clear and calm. Under ablue sky they watched the lightning, and listened to the thunder inthe dark clouds, which were pouring torrents of rain upon the plainand the Lake of Lucerne. The storm lasted long after night hadclosed in, and Agassiz lingered when all his companions had retiredto rest, till at last the clouds drifted softly away, letting downthe light of moon and stars on the lake and landscape. He used tosay that in his subsequent Alpine excursions he had rarelywitnessed a scene of greater beauty. 

Such of his letters from Zurich as have been preserved have only ahome interest. In one of them, however, he alludes to a curiouscircumstance, which might have changed the tenor of his life. Heand his brother were returning on foot, for the vacation, fromZurich to their home which was now in Orbe, where their father andmother had been settled since 1821. Between Neuchatel and Orbe theywere overtaken by a traveling carriage. A gentleman who was itssole occupant invited them to get in, made them welcome to hislunch, talked to them of their student life, and their futureplans, and drove them to the parsonage, where he introduced himselfto their parents. Some days afterward M. Agassiz received a letterfrom this chance acquaintance, who proved to be a man in affluentcircumstances, of good social position, living at the time inGeneva. He wrote to M. Agassiz that he had been singularlyattracted by his elder son, Louis, and that he wished to adopt him, assuming henceforth all the responsibility of his education and hisestablishment in life. This proposition fell like a bomb-shell intothe quiet parsonage. M. Agassiz was poor, and every advantage forhis children was gained with painful self-sacrifice on the part ofboth parents. How then refuse such an opportunity for one amongthem, and that one so gifted? After anxious reflection, however, the father, with the full concurrence of his son, decided todecline an offer which, brilliant as it seemed, involved aseparation and might lead to a false position. A correspondence waskept up for years between Louis and the friend he had so suddenlywon, and who continued to interest himself in his career. Althoughit had no sequel, this incident is mentioned as showing a kind ofpersonal magnetism which, even as child and boy, Agassizunconsciously exercised over others. 

From Zurich, Agassiz went to the University of Heidelberg, where wefind him in the spring of 1826. 

TO HIS FATHER. 

HEIDELBERG, April 24, 1826. 

. . . Having arrived early enough to see something of the environsbefore the opening of the term, I decided to devote each day to aramble in one direction or another, in order to become familiarwith my surroundings. I am the more glad to have done this as Ihave learned that after the lectures begin there will be no furtherchance for such interruptions, and we shall be obliged to stickclosely to our work at home. 

Our first excursion was to Neckarsteinach, two and a half leaguesfrom here. The road follows the Neckar, and at certain places risesboldly above the river, which flows between two hills, broken byrocks of the color of red chalk, which often jut out from eitherside. Farther on the valley widens, and a pretty rising ground, crowned by ruins, suddenly presents itself in the midst of a wideplain, where sheep are feeding. Neckarsteinach itself is only alittle village, containing, however, three castles, two of whichare in ruins. The third is still inhabited, and commands amagnificent view. In the evening we returned to Heidelberg bymoonlight. 

Another day we started for what is here called "The Mountain, "though it is at most no higher than Le Suchet. As the needfulsupplies are not to be obtained there, we took our provisions withus. We had so much fun out of this, that I must tell you all aboutit. In the morning Z--bought at the market veal, liver, and baconenough to serve for three persons during two days. To thesesupplies we added salt, pepper, butter, onions, bread, and somejugs of beer. One of us took two saucepans for cooking, and somealcohol. Arrived at the summit of our mountain, we looked out for aconvenient spot, and there we cooked our dinner. It did not takelong, nor can I say whether all was done according to the rules ofart. But this I know, --that never did a meal seem to me better. Wewandered over the mountain for the rest of the day, and at eveningcame to a house where we prepared our supper after the samefashion, to the great astonishment of the assembled household, andespecially of an old woman who regretted the death of her husband, because she said it would certainly have amused him. We slept onthe ground on some straw, and returned to Heidelberg the next dayin time for dinner. The following day we went to Mannheim to visitthe theatre. It is very handsome and well appointed, and we werefortunate in happening upon an excellent opera. Beyond this, I sawnothing of Mannheim except the house of Kotzebue and the placewhere Sand was beheaded. 

To-day I have made my visits to the professors. For three amongthem I had letters from Professors Schinz and Hirzel. I wasreceived by all in the kindest way. Professor Tiedemann, theChancellor, is a man about the age of papa and young for his years. He is so well-known that I need not undertake his panegyric here. As soon as I told him that I brought a letter from Zurich, heshowed me the greatest politeness, offered me books from hislibrary; in one word, said he would be for me here what ProfessorSchinz, with whom he had formerly studied, had been for me inZurich. After the opening of the term, when I know these gentlemenbetter, I will tell you more about them. I have still to describemy home, chamber, garden, people of the house, etc. 

The next letter fills in this frame-work. 

TO HIS FATHER. 

HEIDELBERG, May 24, 1826. 

. . . According to your request, I am going to write you allpossible details about my host, the employment of my time, etc. , etc. Mr. --, my "philister, " is a tobacco merchant in easycircumstances, having a pretty house in the faubourg of the city. My windows overlook the town, and my prospect is bounded by a hillsituated to the north of Heidelberg. At the back of the house is alarge and fine garden, at the foot of which is a very prettysummer-house. There are also several clumps of trees in the garden, and an aviary filled with native birds. . . 

Since each day in term time is only the repetition of every other, the account of one will give an idea of all, especially as I followwith regularity the plan of study I have formed. Every morning Irise at six o'clock, dress, and breakfast. At seven I go to mylectures, given during the morning in the Museum building, next towhich is the anatomical laboratory. If, in the interval, I have afree hour, as sometimes happens from ten to eleven, I occupy it inmaking anatomical preparations. I shall tell you more of that andof the Museum another time. From twelve to one I practice fencing. We dine at about one o'clock, after which I walk till two, when Ireturn to the house and to my studies till five o'clock. From fiveto six we have a lecture from the renowned Tiedemann. After that, Ieither take a bath in the Neckar or another walk. From eight tonine I resume my special work, and then, according to myinclination, go to the Swiss club, or, if I am tired, to bed. Ihave my evening service and talk silently with you, believing thatat that hour you also do not forget your Louis, who thinks alwaysof you. . . As soon as I know, for I cannot yet make an exactestimate, I will write you as nearly as possible what my expensesare likely to be. Sometimes there may be unlooked-for expenditures, as, for instance, six crowns for a matriculation paper. But beassured that at all events I shall restrict myself to what isabsolutely necessary, and do my best to economize. The same of theprobable duration of my stay in Heidelberg; I shall certainly notprolong it needlessly. . . 

Now for the first time the paths of the two brothers separated, Auguste returning from Zurich to Neuchatel, where he entered intobusiness. It chanced, however, that in one of the firstacquaintances made by Louis in Heidelberg he found not only acongenial comrade, but a friend for life, and in after years abrother. Professor Tiedemann, by whom Agassiz had been so kindlyreceived, recommended him to seek the acquaintance of youngAlexander Braun, an ardent student, and an especial lover ofbotany. At Tiedemann's lecture the next day Agassiz's attention wasattracted by a young man who sat next him, and who was taking verycareful notes and illustrating them. There was something verywinning in his calm, gentle face, full of benevolence andintelligence. Convinced by his manner of listening to the lectureand transcribing it that this was the student of whom Tiedemann hadspoken, Agassiz turned to his neighbor as they both rose at theclose of the hour, and said, "Are you Alex Braun?" "Yes, and you, Louis Agassiz?" It seems that Professor Tiedemann, who must havehad a quick eye for affinities in the moral as well as in thephysical world, had said to Braun also, that he advised him to makethe acquaintance of a young Swiss naturalist who had just come, andwho seemed full of enthusiasm for his work. The two young men leftthe lecture-room together, and from that time their studies, theirexcursions, their amusements, were undertaken and pursued in eachother's company. In their long rambles, while they collectedspecimens in their different departments of Natural History, Braunlearned zoology from Agassiz, and he, in his turn, learned botanyfrom Braun. This was, perhaps, the reason why Alexander Braun, afterward Director of the Botanical Gardens in Berlin, knew more ofzoology than other botanists, while Agassiz himself combined anextensive knowledge of botany with his study of the animal kingdom. That the attraction was mutual may be seen by the following extractfrom a letter of Alexander Braun to his father. 

BRAUN To HIS FATHER. 

HEIDELBERG, May 12, 1826. 

. . . In my leisure hours, between the forenoon and afternoonlectures, I go to the dissecting-room, where, in company withanother young naturalist who has appeared like a rare comet on theHeidelberg horizon, I dissect all manner of beasts, such as dogs, cats, birds, fishes, and even smaller fry, snails, butterflies, caterpillars, worms, and the like. Beside this, we always have fromTiedemann the very best books for reference and comparison, for hehas a fine library, especially rich in anatomical works, and isparticularly friendly and obliging to us. 

In the afternoon from two to three I attend Geiger's lectures onpharmaceutical chemistry, and from five to six those of Tiedemannon comparative anatomy. In the interval, I sometimes go with thisnaturalist, so recently arrived among us (his name is Agassiz, andhe is from Orbe), on a hunt after animals and plants. Not only dowe collect and learn to observe all manner of things, but we havealso an opportunity of exchanging our views on scientific mattersin general. I learn a great deal from him, for he is much more athome in zoology than I am. He is familiar with almost all the knownmammalia, recognizes the birds from far off by their song, and cangive a name to every fish in the water. In the morning we oftenstroll together through the fish market, where he explains to meall the different species. He is going to teach me how to stufffishes, and then we intend to make a collection of all the nativekinds. Many other useful things he knows; speaks German and Frenchequally well, English and Italian fairly, so that I have alreadyappointed him to be my interpreter on some future vacation trip toItaly. He is well acquainted with ancient languages also, andstudies medicine besides. . . 

A few lines from Braun to his mother, several weeks later, showthat this first enthusiasm, poured out with half-laughingextravagance to his father, was ripening into friendship of a moreserious character. 

BRAUN TO HIS MOTHER. 

HEIDELBERG, June 1, 1826. 

. . . I am very happy now that I have found some one whoseoccupations are the same as mine. Before Agassiz came I was obligedto make my excursions almost always alone, and to study inhermit-like isolation. After all, two people working together canaccomplish far more than either one can do alone. In order, forinstance, to utilize the interval spent in the time-consuming andmechanical work of preparing specimens, pinning insects and thelike, we have agreed that while one is so employed the other shallread aloud. In this way we shall go through various works onphysiology, anatomy, and zoology. 

Next to Alexander Braun, Agassiz's most congenial companion atHeidelberg was Karl Schimper, a friend of Braun, and like him ayoung botanist of brilliant promise. The three soon becameinseparable. Agassiz had many friends and companions at theuniversity beside those who, on account of their influence upon hisafter life, are mentioned here. He was too affectionate not to be agenial companion among his young countrymen of whom there were manyat Heidelberg, where they had a club and a gymnasium of their own. In the latter, Agassiz bore his part in all the athletic sports, being distinguished both as a powerful gymnast and an expertfencer. 

Of the professors then at Heidelberg, Leuckart, the zoologist, was, perhaps, the most inspiriting. His lectures were full of originalsuggestions and clever hypotheses, which excited and sometimesamused his listeners. He knew how to take advantage of theenthusiasm of his brighter pupils, and, at their request, gave thema separate course of instruction on special groups of animals; notwithout some personal sacrifice, for these extra lectures weregiven at seven o'clock in the morning, and the students were oftenobliged to pull their professor out of bed for the purpose. Thefact that they did so shows at least the friendly relation existingbetween teacher and scholars. With Bischoff the botanist also, theyoung friends were admitted to the most kindly intercourse. Many apleasant botanical excursion they had with him, and they owed tohim a thorough and skillful instruction in the use of themicroscope, handled by him like a master. Tiedemann's lectures werevery learned, and Agassiz always spoke of his old teacher incomparative anatomy and physiology with affectionate respect andadmiration. He was not, however, an inspiring teacher, and thoughan excellent friend to the students, they had no such intimatepersonal relations with him as with Leuckart and Bischoff. FromBronn, the paleontologist, they received an immense amount ofspecial information, but his instruction was minute in detailsrather than suggestive in ideas; and they were glad when theirprofessor, finding that the course must be shortened for want oftime, displayed to them his magnificent collection of fossils, andwith the help of the specimens, developed his subject in a moregeneral and practical way. * (* This collection was purchased in1859 by the Museum of Comparative Zoology in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Agassiz had thus the pleasure of teaching hisAmerican pupils from the very collection in which he had himselfmade his first important paleontological studies. ) Of the medicalprofessors, Nageli was the more interesting, though the reputationof Chelius brought him a larger audience. If there was however anylack of stimulus in the lecture rooms, the young friends made goodthe deficiency by their own indefatigable and intelligent study ofnature, seeking to satisfy their craving for knowledge by everymeans within their reach. * (* The material for this account of thestudent life of the two friends at Heidelberg and of their teacherswas chiefly furnished by Alexander Braun himself at the close ofhis own life, after the death of Agassiz. The later sketches of theProfessors at Munich in 1832 were drawn in great part from the samesource. )

As the distance and expense made it impossible for Agassiz to spendhis vacations with his family in Switzerland, it soon became thehabit for him to pass the holidays with his new friend atCarlsruhe. For a young man of his tastes and acquirements a morecharming home-life than the one to which he was here introduced canhardly be imagined. The whole atmosphere was in harmony with thepursuits of the students. The house was simple in its appointments, but rich in books, music, and in all things stimulating to thethought and imagination. It stood near one of the city gates whichopened into an extensive oak forest, in itself an admirablecollecting ground for the naturalist. At the back certain rooms, sheltered by the spacious garden from the noise of the street, weredevoted to science. In the first of these rooms the father's richcollection of minerals was arranged, and beyond this were thelaboratories of his sons and their friends, where specimens of allsorts, dried and living plants, microscopes and books of reference, covered the working tables. Here they brought their treasures; herethey drew, studied, dissected, arranged their specimens; here theydiscussed the theories, with which their young brains were teeming, about the growth, structure, and relations of animals and plants. *(* See "Biographical Memoir of Louis Agassiz" by Arnold Guyuot, inthe "Proceedings of U. S. National Academy". )

From this house, which became a second home to Agassiz, he wrote tohis father in the Christmas holidays of 1826:. . . "My happinesswould be perfect were it not for the painful thought which pursuesme everywhere, that I live on your privations; yet it is impossiblefor me to diminish my expenses farther. You would lift a greatweight from my heart if you could relieve yourself of this burdenby an arrangement with my uncle at Neuchatel. I am confident thatwhen I have finished my studies I could easily make enough to repayhim. At all events, I know that you cannot pay the whole at once, and therefore in telling me frankly what are our resources for thisobject you would do me the greatest favor. Until I know that, Icannot be at peace. Otherwise, I am well, going on as usual, alwaysworking as hard as I can, and I believe all the professors whoselectures I attend are satisfied with me. ". . . His father was alsopleased with his conduct and with his progress, for about this timehe writes to a friend, "We have the best possible news of Louis. Courageous, industrious, and discreet, he pursues honorably andvigorously his aim, namely, the degree of Doctor of Medicine andSurgery. "

In the spring of 1827 Agassiz fell ill of a typhus fever prevalentat the university as an epidemic. His life was in danger for manydays. As soon as he could be moved, Braun took him to Carlsruhe, where his convalescence was carefully watched over by his friend'smother. Being still delicate he was advised to recruit in hisnative air, and he returned to Orbe, accompanied by Braun, who didnot leave him till he had placed him in safety with his parents. The following extracts from the correspondence between himself andBraun give some account of this interval spent at home. 

AGASSIZ TO BRAUN. 

ORBE, May 26, 1827. 

. . . Since I have been here, I have walked faithfully and havecollected a good number of plants which are not yet dry. I havemore than one hundred kinds, about twenty specimens of each. Assoon as they can be taken out of the press, I'll send you a fewspecimens of each kind with a number attached so that you mayidentify them. Take care that you do not displace the numbers inopening the package. Should you want more of any particular kindlet me know; also whether Schimper wishes for any. . . At NeuchatelI had the good fortune to find at least thirty specimens ofBombinator obstetricans with the eggs. Tell Dr. Leuckart that Iwill bring him some, --and some for you also. I kept several alivelaid in damp moss; after fourteen days the eggs were almost aslarge as peas, and the little tadpoles moved about inside in alldirections. The mother stripped the eggs from her legs, and one ofthe little tadpoles came out, but died for want of water. Then Iplaced the whole mass of eggs in a vessel filled with water, andbehold! in about an hour some twenty young ones were swimmingfreely about. I shall spare no pains to raise them, and I hope, ifI begin aright, to make fine toads of them in the end. My oldestsister is busy every day in making drawings for me to illustratetheir gradual development. . . I dissect now as much and on as greata variety of subjects as possible. This makes my principaloccupation. I am often busy too with Oken. His "Natur-philosophie"gives me the greatest pleasure. I long for my box, being in need ofmy books, which, no doubt, you have sent. Meantime, I am readingsomething of Universal History, and am not idle, as you see. But Imiss the evenings with you and Schimper at Heidelberg, and wish Iwere with you once more. I am afraid when that happy time doescome, it will be only too short. . . 

BRAUN TO AGASSIZ. 

HEIDELBERG, May, 1827. 

. . . On Thursday evening, the 10th, I reached Heidelberg. Themedical lectures did not begin till the second week of May, so thatI have missed little, and almost regret having returned so soon. . . I passed the last afternoon in Basel very pleasantly with HerrRoepper, to whom I must soon write. He gave me a variety ofspecimens, showed me many beautiful things, and told me much thatwas instructive. He is a genuine and excellent botanist, and nomere collector like the majority. Neither is he purely an observerlike Dr. Bischoff, but a man who thinks. . . Dr. Leuckart is inraptures about the eggs of the "Hebammen Krote, " and will raisethem. . . Schweiz takes your place in our erudite evening meetings. I have been lecturing lately on the metamorphosis of plants, andSchimper has propounded an entirely new and very interestingtheory, which will, no doubt, find favor with you hereafter, aboutthe significance of the circular and longitudinal fibres inorganisms. Schimper is fruitful as ever in poetical andphilosophical ideas, and has just now ventured upon a naturalhistory of the mind. We have introduced mathematics also, and hehas advanced a new hypothesis about comets and their long tails. . . Our chief botanical occupation this summer is the carefulobservation of all our plants, even the commonest, and theexplanation of whatever is unusual or enigmatical in theirstructure. We have already cracked several such nuts, but manyremain to be opened. All such puzzling specimens are spread onsingle sheets and set aside. . . But more of this when we aretogether again. . . Dr. Leuckart begs you to study carefully the"Hebammen Unke;"* (* Bombinator obstetricans referred to in aformer letter. ) to notice whether the eggs are already fecundatedwhen they are in the earth, or whether they copulate later in thewater, or whether the young are hatched on land, and what is theirtadpole condition, etc. All this is still unknown. . . 

AGASSIZ TO BRAUN. 

ORBE, June 10, 1827. 

. . . Last week I made a very pleasant excursion. You will rememberthat I have often spoken to you of Pastor Mellet at Vallorbe, whois much interested in the study of the six-legged insects. Heinvited me to go to Vallorbe with him for some days, and I passed aweek there, spending my time most agreeably. We went daily on asearch after insects; the booty was especially rich in beetles andbutterflies. . . I examined also M. Mellet's own most excellentcollection of beetles and butterflies very carefully. He has manybeautiful things, but almost exclusively Swiss or French, with afew from Brazil, --in all about 3, 000 species. He gave me several, and promises more in the autumn. . . He knows his beetlesthoroughly, and observes their habits, haunts, and changes (as faras he can) admirably well. It is a pity though that while hisknowledge of species is so accurate, he knows nothing ofdistribution, classification, or general relations. I tried toconvince him that he ought to collect snails, slugs, and otherobjects of natural history, in the hope that he might gain therebya wider insight. But he would not listen to it; he said he hadenough to do with his Vermine. 

My brother writes me that my box has arrived in Neuchatel. As I amgoing there soon I will take it then. I rejoice in the thought ofbeing in Neuchatel, partly on account of my brother, Arnold(Guyot), and other friends, and partly that I may study the fishesof our Swiss lakes. The species Cyprinus and Corregonus with theirallies, including Salmo, are, as you know, especially difficult. Iwill preserve some small specimens in alcohol, and, if possible, dissect one of each, in order to satisfy myself as to theiridentity or specific variety. As the same kinds have receiveddifferent names in different lakes, and since even differences ofage have led to distinct designations, I will note all this downcarefully. When I have made it clear to myself, I will send you acatalogue of the kinds we possess, specifying at the same time thelakes in which they occur. As I am on the chapter of fishes, I willask you:

1. What are the gill arches?2. What the gill blades?3. What is the bladder in fishes?4. What is the cloaca in the egg-laying animals?5. What signify the many fins of fishes?6. What is the sac which surrounds the eggs in Bombinator obstetricans?

. . . Tell Dr. Leuckart I have already put aside for him theCorregonus umbla (if such it be), but can get no Silurus glanis. 

I suppose you continue to come together now and then in the evening. . . Make me a sharer in your new discoveries. Have you finishedyour essay on the physiology of plants, and what do you make ofit?. . . 

BRAUN TO AGASSIZ. 

CARLSRUHE, Whitsuntide, Monday, 1827. 

. . . I am in Carlsruhe, and as the package has not gone yet, I adda note. I have been analyzing and comparing all sorts of plants inour garden to-day, and I wish you had been with me. On my lastsheet I send some nuts for you to pick, some wholly, some half, others not at all, cracked. Schimper is lost in the greatimpenetrable world of suns, with their planets, moons, and comets;he soars even into the region of the double stars, the milky way, and the nebulae. 

On a loose sheet come the "nuts to pick. " It contains a long listof mooted questions, a few of which are given here to show theexchange of thought between Agassiz and his friend, the onepropounding zoological, the other botanical, puzzles. Although mostof the problems were solved long ago, it is not uninteresting tofollow these young minds in their search after the laws ofstructure and growth, dimly perceived at first, but becominggradually clearer as they go on. The very first questions hint atthe law of Phyllotaxis, then wholly unknown, though now it makes apart of the most elementary instruction in botany. * (* Botany owesto Alexander Braun and Karl Schimper the discovery of this law, bywhich leaves, however crowded, are so arranged around the stem asto divide the space with mathematical precision, thus giving toeach leaf its fair share of room for growth. )

"1. Where is the first diverging point of the stems and roots inplants, that is to say, the first geniculum?

"2. How do you explain the origin of those leaves on the stemwhich, not arising from distinct geniculi, are placed spirally orscattered around the stem?

"3. Why do some plants, especially trees (contrary to the ordinarycourse of development in plants), blossom before they have putforth leaves? (Elm-trees, willow-trees, and fruit-trees. )

"4. In what succession does the development of the organs of theflower take place?--and their formation in the bud? (CompareCampanula, Papaver. )

"5. What are the leaves of the Spergula?

"6. What are the tufted leaves of various pine-trees? (Pinussylvestris, Strobus, Larix, etc. ). . . 

"8. What is individuality in plants?"

The next letter contains Agassiz's answer to Dr. Leuckart'squestions concerning the eggs he had sent him, and some fartheraccount of his own observations upon them. 

AGASSIZ TO BRAUN. 

NEUCHATEL, June 20, 1827. 

. . . Now you shall hear what I know of the "Hebammen Krote. " Howthe fecundation takes place I know not, but it must needs be thesame as in other kinds of the related Bombinator; igneus throws outalmost as many eggs hanging together in clusters as obstetricans;fuscus throws them out from itself in strings (see Roseld'sillustration). . . I have now carefully examined the egg clusters ofobstetricans; all the eggs are in one string and hang together. This string is a bag, in which the eggs lie inclosed at differentdistances, though they seem in the empty space to be fallen, thread-like, together. But if you stretch the thread and press theeggs, they change their places, and you can distinctly see thatthey lie free in the bag, having their own membranous envelopescorresponding to those of other batrachian eggs. Surely thisspecies seeks the water at the time of fecundation, for so do allbatrachians, the water being indeed a more fitting medium forfecundation than the air. . . It is certain that the eggs werealready fecundated when we found them in the ground, for later, Ifound several not so far advanced as those you have, and yet afterthree weeks I had tadpoles from them. In those eggs which were inthe lowest stage of development (how they may be earlier, nescio), nothing was clearly visible; they were simply little yellow balls. After some days, two small dark spots were to be seen marking theposition of the eyes, and a longitudinal streak indicated thedorsal ridge. Presently everything became more distinct; the mouthand the nasal opening, the eyes and the tail, which lay in a halfcircle around the body; the skin was so transparent that thebeating of the heart and the blood in the vessels could be easilydistinguished; the yolk and the yolk sac were meanwhile sensiblydiminished. The movements of the little animal were now quiteperceptible, --they were quick and by starts. After three or fourweeks the eggs were as large as peas; the bags had burst at thespots where the eggs were attached, and the little creatures filledthe egg envelopes completely. They moved incessantly and veryquickly. Now the female stripped off the eggs from her legs; sheseemed very uneasy, and sprang about constantly in the tank, butgrew more quiet when I threw in more water. The eggs were soonfree, and I laid them in a shallow vessel filled with fresh water. The restlessness among them now became greater, and behold! likelightning, a little tadpole slipped out of its egg, pausedastonished, gazed on the greatness of the world, made somephilanthropic observations, and swam quickly away. I gave themfresh water often, and tender green plants as well as bread to eat. They ate eagerly. Up to this time their different stages ofdevelopment had been carefully drawn by my sister. I now went toVallorbe; they promised at home to take care of my young brood, butwhen I returned the tadpoles had been forgotten, and I found themall dead; not yet decayed, however, and I could therefore preservethem in alcohol. The gills I have never seen, but I will watch tosee whether they are turned inward. . . 

BRAUN TO AGASSIZ. 

CARLSRUHE, August 9, 1827. 

. . . This is to tell you that I have determined to leave Heidelbergin the autumn and set forth on a pilgrimage to Munich, and that Iinvite you to be my traveling companion. Judging by acircumstantial letter from Dollinger, the instruction in thenatural sciences leaves nothing to be desired there. Add to thisthat the lectures are free, and the theatre open to students attwenty-four kreutzers. No lack of advantages and attractions, lodgings hardly more expensive than at Heidelberg, board equallycheap, beer plenty and good. Let all this persuade you. We shallhear Gruithuisen in popular astronomy, Schubert in general naturalhistory, Martius in botany, Fuchs in mineralogy, Seiber inmathematics, Starke in physics, Oken in everything (he lectures inwinter on the philosophy of nature, natural history, andphysiology). The clinical instruction will be good. We shall soonbe friends with all the professors. The library contains whateveris best in botany and zoology, and the collections open to thepublic are very rich. It is not known whether Schelling willlecture, but at all events certain of the courses will be of greatadvantage. Then little vacation trips to the Salzburg andCarinthian Alps are easily made from there! Write soon whether youwill go and drink Bavarian beer and Schnapski with me, and writealso when we are to see you in Heidelberg and Carlsruhe. Remind methen to tell you about the theory of the root and poles in plants. As soon as I have your answer we will bespeak our lodgings fromDollinger, who will attend to that for us. Shall we again housetogether in one room, or shall we have separate cells in one comb, namely, under the same roof? The latter has its advantages forgrass-gatherers and stone-cutters like ourselves. . . Hammer awayindustriously at all sorts of rocks. I have collected at Auerbach, Weinheim, Wiesloch, etc. But before all else, observe carefully andoften the wonderful structure of plants, those lovely children ofthe earth and sky. Ponder them with child-like mind, for childrenmarvel at the phenomena of nature, while grown people often thinkthemselves too wise to wonder, and yet they know little more thanthe children. But the thoughtful student recognizes the truth ofthe child's feeling, and with his knowledge of nature his wonderdoes but grow more and more. . . 

CHAPTER 2. 

1827-1828: AGE 20-21. 

Arrival in Munich. Lectures. Relations with the Professors. Schelling, Martius, Oken, Dollinger. Relations with Fellow-Students. The Little Academy. Plans for Traveling. Advice from his Parents. Vacation Journey. Tri-Centennial Durer Festival at Nuremberg. 

Agssiz accepted with delight his friend's proposition, and towardthe end of October, 1827, he and Braun left Carlsruhe together forthe University of Munich. His first letter to his brother is givenin full, for though it contains crudities at which the writerhimself would have smiled in after life, it is interesting asshowing what was the knowledge possessed in those days by a clever, well-informed student of natural history. 

TO HIS BROTHER AUGUSTE. 

MUNICH, November 5, 1827. 

. . . At last I am in Munich. I have so much to tell you that Ihardly know where to begin. To be sure that I forget nothing, however, I will give things in their regular sequence. First, then, the story of my journey; after that, I will tell you what I amdoing here. As papa has, of course, shown you my last letter, Iwill continue where I left off. . . 

From Carlsruhe we traveled post to Stuttgart, where we passed thegreater part of the day in the Museum, in which I saw many thingsquite new to me; a llama, for instance, almost as large as an ass. You know that this animal, which is of the genus Camelus, lives inSouth America, where it is to the natives what the camel is to theArab; that is to say, it provides them with milk, wool, and meat, and is used by them, moreover, for driving and riding. There was aNorth American buffalo of immense size; also an elephant fromAfrica, and one from Asia; beside these, a prodigious number ofgazelles, deer, cats, and dogs; skeletons of a hippopotamus and anelephant; and lastly the fossil bones of a mammoth. You know thatthe mammoth is no longer found living, and that the remainshitherto discovered lead to the belief that it was a species ofcarnivorous elephant. It is a singular fact that some fishermen, digging recently on the borders of the Obi, in Siberia, found oneof these animals frozen in a mass of ice, at a depth of sixty feet, so well preserved that it was still covered with hair, as in life. They melted the ice to remove the animal, but the skeleton aloneremained complete; the hide was spoiled by contact with the air, and only a few pieces have been kept, one of which is in the Museumat Stuttgart. The hairs upon it are as coarse as fine twine, andnearly a foot long. The entire skeleton is at St. Petersburg in theMuseum, and is larger than the largest elephant. One may judge bythat what havoc such an animal must have made, if it was, as itsteeth show it to have been, carnivorous. But what I would like toknow is how this animal could wander so far north, and then in whatmanner it died, to be frozen thus, and remain intact, withoutdecomposing, perhaps for countless ages. For it must have belongedto a former creation, since it is nowhere to be found living, andwe have no instance of the disappearance of any kind of animalwithin the historic period. There were, besides, many other kindsof fossil animals. The collection of birds is very beautiful, butit is a pity that many of them are wrongly named. I corrected anumber myself. . . From Stuttgart we went to Esslingen, where wewere to visit two famous botanists. One was Herr Steudel; a sombreface, with long overhanging black hair, almost hiding the eyes, --avery Jewish face. He knows every book on botany that appears, hasread them all, but cares little to see the plants themselves; inshort, he is a true closet student. He has a large herbarium, composed in great part of plants purchased or received as gifts. The other, Professor Hochstetter, is an odd little man, steppingbriskly about in his high boots, and having always a halfsuppressed smile on his hips whenever he takes the pipe frombetween his teeth. A very good man, however, and extremelyobliging; he offered us every civility. As we desired not only tomake their acquaintance, but to win from these botanists at least afew grasses, we presented ourselves like true commis voyageurs, with dried herbs to sell, each of us having a package of plantsunder his arm, --mine being Swiss, gathered last summer, Braun'sfrom the Palatinate. We gave specimens to each, and received inexchange from Steudel some American plants; from Hochstetter somefrom Bohemia, and others from Moravia, his native country. FromEsslingen we were driven to Goeppingen, in the most frightfulweather possible; it rained, snowed, froze, blew, all at once. Itwas a pity, since our road lay through one of the prettiest valleysI have ever seen, watered by the Neckar, and bordered on both sidesby mountains of singular form and of considerable height. They arewhat the Wurtembergers call the Suabian Alps, but I think thatChaumont is higher than the loftiest peak of their Alps. Here wefound an old Heidelberg acquaintance, whose father owns a superbcollection of fossils, especially of shells and zoophytes. He hasalso quite a large collection of shells from the Adriatic Sea, butamong these last not one was named. As we knew them, we made it ourduty to arrange them, and in three hours his whole collection waslabeled. Since he has duplicates of almost everything, he promised, as soon as he should have time, to make a selection from these andsend them to us. Could we have stayed longer we might have pickedout what we pleased, for he placed his collection at our disposal. But we were in haste to arrive here, so we begged him to send us, at his leisure, whatever he could give us. 

Thence we continued our journey by post, because it still rained, and the roads were so detestable that with the best will in theworld we could not have made our way on foot. In the evening wereached Ulm, where, owing to the late hour, we saw almost nothingexcept the famous belfry of the cathedral, which was distinctlyvisible as we entered the city. After supper we continued ourjourney, still by post, wishing to be in Munich the next day. Ihave never seen anything more beautiful than the view as we leftUlm. The moon had risen and shone upon the belfry like broaddaylight. On all sides extended a wide plain, unbroken by a singleinequality, so far as the eye could distinguish, and cut by theDanube, glittering in the moonbeams. We crossed the plain duringthe night, and reached Augsburg at dawn. It is a beautiful city, but we merely stopped there for breakfast, and saw the streets onlyas we passed through them. On leaving Augsburg, the Tyrolean Alps, though nearly forty leagues away, were in sight. About eighteenleagues off was also discernible an immense forest; of this we hada nearer view as we advanced, for it encircles Munich at somedistance from the town. We arrived here on Sunday, the 4th, in theafternoon. . . My address is opposite the Sendlinger Thor Number 37. I have a very pretty chamber on the lower floor with an alcove formy bed. The house is situated outside the town, on a promenade, which makes it very pleasant. Moreover, by walking less than ahundred yards, I reach the Hospital and the Anatomical School, agreat convenience for me when the winter weather begins. One thinggives me great pleasure: from one of my windows the whole chain ofthe Tyrolean Alps is visible as far as Appenzell; and as thecountry is flat to their very base, I see them better than we seeour Alps from the plain. It is a great pleasure to have at least apart of our Swiss mountains always in sight. To enjoy it the more, I have placed my table opposite the window, so that every time Ilift my head my eyes rest on our dear country. This does notprevent me from feeling dull sometimes, especially when I am alone, but I hope this will pass off when my occupations become moreregular. . . 

A far more stimulating intellectual life than that of Heidelbergawaited our students at Munich. Among their professors were some ofthe most original men of the day, --men whose influence was felt allover Europe. Dollinger lectured on comparative anatomy and kindredsubjects; Martius and Zuccarini on botany. Martius gave, besides, his so-called "Reise-Colleg, " in which he instructed the studentshow to observe while on their travels. Schelling taught philosophy, the titles of his courses in the first term being, "Introduction toPhilosophy" and "The Ages of the World"; in the second, "ThePhilosophy of Mythology" and "The Philosophy of Revelation. "Schelling made a strong impression upon the friends. His manner wasas persuasive as his style was clear, and his mode of developinghis subject led his hearers along with a subtle power which did notpermit fatigue. Oken lectured on general natural history, physiology, and zoology, including his famous views on thephilosophy of nature (Natur-philosophie). His lectures gaveoccasion for much scientific discussion, the more so as he broughtvery startling hypotheses into his physiology, and drew from themconclusions which even upon his own showing were not always inaccordance with experience. "On philosophical grounds, " he was wontto say, when facts and theory thus confronted each other, "we mustso accept it. " Oken was extremely friendly with the students, andAgassiz, Braun, and Schimper (who joined them at Munich) passed anevening once a week at his house, where they listened to scientificpapers or discussed scientific matters, over a pipe and a glass ofbeer. They also met once a week to drink tea at the house ofProfessor von Martius, where, in like manner, the conversationturned upon scientific subjects, unless something interesting ingeneral events gave it a different turn. Still more beloved wasDollinger, whose character they greatly esteemed and admired whilethey delighted in his instruction. Not only did they go to himdaily, but he also came often to see them, bringing botanicalspecimens to Braun, or looking in upon Agassiz's breedingexperiments, in which he took the liveliest interest, being alwaysready with advice or practical aid. The fact that Agassiz and Braunhad their room in his house made intercourse with him especiallyeasy. This room became the rendezvous of all the aspiring, activespirits among the young naturalists at Munich, and was known by thename of "The Little Academy. " Schimper, no less than the other two, contributed to the vivid, enthusiastic intellectual life, whichcharacterized their meetings. Not so happy as Agassiz and Braun inhis later experience, the promise of his youth was equallybrilliant; and those who knew him in those early days remember hischarm of mind and manner with delight. The friends gave lectures inturn on various subjects, especially on modes of development inplants and animals. These lectures were attended not only bystudents, but often by the professors. 

Among Agassiz's intimate friends in Munich, beside those alreadymentioned, was Michahelles, the distinguished young zoologist andphysician, whose early death in Greece, where he went to practicemedicine, was so much regretted. Like Agassiz, he was wont to turnhis room into a menagerie, where he kept turtles and other animals, brought home, for the most part, from his journeys in Italy andelsewhere. Mahir, whose name occurs often in the letters of thisperiod, was another college friend and fellow-student, thoughseemingly Agassiz's senior in standing, if not in years, for hegave him private instruction in mathematics, and also assisted himin his medical studies. 

TO HIS SISTER CECILE, MUNICH, November 20, 1827. 

. . . I will tell you in detail how my time is spent, so that whenyou think of me you may know where I am and what I am doing. In themorning from seven to nine I am at the Hospital. From nine toeleven I go to the Library, where I usually work at that timeinstead of going home. From eleven till one o'clock I havelectures, after which I dine, sometimes at one place, sometimes atanother, for here every one, that is, every foreigner, takes hismeals in the cafes, paying for the dinner on the spot, so that heis not obliged to go always to the same place. In the afternoon Ihave other lectures on various subjects, according to the days, from two or three till five o'clock. These ended, I take a walkalthough it is then dark. The environs of Munich are covered withsnow, and the people have been going about in sleighs these threeweeks. When I am frozen through I come home, and set to work toreview my lectures of the day, or I write and read till eight ornine o'clock. Then I go to my cafe for supper. After supper I amglad to return to the house and go to bed. 

This is the course of my daily life, with the single exception thatsometimes Braun and I pass an evening with some professor, discussing with all our might and main subjects of which we oftenknow nothing; this does not, however, lessen the animation of thetalk. More often, these gentlemen tell us of their travels, etc. Ienjoy especially our visits to M. Martius, because he talks to usof his journey to Brazil, from which he returned some years ago, bringing magnificent collections, which he shows us whenever wecall upon him. Friday is market day here, and I never miss going tosee the fishes to increase my collection. I have already obtainedseveral not to be found in Switzerland; and even in my short stayhere I have had the good fortune to discover a new species, ofwhich I have made a very exact description, to be printed in somejournal of natural history. Were my dear Cecile here, I should havebegged her to draw it nicely for me. That would have been pleasantindeed. Now I must ask a stranger to do it, and it will have by nomeans the same value in my eyes. . . 

TO HIS BROTHER AUGUSTE. 

MUNICH, December 26, 1827. 

. . . After my long fast from news of you, your letter made me veryhappy. I was dull besides, and needed something to cheer me. . . Since my talk about natural history does not bore you, I want totell you various other things about it, and also to ask you to dome a favor. I have stuffed a superb otter lately; next week I shallreceive a beaver, and I have exchanged all my little toads fromNeuchatel for reptiles from Brazil and Java. One of our professorshere, who is publishing a natural history of reptiles, willintroduce in his work my description of that species, and myobservations upon it. He has already had lithographed thosedrawings of eggs that Cecile made for me, as well as the coloreddrawings made for me by Braun's sister when I was at Carlsruhe. Mycollection of fishes is also much increased, but I have noduplicates left of the species I brought with me. I have exchangedthem all. I should therefore be greatly obliged if you would get mesome more of the same. I will tell you what kinds I want, and howyou are to forward them. I have still at Cudrefin several jars ofthick green glass. When you go there take them away with you, fillthem with alcohol, and put into them as many of these fishes as youcan find for me. Put something between every two specimens, toprevent them from rubbing against each other; pack them in a littlebox wrapped in hay, and send them either by a good opportunity orin the least expensive way. The kinds I want are [here follows thelist]. . . It will interest you to know that I am working with ayoung Dr. Born upon an anatomy and natural history of thefresh-water fishes of Europe. We have already gathered a great dealof material, and I think by the spring, or in the course of thesummer, we shall be able to publish the first number. This willbring in a little ready money for a short journey in the vacation. 

I earnestly advise you to while away your leisure hours with study. Read much, but only good and useful books. I promised to send yousomething; do not think, because I have not done so yet, that Ihave forgotten it. On the contrary, the difficulty of choosing isthe cause of the delay; but I will make farther inquiry as to whatwill suit you best and you shall have my list. Meantime remember toread Say, and if you have not already begun it, do not put it off. Remember that statistical and political knowledge alonedistinguishes the true merchant from the mere tradesman, and guideshim in his undertakings. . . A merchant familiar with the productsof a country, its resources, its commercial and political relationswith other countries, is much less likely to enter intospeculations based on false ideas, and therefore of doubtful issue. Write me about what you are reading and about your plans andprojects, for I can hardly believe that any one could exist withoutforming them: I, at least, could not. 

The last line of this letter betrays the restless spirit ofadventure growing out of the desire for larger fields of activityand research. Tranquilized for a while in the new and moresatisfying intellectual life of Munich, it stirred afresh from timeto time, not without arousing anxiety in friends at home, as weshall see. The letter to which the following is an answer has notbeen found. 

FROM HIS MOTHER. 

ORBE, January 8, 1828. 

. . . Your letter reached me at Cudrefin, where I have been passingten days. With what pleasure I received it, --and yet I read it witha certain sadness too, for there was something of ennui, I mightsay of discontent, in the tone. . . Believe me, my dear Louis, yourattitude is a wrong one; you see everything in shadow. Considerthat you are exactly in the position you have chosen for yourself;we have in no way opposed your plans. We have, on the contrary, entered into them with readiness, saying amen to your proposals, only insisting upon a profession that would make us easy about yourfuture, persuaded as we are that you have too much energy anduprightness not to wish to fill honorably your place in society. You left us a few months ago with the assurance that two yearswould more than suffice to complete your medical studies. You chosethe university which offered, as you thought, the most ample meansto reach your end; and now, how is it that you look forward onlywith distaste to the practice of medicine? Have you reflectedseriously before setting aside this profession? Indeed, we cannotconsent to such a step. You would lose ground in our opinion, inthat of your family, and in that of the public. You would pass foran inconsiderate, fickle young fellow, and the slightest stain onyour reputation would be a mortal blow to us. There is one way ofreconciling all difficulties, --the only one in my opinion. Completeyour studies with all the zeal of which you are capable, and then, if you have still the same inclination, go on with your naturalhistory; give yourself wholly up to it should that be your wish. Having two strings to your bow, you will have the greater facilityfor establishing yourself. Such is your father's way of thinking aswell as mine. . . Nor are you made to live alone, my child. In ahome only is true happiness to be found; there you can settleyourself to your liking. The sooner you have finished your studies, the sooner you can put up your tent, catch your blue butterfly, andmetamorphose her into a loving housewife. Of course you will notgather roses without thorns; life consists of pains and pleasureseverywhere. To do all the good you can to your fellow-beings, tohave a pure conscience, to gain an honorable livelihood, to procurefor yourself by work a little ease, to make those around you happy, --that is true happiness; all the rest but mere accessories andchimeras. . . 

TO HIS MOTHER. 

MUNICH, February 3, 1828. 

. . . You know well to whom you speak, dear mother, and how you mustbait your hook in order that the fish may rise. When you paint it, I see nothing above domestic happiness, and am convinced that theheight of felicity is to be found in the bosom of your family, surrounded by little marmots to love and caress you. I hope, too, to enjoy this happiness in time. . . But the man of letters shouldseek repose only when he has deserved it by his toil, for if oncehe anchor himself, farewell to energy and liberty, by which alonegreat minds are fostered. Therefore I have said to myself, that Iwould remain unmarried till my work should assure me a peaceful andhappy future. A young man has too much vigor to bear confinement sosoon; he gives up many pleasures which he might have had, and doesnot appreciate at their just value those which he has. As it issaid that the vaurien must precede the bon sujet, so I believe thatfor the full enjoyment of sedentary life one must have played thevagabond for a while. 

This brings me to the subject of my last letter. It seems that youhave misunderstood me, for your answer grants me after all justwhat I ask. You think that I wish to renounce entirely the study ofmedicine? On the contrary, the idea has never occurred to me, and, according to my promise, you shall have one of these days a doctorof medicine as a son. What repels me is the thought of practicingmedicine for a livelihood, and here you give me free rein justwhere I wanted it. That is, you consent that I should devote myselfwholly to the natural sciences should this career offer me, as Ihope it may, a more favorable prospect. It requires, for instance, but two or three years to go around the world at governmentexpense. I will levy contributions on all my senses that not asingle chance may escape me for making interesting observations andfine collections, so that I also may be ranked among those who haveenlarged the boundaries of science. With that my future is secured, and I shall return content and disposed to do all that you wish. Even then, if medicine had gained greater attraction for me, therewould still be time to begin the practice of it. It seems to methere is nothing impracticable in this plan. I beg you to think ofit, and to talk it over with papa and with my uncle at Lausanne. . . I am perfectly well and as happy as possible, for I feed inclover here on my favorite studies, with every facility at mycommand. If you thought my New Year's letter depressed, it was onlya momentary gloom due to the memories awakened by the day. . . 

FROM HIS FATHER. 

ORBE, February 21, 1828. 

Your mother's last letter, my dear Louis, was in answer to one fromyou which crossed it on the way, and gave us, so far as your healthand contentment are concerned, great satisfaction. Yet ourgratification lacks something; it would be more complete had younot a mania for rushing full gallop into the future. I have oftenreproved you for this, and you would fare better did you pay moreattention to my reproof. If it be an incurable malady with you, atall events do not force your parents to share it. If it beabsolutely essential to your happiness that you should break theice of the two poles in order to find the hairs of a mammoth, orthat you should dry your shirt in the sun of the tropics, at leastwait till your trunk is packed and your passports are signed beforeyou talk with us about it. Begin by reaching your first aim, aphysician's and surgeon's diploma. I will not for the present hearof anything else, and that is more than enough. Talk to us, then inyour letters, of your friends, of your personal life, of your wants(which I am always ready to satisfy), of your pleasures, of yourfeeling for us, but do not put yourself out of our reach with yourphilosophical syllogisms. My own philosophy is to fulfill my dutiesin my sphere, and even that gives me more than I can do. . . 

The Vaudois "Society of Public Utility" has just announced analtogether new project, that of establishing popular libraries. Acommittee consisting of eight members, of whom I have the honor tobe one, is nominated under the presidency of M. Delessert for theexecution of this scheme. What do you think of the idea? To me itseems a delicate matter. I should say that before we insist uponmaking people read we must begin by preparing them to readusefully?. . . 

TO HIS FATHER. 

MUNICH, March 3, 1828. 

. . . What you tell me of the "Society of Public Utility" hasaroused in me a throng of ideas, about which I will write you whenthey are a little more mature. Meanwhile, please tell me: 1. Whatis this Society? 2. Of what persons is it composed? 3. What is itsprincipal aim? 4. What are the popular libraries to contain, andfor what class are they intended? I believe this project may be ofthe greatest service to our people, and it is on this account thatI desire farther details that I may think it over carefully. Tellme, also, in what way you propose to distribute your libraries atsmall expense, and how large they are to be. . . 

I could not be more satisfied than I am with my stay here. I lead amonotonous but an exceedingly pleasant life, withdrawn from thecrowd of students and seeing them but little. When our lectures areover we meet in the evening at Braun's room or mine, with three orfour intimate acquaintances, and talk of scientific matters, eachone in his turn presenting a subject which is first developed byhim, and then discussed by all. These exercises are veryinstructive. As my share, I have begun to give a course of naturalhistory, or rather of pure zoology. Braun talks to us of botany, and another of our company, Mahir, who is an excellent fellow, teaches us mathematics and physics in his turn. In two months ourfriend Schimper, whom we left at Heidelberg, will join us, and hewill then be our professor of philosophy. Thus we shall form alittle university, instructing each other and at the same timelearning what we teach more thoroughly, because we shall be obligedto demonstrate it. Each session lasts two or three hours, duringwhich the professor in charge retails his merchandise without aidof notes or book. You can imagine how useful this must be inpreparing us to speak in public and with coherence; the experienceis the more important, since we all desire nothing so much assooner or later to become professors in very truth, after havingplayed at professor in the university. 

This brings me naturally to my projects again. Your letter made mefeel so keenly the anxiety I had caused you by my passion fortravel, that I will not recur to it; but as my object was to makein that way a name that would win for me a professorship, I ventureupon another proposition. If during the course of my studies Isucceed in making myself known by a work of distinction, will younot then consent that I shall study, at least during one year, thenatural sciences alone, and then accept a professorship of naturalhistory, with the understanding that in the first place, and in thetime agreed upon, I shall take my Doctor's degree? This is, indeed, essential to my obtaining what I wish, at least in Germany. Youwill object that, before thinking of anything beyond, I ought firstto fulfill the condition. But let me say that the more clearly aman sees the road before him, the less likely he is to lose his wayor take the wrong turn, --the better he can divide his stages andhis resting-places. . . 

FROM HIS FATHER. 

ORBE, March 25, 1828. 

. . . I have had a long talk about you with your uncle. He does notat all disapprove of your letters, of which I told him thecontents. He only insists, as we do, on the necessity of a settledprofession as absolutely essential to your financial position. Indeed, the natural sciences, however sublime and attractive, offernothing certain in the future. They may, no doubt, be your goldenbridge, or you may, thanks to them, soar very high, but--modernIcarus--may not also some adverse fortune, an unexpected loss ofpopularity, or, perhaps, some revolution fatal to your philosophy, bring you down with a somersault, and then you would not be sorryto find in your quiver the means of gaining your bread. Agreed thatyou have now an invincible repugnance to the practice of medicine, it is evident from your last two letters that you would have noless objection to any other profession by which money is to bemade, and, besides, it is too late to make another selection. Thisbeing so, we will come to an understanding in one word: Let thesciences be the balloon in which you prepare to travel throughhigher regions, but let medicine and surgery be your parachutes. Ithink, my dear Louis, you cannot object to this way of looking atthe question and deciding it. In making my respects to theprofessor of zoology, I have the pleasure to tell him that hisuncle was delighted with his way of passing his evenings, andcongratulates him with all his heart on his choice of a recreation. Enough of this chapter. I close it here, wishing you most heartilycourage, health, success, and, above all, contentment. . . 

Upon this follows the answer to Louis's request for details aboutthe "Society of Public Utility. " It shows the intimate exchange ofthought between father and son on educational subjects, but it isof too local an interest for reproduction here. 

The Easter vacation was devoted to a short journey, some account ofwhich will be found in the next letter. The traveling partyconsisted of Agassiz, Braun, and Schimper, with two other students, who did not, however, remain with them during the whole trip. 

TO HIS FATHER. 

MUNICH, May 15, 1828. 

. . . Pleasant as my Easter journey was, I will give you but a briefaccount of it, for my enjoyment was so connected with my specialstudies that the details would only be tiresome to you. You knowwho were my traveling companions, so I have only to tell you of ouradventures, assuredly not those of knights errant or troubadours. Could these gentry have been resuscitated, and have seen usstarting forth in blouses, with bags or botanical boxes at ourbacks and butterfly-nets in our hands, instead of lance andbuckler, they could hardly have failed to look down upon us withpity from the height of their grandeur. 

The first day brought us to Landshut, where was formerly theuniversity till it was transferred, ten years ago, to Munich. Wehad the pleasure of finding along our road most of the early springplants. The weather was magnificent, and nature seemed to smileupon her votaries. . . We stopped on the way but one day, atRatisbon, to visit some relations of Braun's, with whom we promisedto spend several days on our return. Learning on our arrival atNuremberg that the Durer festival, which had been our chiefinducement for this journey, would not take place under eight orten days, we decided to pass the intervening time at Erlangen, theseat, as you know, of a university. I do not know if I have alreadytold you that among German students the exercise of hospitalitytoward those who exchange visits from one university to another isa sacred custom. It gives offense, or is at least looked upon as amark of pride and disdain, if you do not avail yourself of this. Wetherefore went to one of the cafe's de reunion, and received atonce our tickets for lodgings. We passed six days at Erlangen mostagreeably, making a botanical excursion every day. We also calledupon the professors of botany and zoology, whom we had already seenat Munich, and by whom we were most cordially received. Theprofessor of botany, M. Koch, invited us to a very excellentdinner, and gave us many rare plants not in our possession before, while M. Wagner was kind enough to show us in detail the Museum andthe Library. 

At last came the day appointed for the third centennial festival ofDurer. Everything was so arranged as to make it very brilliant, andthe weather was most favorable. I doubt if ever before werecollected so many painters in the same place. They gathered; as ifto vie with each other, from all nations, Russians, Italians, French, Germans, etc. Beside the pupils of the Academy of Fine Artsat Munich, I think that every soul who could paint, were it onlythe smallest sketch, was there to pay homage to the great master. All went in procession to the place where the monument is to beraised, and the magistrates of the city laid the first stones ofthe pedestal. To my amusement they cemented these first stones witha mortar which was served in great silver platters, and made offine pounded porcelain mixed with champagne. In the evening all thestreets were illuminated; there were balls, concerts, and plays, sothat we must have been doubled or quadrupled to see everything. Westayed some days longer at Nuremberg to visit the other curiositiesof the city, especially its beautiful churches, its manufactories, etc. , and then started on our return to Ratisbon. . . 

CHAPTER 3. 

1828-1829: AGE 21-22. 

First Important Work in Natural History. Spix's Brazilian Fishes. Second Vacation Trip. Sketch of Work during University Year. Extracts from the Journal of Mr. Dinkel. Home Letters. Hope of joining Humboldt's Asiatic Expedition. Diploma of Philosophy. Completion of First Part of the Spix Fishes. Letter concerning it from Cuvier. 

It was not without a definite purpose that Agassiz had written tohis father some weeks before, "Should I during the course of mystudies succeed in making myself known by a distinguished work, would you not then consent that I should study for one year thenatural sciences alone?" Unknown to his parents, for whom he hopedto prepare a delightful surprise, Agassiz had actually been engagedfor months on the first work which gave him distinction in thescientific world; namely, a description of the Brazilian fishesbrought home by Martius and Spix from their celebrated journey inBrazil. This was the secret to which allusion is made in the nextletter. To his disappointment an accident brought his undertakingto the knowledge of his father and mother before it was completed. He always had a boyish regret that his little plot had beenbetrayed before the moment for the denouement arrived. The book waswritten in Latin and dedicated to Cuvier. * (* "Selecta genera etspecies piscium quos collegit et pingendos curavit Dr. J. W. DeSpix". Digessit, descripsit et observationibus illustravit Dr. L. Agassiz. )

TO HIS BROTHER. 

MUNICH, July 27, 1828. 

. . . Various things which I have begun keep me a prisoner here. Probably I shall not stir during the vacation, and shall even giveup the little trip in the Tyrol, which I had thought of making as arest from occupations that bind me very closely at present, butfrom which I hope to free myself in the course of the holidays. Don't be angry with me for not telling you at once what they are. When you know, I hope to be forgiven for keeping you so long in thedark. I have kept it a secret from papa too, though in his lastletter he asks me what is my especial work just now. A few monthsmore of patience, and I will give you a strict account of my timesince I came here, and then I am sure you will be satisfied withme. I only wish to guard against one thing: do not take it intoyour head that I am about to don the fool's cap suddenly andsurprise you with a Doctor's degree; that would be going a littletoo fast, nor do I think of it yet. . . I want to remind you not tolet the summer pass without getting me fishes according to the listin my last letter, which I hope you have not mislaid. You wouldgive me great pleasure by sending them as soon as possible. Let metell you why. M. Cuvier has announced the publication of a completework on all the known fishes, and in the prospectus he calls onsuch naturalists as occupy themselves with ichthyology to send himthe fishes of the country where they live; he mentions those whohave already sent him collections, and promises duplicates from theParis Museum to those who will send him more. He names thecountries also from which he has received contributions, andregrets that he has nothing from Bavaria. Now I possess severalspecimens of all the native species, and have even discovered someten not hitherto known to occur here, beside one completely new toscience, which I have named Cyprinus uranoscopus on account of theposition of the eyes, placed on the top instead of the sides of thehead, --otherwise very like the gudgeon. I have therefore thought Icould not better launch myself in the scientific world than bysending Cuvier my fishes with the observations I have made on theirnatural history. To these I should like to add such rare Swissspecies as you can procure for me. So do not fail. 

FROM HIS BROTHER. 

NEUCHATEL, August 25, 1828. 

. . . I received in good time, and with infinite delight, yourpleasant letter of July 27th. Its mysteries have however beenunveiled by Dr. Schinz, who came to the meeting of the NaturalHistory Society in Lausanne, where he met papa and my uncle, towhom he pronounced the most solemn eulogiums on their son andnephew, telling them at the same time what was chiefly occupyingyou now. I congratulate you, my dear brother, but I confess thatamong us all I am the least surprised, for my presentiments aboutyou outrun all this, and I hope soon to see them realized. In allfrankness I can assure you that the stoutest antagonists of yournatural history schemes begin to come over to your side. Among themis my uncle here, who never speaks of you now but with enthusiasm. What more can be said? I gave him your letter to read, and sincethen he has asked me a dozen times at least if I had not forgottento forward the remittance you asked for, saying that I must notdelay it. The truth is, I have deferred writing till the lastmoment, because I have not succeeded in getting your fishes, andhave always been hoping that I might be able to fulfill yourcommission. I busied myself on your behalf with all the zeal andindustry of which I was capable, but quite in vain. The devilseemed to be in it. The season of Bondelles was over two monthsago, and there are none to be seen; as to trout, I don't believeone has been eaten in the whole town for six weeks. I am forever atthe heels of the fishermen, promising them double and treble thevalue of the fish I want, but they all tell me they catch nothingexcept pike. I have been to Cudrefin for lampreys, but foundnothing. Rodolphe* (* An experienced old boatman. ) has beenpaddling in the brook every day without success. I went to Sauge, --no eels, no anything but perch and a few little cat-fish. Twomortal Sundays did I spend, rod in hand, trying to catch bream, chubs, etc. I did get a few, but they were not worth sending. Nowit is all over for this year, and we may as well put on mourningfor them; but I promise you that as soon as the spring opens I willgo to work, and you shall have all you want. If, in spite ofeverything, your hopes are not realized, I shall be very sorry, butrest assured that it is not my fault. . . 

TO HIS SISTER CECILE. 

MUNICH, October 29, 1828. 

. . . I have never written you about what has engrossed me sodeeply; but since my secret is out, I ought not to keep silencelonger. That you may understand why I have entered upon such a workI will go back to its origin. In 1817 the King of Bavaria sent twonaturalists, M. Martius and M. Spix, on an exploring expedition toBrazil. Of M. Martius, with whom I always spend my Wednesdayevenings, I have often spoken to you. In 1821 these gentlemenreturned to their country laden with new discoveries, which theypublished in succession. M. Martius issued colored illustrations ofall the unknown plants he had collected on his journey, while M. Spix brought out several folio volumes on the monkeys, birds, andreptiles of Brazil, the animals being drawn and colored, chieflylife-size, by able artists. It had been his intention to give acomplete natural history of Brazil, but to the sorrow of allnaturalists he died in 1826. M. Martius, desirous to see thecompletion of the work which his traveling companion had begun, engaged a professor from Erlangen to publish the shells, and theseappeared last year. When I came to Munich there remained only thefishes and insects, and M. Martius, who had learned something aboutme from the professors to whom I was known, found me worthy tocontinue the work of Spix, and asked me to carry on the naturalhistory of the fishes. I hesitated for a long time to accept thishonorable offer, fearing that the occupation might withdraw me toomuch from my studies; but, on the other hand, the opportunity forlaying the foundation of a reputation by a large undertaking seemedtoo favorable to be refused. The first volume is already finished, and the printing was begun some weeks ago. You can imagine thepleasure I should have had in sending it to our dear father andmother before they had heard one word about it, or knew even of theproposition. But I hope the premature disclosure of my secret(indeed, to tell the truth, I had not imposed silence on M. Schinz, not dreaming that he would see any one of the family) will notdiminish your pleasure in receiving the first work of your brotherLouis, which I hope to send you at Easter. Already forty coloredfolio plates are completed. Will it not seem strange when thelargest and finest book in papa's library is one written by hisLouis? Will it not be as good as to see his prescription at theapothecary's? It is true that this first effort will bring me inbut little; nothing at all, in fact, because M. De Martius hasassumed all the expenses, and will, of course, receive the profits. My share will be a few copies of the book, and these I shall giveto the friends who have the first claim. 

To his father Agassiz only writes of his work at this time: "I havebeen very busy this summer, and I can tell you from a good source(I have it from one of the professors himself) that the professorswhose lectures I have attended have mentioned me more than once, asone of the most assiduous and best informed students of theuniversity; saying also that I deserved distinction. I do not tellyou this from ostentation, but only that you may not think I losemy time, even though I occupy myself chiefly with the naturalsciences. I hope yet to prove to you that with a brevet of Doctoras a guarantee, Natural History may be a man's bread-winner as wellas the delight of his life. . . "

In September Agassiz allowed himself a short interruption of hiswork. The next letter gives some account of this second vacationtrip. 

TO HIS PARENTS. 

MUNICH, September 26, 1828. 

. . . The instruction for the academic year closed at the end ofAugust, and our professors had hardly completed their lectures whenI began my Alpine excursion. Braun, impatient to leave Munich, hadalready started the preceding day, promising to wait for me on theSalzburg road at the first spot which pleased him enough for ahalt. That I might not keep him waiting, I begged a friend to driveme a good day's journey, thinking to overtake Braun the first dayon the pleasant banks of the Lake of Chiem. My traveling companionswere the younger Schimper [Wilhelm], of whom I have spoken to you(and who made a botanical journey in the south of France and thePyrenees two years ago), and Mahir, who drove us, with whom I amvery intimate; he is a medical student, and also a veryenthusiastic physicist. He gave me private lessons in mathematicsall winter, and was a member of our philomathic meetings. Braun hadnot set out alone either, and his two traveling companions werealso friends of ours. One was Trettenbacher, a medical studentgreatly given to sophisms and logic, but allowing himself to bebeaten in argument with the utmost good nature, though alwaysbelieving himself in the right; a thoroughly good fellow with allthat, and a great connoisseur of antiquities. The other was a youngstudent, More, from the ci-devant department of Mt. Tonnerre, whodevotes himself entirely to the natural sciences, and has chosenthe career of traveling naturalist. You can easily imagine thatthis attracts me to him, but as he is only a beginner I am, as itwere, his mentor. 

On the morning of our departure the weather was magnificent. Driving briskly along we had various surmises as to where we shouldprobably meet our traveling companions, not doubting that, as wehoped to reach the Lake of Chiem the same day, We should comeacross them the day following on one of its pretty islands. But inthe afternoon the weather changed, and we were forced to seekshelter from torrents of rain at Rosenheim, a charming town on thebanks of the Inn, where I saw for the first time this river ofHelvetic origin. I saluted it as a countryman of mine, and wished Icould change its course and send it back laden with my greetings. The next day Mahir drove us as far as the shore of the lake. Therewe parted from him, and took a boat to the islands, where we weremuch disappointed not to find Braun and his companions. We thoughtthe bad weather of the day before (for here it had rained all day)might have obliged them to make the circuit of the lake. However, in order to overtake them before reaching Salzburg, we kept ourboatmen, and were rowed across to the opposite shore nearGrabenstadt, where we arrived at ten o'clock in the evening. In theafternoon the weather had cleared a little, and the view wasbeautiful as we pulled away from the islands and watched them fadein the twilight. I also gathered much interesting information aboutthe inhabitants of the waters of this lake. Among others, I wasmuch pleased to find a cat-fish, taken in the lake by one of theisland fishermen, and also a kind of chub, not found inSwitzerland, and called by the fishermen here "Our Lady's Fish, "because it occurs only on the shore of an island where there is aconvent, the nuns of which esteem it a great delicacy. 

The third day we reached Traunstein, where, although it was Sunday, there was a great horse fair. We looked with interest at the gayTyroleans, with the cock-feathers in their pointed hats, singingand yodeling in the streets with their sweethearts on their arms. Every now and then they let fall some sarcastic comment on ouraccoutrements, which were indeed laughable enough to these people, who had never seen anything beyond their own chalets, and for whoman excursion from their mountains to a fair in the nearest town isa journey. It was noon when we stopped at Traunstein, and fromthere to Salzburg is but five leagues. Before reaching thefortress, however, you must pass the great custom-house on theBavarian frontier, and fearing we might be delayed there too longby the stupid Austrian officials, and thus be prevented fromentering the city before the gates were closed, we resolved to waittill the next morning and spend the night at Adelstaetten, a prettyvillage about a league from Salzburg, and the last Bavarian post. Night was falling as we approached a little wood which hid thevillage from us. There we asked a peasant how far we had still togo, and when he had answered our question he told us, evidentlywith kind intention, that we should find good company in thevillage, for a few hours earlier three journeymen laborers hadarrived there; and then he added that we should no doubt be glad tomeet comrades and have a gay evening with them. We were notastonished to be taken for workmen, since every one who travelshere on foot, with a knapsack on his back, is understood to belongto the laboring class. . . Arrived at the village, we were delightedto find that the three journeymen were our traveling companions. They had come, like ourselves, from Traunstein, where we had missedeach other in the crowd, and they were going likewise to sleep atAdelstaetten, to avoid the custom-house. Finally, on Monday, at teno'clock, we crossed the long bridge over the Saala, between thewhite coats with yellow trimmings on guard there. On the Bavarianfrontier we had hardly remembered that there was a custom-house, and the name of student sufficed to pass us without our showing anypassports; here, on the contrary, it was another reason for thestrictest examination. "Have you no forbidden books?" was the firstquestion. By good fortune, before crossing the bridge, I hadadvised Trettenbach to hide his song-book in the lining of hisboot. I am assured that had it been taken upon him he would nothave been allowed to pass. In ransacking Braun's bag, one of theofficials found a shell such as are gathered by the basketful onthe shores of the Lake of Neuchatel. His first impulse was to go tothe office and inquire whether we should not pay duty on this, saying that it was no doubt for the fabrication of false pearls, and we probably had plenty more. We had all the difficulty in theworld to make him understand that not fifty steps from thecustom-house the shores of the river were strewn with them. . . After all this we had to empty our purses to show that we had moneyenough for our journey, and that we should not be forced to beg inorder to get through. While we underwent this inquisition, anotherofficer made a tour of inspection around us, to observe our generalbearing, etc. . . After having kept us thus on coals for two hoursthey gave us back our passports, and we went our way. At oneo'clock we arrived at Salzburg as hungry as wolves, but at the gatewe had still to wait and give up our passports again in exchangefor receipts, in virtue of which we could obtain permits from thepolice to remain in the city. From our inn, we sent a waiter to getthese permits, but he presently returned with the news that we mustgo in person to take them; there was, however, no hurry; it woulddo in three or four hours! We had no farther difficulty except thatit was made a condition of our stay that we should not appear instudent's dress. This dress, they said, was forbidden in Austria. They begged More to have his hair cut, otherwise it would beshortened gratis, and also informed us that at our age it was notbecoming to dispense with cravats. Happily, I had two with me, andBraun tied his handkerchief around his neck. It astonished me, also, to see that we were not entered on the list of strangerspublished every evening. So it was also, as we found, with otherstudents, though the persons who came with them by the sameconveyance, even the children, were duly inscribed. It seems thisis a precaution against any gathering of students. . . 

The letter concludes in haste for the mail, and if the story of thejourney was finished the final chapter has not been preserved. Someextracts from the home letters of Agassiz's friend Braun, which arein place here, throw light on their university life for the comingyear. * (* See "Life of Alexander Braun", by his daughter, MadameCecile Mettenius. )

ALEXANDER BRAUN TO HIS FATHER. 

MUNICH, November 18, 1828. 

. . . I will tell you how we have laid out our time for this term. Our human consciousness may be said to begin at half-past fiveo'clock in the morning. The hour from six to seven is appointed formathematics, namely, geometry and trigonometry. To this appointmentwe are faithful, unless the professor oversleeps himself, orAgassiz happens to have grown to his bed, an event which sometimesoccurs at the opening of the term. From seven to eight we do as welike, including breakfast. Under Agassiz's new style ofhousekeeping the coffee is made in a machine which is devotedduring the day to the soaking of all sorts of creatures forskeletons, and in the evening again to the brewing of our tea. Ateight o'clock comes the clinical lecture of Ringseis. As Ringseisis introducing an entirely new medical system this is not whollywithout general physiological and philosophical interest. At teno'clock Stahl lectures, five times a week, on mechanics aspreliminary to physics. These and also the succeeding lectures, given only twice a week on the special natural history ofamphibians by Wagler, we all attend together. From twelve to oneo'clock we have nothing settled as yet, but we mean to take thelectures of Dollinger, in single chapters, as, for instance, whenhe comes to the organs of the senses. At one o'clock we go todinner, for which we have at last found a comfortable and regularplace, at a private house, after having dined everywhere andanywhere, at prices from nine to twenty kreutzers. Here, forthirteen kreutzers* (* About nine cents of our money. ) each, incompany with a few others, mostly known to us, we are provided witha good and neatly served meal. After dinner we go to Dr. Waltl, with whom we study chemistry, using Gmelin's text-book, and areshown the most important experiments. Next week we are to beginentomology with Dr. Perty, from three to four, three times a week. From one to two o'clock on Saturday we have a lesson inexperimental physiology, plainly speaking, in animal dissection, from Dr. Oesterreicher, a young Docent, who has written on thecirculation of the blood. As Agassiz dissects a great many animals, especially fishes, at the house, we are making rapid progress incomparative anatomy. At four o'clock we go usually once a week tohear Oken on "Natur-philosophie" (a course we attended last termalso), but by that means we secure a good seat for Schelling'slecture immediately after. A man can hardly hear twice in his lifea course of lectures so powerful as those Schelling is now givingon the philosophy of revelation. This will sound strangely to you, because, till now, men have not believed that revelation could be asubject for philosophical treatment; to some it has seemed toosacred; to others too irrational. . . This lecture brings us to sixo'clock, when the public courses are at an end: we go home, and nowbegin the private lectures. Sometimes Agassiz tries to beat Frenchrules and constructions into our brains, or we have a lesson inanatomy, or I read general natural history aloud to WilliamSchimper. By and by I shall review the natural history of grassesand ferns, two families of which I made a special study lastsummer. Twice a week Karl Schimper lectures to us on the morphologyof plants; a very interesting course on a subject but little known. He has twelve listeners. Agassiz is also to give us lecturesoccasionally on Sundays upon the natural history of fishes. You seethere is enough to do. . . 

Somewhat before this, early in 1828, Agassiz had made theacquaintance of Mr. Joseph Dinkel, an artist. A day spent togetherin the country, in order that Mr. Dinkel might draw a brilliantlycolored trout from life, under the immediate direction of the youngnaturalist, led to a relation which continued uninterruptedly formany years. Mr. Dinkel afterward accompanied Agassiz, as hisartist, on repeated journeys, being constantly employed in makingillustrations for the "Poissons Fossiles" and the "Poissons d'EauDouce, " as well as for his monographs and smaller papers. The twolarger works, the latter of which remained unfinished, were evennow in embryo. Not only was Mr. Dinkel at work upon the plates forthe Fresh-Water Fishes, but Mr. J. C. Weber, who was then engaged inmaking, under Agassiz's direction, the illustrations for the SpixFishes, was also giving his spare hours to the same objects. Mr. Dinkel says of Agassiz's student life at this time:--* (* Extractfrom notes written out in English by Mr. Dinkel after the death ofAgassiz and sent to me. The English, though a little foreign, is soexpressive that it would lose by any attempt to change it, and thewriter will excuse me for inserting his vivid sketch just as itstands. --E. C. A. )

"I soon found myself engaged four or five hours almost daily inpainting for him fresh-water fishes from the life, while he was atmy side, sometimes writing out his descriptions, sometimesdirecting me. . . He never lost his temper, though often under greattrial; he remained self-possessed and did everything calmly, havinga friendly smile for every one and a helping hand for those whowere in need. He was at that time scarcely twenty years old, andwas already the most prominent among the students at Munich. Theyloved him, and had a high consideration for him. I had seen him atthe Swiss students' club several times, and had observed him amongthe JOLLY students; he liked merry society, but he himself was ingeneral reserved and never noisy. He picked out the gifted andhighly-learned students, and would not waste his time in ordinaryconversation. Often, when he saw a number of students going off onsome empty pleasure-trip, he said to me, 'There they go with theother fellows; their motto is, "Ich gehe mit den andern. " I will gomy own way, Mr. Dinkel, --and not alone: I will be a leader ofothers. ' In all his doings there was an ease and calm which wasremarkable. His studio was a perfect German student's room. It waslarge, with several wide windows; the furniture consisted of acouch and about half a dozen chairs, beside some tables for the useof his artists and himself. Dr. Alex Braun and Dr. Schimper lodgedin the same house, and seemed to me to share his studio. Beingbotanists, they, too, brought home what they collected in theirexcursions, and all this found a place in the atelier, on thecouch, on the seats, on the floors. Books filled the chairs, onealone being left for the other artist, while I occupied a standingdesk with my drawing. No visitor could sit down, and sometimesthere was little room to stand or move about. The walls were white, and diagrams were drawn on them, to which, by and by, we artistsadded skeletons and caricatures. In short, it was quite original. Iwas some time there before I could discover the real names of hisfriends: each had a nickname, --Molluscus, Cyprinus, Rhubarb, etc. "

From this glimpse into "The Little Academy" we return to the threadof the home letters, learning from the next one that Agassiz'sprivate collections were assuming rather formidable proportionswhen considered as part of the household furniture. Broughttogether in various ways, partly by himself, partly in exchange forduplicates, partly as pay for arranging specimens in the MunichMuseum, they had already acquired, when compared with his smallmeans, a considerable pecuniary value, and a far higher scientificimportance. They included fishes, some rare mammalia, reptiles, shells, birds, an herbarium of some three thousand species ofplants collected by himself, and a small cabinet of minerals. Afterenumerating them in a letter to his parents he continues: "You canimagine that all these things are in my way now that I cannotattend to them, and that for want of room and care they are piledup and in danger of spoiling. You see by my list that the wholecollection is valued at two hundred louis; and this is so low anestimate that even those who sell objects of natural history wouldnot hesitate to take them at that price. You will therefore easilyunderstand how anxious I am to keep them intact. Can you not findme a place where they might be spread out? I have thought thatperhaps my uncle in Neuchatel would have the kindness to let somelarge shelves be put up in the little upper room of his house inCudrefin, where, far from being an annoyance or causing any smell, my collection, if placed in a case under glass, or disposed in someother suitable manner, would be an ornament. Be so kind as topropose it to him, and if he consents I will then tell you what Ishall need for its arrangement. Remember that on this depends, ingreat part, the preservation of my specimens, and answer as soon aspossible. "

Agassiz was now hurrying forward both his preparation for hisdegree and the completion of his Brazilian Fishes, in the hope ofat last fulfilling his longing for a journey of exploration. Thishope is revealed in his next home letter. The letter is a long one, and the first half is omitted since it concerns only thearrangements for his collections, the care to be taken of them, etc. 

TO HIS FATHER. 

MUNICH, February 14, 1829. 

. . . But now I must talk to you of more important things, not ofwhat I possess, but of what I am to be. Let me first recall one ortwo points touched upon before in our correspondence, which shouldnow be fully discussed. 

1st. You remember that when I first left Switzerland I promised youto win the title of Doctor in two years, and to be prepared (afterhaving completed my studies in Paris) to pass my examination beforethe "Conseil de Sante, " and begin practice. 

2nd. You will not have forgotten either that you exacted this onlythat I might have a profession, and that you promised, should I beable to make my way in the career of letters and natural history, you would not oppose my wishes. I am indeed aware that in thelatter case you see but one obstacle, that of absence from mycountry and separation from all who are dear to me. But you know metoo well to think that I would voluntarily impose upon myself suchan exile. Let us see whether we cannot resolve these difficultiesto our mutual satisfaction, and consider what is the surest road tothe end I have proposed to myself ever since I began my medicalstudies. Weigh all my reasons, for in this my peace of mind and myfuture happiness are concerned. Examine my conduct with referenceto what I propose in every light, that of son and Vaudois citizenincluded, and I feel sure you will concur in my views. 

Here is my aim and the means by which I propose to carry it out. Iwish it may be said of Louis Agassiz that he was the firstnaturalist of his time, a good citizen, and a good son, beloved ofthose who knew him. I feel within myself the strength of a wholegeneration to work toward this end, and I will reach it if themeans are not wanting. Let us see in what these means consist. [Here follows the summing up of his reasons for preferring aprofessorship of natural history to the practice of medicine, andhis intention of trying for a diploma as Doctor of Philosophy inGermany. ] But how obtain a professorship, you will say, --that isthe important point? I answer, the first step is to make myself aEuropean name, and for that I am on the right road. In the firstplace my work on the fishes of Brazil, just about to appear, willmake me favorably known. I am sure it will be kindly received; forat the General Assembly of German naturalists and medical men lastSeptember, in Berlin, the part already finished and presentedbefore the Assembly was praised in a manner for which I was quiteunprepared. The professors also, to whom I was known, spoke of methere in very favorable terms. 

In the second place there are now preparing two expeditions ofnatural history, one by M. De Humboldt, with whose reputation youare surely familiar, --the same who spent several years in exploringthe equatorial regions of South America, in company with M. Bonpland. He has been for some years at Berlin, and is now about tostart on a journey to the Ural Mountains, the Caucasus, and theconfines of the Caspian Sea. Braun, Schimper, and I have beenproposed to him as traveling companions by several of ourprofessors; but the application may come too late, for M. DeHumboldt decided upon this journey long ago, and has probablyalready chosen the naturalists who are to accompany him. How happyI should be to join this expedition to a country the climate ofwhich is by no means unhealthy, under the direction of a man sogenerally esteemed, to whom the Emperor of Russia has promised helpand an escort at all times and under all circumstances. The secondexpedition is to a country quite as salubrious, and which presentsno dangers whatever for travelers, --South America. It will be underthe direction of M. Ackermann, known as a distinguishedagriculturist and as Councilor of State to the Grand Duke of Baden. I should prefer to go with Humboldt; but if I am too late, I feelvery sure of being able to join the second expedition. So itdepends, you see, only on your consent. This journey is to last twoyears, at the end of which time, happily at home once more, I canfollow with all desirable facilities the career I have chosen. Ifthere should be a place for me at Lausanne, which I should preferto any other locality, I could devote my life to teaching my youngcountrymen, awaken in them the taste for science and observation somuch neglected among us, and thus be more useful to my canton thanI could be as a practitioner. These projects may not succeed; butin the present state of things all the probabilities are favorable. Therefore, I beg you to consider it seriously, to consult my unclein Lausanne, and to write me at once what you think. . . 

In spite of the earnest desire for travel shown in this letter itwill be seen later how the restless aspirations of childhood, boyhood, and youth, which were, after all, only a latent love ofresearch, crystallize into the concentrated purpose of the man whocould remain for months shut up in his study, leaving hismicroscope only to eat and sleep, --a life as sedentary as ever waslived by a closet student. 

FROM HIS FATHER. 

ORBE, February 23, 1829. 

. . . It was not without deep emotion that we read your letter ofthe 14th, and I easily understand that, anticipating its effectupon us all, you have deferred writing as long as possible. Yet youwere wrong in so doing; had we known your projects earlier we mighthave forestalled for you the choice of M. De Humboldt, whoseexpedition seems to us preferable, in every respect, to that of M. Ackermann. The first embraces a wider field, and concerns thehistory of man rather than that of animals; the latter is confinedto an excursion along the sea-board, where there would be, nodoubt, a rich harvest for science, but much less for philosophy. However that may be, your father and mother, while they grieve forthe day that will separate them from their oldest son, will offerno obstacles to his projects, but pray God to bless them. . . 

The subjoined letter of about the same date from Alexander Braun tohis father tells us how the projects so ardently urged upon hisparents by Agassiz, and so affectionately accepted by them, firsttook form in the minds of the friends. 

BRAUN TO HIS FATHER. 

MUNICH, February 15, 1829. 

. . . Last Thursday we were at Oken's. There was interesting talk onall sorts of subjects, bringing us gradually to the Ural and thento Humboldt's journey, and finally Oken asked if we would not liketo go with Humboldt. To this we gave warm assent, and told him thatif he could bring it about we would be ready to start at a day'snotice, and Agassiz added, eagerly, "Yes, --and if there were anyhope that he would take us, a word from you would have more weightthan anything. " Oken's answer gave us but cold comfort;nevertheless, he promised to write at once to Humboldt in ourbehalf. With this, we went home in great glee; it was very late anda bright moonlight night. Agassiz rolled himself in the snow forjoy, and we agreed that however little hope there might be of ourjoining the expedition, still the fact that Humboldt would hear ofus in this way was worth something, even if it were only that wemight be able to say to him one of these days, "We are the fellowswhose company you rejected. "

With this hope the friends were obliged to content themselves, forafter a few weeks of alternate encouragement and despondency theirbright vision faded. Oken fulfilled his promise and wrote toHumboldt, recommending them most warmly. Humboldt answered that hisplans were conclusively settled, and that he had chosen the onlyassistants who were to accompany him, --Ehrenberg and Rose. 

In connection with this frustrated plan is here given the roughdraft of a letter from Agassiz to Cuvier, written evidently at asomewhat earlier date. Although a mere fragment, it is theoutpouring of the same passionate desire for a purely scientificlife, and shows that the opportunity suggested by Humboldt'sjourney had only given a definite aim to projects already fullgrown. From the contents it must have been written in 1828. Aftersome account of his early studies, which would be mere repetitionhere, he goes on: "Before finishing my letter, allow me to ask someadvice from you, whom I revere as a father, and whose works havebeen till now my only guide. Five years ago I was sent to themedical school at Zurich. After the first few lectures there inanatomy and zoology I could think of nothing but skeletons. In ashort time I had learned to dissect, and had made for myself asmall collection of skulls of animals from different classes. Ipassed two years in Zurich, studying whatever I could find in theMuseum, and dissecting all the animals I could procure. I even sentto Berlin at this time for a monkey in spirits of wine, that Imight compare the nervous system with that of man. I spent all thelittle means I had in order to see and learn as much as possible. Then I persuaded my father to let me go to Heidelberg, where for ayear I followed Tiedemann's courses in human anatomy. I passedalmost the whole winter in the anatomical laboratory. The followingsummer I attended the lectures of Leuckart on zoology, and those ofBronn on fossils. When at Zurich, the longing to travel some day asa naturalist had taken possession of me, and at Heidelberg thisdesire only increased. My frequent visits to the Museum atFrankfort, and what I heard there concerning M. Ruppell himself, strengthened my purpose even more than all I had previously read. Iwas, as it were, Ruppell's traveling companion: the activity, thedifficulties to be overcome, all were present to me as I lookedupon the treasures he had brought together from the deserts ofAfrica. The vision of difficulty thus vanquished, and of the inwardsatisfaction arising from it, tended to give all my studies adirection in keeping with my projects. "

"I felt that to reach my aim more surely it was important tocomplete my medical studies, and for this I came to Munich eighteenmonths ago. Still I could not make up my mind to renounce thenatural sciences. I attended some of the pathological lectures, butI soon found that I was neglecting them; and yielding once more tomy inclination, I followed consecutively the lectures of Dollingeron comparative anatomy, those of Oken on natural history, those ofFuchs on mineralogy, as well as the courses of astronomy, physics, chemistry, and mathematics. I was confirmed in this withdrawal frommedical studies by the proposition of M. De Martius that I shoulddescribe the fishes brought back by Spix from Brazil, and to this Iconsented the more gladly because ichthyology has always been afavorite study with me. I have not, however, been able to give themall the care I could have wished, for M. De Martius, anxious tocomplete the publication of these works, has urged upon me a rapidexecution. I hope, nevertheless, that I have made no gross errors, and I am the less likely to have done so, because I had as my guidethe observations you had kindly made for him on the plates of Spix. Several of these plates were not very exact; they have been setaside and new drawings made. I beg that you will judge this workwhen it reaches you with indulgence, as the first literary essay ofa young man. I hope to complete it in the course of the nextsummer. I would beg you, in advance, to give me a paternal word ofadvice as to the direction my studies should then take. Ought I todevote myself to the study of medicine? I have no fortune, it istrue; but I would gladly sacrifice my life if, by so doing, I couldserve the cause of science. Though I have not even a presentimentof any means with which I may one day travel in distant countries, I have, nevertheless, prepared myself during the last three yearsas if I might be off at any minute. I have learned to skin allsorts of animals, even very large ones. I have made more than ahundred skeletons of quadrupeds, birds, reptiles, and fishes; Ihave tested all the various liquors for preserving such animals asshould not be skinned, and have thought of the means of supplyingthe want in countries where the like preparations are not to behad, in case of need. Finally, I have trained as travelingcompanion a young friend, * (* William Schimper, brother of Karl. )and awakened in him the same love of the natural sciences. He is anexcellent hunter, and at my instigation has been taking lessons indrawing, so that he is now able to sketch from nature such objectsas may be desirable. We often pass delightful moments in ourimaginary travels through unknown countries, building thus ourcastles in Spain. Pardon me if I talk to you of projects which atfirst sight seem puerile; only a fixed aim is needed to give themreality, and to you I come for counsel. My longing is so great thatI feel the need of expressing it to some one who will understandme, and your sympathy would make me the happiest of mortals. I amso pursued by this thought of a scientific journey that it presentsitself under a thousand forms, and all that I undertake lookstoward one end. I have for six months frequented a blacksmith's andcarpenter's shop, learning to handle hammer and axe, and I alsopractice arms, the bayonet and sabre exercise. I am strong androbust, know how to swim, and do not fear forced marches. I have, when botanizing and geologizing, walked my twelve or fifteenleagues a day for eight days in succession, carrying on my back aheavy bag loaded with plants or minerals. In one word, I seem tomyself made to be a traveling naturalist. I only need to regulatethe impetuosity which carries me away. I beg you, then, to be myguide. "

The unfinished letter closes abruptly, having neither signature noraddress. Perhaps the writer's courage failed him and it never wassent. An old letter (date 1827) from Cuvier to Martius, found amongAgassiz's papers of this time, and containing the very notes on theSpix Fishes to which allusion is here made, leaves no doubt, however, that this appeal was intended for the great master whoexercised so powerful an influence upon Agassiz throughout hiswhole life. 

In the spring of 1829 Agassiz took his diploma in the faculty ofphilosophy. He did this with no idea of making it a substitute forhis medical degree, but partly in deference to Martius, who wishedthe name of his young colleague to appear on the title-page of theBrazilian Fishes with the dignity of Doctor, and partly because hebelieved it would strengthen his chance of a future professorship. Of his experience on this occasion he gives some account in thefollowing letter:--

TO HIS BROTHER. 

MUNICH, May 22, 1829. 

As it was necessary for me to go through with my examination atonce, and as the days for promotion here were already engaged twomonths in advance, I decided to pass it at Erlangen. That I mightnot go alone, and also for the pleasure of their company, Ipersuaded Schimper and Michahelles to do the same. Braun wanted tobe of the party, but afterward decided to wait awhile. We made ourrequest to the Faculty in a long Latin letter (because, you know, among savants it is the thing to speak and write the language youknow least), requesting permission to pass our examination inwriting, and to go to Erlangen only for the colloquium andpromotion. They granted our request on condition of our promise(jurisjurandi loco polliciti sumus) to answer the questionspropounded without help from any one and without consulting books. Among other things I had to develop a natural system of zoology, toshow the relation between human history and natural history, todetermine the true basis and limits of the philosophy of nature, etc. As an inaugural dissertation, I presented some general andnovel considerations on the formation of the skeleton throughoutthe animal kingdom, from the infusoria, mollusks, and insects tothe vertebrates, properly so called. The examiners weresufficiently satisfied with my answers to give me my degree the23rd or 24th of April, without waiting for the colloquium andpromotion, writing to me that they were satisfied with myexamination, and therefore forwarded my diploma without regard tothe oral examination. . . The Dean of the Faculty, in inclosing itto me, added that he hoped before long to see me professor, and noless the ornament of my university in that position than I hadhitherto been as student. I must try not to disappoint him. . . 

A letter from his brother contains a few lines in reference tothis. "Last evening, dear Louis, your two diplomas reached me. Icongratulate you with all my heart on your success. I am going tosend to grandpapa the one destined for him, and I see in advanceall his pleasure, though it would be greater if the word medicinestood for that of philosophy. "

The first part of the work on the Brazilian Fishes was nowcompleted, and he had the pleasure of sending it to his parents ashis own forerunner. After joining a scientific meeting to be heldat Heidelberg, in September, he was to pass a month at home beforereturning to Munich for the completion of his medical studies. 

TO HIS PARENTS. 

MUNICH, July 4, 1829. 

. . . I hope when you read this letter you will have received thefirst part of my Brazilian Fishes from M. --, of Geneva, to whomMartius had to send a package of plants, with which my book wasinclosed. I venture to think that this work will give me a name, and I await with impatience the criticism that I suppose it willreceive from Cuvier. . . I think the best way of reaching thevarious aims I have in view is to continue the career on which Ihave started, and to publish as soon as possible my natural historyof the fresh-water fishes of Germany and Switzerland. I propose toissue it in numbers, each containing twelve colored platesaccompanied by six sheets of letter-press. . . In the middle ofSeptember there is to be a meeting of all the naturalists andmedical men of Germany, to which foreign savants are invited. Asimilar meeting has been held for the last two or three years inone or another of the brilliant centres of Germany. This year itwill take place at Heidelberg. Could one desire a better occasionto make known a projected work? I could even show the originaldrawings already made of species only found in the environs ofMunich, and, so to speak, unknown to naturalists. At Heidelbergwill be assembled Englishmen, Danes, Swedes, Russians, and evenItalians. If I could before then arrange everything and distributethe printed circulars of my work I should be sure of success. . . 

In those days of costly postage one sheet of writing paper wassometimes made to serve for several members of the family. The nextcrowded letter contains chiefly domestic details, but closes with apostscript from Mme. Agassiz, filling, as she says, the onlyremaining corner, and expressing her delight in his diploma and inthe completion of his book. 

FROM HIS MOTHER. 

August 16, 1829. 

. . . The place your brother has left me seems very insufficient forall that I have to say, dear Louis, but I will begin by thankingyou for the happiness, as sweet as it is deeply felt, which yoursuccess has given us. Already our satisfaction becomes the rewardof your efforts. We wait with impatience for the moment when weshall see you and talk with you. Your correspondence leaves manyblanks, and we are sometimes quite ashamed that we have so fewdetails to give about your book. You will be surprised that it hasnot yet reached us. Does the gentleman in Geneva intend to read itbefore sending it to us, or has he perhaps not received thepackage? Not hearing we are uneasy. . . Good-by, my dear son; I haveno room for more, except to add my tender love for you. Anhonorable mention of your name in the Lausanne Gazette has broughtus many pleasant congratulations. . . 

TO HIS FATHER. 

August, 1829. 

. . . I hope by this time you have my book. I can the less explainthe delay since M. Cuvier, to whom I sent it in the same way, hasacknowledged its arrival. I inclose his letter, hoping it will giveyou pleasure to read what one of the greatest naturalists of theage writes me about it. 

CUVIER TO LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

PARIS, AU JARDIN DU ROI, August 3, 1829. 

. . . You and M. De Martius have done me honor in placing my name atthe head of a work so admirable as the one you have just published. The importance and the rarity of the species therein described, aswell as the beauty of the figures, will make the work an importantone in ichthyology, and nothing could heighten its value more thanthe accuracy of your descriptions. It will be of the greatest useto me in my History of Fishes. I had already referred to the platesin the second edition of my "Regne Animal. " I shall do all in mypower to accelerate the sale among amateurs, either by showing itto such as meet at my house or by calling attention to it inscientific journals. 

I look with great interest for your history of the fishes of theAlps. It cannot but fill a wide gap in that portion of naturalhistory, --above all, in the different divisions of the genus Salmo. The figures of Bloch, those of Meidinger, and those of Marsigli, are quite insufficient. We have the greater part of the specieshere, so that it will be easy for me to verify the characters; butonly an artist, working on the spot, with specimens fresh from thewater, can secure the colors. You will, no doubt, have much to addalso respecting the development, habits, and use of all thesefishes. Perhaps you would do well to limit yourself at first to amonograph of the Salmones. 

With my thanks for the promised documents, accept the assurance ofmy warm regard and very sincere attachment. 

B. G. CUVIER. 

At last comes the moment, so long anticipated, when the youngnaturalist's first book is in the hands of his parents. The news ofits reception is given in a short and hurried note. 

FROM HIS FATHER. 

ORBE, August 31, 1829. 

I hasten, my dear son, to announce the arrival of your beautifulwork, which reached us on Thursday, from Geneva. I have no terms inwhich to express the pleasure it has given me. In two words, for Ihave only a moment to myself, I repeat my urgent entreaty that youwould hasten your return as much as possible. . . The old father, who waits for you with open heart and arms, sends you the mosttender greeting. . . 

CHAPTER 4. 

1829-1830: AGE 22-23. 

Scientific Meeting at Heidelberg. Visit at Home. Illness and Death of his Grandfather. Return to Munich. Plans for Future Scientific Publications. Takes his Degree of Medicine. Visit to Vienna. Return to Munich. Home Letters. Last Days at Munich. Autobiographical Review of School and University Life. 

TO HIS PARENTS. 

HEIDELBERG, September 25, 1829. 

. . . THE time of our meeting is almost at hand. Relieved from allanxiety about the subjects I had wished to present here, I can nowbe quietly with you and enjoy the rest and freedom I have so longneeded. The tension of mind, forced upon me by the effort to reachmy goal in time, has crowded out the thoughts which are mostpresent when I am at peace. I will not talk to you of what I havebeen doing lately, (a short letter from Frankfort will have put youon my track), nor of the relations I have formed at the Heidelbergmeeting, nor of the manner in which I have been received, etc. These are matters better told than written. . . I intend to leavehere to-morrow or the day after, according to circumstances. Ishall stay some days at Carlsruhe to put my affairs in order, andfrom there make the journey home as quickly as possible. . . 

The following month we find him once more at home in the parsonageof Orbe. After the first pleasure and excitement of return, histime was chiefly spent in arranging his collections at Cudrefin, where his grandfather had given him house-room for them. In thiswork he had the help of the family in general, who made a sort ofscientific fete of the occasion. But it ended sadly with theillness and death of the kind old grandfather, under whose roofchildren and grandchildren had been wont to assemble. 

AGASSIZ TO BRAUN. 

ORBE, December 3, 1829. 

. . . I will devote an hour of this last evening I am to pass inOrbe, to talking with you. You will wonder that I am still here, and that I have not written. You already know that I have beenarranging my collections at Cudrefin, and spending very happy dayswith my grandfather. But he is now very ill, and even should wehave better news of him to-day, the thought weighs heavily on myheart, that I must take leave of him when he is perhaps on hisdeath-bed. . . I have just tied up my last package of plants, andthere lies my whole herbarium in order, --thirty packages in all. For this I have to thank you, dear Alex, and it gives me pleasureto tell you so and to be reminded of it. What a succession ofglorious memories came up to me as I turned them over. Free fromall disturbing incidents, I enjoyed anew our life together, andeven more, if possible, than in actual experience. Every talk, every walk, was present to me again, and in reviewing it all I sawhow our minds had been drawn to each other in an ever-strengtheningunion. In you I see my own intellectual development reflected as ina mirror, for to you, and to my intercourse with you, I owe myentrance upon this path of the noblest and most lasting enjoyment. It is delightful to look back on such a past with the future sobright before us. . . 

Agassiz now returned to Munich to add the title of Doctor ofMedicine to that of Doctor of Philosophy. A case of somnambulism, which fell under his observation and showed him disease, or, atleast, abnormal action of the brain, under an aspect which was newto him, seems to have given a fresh impulse to his medical studies, and, for a time, he was inclined to believe that the vocation whichhad thus far been to him one of necessity, might become one ofpreference. But the naturalist was stronger than the physician. During this very winter, when he was preparing himself with newearnestness for his profession, a collection of fossil fishes wasput into his hands by the Director of the Museum of Munich. It willbe seen with what ardor he threw himself into this newinvestigation. His work on the "Poissons Fossiles, " which placedhim in a few years in the front rank of European scientific men, took form at once in his fertile brain. 

TO HIS BROTHER. 

MUNICH, January 18, 1830. 

. . . My resolve to study medicine is now confirmed. I feel all thatmay be done to render this study worthy the name of science, whichit has so long usurped. Its intimate alliance with the naturalsciences and the enlightenment it promises me regarding them areindeed my chief incitements to persevere in my resolution. In orderto gain time, and to strike while the iron is hot (don't be afraidit will grow cold; the wood which feeds the fire is good), I haveproposed to Euler, with whom I am very intimate, to review themedical course with me. Since then, we pass all our eveningstogether, and rarely separate before midnight, --reading alternatelyFrench and German medical books. In this way, although I devote mywhole day to my own work about fishes, I hope to finish myprofessional studies before summer. I shall then pass myexamination for the Doctorate in Germany, and afterward do the samein Lausanne. I hope that this decision will please mama. Mycharacter and conduct are the pledge of its accomplishment. 

This, then, is my night-work. I have still to tell you what I do byday, and this is more important. My first duty is to complete myBrazilian Fishes. To be sure, it is only an honorary work, but itmust be finished, and is an additional means of making subsequentworks profitable. This is my morning occupation, and I am sure ofbringing it to a close about Easter. After much reflection, I havedecided that the best way to turn my Fresh-Water Fishes to account, is to finish them completely before offering them to a publisher. All the expenses being then paid, I could afford, if the firstpublisher should not feel able to take them on my own terms, tokeep them as a safe investment. The publisher himself seeing thematerial finished, and being sure of bringing it out as a completework, the value of which he can on that account better estimate, will be more disposed to accept my proposals, while I, on my side, can be more exacting. The text for this I write in the afternoon. My greatest difficulty at first was the execution of the plates. But here, also, my good star has served me wonderfully. I told youthat beside the complete drawings of the fishes I wanted torepresent their skeletons and the anatomy of the soft parts, whichhas never been done for this class. I shall thereby give a newvalue to the work, and make it desirable for all who studycomparative anatomy. The puzzle was to find some one who wasprepared to draw things of this kind; but I have made the luckiesthit, and am more than satisfied. My former artist continues to drawthe fishes, a second draws the skeletons (one who had already beenengaged for several years in the same way, for a work uponreptiles), while a young physician, who is an admirabledraughtsman, makes my anatomical figures. For my share, I directtheir work while writing the text, and thus the whole advances withgreat strides. I do not, however, stop here. Having by permissionof the Director of the Museum one of the finest collections offossils in Germany at my disposition, and being also allowed totake the specimens home as I need them, I have undertaken topublish the ichthyological part of the collection. Since it onlymakes the difference of one or two people more to direct, I havethese specimens also drawn at the same time. Nowhere so well ashere, where the Academy of Fine Arts brings together so manydraughtsmen, could I have the same facility for completing asimilar work; and as it is an entirely new branch, in which no onehas as yet done anything of importance, I feel sure of success; themore so because Cuvier, who alone could do it (for the simplereason that every one else has till now neglected the fishes), isnot engaged upon it. Add to this that just now there is a real needof this work for the determination of the different geologicalformations. Once before, at the Heidelberg meeting, it had beenproposed to me; the Director of the Mines at Strasbourg, M. Voltz, even offered to send me at Munich the whole collection of fossilfishes from their Museum. I did not speak to you of this at thetime because it would have been of no use. But now that I have itin my power to carry out the project, I should be a fool to let achance escape me which certainly will not present itself a secondtime so favorably. It is therefore my intention to prepare ageneral work on fossil ichthyology. I hope, if I can commandanother hundred louis, to complete everything of which I havespoken before the end of the summer, that is to say, in July. Ishall then have on hand two works which should surely be worth athousand louis to me. This is a low estimate, for even ephemeralpieces and literary ventures are paid at this price. You can easilymake the calculation. They allow three louis for each plate withthe accompanying text; my fossils will have about two hundredplates, and my fresh-water fishes about one hundred and fifty. Thisseems to me plausible. . . 

This letter evidently made a favorable impression on the businessheads of the family at Neuchatel, for it is forwarded to hisparents, with these words from his brother on the last sheet: "Ihasten, dear father, to send you this excellent letter from mybrother, which has just reached me. They have read it here withinterest, and Uncle Francois Mayor, especially, sees both stabilityand a sound basis in his projects and enterprises. "

There is something touching and almost amusing in Agassiz's effortsto give a prudential aspect to his large scientific schemes. He wasperfectly sincere in this, but to the end of his life he skirtedthe edge of the precipice, daring all, and finding in himself thepower to justify his risks by his successes. He was of frugalpersonal habits; at this very time, when he was keeping two orthree artists on his slender means, he made his own breakfast inhis room, and dined for a few cents a day at the cheapest eatinghouses. But where science was concerned the only economy herecognized, either in youth or old age, was that of an expenditureas bold as it was carefully considered. 

In the above letter to his brother we have the story of his workduring the whole winter of 1830. That his medical studies did notsuffer from the fact that, in conjunction with them, he wascarrying on his two great works on the living and the dead world offishes may be inferred from the following account of his medicaltheses. It was written after his death, to his son AlexanderAgassiz, by Professor von Siebold, now Director of the Museum inthe University of Munich. "How earnestly Agassiz devoted himself tothe study of medicine is shown by the theses (seventy-four innumber), a list of which was printed, according to the prescribedrule and custom, with his 'Einladung. ' I am astonished at the greatnumber of these. The subjects are anatomical, pathological, surgical, obstetrical; they are inquiries into materia medica, medicina forensis, and the relation of botany to these topics. Oneof them interested me especially. It read as follows. 'Foeminahumana superior mare. ' I would gladly have known how your fatherinterpreted that sentence. Last fall (1873) I wrote him a letter, the last I ever addressed to him, questioning him about this verysubject. That letter, alas! remained unanswered. "

In a letter to his brother just before taking his degree, Agassizsays: "I am now determined to pursue medicine and natural historyside by side. Thank you, with all my heart, for your disinterestedoffer, but I shall not need it, for I am going on well with mypublisher, M. Cotta, of Stuttgart. I have great hope that he willaccept my works, since he has desired that they should be forwardedto him for examination. I have sent him the whole, and I feel verysure he will swallow the pill. My conditions would be the onlycause of delay, but I hope he will agree to them. For thefresh-water fishes and the fossils together I have asked twentythousand Swiss francs. Should he not consent to this, I shall applyto another publisher. "

On the 3rd of April he received his degree of Doctor of Medicine. Aday or two later he writes to his mother that her great desire forhim is accomplished. 

TO HIS MOTHER. 

MUNICH, April, 1830. 

. . . My letter to-day must be to you, for to you I owe it that Ihave undertaken the work just completed, and I write to thank youfor having encouraged my zeal. I am very sure that no letter fromme has ever given you greater pleasure than this one will bring;and I can truly say, on my own part, that I have never written onewith greater satisfaction. Yesterday I finished my medicalexamination, after having satisfied every requirement of theFaculty. . . The whole ceremony lasted nine days. At the close, while they considered my case, I was sent out of the room. On myreturn, the Dean said to me, "The Faculty have been VERY MUCH"(emphasized) "pleased with your answers; they congratulatethemselves on being able to give the diploma to a young man who hasalready acquired so honorable a reputation. On Saturday, afterhaving argued your thesis, you will receive your degree, in theAcademic Hall, from the Rector of the University. " The Rector thenadded that he should look upon it as the brightest moment of hisRectorship when he conferred upon me the title I had so wellmerited. Next Saturday, then, at the very time you receive thisletter, at ten o'clock in the morning, the discussion will havebegun, and at twelve I shall have my degree. Dear Mother, dismissall anxiety about me. You see I am as good as my word. . . Writesoon; in a few days I go to Vienna for some months. . . 

FROM HIS MOTHER. 

ORBE, April 7, 1830. 

I cannot thank you enough, my dear Louis, for the happiness youhave given me in completing your medical examinations, and thussecuring to yourself a career as safe as it is honorable. It is alaurel added to those you have already won; in my eyes the mostprecious of all. You have for my sake gone through a long andarduous task; were it in my power I would gladly reward you, but Icannot even say that I love you the more for it, because that isimpossible. My anxious solicitude for your future is a proof of myardent affection for you; only one thing was wanting to make me thehappiest of mothers, and this, my Louis, you have just given me. May God reward you by giving you all possible success in the careof your fellow-beings. May the benedictions which honor the memoryof a good physician be your portion, as they have been in thehighest degree that of your grandfather. Why can he not be here toshare my happiness to-day in seeing my Louis a medical graduate!. . . 

Agassiz was recalled from Vienna in less than two months by thearrival in Munich of his publisher, M. Cotta, a personal interviewwith whom seemed to him important. The only letter preserved fromthe Vienna visit shows that his short stay there was full ofinterest and instruction. 

TO HIS FATHER. 

VIENNA, May 11, 1830. 

. . . Since my arrival I have seen so much that I hardly know whereto begin my narrative, and what I have seen has suggestedreflections on many grave subjects, of a kind I had hardly expectedto make here. Nowhere have I seen establishments on broader or morestately foundations, nor do I believe that anywhere are foreignersallowed more liberal use of like institutions. I speak of theuniversity, the hospitals, libraries, and collections of all sorts. Neither have I seen anywhere else such fine churches, and I havemore than once felt the difference between worshiping within barewalls, and in buildings more worthy of devotional purposes. In oneword, I should be enchanted with my stay in Vienna if I could befree from the idea that I am always surrounded by an imperceptiblenet, ready to close upon me at the slightest signal. With thisexception, the only discomfort to a foreigner here, if he isunaccustomed to it, is that of being obliged to abstain from allcriticism of affairs in public places; still more must he avoidcommenting upon persons. I am especially satisfied with my visitfrom a scientific point of view. I have learned, and am stilllearning, the care of the eyes and how to operate upon them; as tomedicine, the physicians, however good, do not surpass those I havealready known; and as I do not believe it important that a youngphysician should familiarize himself with a great variety ofcurative methods, I try to observe carefully the patient and hisdisease rather than to remember the medicaments applied in specialcases. Surgery and midwifery are poorly provided, but one has achance to see many interesting cases. 

During the last fortnight I have visited the collection of naturalhistory often, generally in the afternoon. To tell you how I havebeen expected there from the moment I was known to be here, and howI was received on my first visit, and have been feted since (asIchthyologus primus seculi, --so they say), would, perhaps, tire youand might seem egotistical in me, neither of which do I desire. Butit will not be indifferent to you to know that Cotta is disposed toaccept my Fishes. He has been at Munich for some days, and Schimperhas been talking with him, and has advanced matters more by a fewwords than I had been able to do by much writing. For this reason Iintend returning soon to Munich to complete the business, sinceCotta is to be there several weeks longer. Thus I shall havereached my aim, and be provided from this autumn onward with anindependent maintenance. I was often very anxious this past winter, in my uncertainty about the means of finally making good such largeoutlays. If, however, Cotta makes no other condition than that of acertain number of subscribers, I shall be sure of them in six months. You may thus regard what I have done as a speculation happilyconcluded, and one which places me at the summit of my desires, forit leaves me free, at last, to work upon my projects. . . 

A letter to his brother, of the 29th of May, just after his returnto Munich, gives a retrospect of the Viennese visit, including thepersonal details which he had hesitated to write to his father. They are important as showing the position he already, attwenty-three years of age, held among scientific men. "Everything, "he says, "was open to me as a foreigner, and to my great surprise Iwas received as an associate already known. Was it not gratifyingto go to Vienna with no recommendation whatever, and to be welcomedand sought by all the scientific men, and afterwards presented andintroduced everywhere? In the Museum, not only were the roomsopened for me when I pleased, but also the cases, and even thejars, so that I could take out whatever I needed for examination. At the hospital several professors carried their kindness so far, as to invite me to accompany them in their private visits. You mayfancy whether I profited by all this, and how many things I saw. "After some account of his business arrangements with Cotta, he adds"Meantime, be at ease about me. I have strings enough to my bow, and need not feel anxious about the future. What troubles me isthat the thing I most desire seems to me, at least for the present, farthest from my reach, --namely, the direction of a great Museum. When I have finished with Cotta I shall begin to pack my effects, and shall hope to turn my face homeward somewhere about the end ofAugust. I can hardly leave earlier, because, for the sake ofpractice, I have begun to deliver zoological lectures, open to allwho like to attend, and I want to complete the course before mydeparture. I lecture without even an outline or headings before me, but this requires preparation. You see I do not lose my time. "

The next home letter announces an important change in the familyaffairs. His father had been called from his parish at Orbe to thatof Concise, a small town situated on the south-western shore of theLake of Neuchatel. 

FROM HIS MOTHER. 

ORBE, July, 1830. 

. . . Since your father wrote you on the 4th of June, dear Louis, wehave had no news from you, and therefore infer that you are workingwith especial zeal to wind up your affairs in Germany and come homeas soon as possible. Whatever haste you make, however, you will notfind us here. Four days ago your father became pastor of Concise, and yesterday we went to visit our new home. Nothing can beprettier, and by all who know the place it is considered the mostdesirable position in the canton. There is a vineyard, a fineorchard filled with fruit-trees in full bearing, and an excellentkitchen garden. A never-failing spring gushes from a grotto, andwithin fifty steps of the house is a pretty winding stream with awalk along the bank, bordered by shrubbery, and furnished here andthere with benches, the whole disposed with much care and taste. The house also is very well arranged. All the rooms look out uponthe lake, lying hardly a gunshot from the windows. There are aparlor and a dining-room on the first floor, beside two smallerrooms; and on the same floor two doors lead out into the flowergarden. The kitchen is small, and on one side is a pretty groundwhere we can dine in the open air in summer. The distribution ofrooms in the upper story is the same, with a large additional roomfor the accommodation of your father's catechumens. A jasmine vinedrapes the front of the house and climbs to the very roof. . . 

To this quiet pretty parsonage Madame Agassiz became much attached. Her tranquil life is well described in a letter written many yearsafterward by one of her daughters. "Here mama returned to herspinning-wheel with new ardor. It was a work she much liked, and inwhich she was very skillful. In former times at grandpapa's everywoman in the house, whether mistress or maid, had her wheel, andthe young ladies were accustomed to spin and make up their owntrousseaus. Later, mama continued her spinning for her children, and even for her grandchildren. We all preserve as a precioussouvenir, table linen of her making. We delighted to see her at herwheel, she was so graceful, and the thread of her thought seemed tofollow, so to speak, the fine and delicate thread of her work as itunwound itself under her touch from the distaff. "

Agassiz was detained by his publishing arrangements and his worklonger than he had expected, and November was already advancedbefore his preparations for leaving Munich were completed. 

TO HIS PARENTS. 

MUNICH, November 9, 1830. 

. . . According to your wish [this refers to a suggestion about afellow-student in a previous letter] I shall not bring any friendwith me. I long to enjoy the pleasure of family life. I shall, however, be accompanied by one person, for whom I should like tomake suitable arrangements. He is the artist who makes all mydrawings. If there is no room for him in the house he can be lodgedelsewhere; but I wish you could give me the use of a well-lightedroom, where I could work and he could draw at my side through theday. Do not be frightened; he is not at my charge; but it would bea great advantage to me if I could have him in the house. As I donot want to lose time in the mechanical part of my work, I wouldbeg papa to engage for me some handy boy, fifteen years old or so, whom I could employ in cleaning skeletons and the like. Finally, you will receive several boxes for me; leave them unopened till Icome, without even paying the freight upon them, --the mostunsatisfactory of all expenses;--and I do not wish you to have anunpleasant association with my collections. 

My affairs are all in order with Cotta, and I have even concludedthe arrangement more advantageously than I had dared to hope, --athousand louis, six hundred payable on the publication of the firstnumber, and four hundred in installments, as the publicationgoeson. If I had not been in haste to close the matter in order tosecure myself against all doubt, I might have done even better. ButI hope I have reconciled you thereby to Natural History. Whatremains to be done will be the work of less than half a year, during which I wish also to get together the materials for mysecond work, on the fossils. Of that I have already spoken with mypublisher, and he will take it on more favorable conditions than Icould have dictated. Do your best to find me subscribers, that wemay soon make our typographical arrangements. . . 

His father's answer, full of fun as it is, shows, nevertheless, that the prospect of domesticating not only the naturalist and hiscollections, but artist and assistant also, was rather startling. 

FROM HIS FATHER. 

CONCISE, November 16, 1830. 

. . . You speak of Christmas as the moment of your arrival; let uscall it the New Year. You will naturally pass some days atNeuchatel to be with your brother, to see the Messrs. Coulon, etc. ;from there to Cudrefin for a look at your collection; then toConcise, then to Montagny, Orbe, Lausanne, Geneva, etc. M. LeDocteur will be claimed and feted by all in turn. And during allthese indispensable excursions, for which, to be within bounds, Iallow a month at least, it is as clear as daylight that regularwork must be set aside, if, indeed, the time be not wholly lost. Now, for Heaven's sake, what will you do, or rather what shall WEdo, with your painter, in this interval employed by you elsewhere. Neither is this all. Though the date of Cecile's marriage is notfixed, it is more than likely to take place in January, so that youwill be here for the wedding. If you will recollect the overturningof the paternal mansion when your outfit was preparing for Bienne, Zurich, and other places, you can form an idea of the state of ourrooms above and below, large and small, when the work of thetrousseau begins. Where, in Heaven's name, will you stow away apainter and an assistant in the midst of half a brigade ofdress-makers, seamstresses, lace-makers, and milliners, withoutcounting the accompanying train of friends? Where would you, orwhere could you, put under shelter your possessions (I dare notundertake to enumerate them), among all the taffetas and brocades, linens, muslin, tulles, laces, etc. ? But what am I saying? I doubtif these names are still in existence, for quite other appellationsare sounding in my ears, each one of which, to the number of somehundred, signifies at least twenty yards in width, to say nothingof the length. For my part, I have already, notwithstanding theapproach of winter, put up a big nail in the garret, on which tohang my bands and surplice. Listen, then, to the conclusion of yourfather. Give all possible care to your affairs in Munich, put themin perfect order, leave nothing to be done, and leave nothingbehind EXCEPT THE PAINTER. You can call him in from here, wheneveryou think you can make use of him. 

TO HIS PARENTS. 

MUNICH, November 26, 1830. 

. . . When you receive this I shall be no longer in Munich; by meansof a last draft on M. Eichthal I have settled with every one, and Ihope to leave the day after to-morrow. I fully recognize thejustice of your observations, my dear father, but as you start froma mistaken point of view, they do not coincide altogether withexisting circumstances. I intend to stay with you until theapproach of summer, not only with the aim of working upon the textof my book, but chiefly in order to take advantage of all thefossil collections in Switzerland. For that purpose I positivelyneed a draughtsman, who, thanks to my publisher, is not in my pay, and who must accompany me in future wherever I go. Since there isno room at home, please see how he can be lodged in theneighborhood. I have, at the utmost, to glance each day at what hehas done. I can even give him work for several weeks in which mypresence would be unnecessary. If there is a considerablecollection of fossils at Zurich, I shall leave him there till hehas finished his work, and then he will rejoin me; all that dependsupon circumstances. In any case he must not be a charge to you, still less interfere with our family privacy. That I may spend allmy time with you, I shall at present bring with me nothing that isnot absolutely necessary. We shall see later where I shall place mymuseum. As to visits, they are not to be thought of until thespring. I could not bear the idea of interruption before the firstnumber of my "Fishes" is finished. 

The artist in question was Mr. Dinkel. His relations with thefamily became of a truly friendly character. The connection betweenhim and Agassiz, most honorable to both parties, lasted for sixteenyears, and was then only interrupted by the departure of Agassizfor America. During this whole period Mr. Dinkel was occupied ashis draughtsman, living sometimes in Paris, sometimes in England, sometimes in Switzerland, wherever, in short, there were specimensto be drawn. In a private letter, written long afterward, he says, in speaking of the break in their intercourse caused by Agassiz'sremoval to America: "For a long time I felt unhappy at thatseparation. . . He was a kind, noble-hearted friend; he was verybenevolent, and if he had possessed millions of money he would havespent them for his researches in science, and have done good to hisfellow-creatures as much as possible. "

Some passages from Braun's letters complete the chapter of theseyears in Munich, so rich in purpose and in experience, the prelude, as it were, to the intellectual life of the two friends who hadentered upon them together. These extracts show how seriously, notwithout a certain sadness, they near the end. 

BRAUN TO HIS FATHER. 

MUNICH, November 7, 1830. 

Were I to leave Munich now, I must separate myself from Agassiz andSchimper, which would be neither agreeable nor advantageous for me, nor would it be friendly toward them. We will not shorten the time, already too scantly measured, which we may still spend so quietly, so wholly by ourselves, but rather, as long as it lasts, make thebest use of it in a mutual exchange of what we have learned, tryingto encourage each other in the right path, and drawing more closelytogether for our whole life to come. Agassiz is to stay till theend of the month; during this time he will give us lectures inanatomy, and I shall learn a good deal of zoology. Beside all thisone thing is certain; namely, that we can review our medical workmuch more quietly and uninterruptedly here than in Carlsruhe. Addto this, the advantage we enjoy here of visiting the hospitals. . . The time passes delightfully with us of late, for Agassiz hasreceived several baskets of books from Cotta, among others, Schiller's and Goethe's complete works, the Conversations-Lexicon, medical works, and works on natural history. How many books a manmay receive in return for writing only one! They are, of course, deducted from his share of the profits. Yesterday we did nothingbut read Goethe the whole day. 

A brief account of Agassiz's university life, dictated by himself, may fitly close the record of this period. He was often urged toput together a few reminiscences of his life, but he lived sointensely in the present, every day bringing its full task, that hehad little time for retrospect, and this sketch remained afragment. It includes some facts already told, but is given almostverbatim, because it forms a sort of summary of his intellectualdevelopment up to this date. 

"I am conscious that at successive periods of my life I haveemployed very different means and followed very different systemsof study. I may, therefore, be allowed to offer the result of myexperience as a contribution toward the building up of a soundmethod for the promotion of the study of nature. 

"At first, when a mere boy, twelve years of age, I did what mostbeginners do. I picked up whatever I could lay my hands on, andtried, by such books and authorities as I had at my command, tofind the names of these objects. My highest ambition, at that time, was to be able to designate the plants and animals of my nativecountry correctly by a Latin name, and to extend gradually asimilar knowledge in its application to the productions of othercountries. This seemed to me, in those days, the legitimate aim andproper work of a naturalist. I still possess manuscript volumes inwhich I entered the names of all the animals and plants with whichI became acquainted, and I well remember that I then ardently hopedto acquire the same superficial familiarity with the wholecreation. I did not then know how much more important it is to thenaturalist to understand the structure of a few animals, than tocommand the whole field of scientific nomenclature. Since I havebecome a teacher, and have watched the progress of students, I haveseen that they all begin in the same way; but how many have grownold in the pursuit, without ever rising to any higher conception ofthe study of nature, spending their life in the determination ofspecies, and in extending scientific terminology! Long before Iwent to the university, and before I began to study natural historyunder the guidance of men who were masters in the science duringthe early part of this century, I perceived that while nomenclatureand classification, as then understood, formed an important part ofthe study, being, in fact, its technical language, the study ofliving beings in their natural element was of infinitely greatervalue. At that age, namely, about fifteen, I spent most of the timeI could spare from classical and mathematical studies in huntingthe neighboring woods and meadows for birds, insects, and land andfresh-water shells. My room became a little menagerie, while thestone basin under the fountain in our yard was my reservoir for allthe fishes I could catch. Indeed, collecting, fishing, and raisingcaterpillars, from which I reared fresh, beautiful butterflies, were then my chief pastimes. What I know of the habits of thefresh-water fishes of Central Europe I mostly learned at that time;and I may add, that when afterward I obtained access to a largelibrary and could consult the works of Bloch and Lacepede, the onlyextensive works on fishes then in existence, I wondered that theycontained so little about their habits, natural attitudes, and modeof action with which I was so familiar. 

"The first course of lectures on zoology I attended was given inLausanne in 1823. It consisted chiefly of extracts from Cuvier's'Regne Animal, ' and from Lamarck's 'Animaux sans Vertebres. ' I nowbecame aware, for the first time, that the learned differ in theirclassifications. With this discovery, an immense field of studyopened before me, and I longed for some knowledge of anatomy, thatI might see for myself where the truth was. During two years spentin the Medical School of Zurich, I applied myself exclusively tothe study of anatomy, physiology, and zoology, under the guidanceof Professors Schinz and Hirzel. My inability to buy books was, perhaps, not so great a misfortune as it seemed to me; at least, itsaved me from too great dependence on written authority. I spentall my time in dissecting animals and in studying human anatomy, not forgetting my favorite amusements of fishing and collecting. Iwas always surrounded with pets, and had at this time some fortybirds flying about my study, with no other home than a largepine-tree in the corner. I still remember my grief when a visitor, entering suddenly, caught one of my little favorites between thefloor and the door, and he was killed before I could extricate him. Professor Schinz's private collection of birds was my daily resort, and I then described every bird it contained, as I could not affordto buy even a text-book of ornithology. I also copied with my ownhand, having no means of purchasing the work, two volumes ofLamarck's 'Animaux sans Vertebres, ' and my dear brother copiedanother half volume for me. I finally learned that the study of thethings themselves was far more attractive than the books I so muchcoveted; and when, at last, large libraries became accessible tome, I usually contented myself with turning over the leaves of thevolumes on natural history, looking at the illustrations, andrecording the titles of the works, that I might readily consultthem for identification of such objects as I should have anopportunity of examining in nature. 

"After spending in this way two years in Zurich, I was attracted toHeidelberg by the great reputation of its celebrated teachers, Tiedemann, Leuckart, Bronn, and others. It is true that I was stillobliged to give up a part of my time to the study of medicine, butwhile advancing in my professional course by a steady applicationto anatomy and physiology, I attended the lectures of Leuckart inzoology, and those of Bronn in paleontology. The publication ofGoldfuss's great work on the fossils of Germany was just thenbeginning, and it opened a new world to me. Familiar as I was withCuvier's 'Regne Animal, ' I had not then seen his 'Researches onFossil Remains, ' and the study of fossils seemed to me only anextension of the field of zoology. I had no idea of its directconnection with geology, or of its bearing on the problem of thesuccessive introduction of animals on the earth. I had neverthought of the larger and more philosophical view of nature as onegreat world, but considered the study of animals only as it wastaught by descriptive zoology in those days. At about this time, however, I made the acquaintance of two young botanists, Braun andSchimper, both of whom have since become distinguished in theannals of science. Botany had in those days received a new impulsefrom the great conceptions of Goethe. The metamorphosis of plantswas the chief study of my friends, and I could not but feel thatdescriptive zoology had not spoken the last word in our science, and that grand generalizations, such as were opening uponbotanists, must be preparing for zoologists also. Intimate contactwith German students made me feel that I had neglected myphilosophical education; and when, in the year 1827, the newUniversity of Munich opened, with Schelling as professor ofphilosophy, Oken, Schubert, and Wagler as professors of zoology, Dollinger as professor of anatomy and physiology, Martius andZuccarini as professors of botany, Fuchs and Kobell as professorsof mineralogy, I determined to go there with my two friends anddrink new draughts of knowledge. During the years I passed atMunich I devoted myself almost exclusively to the differentbranches of natural science, neglecting more and more my medicalstudies, because I began to feel an increasing confidence that Icould fight my way in the world as a naturalist, and that I wastherefore justified in following my strong bent in that direction. My experience in Munich was very varied. With Dollinger I learnedto value accuracy of observation. As I was living in his house, hegave me personal instruction in the use of the microscope, andshowed me his own methods of embryological investigation. He hadalready been the teacher of Karl Ernst von Baer; and though thepupil outran the master, and has become the pride of the scientificworld, it is but just to remember that he owed to him his firstinitiation into the processes of embryological research. Dollingerwas a careful, minute, persevering observer, as well as a deepthinker; but he was as indolent with his pen as he was industriouswith his brain. He gave his intellectual capital to his pupilswithout stint or reserve, and nothing delighted him more than tosit down for a quiet talk on scientific matters with a fewstudents, or to take a ramble with them into the fields outside thecity, and explain to them as he walked the result of any recentinvestigation he had made. If he found himself understood by hislisteners he was satisfied, and cared for no farther publication ofhis researches. I could enumerate many works of masters in ourscience, which had no other foundation at the outset than theseinspiriting conversations. No one has borne warmer testimony to theinfluence Dollinger has had in this indirect way on the progress ofour science than the investigator I have already mentioned as hisgreatest pupil, --von Baer. In the introduction to his work onembryology he gratefully acknowledges his debt to his old teacher. 

"Among the most fascinating of our professors was Oken. A master inthe art of teaching, he exercised an almost irresistible influenceover his students. Constructing the universe out of his own brain, deducing from a priori conceptions all the relations of the threekingdoms into which he divided all living beings, classifying theanimals as if by magic, in accordance with an analogy based on thedismembered body of man, it seemed to us who listened that the slowlaborious process of accumulating precise detailed knowledge couldonly be the work of drones, while a generous, commanding spiritmight build the world out of its own powerful imagination. Thetemptation to impose one's own ideas upon nature, to explain hermysteries by brilliant theories rather than by patient study of thefacts as we find them, still leads us away. With the school of thephysio-philosophers began (at least in our day and generation) thatoverbearing confidence in the abstract conceptions of the humanmind as applied to the study of nature, which still impairs thefairness of our classifications and prevents them from interpretingtruly the natural relations binding together all living beings. Andyet, the young naturalist of that day who did not share, in somedegree, the intellectual stimulus given to scientific pursuits byphysio-philosophy would have missed a part of his training. Thereis a great distance between the man who, like Oken, attempts toconstruct the whole system of nature from general premises and theone who, while subordinating his conceptions to the facts, is yetcapable of generalizing the facts, of recognizing their mostcomprehensive relations. No thoughtful naturalist can silence thesuggestions, continually arising in the course of hisinvestigations, respecting the origin and deeper connection of allliving beings; but he is the truest student of nature who, whileseeking the solution of these great problems, admits that the onlytrue scientific system must be one in which the thought, theintellectual structure, rises out of and is based upon facts. Thegreat merit of the physio-philosophers consisted in theirsuggestiveness. They did much in freeing our age from the lowestimation of natural history as a science which prevailed in thelast century. They stimulated a spirit of independence amongobservers; but they also instilled a spirit of daring, which, fromits extravagance, has been fatal to the whole school. He is lost, as an observer, who believes that he can, with impunity, affirmthat for which he can adduce no evidence. It was a curiousintellectual experience to listen day after day to the lectures ofOken, while following at the same time Schelling's courses, wherehe was shifting the whole ground of his philosophy from itsnegative foundation as an a priori doctrine to a positive basis, asan historical science. He unfolded his views in a succession ofexquisite lectures, delivered during four consecutive years. 

"Among my fellow-students were many young men who now rank amongthe highest lights in the various departments of science, andothers, of equal promise, whose early death cut short their work inthis world. Some of us had already learned at this time to work forourselves; not merely to attend lectures and study from books. Thebest spirit of emulation existed among us; we met often to discussour observations, undertook frequent excursions in theneighborhood, delivered lectures to our fellow-students, and had, not infrequently, the gratification of seeing our universityprofessors among the listeners. These exercises were of the highestvalue to me as a preparation for speaking, in later years, beforelarger audiences. My study was usually the lecture-room. It wouldhold conveniently from fifteen to twenty persons, and both studentsand professors used to call our quarters "The Little Academy. " Inthat room I made all the skeletons represented on the plates ofWagler's "Natural System of Reptiles;" there I once received thegreat anatomist, Meckel, sent to me by Dollinger, to examine myanatomical preparations and especially the many fish-skeletons Ihad made from fresh-water fishes. By my side were constantly atwork two artists; one engaged in drawing various objects of naturalhistory, the other in drawing fossil fishes. I kept always one andsometimes two artists in my pay; it was not easy, with an allowanceof 250 dollars a year, but they were even poorer than I, and so wemanaged to get along together. My microscope I had earned bywriting. 

"I had hardly finished the publication of the Brazilian Fishes, when I began to study the works of the older naturalists. ProfessorDollinger had presented me with a copy of Rondelet, which was mydelight for a long time. I was especially struck by the naivete ofhis narrative and the minuteness of his descriptions as well as bythe fidelity of his woodcuts, some of which are to this day thebest figures we have of the species they represent. His learningoverwhelmed me; I would gladly have read, as he did, everythingthat had been written before my time; but there were authors whowearied me, and I confess that at that age Linnaeus was among thenumber. I found him dry, pedantic, dogmatic, conceited; while I wascharmed with Aristotle, whose zoology I have read and re-read eversince at intervals of two or three years. I must, however, domyself the justice to add, that after I knew more of the history ofour science I learned also duly to reverence Linnaeus. But astudent, already familiar with the works of Cuvier, and butindifferently acquainted with the earlier progress of zoology, could hardly appreciate the merit of the great reformer of naturalhistory. His defects were easily perceived, and it required morefamiliarity than mine then was with the gradual growth of thescience, from Aristotle onward, to understand how great andbeneficial an influence Linnaeus had exerted upon modern naturalhistory. 

"I cannot review my Munich life without deep gratitude. The cityteemed with resources for the student in arts, letters, philosophy, and science. It was distinguished at that time for activity inpublic as well as in academic life. The king seemed liberal; he wasthe friend of poets and artists, and aimed at concentrating all theglories of Germany in his new university. I thus enjoyed for a fewyears the example of the most brilliant intellects, and thatstimulus which is given by competition between men equally eminentin different spheres of human knowledge. Under such circumstances aman either subsides into the position of a follower in the ranksthat gather around a master, or he aspires to be a master himself. 

"The time had come when even the small allowance I received fromborrowed capital must cease. I was now twenty-four years of age. Iwas Doctor of Philosophy and Medicine, and author of a quartovolume on the fishes of Brazil. I had traveled on foot all overSouthern Germany, visited Vienna, and explored extensive tracts ofthe Alps. I knew every animal, living and fossil, in the Museums ofMunich, Stuttgart, Tubingen, Erlangen, Wurzburg, Carlsruhe, andFrankfort; but my prospects were as dark as ever, and I saw no hopeof making my way in the world, except by the practical pursuit ofmy profession as physician. So, at the close of 1830, I left theuniversity and went home, with the intention of applying myself tothe practice of medicine, confident that my theoretical informationand my training in the art of observing would carry me through thenew ordeal I was about to meet. "

CHAPTER 5. 

1830-1832: AGE 23-25. 

Year at Home. Leaves Home for Paris. Delays on the Road. Cholera. Arrival in Paris. First Visit to Cuvier. Cuvier's Kindness. His Death. Poverty in Paris. Home Letters concerning Embarrassments and about his Work. Singular Dream. 

On the 4th of December, 1830, Agassiz left Munich, in company withMr. Dinkel, and after a short stay at St. Gallen and Zurich, spentin looking up fossil fishes and making drawings of them, theyreached Concise on the 30th of the same month. Anxiously as hisreturn was awaited at home, we have seen that his father was notwithout apprehension lest the presence of the naturalist, withartist, specimens, and apparatus, should be an inconvenience in thequiet parsonage. But every obstacle yielded to the joy of reunion, and Agassiz was soon established with his "painter, " his fossils, and all his scientific outfit, under the paternal roof. 

Thus quietly engaged in his ichthyological studies, carrying on hiswork on the fossil fishes, together with that on the fresh-waterfishes of Central Europe, he passed nearly a year at home. He wasnot without patients also in the village and its environs, but had, as yet, no prospect of permanent professional employment. In themean time it seemed daily more and more necessary that he shouldcarry his work to Paris, to the great centre of scientific life, where he could have the widest field for comparison and research. There, also, he could continue and complete to the best advantagehis medical studies. His poverty was the greatest hindrance to anysuch move. He was not, however, without some slight independentmeans, especially since his publishing arrangements provided inpart for the carrying on of his work. His generous uncle addedsomething to this, and an old friend of his father's, M. Christinat, a Swiss clergyman with whom he had been from boyhood agreat favorite, urged upon him his own contribution toward a workin which he felt the liveliest interest. Still the prospect withwhich he left for Paris in September, 1831, was dark enough, financially speaking, though full of hope in another sense. On theroad he made several halts for purposes of study, combining, asusual, professional with scientific objects, hospitals withmuseums. He was, perhaps, a little inclined to believe that themost favorable conditions for his medical studies were to be foundin conjunction with the best collections. He had, however, aspecial medical purpose, being earnest to learn everythingregarding the treatment and the limitation of cholera, then for thefirst time making its appearance in Western Europe with frightfulvirulence. Believing himself likely to continue the practice ofmedicine for some years at least, he thought his observations uponthis scourge would be of great importance to him. His letters ofthis date to his father are full of the subject, and of his ownefforts to ascertain the best means of prevention and defense. Thefollowing answer to an appeal from his mother shows, however, thathis delays caused anxiety at home, lest the small means he coulddevote to his studies in Paris should be consumed on the road. 

TO HIS MOTHER. 

CARLSRUHE, November, 1831. 

. . . I returned day before yesterday from my trip in Wurtemberg, and though I already knew what precautions had been takeneverywhere in anticipation of cholera, I do not think my journeywas a useless one, and am convinced that my observations will notbe without interest, --chiefly for myself, of course, but of utilityto others also I hope. Your letter being so urgent, I will not, however, delay my departure an instant. Between to-day andto-morrow I shall put in order the specimens lent me by the Museum, and then start at once. . . In proportion to my previous anxiety ismy pleasure in the prospect of going to Paris, now that I am betterfitted to present myself there as I could wish. I have collectedfor my fossil fishes all the materials I still desired to obtainfrom the museums of Carlsruhe, Heidelberg, and Strasbourg, and haveextended my knowledge of geology sufficiently to join, withoutembarrassment at least, in conversation upon the more recentresearches in that department. Moreover, Braun has been kind enoughto give me a superb collection, selected by himself, to serve asbasis and guide in my researches. I leave it at Carlsruhe, since Ino longer need it. . . I have also been able to avail myself of theMuseum of Carlsruhe, and of the mineralogical collection of Braun'sfather. Beside the drawings made by Dinkel, I have added to my workone hundred and seventy-one pages of manuscript in French (I havejust counted them), written between my excursions and in the midstof other occupations. . . I could not have foreseen so rich aharvest. 

Thus prepared, he arrived in Paris with his artist on the 16th ofDecember, 1831. On the 18th he writes to his father. . . "Dinkel andI had a very pleasant journey, though the day after our arrival Iwas so fatigued that I could hardly move hand or foot, --that wasyesterday. Nevertheless, I passed the evening very agreeably at thehouse of M. Cuvier, who sent to invite me, having heard of myarrival. To my surprise, I found myself not quite a stranger, --rather, as it were, among old acquaintances. I have already givenyou my address, Rue Copeau (Hotel du Jardin du Roi, Numero 4). Asit happens, M. Perrotet, a traveling naturalist, lives here also, and has at once put me on the right track about whatever I mostneed to know. There are in the house other well-known personsbesides. I am accommodated very cheaply, and am at the same timewithin easy reach of many things, the neighborhood of which I canturn to good account. The medical school, for instance, is withinten minutes' walk; the Jardin des Plantes not two hundred stepsaway; while the Hospital (de la Pitie), where Messieurs Andral andLisfranc teach, is opposite, and nearer still. To-day or to-morrowI shall deliver my letters, and then set to work in good earnest. "

Pleased as he was from the beginning with all that concerned hisscientific life in Paris, the next letter shows that the youngSwiss did not at once find himself at home in the great Frenchcapital. 

TO HIS SISTER OLYMPE. 

PARIS, January 15, 1832. 

. . . My expectations in coming here have been more than fulfilled. In scientific matters I have found all that I knew must exist inParis (indeed, my anticipations were rather below than above themark), and beside that I have been met everywhere with courtesy, and have received attentions of all sorts. M. Cuvier and vonHumboldt especially treat me on all occasions as an equal, andfacilitate for me the use of the scientific collections so that Ican work here as if I were at home. And yet it is not the samething; this extreme, but formal politeness chills you instead ofputting you at your ease; it lacks cordiality, and, to tell thetruth, I would gladly go away were I not held fast by the wealth ofmaterial of which I can avail myself for instruction. In themorning I follow the clinical courses at the Pitie. . . At teno'clock, or perhaps at eleven, I breakfast, and then go to theMuseum of Natural History, where I stay till dark. Between five andsix I dine, and after that turn to such medical studies as do notrequire daylight. So pass my days, one like another, with greatregularity. I have made it a rule not to go out after dinner, --Ishould lose too much time. . . On Saturday only I spend the eveningat M. Cuvier's. . . 

The homesickness which is easily to be read between the lines ofthis letter, due, perhaps, to the writer's want of familiarity withsociety in its conventional aspect, yielded to the influence of anintellectual life, which became daily more engrossing. Cuvier'skind reception was but an earnest of the affectionate interest heseems from the first to have felt in him. After a few days he gaveAgassiz and his artist a corner in one of his own laboratories, andoften came to encourage them by a glance at their work as it wenton. 

This relation continued until Cuvier's death, and Agassiz enjoyedfor several months the scientific sympathy and personal friendshipof the great master whom he had honored from childhood, and whosename was ever on his lips till his own work in this world wasclosed. The following letter, written two months later, to hisuncle in Lausanne tells the story in detail. 

TO DR. MAYOR. 

PARIS, February 16, 1832. 

. . . I have also a piece of good news to communicate, which will, Ihope, lead to very favorable results for me. I think I told youwhen I left for Paris that my chief anxiety was lest I might not beallowed to examine, and still less to describe, the fossil fishesand their skeletons in the Museum. Knowing that Cuvier intended towrite a work on this subject, I supposed that he would reservethese specimens for himself. I half thought he might, on seeing mywork so far advanced, propose to me to finish it jointly with him, --but even this I hardly dared to hope. It was on this account, with the view of increasing my materials and having thereby abetter chance of success with M. Cuvier, that I desired soearnestly to stop at Strasbourg and Carlsruhe, where I knewspecimens were to be seen which would have a direct bearing on myaim. The result has far surpassed my expectation. I hastened toshow my material to M. Cuvier the very day after my arrival. Hereceived me with great politeness, though with a certain reserve, and immediately gave me permission to see everything in thegalleries of the Museum. But as I knew that he had put together inprivate collections all that could be of use to himself in writinghis book, and as he had never said a word to me of his plan ofpublication, I remained in a painful state of doubt, since thecompletion of his work would have destroyed all chance for the saleof mine. Last Saturday I was passing the evening there, and we weretalking of science, when he desired his secretary to bring him acertain portfolio of drawings. He showed me the contents; they weredrawings of fossil fishes and notes which he had taken in theBritish Museum and elsewhere. After looking it through with me, hesaid he had seen with satisfaction the manner in which I hadtreated this subject; that I had indeed anticipated him, since hehad intended at some future time to do the same thing; but that asI had given it so much attention, and had done my work so well, hehad decided to renounce his project, and to place at my dispositionall the materials he had collected and all the preliminary notes hehad taken. 

You can imagine what new ardor this has given me for my work, themore so because M. Cuvier, M. Humboldt, and several other personsof mark who are interested in it have promised to speak in mybehalf to a publisher (to Levrault, who seems disposed to undertakethe publication should peace be continued), and to recommend mestrongly. To accomplish my end without neglecting otheroccupations, I work regularly at least fifteen hours a day, sometimes even an hour or two more; but I hope to reach my goal ingood time. 

This trust from Cuvier proved to be a legacy. Less than threemonths after the date of this letter Agassiz went, as oftenhappened, to work one morning with him in his study. It was Sunday, and he was employed upon something which Cuvier had asked him todo, saying, "You are young; you have time enough for it, and I havenone to spare. " They worked together till eleven o'clock, whenCuvier invited Agassiz to join him at breakfast. After a littletime spent over the breakfast table in talk with the ladies of thefamily, while Cuvier opened his letters, papers, etc. , theyreturned to the working room, and were busily engaged in theirseparate occupations when Agassiz was surprised to hear the clockstrike five, the hour for his dinner. He expressed his regret thathe had not quite finished his work, but said that as he belonged toa student's table his dinner would not wait for him, and he wouldreturn soon to complete his task. Cuvier answered that he was quiteright not to neglect his regular hours for meals, and commended hisdevotion to study, but added, "Be careful, and remember that WORKKILLS. " They were the last words he heard from his beloved teacher. The next day, as Cuvier was going up to the tribune in the Chamberof Deputies, he fell, was taken up paralyzed, and carried home. Agassiz never saw him again. * (* This warning of Cuvier, "Workkills, " strangely recalls Johannes Muller's "Blood clings to work;"the one seems the echo of the other. See "Memoir of JohannesMuller", by Rudolf Virchow, page 38. )

In order to keep intact these few data respecting his personalrelations with Cuvier, as told in later years by Agassiz himself, the course of the narrative has been anticipated by a month or two. Let us now return to the natural order. The letter to his uncle ofcourse gave great pleasure at home. Just after reading it hisfather writes (February, 1832), "Now that you are intrusted withthe portfolio of M. Cuvier, I suppose your plan is considerablyenlarged, and that your work will be of double volume; tell me, then, as much about it as you think I can understand, which willnot be a great deal after all. " His mother's letter on the sameoccasion is full of tender sympathy and gratitude. 

Meanwhile one daily anxiety embittered his scientific happiness. The small means at his command could hardly be made, even with thestrictest economy, to cover the necessary expenses of himself andhis artist, in which were included books, drawing materials, fees, etc. He was in constant terror lest he should be obliged to leaveParis, to give up his investigations on the fossil fishes, and tostop work on the costly plates he had begun. The truth about hisaffairs, which he would gladly have concealed from those at home aslong as possible, was drawn from him by an accidental occurrence. His brother had written to him for a certain book, and, failing toreceive it, inquired with some surprise why his commission wasneglected. Agassiz's next letter, about a month later than the oneto his uncle, gives the explanation. 

TO HIS BROTHER. 

PARIS, March, 1832. 

. . . Here is the book for which you asked me, --price, 18 francs. Ishall be very sorry if it comes too late, but I could not help it. . . In the first place I had not money enough to pay for itwithout being left actually penniless. You can imagine that afterthe fuel bill for the winter is paid, little remains for otherexpenses out of my 200 francs a month, five louis of which arealways due to my companion. Far from having anything in advance, mymonth's supply is thus taken up at once. . . Beside this cause ofdelay, you can have no idea what it is to hunt for anything in Pariswhen you are a stranger there. As I go out only in two or threedirections leading to my work, and might not otherwise leave my ownstreet for a month at a time, I naturally find myself astray whenI am off this beaten track. . . You have asked me several times howI have been received by those to whom I had introductions. Frankly, after having delivered a few of my letters, I have never beenagain, because I cannot, in my position, spare time for visits. . . Another excellent reason for staying away now is that I haveno presentable coat. At M. Cuvier's only am I sufficiently at easeto go in a frock coat. . . Saturday, a week ago, M. De Ferussacoffered me the editorship of the zoological section of the"Bulletin;" it would be worth to me an additional thousand francs, but would require two or three hours' work daily. Write me soonwhat you think about it. In the midst of all the encouragementswhich sustain me and renew my ardor, I am depressed by the reverseside of my position. 

This letter drew forth the following one. 

FROM HIS MOTHER. 

CONCISE, March, 1832. 

. . . Much as your letter to your uncle delighted us, that to yourbrother has saddened us. It seems, my dear child, that you arepainfully straitened in means. I understand it by personalexperience, and in your case I have foreseen it; it is the cloudwhich has always darkened your prospects to me. I want to talk toyou, my dear Louis, of your future, which has often made meanxious. You know your mother's heart too well to misunderstand herthought, even should its expression be unacceptable to you. Withmuch knowledge, acquired by assiduous industry, you are still attwenty-five years of age living on brilliant hopes, in relation, itis true, with great people, and known as having distinguishedtalent. Now, all this would seem to me delightful if you had anincome of fifty thousand francs; but, in your position, you mustabsolutely have an occupation which will enable you to live, andfree you from the insupportable weight of dependence on others. From this day forward, my dear child, you must look to this endalone if you would find it possible to pursue honorably the careeryou have chosen. Otherwise constant embarrassments will so limityour genius, that you will fall below your own capacity. If youfollow our advice you will perhaps reach the result of your work inthe natural sciences a little later, but all the more surely. Letus see how you can combine the work to which you have alreadyconsecrated so much time, with the possibility of self-support. Itappears from your letter to your brother that you see no one inParis; the reason seems to me a sad one, but it is unanswerable, and since you cannot change it, you must change your place of abodeand return to your own country. You have already seen in Paris allthose persons whom you thought it essential to see; unless you arestrangely mistaken in their good-will, you will be no less sure ofit in Switzerland than in Paris, and since you cannot take part intheir society, your relations with them will be the same at thedistance of a hundred leagues as they are now. You must thereforeleave Paris for Geneva, Lausanne, or Neuchatel, or any city whereyou can support yourself by teaching. . . This seems to me the mostadvantageous course for you. If before fixing yourself permanentlyyou like to take your place at the parsonage again, you will alwaysfind us ready to facilitate, as far as we can, any arrangements foryour convenience. Here you can live in perfect tranquillity andwithout expense. 

There are two other subjects which I want to discuss with you, though perhaps I shall not make myself so easily understood. Youhave seen the handsome public building in process of constructionat Neuchatel. It will be finished this year, and I am told that theMuseum will be placed there. I believe the collections are veryincomplete, and the city of Neuchatel is rich enough to expendsomething in filling the blanks. It has occurred to me, my dear, that this would be an excellent opportunity for disposing of youralcoholic specimens. They form, at present, a capital yielding nointerest, requiring care, and to be enjoyed only at the cost ofendless outlay in glass jars, alcohol, and transportation, to saynothing of the rent of a room in which to keep them. All this, beside attracting many visitors, is too heavy a burden for you, from which you may free yourself by taking advantage of this rarechance. To this end you must have an immediate understanding withM. Coulon, lest he should make a choice elsewhere. Your brother, being on the spot, might negotiate for you. . . Finally, my lasttopic is Mr. Dinkel. You are very fortunate to have found in yourartist such a thoroughly nice fellow; nevertheless, in view of theexpense, you must make it possible to do without him. I see youlook at me aghast; but where a sacrifice is to be made we must notdo it by halves; we must pull up the tree by the roots. It is agreat evil to be spending more than one earns. . . 

TO HIS MOTHER. 

PARIS, March 25, 1832. 

. . . It is true, dear mother, that I am greatly straitened; that Ihave much less money to spend than I could wish, or even than Ineed; on the other hand, this makes me work the harder, and keepsme away from distractions which might otherwise tempt me. . . Withreference to my work, however, things are not quite as you suppose, as regards either my stay here or my relations with M. Cuvier. Certainly, I hope that I should lose neither his good-will nor hisprotection on leaving here; on the contrary, I am sure that hewould be the first to advise me to accept any professorship, or anyplace which might be advantageous for me, however removed from mypresent occupations, and that his counsels would follow me there. But what cannot follow me, and what I owe quite as much to him, isthe privilege of examining all the collections. These I can havenowhere but in Paris, since even if he would consent to it I couldnot carry away with me a hundred quintals of fossil fish, which, for the sake of comparison, I must have before my eyes, northousands of fish-skeletons, which would alone fill some fiftygreat cases. It is this which compels me to stay here till I havefinished my work. I should add that M. Elie de Beaumont has alsobeen kind enough to place at my disposition the fossil fishes fromthe collection at the Mining School, and that M. Brongniart hasmade me the same offer regarding his collection, which is one ofthe finest among those owned by individuals in Paris. . . 

As to my collections, I had already thought of asking either theVaudois government or the city of Neuchatel to receive them intothe Museum, merely on condition that they should provide for theexpenses of exhibition and preservation, making use of them, meanwhile, for the instruction of the public. I should be sorry tolose all right to them, because I hope they may have another finaldestination. I do not despair of seeing the different parts ofSwitzerland united at some future day by a closer tie, and in caseof such a union a truly Helvetic university would become anecessity; then, my aim would be to make my collection the basis ofthat which they would be obliged to found for their courses oflectures. It is really a shame that Switzerland, richer and moreextensive than many a small kingdom, should have no university, when some states of not half its size have even two; for instance, the grand duchy of Baden, one of whose universities, that ofHeidelberg, ranks among the first in all Germany. If ever I attaina position allowing me so to do, I shall make every effort in mypower to procure for my country the greatest of benefits: namely, that of an intellectual unity, which can arise only from a highdegree of civilization, and from the radiation of knowledge fromone central point. 

I, too, have considered the question about Dinkel, and if, when Ihave finished my work here, my position is not changed, and I haveno definite prospect, such as would justify me in keeping him withme, --well! then we must part! I have long been preparing myself forthis, by employing him only upon what is indispensable to thepublication of my first numbers, hoping that these may procure methe means of paying for such illustrations as I shall further need. As my justification for having engaged him in the first instance, and continued this expense till now, I can truly say that it is ina great degree through his drawings that M. Cuvier has been able tojudge of my work, and so has been led to make a surrender of allhis materials in my favor. I foresaw clearly that this was my onlychance of competing with him, and it was not without reason that Iinsisted so strongly on having Dinkel with me in passing throughStrasbourg and subsequently at Carlsruhe. Had I not done so, M. Cuvier might still be in advance of me. Now my mind is at rest onthis score; I have already written you all about his kindness inoffering me the work. Could I only be equally fortunate in itspublication!

M. Cuvier urges me strongly to present my book to the Academy, inorder to obtain a report upon its contents. I must first finish it, however, and the task is not a light one. For this reason, aboveall, I regret my want of means; but for that I could have thedrawings made at once, and the Academy report, considered as arecommendation, would certainly help on the publication greatly. But in this respect I have long been straitened; Auguste knows thatI had at Munich an artist who was to complete what I had left therefor execution, and that I stopped his work on leaving Concise. Ifthe stagnation of the book-trade continues I shall, perhaps, beforced to give up Dinkel also; for if I cannot begin thepublication, which will, I hope, bring me some return, I must ceaseto accumulate material in advance. Should business revive soon, however, I may yet have the pleasure of seeing all completed beforeI leave Paris. 

I think I forgot to mention the arrival of Braun six weeks afterme. I had a double pleasure in his coming, for he brought with himhis younger brother, a charming fellow, and a distinguished pupilof the polytechnic school of Carlsruhe. He means to be a miningengineer, and comes to study such collections at Paris as areconnected with this branch. You cannot imagine what happiness andcomfort I have in my relations with Alexander; he is so good, socultivated and high-minded, that his friendship is a real blessingto me. We both feel very much our separation from the elderSchimper, who, spite of his great desire to join us at Carlsruheand accompany us to Paris, was not able to leave Munich. . . 

P. S. My love to Auguste. To-day (Sunday) I went again to see M. Humboldt about Auguste's* (* Concerning a business undertaking inMexico. ) plan, but did not find him. 

Then follow several pages, addressed to his father, in answer tothe request contained in one of his last letters that Louis wouldtell him as much as he thinks he can understand of his work. Thereis something touching in this little lesson given by the son to thefather, as showing with what delight Louis responded to the leasttouch of parental affection respecting his favorite studies, solong looked upon at home with a certain doubt and suspicion. Thewhole letter is not given here, as it is simply an elementarytreatise on geology; but the close is not without interest asrelating to the special investigations on which he was nowemployed. 

"The aim of our researches upon fossil animals is to ascertain whatbeings have lived at each one of these (geological) epochs ofcreation, and to trace their characters and their relations withthose now living; in one word, to make them live again in ourthought. It is especially the fishes that I try to restore for theeyes of the curious, by showing them which ones have lived in eachepoch, what were their forms, and, if possible, by drawing someconclusions as to their probable modes of life. You will betterunderstand the difficulty of my work when I tell you that in manyspecies I have only a single tooth, a scale, a spine, as my guidein the reconstruction of all these characters, although sometimeswe are fortunate enough to find species with the fins and theskeletons complete. . . 

"I ask pardon if I have tired you with my long talk, but you knowhow pleasant it is to ramble on about what interests us, and thepleasure of being questioned by you upon subjects of this kind hasbeen such a rare one for me, that I have wished to present thematter in its full light, that you may understand the zeal and theenthusiasm which such researches can excite. "

To this period belongs a curious dream mentioned by Agassiz in hiswork on the fossil fishes. * (* "Recherches sur les PoissonsFossiles". Cyclopoma spinosum Agassiz. Volume 4 tab 1, pages 20, 21. ) It is interesting both as a psychological fact and as showinghow, sleeping and waking, his work was ever present with him. Hehad been for two weeks striving to decipher the somewhat obscureimpression of a fossil fish on the stone slab in which it waspreserved. Weary and perplexed he put his work aside at last, andtried to dismiss it from his mind. Shortly after, he waked onenight persuaded that while asleep he had seen his fish with all themissing features perfectly restored. But when he tried to hold andmake fast the image, it escaped him. Nevertheless, he went early tothe Jardin des Plantes, thinking that on looking anew at theimpression he should see something which would put him on the trackof his vision. In vain, --the blurred record was as blank as ever. The next night he saw the fish again, but with no more satisfactoryresult. When he awoke it disappeared from his memory as before. Hoping that the same experience might be repeated, on the thirdnight he placed a pencil and paper beside his bed before going tosleep. Accordingly toward morning the fish reappeared in his dream, confusedly at first, but at last with such distinctness that he hadno longer any doubt as to its zoological characters. Still halfdreaming, in perfect darkness, he traced these characters on thesheet of paper at the bedside. In the morning he was surprised tosee in his nocturnal sketch features which he thought it impossiblethe fossil itself should reveal. He hastened to the Jardin desPlantes, and, with his drawing as a guide, succeeded in chiselingaway the surface of the stone under which portions of the fishproved to be hidden. When wholly exposed it corresponded with hisdream and his drawing, and he succeeded in classifying it withease. He often spoke of this as a good illustration of thewell-known fact, that when the body is at rest the tired brain willdo the work it refused before. 

CHAPTER 6. 

1832: AGE 25. 

Unexpected Relief from Difficulties. Correspondence with Humboldt. Excursion to the Coast of Normandy. First Sight of the Sea. Correspondence concerning Professorship at Neuchatel. Birthday Fete. Invitation to Chair of Natural History at Neuchatel. Acceptance. Letter to Humboldt. 

AGASSIZ was not called upon to make the sacrifice of giving up hisartist and leaving Paris, although he was, or at least thoughthimself, prepared for it. The darkest hour is before the dawn, andthe letter next given announces an unexpected relief from pressingdistress and anxiety. 

TO HIS FATHER AND MOTHER. 

PARIS, March, 1832. 

. . . I am still so agitated and so surprised at what has justhappened that I scarcely believe what my eyes tell me. 

I mentioned in a postscript to my last letter that I had calledyesterday on M. De Humboldt, whom I had not seen for a long time, in order to speak to him concerning Auguste's affair, but that Idid not find him. In former visits I had spoken to him about myposition, and told him that I did not well know what course to takewith my publisher. He offered to write to him, and did so more thantwo months ago. Thus far, neither he nor I have had any answer. This morning, just as I was going out, a letter came from M. DeHumboldt, who writes me that he is very uneasy at receiving noreply from Cotta, that he fears lest the uncertainty and anxiety ofmind resulting from this may be injurious to my work, and begs meto accept the inclosed credit of a thousand francs. . . --Oh! if mymother would forget for one moment that this is the celebrated M. De Humboldt, and find courage to write him only a few lines, howgrateful I should be to her. I think it would come better from herthan from papa, who would do it more correctly, no doubt, butperhaps not quite as I should like. Humboldt is so good, soindulgent, that you should not hesitate, dear mother, to write hima few lines. He lives Rue du Colombier, Number 22; address, quitesimply, M. De Humboldt. . . 

In the agitation of the moment the letter was not even signed. 

The following note from Humboldt to Mme. Agassiz, kept by her as aprecious possession, shows that in answer to her son's appeal hismother took her courage, as the French saying is, "with bothhands, " and wrote as she was desired. 

FROM HUMBOLDT TO MME. AGASSIZ. 

PARIS, April 11, 1832. 

I should scold your son, Madame, for having spoken to you of theslight mark of interest I have been able to show him; and yet, howcan I complain of a letter so touching, so noble in sentiment, asthe one I have just received from your hand. Accept my warmestthanks for it. How happy you are to have a son so distinguished byhis talents, by the variety and solidity of his acquirements, and, withal, as modest as if he knew nothing, --in these days, too, whenyouth is generally characterized by a cold and scornfulamour-propre. One might well despair of the world if a person likeyour son, with information so substantial and manners so sweet andprepossessing, should fail to make his way. I approve highly theNeuchatel plan, and hope, in case of need, to contribute to itssuccess. One must aim at a settled position in life. 

Pray excuse, Madame, the brevity of these lines, and accept theassurance of my respectful regard. 

HUMBOLDT. 

The letter which lifted such a load of care from Louis and hisparents was as follows:--

HUMBOLDT TO LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

PARIS, March 27, 1832. 

I am very uneasy, my dearest M. Agassiz, at being still without anyletter from Cotta. Has he been prevented from writing by business, or illness perhaps? You know how tardy he always is about writing. Yesterday (Monday) I wrote him earnestly again concerning youraffair (an undertaking of such moment for science), and urged uponhim the issuing of the fossil and fresh-water fishes in alternatenumbers. In the mean time, I fear that the protracted delay mayweigh heavily on you and your friends. A man so laborious, sogifted, and so deserving of affection as you are should not be leftin a position where lack of serenity disturbs his power of work. You will then surely pardon my friendly goodwill toward you, mydear M. Agassiz, if I entreat you to make use of the accompanyingsmall credit. You would do more for me I am sure. Consider it anadvance which need not be paid for years, and which I will gladlyincrease when I go away or even earlier. It would pain me deeplyshould the urgency of my request made in the closest confidence, --in short, a transaction as between two friends of unequal age, --be disagreeable to you. I should wish to be pleasantly rememberedby a young man of your character. 

Yours, with the most affectionate respect, ALEXANDER HUMBOLDT. 

With this letter was found the following note of acknowledgment, scrawled in almost illegible pencil marks. Whether sent exactly asit stands or not, it is evidently the first outburst of Agassiz'sgratitude. 

My benefactor and friend, --it is too much; I cannot find words totell you how deeply your letter of to-day has moved me. I have justbeen at your house that I might thank you in person with all myheart; but now I must wait to do so until I have the good fortuneto meet you. At what a moment does your help come to me! I inclosea letter from my dear mother that you may understand my wholeposition. My parents will now readily consent that I should devotemyself entirely to science, and I am freed from the distressingthought that I may be acting contrary to their wishes and theirwill. But they have not the means to help me, and had proposed thatI should return to Switzerland and give lessons either in Geneva orLausanne. I had already resolved to follow this suggestion in thecourse of next summer, and had also decided to part with Mr. Dinkel, my faithful companion, as soon as he should have finishedthe most indispensable drawings of the fossils on which he is nowengaged here. I meant to tell you of this on Sunday, and now to-daycomes your letter. Imagine what must have been my feeling, afterhaving resolved on renouncing what till now had seemed to menoblest and most desirable in life, to find myself unexpectedlyrescued by a kind, helpful hand, and to have again the hope ofdevoting my whole powers to science, --you can judge of the stateinto which your letter has thrown me. . . 

Soon after this event Agassiz made a short excursion with Braun andDinkel to the coast of Normandy; worth noting, because he now sawthe sea for the first time. He wrote home: "For five days weskirted the coast from Havre to Dieppe; at last I have looked uponthe sea and its riches. From this excursion of a few days, which Ihad almost despaired of making, I bring back new ideas, morecomprehensive views, and a more accurate knowledge of the greatphenomena presented by the ocean in its vast expanse. "

Meanwhile the hope he had always entertained of finding aprofessorship of natural history in his own country was ripeninginto a definite project. His first letter on this subject to M. Louis Coulon, himself a well-known naturalist, and afterward one ofhis warmest friends in Neuchatel, must have been written justbefore he received from Humboldt the note of the same date, whichextricated him from his pecuniary embarrassment. 

AGASSIZ TO LOUIS COULON. 

PARIS, March 27, 1832. 

. . . When I had the pleasure of seeing you last summer I severaltimes expressed my strong desire to establish myself near you, andmy intention of taking some steps toward obtaining theprofessorship of natural history to be founded in your Lyceum. Thematter must be more advanced now than it was last year, and youwould oblige me greatly by giving me some information concerningit. I have spoken of my project to M. De Humboldt, whom I oftensee, and who kindly interests himself about my prospects and helpsme with his advice. He thinks that under the circumstances, andespecially in my position, measures should be taken in advance. There is another point of great importance for me about which Iwished also to speak to you. Though you have seen but a small partof it, you nevertheless know that in my different journeys, partlythrough my relations with other naturalists, partly by exchange, Ihave made a very fair collection of natural history, especiallyrich in just those classes which are less fully represented in yourmuseum. My collection might, therefore, fill the gaps in that ofthe city of Neuchatel, and make the latter more than adequate forthe illustration of a full course of natural history. Should anincrease of your zoological collection make part of your plans forthe Lyceum, I venture to believe that mine would fully answer yourpurpose. In that case I would offer it to you, since the expense ofarranging it, the rent of a room in which to keep it, and, inshort, its support in general, is beyond my means. I must find someway of relieving myself from this burden, although it will be hardto part with these companions of my study, upon which I have basedalmost all my investigations. I have spoken of this also to M. DeHumboldt, who is good enough to show an interest in the matter, andwill even take all necessary steps with the government tofacilitate this purchase. You would render me the greatest serviceby giving me your directions about all this, and especially bytelling me: 1. On whom the nomination to the professorship depends?2. With whom the purchase of the collection would rest? 3. What youthink I should do with reference to both? Of course you will easilyunderstand that I cannot give up my collections except under thecondition that I should be allowed the free use of them. . . 

The answer was not only courteous, but kind, although some timeelapsed before the final arrangements were made. Meanwhile thefollowing letter shows us the doubts and temptations which for amoment embarrassed Agassiz in his decision. The death of Cuvier hadintervened. 

AGASSIZ TO HUMBOLDT. 

PARIS, May, 1832. 

. . . I would not write you until I had definite news fromNeuchatel. Two days ago I received a very delightful letter from M. Coulon, which I hasten to share with you. I will not copy thewhole, but extract the essential part. He tells me that he hasproposed to the Board of Education the establishment of aprofessorship of natural history, to be offered to me. Theproposition met with a cordial hearing. The need of such aprofessorship was unanimously recognized, but the Presidentexplained that neither would the condition of the treasury allowits establishment in the present year, nor could the proposition bebrought before the Council of State until the opening of the newLyceum. 

Monsieur Coulon was commissioned to thank me, and to request me inthe name of the board to keep the place in mind; should I preferit, however, he doubts not that whatever the city could not domight be made good by subscription before next autumn, in whichcase I could enter upon office at once. He requests a prompt answerin order that he may make all needful preparations. Only too gladlywould I have consulted you about various propositions made to mehere in the last few days, and have submitted my course to yourapproval, had it not been that here, as in Neuchatel, a promptanswer was urged. Although guided rather by instinct than byanything else, I think, nevertheless, that I have chosen rightly. In such moments, when one cannot see far enough in advance to forman accurate judgment upon deliberation, feeling is, after all, thebest adviser; that inner impulse, which is a safe guide if otherconsiderations do not confuse the judgment. This says to me, "Go toNeuchatel; do not stay in Paris. " But I speak in riddles; I mustexplain myself more clearly. Last Monday Levrault sent for me inorder to propose that Valenciennes and I should jointly undertakethe publication of the Cuvierian fishes. . . I was to give apositive answer this week. I have carefully considered it, and havedecided that an unconditional engagement would lead me away from mynearest aim, and from what I look upon as the task of my life. Thealready published volumes of the System of Ichthyology lie too farfrom the road on which I intend to pursue my researches. Finally, it seems to me that in a quiet retired place like Neuchatel, whatever may be growing up within me will have a more independentand individual development than in this restless Paris, whereobstacles or difficulties may not perhaps divert me from a givenpurpose, but may disturb or delay its accomplishment. I willtherefore so shape my answer to Levrault as to undertake onlysingle portions of the work, the choice of these, on account of myinterest in the fossil and the fresh-water fishes, being allowedme, with the understanding, also, that I should be permitted tohave these collections in Switzerland and work them up there. FromParis, also, it would not be so easy to transfer myself to Germany, whereas I could consider Neuchatel as a provisional position fromwhich I might be called to a German university. . . 

In the mean time, while waiting hopefully the result of hisnegotiations with Neuchatel, Agassiz had organized with hisfriends, the two Brauns, a bachelor life very like the one he andAlexander had led with their classmates in Munich. The little hotelwhere they lodged had filled up with young German doctors, who hadcome to visit the hospitals in Paris and study the cholera. Some ofthese young men had been their fellow-students at the university, and at their request Agassiz and Braun resumed the practice ofgiving private lectures on zoology and botany, the whole beingconducted in the most informal manner, admitting absolute freedomof discussion, as among intimate companions of the same age. Suchan interchange naturally led to very genial relations between theamateur professors and their class, and on the eve of Agassiz'sbirthday (28th of May) his usual audience prepared for him a verypleasant surprise. Returning from a walk after dusk he found Braunin his room. Continuing his stroll within four walls, he and hisfriend paced the floor together in earnest talk, when, at a signal, Braun suddenly drew him to the window, threw it open, and on thepavement below stood their companions, singing a part song, composed in honor of Agassiz. Deeply moved, he withdrew from thewindow in time to receive them as they trooped up the stairway tooffer their good wishes. They presently led the way to another roomwhich they had dressed with flowers, Agassiz's name, among otherdecorations, being braided in roses beneath two federal flagscrossed on the wall. Here supper was laid, and the rest of theevening passed gayly with songs and toasts, not only for the heroof the feast and for friends far and near, but for the progress ofscience, the liberty of the people, and the independence ofnations. There could be no meeting of ardent young Germans andSwiss in those days without some mingling of patriotic aspirationswith the sentiment of the hour. 

The friendly correspondence between Agassiz and M. Coulon regardingthe professorship at Neuchatel was now rapidly bringing the matterto a happy conclusion. 

AGASSIZ TO LOUIS COULON. 

PARIS, June 4, 1832. 

I have received your kind letter with great pleasure and hasten toreply. What you write gives me the more satisfaction because itopens to me in the near future the hope of establishing myself inyour neighborhood and devoting to my country the fruits of mylabor. It is true, as you suppose, that the death of M. Cuvier hassensibly changed my position; indeed, I have already been asked tocontinue his work on fishes in connection with M. Valenciennes, whomade me this proposition the day after your letter reached me. Theconditions offered me are, indeed, very tempting, but I am toolittle French by character, and too anxious to live in Switzerland, not to prefer the place you can offer me, however small theappointments, if they do but keep me above actual embarrassment. Isay thus much only in order to answer that clause in your letterwhere you touch upon this question. I would add that I leave thefield quite free in this respect, and that I am yours withoutreserve, if, indeed, within the fortnight, the urgency of theParisians does not carry the day, or, rather, as soon as I writeyou that I have been able finally to withdraw. You easilyunderstand that I cannot bluntly decline offers which seem to thosewho make them so brilliant. But I shall hold out against them tothe utmost. My course with reference to my own publications willhave shown you that I do not care for a lucrative position frompersonal interest; that, on the contrary, I should always be readyto use such means as I may have at my disposition for theadvancement of the institution confided to my care. 

My work will still detain me for four or five months at Paris, --mytime being after that completely at my disposal. The period atwhich I should like to begin my lectures is therefore very near, and I think if your people are favorably disposed toward thecreation of a new professorship we must not let them grow cold. Butyou have shown me so much kindness that I may well leave to yourcare, in concert with your friends, the decision of this point; themore so since you are willing to take charge of my interests, untilyou see the success of what you are pleased to look upon as anadvantage to your institution, while for me it is the realizationof a sincere desire to do what I can for the advancement ofscience, and the instruction of our youth. . . 

The next letter from M. Coulon (June 18, 1832) announces that thesum of eighty louis having been guaranteed for three years, chieflyby private individuals, but partly also by the city, they were nowable to offer a chair of natural history at once to their youngcountryman. In conclusion, he adds:--

"I can easily understand that the brilliant offers made you inParis strongly counterbalance a poor little professorship ofnatural history at Neuchatel, and may well cause you to hesitate;especially since your scientific career there is so well begun. Onthe other hand, you cannot doubt our pleasure in the prospect ofhaving you at Neuchatel, not only because of the friendship feltfor you by many persons here, but also on account of the lustrewhich a chair of natural history so filled would shed upon ourinstitution. Of this our subscribers are well aware, and itaccounts for the rapid filling of the list. I am very anxious, asare all these gentlemen, to know your decision, and beg youtherefore to let us hear from you as soon as possible. "

A letter from Humboldt to M. Coulon, about this time, is an earnestof his watchful care over the interests of Agassiz. 

HUMBOLDT TO LOUIS COULON. 

POTSDAM, July 25, 1832. 

. . . I do not write to ask a favor, but only to express my warmgratitude for your noble and generous dealings with the youngsavant, M. Agassiz, who is well worthy your encouragement and theprotection of your government. He is distinguished by his talents, by the variety and substantial character of his attainments, and bythat which has a special value in these troubled times, his naturalsweetness of disposition. 

Through our common friend, M. Von Buch, I have known for many yearsthat you study natural history with a success equal to your zeal, and that you have brought together fine collections, which youplace at the disposal of others with a noble liberality. Itgratifies me to see your kindness toward a young man to whom I amso warmly attached; whom the illustrious Cuvier, also, whose losswe must ever deplore, would have recommended with the sameheartiness, for his faith, like mine, was based on those admirableworks of Agassiz which are now nearly completed. . . 

I have strongly advised M. Agassiz not to accept the offers made tohim at Paris since M. Cuvier's death, and his decision hasanticipated my advice. How happy it would be for him, and for thecompletion of the excellent works on which he is engaged, could hethis very year be established on the shores of your lake! I have nodoubt that he will receive the powerful protection of your worthygovernor, to whom I shall repeat my requests, and who honors me, aswell as my brother, with a friendship I warmly appreciate. M. VonBuch also has promised me, before leaving Berlin for Bonn andVienna, to add his entreaty to mine. . . He is almost as muchinterested as myself in M. Agassiz and his work on fossil fishes, the most important ever undertaken, and equally exact in itsrelation to zoological characters and to geological deposits. . . 

The next letter from Agassiz to his influential friend is writtenafter his final acceptance of the Neuchatel professorship. 

AGASSIZ TO HUMBOLDT. 

PARIS, July, 1832. 

. . . I would most gladly have answered your delightful letter atonce, and have told you how smoothly all has gone at Neuchatel. Your letters to M. De Coulon and to General von Pfuel have wroughtmarvels; but they are now inclined to look upon me there as awonder from the deep, * (* Ein blaues Meerwunder. ) and I must exertmyself to the utmost lest my actual presence should give the lie tofame. It is all right. I shall be the less likely to relax indevotion to my work. 

The real reason of my silence has been that I was unwilling toacknowledge so many evidences of efficient sympathy and friendlyencouragement by an empty letter. I wished especially to share withyou the final result of my investigations on the fossil fishes, andfor that purpose it was necessary to revise my manuscripts and takean account of my tables in order to condense the whole in a fewphrases. I have already told you that the investigation of theliving fishes had suggested to me a new classification, in whichfamilies as at present circumscribed respectively received new, andto my thinking more natural positions, based upon otherconsiderations than those hitherto brought forward. I did not atfirst lay any special stress on my classification. . . My object wasonly to utilize certain structural characters which frequentlyrecur among fossil forms, and which might therefore enable me todetermine remains hitherto considered of little value. . . Absorbedin the special investigation, I paid no heed to the edifice whichwas meanwhile unconsciously building itself up. Having howevercompleted the comparison of the fossil species in Paris, I wanted, for the sake of an easy revision of the same, to make a listaccording to their succession in geological formations, with a viewof determining the characteristics more exactly and bringing themby their enumeration into bolder relief. What was my joy andsurprise to find that the simplest enumeration of the fossil fishesaccording to their geological succession was also a completestatement of the natural relations of the families amongthemselves; that one might therefore read the genetic developmentof the whole class in the history of creation, the representationof the genera and species in the several families being thereindetermined; in one word, that the genetic succession of the fishescorresponds perfectly with their zoological classification, andwith just that classification proposed by me. The questiontherefore in characterizing formations is no longer that of thenumerical preponderance of certain genera and species, but ofdistinct structural relations, carried through all these formationsaccording to a definite direction, following each other in anappointed order, and recognizable in the organisms as they arebrought forth. . . If my conclusions are not overturned or modifiedthrough some later discovery, they will form a new basis for thestudy of fossils. Should you communicate my discovery to others Ishall be especially pleased, because it may be long before I canbegin to publish it myself, and many may be interested in it. Thisseems to me the most important of my results, though I have also, partly from perfect specimens, partly from fragments, identifiedsome five hundred extinct species, and more than fifty extinctgenera, beside reestablishing three families no longer represented. 

Cotta has written me in very polite terms that he could notundertake anything new at present; he would rather pay, without regardto profit, for what has been done thus far, and lets me have fifteenhundred francs. This makes it possible for me to leave Dinkel in Paristo complete the drawings. Although it often seems to me hard, I mustreconcile myself to the thought of leaving investigations which areactually completed, locked up in my desk. . . 

CHAPTER 7. 

1832-1834: AGE 25-27. 

Enters upon his Professorship at Neuchatel. First Lecture. Success as a Teacher. Love of Teaching. Influence upon the Scientific Life of Neuchatel. Proposal from University of Heidelberg. Proposal declined. Threatened Blindness. Correspondence with Humboldt. Marriage. Invitation from Charpentier. Invitation to visit England. Wollaston Prize. First Number of "Poissons Fossiles. "Review of the Work. 

THE following autumn Agassiz assumed the duties of hisprofessorship at Neuchatel. His opening lecture "Upon the Relationsbetween the different branches of Natural History and the thenprevailing tendencies of all the Sciences" was given on the 12th ofNovember, 1832, at the Hotel de Ville. Judged by the impressionmade upon the listeners as recorded at the time, this introductorydiscourse must have been characterized by the same broad spirit ofgeneralization which marked Agassiz's later teaching. Facts in hishands fell into their orderly relation as parts of a connectedwhole, and were never presented merely as special or isolatedphenomena. From the beginning his success as an instructor wasundoubted. He had, indeed, now entered upon the occupation whichwas to be from youth to old age the delight of his life. Teachingwas a passion with him, and his power over his pupils might bemeasured by his own enthusiasm. He was intellectually, as well associally, a democrat, in the best sense. He delighted to scatterbroadcast the highest results of thought and research, and to adaptthem even to the youngest and most uninformed minds. In his laterAmerican travels he would talk of glacial phenomena to the driverof a country stage-coach among the mountains, or to some workman, splitting rock at the road-side, with as much earnestness as if hehad been discussing problems with a brother geologist; he wouldtake the common fisherman into his scientific confidence, tellinghim the intimate secrets of fish structure or fish-embryology, tillthe man in his turn grew enthusiastic, and began to pour outinformation from the stores of his own rough and untaught habits ofobservation. Agassiz's general faith in the susceptibility of thepopular intelligence, however untrained, to the highest truths ofnature, was contagious, and he created or developed that in whichhe believed. 

In Neuchatel the presence of the young professor was felt at onceas a new and stimulating influence. The little town suddenly becamea centre of scientific activity. A society for the pursuit of thenatural sciences, of which he was the first secretary, sprang intolife. The scientific collections, which had already attained, underthe care of M. Louis Coulon, considerable value, presently assumedthe character and proportions of a well-ordered museum. In M. Coulon Agassiz found a generous friend and a scientific colleaguewho sympathized with his noblest aspirations, and was ever ready tosustain all his efforts in behalf of scientific progress. Togetherthey worked in arranging, enlarging, and building up a museum ofnatural history which soon became known as one of the best localinstitutions of the kind in Europe. 

Beside his classes at the gymnasium, Agassiz collected about him, by invitation, a small audience of friends and neighbors, to whomhe lectured during the winter on botany, on zoology, on thephilosophy of nature. The instruction was of the most familiar andinformal character, and was continued in later years for his ownchildren and the children of his friends. In the latter case thesubjects were chiefly geology and geography in connection withbotany, and in favorable weather the lessons were usually given inthe open air. One can easily imagine what joy it must have been fora party of little playmates, boys and girls, to be taken out forlong walks in the country over the hills about Neuchatel, andespecially to Chaumont, the mountain which rises behind it, andthus to have their lessons, for which the facts and scenes aboutthem furnished subject and illustration, combined with pleasantrambles. From some high ground affording a wide panoramic viewAgassiz would explain to them the formation of lakes, islands, rivers, springs, water-sheds, hills, and valleys. He alwaysinsisted that physical geography could be better taught to childrenin the vicinity of their own homes than by books or maps, or evenglobes. Nor did he think a varied landscape essential to suchinstruction. Undulations of the ground, some contrast of hill andplain, some sheet of water with the streams that feed it, someridge of rocky soil acting as a water-shed, may be foundeverywhere, and the relation of facts shown perhaps as well on asmall as on a large scale. 

When it was impossible to give the lessons out of doors, thechildren were gathered around a large table, where each one hadbefore him or her the specimens of the day, sometimes stones andfossils, sometimes flowers, fruits, or dried plants. To each childin succession was explained separately what had first been told toall collectively. When the talk was of tropical or distantcountries pains were taken to procure characteristic specimens, andthe children were introduced to dates, bananas, cocoa-nuts, andother fruits, not easily to be obtained in those days in a smallinland town. They, of course, concluded the lesson by eating thespecimens, a practical illustration which they greatly enjoyed. Avery large wooden globe, on the surface of which the variousfeatures of the earth as they came up for discussion could beshown, served to make them more clear and vivid. The children tooktheir own share in the instruction, and were themselves made topoint out and describe that which had just been explained to them. They took home their collections, and as a preparation for the nextlesson were often called upon to classify and describe some unusualspecimen by their own unaided efforts. There was no tedium in theclass. Agassiz's lively, clear, and attractive method of teachingawakened their own powers of observation in his little pupils, andto some at least opened permanent sources of enjoyment. 

His instructions to his older pupils were based on the samemethods, and were no less acceptable to them than to the children. In winter his professional courses to the students were chieflyupon zoology and kindred topics; in the summer he taught thembotany and geology, availing himself of the fine days forexcursions and practical instruction in the field. Professor LouisFavre, speaking of these excursions, which led them sometimes intothe gorges of the Seyon, sometimes into the forests of Chaumont, says: "They were fete days for the young people, who found in theirprofessor an active companion, full of spirits, vigor, and gayety, whose enthusiasm kindled in them the sacred fire of science. "

It was not long before his growing reputation brought himinvitations from elsewhere. One of the first of these was fromHeidelberg. 

PROFESSOR TIEDEMANN TO LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

HEIDELBERG, December 4, 1832. 

. . . Last autumn, when I had the pleasure of meeting you inCarlsruhe, I proposed to you to give some lectures on NaturalHistory at this university. Professor Leuckart, who till nowrepresented zoology here, is called to Freiburg, and you wouldtherefore be the only teacher in that department. The universitybeing so frequented, a numerous audience may be counted upon. Thezoological collection, by no means an insignificant one, is open toyour use. Professor Leuckart received a salary of five hundredflorins. This is now unappropriated, and I do not doubt that thegovernment, conformably to the proposition of the medical faculty, would give you the appointment on the same terms. By your knowledgeyou are prepared for the work of an able academical teacher. Myadvice is, therefore, that you should not bind yourself to anylyceum or gymnasium, as a permanent position; such a place wouldnot suit a cultivated scientific man, nor does it offer a field foran accomplished scholar. Consider carefully, therefore, a questionwhich concerns the efficiency of your life, and give me the resultof your deliberation as soon as possible. Should it be favorable tothe acceptance of my proposition, I hope you will find yourselfhere at Easter as full professor, with a salary of five hundredflorins, and a fitting field of activity for your knowledge. Thefees for lectures and literary work might bring you in anadditional fifteen hundred gulden yearly. If you accede to thisoffer send me your inaugural dissertation, and make me acquaintedwith your literary work, that I may take the necessary steps withthe Curatorio. Consider this proposition as a proof of my highappreciation of your literary efforts and of my regard for youpersonally. 

Agassiz's next letter to Humboldt is to consult him with respect tothe call from Heidelberg, while it is also full of pleasure at thewarm welcome extended to him in Neuchatel. 

AGASSIZ TO HUMBOLDT. 

December, 1832. 

. . . At last I am in Neuchatel, having, indeed, begun my lecturessome weeks ago. I have been received in a way I could never haveanticipated, and which can only be due to your good-will on mybehalf and your friendly recommendation. You have my warmest thanksfor the trouble you have taken about me, and for your continuedsympathy. Let me show you by my work in the years to come, ratherthan by words, that I am in earnest about science, and that myspirit is not irresponsive to a noble encouragement such as youhave given me. 

You will have received my letter from Carlsruhe. Could I only tellyou all that I have since thought and observed about the history ofour earth's development, the succession of the animal populations, and their genetic classification! It cannot easily be compressedwithin letter limits; I will, nevertheless, attempt it when mylectures make less urgent claim upon me, and my eyes are lessfatigued. I should defer writing till then were it not that to-dayI have something of at least outside interest to announce. Itconcerns the inclosed letter received to-day. (The offer of aprofessorship at Heidelberg. ) Should you think that I need not takeit into consideration, and you have no time to answer me, let meknow your opinion by your silence. I will tell you the reasonswhich would induce me to remain for the present in Neuchatel, and Ithink you will approve them. First, as my lectures do not claim agreat part of my time I shall have the more to bestow on otherwork; add to this the position of Neuchatel, so favorable forobservations such as I propose making on the history of developmentin several classes of animals; then the hope of freeing myself fromthe burden of my collections; and next, the quiet of my life herewith reference to my somewhat overstrained health. Beside my wishto remain, these favorable circumstances furnish a powerful motive, and then I am satisfied that people here would assist me with thegreatest readiness should my publications not succeed otherwise. Asto the publication of my fishes, I can, after all, better directthe lithographing of the plates here. I have just written to Cottaconcerning this, proposing also that he should advance the cost ofthe lithographs. I shall attend to it all carefully, and be contentfor the present with my small means. From the gradual sale he can, little by little, repay my expenses, and I shall ask no profituntil the success of the work warrants it. I await his answer. Thisproposal seems to me the best and the most likely to advance thepublication of this work. 

Since I arrived here some scientific efforts have been made withthe help of M. Coulon. We have already founded a society of NaturalHistory, * (* Societe des Sciences Naturelles de Neuchatel. ) and Ihope, should you make your promised visit next year, you will findthis germ between foliage and flower at least, though perhaps notyet ripened into seed. . . 

M. Coulon told me the day before yesterday that he had spoken withM. De Montmollin, the Treasurer, who would write to M. Ancillonconcerning the purchase of my collection. . . Will you have thekindness, when occasion offers, to say a word to M. Ancillon aboutit?. . . Not only would this collection be of the greatest value tothe museum here, but its sale would also advance my fartherinvestigations. With the sum of eighty louis, which is all that issubscribed for my professorship, I cannot continue them on anylarge scale. 

I await now with anxiety Cotta's answer to my last proposition; butwhatever it be, I shall begin the lithographing of the platesimmediately after the New Year, as they must be carried on under myown eye and direction. This I can well do since my uncle, Dr. Mayorin Lausanne, gives me fifty louis toward it, the amount of oneyear's pay to Weber, my former lithographer in Munich. I havetherefore written him to come, and expect him after New Year. Withmy salary I can also henceforth keep Dinkel, who is now in Paris, drawing the last fossils which I described. . . 

No answer to this letter has been found beyond such as is impliedin the following to M. Coulon. 

HUMBOLDT TO M. COULON, FILS. 

BERLIN, January 21, 1833. 

. . . It gives me great pleasure to acknowledge the flatteringwelcome offered by you and your fellow-citizens to M. Agassiz, whostands so high in science, and whose intellectual qualities areenhanced by his amiable character. They write me from Heidelbergthat they intend the place of M. Leuckart in zoology for my youngfriend. The choice is proposed by M. Tiedemann, and certainlynothing could be more honorable to M. Agassiz. Nevertheless, I hopethat he will refuse it. He should remain for some years in yourcountry, where a generous encouragement facilitates the publicationof his work, which is of equal importance to zoology and geology. 

I have spoken with M. Ancillon, and have left with him an officialnotice respecting the purchase of the Agassiz collection. Thedifficulty will be found, as in all human affairs, in the prose oflife, in money. M. Ancillon writes me this morning: "Your paper infavor of M. Agassiz is a scientific letter of credit which we shalltry to honor. The acquisition of a superior man and a superiorcollection at the same time would be a double conquest for theprincipality of Neuchatel. I have requested a report from theCouncil of State on the means of accomplishing this, and I hopethat private individuals may do something toward it. " Thus you seethe affair is at least on the right road. I do not think, however, that the royal treasury will give at present more than a thousandPrussian crowns toward it. . . 

Regarding the invitation to Heidelberg, Agassiz's decision wasalready made. A letter to his brother toward the close of Decembermentions that he is offered a professorship at the University ofHeidelberg, but that, although his answer has not actually gone, hehas resolved to decline it; adding that the larger salary iscounterbalanced in his mind by the hope of selling his collectionat Neuchatel, and thus freeing himself from a heavy burden. 

Agassiz was now threatened with a great misfortune. Already, inParis, his eyes had begun to suffer from the strain of microscopicwork. They now became seriously impaired; and for some months hewas obliged to abate his activity, and to refrain even from writinga letter. During this time, while he was shut up in a darkenedroom, he practiced the study of fossils by touch alone, using eventhe tip of the tongue to feel out the impression, when the fingerswere not sufficiently sensitive. He said he was sure at the timethat he could bring himself in this way to such delicacy of touchthat the loss of sight would not oblige him to abandon his work. After some months his eyes improved, and though at times threatenedwith a return of the same malady, he was able, throughout life, touse his eyes more uninterruptedly than most persons. His lectures, always delivered extemporaneously, do not seem to have beensuspended for any length of time. 

The following letter from Agassiz to Humboldt is taken from a roughand incomplete draught, which was evidently put aside (perhaps onaccount of the trouble in his eyes), and only completed in thefollowing May. Although imperfect, it explains Humboldt's answer, which is not only interesting in itself, but throws light onAgassiz's work at this period. 

AGASSIZ TO HUMBOLDT. 

NEUCHATEL, January 27, 1833. 

. . . A thousand thanks for your last most welcome letter. I canhardly tell you what pleasure it gave me, or how I am cheered andstimulated to new activity by intercourse with you on so intimate afooting. Since I wrote you, some things have become more clear tome, as, for instance, my purpose of publishing the "Fossil Fishes"here. Certain doubts remain in my mind, however, about which, aswell as about other matters, I would ask your advice. Now thatCotta is dead, I cannot wait till I have made an arrangement withhis successor. I therefore allow the "Fresh-Water Fishes" to lie byand drive on the others. Upon careful examination I have found, tomy astonishment, that all necessary means for the publication ofsuch a work are to be had here: two good lithographers and twoprinting establishments, both of which have excellent type. I havesent for Weber to engrave the plates, or draw them on stone; hewill be here at the end of the month. Then I shall begin at once, and hope in May to send out the first number. The great difficultyremains now in the distribution of the numbers, and in finding asufficient sale so that they may follow each other with regularity. I think it better to begin the publication as a whole than to sendout an abridgment in advance. The species can be characterized onlyby good illustrations. A summary always requires fartherdemonstration, whereas, if I give the plates at once I can shortenthe text and present the general results as an introduction to thefirst number. With twelve numbers, of twenty plates each, followedby about ten pages of text, I can tell all that I have to say. Thecost of one hundred and fifty copies printed here would, accordingto careful inquiry, be covered by seventy subscriptions if theprice were put at one louis-d'or the number. 

Now comes the question whether I should print more than one hundredand fifty copies. On account of the expense I shall not preservethe stones. For the distribution of the copies and the collectingof the money could you, perhaps, recommend me to some house inBerlin or Leipzig, who would take the work for sale in Germany oncommission under reasonable conditions? For England, I wroteyesterday to Lyell, and to-morrow I shall write to Levrault andBossange. 

Both the magistrates and private individuals here are now muchinterested in public instruction, and I am satisfied that sooner orlater my collection will be purchased, though nothing has been saidabout it lately. * (* His collection was finally purchased by thecity of Neuchatel in the spring of 1833. )

For a closer description of my family of Lepidostei, to whichbelong all the ante-chalk bony fishes, I am anxious to have fordissection a Polypterus Bichir and a Lepidosteus osseus, or anyother species belonging exclusively to the present creation. Hitherto, I have only been able to examine and describe theskeleton and external parts. If you could obtain a specimen of bothfor me you would do me the greatest service. If necessary, I willengage to return the preparations. I beg for this most earnestly. Forgive the many requests contained in this letter, and see in itonly my ardent desire to reach my aim, in which you have alreadyhelped me so often and so kindly. 

HUMBOLDT TO AGASSIZ. 

SANS SOUCI, July 4, 1833. 

. . . I am happy in your success, my dear Agassiz, happy in yourcharming letter of May 22nd, happy in the hope of having been ableto do something that may be useful to you for the subscription. ThePrince Royal's name seemed to me rather important for you. I havedelayed writing, not because I am one of the most persecuted men inEurope (the persecution goes on crescendo; there is not a scholarin Prussia or Germany having anything to ask of the King, or of M. D'Altenstein, who does not think it necessary to make me his agent, with power of attorney), but because it was necessary to await thePrince Royal's return from his military circuit, and theopportunity of speaking to him alone, which does not occur when Iam with the King. 

Your prospectus is full of interest, and does ample justice tothose who have provided you with materials. To name me among themwas an affectionate deceit, the ruse of a noble soul like yours; Iam a little vexed with you about it. * (* The few words which calledforth this protest from Humboldt were as follows. After naming allthose from whom he had received help in specimens or otherwise, Agassiz concludes:--"Finally, I owe to M. De Humboldt not onlyimportant notes on fossil fishes, but so many kindnesses inconnection with my work that in enumerating them I should fear towound the delicacy of the giver. " This will hardly seem anexaggeration to those who know the facts of the case. )

Here is the beginning of a list. I think the Department of theMines de Province will take three or four more copies. We have nottheir answer yet. Do not be frightened at the brevity of the list. . . I am, however, the least apt of all men in collectingsubscriptions, seeing no one but the court, and forced to be out oftown three or four days in the week. On account of this sameinaptitude, I beg you to send me, through the publisher, only myown three copies, and to address the others, through the publisheralso, to the individuals named on the list, merely writing on eachcopy that the person has subscribed on the list of M. De Humboldt. 

With all my affection for you, my dear friend, it would beimpossible for me to take charge of the distribution of yournumbers or the returns. The publishing houses of Dummler or ofHumblot and Dunker would be useful to you at Berlin. I find itdifficult to believe that you will navigate successfully amongthese literary corsairs! I have had a short eulogium of your workinserted in the Berliner Staats-Zeitung. You see that I do notneglect your interests, and that, for love of you, I even turnjournalist. You have omitted to state in your prospectus whetheryour plates are lithographed, as I fear they are, and also whetherthey are colored, which seems to me unnecessary. Have your superboriginal drawings remained in your possession, or are they includedin the sale of your collection?. . . 

I could not make use of your letter to the King, and I havesuppressed it. You have been ill-advised as to the forms. "Erhabener Konig" has too poetical a turn; we have here the mostprosaic and the most degrading official expressions. M. De Pfuelmust have some Arch-Prussian with him, who would arrange theformula of a letter for you. At the head there must be "Mostenlightened, most powerful King, --all gracious sovereign and lord. "Then you begin, "Your Royal Majesty, deeply moved, I venture to layat your feet most humbly my warmest thanks for the support sograciously granted to the purchase of my collection for theGymnasium in Neuchatel. Did I know how to write, " etc. The rest ofyour letter was very good; put only "so much grace as to answer"instead of "so much kindness. " You should end with the words, "Iremain till death, in deepest reverence, the most humble andfaithful servant of your Royal Majesty. " The whole on small folio, sealed, addressed outside, "To the King's Majesty, Berlin. " Sendthe letter, not through me, but officially, through M. De Pfuel. *(* At the head there must be "Allerdurchlauchtigster, grossmachtigster Konig, --allergnadigster Konig und Herr. " Then youbegin, "Euer koniglichen Majestat, wage ich meinen lebhaftestenDank fur die allergnadigst bewilligte Unterstutzung zum Ankaufmeiner Sammlung fur das Gymnasium in Neuchatel tief geruhrtallerunterthanigst zu Fussen zu legen. Wusste ich zu schreiben, "etc. The rest of your letter was very good, --put only, "so vielerGnade zu entsprechen" instead of "so vieler Gute. " You should endwith the words, "Ich ersterbe in tiefster Ehrfurcht Euerkoniglicher Majestat aller onter thanigsten getreuester. " The wholein small folio, sealed, addressed outside, "An des Konig'sMajestat, Berlin. " These forms are no longer in use. They belong toa past generation. )

The letter to the King is not absolutely necessary, but it willgive pleasure, for the King likes any affectionate demonstrationfrom the country that has now become yours. * (* It may not be knownto all readers that Neuchatel was then under Prussian sovereignty. )It will be useful, also, with reference to our request for thepurchase of some copies, which we will make to the King as soon asthe first number has appeared. Had I obtained the King's name foryou to-day (which would have been difficult, since the King detestssubscriptions), we should have spoiled the sequence. It seems to methat a letter of acknowledgment from you to M. Ancillon would bevery suitable also. Do not think it is too late. One addresses himas "Monsieur et plus votre Excellence. " I am writing the mostpedantic letter in the world in answer to yours, so full of charm. It must seem to you absurd that I write you in French, when you, French by origin, or rather by language, prefer to write me inGerman. Pray tell me, did you learn German, which you write withsuch purity, as a child?

I am happy to see that you publish the whole together. Theparceling out of such a work would have led to endless delays; but, for mercy's sake, take care of your eyes; they are OURS. I have notneglected the subscriptions in Russia, but I have, as yet, noanswer. At a venture, I have placed the name of M. Von Buch on mylist. He is absent; it is said that he will go to Greece thissummer. Pray make it a rule not to give away copies of your work. If you follow that inclination you will be pecuniarily ruined. 

I wish I could have been present at your course of lectures. Whatyou tell me of them delights me, though I am ready to do battlewith you about those metamorphoses of our globe which have evenslipped into your title. I see by your letter that you cling to theidea of internal vital processes of the earth, that you regard thesuccessive formations as different phases of life, the rocks asproducts of metamorphosis. I think this symbolical language shouldbe employed with great reserve, I know that point of view of theold "Naturphilosophie;" I have examined it without prejudice, butnothing seems to me more dissimilar than the vital action of themetamorphosis of a plant in order to form the calyx or the flower, and the successive formation of beds of conglomerate. There isorder, it is true, in the superposed beds, sometimes an alternationof the same substance, an interior cause, --sometimes even asuccessive development, starting from a central heat; but can theterm "life" be applied to this kind of movement? Limestone does notgenerate sandstone. I do not know that there exists whatphysiologists call a vital force, different from, or opposed to, the physical forces which we recognize in all matter; I think thevital process is only a particular mode of action, of limitation ofthose physical forces; action, the nature of which we have not yetfully sounded. I believe there are nervous storms (electric) likethose which set fire to the atmosphere, but that special actionwhich we call organic, in which every part becomes cause or effect, seems to me distinct from the changes which our planet hasundergone. I pause here, for I feel that I must annoy you, and Icare for you too much to run that risk. Moreover, a superior manlike yourself, my dear friend, floats above material things andleaves a margin for philosophic doubt. 

Farewell; count on the little of life that remains to me, and on myaffectionate devotion. At twenty-six years of age, and possessed ofso much knowledge, you are only entering upon life, while I ampreparing to depart; leaving this world far different from what Ihoped it would be in my youth. I will not forget the Bichir and theLepidosteus. Remember always that your letters give me the greatestpleasure. . . 

[P. S. ] Look carefully at the new number of Poggendorf, in which youwill find beautiful discoveries of Ehrenberg (microscopical) on thedifference of structure between the brain and the nerves of motion, also upon the crystals forming the silvered portion of theperitoneum of Esox lucius. 

In October, 1833, Agassiz's marriage to Cecile Braun, the sister ofhis life-long friend, Alexander Braun, took place. He brought hiswife home to a small apartment in Neuchatel, where they began theirhousekeeping after the simplest fashion, with such economy as theirvery limited means enforced. Her rare artistic talent, hithertodevoted to her brother's botanical pursuits, now found a new field. Trained to accuracy in drawing objects of Natural History, she hadan artist's eye for form and color. Some of the best drawings inthe Fossil Fishes and the Fresh-Water Fishes are from her hand. Throughout the summer, notwithstanding the trouble in his eyes, Agassiz had been still pressing on these works. His two artists, Mr. Dinkel and Mr. Weber, the former in Paris, the latter inNeuchatel, were constantly busy on his plates. 

Although Agassiz was at this time only twenty-six years of age, hiscorrespondence already shows that the interest of scientific men, all over Europe, was attracted to him and to his work. Frominvestigators of note in his own country, from those of France, Italy, and Germany, from England, and even from America, thedistant El Dorado of naturalists in those days, came offers ofcooperation, accompanied by fossil fishes or by the drawings ofrare or unique specimens. He was known in all the museums of Europeas an indefatigable worker and collector, seeking everywherematerials for comparison. 

Among the letters of this date is one from Charpentier, one of thepioneers of glacial investigation, under whose auspices, two yearslater, Agassiz began his inquiries into glacial phenomena. Hewrites him from the neighborhood of Bex, his home in the valley ofthe Rhone, the classic land of glacial work; but he writes ofAgassiz's special subjects, inviting him to come and see suchfossils as were to be found in his neighborhood, and to investigatecertain phenomena of upheaval and of plutonic action in the sameregion, little dreaming that the young zoologist was presently tojoin him in his own chosen field of research. 

Agassiz now began also to receive pressing invitations from theEnglish naturalists, from Buckland, Lyell, Murchison, and others, to visit England, and examine their wonderful collections of fossilremains. 

FROM PROFESSOR BUCKLAND TO AGASSIZ. 

OXFORD, December 25, 1833. 

. . . I should very much like to put into your hands what fewmaterials I possess in the Oxford Museum relating to fossil fishes, and am also desirous that you should see the fossil fish in thevarious provincial museums of England, as well as in London. SirPhilip Egerton has a very large collection of fishes from Engi andOeningen, which he wishes to place at your disposition. Likemyself, he would willingly send you drawings, but drawings madewithout knowledge of the anatomical details which you require, cannot well represent what the artist himself does not perceive. Iwould willingly lend you my specimens, if I could secure themagainst the barbarous hands of the custom-house officials. What Iwould propose to you as a means of seeing all the collections ofEngland, and gaining at the same time additional subscriptions foryour work, is, that you should come to England and attend theBritish Association for the Advancement of Science in Septembernext. There you will meet all the naturalists of England, and I donot doubt that among them you will find a good many subscribers. You will likewise see a new mine of fossil fishes in the clayeyschist of the coal formation at Newhaven, on the banks of theForth, near Edinburgh. You can also make arrangements to visit themuseums of York, Whitby, Scarborough, and Leeds, as well as themuseum of Sir Philip Egerton, on your way to and from Edinburgh. You may, likewise, visit the museums of London, Cambridge, andOxford; everywhere there are fossil fishes; and traveling by coachin England is so rapid, easy, and cheap, that in six weeks or lessyou can accomplish all that I have proposed. As I seriously hopethat you will come to England for the months of August andSeptember, I say nothing at present of any other means of puttinginto your hands the drawings or specimens of our English fossilfishes. I forgot to mention the very rich collection of fossilfishes in the Museum of Mr. Mantell, at Brighton, where, I think, you could take the weekly steam-packet for Rotterdam as easily asin London, and thus arrive in Neuchatel from London in a very fewdays. . . 

AGASSIZ TO PROFESSOR BUCKLAND. 

. . . I thank you most warmly for the very important information youhave so kindly given me respecting the rich collections of England;I will, if possible, make arrangements to visit them this year, andin that case I will beg you to let me have a few letters ofrecommendation to facilitate my examination of them in detail. Notthat I question for a moment the liberality of the Englishnaturalists. All the continental savants who have visited yourmuseums have praised the kindness shown in intrusting to them therarest objects, and I well know that the English rival othernations in this respect, and even leave them far behind. But onemust have merited such favors by scientific labors; to a beginnerthey are always a free gift, wholly undeserved. . . 

A few months later Agassiz received a very gratifying andsubstantial mark of the interest felt by English naturalists in hiswork. 

CHARLES LYELL TO LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

SOMERSET HOUSE, LONDON, February 4, 1834. 

. . . It is with the greatest pleasure that I announce to you goodnews. The Geological Society of London desires me to inform youthat it has this year conferred upon you the prize bequeathed byDr. Wollaston. He has given us the sum of one thousand poundssterling, begging us to expend the interest, or about seven hundredand fifty francs every year, for the encouragement of the scienceof geology. Your work on fishes has been considered by the Counciland the officers of the Geological Society worthy of this prize, Dr. Wollaston having said that it could be given for unfinishedworks. The sum of thirty guineas, or 31 pounds 10 shillingssterling, has been placed in my hands, but I would not send you themoney before knowing exactly where you were and learning from youwhere you wish it to be paid. You will probably like an order onsome Swiss banker. 

I cannot yet give you the extract from the address of the Presidentin which your work is mentioned, but I shall have it soon. In themean time I am desired to tell you that the Society declines toreceive your magnificent work as a gift, but wishes to subscribefor it, and has already ordered a copy from the publishers. . . 

AGASSIZ TO LYELL. 

NEUCHATEL, March 25, 1834. 

. . . You cannot imagine the joy your letter has given me. The prizeawarded to me is at once so unexpected an honor and so welcome anaid that I could hardly believe my eyes when, with tears of reliefand gratitude, I read your letter. In the presence of a savant, Ineed not be ashamed of my penury, since I have spent the little Ihad, wholly in scientific researches. I do not, therefore, hesitateto confess to you that at no time could your gift have given megreater pleasure. Generous friends have helped me to bring out thefirst number of my "Fossil Fishes;" the plates of the second arefinished, but I was greatly embarrassed to know how to print asufficient number of copies before the returns from the firstshould be paid in. The text is ready also, so that now, in afortnight, I can begin the distribution, and, the rotation onceestablished, I hope that preceding numbers will always enable me topublish the next in succession without interruption. I even countupon this resource as affording me the means of making a journey toEngland before long. If no obstacle arises I hope to accomplishthis during the coming summer, and to be present at the nextmeeting of the English naturalists. 

I do not live the less happily on account of my anxieties, but I amsometimes obliged to work more than I well can, or ought in reasonto do. . . The second number of my "Fossil Fishes" contains thebeginning of the anatomy of the fishes, but only such portions asare to be found in the fossil state. I have begun with the scales;later, I treat of the bones and the teeth. Then comes thecontinuation of the description of the Ganoids and the Scomberoids, and an additional sheet contains a sketch of my ichthyologicalclassification. The plates are even more successful than those ofthe first number. If all goes well the third number will appearnext July. I long to visit your rich collections; I hope thatwhenever it becomes possible for me to do so, I shall have the goodfortune to find you in London. . . 

I have thought a letter addressed to the President of the Societyin particular, and to the members in general, would be fitting. Will you have the kindness to deliver it for me to Mr. Murchison?

The first number of the "Fossil Fishes" had already appeared, andhad been greeted with enthusiasm by scientific men. Elie deBeaumont writes Agassiz in June, 1834: "I have read with greatpleasure your first number; it promises us a work as important forscience as it is remarkable in execution. Do not let yourself bediscouraged by obstacles of any kind; they will give way before theconcert of approbation which so excellent a work will awaken. Ishall always be glad to aid in overcoming any one of them. "

Perhaps it is as well to give here a slight sketch of this work, the execution of which was carried on during the next ten years(1833-1843). The inscription tells, in few words, the author'sreverence for Humboldt and his personal gratitude to him. "Thesepages owe to you their existence; accept their dedication. " Thetitle gives in a broad outline the comprehensive purpose of thework:

"Researches on the Fossil Fishes: comprising an Introduction to theStudy of these Animals; the Comparative Anatomy of Organic Systemswhich may contribute to facilitate the Determination of FossilSpecies; a New Classification of Fishes expressing their Relationsto the Series of Formations; the Explanation of the Laws of theirSuccession and Development during all the Changes of theTerrestrial Globe, accompanied by General GeologicalConsiderations; finally, the Description of about a thousandSpecies which no longer exist, and whose Characters have beenrestored from Remains contained in the Strata of the Earth. "

The most novel results comprised in this work were: first, theremodeling of the classification of the whole type of fishes, fossil and living, and especially the separation of the Ganoidsfrom all other fishes, under the rank of a distinct order; second, the recognition of those combinations of reptilian and bird-likecharacters in the earlier geological fishes, which led the authorto call them prophetic types; and third, his discovery of ananalogy between the embryological phases of the higher presentfishes and the gradual introduction of the whole type on earth, theseries in growth and the series in time revealing a certain mutualcorrespondence. As these comprehensive laws have thrown light uponother types of the animal kingdom beside that of fishes, theirdiscovery may be said to have advanced general zoology as well asichthyology. 

The Introduction presents, as it were, the prelude to this vastchapter of natural history in the simultaneous appearance of thefour great types of the animal kingdom: Radiates, Mollusks, Articulates, and Vertebrates. Then comes the orderly development ofthe class by which the vertebrate plan was first expressed, namely, the fishes. Underlying all its divisions and subdivisions, is theaverage expression of the type in the past and present; thePlacoids and Ganoids, with their combination of reptilian andfishlike features, characterizing the earlier geological epochs, while in the later the simple bony fishes, the Cycloids andCtenoids, take the ascendancy. Here, for the first time, Agassizpresents his "synthetic or prophetic types, " namely, early typesembracing, as it were, in one large outline, features afterwardindividualized in special groups, and never again reunited. No lessstriking than these general views of structural relations are theclearness and simplicity with which the distribution of the wholeclass of fishes in relation to the geological formations, or, inother words, to the physical history of the earth, is shown. Inreading this introductory chapter, one familiar with Agassiz as apublic teacher will almost hear his voice marshaling the longprocession of living beings, as he was wont to do, in their gradualintroduction upon the earth. Indeed, his whole future work inichthyology, and one might almost say in general zoology, was heresketched. 

The technicalities of this work, at once so comprehensive in itscombinations and so minute in its details, could interest only theprofessional reader, but its generalizations may well have acertain attraction for every thoughtful mind. It treats of therelations, anatomical, zoological, and geological, between thewhole class of fishes, fossil and living, illustrated by numerousplates, while additional light is thrown on the whole by therevelations of embryology. 

"Notwithstanding these striking differences, " says the author inthe opening of the fifth chapter on the relations of fishes ingeneral, "it is none the less evident to the attentive observerthat one single idea has presided over the development of the wholeclass, and that all the deviations lead back to a primary plan, sothat even if the thread seem broken in the present creation, onecan reunite it on reaching the domain of fossil ichthyology. "* (*Volume 1 chapter 5 pages 92, 93. )

Having shown how the present creation has given him the key to pastcreations, how the complete skeleton of the living fishes hasexplained the scattered fragments of the ancient ones, especiallythose of which the soft cartilaginous structure was liable todecay, he presents two modes of studying the type as a whole;either in its comparative anatomy, including in the comparison thewhole history of the type, fossil and living, or in its comparativeembryology. "The results, " he adds, "of these two methods of studycomplete and control each other. " In all his subsequent researchesindeed, the history of the individual in its successive phases wenthand in hand with the history of the type. He constantly tested hiszoological results by his embryological investigations. 

After a careful description of the dorsal chord in itsembryological development, he shows that a certain parallelismexists between the comparative degrees of development of thevertebral column in the different groups of fishes, and the phasesof its embryonic development in the higher fishes. Farther on heshows a like coincidence between the development of the system offins in the different groups of fishes, and the gradual growth anddifferentiation of the fins in the embryo of the higher livingfishes. * (* "Recherches sur les Poissons Fossiles", volume 1chapter 5 page 102. ) "There is, then, " he concludes, "as we havesaid above, a certain analogy, or rather a certain parallelism, tobe established between the embryological development of theCycloids and Ctenoids, and the genetic or paleontologicaldevelopment of the whole class. Considered from this point of view, no one will dispute that the form of the caudal fin is of highimportance for zoological and paleontological considerations, sinceit shows that the same thought, the same plan, which presidesto-day over the formation of the embryo, is also manifested in thesuccessive development of the numerous creation which have formerlypeopled the earth. " Agassiz says himself in his Preface: "I havesucceeded in expressing the laws of succession and of the organicdevelopment of fishes during all geological epochs; and science mayhenceforth, in seeing the changes of this class from formation toformation, follow the progress of organization in one greatdivision of the animal kingdom, through a complete series of theages of the earth. " This is not inconsistent with his position asthe leading opponent of the development or Darwinian theories. Tohim, development meant development of plan as expressed instructure, not the change of one structure into another. To hisapprehension the change was based upon intellectual, not uponmaterial causes. He sums up his own conviction with reference tothis question as follows:* (* "Recherches sur les PoissonsFossiles" volume 1 chapter 6 pages 171, 172. "Essay on theClassification of Fishes. ") "Such facts proclaim aloud principlesnot yet discussed in science, but which paleontological researchesplace before the eyes of the observer with an ever-increasingpersistency. I speak of the relations of the creation with thecreator. Phenomena closely allied in the order of their succession, and yet without sufficient cause in themselves for theirappearance; an infinite diversity of species without any commonmaterial bond, so grouping themselves as to present the mostadmirable progressive development to which our own species islinked, --are these not incontestable proofs of the existence of asuperior intelligence whose power alone could have established suchan order of things?. . . "

"More than fifteen hundred species of fossil fishes, which I havelearned to know, tell me that species do not pass insensibly oneinto another, but that they appear and disappear unexpectedly, without direct relations with their precursors; for I think no onewill seriously pretend that the numerous types of Cycloids andCtenoids, almost all of which are contemporaneous with one another, have descended from the Placoids and Ganoids. As well mightone affirm that the Mammalia, and man with them, have descendeddirectly from fishes. All these species have a fixed epoch ofappearance and disappearance; their existence is even limited to anappointed time. And yet they present, as a whole, numerousaffinities more or less close, a definite coordination in a givensystem of organization which has intimate relations with the modeof existence of each type, and even of each species. An invisiblethread unwinds itself throughout all time, across this immensediversity, and presents to us as a definite result, a continualprogress in the development of which man is the term, of which thefour classes of vertebrates are intermediate forms, and thetotality of invertebrate animals the constant accessoryaccompaniment. "

The difficulty of carrying out comparisons so rigorous andextensive as were needed in order to reconstruct the organicrelations between the fossil fishes of all geological formationsand those of the present world, is best told by the author. * (*"Recherches sur les Poissons Fossiles" volume 1. Addition a laPreface. ) "Possessing no fossil fishes myself, and renouncingforever the acquisition of collections so precious, I have beenforced to seek the materials for my work in all the collections ofEurope containing such remains; I have, therefore, made frequentjourneys in Germany, in France, and in England, in order toexamine, describe, and illustrate the objects of my researches. Butnotwithstanding the cordiality with which even the most preciousspecimens have been placed at my disposition, a seriousinconvenience has resulted from this mode of working, namely, thatI have rarely been able to compare directly the various specimensof the same species from different collections, and that I haveoften been obliged to make my identification from memory, or fromsimple notes, or, in the more fortunate cases, from my drawingsonly. It is impossible to imagine the fatigue, the exhaustion ofall the faculties, involved in such a method. The hurry oftraveling, joined to the lack of the most ordinary facilities forobservation, has not rendered my task more easy. I therefore claimindulgence for such of my identifications as a later examination, made at leisure, may modify, and for descriptions which sometimesbear the stamp of the precipitation with which they have beenprepared. "

It was, perhaps, this experience of Agassiz's earlier life whichmade him so anxious to establish a museum of comparative zoology inthis country, --a museum so abundant and comprehensive in material, that the student should not only find all classes of the animalkingdom represented within its walls, but preserved also in suchnumbers as to allow the sacrifice of many specimens for purposes ofcomparison and study. He was resolved that no student should standthere baffled at the door of knowledge, as he had often donehimself, when shown the one precious specimen, which could not beremoved, or even examined on the spot, because unique. 

CHAPTER 8. 

1834-1837: AGE 27-30. 

First Visit to England. Reception by Scientific Men. Work on Fossil Fishes there. Liberality of English Naturalists. First Relations with American Science. Farther Correspondence with Humboldt. Second Visit to England. Continuation of "Fossil Fishes. "Other Scientific Publications. Attention drawn to Glacial Phenomena. Summer at Bex with Charpentier. Sale of Original Drawings for "Fossil Fishes. "Meeting of Helvetic Society. Address on Ice-Period. Letters from Humboldt and Von Buch. 

In August, 1834, according to his cherished hope, Agassiz went toEngland, and was received by the scientific men with a cordialsympathy which left not a day or an hour of his short sojourn thereunoccupied. The following letter from Buckland is one of manyproffering hospitality and friendly advice on his arrival. 

DR. BUCKLAND TO LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

OXFORD, August 26, 1834. 

. . . I am rejoiced to hear of your safe arrival in London, andwrite to say that I am in Oxford, and that I shall be most happy toreceive you and give you a bed in my house if you can come hereimmediately. I expect M. Arago and Mr. Pentland from Paris tomorrow(Wednesday) afternoon. I shall be most happy to show you our OxfordMuseum on Thursday or Friday, and to proceed with you towardEdinburgh. Sir Philip Egerton has a fine collection of fossilfishes near Chester, which you should visit on your road. I havepartly engaged myself to be with him on Monday, September 1st, butI think it would be desirable for you to go to him Saturday, thatyou may have time to take drawings of his fossil fishes. 

I cannot tell certainly what day I shall leave Oxford until I seeM. Arago, whom I hope you will meet at my house, on your arrival inOxford. I shall hope to see you Wednesday evening or Thursdaymorning. Pray come to my house in Christ Church, with your baggage, the moment you reach Oxford. . . 

Agassiz always looked back with delight on this first visit toGreat Britain. It was the beginning of his life-long friendshipwith Buckland, Sedgwick, Murchison, Lyell, and others of likepursuits and interests. Made welcome in many homes, he couldscarcely respond to all the numerous invitations, social andscientific, which followed the Edinburgh meeting. 

Guided by Dr. Buckland, to whom not only every public and privatecollection, but every rare specimen in the United Kingdom, seems tohave been known, he wandered from treasure to treasure. Every daybrought its revelation, until, under the accumulation of new facts, he almost felt himself forced to begin afresh the work he hadbelieved well advanced. He might have been discouraged by a wealthof resources which seemed to open countless paths, leading he knewnot whither, but for the generosity of the English naturalists whoallowed him to cull, out of sixty or more collections, two thousandspecimens of fossil fishes, and to send them to London, where, bythe kindness of the Geological Society, he was permitted to depositthem in a room in Somerset House. The mass of materials once siftedand arranged, the work of comparison and identification becamecomparatively easy. He sent at once for his faithful artist, Mr. Dinkel, who began, without delay, to copy all such specimens asthrew new light on the history of fossil fishes, a work whichdetained him in England for several years. 

Agassiz made at this time two friends, whose sympathy andcooperation in his scientific work were invaluable to him for therest of his life. Sir Philip Egerton and Lord Cole (Earl ofEnniskillen) owned two of the most valuable collections of fossilfishes in Great Britain. * (* Now the property of the BritishMuseum. ) To aid him in his researches, their most preciousspecimens were placed at Agassiz's disposition; his artist wasallowed to work for months on their collections, and even afterAgassiz came to America, they never failed to share with him, asfar as possible, the advantages arising from the increase of theirmuseums. From this time his correspondence with them, andespecially with Sir Philip Egerton, is closely connected with theever-growing interest as well as with the difficulties of hisscientific career. Reluctantly, and with many a backward look, heleft England in October, and returned to his lectures in Neuchatel, taking with him such specimens as were indispensable to theprogress of his work. Every hour of the following winter whichcould be spared from his lectures was devoted to his fossil fishes. 

A letter of this date from Professor Silliman, of New Haven, Connecticut, marks the beginning of his relations with his futureNew England home, and announces his first New England subscribers. 

YALE COLLEGE NEW HAVEN, UNITED STATES OF NORTH AMERICA, April 22, 1835. 

. . . From Boston, March 6th, I had the honor to thank you for yourletter of January 5th, and for your splendid present of your greatwork on fossil fishes--livraison 1-22--received, with the plates. Ialso gave a notice of the work in the April number of the Journal*(* "The American Journal of Science and Arts". ) (this presentmonth), and republished Mr. Bakewell's account of your visit to Mr. Mantell's museum. 

In Boston I made some little efforts in behalf of your work, andhave the pleasure of naming as follows:--

Harvard University, Cambridge (Cambridge is only four miles fromBoston), by Hon. Josiah Quincy, President. 

Boston Athenaeum, by its Librarian. 

Benjamin Green, Esquire, President of the Boston Natural HistorySociety. 

I shall make application to some other institutions or individuals, but do not venture to promise anything more than my best exertions. . . 

Agassiz little dreamed, as he read this letter, how familiar thesefar-off localities would become to him, or how often, in afteryears, he would traverse by day and by night the four miles whichlay between Boston and his home in Cambridge. 

Agassiz still sought and received, as we see by the followingletter, Humboldt's sympathy in every step of his work. 

HUMBOLDT TO LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

BERLIN, May, 1835. 

I am to blame for my neglect of you, my dear friend, but when youconsider the grief which depresses me, * (* Owing to the death ofhis brother, William von Humboldt. ) and renders me unfit to keep upmy scientific connections, you will not be so unkind as to bear meany ill-will for my long silence. You are too well aware of my highesteem for your talents and your character--you know too well theaffectionate friendship I bear you--to fear for a moment that youcould be forgotten. 

I have seen the being I loved most, and who alone gave me someinterest in this arid land, slowly decline. For four long years mybrother had suffered from a weakness of all the muscles, which mademe always fear that the seat of the trouble was the medullaoblongata. Yet his step was firm; his head was entirely clear. Thehigher intellectual faculties retained all their energy. He wasengaged from twelve to thirteen hours a day on his works, readingor rather dictating, for a nervous trembling of the hand preventedhim from using a pen. Surrounded by a numerous family; living on aspot created, so to speak, by himself, and in a house which he hadadorned with antique statues; withdrawn also from affairs, he wasstill attached to life. The illness which carried him off in tendays--an inflammation of the chest--was but a secondary symptom ofhis disease. He died without pain, with a strength of character anda serenity of mind worthy of the greatest admiration. It is cruelto see so noble an intelligence struggle during ten long daysagainst physical destruction. We are told that in great grief weshould turn with redoubled energy to the study of nature. Theadvice is easy to give; but for a long time even the wish fordistraction is wanting. 

My brother leaves two works which we intend to publish: one uponthe languages and ancient Indian civilization of the Asiaticarchipelago, and the other upon the structure of languages ingeneral, and the influence of that structure upon the intellectualdevelopment of nations. This last work has great beauty of style. We shall soon begin the publication of it. My brother's extensivecorrespondence with all those countries over which his philologicalstudies extended brings upon me just at present, such amultiplicity of occupations and duties that I can only write youthese few lines, my dear friend, as a pledge of my constantaffection, and, I may also add, my admiration of your eminentworks. It is a pleasure to watch the growing renown of those whoare dear to us; and who should merit success more than you, whoseelevation of character is proof against the temptations of literaryself-love? I thank you for the little you have told me of your homelife. It is not enough to be praised and recognized as a great andprofound naturalist; to this one must add domestic happiness aswell. . . 

I am about finishing my long and wearisome work of (illegible); acritical examinationinto the geography of the Middle Ages, of whichfifty sheets are already printed. I will send you the volumes assoon as they appear, in octavo. I devoured your fourth number; theplates are almost finer than the previous ones; and the text, though I have only looked it through hastily, interested me deeply, especially the analytical catalogue of Bolca, and the more generaland very philosophical views of fishes in general, pages 57-64. Thelatter is also remarkable in point of style. . . 

M. Von Buch, who has just left me, sends you a warm greeting. Nonethe less does he consider the method of issuing your text infragments from different volumes, altogether diabolical. I alsocomplain a little, though in all humility; but I suppose it to beconnected with the difficulty of concluding any one family, whennew materials are daily accumulating on your hands. Continue thenas before. In my judgment, M. Agassiz never does wrong. . . 

The above letter, though written in May, did not reach Agassizuntil the end of July, when he was again on his way to England, where his answer is dated. 

AGASSIZ TO HUMBOLDT. 

(LONDON), October--, 1835. 

. . . I cannot express to you my pleasure in reading your letter ofMay 10th (which was, unhappily, only delivered to me on my passagethrough Carlsruhe, at the end of July). . . To know that I haveoccupied your thoughts a moment, especially in days of trial andsorrow such as you have had to bear, raises me in my own eyes, andredoubles my hope for the future. And just now such encouragementis particularly cheering under the difficulties which I meet incompleting my task in England. I have now been here nearly twomonths, and I hope before leaving to finish the description of allthat I brought together at the Geological Society last year. Knowing that you are in Paris, however, I cannot resist thetemptation of going to see you; indeed, should your stay beprolonged for some weeks, it would be my most direct path for home. I should like to tell you a little of what I have done, and how theworld has gone with me since we last met. . . I have certainlycommitted an imprudence in throwing myself into an enterprise sovast in proportion to my means as my "Fossil Fishes. " But, havingbegun it, I have no alternative; my only safety is in success. Ihave a firm conviction that I shall bring my work to a happy issue, though often in the evening I hardly know how the mill is to beturned to-morrow. . . 

By a great good fortune for me, the British Association, at thesuggestion of Buckland, Sedgwick, and Murchison, has renewed, forthe present year, its vote of one hundred guineas toward thefacilitating of researches upon the fossil fishes of England, and Ihope that a considerable part of this sum may be awarded to me, inwhich case I may be able to complete the greater number of thedrawings I need. If I had obtained in France only half thesubscriptions I have had in England, I should be afloat; but thusfar M. Bailliere has only disposed of some fifteen copies. . . Mywork advances fairly; I shall soon have described all the species Iknow, numbering now about nine hundred. I need some weeks in Parisfor the comparison of several tertiary species with living ones inorder to satisfy myself of their specific identity, and then mytask will be accomplished. Next comes the putting in order of allmy notes. My long vacations will give me time to do this with thegreatest care. . . 

His second visit to England, during which the above letter waswritten, was chiefly spent in reviewing the work of his artist, whom he now reinforced with a second draughtsman, M. Weber, thesame who had formerly worked with him in Munich. He also attendedthe meeting of the British Association in Dublin, stayed a few daysat Oulton Park for another look at the collections of Sir PhilipEgerton, made a second grand tour among the other fossil fishes ofEngland and Ireland, and returned to Neuchatel, leaving his twoartists in London with their hands more than full. 

While Agassiz thus pursued his work on fossil fishes with ardor andan almost perilous audacity, in view of his small means, he foundalso time for various other investigations. During the year 1836, though pushing forward constantly the publication of the "PoissonsFossiles, " his "Prodromus of the Class of Echinodermata" appearedin the Memoirs of the Natural History Society of Neuchatel, as wellas his paper on the fossil Echini belonging to the Neocomian groupof the Neuchatel Jura, accompanied by figures. Not long after, hepublished in the Memoirs of the Helvetic Society his descriptionsof fossil Echini peculiar to Switzerland, and issued also the firstnumber of a more extensive work, "Monographie d'Echinodermes. "During this year he received a new evidence of the sympathy of theEnglish naturalists, in the Wollaston medal awarded to him by theLondon Geological Society. 

The summer of 1836 was an eventful one for Agassiz, --the opening, indeed, of a new and brilliant chapter in his life. The attentionof the ignorant and the learned had alike been called to thesingular glacial phenomena of movement and transportation in theAlpine valleys. The peasant had told his strange story of boulderscarried on the back of the ice, of the alternate retreat andadvance of glaciers, now shrinking to narrower limits, now plungingforward into adjoining fields, by some unexplained power ofexpansion and contraction. Scientific men were awake to theinterest of these facts, but had considered them only as localphenomena. Venetz and Charpentier were the first to detect theirwider significance. The former traced the ancient limits of theAlpine glaciers as defined by the frame-work of debris or loosematerial they had left behind them; and Charpentier went farther, and affirmed that all the erratic boulders scattered over the plainof Switzerland and on the sides of the Jura had been thusdistributed by ice and not by water, as had been supposed. 

Agassiz was among those who received this hypothesis as improbableand untenable. Still, he was anxious to see the facts in place, andCharpentier was glad to be his guide. He therefore passed hisvacation, during this summer of 1836, at the pretty town of Bex, inthe valley of the Rhone. Here he spent a number of weeks inexplorations, which served at the same time as a relaxation fromhis more sedentary work. He went expecting to confirm his owndoubts, and to disabuse his friend Charpentier of his errors. Butafter visiting with him the glaciers of the Diablerets, those ofthe valley of Chamounix, and the moraines of the great valley ofthe Rhone and its principal lateral valleys, he came away satisfiedthat a too narrow interpretation of the phenomena was Charpentier'sonly mistake. 

During this otherwise delightful summer, he was not without renewedanxiety lest he should be obliged to suspend the publication of theFossil Fishes for want of means to carry it on. On this account hewrites from Bex to Sir Philip Egerton in relation to the sale ofhis original drawings, the only property he possessed. "It isabsolutely impossible, " he says, "for me to issue even anothernumber until this sale is effected. . . I shall consider myself morethan repaid if I receive, in exchange for the whole collection ofdrawings, simply what I have expended upon them, provided I maykeep those which have yet to be lithographed until that be done. "

Sir Philip made every effort to effect a sale to the BritishMuseum. He failed at the moment, but the collection was finallypurchased and presented to the British Museum by a generousrelative of his own, Lord Francis Egerton. In the mean time, SirPhilip and Lord Cole, in order to make it possible for Agassiz toretain the services of Mr. Dinkel, proposed to pay his expenseswhile he was drawing such specimens from their own collections aswere needed for the work. These drawings were, of course, finallyto remain their own property. 

During his sojourn at Bex, Agassiz's intellect and imagination hadbeen deeply stirred by the glacial phenomena. In the winter of1837, on his return to Neuchatel, he investigated anew the slopesof the Jura, and found that the facts there told the same story. Although he resumed with unabated ardor his various works onfishes, radiates, and mollusks, a new chapter of nature was all thewhile unfolding itself in his fertile brain. When the HelveticAssociation assembled at Neuchatel in the following summer, theyoung president, from whom the members had expected to hear newtidings of fossil fishes, startled them by the presentation of aglacial theory, in which the local erratic phenomena of the Swissvalleys assumed a cosmic significance. It is worthy of remark herethat the first large outlines in which Agassiz, when a young man, planned his intellectual work gave the key-note to all thatfollowed. As the generalizations on which all his future zoologicalresearches were based, are sketched in the Preface to his "PoissonsFossiles, " so his opening address to the Helvetic Society in 1837unfolds the glacial period as a whole, much as he saw it at theclose of his life, after he had studied the phenomena on threecontinents. In this address he announced his conviction that agreat ice-period, due to a temporary oscillation of the temperatureof the globe, had covered the surface of the earth with a sheet ofice, extending at least from the north pole to Central Europe andAsia. "Siberian winter, " he says, "established itself for a timeover a world previously covered with a rich vegetation and peopledwith large mammalia, similar to those now inhabiting the warmregions of India and Africa. Death enveloped all nature in ashroud, and the cold, having reached its highest degree, gave tothis mass of ice, at the maximum of tension, the greatest possiblehardness. " In this novel presentation the distribution of erraticboulders, instead of being classed among local phenomena, wasconsidered "as one of the accidents accompanying the vast changeoccasioned by the fall of the temperature of our globe before thecommencement of our epoch. "

This was, indeed, throwing the gauntlet down to the old expoundersof erratic phenomena upon the principle of floods, freshets, andfloating ice. Many well-known geologists were present at themeeting, among them Leopold von Buch, who could hardly contain hisindignation, mingled with contempt, for what seemed to him the viewof a youthful and inexperienced observer. One would have liked tohear the discussion which followed, in special section, between VonBuch, Charpentier, and Agassiz. Elie de Beaumont, who should havemade the fourth, did not arrive till later. Difference of opinion, however, never disturbed the cordial relation which existed betweenVon Buch and his young opponent. Indeed, Agassiz's reverence andadmiration for Von Buch was then, and continued throughout hislife, deep and loyal. 

Not alone from the men who had made these subjects their specialstudy, did Agassiz meet with discouragements. The letters of hisbeloved mentor, Humboldt, in 1837, show how much he regretted thatany part of his young friend's energy should be diverted fromzoology, to a field of investigation which he then believed to beone of theory rather than of precise demonstration. He was, perhaps, partly influenced by the fact that he saw through theprejudiced eyes of his friend Von Buch. "Over your andCharpentier's moraines, " he says, in one of his letters, "Leopoldvon Buch rages, as you may already know, considering the subject, as he does, his exclusive property. But I too, though by no meansso bitterly opposed to new views, and ready to believe that theboulders have not all been moved by the same means, am yet inclinedto think the moraines due to more local causes. "

The next letter shows that Humboldt was seriously anxious lest thisnew field of activity, with its fascinating speculations, shoulddraw Agassiz away from his ichthyological researches. 

HUMBOLDT TO AGASSIZ. 

BERLIN, December 2, 1837. 

I have this moment received, my dear friend, by the hand of M. DeWerther, the cabinet minister, your eighth and ninth numbers, witha fine pamphlet of text. I hasten to express my warm thanks, and Icongratulate the public on your somewhat tardy resolution to give alarger proportion of text. One should flatter neither the king, northe people, nor one's dearest friend. I maintain, therefore, thatno one has told you forcibly enough how the very persons who justlyadmire your work, constantly complain of this fragmentary style ofpublication, which is the despair of those who have not the leisureto place your scattered sheets where they belong and disentanglethe skein. * (* Owing to the irregularity with which he received andwas forced to work up his material, Agassiz was often either inadvance or in arrears with certain parts of his subject, so thathis plates and his text did not keep pace with each other, thuscausing his readers much annoyance. )

I think you would do well to publish for a while more text thanplates. You could do this the better because your text isexcellent, full of new and important ideas, expressed withadmirable clearness. The charming letter (again without a date)which preceded your package impressed me painfully. I see you areill again; you complain of congestion of the head and eyes. Formercy's sake take care of your health which is so dear to us. I amafraid you work too much, and (shall I say it frankly?) that youspread your intellect over too many subjects at once. I think thatyou should concentrate your moral and also your pecuniary strengthupon this beautiful work on fossil fishes. In so doing you willrender a greater service to positive geology, than by these generalconsiderations (a little icy withal) on the revolutions of theprimitive world; considerations which, as you well know, convinceonly those who give them birth. In accepting considerable sums fromEngland, you have, so to speak, contracted obligations to be metonly by completing a work which will be at once a monument to yourown glory and a landmark in the history of science. Admirable andexact as your researches on other fossils are, your contemporariesclaim from you the fishes above all. You will say that this ismaking you the slave of others; perfectly true, but such is thepleasing position of affairs here below. Have I not been driven forthirty-three years to busy myself with that tiresome America, andam I not, even yet, daily insulted because, after publishingthirty-two volumes of the great edition in folio and in quarto, andtwelve hundred plates, one volume of the historical section iswanting? We men of letters are the servants of an arbitrary master, whom we have imprudently chosen, who flatters and pets us first, and then tyrannizes over us if we do not work to his liking. Yousee, my dear friend, I play the grumbling old man, and, at the riskof deeply displeasing you, place myself on the side of the despoticpublic. . . 

With reference to the general or periodical lowering of thetemperature of the globe, I have never thought it necessary, onaccount of the elephant of the Lena, to admit that sudden frost ofwhich Cuvier used to speak. What I have seen in Siberia, and whathas been observed in Captain Beechey's expedition on the northwestcoast of America, simply proves that there exists a layer of frozendrift, in the fissures of which (even now) the muscular flesh ofany animal which should accidentally fall into them would bepreserved intact. It is a slight local phenomenon. To me, theensemble of geological phenomena seems to prove, not the prevalenceof this glacial surface on which you would carry along yourboulders, but a very high temperature spreading almost to thepoles, a temperature favorable to organizations resembling thosenow living in the tropics. Your ice frightens me, and gladly as Iwould welcome you here, my dear friend, I think, perhaps, for thesake of your health, and also that you may not see this country, always so hideous, under a sheet of snow and ice (in February), youwould do better to come two months later, with the first verdure. This is suggested by a letter received yesterday by M. D'O--, whichalarmed me a little, because the state of your eyes obliged you towrite by another hand. Pray do not think of traveling before youare quite well. I close this letter, feeling sure that it does notcontain a line which is not an expression of friendship and of thehigh esteem I bear you. The magnificence of your last numbers, eight and nine, cannot be told. How admirably executed are yourMacropoma, the Ophiopris procerus, Mantell's great beast, theminute details of the Dercetis, Psammodus, . . . The skeletons. . . There is nothing like it in all that we possess upon vertebrates. Ihave also begun to study your text, so rich in well arranged facts;the monograph of the Lepidostei, the passage upon the bony rays, and, dear Agassiz, I could hardly believe my eyes, sixty-fivecontinuous pages of the third volume, without interruption! Youwill spoil the public. But, my good friend, you have alreadyinformation upon a thousand species; "claudite jam rivos!" You sayyour work can go on if you have two hundred subscribers; but if youcontinue to support two traveling draughtsmen, I predict, as apractical man, that it cannot go on. You cannot even publish whatyou have gathered in the last five years. Consider that inattempting to give a review of all the fossil fishes which nowexist in collections, you pursue a phantom which ever flies beforeyou. Such a work would not be finished in less than fifteen years, and besides, this NOW is an uncertain element. Cannot you conqueryourself so far as to finish what you have in your possession atpresent? Recall your artists. With the reputation you enjoy inEurope, whatever might essentially change your opinion on certainorganisms would willingly be sent to you. If you continue to keeptwo ambassadors in foreign lands, the means you destine for theengraving and printing will soon be absorbed. You will strugglewith domestic difficulties, and at sixty years of age (tremble atthe sight of this number!) you will be as uncertain as you areto-day, whether you possess, even in your collection of drawings, all that is to be found among amateurs. How exhaust an ocean inwhich the species are indefinitely increasing? Finish, first, whatyou have this December, 1837, and then, if the subject does notweary you, publish the supplements in 1847. You must not forgetthat these supplements will be of two kinds: 1st. Ideas whichmodify some of your old views. 2nd. New species. Only the firstkind of supplement would be really desirable. Furthermore, you mustregain your intellectual independence and not let yourself bescolded any more by M. De Humboldt. Little will it avail you shouldI vanish from the scene of this world with your fourteenth number!When I am a fossil in my turn I shall still appear to you as aghost, having under my arm the pages you have failed to interpolateand the volume of that eternal America which I owe to the public. Iclose with a touch of fun, in order that my letter may seem alittle less like preaching. A thousand affectionate remembrances. No more ice, not much of echinoderms, plenty of fish, recall ofambassadors in partibus, and great severity toward thebook-sellers, an infernal race, two or three of whom have beenkilled under me. 

A. DE HUMBOLDT. 

I sigh to think of the trouble my horrible writing will give you. 

A letter of about the same date from Von Buch shows that, howeverhe might storm at Agassiz's heterodox geology, he was in fullsympathy with his work in general. 

LEOPOLD VON BUCH TO LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

December 22, 1837. 

. . . Pray reinstate me in the good graces of my unknown benefactoramong you. By a great mistake the reports of the Society forwardedto me from Neuchatel have been sent back. As it is well known atthe post-office that I do not keep the piles of educationaljournals sent to me from France, the postage on them being much tooheavy for my means, they took it for granted that this journal, thecharges on which amounted to several crowns, was of the number. Iam very sorry. I do not even know the contents of the journal, butI suppose it contained papers of yours, full of genius and ardor. Ilike your way of looking at nature, and I think you render greatservice to science by your observations. A right spirit willreadily lead you to see that this is the true road to glory, farpreferable to the one which leads to vain analogies andspeculations, the time for which is long past. I am grieved to hearthat you are not well, and that your eyes refuse their service. M. De Humboldt tells me that you are seeking a better climate here, inthe month of February. You may find it, perhaps, thanks to ourstoves. But as we shall still have plenty of ice in the streets, your glacial opinions will not find a market at that season. Ishould like to present you with a memoir or monograph of mine, justpublished, on Spirifer and Orthis, but I will take good care to letno one pay postage on a work which, by its nature, can have but avery limited interest. . . I will await your arrival to give youthese descriptions. I am expecting the numbers of your FossilFishes, which have not yet come. Humboldt often speaks of them tome. Ah! how much I prefer you in a field which is wholly your ownthan in one where you break in upon the measured and cautioustread, introduced by Saussure in geology. You, too, will reconsiderall this, and will yet treat the views of Saussure and Escher withmore respect. Everything here turns to infusoria. Ehrenberg hasjust discovered that an apparently sandy deposit, twenty feet inthickness, under the "Luneburgerheyde, " is composed entirely ofinfusoria of a kind still living in the neighborhood of Berlin. This layer rests upon a brown deposit known to be ten feet inthickness. The latter consists, for one fifth of the depth, of pinepollen, which burns. The rest is of infusoria. Thus these animals, which the naked eye has not power to discern, have themselves thepower to build up mountain chains. . . 

CHAPTER 9. 

1837-1839: AGE 30-32. 

Invitation to Professorships at Geneva and Lausanne. Death of his Father. Establishment of Lithographic Press at Neuchatel. Researches upon Structure of Mollusks. Internal Casts of Shells. Glacial Explorations. Views of Buckland. Relations with Arnold Guyot. Their Work together in the Alps. Letter to Sir Philip Egerton concerning Glacial Work. Summer of 1839. Publication of "Etudes sur les Glaciers. "

Although Agassiz's daring treatment of the glacial phenomena hadexcited much opposition and angry comment, it had also made apowerful impression by its eloquence and originality. To this maybe partly due the fact that about this time he was strongly urgedfrom various quarters to leave Neuchatel for some larger field. Oneof the most seductive of these invitations, owing to theaffectionate spirit in which it was offered, came through Monsieurde la Rive, in Geneva. 

M. AUGUSTE DE LA RIVE TO LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

GENEVA, May 12, 1836. 

. . . I have not yet received your address. I hope you will send itto me without delay, for I am anxious to bring it before ourreaders. I hope also that you will not forget what you havepromised me for the "Bibliotheque Universelle. " I am exceedinglyanxious to have your cooperation; the more so that it willreinforce that of several distinguished savants whose assistance Ihave recently secured. 

If I weary you with a second letter, however, it is not only toremind you of your promise about the "Bibliotheque Universelle, "but for another object still more important and urgent. The matterstands thus. Our academic courses have just opened under favorableauspices. The number of students is much increased, and, especially, we have a good many from Germany and England. Thiscircumstance makes us feel more strongly the importance ofcompleting our organization, and of doing this wisely and quickly. I will not play the diplomat with you, but will frankly say, without circumlocution, that you seem to me the one essential, theone indispensable man. After having talked with some influentialpersons here, I feel sure that if you say to me, "I will come, " Ican obtain for you the following conditions: 1st. A regular salaryof three thousand francs, beside the student fees, which, in viewof the character of your instruction, your reputation, and thenovelty of your course, I place too low at a thousand francs; ofthis I am convinced. 2nd. The vacant professorship is one ofgeology and mineralogy, but should you wish it De la Planche willcontinue to teach the mineralogy, and you will replace it bypaleontology, or any other subject which may suit you. . . Add tothis resource that of a popular course for the world outside, ladies and others, which you might give in the winter, as atNeuchatel. The custom here is to pay fifty francs for the course offrom twenty-five to thirty lectures. You will easily see that forsuch a course you would have at least as large an audience here asat Neuchatel. This is the more likely because there is a demand forthese courses, Pictet being dead, and M. Rossi and M. De Castellahaving ceased to give them. No one has come forward as their heir, fine as the inheritance is; some are too busy, others have not thekind of talent needed, and none have attempted to replace thesegentlemen in this especial line, one in which you excel, both byyour gifts and your fortunate choice of a subject more in voguejust now than any other. Come then, to work in this rich veinbefore others present themselves for the same purpose. Finally, since I must make up your budget, the "Bibliotheque Universelle, "which pays fifty francs a sheet, would be always open to you; thereyou could bring the fruits of your productive leisure. Certainly itwould be easy for you to make in this way an additional thousandfrancs. 

Here, then, is a statement, precise and full, of the condition ofthings, and of what you may hope to find here. The moment ispropitious; there is a movement among us just now in favor of thesciences, and this winter the plan of a large building for ourmuseum and library will be presented to our common council. Thework should begin next summer; you well know how much we shouldvalue your ideas and your advice on this subject. There may also bequestion of a director for the museum, and of an apartment for himin the new edifice; you will not doubt to whom such a place wouldbe offered. But let us not draw upon the future; let us limitourselves to the present, and see whether what I propose suits you. . . Come! let yourself be persuaded. Sacrifice the capital to aprovincial town. At Berlin, no doubt, you would be happy andhonored; at Geneva, you would be the happiest, the most honored. Look at--, who shone as a star of the first magnitude at Geneva, and who is but a star of second or third rank in Paris. This, to besure, would not be your case; nevertheless, I am satisfied that atGeneva, where you would be a second de Saussure, your positionwould be still more brilliant. I know that these motives ofscientific self-love have little weight with you; nevertheless, wishing to omit nothing, I give them for what they are worth. Butmy hope rests far more on the arguments I have first presented;they come from the heart, and with you the heart responds asreadily as the genius. But enough! I will not fatigue you withfarther considerations. I think I have given you all the pointsnecessary for your decision. Be so kind as to let me know as soonas possible what you intend to do. Have the kindness also not tospeak of the contents of this letter, and remember that it is notthe Rector of the Academy of Geneva, but the Professor Auguste dela Rive, who writes in his own private person. Promptitude andsilence, then, are the two recommendations which I make to youwhile we await the Yes we so greatly desire. . . 

More tempting still must have been the official invitation receiveda few months later to a professorship at Lausanne, strengthened asit was by the affectionate entreaties of relations and friends, urging him for the sake of family ties and patriotism to return tothe canton where he had passed his earlier years. But he had castin his lot with the Neuchatelois and was proof against allarguments. He remained faithful to the post he had chosen until heleft it, temporarily as he then believed, to come to America. Thecitizens of his adopted town expressed their appreciation of hisloyalty to them in a warm letter of thanks, begging, at the sametime, his acceptance of the sum of six thousand francs, payable byinstallments during three years. 

The summer of 1837 was a sad one to Agassiz and to his wholefamily; his father died at Concise, carried off by a fever whilestill a comparatively young man. The pretty parsonage, to whichthey were so much attached, passed into other hands, andthenceforward the home of Madame Agassiz was with her children, among whom she divided her time. 

In 1838 Agassiz founded a lithographic printing establishment inNeuchatel, which was carried on for many years under his direction. Thus far his plates had been lithographed in Munich. Theirexecution at such a distance involved constant annoyance, andsometimes great waste of time and money, in sending the proofs toand fro for correction. The scheme of establishing a lithographicpress, to be in a great degree at his charge, was certainly animprudent one for a poor man; but Agassiz hoped not only tofacilitate his own publications by this means, but also to raisethe standard of execution in works of a purely scientificcharacter. Supported partly by his own exertions, partly by thegenerosity of others, the establishment was almost exclusivelydependent upon him for its unceasing activity. He was fortunate insecuring for its head M. Hercule Nicolet, a very able lithographicartist, who had had much experience in engraving objects of naturalhistory, and was specially versed in the recently invented art ofchromatic lithography. 

Agassiz was now driving all his steeds abreast. Beside his dutiesas professor, he was printing at the same time his "Fossil Fishes, "his "Fresh-Water Fishes, " and his investigations on fossilEchinoderms and Mollusks, --the illustrations for all these variousworks being under his daily supervision. The execution of theseplates, under M. Nicolet's care, was admirable for the period. Professor Arnold Guyot, in his memoir of Agassiz, says of theplates for the "Fresh-Water Fishes": "We wonder at their beauty, and at their perfection of color and outline, when we remember thatthey were almost the first essays of the newly-invented art oflithochromy, produced at a time when France and Belgium wereshowering rewards on very inferior work of the kind, as theforemost specimens of progress in the art. "

All this work could hardly be carried on single handed. In 1837 M. Edouard Desor joined Agassiz in Neuchatel, and became for manyyears his intimate associate in scientific labors. A year or twolater M. Charles Vogt also united himself to the band ofinvestigators and artists who had clustered about Agassiz as theircentral force. M. Ernest Favre says of this period of his life: "Hedisplayed during these years an incredible energy, of which thehistory of science offers, perhaps, no other example. "

Among his most important zoological researches at this time werethose upon mollusks. His method of studying this class was toooriginal and too characteristic to be passed by without notice. Thescience of conchology had heretofore been based almost wholly uponthe study of the empty shells. To Agassiz this seemed superficial. Longing to know more of the relation between the animal and itsouter covering, he bethought himself that the inner moulding of theshell would give at least the form of its old inhabitant. For thepractical work he engaged an admirable moulder, M. Stahl, whocontinued to be one of his staff at the lithographic establishmentuntil he became permanently employed at the Jardin des Plantes. With his help and that of M. Henri Ladame, professor of physics andchemistry at Neuchatel, who prepared the delicate metal alloys inwhich the first mould was taken, Agassiz obtained casts in whichthe form of the animals belonging to the shells was perfectlyreproduced. This method has since passed into universal use. By itsaid he obtained a new means of ascertaining the relations betweenfossil and living mollusks. It was of vast service to him inpreparing his "Etudes critiques sur les Mollusques fossiles, "--aquarto volume with nearly one hundred plates. 

The following letter to Sir Philip Egerton gives some account ofhis undertakings at this time, and of the difficulties entailedupon him by their number and variety. 

LOUIS AGASSIZ TO SIR PHILIP EGERTON. 

NEUCHATEL, August 10, 1838. 

. . . These last months have been a time of trial to me, and I havebeen forced to give up my correspondence completely in order tomeet the ever-increasing demands of my work. You know how difficultit is to find a quiet moment and an easy mind for writing, when oneis pursued by printing or lithographic proofs, and forced besidesto prepare unceasing occupation for numerous employees. Add to thisthe close research required by the work of editing, and you surelywill find an excuse for my delay. I think I have already writtenyou that in order to have everything under my own eye, I hadfounded a lithographic establishment at Neuchatel in the hope ofavoiding in future the procrastinations to which my proofs wereliable when the work was done at Munich. . . I hope that my newpublications will be sufficiently well received to justify me insupporting an establishment unique of its kind, which I havefounded solely in the interest of science and at the risk of mypeace and my health. If I give you all these details, it is simplyto explain my silence, which was caused not by pure negligence, butby the demands of an undertaking in the success of which my veryexistence is involved. . . This week I shall forward to theSecretary of the British Association for the Advancement of Scienceall that I have been able to do thus far, being unable to bring itmyself, as I had hoped. You would oblige me greatly if you wouldgive a look at these different works, which may, I hope, havevarious claims on your interest. First, there is the tenth numberof the "Fossil Fishes, " though the whole supply of publisher'scopies will only be sent a few weeks later. Then there are theseven first plates of my sea-urchins, engraved with much care andwith many details. A third series of plates relates to criticalstudies on fossil mollusks, little or erroneously known, and ontheir internal casts. This is a quite novel side of the study ofshells, and will throw light on the organization of animals knownhitherto only by the shell. I have made a plaster collection ofthem for the Geological Society. They have been packed some time, but my late journey to Paris has prevented me from forwarding themtill now. As soon as I have a moment, I shall make out thecatalogue and send it on. When you go to London, do not fail toexamine them; the result is curious enough. Finally, the plates forthe first number of my "Fresh-Water Fishes" are in great partfinished, and also included in my package for Newcastle. . . Theplates are executed by a new process, and printed in various tintson different stones, resulting in a remarkable uniformity ofcoloring in all the impressions. . . 

Such are the new credentials with which I present myself, as Ibring my thanks for the honor paid to me by my nomination for thevacancy in the Royal Society of London. If unbounded devotion tothe interests of science constituted a sufficient title to such adistinction, I should be the less surprised at the announcementcontained in your last letter. The action of the Royal Society, soflattering to the candidate of your choice, has satisfied a desirewhich I should hardly have dared to form for many a year, --that ofbecoming a member of a body so illustrious as the Royal Society ofLondon. . . 

Each time I write I wish I could close with the hope of seeing yousoon; but I must work incessantly; that is my lot, and thehappiness I find in it gives a charm to my occupations howevernumerous they may be. . . 

While Agassiz's various zoological works were thus pressed withunceasing activity, the glaciers and their attendant phenomena, which had so captivated his imagination, were ever present to histhought. In August of the year 1838, a year after he had announcedat the meeting of the Helvetic Society his comprehensive theoryrespecting the action of ice over the whole northern hemisphere, hemade two important excursions in the Alps. The first was to thevalley of Hassli, the second to the glaciers of Mont Blanc. In bothhe was accompanied by his scientific collaborator, M. Desor, whoseintrepidity and ardor hardly fell short of his own; by Mr. Dinkelas artist, and by one or two students and friends. These excursionswere a kind of prelude to his more prolonged sojourns on the Alps, and to the series of observations carried on by him and hiscompanions, which attracted so much attention in later years. Butthough Agassiz carried with him, on these first explorations, onlythe simplest means of investigation and experiment, they were noamateur excursions. On these first Alpine journeys he had in hismind the sketch he meant to fill out. The significance of thephenomena was already clear to him. What he sought was theconnection. Following the same comparative method, he intended totrack the footsteps of the ice as he had gathered and put togetherthe fragments of his fossil fishes, till the scattered facts shouldfall into their natural order once more and tell their story frombeginning to end. 

In his explorations of 1838 he found everywhere the same phenomena;the grooved and polished and graven surfaces and the rounded andmodeled rocks, often lying far above and beyond the present limitsof the glaciers; the old moraines, long deserted by the ice, butdefining its ancient frontiers; the erratic blocks, transported farfrom their place of origin and disposed in an order and positionunexplained by the agency of water. 

These excursions, though not without their dangers and fatigues, were full of charm for men who, however serious their aims, werestill young enough to enter like boys into the spirit of adventure. Agassiz himself was but thirty-one; an ardent pedestrian, hedelighted in feats of walking and climbing. His friend Dinkelrelates that one day, while pausing at Grindelwald for refreshment, they met an elderly traveler who asked him, after listening awhileto their gay talk, in which appeals were constantly made to"Agassiz, " if that was perhaps the son of the celebrated professorof Neuchatel. The answer amazed him; he could hardly believe thatthe young man before him was the naturalist of European reputation. In connection with this journey occurs the first attempt at anEnglish letter found among Agassiz's papers. It is addressed toBuckland, and contains this passage: "Since I saw the glaciers I amquite of a snowy humor, and will have the whole surface of theearth covered with ice, and the whole prior creation dead by cold. In fact, I am quite satisfied that ice must be taken [included] inevery complete explanation of the last changes which occurred atthe surface of Europe. " Considered in connection with theirsubsequent work together in the ancient ice-beds and moraines ofEngland, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales, it is curious to findBuckland answering: "I am sorry that I cannot entirely adopt thenew theory you advocate to explain transported blocks by moraines;for supposing it adequate to explain the phenomena of Switzerland, it would not apply to the granite blocks and transported gravel ofEngland, which I can only explain by referring to currents ofwater. " During the same summer Mrs. Buckland writes fromInterlaken, in the course of a journey in Switzerland with herhusband. . . "We have made a good tour of the Oberland and have seenglaciers, etc. , but Dr. Buckland is as far as ever from agreeingwith you. " We shall see hereafter how completely he became aconvert to Agassiz's glacial theory in its widest acceptation. 

One friend, scarcely mentioned thus far in this biography, was yet, from the beginning, the close associate of Agassiz's glacier work. Arnold Guyot and he had been friends from boyhood. Their universitylife separated them for a time, Guyot being at Berlin while Agassizwas at Munich, and they became colleagues at Neuchatel only afterAgassiz had been for some years established there. From that timeforward there was hardly any break in their intercourse; they cameto America at about the same time, and finally settled asprofessors, the one at Harvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and the other at the College of New Jersey, inPrinceton. They shared all their scientific interests; and whenthey were both old men, Guyot brought to Agassiz's finalundertaking, the establishment of a summer school at Penikese, acooperation as active and affectionate as that he had given in hisyouth to his friend's scheme for establishing a permanentscientific summer station in the high Alps. 

In a short visit made by Agassiz to Paris in the spring of 1838 heunfolded his whole plan to Guyot, then residing there, andpersuaded him to undertake a certain part of the investigation. During this very summer of 1838, therefore, while Agassiz wastracing the ancient limits of the ice in the Bernese Oberland andthe Haut Valais, and later, in the valley of Chamounix, Guyot wasstudying the structure and movement of the ice during a six weeks'tour in the central Alps. At the conclusion of their respectivejourneys they met to compare notes, at the session of theGeological Society of France, at Porrentruy, where Agassiz made areport upon the general results of his summer's work; while Guyotread a paper, the contents of which have never been fullypublished, upon the movement of glaciers and upon their internalfeatures, including the laminated structure of the ice, theso-called blue bands, deep down in the mass of the glacier. * (* See"Memoir of Louis Agassiz" by Arnold Guyot, written for the UnitedStates National Academy of Sciences, page 38. ) In the succeedingyears of their glacial researches together, Guyot took for hisshare the more special geological problems, the distribution oferratic boulders and of the glacial drift, as connected with theancient extension of the glaciers. This led him away from thecentral station of observation to remoter valleys on the northernand southern slopes of the Alps, where he followed the descent ofthe glacial phenomena to the plains of central Europe on the oneside and to those of northern Italy on the other. We thereforeseldom hear of him with the band of workers who finally settled onthe glacier of the Aar, because his share of the undertaking becamea more isolated one. It was nevertheless an integral part of theoriginal scheme, which was carried on connectedly to the end, theresults of the work in the different departments being constantlyreported and compared. So much was this the case, that theintention of Agassiz had been to embody the whole in a publication, the first part of which should contain the glacial system ofAgassiz; the second the Alpine erratics, by Guyot; while the thirdand final portion, by E. Desor, should treat of the erraticphenomena outside of Switzerland. The first volume alone wascompleted. Unlooked for circumstances made the continuation of thework impossible, and the five thousand specimens of the erraticrocks of Switzerland collected by Professor Guyot, in preparationfor his part of the publication, are now deposited in the Collegeof New Jersey, at Princeton. 

In the following summer of 1839 Agassiz took the chain of MonteRosa and Matterhorn as the field of a larger and more systematicobservation. On this occasion, the usual party consisting ofAgassiz, Desor, M. Bettanier, an artist, and two or three otherfriends, was joined by the geologist Studer. Up to this time he hadbeen a powerful opponent of Agassiz's views, and his conversion tothe glacial theory during this excursion was looked upon by themall as a victory greater than any gained over the regions of iceand snow. Some account of this journey occurs in the followingletter. 

LOUIS AGASSIZ TO SIR PHILIP EGERTON. 

NEUCHATEL, September 10, 1839. 

. . . Under these circumstances, I thought I could not do betterthan to pass some weeks in the solitude of the high Alps; I livedabout a fortnight in the region of the glaciers, ascending some newfield of ice every day, and trying to scale the sides of ourhighest peaks. I thus examined in succession all the glaciersdescending from the majestic summits of Monte Rosa and theMatterhorn, whose numerous crests form a most giganticamphitheatre, which lifts itself above the everlasting snow. Afterward I visited the sea of ice which, under the name of theglacier of Aletsch, flows from the Jungfrau, the Monch, and theEiger toward Brieg; thence I went to the glacier of the Rhone, andfrom there, establishing my headquarters at the Hospice of theGrimsel, I followed the glacier of the Aar to the foot of theFinsteraarhorn. There I ascertained the most important fact that Inow know concerning the advance of glaciers, namely, that the cabinconstructed by Hugi in 1827, at the foot of the Abschwung, is nowfour thousand feet lower down. Slight as is the inclination of theglacier, this cabin has been carried on by the ice with astonishingrapidity, and still more important is it that this rapidity hasbeen on the increase; for in 1830 the cabin was only some hundredfeet from the rock, in 1836 it had already passed over a distancefrom [word torn away] of two thousand feet, and in the last threeyears it has again doubled that distance. Not only have I confirmedmy views upon glaciers and their attendant phenomena, on this newground, but I have completed my examination of a number of details, and have had besides the satisfaction of convincing one of my mostsevere opponents of the exactness of my observations, namely, M. Studer, who accompanied me on a part of these excursions. . . 

The winter of 1840 was fully occupied by the preparation for thepublication of the "Etudes sur les Glaciers, " which appeared beforethe year was out, accompanied by an atlas of thirty-two plates. Thevolume of text consisted of an historical resume of all that hadpreviously been done in the study of glaciers, followed by anaccount of the observations of Agassiz and his companions duringthe last three or four years upon the glaciers of the Alps. Theirstructure, external aspect, needles, tables, perched blocks, gravelcones, rifts, and crevasses, as well as their movements, mode offormation, and internal temperature, were treated in succession. But the most interesting chapters, from the author's own point ofview, and those which were most novel for his readers, were theconcluding ones upon the ancient extension of the Swiss glaciers, and upon the former existence of an immense, unbroken sheet of ice, which had once covered the whole northern hemisphere. No one beforehad drawn such vast conclusions from the local phenomena of theAlpine valleys. "The surface of Europe, " says Agassiz, "adornedbefore by a tropical vegetation and inhabited by troops of largeelephants, enormous hippopotami, and gigantic carnivora, wassuddenly buried under a vast mantle of ice, covering alike plains, lakes, seas and plateaus. Upon the life and movement of a powerfulcreation fell the silence of death. Springs paused, rivers ceasedto flow, the rays of the sun, rising upon this frozen shore (if, indeed, it was reached by them), were met only by the breath of thewinter from the north and the thunders of the crevasses as theyopened across the surface of this icy sea. "* (* "Etudes sur lesGlaciers" Chapter 8 page 35. ) The author goes on to state that onthe breaking up of this universal shroud the ice must have lingeredlongest in mountainous strongholds, and that all these fastnessesof retreat became, as the Alps are now, centres of distribution forthe broken debris and rocky fragments which are found scatteredwith a kind of regularity along certain lines, and over given areasin northern and central Europe. How he followed out this idea inhis subsequent investigations will be seen hereafter. 

CHAPTER 10. 

1840-1842: AGE 33-35. 

Summer Station on the Glacier of the Aar. Hotel des Neuchatelois. Members of the Party. Work on the Glacier. Ascent of the Strahleck and the Siedelhorn. Visit to England. Search for Glacial Remains in Great Britain. Roads of Glen Roy. Views of English Naturalists concerning Agassiz's Glacial Theory. Letter from Humboldt. Winter Visit to Glacier. Summer of 1841 on the Glacier. Descent into the Glacier. Ascent of the Jungfrau. 

In the summer of 1840 Agassiz made his first permanent station onthe Alps. Hitherto the external phenomena, the relation of the iceto its surroundings, and its influence upon them, had been thechief study. Now the glacier itself was to be the main subject ofinvestigation, and he took with him a variety of instruments fortesting temperatures: barometers, thermometers, hygrometers, andpsychometers; beside a boring apparatus, by means of whichself-registering thermometers might be lowered into the heart ofthe glacier. To these were added microscopes for the study of suchinsects and plants as might be found in these ice-bound regions. The Hospice of the Grimsel was selected as his base of supplies, and as guides Jacob Leuthold and Johann Wahren were chosen. Both ofthese had accompanied Hugi in his ascension of the Finsteraarhornin 1828, and both were therefore thoroughly familiar with all thedangers of Alpine climbing. The lower Aar glacier was to be thescene of their continuous work, and the centre from which theirascents of the neighboring summits would be made. Here, on thegreat median moraine, stood a huge boulder of micaceous schist. Itsupper surface projected so as to form a roof, and by closing it inon one side with a stone wall, leveling the floor by a judiciousarrangement of flat slabs, and rigging a blanket in front to serveas a curtain across the entrance, the whole was presentlytransformed into a rude hut, where six persons could findsleeping-room. A recess, sheltered by the rock outside, served askitchen and dining-room; while an empty space under another largeboulder was utilized as a cellar for the keeping of provisions. This was the abode so well known afterward as the Hotel desNeuchatelois. Its first occupants were Louis Agassiz, EdouardDesor, Charles Vogt, Francois de Pourtales, Celestin Nicolet, andHenri Coulon. It afforded, perhaps, as good a shelter as they couldhave found in the old cabin of Hugi, where they had hoped to maketheir temporary home. In this they were disappointed, for the cabinhad crumbled on its last glacial journey. The wreck was lying twohundred feet below the spot where they had seen the walls stillstanding the year before. 

The work was at once distributed among the different members of theparty, --Agassiz himself, assisted by his young friend and favoritepupil, Francois de Pourtales, retaining for his own share themeteorological observations, and especially those upon the internaltemperature of the glaciers. * (* See "Tables of Temperature, Measurements" etc. , in Agassiz's "Systeme Glaciaire". These resultsare also recorded in a volume entitled "Sejours dans les Glaciers", by Edouard Desor, a collection of very bright and entertainingarticles upon the excursions and sojourns made in the Alps, duringsuccessive summers, by Agassiz and his scientific staff. ) To M. Vogt fell the microscopic study of the red snow and the organiclife contained in it; to M. Nicolet, the flora of the glaciers andthe surrounding rocks; to M. Desor, the glacial phenomena proper, including those of the moraines. He had the companionship andassistance of M. Henri Coulon in the long and laborious excursionsrequired for this part of the work. 

This is not the place for scientific details. For the results ofAgassiz's researches on the Alpine glaciers, to which he devotedmuch of his time and energy during ten years, from 1836 to 1846, the reader is referred to his two larger works on this subject, the"Etudes sur les Glaciers, " and the "Systeme Glaciaire. " Of the workaccomplished by him and his companions during these years thisslight summary is given by his friend Guyot. * (* See BiographicalSketch, published by Professor A. Guyot, under the auspices of theUnited States National Academy. ) "The position of eighteen of themost prominent rocks on the glacier was determined by carefultriangulation by a skillful engineer, and measured year after yearto establish the rate of motion of every part. The differences inthe rate of motion in the upper and lower part of the glacier, aswell as in different seasons of the year, was ascertained; theamount of the annual melting was computed, and all the phenomenaconnected with it studied. All the surrounding peaks, --theJungfrau, the Schreckhorn, the Finsteraarhorn, most of them untilthen reputed unscalable, --were ascended, and the limit of glacialaction discovered; in short all the physical laws of the glacierwere brought to light. "

We now return to the personal narrative. After a number of daysspent in the study of the local phenomena, the band of workersturned their attention to the second part of their programme, namely, the ascent of the Strahleck, by crossing which anddescending on the other side, they intended to reach Grindelwald. One morning, then, toward the end of August, their guides, according to agreement, aroused them at three o'clock, --an hourearlier than their usual roll-call. The first glance outside spreada general chill of disappointment over the party, for they foundthemselves beleaguered by a wall of fog on every side. ButLeuthold, as he lighted the fire and prepared breakfast, bade themnot despair, --the sun might make all right. In a few moments, oneby one, the summits of the Schreckhorn, the Finsteraarhorn, theOberaarhorn, the Altmaner, the Scheuchzerhorn, lighted by the firstrays of the sun, came out like islands above the ocean of mist, which softly broke away and vanished with the advancing light. Inabout three hours they reached the base of the Strahleck. Their twoguides, Leuthold and Wahren, had engaged three additional men forthis excursion, so that they now had five guides, none of whom weresuperfluous, since they carried with them various barometricinstruments which required careful handling. They began the ascentin single file, but the slopes soon became so steep and the lightsnow (in which they floundered to the knees at every step) so deep, that the guides resorted to the usual method in such cases of tyingthem all together. The two head guides alone, Leuthold and Wahren, remained detached, clearing the snow in front of them, cuttingsteps in the ice, and giving warning, by cry and gesture, of anyhidden danger in the path. At nine o'clock, after an hour'sclimbing, they stepped upon the small plateau, evenly covered withunbroken snow, formed by the summit of the Strahleck. 

The day had proved magnificent. With a clear sky above them, theylooked down upon the valley of Grindelwald at their feet, whilearound and below them gathered the Scheideck and the Faulhorn, thepyramidal outline of the Niesen, and the chain of the Stockhorn. Infront lay the great masses of the Eiger and the Monch, while to thesouthwest the Jungfrau rose above the long chain of theViescherhorner. The first pause of silent wonder and delight, whilethey released themselves from their cords and arranged theirinstruments, seems to have been succeeded by an outburst ofspirits; for in the journal of the youngest of the party, Francoisde Pourtales, then a lad of seventeen, we read: "The guides beganto wrestle and we to dance, when suddenly we saw a female chamois, followed by her young, ascending a neighboring slope, and presentlyfour or five more stretched their necks over a rock, as if to seewhat was going on. Breathless the wrestlers and the dancers paused, fearing to disturb by the slightest movement creatures so shy ofhuman approach. They drew nearer until within easy gunshotdistance, and then galloping along the opposite ridge disappearedover the summit. "

The party passed more than an hour on the top of the Strahleck, making observations and taking measurements. Then having rested andbroken their fast with such provisions as they had brought, theyprepared for a descent, which proved the more rapid, since much ofit was a long slide. Tied together once more, they slid, whereverthey found it possible to exchange the painful and difficultwalking for this simpler process. "Once below these slopes ofsnow, " says the journal of young de Pourtales again, "rocks almostvertical, or narrow ledges covered with grass, served us as a roadand brought us to the glacier of the Grindelwald. To reach theglacier itself we traversed a crevasse of great depth, and sometwenty feet wide; on a bridge of ice, one or two feet in width, andbroken toward the end, where we were obliged to spring across. Onceon the glacier the rest was nothing. The race was to the fastest, and we were soon on the path of the tourists. " Reaching the villageof Grindelwald at three o'clock in the afternoon, they found itdifficult to persuade the people at the inn that they had left theglacier of the Aar that morning. From Grindelwald they returned bythe Scheideck to the Grimsel, visiting on their way the upperglacier of Grindelwald, the glacier of Schwartzwald, and that ofRosenlaui, in order to see how far these had advanced since theirlast visit to them. After a short rest at the Hospice of theGrimsel, Agassiz returned with two or three of his companions totheir hut on the Aar glacier for the purpose of driving stakes intothe holes previously bored in the ice. He hoped by means of thesestakes to learn the following year what had been the rate ofmovement of the glacier. The summer's work closed with the ascentof the Siedelhorn. In all these ascents, the utmost pains was takento ascertain how far the action of the ice might be traced uponthese mountain peaks and the limits determined at which thepolished surfaces ceased, giving place to the rough, angular rockwhich had never been modeled by the ice. 

Agassiz had hardly returned from the Alps when he started forEngland. He had long believed that the Highlands of Scotland, thehilly Lake Country of England, and the mountains of Wales andIreland, would present the same phenomena as the valleys of theAlps. Dr. Buckland had offered to be his guide in this search afterglacier tracks, as he had formerly been in the hunt after fossilfishes in Great Britain. When, therefore, the meeting of theBritish Association at Glasgow, at which they were both present, was over, they started together for the Highlands. In a lecturedelivered by Agassiz, at his summer school at Penikese, a fewmonths before his death, he recurred to this journey with theenthusiasm of a young man. Recalling the scientific isolation inwhich he then stood, opposed as he was to all the prominentgeologists of the day, he said: "Among the older naturalists, onlyone stood by me. Dr. Buckland, Dean of Westminster, who had come toSwitzerland at my urgent request for the express purpose of seeingmy evidence, and who had been fully convinced of the ancientextension of ice there, consented to accompany me on my glacierhunt in Great Britain. We went first to the Highlands of Scotland, and it is one of the delightful recollections of my life that as weapproached the castle of the Duke of Argyll, standing in a valleynot unlike some of the Swiss valleys, I said to Buckland: 'Here weshall find our first traces of glaciers;' and, as the stage enteredthe valley, we actually drove over an ancient terminal moraine, which spanned the opening of the valley. " In short, Agassiz found, as he had anticipated, that in the mountains of Scotland, Wales, and the north of England, the valleys were in many instancestraversed by terminal moraines and bordered by lateral ones, as inSwitzerland. Nor were any of the accompanying phenomena wanting. The characteristic traces left by the ice, as well known to him nowas the track of the game to the hunter; the peculiar lines, furrows, and grooves; the polished surfaces, the roches moutonnees;the rocks, whether hard or soft, cut to one level, as by a rigidinstrument; the unstratified drift and the distribution of loosematerial in relation to the ancient glacier beds, --all agreed withwhat he already knew of glacial action. He visited the famous"roads of Glen Roy" in the Grampian Hills, where so many geologistshad broken a lance in defense of their theories of subsidence andupheaval, of ancient ocean-levels and sea-beaches, formed at a timewhen they believed Glen Roy and the adjoining valleys to have beenso many fiords and estuaries. To Agassiz, these parallel terracesexplained themselves as the shores of a glacial lake, held back inits bed for a time by neighboring glaciers descending from moresheltered valleys. The terraces marked the successively lowerlevels at which the water stood, as these barriers yielded, andallowed its gradual escape. * (* For details, see a paper by Agassizon "The Glacial Theory and its Recent Progress" in the "EdinburghNew Philosophical Journal" October 1842, accompanied by a map ofthe Glen Roy region, and also an article entitled "Parallel Roadsof Glen Roy, in Scotland, " in the second volume of Agassiz's"Geological Sketches". ) The glacial action in the wholeneighborhood was such as to leave no doubt in the mind of Agassizthat Glen Roy and the adjoining glens, or valleys, had been thedrainage-bed for the many glaciers formerly occupying the westernranges of the Grampian Hills. He returned from his tour satisfiedthat the mountainous districts of Great Britain had all beencentres of glacial distribution, and that the drift material andthe erratic boulders, scattered over the whole country, were due toexactly the same causes as the like phenomena in Switzerland. Onthe 4th of November, 1840, he read a paper before the GeologicalSociety of London, giving a summary of the scientific results oftheir excursion, followed by one from Dr. Buckland, who had becomean ardent convert to his views. Apropos of this meeting, Dr. Buckland writes in advance as follows:--

TAYMOUTH CASTLE, October 15, 1840. 

. . . Lyell has adopted your theory in toto!!! On my showing him abeautiful cluster of moraines, within two miles of his father'shouse, he instantly accepted it, as solving a host of difficultiesthat have all his life embarrassed him. And not these only, butsimilar moraines and detritus of moraines, that cover half of theadjoining counties are explicable on your theory, and he hasconsented to my proposal that he should immediately lay them alldown on a map of the county and describe them in a paper to be readthe day after yours at the Geological Society. I propose to give inmy adhesion by reading, the same day with yours, as a sequel toyour paper, a list of localities where I have observed similarglacial detritus in Scotland, since I left you, and in variousparts of England. 

There are great reefs of gravel in the limestone valleys of thecentral bog district of Ireland. They have a distinct name, which Iforget. No doubt they are moraines; if you have not, ere you getthis, seen one of them, pray do so. * (* Agassiz was then staying atFlorence Court, the seat of the Earl of Enniskillen, in CountyFermanagh, Ireland. While there he had an opportunity of studyingmost interesting glacial phenomena. ) But it will not be worthwhile to go out of your way to see more than one; all the rest mustfollow as a corollary. I trust you will not fail to be at Edinboro'on the 20th, and at Sir W. Trevelyan's on the 24th. . . 

A letter of later date in the same month shows that Agassiz felthis views to be slowly gaining ground among his English friends. 

LOUIS AGASSIZ TO SIR PHILIP EGERTON. 

LONDON, November 24, 1840. 

. . . Our meeting on Wednesday passed off very well; none of myfacts were disturbed, though Whewell and Murchison attempted anopposition; but as their objections were far-fetched, they did notproduce much effect. I was, however, delighted to have someappearance of serious opposition, because it gave me a chance toinsist upon the exactness of my observations, and upon the want ofsolidity in the objections brought against them. Dr. Buckland wastruly eloquent. He has now full possession of this subject; is, indeed, completely master of it. 

I am happy to tell you that everything is definitely arranged withLord Francis, * (* Apropos of the sale of his original drawings offossil fishes to Lord Francis Egerton. ) and that I now feel withinmyself a courage which doubles my strength. I have just written tothank him. To-morrow I shall devote to the fossils sent me by LordEnniskillen, a list of which I will forward to you. . . 

We append here, a little out of the regular course, a letter fromHumboldt, which shows that he too was beginning to look moreleniently upon Agassiz's glacial conclusions. 

HUMBOLDT TO LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

BERLIN, August 15, 1840. 

I am the most guilty of mortals, my dear friend. There are notthree persons in the world whose remembrance and affection I valuemore than yours, or for whom I have a warmer love and admiration, and yet I allow half the year to pass without giving you a sign oflife, without any expression of my warm gratitude for themagnificent gifts I owe to you. * (* Probably the plates of the"Fresh-Water Fishes" and other illustrated publications. )

I am a little like my republican friend who no longer answers anyletters because he does not know where to begin. I receive on anaverage fifteen hundred letters a year. I never dictate. I holdthat resort in horror. How dictate a letter to a scholar for whomone has a real regard? I allow myself to be drawn into answeringthe persons I know least, whose wrath is the most menacing. Mynearer friends (and none are more dear to me than yourself) sufferfrom my silence. I count with reason upon their indulgence. Thetone of your excellent letters shows that I am right. You spoil me. Your letters continue to be always warm and affectionate. I receivefew like them. Since two thirds of the letters addressed to me(partly copies of letters written to the king or the ministers)remain unanswered, I am blamed, charged with being a parvenucourtier, an apostate from science. This bitterness of individualclaims does not diminish my ardent desire to be useful. I actoftener than I answer. I know that I like to do good, and thisconsciousness gives me tranquillity in spite of my over burdenedlife. You are happy, my dear Agassiz, in the more simple and yettruly proud position which you have created for yourself. You oughtto take satisfaction in it as the father of a family, as anillustrious savant, as the originator and source of so many newideas, of so many great and noble conceptions. 

Your admirable work on the fossil fishes draws to a close. The lastnumber, so rich in discoveries, and the prospectus, explaining thetrue state of this vast publication, have soothed all irritationregarding it. It is because I am so attached to you that I rejoicein the calmer atmosphere you have thus established about you. Theapproaching completion of the fossil fishes delivers me also fromthe fear that a too great ardor might cause you irreparable losses. You have shown not only what a talent like yours can accomplish, but also how a noble courage can triumph over seeminglyinsurmountable obstacles. 

In what words shall I tell you how greatly our admiration isincreased by this new work of yours on the Fresh-Water Fishes?Nothing has appeared more admirable, more perfect in drawing andcolor. This chromatic lithography resembles nothing we have hadthus far. What taste has directed the publication! Then the shortdescriptions accompanying each plate add singularly to the charmand the enjoyment of this kind of study. Accept my warm thanks, mydear friend. I not only delivered your letter and the copy with itto the king, but I added a short note on the merit of such anundertaking. The counselor of the Royal Cabinet writes meofficially that the king has ordered the same number of copies ofthe Fresh-Water Fishes as of the Fossil Fishes; that is to say, tencopies. M. De Werther has already received the order. This is, tobe sure, but a slight help; still, it is all that I have been ableto obtain, and these few copies, with the king's name assubscriber, will always be useful to you. 

I cannot close this letter without asking your pardon for someexpressions, too sharp, perhaps, in my former letters, about yourvast geological conceptions. The very exaggeration of myexpressions must have shown you how little weight I attached to myobjections. . . My desire is always to listen and to learn. Taughtfrom my youth to believe that the organization of past times wassomewhat tropical in character, and startled therefore at theseglacial interruptions, I cried "Heresy!" at first. But should wenot always listen to a friendly voice like yours? I am interestedin whatever is printed on these topics; so, if you have publishedanything at all complete lately on the ensemble of your geologicalideas, have the great kindness to send it to me through abook-seller. . . 

Shall I tell you anything of my own poor and superannuated works?The sixth volume is wanting to my "Geography of the FifteenthCentury" (Examen Critique). It will appear this summer. I am alsoprinting the second volume of a new work to be entitled "CentralAsia. " It is not a second edition of "Asiatic Fragments, " but a newand wholly different work. The thirty-five sheets of the lastvolume are printed, but the two volumes will only be issuedtogether. You can judge of the difficulty of printing at Paris andcorrecting proofs here, --at Poretz or at Toplitz. I am just nowbeginning to print the first number of my physics of the world, under the title of "Cosmos:" in German, "Ideen zur erner physischenWeltbeschreibung. " It is in no sense a reproduction of the lecturesI gave here. The subject is the same, but the presentation does notat all recall the form of a popular course. As a book, it has asomewhat graver and more elevated style. A "spoken book" is alwaysa poor book, just as lectures read are poor however well prepared. Published courses of lectures are my detestation. Cotta is alsoprinting a volume of mine in German, "Physikalische geographischeErinnerungen. " Many unpublished things concerning the volcanoes ofthe Andes, about currents, etc. And all this at the age when onebegins to petrify! It is very rash! May this letter prove to youand to Madame Agassiz that I am petrifying only at the extremities, --the heart is still warm. Retain for me the affection which I holdso dear. 

A. DE HUMBOLDT. 

In the following winter, or, rather, in the early days of March, 1841, Agassiz visited, in company with M. Desor, the glacier of theAar and that of Rosenlaui. He wished to examine the stakes plantedthe summer before on the glacier of the Aar, and to compare thewinter and summer temperature within as well as without the mass ofice. But his chief object was to ascertain whether water stillflowed from beneath the glaciers during the frosts of winter. Thisfact would have a direct bearing upon the theory which referred themelting and movement of the glaciers chiefly to their lowersurface, explaining them by the central heat of the earth as theirmain cause. Satisfied as he was of the fallacy of this notion, Agassiz still wished to have the evidence of the glacier itself. The journey was, of course, a difficult one at such a season, butthe weather was beautiful, and they accomplished it in safety, though not without much suffering. They found no water except thepure and limpid water from springs that never freeze. The glacierlay dead in the grasp of winter. The results of this journey, tables of temperature, etc. , are recorded in the "SystemeGlaciaire. "

In E. Desor's "Sejours dans les Glaciers" is found an interestingdescription of the incidents of this excursion and the appearanceof the glaciers in winter. In ascending the course of the Aar theyfrequently crossed the shrunken river on natural snow bridges, andapproaching the Handeck over fearfully steep slopes of snow theyhad some difficulty in finding the thread of water which was allthat remained of the beautiful summer cascade. On the glacier ofthe Aar they found the Hotel des Neuchatelois buried in snow, whilethe whole surface of the glacier as well as the surrounding peaks, from base to summit, wore the same spotless mantle. TheFinsteraarhorn alone stood out in bold relief, black against awhite world, its abrupt slopes affording no foothold for the snow. The scene was far more monotonous than in summer. Crevasses, withtheir blue depths of ice, were closed; the many-voiced streams werestill; the moraines and boulders were only here and there visiblethrough the universal shroud. The sky was without a cloud, the airtransparent, but the glitter of the uniform white surface wasexquisitely painful to the eyes and skin, and the travelers wereobliged to wrap their heads in double veils. They found the glacierof Rosenlaui less enveloped in snow than that of the Aar; andthough the magnificent ice-cave, so well known to travelers for itsazure tints, was inaccessible, they could look into the vault andsee that the habitual bed of the torrent was dry. The journey wasaccomplished in a week without any untoward accident. 

In the summer of 1841 Agassiz made a longer Alpine sojourn thanever before. The special objects of the season's work were theinternal structure of these vast moving fields of ice, theessential conditions of their origin and continued existence, theaction of water within them as influencing their movement, andtheir own agency in direct contact with the beds and walls of thevalleys they occupied. The fact of their former extension and theirpresent oscillations might be considered as established. Itremained to explain these facts with reference to the conditionsprevailing within the mass itself. In short, the investigation waspassing from the domain of geology to that of physics. Agassiz, whowas as he often said of himself no physicist, was the more anxiousto have the cooperation of the ablest men in that department, andto share with them such facilities for observation and such resultsas he had thus far accumulated. In addition to his usualcollaborators, M. Desor and M. Vogt, he had, therefore, invited ashis guest, during part of the season, the distinguished physicist, Professor James D. Forbes, of Edinburgh, who brought with him hisfriend, Mr. Heath, of Cambridge. * (* As the impressions of Mr. Forbes were only made known in connection with his own later andindependent researches it is unnecessary to refer to them here. ) M. Escher de la Linth took also an active part in the work of thelater summer. To his working corps Agassiz had added the foreman ofM. Kahli, an engineer at Bienne, to whom he had confided his plansfor the summer, and who furnished him with a skilled workman todirect the boring operations, assist in measurements, etc. Theartist of this year was M. Jacques Burkhardt, a personal friend ofAgassiz, and his fellow-student at Munich, where he had spent sometime at the school of art. As a draughtsman he was subsequentlyassociated with Agassiz in his work at various times, and when theyboth settled in America Mr. Burkhardt became a permanent member ofAgassiz's household, accompanied him on his journeys, and remainedwith him in relations of uninterrupted and affectionate regard tillhis own death in 1867. He was a loyal friend and a warm-heartedman, with a thread of humor running through his dry good sense, which made him a very amusing and attractive companion. 

As it was necessary, in view of his special programme of work, topenetrate below the surface of the glacier, and reach, if possible, its point of contact with the valley bottom, Agassiz had caused alarger boring apparatus than had been used before, to betransported to the old site on the Aar glacier. The results ofthese experiments are incorporated in the "Systeme Glaciaire, "published in 1846, with twenty-four folio plates and two maps. Theywere of the highest interest with reference to the internalstructure and temperature of the ice and the penetrability of itsmass, pervious throughout, as it proved, to air and water. On oneoccasion the boring-rod, having been driven to a depth of onehundred and ten feet, dropped suddenly two feet lower, showing thatit had passed through an open space hidden in the depth of the ice. The release of air-bubbles at the same time gave evidence that thisglacial cave, so suddenly broken in upon, was not hermeticallysealed to atmospheric influences from without. 

Agassiz was not satisfied with the report of his instruments fromthese unknown regions. He determined to be lowered into one of theso-called wells in the glacier, and thus to visit its interior inperson. For this purpose he was obliged to turn aside the streamwhich flowed into the well into a new bed which he caused to be dugfor it. This done, he had a strong tripod erected over the opening, and, seated upon a board firmly attached by ropes, he was then letdown into the well, his friend Escher lying flat on the edge of theprecipice, to direct the descent and listen for any warning cry. Agassiz especially desired to ascertain how far the laminated orribboned structure of the ice (the so-called blue bands) penetratedthe mass of the glacier. This feature of the glacier had beenobserved and described by M. Guyot (see page 292), but Mr. Forbeshad called especial attention to it, as in his belief connectedwith the internal conditions of the glacier. It was agreed, asAgassiz bade farewell to his friends on this curious voyage ofdiscovery, that he should be allowed to descend until he called outthat they were to lift him. He was lowered successfully and withoutaccident to a depth of eighty feet. There he encountered anunforeseen difficulty in a wall of ice which divided the well intotwo compartments. He tried first the larger one, but finding itsplit again into several narrow tunnels, he caused himself to beraised sufficiently to enter the smaller, and again proceeded onhis downward course without meeting any obstacle. Wholly engrossedin watching the blue bands, still visible in the glittering wallsof ice, he was only aroused to the presence of approaching dangerby the sudden plunge of his feet into water. His first shout ofdistress was misunderstood, and his friends lowered him into theice-cold gulf instead of raising him. The second cry was effectual, and he was drawn up, though not without great difficulty, from adepth of one hundred and twenty-five feet. The most serious perilof the ascent was caused by the huge stalactites of ice, betweenthe points of which he had to steer his way. Any one of them, ifdetached by the friction of the rope, might have caused his death. He afterward said: "Had I known all its dangers, perhaps I shouldnot have started on such an adventure. Certainly, unless induced bysome powerful scientific motive, I should not advise any one tofollow my example. " On this perilous journey he traced thelaminated structure to a depth of eighty feet, and even beyond, though with less distinctness. 

The summer closed with their famous ascent of the Jungfrau. Theparty consisted of twelve persons Agassiz, Desor, Forbes, Heath, and two travelers who had begged to join them, --M. De Chatelier, ofNantes, and M. De Pury, of Neuchatel, a former pupil of Agassiz. The other six were guides; four beside their old and tried friends, Jacob Leuthold and Johann Wahren. They left the hospice of theGrimsel on the 27th of August, at four o'clock in the morning. Crossing the Col of the Oberaar they descended to the snowy plateauwhich feeds the Viescher glacier. In this grand amphitheatre, walled in by the peaks of the Viescherhorner, they rested for theirmidday meal. In crossing these fields of snow, while walking withperfect security upon what seemed a solid mass, they observedcertain window-like openings in the snow. Stooping to examine oneof them, they looked into an immense open space, filled with softblue light. They were, in fact, walking on a hollow crust, and thesmall window was, as they afterward found, opposite a largecrevasse on the other side of this ice-cavern, through which thelight entered, flooding the whole vault and receiving from its icywalls its exquisite reflected color. * (* The effect is admirablydescribed by M. Desor in his account of this excursion, "Sejoursdans les Glaciers" page 367. )

Once across the fields of snow and neve, a fatiguing walk of fivehours brought them to the chalets of Meril, * (* Sometimes Moril, but I have retained the spelling of M. Desor. --E. C. A. ) where theyexpected to sleep. The night which should have prepared them forthe fatigue of the next day was, however, disturbed by an untowardaccident. The ladder left by Jacob Leuthold when last here withHugi in 1832, nine years before, and upon which he depended, hadbeen taken away by a peasant of Viesch. Two messengers were sent inthe course of the night to the village to demand its restoration. The first returned unsuccessful; the second was the bearer of suchthreats of summary punishment from the whole party that he carriedhis point, and appeared at last with the recovered treasure on hisback. They had, in the mean while, lost two hours. They should havebeen on their road at three o'clock; it was now five. Jacob warnedthem therefore that they must make all speed, and that any one whofelt himself unequal to a forced march should stay behind. No oneresponded to his suggestion, and they were presently on the road. 

Passing Lake Meril, with its miniature icebergs, they reached theglacier of the Aletsch and its snow-fields, where the realdifficulties and dangers of the ascent were to begin. In this greatsemicircular space, inclosed by the Jungfrau, the Monch, and thelesser peaks of this mountain group, lies the Aletsch reservoir ofsnow or neve. As this spot presented a natural pause between thelaborious ascent already accomplished and the immense declivitieswhich lay before them yet to be climbed, they named it Le Repos, and halted there for a short rest. Here they left also everyneedless incumbrance, taking only a little bread and wine, in caseof exhaustion, some meteorological instruments, and the inevitableladder, axe, and ropes of the Alpine climber. On their left, to thewest of the amphitheatre, a vast passage opened between theJungfrau and the Kranzberg, and in this could be distinguished aseries of terraces, one above the other. The story is the usualone, of more or less steep slopes, where they sank in the softersnow or cut their steps in the icy surfaces; of open crevasses, crossed by the ladder, or the more dangerous ones, masked by snow, over which they trod cautiously, tied together by the rope. Butthere was nothing to appall the experienced mountaineer with firmfoot and a steady head, until they reached a height where thesummit of the Jungfrau detached itself in apparently inaccessibleisolation from all beneath or around it. To all but the guidestheir farther advance seemed blocked by a chaos of precipices, either of snow and ice or of rock. Leuthold remained howeverquietly confident, telling them he clearly saw the course he meantto follow. It began by an open gulf of unknown depth, though nottoo wide to be spanned by their ladder twenty-three feet in length. On the other side of this crevasse, and immediately above it, rosean abrupt wall of icy snow. Up this wall Leuthold and another guideled the way, cutting steps as they went. When half way up theylowered the rope, holding one end, while their companions fastenedthe other to the ladder, so that it served them as a kind ofhand-rail, by which to follow. At the top they found themselves ona terrace, beyond which a far more moderate slope led to the Col ofRoththal, overlooking the Aletsch valley on one side, the Roththalon the other. From this point the ascent was more and more steepand very slow, as every step had to be cut. Their difficulties wereincreased, also, by a mist which gathered around them, and by theintense cold. Leuthold kept the party near the border of the ridge, because there the ice yielded more readily to the stroke of theaxe; but it put their steadiness of nerve to the greatest test, bykeeping the precipice constantly in view, except when hidden by thefog. Indeed, they could drive their alpenstocks through theoverhanging rim of frozen snow, and look sheer down through thehole thus made to the amphitheatre below. One of the guides leftthem, unable longer to endure the sight of these precipices soclose at hand. As they neared their goal they feared lest the mistmight, at the last, deprive them of the culminating moment forwhich they had braved such dangers. But suddenly, as if touched bytheir perseverance, says M. Desor, the veil of fog lifted, and thesummit of the Jungfrau, in its final solitude, rose before them. There was still a certain distance to be passed before theyactually reached the base of the extreme peak. Here they paused, not without a certain hesitation, for though the summit lay but afew feet above them, they were separated from it by a sharp andseemingly inaccessible ridge. Even Agassiz, who was not easilydiscouraged, said, as he looked up at this highest point of thefortress they had scaled "We can never reach it. " For all answer, Jacob Leuthold, their intrepid guide, flinging down everythingwhich could embarrass his movements, stretched his alpenstock overthe ridge as a grappling pole, and, trampling the snow as he went, so as to flatten his giddy path for those who were to follow, wasin a moment on the top. To so steep an apex does this famous peaknarrow, that but one person can stand on the summit at a time, norwas even this possible till the snow was beaten down. Returning onhis steps, Leuthold, whose quiet, unflinching audacity of successwas contagious, assisted each one to stand for a few moments wherehe had stood. The fog, the effect of which they had so much feared, now lent something to the beauty of the view from this sublimefoothold. Masses of vapor rolled up from the Roththal on thesouthwest, but, instead of advancing to envelop them, paused at alittle distance arrested by some current from the plain. Thetemperature being below freezing point, the drops of moisture inthis wall of vapor were congealed into ice-crystals, whichglittered like gold in the sunlight and gave back all the colors ofthe rainbow. 

When all the party were once more assembled at the base of thepeak, Jacob, whose resources never failed, served to each one alittle wine, and they rested on the snow before beginning theirperilous descent. Of living things they saw only a hawk, poised inthe air above their heads; of plants, a few lichens, where thesurface of the rock was exposed. It was four o'clock in theafternoon before they started on their downward path, turning theirfaces to the icy slope, and feeling for the steps behind them, someseven hundred in all, which had been cut in ascending. In about anhour they reached the Col of the Roththal, where the greatestdifficulties of the ascent had begun and the greatest dangers ofthe descent were over. So elated were they by the success of theday, and so regardless of lesser perils after those they had passedthrough, that they were now inclined to hurry forward incautiously. Jacob, prudent when others were rash, as he was bold when otherswere intimidated, constantly called them to order with his:"Hubschle! nur immer hubschle!" ("Gently! always gently!")

At six o'clock they were once more at Le Repos, having retracedtheir steps in two hours over a distance which had cost them six ingoing. Evening was now falling, but daylight was replaced bymoonlight, and when they reached the glacier its whole surfaceshone with a soft silvery lustre, broken here and there by thegigantic shadow of some neighboring mountain thrown black acrossit. At about nine o'clock, just as they had passed that part of theglacier which was, on account of the frequent crevasses, the mostdangerous, they were cheered by the sound of a distant yodel. Itwas the call of a peasant who had been charged to meet them withprovisions, at a certain distance above Lake Meril, in case theyshould be overcome by hunger and fatigue. The most acceptable thinghe brought was his great wooden bucket, filled with fresh milk. Thepicture of the party, as they stood around him in the moonlight, dipping eagerly into his bucket, and drinking in turn until theyhad exhausted the supply, is so vivid, that one shares their goodspirits and their enjoyment. Thus refreshed, they started on thelast stage of their journey, three leagues of which yet lay beforethem, and at half-past eleven arrived at the chalets of Meril, which they had left at dawn. 

On the morrow the party broke up, and Agassiz and Desor, accompanied by their friend, M. Escher de la Linth, returned to theGrimsel, and after a day's rest there repaired once more to theHotel des Neuchatelois. They remained on the glacier until the 5thof September, spending these few last days in completing theirmeasurements, and in planting the lines of stakes across theglacier, to serve as a means of determining its rate of movementduring the year, and the comparative rapidity of that movement atcertain fixed points. Thus concluded one of the most eventfulseasons Agassiz and his companions had yet passed upon the Alps. *(* Though quoting his exact language only in certain instances, theaccount of this and other Alpine ascensions described above hasbeen based upon M. E. Desor's "Sejours dans les Glaciers". His veryspirited narratives, added to my own recollections of what I hadheard from Mr. Agassiz himself on the same subject, have given memy material. --E. C. A. )

CHAPTER 11. 

1842-1843: AGE 35-36. 

Zoological Work uninterrupted by Glacial Researches. Various Publications. "Nomenclator Zoologicus. ""Bibliographia Zoologiae et Geologiae. "Correspondence with English Naturalists. Correspondence with Humboldt. Glacial Campaign of 1842. Correspondence with Prince de Canino concerning Journey to United States. Fossil Fishes from the Old Red Sandstone. Glacial Campaign of 1843. Death of Leuthold, the Guide. 

Although his glacier work was now so prominent a feature ofAgassiz's scientific life, his zoological studies, especially hisichthyological researches, and more especially his work on fossilfishes, went on with little interruption. His publications uponFossil Mollusks, * (* "Etudes Critiques sur les Mollusques Fossiles"4 numbers quarto with 100 plates. ) upon Tertiary Shells, * (*"Iconographie des Coquilles Tertiaires reputees identiques sur lesvivans" 1 number quarto 14 plates. ) upon Living and FossilEchinoderms, * (* "Monographie d'Echinodermes vivans et fossiles" 4numbers quarto with 37 plates. ) with many smaller monographs onspecial subjects, were undertaken and completed during the mostactive period of his glacial investigations. More surprising is itto find him, while pursuing new lines of investigation withpassionate enthusiasm, engaged at the same time upon worksseemingly so dry and tedious as his "Nomenclator Zoologicus, " andhis "Bibliographia Zoologiae et Geologiae. "

The former work, a large quarto volume with an Index, * (* The Indexwas also published separately as an octavo. ) comprised anenumeration of all the genera of the animal kingdom, with theetymology of their names, the names of those who had first proposedthem, and the date of their publication. He obtained thecooperation of other naturalists, submitting each class as far aspossible for revision to the leaders in their respectivedepartments. 

In his letter of presentation to the library of the NeuchatelAcademy, addressed to M. Le Baron de Chambrier, President of theAcademic Council, Agassiz thus describes the Nomenclator. 

. . . "Have the kindness to accept for the library of the Academythe fifth number of a work upon the sources of zoologicalcriticism, the publication of which I have just begun. It is a workof patience, demanding long and laborious researches. I hadconceived the plan in the first years of my studies, and since thenhave never lost sight of it. I venture to believe it will be abarrier against the Babel of confusion which tends to overwhelm thedomain of zoological synonymy. My book will be called 'NomenclatorZoologicus. '". . . 

The Bibliographia (4 volumes, octavo) was in some measure acomplement of the Nomenclator, and contained a list of all theauthors named in the latter, with notices of their works. Itappeared somewhat later, and was published by the Ray Society inEngland, in 1848, after Agassiz had left Europe for the UnitedStates. The material for this work also had been growing upon hishands for years. Feeling more and more the importance of such aregister as a guide for students, he appealed to naturalists in allparts of Europe for information upon the scientific bibliography oftheir respective countries, and at last succeeded in cataloguing, with such completeness as was possible, all known works and allscattered memoirs on zoology and geology. Unable to publish thiscostly but unremunerative material, he was delighted to give it upto the Ray Society. The first three volumes were edited withcorrections and additions by Mr. H. E. Strickland, who died beforethe appearance of the fourth volume, which was finally completedunder the care of his father-in-law, Sir William Jardine. 

The ability, so eminently possessed by Agassiz of dealing with anumber of subjects at once, was due to no superficial versatility. To him his work had but one meaning. It was never disconnected inhis thought, and therefore he turned from his glaciers to hisfossils, and from the fossil to the living world, with the feelingthat he was always dealing with kindred problems, bound together bythe same laws. Nowhere is this better seen than in the records ofthe scientific society of Neuchatel, the society he helped to foundin the first months of his professorship, and to which he alwaysremained strongly attached, being a constant attendant at itssessions from 1833 to 1846. Here we find him from month to month, with philosophic breadth of thought, treating of animals in theirwidest relations, or describing minute structural details with theskill of a specialist. He presents organized beings in theirgeological succession, in their geographical distribution, in theirembryonic development. He reviews and remodels laws ofclassification. Sometimes he illustrates the fossil by the livingworld, sometimes he finds the key to present phenomena in theremote past. He reconstructs the history of the glacial period, andpoints to its final chapter in the nearest Alpine valleys, connecting these facts again with like phenomena in distant partsof the globe. But however wide his range and however various histopics, under his touch they are all akin, all coordinate parts ofa whole which he strives to understand in its entirety. A fewextracts from his correspondence will show him in his differentlines of research at this time. 

The following letter is from Edward Forbes, one of the earliestexplorers of the deep-sea fauna. Agassiz had asked him for somehelp in his work upon echinoderms. 

EDWARD FORBES TO LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

21 LOTHIAN ST. , EDINBURGH, February 13, 1841. 

. . . A letter from you was to me one of the greatest of pleasures, and with great delight (though, I fear, imperfectly) I haveexecuted the commission you gave me. It should have been done muchsooner had not the storms been so bad in the sea near this that, until three days ago, I was not able to procure a living sea-urchinfrom which to make the drawings required. . . You have made all thegeologists glacier-mad here, and they are turning Great Britaininto an ice-house. Some amusing and very absurd attempts atopposition to your views have been made by one or twopseudo-geologists; among others, poor--, who has read a paper atthe Royal Society here, maintaining that all the appearances yourefer to glaciers were caused by blocks of ice which floated thisway in the Deluge! and that the fossils of the pleistocene stratawere mollusks, etc. , which, climbing upon the ice-blocks, werecarried to warmer seas against their will!! To my mind, one of thebest proofs of the truth of your views lies in the decidedly arcticcharacter of the pleistocene fauna, which must be referred to theglacier time, and by such reference is easily understood. I meanduring the summer to collect data on that point, in order topresent a mass of geological proofs of your theory. 

Dr. Traill tells me you are proposing to visit England again duringthe coming summer. If you do, I hope we shall meet, when I shallhave many things to show you, which time did not permit when youwere here. I look anxiously for the forth-coming number of yourhistory of the Echinodermata. . . 

FROM SIR RODERICK MURCHISON. 

June 13, 1842. 

. . . Your letters have given me great pleasure: first, in assuringme that your zeal in ichthyology is undiminished, and that you areabout to give such striking proofs of it to the BritishAssociation; and next that you still pursue with enthusiasm youradmirable researches upon the glaciers. I should be charmed to putmyself under your guidance for a walk on the glaciers of the Aar, but I hardly dare promise it yet. . . Even were I to make everyhaste, I doubt if it be possible to reach your Swiss meeting intime. It is just possible that I may find you in your glacialcantonment after your return, but even this will depend uponcircumstances over which I have no control. 

I send this letter to you by my friend, Admiral Sir CharlesMalcolm, who passes through Neuchatel on his way to Geneva. Accompanying it is a copy of my last discourse, which I request youto accept and to read all parts of it. You will see that I havegrappled honestly and according to my own faith with your ice, buthave never lost sight of your great merit. My concluding paragraphwill convince you and all your friends that if I am wrong it is notfrom any preconceived notions, but only because I judge from whatyou will call incomplete evidence. Your "Venez voir!" still soundsin my ears. . . 

Murchison remained for many years an opponent of the glacial theoryin its larger application. In the discourse to which the aboveletter makes allusion (Address at the Anniversary Meeting of theGeological Society of London, 1842. * (* Extract from Report involume 33 of the "Edinburgh New Philosophical Journal". )) is thispassage: "Once grant to Agassiz that his deepest valleys ofSwitzerland, such as the enormous Lake of Geneva, were formerlyfilled with snow and ice, and I see no stopping place. From thathypothesis you may proceed to fill the Baltic and the northernseas, cover southern England and half of Germany and Russia withsimilar icy sheets, on the surfaces of which all the northernboulders might have been shot off. So long as the greater number ofthe practical geologists of Europe are opposed to the wideextension of a terrestrial glacial theory, there can be little riskthat such a doctrine should take too deep a hold of the mind. . . The existence of glaciers in Scotland and England (I mean in theAlpine sense) is not, at all events, established to thesatisfaction of what I believe to be by far the greater number ofBritish geologists. "

Twenty years later, with rare candor, Murchison wrote to Agassiz asfollows; by its connection, though not by its date, the extract isin place here: "I send you my last anniversary address, which Iwrote entirely myself; and I beg you to believe that in the part ofit that refers to the glacial period, and to Europe as it wasgeographically, I have had the sincerest pleasure in avowing that Iwas wrong in opposing as I did your grand and original idea of mynative mountains. Yes! I am now convinced that glaciers did descendfrom the mountains to the plains as they do now in Greenland. "

During the summer of 1842, at about the same date with Murchison'sletter disclaiming the glacial theory, Agassiz received, on theother hand, a new evidence, and one which must have given himespecial pleasure, of the favorable impression his views weremaking in some quarters in England. 

FROM DR. BUCKLAND. 

OXFORD, July 22, 1842. 

You will, I am sure, rejoice with me at the adhesion of C. Darwinto the doctrine of ancient glaciers in North Wales, of which I sendyou a copy, and which was communicated to me by Dr. Tritten, duringthe late meeting at Manchester, in time to be quoted by me versusMurchison, when he was proclaiming the exclusive agency of floatingicebergs in drifting erratic blocks and making scratched andpolished surfaces. It has raised the glacial theory fifty per cent, as far as relates to glaciers descending inclined valleys; butHopkins and the Cantabrigians are still as obstinate as everagainst allowing the power of expansion to move ice along greatdistances on horizontal surfaces. . . 

The following is the letter referred to above. 

C. DARWIN TO DR. TRITTEN. 

Yesterday (and the previous days) I had some most interesting workin examining the marks left by EXTINCT glaciers. I assure you, anextinct volcano could hardly leave more evident traces of itsactivity and vast powers. I found one with the lateral morainequite perfect, which Dr. Buckland did not see. Pray if you have anycommunication with Dr. Buckland give him my warmest thanks forhaving guided me, through the published abstract of his memoir, toscenes, and made me understand them, which have given me moredelight than I almost remember to have experienced since I firstsaw an extinct crater. The valley about here and the site of theinn at which I am now writing must once have been covered by atleast 800 or 1, 000 feet in thickness of solid ice! Eleven years agoI spent a whole day in the valley where yesterday everything butthe ice of the glaciers was palpably clear to me, and I then sawnothing but plain water and bare rock. These glaciers have beengrand agencies. I am the more pleased with what I have seen inNorth Wales, as it convinces me that my view of the distribution ofthe boulders on the South American plains, as effected by floatingice, is correct. I am also more convinced that the valleys of GlenRoy and the neighboring parts of Scotland have been occupied byarms of the sea, and very likely (for in that point I cannot, ofcourse, doubt Agassiz and Buckland) by glaciers also. 

It continued to be a grief to Agassiz that Humboldt, the oldest ofall his scientific friends, and the one whose opinion he mostreverenced, still remained incredulous. Humboldt's letters showthat Agassiz did not willingly renounce the hope of making him aconvert. Agassiz's own letters to Humboldt are missing from thistime onward. Overwhelmed with occupation, and more at his ease inhis relations with the older scientific men, he had ceased to makethe rough drafts in which his earlier correspondence is recorded. 

HUMBOLDT TO AGASSIZ. 

BERLIN, March 2, 1842. 

. . . When one has been so long separated, even accidentally, from afriend as I have been from you, my dear Agassiz, it is difficult tofind beginning or end to a letter. The kindly remembrance which yousend me is evidence that my long silence has not seemed strange toyou. . . It would be wasting words to tell you how I have beenprevented, by the distractions of my life, always increasing withold age, from acknowledging the admirable things received from you, --upon living and fossil fishes, echinoderms, and glaciers. Myadmiration of your boundless activity, of your beautifulintellectual life, increases with every year. This admiration foryour work and your bold excursions is based upon the most carefulreading of all the views and investigations, for which I have tothank you. This very week I have read with great satisfaction yourtruly philosophical address, and your long treatise in Cotta'sfourth "Jahresschrift. " Even L. Von Buch confessed that the firsthalf of your treatise, the living presentation of the succession oforganized beings, was full of truth, sagacity, and novelty. 

I in no way reproach you, my dear friend, for the urgent desireexpressed in all your letters, that your oldest friends shouldaccept your comprehensive geological view of your ice-period. It isvery noble and natural to wish that what has impressed us as trueshould also be recognized by those we love. . . I believe I haveread and compared all that has been written for and against theice-period, and also upon the transportation of boulders, whetherpushed along or carried by floods or gliding over slopes. My ownopinion, as you know, can have no weight or authority, since I havenot myself seen the most decisive points. Indeed I am, perhapswrongly, inclined to look upon all geological theories as havingtheir being in a mythical region, in which, with the progress ofphysics, the phantasms are modified century by century. But the"elephants caught in the ice, " and Cuvier's "instantaneous changeof climate, " seem to me no more intelligible today than when Iwrote my Asiatic fragments. According to all that we know of thedecrease of heat in the earth, I cannot understand such a change oftemperature in a space of time which does not also allow for thedecaying of flesh. I understand much better how wolves, hares, anddogs, should they fall to-day into clefts of the frozen regions ofNorthern Siberia (and the so-called "elephant-ice" is in plainprose only porphyritic drift mixed with ice-crystals, true driftmaterial), might retain their flesh and muscles. . . But I am only agrumbling rebellious subject in your kingdom. . . Do not be vexedwith a friend who is more than ever impressed with your services togeology, your philosophical views of nature, your profoundknowledge of organized beings. . . 

With old attachment and the warmest friendship, your

A. DE HUMBOLDT. 

In the same strain is this extract from another letter ofHumboldt's, written two or three months later. 

. . . "'Grace from on high, ' says Madame de Sevigne, 'comes slowly. 'I especially desire it for the glacial period and for that fatalcap of ice which frightens me, child of the equator that I am. Myheresy, of little importance, since I have seen nothing, does not, I assure you, my dear Agassiz, diminish my ardent desire that allyour observations should be published. . . I rejoice in the goodnews you give me of the fishes. I should pain you did I add thatthis work of yours, by the light it has shed on the organicdevelopment of animals, makes the true foundation of your glory. ". . . 

LOUIS AGASSIZ TO SIR PHILIP EGERTON. 

NEUCHATEL, June, 1842. 

. . . I am hard at work on the fishes of the "Old Red, " and willsend you at Manchester a part at least of the plates, with ageneral summary of the species of that formation. I aim to finishthe work with such care that it shall mark a sensible advance inichthyology. I hope it will satisfy you. . . You ask me how I intendto finish my Fossil Fishes? As follows: As soon as the number onthe species of the "Old Red" is finished, I shall complete thegeneral outline of the work as I did with volume 4, in order thatthe arrangement and character of all the families in the fourorders may be studied in their zoological affinities, with theirgenera and principal species. But as this outline can no longercontain the innumerable species now known to me, I take upmonographically the species from the different geologicalformations in the order of the deposits, and publish as manysupplements as there are great formations rich in fossil fishes. Ishall limit myself to the species described in the body of thework, merely adding the description of the new species in eachdeposit, and such additions as I may have to make for those alreadyknown. In this way, those who wish to study fossil fishes from thezoological stand-point can turn to the work in the original form, while those who wish to study them in their geological relationscan confine themselves to the supplements. By means of doubleregisters at the end of each volume, these two distinct parts ofthe work will be again united as a complete whole. This is the onlyplan I have been able to devise by which I could publish insuccession all my materials without burdening my first subscribers, who will thus be free to accept the supplements or not, as theyprefer. Should you have occasion to mention this arrangement to thefriends of fossil ichthyology, pray do so; it seems to me for theinterest of the matter that it should be known. . . I propose toresume with new zeal my researches upon the fossil fishes as soonas I return from an excursion I wish to make in July and August tothe glacier of the Aar, where I hope, by a last visit this year, toconclude my labors on this subject. You will be glad to learn thatthe beautiful barometer you gave me has been my faithful companionin the Alps. . . I have the pleasure to tell you that the King ofPrussia has made me a handsome gift of nearly 200 pounds for thecontinuance of my glacial work. I feel, therefore, the greatercertainty of completing what remains for me to do. . . 

The campaign of 1842 opened on the 4th of July. The boulder hadceased to be a safe shelter, and was replaced by a rough framecabin covered with canvas. If the party had some regrets in leavingtheir picturesque hut beneath the rock, the greater comfort of thenew abode consoled them. It had several divisions. A sleeping-placefor the guides and workmen was partitioned off from a middle roomoccupied by Agassiz and his friends, while the front space servedas dining-room, sitting-room, and laboratory. This outer apartmentboasted a table and one or two benches; even a couple of chairswere kept as seats of honor for occasional guests. A shelf againstthe wall and a few pegs accommodated books, instruments, coats, etc. , and a plank floor, on which to spread their blankets atnight, was a good exchange for the frozen surface of the glacier. *(* In bidding farewell to the boulder which had been the first"Hotel des Neuchatelois" we may add a word of its farther fortunes. It had begun to split in 1841, and was completely rent asunder in1844, after which frost and rain completed its dismemberment. Strange to say, during the last summer (1884) certain fragments ofthe mass have been found, inscribed with the names of some of theparty; one of the blocks bearing beside names, the mark "Number 2". The account says "The middle stone, the one numbered 2, was at theintersecting point of two lines drawn from the Pavilion Dollfuss tothe Scheuchzerhorn on the one part, and from the Rothhorn to theThierberg on the other. " According to the measurements taken byAgassiz, the Hotel des Neuchatelois in 1840 stood at 797 metresfrom the promontory of Abschwung. We are thus enabled, by referringto the large glacier map of Wild and Stengel, to compare thepresent with the then position of the stone, and thereby ascertainthe progress of the glacier since the time in question. Thus theboulder still contributes something toward the sequel of the workbegun by those who once found shelter beneath it. --E. C. A. )

Mr. Wild, an engineer of known ability, was now a member of theirparty, as a topographical survey was to be one of the chief objectsof the summer's work. The results of this survey, which wascontinued during two summers, are embodied in the map accompanyingAgassiz's "Systeme Glaciaire. " Experiments upon the extent andconnection of the net-work of capillary fissures that admittedwater into the interior of the glaciers, occupied Agassiz's ownattention during a great part of the summer. In order to ascertainthis, colored liquids were introduced into the glacier by means ofboring, and it was found that they threaded their way through themass of the ice and reappeared at lower points with astonishingrapidity. A gallery was cut at a depth of ten metres below thesurface, through a wall of ice intervening between two crevasses. The colored liquid poured into a hole above soon appeared on theceiling of the gallery. The experimenters were surprised to findthat at night the same result was obtained, and that the liquidpenetrated from the surface to the roof of the gallery even morequickly than during the day. This was explained by the fact thatthe fissures were then free from any moisture arising from surfacemelting, so that the passage through them was unimpeded. * (*Distrust has been thrown upon these results by the failure of morerecent attempts to repeat the same experiments. In reference tothis, Agassiz himself says "The infiltration has been denied inconsequence of the failure of some experiments in which an attemptwas made to introduce colored fluids into the glacier. To this Ican only answer that I succeeded completely myself in the self-sameexperiment which a later investigator found impracticable, and thatI see no reason why the failure of the latter attempt should cast adoubt upon the success of the former. The explanation of thedifference in the result may perhaps be found in the fact that as asponge gorged with water can admit no more fluid than it alreadycontains, so the glacier, under certain circumstances, andespecially at noonday in summer, may be so soaked with water thatall attempts to pour colored fluids into it would necessarilyfail. "--See "Geological Sketches" by L. Agassiz, page 236. )

The comparative rate of advance in the different parts of theglacier was ascertained this summer with greater precision thanbefore. The rows of stakes planted in a straight line across theglacier by Agassiz and Escher de la Linth, in the previousSeptember, now described a crescent with the curve turned towardthe terminus of the glacier, showing, contrary to the expectationof Agassiz, that the centre moved faster than the sides. Thecorrespondence of the curve in the stratification with that of theline of stakes confirmed this result. The study of thestratification of the snow was a marked feature of the season'swork, and Agassiz believed, as will be seen by a later letter, thathe had established this fact of glacial structure beyond a doubt. 

The origin and mode of formation of the crevasses also especiallyoccupied the observers. On the 7th of August, Agassiz had anopportunity of watching this phenomenon in its initiation. Attracted to a certain spot on the glacier by a commotion among hisworkmen, he found them alarmed at the singular noises and movementsin the ice. "I heard, " he says, "at a little distance a sound likethe simultaneous discharge of fire-arms; hurrying in the directionof the noise, it was repeated under my feet with a movement likethat of a slight earthquake; the ground seemed to shift and giveway under me, but now the sound differed from the preceding, andresembled a crumbling of rocks, without, however, any perceptiblesinking of the surface. The glacier actually trembled, nevertheless; for a block of granite three feet in diameter, perched on a pedestal two feet high, suddenly fell down. At thesame instant a crack opened between my feet and ran rapidly acrossthe glacier in a straight line. "* (* Extract from a letter of LouisAgassiz to M. Arago dated from the Hotel des Neuchatelois, Glacierof the Aar, August 7, 1842. ) On this occasion Agassiz saw threecrevasses formed in an hour and a half, and heard others opening ata greater distance from him. He counted eight new fissures in aspace of one hundred and twenty-five feet. The phenomenon continuedthroughout the evening, and recurred, though with less frequency, during the night. The cracks were narrow, the largest an inch and ahalf in width, and their great depth was proved by the rapiditywith which they drained any standing water in their immediatevicinity. "A boring-hole, " says Agassiz, "one hundred and thirtyfeet deep and six inches in diameter, full of water, was completelyemptied in a few minutes, showing that these narrow crackspenetrated to great depths. "

The summer's work included observations also on the comparativemovement of the glacier during the day and night, on the surfacewaste of the mass, its reparation, on the neve and snow of theupper regions, on the meridian holes, the sun-dials of theglaciers, as they have been called. * (* "Here and there on theglacier there are patches of loose material, dust, sand, or gravel, accumulated by diminutive water-rills and small enough to becomeheated during the day. They will, of course, be warmed first ontheir eastern side, then still more powerfully on their southernside, and, in the afternoon, with less force again, on theirwestern side, while the northern side will remain comparativelycool. Thus around more than half of their circumference they meltthe ice in a semicircle, and the glacier is covered with littlecrescent-shaped troughs of this description, with a steep wall onone side and a shallow one on the other, and a little heap of loosematerials in the bottom. They are the sun-dials of the glacier, recording the hour by the advance of the sun's rays upon them. "--"Geological Sketches" by L. Agassiz page 293. ) On the whole, themost important result of the campaign was the topographical surveyof the glacier, recorded in the map published in Agassiz's secondwork on the glacier. 

At about this time there begin to be occasional references in hiscorrespondence to a journey of exploration in the United States. Especially was this plan in frequent discussion between him andCharles Bonaparte, Prince of Canino, a naturalist almost as ardentas himself, with whom he had long been in intimate scientificcorrespondence. In April, 1842, the prince writes him: "I indulgemyself in dreaming of the journey to America in which you havepromised to accompany me. What a relaxation! and at the same timewhat an amount of useful work!" Again, a few months later, "Youmust keep me well advised of your plans, and I, in my turn, willtry so to arrange my affairs as to find myself free in the springof 1844 for a voyage, the chief object of which will be to show myoldest son the country where he was born, and where man may developfree of shackles. The mere anticipation of this journey isdelightful to me, since I shall have you at my side, and may thusfeel sure that it will make an epoch in science. " This letter isanswered from the glacier; the first part refers to theNomenclator, in regard to which he often consulted the prince. 

LOUIS AGASSIZ TO THE PRINCE OF CANINO. 

GLACIER OF THE AAR, September 1, 1842. 

. . . I thank you most sincerely for the pains you have so kindlytaken with my proof, and for pointing out the faults and omissionsyou have noticed in my register of birds. I made the corrections atonce, and have taken the liberty of mentioning on the cover of thisnumber the share you have consented to take in my Nomenclator. Ishall try to do better and better in the successive classes, butyou well know the impossibility of avoiding grave errors in such awork, and that they can be wholly weeded out only in a second andthird edition. I should have written sooner in answer to your last, had not your letter reached me on the Glacier of the Aar, where Ihave been since the beginning of July, following up observations, the results of which become every day more important and moreconvincing. The most striking fact, one which I think I have placedbeyond the reach of doubt, is the primitive stratification of theneve, or fields of snow, --stratified from the higher regions acrossthe whole course of the glacier to its lower extremity. I haveprepared a general map, with transverse sections, showing how thelayers lift themselves on the borders of the glacier and also attheir junction, where two glaciers meet at the outlet of adjoiningvalleys; and how, also, the waving lines formed by the layers onthe surface change to sharper concentric curves with a marked axis, as the glacier descends to lower levels. For a full demonstrationof the matter, I ought to send you my map and plans, of which Ihave, as yet, no duplicates; but the fact is incontestable, and youwill oblige me by announcing it in the geological section at Padua. M. Charpentier, who is going to your meeting, will contest it, butyou can tell him from me that it is as evident as thestratification of the Neptunic rocks. To see and understand itfully, however, one must stand well above the glacier, so as tocommand the surface as a whole in one view. I would add that I amnot now alluding to the blue and white bands in the ice of which Ispoke to you last year; this is a quite distinct phenomenon. 

I wish I could accept your kind invitation, but until I have goneto the bottom of the glacier question and terminated my "FossilFishes, " I do not venture to move. It is no light task to finishall this before our long journey, to which I look forward, as itdraws nearer, with a constantly increasing interest. I am verysorry not to join you at Florence. It would have been a greatpleasure for me to visit the collections of northern Italy in yourcompany. . . I write you on a snowy day, which keeps me a prisonerin my tent; it is so cold that I can hardly hold my pen, and thewater froze at my bedside last night. The greatest privation is, however, the lack of fruit and vegetables. Hardly a potato once afortnight, but always and every day, morning and night, mutton, everlasting mutton, and rice soup. As early as the end of July wewere caught for three days by the snow; I fear I shall be forced tobreak up our encampment next week without having finished my work. What a contrast between this life and that of the plain! I amafraid my letter may be long on the road before reaching the mail, and I pause here that I may not miss the chance of forwarding it bya man who has just arrived with provisions and is about to returnto the hospice of the Grimsel, where some trustworthy guide willundertake to deliver it at the first post-office. 

No sooner is Agassiz returned from the glacier than we meet himagain in the domain of his fossil fishes. 

LOUIS AGASSIZ TO SIR PHILIP EGERTON. 

NEUCHATEL, December 15, 1842. 

. . . In the last few months I have made an important step in theidentification of fossil fishes. The happy idea occurred to me ofapplying the microscope to the study of fragments of their bones, especially those of the head, and I have found in their structuremodifications as remarkable and as numerous as those which Mr. Owendiscovered in the structure of teeth. Here there is a vast newfield to explore. I have already applied it to the identificationof the fossil fishes in the Old Red of Russia sent me for thatpurpose by Mr. Murchison. You will find more ample details about itin my report to him. I congratulate myself doubly on the results;first, because of their great importance in paleontology, and alsobecause they will draw more closely my relations with Mr. Owen, whom I always rejoice to meet on the same path with myself, andwhom I believe incapable of jealousy in such matters. . . The onlypoint indeed, on which I think I may have a little friendlydifference with him, is concerning the genus Labyrinthodon, which Iam firmly resolved, on proofs that seem to me conclusive, to claimfor the class of fishes. * (* On seeing Owen's evidence some yearslater, Agassiz at once acknowledged himself mistaken on this point. ) As soon as I have time I will write to Mr. Owen, but this neednot prevent you from speaking to him on the subject if you have anearly opportunity to do so. I am now exclusively occupied with thefossil fishes, which at any cost I wish to finish this winter. . . Before even returning to my glacier work, I will finish mymonograph of the Old Red, so that you may present it at the Corkmeeting, which it will be impossible for me to attend. . . I aminfinitely grateful to you and Lord Enniskillen for yourwillingness to trust your Sheppy fishes to me; I shall thus beprepared in advance for a strict determination of these fossils. Having them for some time before my eyes, I shall become familiarwith all the details. When I know them thoroughly, and havecompared them with the collections of skeletons in the Museums ofParis, of Leyden, of Berlin, and of Halle, I will then come toEngland to see what there may be in other collections which Icannot have at my disposal here. 

The winter of 1843, apart from his duties as professor, was devotedto the completion of the various zoological works on which he wasengaged, and to the revision of materials he had brought back fromthe glacier. His habits with reference to physical exercise werevery irregular. He passed at once from the life of the mountaineerto that of the closet student. After weeks spent on the snow andice of the glacier, constantly on foot and in the open air, hewould shut himself up for a still longer time in his laboratory, motionless for hours at his microscope by day, and writing far intothe night, rarely leaving his work till long after midnight. He wasalso forced at this time to press forward his publications in thehope that he might have some return for the sums he had expendedupon them. This was indeed a very anxious period of his life. Hecould never be brought to believe that purely intellectual aimswere not also financially sound, and his lithographicestablishment, his glacier work, and his costly researches inzoology had proved far beyond his means. The prophecies of his oldfriend Humboldt were coming true. He was entangled in obligations, and crushed under the weight of his own undertakings. He began todoubt the possibility of carrying out his plan of a scientificjourney to the United States. 

AGASSIZ TO THE PRINCE OF CANINO. 

NEUCHATEL, April, 1843. 

. . . I have worked like a slave all winter to finish my fossilfishes; you will presently receive my fifteenth and sixteenthnumbers, forwarded two days since, with more than forty pages oftext, containing many new observations. I shall allow myself nointerruption until this work is finished, hoping thereby to obtaina little freedom, for if my position here is not changed I shall beforced to seek the means of existence elsewhere. Meantime, extravagant projects present themselves, as is apt to be the casewhen one is in difficulties. That of accompanying you to the UnitedStates was so tempting, that I am bitterly disappointed to thinkthat its execution becomes impossible in my present circumstances. All my projects for further publications must also be adjourned, orperhaps renounced. . . Possibly, when my work on the fossil fishesis completed, the sale of some additional copies may help me torise again. And yet I have not much hope of this, since all theattempts of my friends to obtain subscriptions for me in France andRussia have failed: because the French government takes no interestin what is done out of Paris; and in Russia such researches, havinglittle direct utility, are looked upon with indifference. Do youthink any position would be open to me in the United States, whereI might earn enough to enable me to continue the publication of myunhappy books; which never pay their way because they do not meetthe wants of the world?. . . 

In the following July we find him again upon the glacier. But thecampaign of 1843 opened sadly for the glacial party. Arriving atMeiringen they heard that Jacob Leuthold was ill and would probablybe unable to accompany them. They went to his house, and found him, indeed, the ghost of his former self, apparently in a rapiddecline. Nevertheless, he welcomed them gladly to his humble home, and would have kept them for some refreshment. Fearing to fatiguehim, however, they stayed but a few moments. As they left, one ofthe party pointed to the mountains, adding a hope that he mightsoon join them. His eyes filled with tears; it was his only answer, and he died three days later. He was but thirty-seven years of age, and at that time the most intrepid and the most intelligent of theOberland guides. His death was felt as a personal grief by the bandof workers whose steps he had for years guided over the mostdifficult Alpine passes. 

The summer's work continued and completed that of the last season. On leaving the glacier the year before they had marked a network ofloose boulders, such as travel with the ice, and also a number offixed points in the valley walls, comparing and registering theirdistance from each other. They had also sunk a line of stakesacross the glacier. The change in the relative position of the twosets of signals and the curve in their line of stakes gave them, self-recorded, as it were, the rate of advance of the glacier as awhole, and also the comparative rate of progression in itsdifferent parts. Great pains was also taken during the summer tomeasure the advance in every twenty-four hours, as well as tocompare the diurnal with the nocturnal movement, and to ascertainthe amount of surface waste. The season was an unfavorable one, beginning so late and continuing so cold that the period of workwas shortened. 

CHAPTER 12. 

1843-1846: AGE 36-39. 

Completion of Fossil Fishes. Followed by Fossil Fishes of the Old Red Sandstone. Review of the Later Work. Identification of Fishes by the Skull. Renewed Correspondence with Prince Canino about Journey to the United States. Change of Plan owing to the Interest of the King of Prussia in the Expedition. Correspondence between Professor Sedgwick and Agassiz on Development Theory. Final Scientific Work in Neuchatel and Paris. Publication of "Systeme Glaciaire. "Short Stay in England. Farewell Letter from Humboldt. Sails for United States. 

In 1843 the "Recherches sur les Poissons Fossiles" was completed, and fast upon its footsteps, in 1844, followed the author's"Monograph on the Fossil Fishes of the Old Red Sandstone, or theDevonian System of Great Britain and Russia, " a large quarto volumeof text, accompanied by forty-one plates. Nothing in hispaleontological studies ever interested Agassiz more than thiscurious fauna of the Old Red, so strange in its combinations thateven well-informed naturalists had attributed its fossil remains tovarious classes of the animal kingdom in turn, and, indeed, longremained in doubt as to their true nature. Agassiz says himself inhis Preface: "I can never forget the impression produced upon me bythe sight of these creatures, furnished with appendages resemblingwings, yet belonging, as I had satisfied myself, to the class offishes. Here was a type entirely new to us, about to reenter (forthe first time since it had ceased to exist) the series of beings;nor could anything, thus far revealed from extinct creations, haveled us to anticipate its existence. So true is it that observationalone is a safe guide to the laws of development of organizedbeings, and that we must be on our guard against all those systemsof transformation of species so lightly invented by theimagination. "

The author goes on to state that the discovery of these fossils wasmainly due to Hugh Miller, and that his own work had been confinedto the identification of their character and the determination oftheir relations to the already known fossil fishes. This work, upona type so extraordinary, implied, however, innumerable andreiterated comparisons, and a minute study of the least fragmentsof the remains which could be procured. The materials were chieflyobtained in Scotland; but Sir Roderick Murchison also contributedhis own collection from the Old Red of Russia, and various otherspecimens from the same locality. Not only on account of theirpeculiar structure were the fishes of the Old Red interesting toAgassiz, but also because, with this fauna, the vertebrate typetook its place for the first time in what were then supposed to bethe most ancient fossiliferous beds. When Agassiz first began hisresearches on fossil fishes, no vertebrate form had been discoveredbelow the coal. The occurrence of fishes in the Devonian andSilurian beds threw the vertebrate type back, as he believed, intoline with all the invertebrate classes, and seemed to him to showthat the four great types of the animal kingdom, Radiates, Mollusks, Articulates, and Vertebrates, had appeared together. * (*Introduction to the "Poissons Fossiles de Vieux Gres Rouge" page22. ) "It is henceforth demonstrated, " says Agassiz, "that thefishes were included in the plan of the first organic combinationswhich made the point of departure for all the living inhabitants ofour globe in the series of time. "

In his opinion this simultaneity of appearance, as well as therichness and variety displayed by invertebrate classes from thebeginning, made it* (* Introduction to the "Poissons Fossiles duVieux Gres Rouge" page 21. ) "impossible to refer the firstinhabitants of the earth to a few stocks, subsequentlydifferentiated under the influence of external conditions ofexistence. ". . . He adds:* (* Introduction to the "Poissons Fossilesde Vieux Gres Rouge" page 24. ) "I have elsewhere presented my viewsupon the development through which the successive creations havepassed during the history of our planet. But what I wish to provehere, by a careful discussion of the facts reported in thefollowing pages, is the truth of the law now so clearlydemonstrated in the series of vertebrates, that the successivecreations have undergone phases of development analogous to thoseof the embryo in its growth and similar to the gradations shown bythe present creation in the ascending series, which it presents asa whole. One may consider it as henceforth proved that the embryoof the fish during its development, the class of fishes as it atpresent exists in its numerous families, and the type of fish inits planetary history, exhibit analogous phases through which onemay follow the same creative thought like a guiding thread in thestudy of the connection between organized beings. " Following thiscomparison closely, he shows how the early embryonic condition ofthe present fishes is recalled by the general disposition of thefins in the fishes of the Old Red Sandstone, and especially by thecaudal fin, making the unevenly lobed tail, so characteristic ofthese ancient forms. This so called heterocercal tail is only knownto exist, as a permanent adult feature, in the sturgeons of to-day. The form of the head and the position of the mouth and eyes in thefishes of the Old Red were also shown to be analogous withembryonic phases of our present fishes. From these analogies, andalso from the ascendancy of fishes as the only known vertebrate, and therefore as the highest type in those ancient deposits, Agassiz considered this fauna as representing "the embryonic age ofthe reign of fishes;" and he sums up his results in conclusion inthe following words: "The facts, taken as a whole, seem to me toshow, not only that the fishes of the Old Red constitute anindependent fauna, distinct from those of other deposits, but thatthey also represent in their organization the most remarkableanalogy with the first phases of embryonic development in the bonyfishes of our epoch, and a no less marked parallelism with thelower degrees of certain types of the class as it now exists on thesurface of the earth. "

It has been said by one of the biographers of Agassiz, * (* "LouisAgassiz: Notice biographique" par Ernest Favre. ) in reference tothis work upon the fishes of the Old Red Sandstone: "It isdifficult to understand why the results of these admirableresearches, and of later ones made by him, did not in themselveslead him to support the theory of transformation, of which theyseem the natural consequence. " It is true that except for thefrequent allusion to a creative thought or plan, this introductionto the Fishes of the Old Red might seem to be written by anadvocate of the development theory rather than by its mostdetermined opponent, so much does it deal with laws of the organicworld, now used in support of evolution. These comprehensive laws, announced by Agassiz in his "Poissons Fossiles, " and afterwardconstantly reiterated by him, have indeed been adopted by thewriters on evolution, though with a wholly differentinterpretation. No one saw more clearly than Agassiz the relationwhich he first pointed out, between the succession of animals ofthe same type in time and the phases of their embryonic growthto-day, and he often said, in his lectures, "the history of theindividual is the history of the type. " But the coincidence betweenthe geological succession, the embryonic development, thezoological gradation, and the geographical distribution of animalsin the past and the present, rested, according to his belief, uponan intellectual coherence and not upon a material connection. So, also, the variability, as well as the constancy, of organizedbeings, at once so plastic and so inflexible, seemed to himcontrolled by something more than the mechanism of self-adjustingforces. In this conviction he remained unshaken all his life, although the development theory came up for discussion under somany various aspects during that time. His views are now in thedescending scale; but to give them less than their real prominencehere would be to deprive his scientific career of its true basis. Belief in a Creator was the keynote of his study of nature. 

In summing up the comprehensive results of Agassiz'spaleontological researches, and especially of his "Fossil Fishes, "Arnold Guyot says:* (* See "Biographical Memoir of Louis Agassiz"page 28. )--"Whatever be the opinions which many may entertain as tothe interpretation of some of these generalizations, the vastimportance of these results of Agassiz's studies may be appreciatedby the incontestable fact, that nearly all the questions whichmodern paleontology has treated are here raised and in greatmeasure solved. They already form a code of general laws which hasbecome a foundation for the geological history of the life-system, and which the subsequent investigations of science have onlymodified and extended, not destroyed. Nowhere did the mind ofAgassiz show more power of generalization, more vigor, or moreoriginality. The discovery of these great truths is truly his work;he derived them immediately from nature by his own observations. Hence it is that all his later zoological investigations tend to acommon aim, namely, to give by farther studies, equallyconscientious but more extensive, a broader and more solid basis tothose laws which he had read in nature and which he had proclaimedat that early date in his immortal work, 'Poissons Fossiles. ' Letus not be astonished that he should have remained faithful to theseviews to the end of his life. It is because he had SEEN that heBELIEVED, and such a faith is not easily shaken by new hypotheses. "

LOUIS AGASSIZ TO SIR PHILIP EGERTON. 

NEUCHATEL, September 7, 1844. 

. . . I write in all haste to ask for any address to which I cansafely forward my report on the Sheppy fishes, so that they mayarrive without fail in time for the meeting at York. Since my lastletter I have made progress in this kind of research. I havesacrificed all my duplicates of our present fishes to furnishskeletons. I have prepared more than a hundred since I last wroteyou, and I can now determine the family, and even the genus, simplyby seeing the skull. There remains nothing impossible now in thedetermination of fishes, and if I can obtain certain exotic genera, which I have not as yet, I can make an osteology of fishes ascomplete as that which we possess for the other classes ofvertebrates. Every family has its special type of skull. All thisis extremely interesting. I have already corrected a mass ofinaccurate identifications established upon external characters;and as for fossils, I have recognized and characterized seventeennew genera among the less perfect undetermined specimens you havesent me. Several families appear now for the first time among thefossils. I have been able to determine to what family all thedoubtful genera belong; indeed Sheppy will prove as rich in speciesas Mont Bolca. When you see your specimens again you will hardlyrecognize them, they are so changed; I have chiseled and cleanedthem, until they are almost like anatomical preparations. Try toprocure as many more specimens as possible and send them to me. Icannot stir from Neuchatel, now that I am so fully in the spirit ofwork, and besides it would be a useless expense. . . You willreceive with my report the three numbers which complete mymonograph of the Fishes of the Old Red. I feel sure, in advance, that you will be satisfied with them. . . 

SIR PHILIP EGERTON TO LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

TOLLY HOUSE, ALNESS, ROSS-SHIRE. September 15, 1844. 

. . . I have only this day received your letter of the 6th, and Ifear much you will scarcely receive this in time to make itavailable. I shall not be able to reach York for the commencementof the meeting, but hope to be there on Saturday, September 28th. Aparcel will reach me in the shortest possible time addressed Sir P. Egerton, Donnington Rectory, York. I am delighted with the brightresults of your comparison of the Sheppy fossils with recent forms. You appear to have opened out an entirely new field ofinvestigation, likely to be productive of most brilliant results. Should any accident delay the arrival of your monograph for theYork meeting, I shall make a point of communicating to ourscientific friends the contents of your letter, as I know they willrejoice to hear of the progress of fossil ichthyology in yourmasterly hands. When next you come, I wish you could spend a fewdays here. We are surrounded on all sides by the debris of themoraines of the ancient glaciers that descended the flank of BenWyvis, and I think you would find much to interest you in tracingtheir relations. We have also the Cromarty Fish-beds within a fewmiles, and many other objects of geological interest. . . I shallsee Lord Enniskillen at York, and will tell him of your success. Weshall, of course, procure all the Sheppy fish we can either bypurchase or exchange. . . 

The pressure of work upon his various publications detained Agassizat home during the summer of 1844. For the first time he was unableto make one of the glacial party this year, but the work wascarried on uninterruptedly, and the results reported to him. Meantime his contemplated journey to the United States flittedconstantly before him. 

AGASSIZ TO THE PRINCE OF CANINO. 

NEUCHATEL, November 19, 1844. 

. . . Your idea of an illustrated American ichthyology is admirable. But for that we ought to have with us an artist clever enough topaint fishes rapidly from the life. Work but half done is no longerpermissible in our days. . . In this matter I think there is ajustice due to Rafinesque. However poor his descriptions, henevertheless first recognized the necessity of multiplying generain ichthyology, and that at a time when the thing was far moredifficult than now. Several of his genera have even the priorityover those now accepted, and I think in the United States it wouldbe easier than elsewhere to find again a part of the materials onwhich he worked. We must not neglect from this time forth to askAmericans to put us in the way of extending this work throughoutNorth America. If you accept me for your collaborator, I will atonce do all that I can on my side to bring together notes andspecimens. I will write to several naturalists in the UnitedStates, and tell them that as I am to accompany you on your voyageI should be glad to know in advance what they have done inichthyology, so that we may be the better prepared to profit by ourshort sojourn in their country. However, I will do nothing beforehaving your directions, which, for the sake of the matter in hand, I should be glad to receive as early as possible. . . 

The next letter announces a new aspect of the projected journey. Inexplanation, it should be said that finding Agassiz might beprevented by his poverty from going, the prince had invited him tobe his guest for a summer in the United States. 

AGASSIZ TO THE PRINCE OF CANINO. 

NEUCHATEL, January 7, 1845. 

. . . I have received an excellent piece of news from Humboldt, which I hasten to share with you. I venture to believe that it willplease you also. . . I had written to Humboldt of our plans, and ofyour kind offer to take me with you to the United States, tellinghim at the same time how much I regretted that I should be unableto visit the regions which attracted me the most from a geologicalpoint of view, and asking him if it would be possible to interestthe king in this journey and obtain means from his majesty for alonger stay on the other side of the Atlantic. I have just receiveda delightful and most unexpected reply. The king will grant me 15, 000 francs for this object, so that I shall, in any event, be ableto make the journey. All the more do I desire to make it in yoursociety, and I think by combining our forces we shall obtain moreimportant results; but I am glad that I can do it without being aburden to you. Before answering Humboldt, I am anxious to knowwhether your plans are definitely decided upon for this summer, andwhether this arrangement suits you. . . 

The pleasant plan so long meditated was not to be fulfilled. Theprince was obliged to defer the journey and never accomplished it. This was a great disappointment to Agassiz. 

"Am I then to go without you, " he writes; "is this irrevocable? IfI were to defer my departure till September would it then bepossible for you to leave Rome? It would be too delightful if wecould make this journey together. I wish also, before starting, toreview everything that has been done of late in paleontology, zoology, and comparative anatomy, that I may, in behalf of allthese sciences, take advantage of the circumstances in which Ishall be placed. . . Whatever befalls me, I feel that I shall nevercease to consecrate my whole energy to the study of nature; its allpowerful charm has taken such possession of me that I shall alwayssacrifice everything to it; even the things which men usually valuemost. "

Agassiz had determined, before starting on his journey, to completeall his unfinished works, and to put in order his correspondenceand collections, including the vast amount of specimens sent himfor identification or for his own researches. The task of "settinghis house in order" for a change which, perhaps, he dimly felt tobe more momentous than it seemed, proved long and laborious. Fromall accounts, he performed prodigies of work, but the winter andspring passed, and the summer of 1845 found him still at his post. 

Humboldt writes him not without anxiety lest his determination tocomplete all the tasks he had undertaken, including theNomenclator, should involve him in endless delays and perplexities. 

HUMBOLDT TO AGASSIZ. 

BERLIN, September 16, 1845. 

. . . Your Nomenclator frightens me with its double entries. TheMilky Way must have crossed your path, for you seem to be dealingwith nebulae which you are trying to resolve into stars. For pity'ssake husband your strength. You treat this journey as if it werefor life. As to finishing, --alas! my friend, one does not finish. Considering all that you have in your well-furnished brain besideyour accumulated papers, half the contents of which you do notyourself know, your expression "aufraumen, "--to put in final order, is singularly inappropriate. There will always remain someburdensome residue, --last things not yet accounted for. I beg you, then, not to abuse your strength. Be content to finish only whatseems to you nearest completion, --the most advanced of your work. 

Your letter reached me, unaccompanied, however, by the books itannounces. They are to come, no doubt, in some other way. Spite ofthe demands made upon me by the continuation of my "Cosmos, " Ishall find time to read and profit by your introduction to the OldRed. I am inclined to sing hymns of praise to the Hyperboreans whohave helped you in this admirable work. What you say of thespecific difference in vertical line and of the increased number ofbiological epochs is full of interest and wisdom. No wonder yourebel against the idea that the Baltic contains microscopic animalsidentical with those of the chalk! I foresee, however, a new battleof Waterloo between you and my friend Ehrenberg, who accompanied melately, just after the Victoria festivals, to the volcanoes of theEifel with Dechen. Not an inch of ground without infusoria in thoseregions! For Heaven's sake do not meddle with the infusoria beforeyou have seen the Canada Lakes and completed your journey. Deferthem till some more tranquil period of your life. . . I must closemy letter with the hope that you will never doubt my warmaffection. Assuredly I shall find no fault with any course oflectures you may give in the new world, nor do I see the leastobjection to giving them for money. You can thus propagate yourfavorite views and spread useful knowledge, while at the same timeyou will, by most honorable and praiseworthy means, provideadditional funds for your traveling expenses. . . 

The following correspondence with Professor Adam Sedgwick is ofinterest, as showing his attitude and that of Agassiz towardquestions which have since acquired a still greater scientificimportance. 

PROFESSOR ADAM SEDGWICK TO LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

TRINITY COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE, April 10, 1845. 

MY DEAR PROFESSOR, The British Association is to meet here about the middle of June, and I trust that the occasion will again bring you to England andgive me the great happiness of entertaining you in Trinity College. Indeed, I wish very much to see you; for many years have nowelapsed since I last had that pleasure. May God long preserve yourlife, which has been spent in promoting the great ends of truth andknowledge! Your great work on fossil fishes is now before me, and Ialso possess the first number of your monograph upon the fishes ofthe Old Red Sandstone. I trust the new numbers will follow thefirst in rapid succession. I love now and then to find aresting-place; and your works always give me one. The opinions ofGeoffroy St. Hilaire and his dark school seem to be gaining someground in England. I detest them, because I think them untrue. Theyshut out all argument from DESIGN and all notion of a CreativeProvidence, and in so doing they appear to me to deprive physiologyof its life and strength, and language of its beauty and meaning. Iam as much offended in taste by the turgid mystical bombast ofGeoffroy as I am disgusted by his cold and irrational materialism. When men of his school talk of the elective affinity of organictypes, I hear a jargon I cannot comprehend, and I turn from it indisgust; and when they talk of spontaneous generation andtransmutation of species, they seem to me to try nature by anhypothesis, and not to try their hypothesis by nature. Where aretheir facts on which to form an inductive truth? I deny theirstarting condition. "Oh! but" they reply, "we have progressivedevelopment in geology. " Now, I allow (as all geologists must do) aKIND OF PROGRESSIVE DEVELOPMENT. For example, the first fish arebelow the reptiles; and the first reptiles older than man. I say, we have successive forms of animal life adapted to successiveconditions (so far, proving design), and not derived in naturalsuccession in the ordinary way of generation. But if no single factin actual nature allows us to suppose that the new species andorders were produced successively in the natural way, how did theybegin? I reply, by a way out of and above common known, materialnature, and this way I call CREATION. Generation and creation aretwo distinct ideas, and must be described by two distinct words, unless we wish to introduce utter confusion of thought andlanguage. In this view I think you agree with me; for I spoke toyou on the subject when we met (alas, TEN years since!) at Dublin. Would you have the great kindness to give me your most valuableopinion on one or two points?

(1. ) Is it possible, according to the known laws of actual nature, or is it probable, on any analogies of nature, that the vast seriesof fish, from those of the Ludlow rock and the Old Red Sandstone tothose of our actual seas, lakes, and rivers, are derived from onecommon original low type, in the way of development and bypropagation or natural breeding? I should say, NO. But my knowledgeis feeble and at second-hand. Yours is strong and from thefountain-head. 

(2. ) Is the organic type of fish higher now than it was during thecarboniferous period, when the Sauroids so much abounded? If theprogressive theory of Geoffroy be true, in his sense, each class ofanimals ought to be progressive in its organic type. It appears tome that this is not true. Pray tell me your own views on thispoint. 

(3. ) There are "ODD FISH" (as we say in jest) in the Old RedSandstone. Do these so graduate into crustaceans as to formanything like such an organic link that one could, by generation, come naturally from the other? I should say, NO, being instructedby your labors. Again, allowing this, for the sake of argument, arethere not much higher types of fish which are contemporaneous withthe lower types (if, indeed, they be lower), and do not thesenobler fish of the Old Red Sandstone stultify the hypothesis ofnatural generative development?

(4. ) Will you give me, in a few general words, your views of thescale occupied by the fish of the Old Red, considered as a naturalgroup? Are they so rudimentary as to look like abortions orcreatures derived from some inferior class, which have not yet bydevelopment reached the higher type of fish? Again, I should say, NO; but I long for an answer from a great authority like yours. Iam most anxious for a good general conception of the fish of theOld Red, with reference to some intelligible scale. 

(5. ) Lastly, is there the shadow of ground for supposing that byany natural generative development the Ichthyosaurians and otherkindred forms of reptile have come from Sauroid, or any other typeof fish? I believe you will say, NO. At any rate, the facts ofgeology lend no support to such a view, for the nobler forms ofReptile appear in strata below those in which the Ichthyosaurians, etc. , are first seen. But I must not trouble you with morequestions. Professor Whewell is now Master of Trinity College. Weshall all rejoice to see you. 

Ever, my dear Professor, your most faithful and most gratefulfriend, A. SEDGWICK. 

FROM LOUIS AGASSIZ TO A. SEDGWICK. 

NEUCHATEL, June, 1845. 

. . . I reproach myself for not acknowledging at once your mostinteresting letter of April 10th. But you will easily understandthat in the midst of the rush of work consequent upon mypreparation for a journey of several years' duration I have notnoticed the flight of time since I received it, until to-day, whenthe sight of the date fills me with confusion. And yet, for years, I have not received a letter which has given me greater pleasure ormoved me more deeply. I have felt in it and have received from itthat vigor of conviction which gives to all you say or write avirile energy, captivating alike to the listener or the reader. Like you, I am pained by the progress of certain tendencies in thedomain of the natural sciences; it is not only the arid characterof this philosophy of nature (and by this I mean, not NATURALPHILOSOPHY, but the "Natur-philosophie" of the Germans and French)which alarms me. I dread quite as much the exaggeration ofreligious fanaticism, borrowing fragments from science, imperfectlyor not at all understood, and then making use of them to prescribeto scientific men what they are allowed to see or to find inNature. Between these two extremes it is difficult to follow a saferoad. The reason is, perhaps, that the domain of facts has not yetreceived a sufficiently general recognition, while traditionalbeliefs still have too much influence upon the study of thesciences. 

Wishing to review such ideas as I had formed upon these questions, I gave a public course this winter upon the plan of creation asshown in the development of the animal kingdom. I wish I could sendit to you, for I think it might please you. Unhappily, I had notime to write it out, and have not even an outline of it. But Iintend to work further upon this subject and make a book upon itone of these days. If I speak of it to-day it is because in thiscourse I have treated all the questions upon which you ask myopinion. Let me answer them here after a somewhat aphoristicfashion. 

I find it impossible to attribute the biological phenomena, whichhave been and still are going on upon the surface of our globe, tothe simple action of physical forces. I believe they are due, intheir entirety, as well as individually, to the direct interventionof a creative power, acting freely and in an autonomic way. . . Ihave tried to make this intentional plan in the organization of theanimal kingdom evident, by showing that the differences betweenanimals do not constitute a material chain, analogous to a seriesof physical phenomena, bound together by the same law, but presentthemselves rather as the phases of a thought, formulated accordingto a definite aim. I think we know enough of comparative anatomy toabandon forever the idea of the transformation of the organs of onetype into those of another. The metamorphoses of certain animals, and especially of insects, so often cited in support of this idea, prove, by the fixity with which they repeat themselves ininnumerable species, exactly the contrary. In the persistency ofthese metamorphoses, distinct for each species and known to repeatthemselves annually in a hundred thousand species, and to have doneso ever since the present order of things was established on theearth, have we not the most direct proof that the diversity oftypes is not due to external natural influences? I have followedthis idea in all the types of the animal kingdom. I have also triedto show the direct intervention of a creative power in thegeographical distribution of organized beings on the surface of theglobe when the species are definitely circumscribed. As evidence ofthe fixity of generic types and the existence of a higher and freecausal power, I have made use of a method which appears to me newas a process of reasoning. The series of reptiles, for instance, inthe family of lizards, shows apodal forms, forms with rudimentaryfeet, then with a successively larger number of fingers until wereach, by seemingly insensible gradations, the genera Anguis, Ophisaurus, and Pseudopus, the Chamosauria, Chirotes, Bipes, Sepo, Scincus, and at last the true lizards. It would seem to anyreasonable man that these types are the transformations of a singleprimitive type, so closely do the modifications approach eachother; and yet I now reject any such supposition, and after havingstudied the facts most thoroughly, I find in them a direct proof ofthe creation of all these species. It must not be forgotten thatthe genus Anguis belongs to Europe, the Ophisaurus to NorthAmerica, the Pseudopus to Dalmatia and the Caspian steppe, the Sepoto Italy, etc. Now, I ask how portions of the earth so absolutelydistinct could have combined to form a continuous zoologicalseries, now so strikingly distributed, and whether the idea of thisdevelopment could have started from any other source than acreative purpose manifested in space? These same purposes, thissame constancy in the employment of means toward a final end, maybe read still more clearly in the study of the fossils of thedifferent creations. The species of all the creations arematerially and genealogically as distinct from each other as thoseof the different points on the surface of the globe. I havecompared hundreds of species reputed identical in varioussuccessive deposits, --species which are always quoted in favor of atransition, however indirect, from one group of species to another, --and I have always found marked specific differences between them. In a few weeks I will send you a paper which I have just printed onthis subject, where it seems to me this view is very satisfactorilyproved. The idea of a procreation of new species by preceding onesis a gratuitous supposition opposed to all sound physiologicalnotions. And yet it is true that, taken as a whole, there is agradation in the organized beings of successive geologicalformations, and that the end and aim of this development is theappearance of man. But this serial connection of all successivecreatures is not material; taken singly these groups of speciesshow no relation through intermediate forms genetically derived onefrom the other. The connection between them becomes evident onlywhen they are considered as a whole emanating from a creativepower, the author of them all. To your special questions I may nowvery briefly reply. 

Have fishes descended from a primitive type? So far am I fromthinking this possible, that I do not believe there is a singlespecimen of fossil or living fish, whether marine or fresh-water, that has not been created with reference to a special intention anda definite aim, even though we may be able to detect but a portionof these numerous relations and of the essential purpose. 

Are the present fishes superior to the older ones? As a generalproposition, I would say, NO; it seems to me even that the fisheswhich preceded the appearance of reptiles in the plan of creationwere higher in certain characters than those which succeeded them;and it is a strange fact that these ancient fishes have somethinganalogous with reptiles, which had not then made their appearance. One would say that they already existed in the creative thought, and that their coming, not far removed, was actually anticipated. 

Can the fishes of the Old Red be considered the embryos of those oflater epochs? Of course they are the first types of the vertebrateseries, including the most ancient of the Silurian system; but theyeach constitute an independent fauna, as numerous in the placeswhere these earlier fishes are found, as the present fishes in anyarea of similar extent on our sea-shore to-day. I now know onehundred and four species of fossil fish from the Old Red, belongingto forty-four genera, comprised under seven families, betweenseveral of which there is but little analogy as to organization. Itis therefore impossible to look upon them as coming from oneprimitive stock. The primitive diversity of these types is quite asremarkable as that of those belonging to later epochs. It isnevertheless true that, regarded as part of the general plan ofcreation, this fauna presents itself as an inferior type of thevertebrate series, connecting itself directly in the creativethought with the realization of later forms, the last of which (andthis seems to me to have been the general end of creation) was toplace man at the head of organized beings as the key-stone and termof the whole series, the final point in the premeditated intentionof the primitive plan which has been carried out progressively inthe course of time. I would even say that I believe the creation ofman has closed creation on this earth, and I draw this conclusionfrom the fact that the human genus is the first cosmopolite type inNature. One may even affirm that man is clearly announced in thephases of organic development of the animal kingdom as the finalterm of this series. 

Lastly: Is there any reason to believe that the Ichthyosaurians aredescendants of the Sauroid fishes which preceded the appearance ofthese reptiles? Not the least. I should consider any naturalist whowould seriously present the question in this light as incapable ofdiscussing it or judging it. He would place himself outside of thefacts and would reason from a basis of his own creating. . . 

In the "Revue Suisse" of April, 1845, there is a notice of thecourse of lectures to which reference is made in the above letter. 

"A numerous audience assembled on the 26th of March for the openingof a course by Professor Agassiz on the 'Plan of Creation. ' It iswith an ever new pleasure that our public come together to listento this savant, still so young and already so celebrated. Notcontent with pursuing in seclusion his laborious scientificinvestigations, he makes a habit of communicating, almost annually, to an audience less restricted than that of the Academy the generalresult of some of his researches. All the qualities to which Mr. Agassiz has accustomed his listeners were found in the openingprelude; the fullness and freedom of expression which give to hislectures the character of a scientific causerie; the dignified easeof bearing, joined with the simplicity and candor of a savant whoteaches neither by aphorisms nor oracles, but who frankly admitsthe public to the results of his researches; the power ofgeneralization always based upon a patient study of facts, which heknows how to present with remarkable clearness in a language thatall can understand. We will not follow the professor in tracing theoutlines of his course. Suffice it to say that he intends to showin the general development of the animal kingdom the existence of adefinite preconceived plan, successively carried out; in otherwords, the manifestation of a higher thought, --the thought of God. This creative thought may be studied under three points of view: asshown in the relations which, spite of their manifold diversity, connect all the species now living on the surface of the globe; intheir geographical distribution; and in the succession of beingsfrom primitive epochs until the present condition of things. "

The summer of 1845 was the last which Agassiz passed at home. Itwas broken by a short and hurried visit to the glacier of the Aar, respecting which no details have been preserved. He did not thenknow that he was taking a final leave of his cabin among the rocksand ice. Affairs connected with the welfare of the institution inNeuchatel, with which he had been so long connected, still detainedhim for a part of the winter, and he did not leave for Paris untilthe first week in March, 1846. His wife and daughters had alreadypreceded him to Germany, where he was to join them again on his wayto Paris, and where they were to pass the period of his absence, under the care of his brother-in-law, Mr. Alexander Braun, thenliving at Carlsruhe. His son was to remain at school at Neuchatel. 

It was two o'clock at night when he left his home of so many years. There had been a general sadness at the thought of his departure, and every testimony of affection and respect accompanied him. Thestudents came in procession with torch-lights to give him a partingserenade, and many of his friends and colleagues were also presentto bid him farewell. M. Louis Favre says in his Memoir, "Great wasthe emotion at Neuchatel when the report was spread abroad thatAgassiz was about to leave for a long journey. It is true hepromised to come back, but the New World might shower upon him suchmarvels that his return could hardly be counted upon. The youngpeople, the students, regretted their beloved professor not onlyfor his scientific attainments, but for his kindly disposition, thecharm of his eloquence, the inspiration of his teaching; theyregretted also the gay, animated, untiring companion of theirexcursions, who made them acquainted with nature, and knew so wellhow to encourage and interest them in their studies. "

Pausing at Carlsruhe on his journey, he proceeded thence to Paris, where he was welcomed with the greatest cordiality by scientificmen. In recognition of his work on the "Fossil Fishes" the MonthyonPrize of Physiology was awarded him by the Academy. He felt thisdistinction the more because the bearing of such investigationsupon experimental physiology had never before been pointed out, andit showed that he had succeeded in giving a new direction and amore comprehensive character to paleontological research. He passedsome months in Paris, busily occupied with the publication of the"Systeme Glaciaire, " his second work on the glacial phenomena. The"Etudes sur les Glaciers" had simply contained a resume of all theresearches undertaken upon the Alpine fields of ice and the resultsobtained up to 1840, inclusive of the author's own work and hiswider interpretation of the facts. The "Systeme Glaciaire" was, onthe contrary, an account of a connected plan of investigationduring a succession of years, upon a single glacier, with itsgeodetic and topographic features, its hydrography, its internalstructure, its atmospheric conditions, its rate of annual anddiurnal progress, and its relations to surrounding glaciers. Allthe local phenomena, so far as they could be observed, weresubjected to a strict scrutiny, and the results corrected bycareful comparison, during five seasons. As we have seen, and asAgassiz himself says in his Preface, this band of workers had"lived in the intimacy of the glacier, striving to draw from it thesecret of its formation and its annual advance. " The work wasaccompanied by three maps and nine plates. In such a volume ofdetail there is no room for picturesque description, and little istold of the wonderful scenes they witnessed by day and night, nothing of personal peril and adventure. 

This task concluded, he went to England, where he was to spend thefew remaining days previous to his departure. Among the last wordsof farewell which reached him just as he was leaving the Old World, little thinking then that he was to make a permanent home inAmerica, were these lines from Humboldt, written at Sans Souci: "Behappy in this new undertaking, and preserve for me the first placeunder the head of friendship in your heart. When you return I shallbe here no more, but the king and queen will receive you on this'historic hill' with the affection which, for so many reasons, youmerit. . . "

"Your illegible but much attached friend, "A. HUMBOLDT. "

So closed this period of Agassiz's life. The next was to open innew scenes, under wholly different conditions. He sailed forAmerica in September, 1846. 

PART 2. 

IN AMERICA. 

CHAPTER 13. 

1846: AGE 39. 

Arrival at Boston. Previous Correspondence with Charles Lyell and Mr. John A. Lowell concerning Lectures at the Lowell Institute. Relations with Mr. Lowell. First Course of Lectures. Character of Audience. Home Letter giving an Account of his first Journey in the United States. Impressions of Scientific Men, Scientific Institutions and Collections. 

AGASSIZ arrived in Boston during the first week of October, 1846. He had not come to America without some prospect of employmentbeside that comprised in his immediate scientific aims. In 1845, when his plans for a journey in the United States began to takedefinite shape, he had written to ask Lyell whether, notwithstanding his imperfect English, he might not have somechance as a public lecturer, hoping to make in that way additionalprovision for his scientific expenses beyond the allowance he wasto receive from the King of Prussia. Lyell's answer, written by hiswife, was very encouraging. 

LONDON, February 28, 1845. 

. . . My husband thinks your plan of lecturing a very good one, andsure to succeed, for the Americans are fond of that kind ofinstruction. We remember your English was pleasant, and if you havebeen practicing since, you have probably gained facility inexpression, and a little foreign accent would be no drawback. Youmight give your lectures in several cities, but he would like verymuch if you could give a course at the Lowell Institute at Boston, an establishment which pays very highly. . . In six weeks you mightearn enough to pay for a twelve months' tour, besides passing anagreeable time at Boston, where there are several eminentnaturalists. . . As my husband is writing to Mr. Lowell to-morrowupon other matters, he will ask him whether there is any course stillopen, for he feels sure in that case they would be glad to haveyou. . . Mr. Lowell is sole trustee of the Institute, and can nominatewhom he pleases. It was very richly endowed for the purpose oflectures by a merchant of Boston, who died a few years ago. Youwill get nothing like the same remuneration anywhere else. . . 

Lyell and Mr. Lowell soon arranged all preliminaries, and it wasunderstood that Agassiz should begin his tour in the United Statesby a course of lectures in Boston before the Lowell Institute. Amonth or two before sailing he writes as follows to Mr. Lowell. 

PARIS, July 6, 1846. 

. . . Time is pressing, summer is running away, and I feel it a dutyto write to you about the contemplated lectures, that you may notbe uncertain about them. So far as the subject is concerned, I amquite ready; all the necessary illustrations are also completed, and if I am not mistaken they must by this time be in your hands. . . I understand from Mr. Lyell that you wish me to lecture inOctober. For this also I am quite prepared, as I shall, immediatelyafter my arrival in Boston, devote all my time to the considerationof my course. If a later date should suit your plans better, I haveno objection to conform to any of your arrangements, as I shall atall events pass the whole winter on the shores of the Atlantic, andbe everywhere in reach of Boston in a very short time. . . With yourapprobation, I would give to my course the title of "Lectures onthe Plan of the Creation, especially in the Animal Kingdom. "

Thus was Agassiz introduced to the institution under whose auspiceshe first made acquaintance with his American audiences. There hebecame a familiar presence during more than a quarter of a century. The enthusiastic greeting accorded to him, as a stranger whosereputation had preceded him, ripened with years into anaffectionate welcome from friends and fellow-citizens, whenever heappeared on the platform. In the director of the institution, Mr. John A. Lowell, he found a friend upon whose sympathy and wisecounsels he relied in all his after years. The cordial reception hemet from him and his large family circle made him at once at homein a strange land. 

Never was Agassiz's power as a teacher, or the charm of hispersonal presence more evident than in his first course of LowellLectures. He was unfamiliar with the language, to the easy use ofwhich his two or three visits in England, where most of hisassociates understood and spoke French, had by no means accustomedhim. He would often have been painfully embarrassed but for his ownsimplicity of character. Thinking only of his subject and never ofhimself, when a critical pause came, he patiently waited for themissing word, and rarely failed to find a phrase which wasexpressive if not technically correct. He often said afterward thathis sole preparation for these lectures consisted in shuttinghimself up for hours and marshaling his vocabulary, passing inreview, that is, all the English words he could recall. As theLyells had prophesied, his foreign accent rather added a charm tohis address, and the pauses in which he seemed to ask theforbearance of the audience, while he sought to translate histhought for them, enlisted their sympathy. Their courtesy neverfailed him. His skill in drawing with chalk on the blackboard wasalso a great help both to him and to them. When his English was atfault he could nevertheless explain his meaning by illustrations sographic that the spoken word was hardly missed. He said of himselfthat he was no artist, and that his drawing was accurate simplybecause the object existed in his mind so clearly. However this maybe, it was always pleasant to watch the effect of his drawings onthe audience. When showing, for instance, the correspondence of thearticulate type, as a whole, with the metamorphoses of the higherinsects, he would lead his listeners along the successive phases ofinsect development, talking as he drew and drawing as he talked, till suddenly the winged creature stood declared upon theblackboard, almost as if it had burst then and there from thechrysalis, and the growing interest of his hearers culminated in aburst of delighted applause. 

After the first lecture in Boston there was no doubt of hissuccess. He carried his audience captive. His treatment of theanimal kingdom on the broad basis of the comparative method, inwhich the great types were shown in their relation to each otherand to the physical history of the world, was new to his hearers. Agassiz had also the rare gift of divesting his subject oftechnicalities and superfluous details. His special facts neverobscured the comprehensive outline, which they were intended tofill in and illustrate. 

This simplicity of form and language was especially adapted to theaudience he had now to address, little instructed in the facts orthe nomenclature of science, though characterized by an eagercuriosity. A word respecting the quality of the Lowell Instituteaudience of those days, as new to the European professor as he tothem, is in place here. The institution was intended by its founderto fertilize the general mind rather than to instruct the selectedfew. It was liberally endowed, the entrance was free, and thetickets were drawn by lot. Consequently the working men and womenhad as good an opportunity for places as their employers. As theremuneration, however, was generous, and the privilege of lecturingthere was coveted by literary and scientific men of the firsteminence, the instruction was of a high order, and the tickets, notto be had for money, were as much in demand with the morecultivated and even with the fashionable people of the community aswith their poorer neighbors. This audience, composed of stronglycontrasted elements and based upon purely democratic principles, had, from the first, a marked attraction for Agassiz. A teacher inthe widest sense, he sought and found his pupils in every class. But in America for the first time did he come into contact with thegeneral mass of the people on this common ground, and it influencedstrongly his final resolve to remain in this country. Indeed, thesecret of his greatest power was to be found in the sympathetic, human side of his character. Out of his broad humanity grew thegenial personal influence, by which he awakened the enthusiasm ofhis audiences for unwonted themes, inspired his students todisinterested services like his own, delighted children in theschool-room, and won the cordial interest as well as thecooperation in the higher aims of science, of all classes whetherrich or poor. 

His first course was to be given in December. Having, therefore, afew weeks to spare, he made a short journey, stopping at New Havento see the elder Silliman, with whom he had long been incorrespondence. Shortly before leaving Europe he had written him, "I can hardly tell you with what pleasure I look forward to seeingyou, and making the personal acquaintance of the distinguishedsavans of your country, whose works I have lately been studyingwith especial care. There is something captivating in theprodigious activity of the Americans, and the thought of contactwith the superior men of your young and glorious republic renews myown youth. " Some account of this journey, including his firstimpressions of the scientific men as well as the scientificsocieties and collections of the United States, is given in thefollowing letter. It is addressed to his mother, and with her to asocial club of intimate friends and neighbors in Neuchatel, atwhose meetings he had been for years an honored guest. 

BOSTON, December, 1846. 

. . . Having no time to write out a complete account of my journeyof last month, I will only transcribe for you some fugitive notesscribbled along the road in stages or railroad carriages. They bearthe stamp of hurry and constant interruption. 

Leaving Boston the 16th of October, I went by railroad to NewHaven, passing through Springfield. The rapidity of the locomotionis frightful to those who are unused to it, but you adapt yourselfto the speed, and soon become, like all the rest of the world, impatient of the slightest delay. I well understand that anantipathy for this mode of travel is possible. There is somethinginfernal in the irresistible power of steam, carrying such heavymasses along with the swiftness of lightning. The habits growingout of continued contact with railroads, and the influence theyexert on a portion of the community, are far from agreeable untilone is familiar with them. You would cry out in dismay did you seeyour baggage flung about pell-mell like logs of wood, trunks, chests, traveling-bags, hat-boxes, all in the same mill, and ifhere and there something goes to pieces no one is astonished; nevermind! we go fast, --we gain time, --that is the essential thing. 

The manners of the country differ so greatly from ours that itseems to me impossible to form a just estimate regarding them, or, indeed, to pronounce judgment at all upon a population so activeand mobile as that of the Northern States of the Union, withouthaving lived among them for a long time. I do not therefore attemptany such estimate. I can only say that the educated Americans arevery accessible and very pleasant. They are obliging to the utmostdegree; indeed, their cordiality toward strangers exceeds any thatI have met elsewhere. I might even add that if I could complain ofanything it would be of an excess, rather than a lack, ofattention. I have often found it difficult to make it understoodthat the hotel, where I can work at my ease, suits me better thanthe proffered hospitality. . . 

But what a country is this! all along the road between Boston andSpringfield are ancient moraines and polished rocks. No one who hadseen them upon the track of our present glaciers could hesitate asto the real agency by which all these erratic masses, literallycovering the country, have been transported. I have had thepleasure of converting already several of the most distinguishedAmerican geologists to my way of thinking; among others, ProfessorRogers, who will deliver a public lecture upon the subject nextTuesday before a large audience. 

A characteristic feature of American life is to be found in thefrequent public meetings where addresses are delivered. Shortlyafter my arrival in Boston I was present at a meeting of some threethousand workmen, foremen of workshops, clerks, and the like. Nomeeting could have been more respectable and well-conducted. Allwere neatly dressed; even the simplest laborer had a clean shirt. It was a strange sight to see such an assemblage, brought togetherfor the purpose of forming a library, and listening attentively inperfect quiet for two hours to an address on the advantages ofeducation, of reading, and the means of employing usefully theleisure moments of a workman's life. The most eminent men vie witheach other in instructing and forming the education of thepopulation at large. I have not yet seen a man out of employment ora beggar, except in New York, which is a sink for the emptyings ofEurope. Yet do not think that I forget the advantages of our oldcivilization. Far from it. I feel more than ever the value of apast which belongs to you and in which you have grown up. Generations must pass before America will have the collections ofart and science which adorn our cities, or the establishments forpublic instruction, sanctuaries as it were, consecrated by thedevotion of those who give themselves wholly to study. Here all theworld works to gain a livelihood or to make a fortune. Fewestablishments (of learning) are old enough, or have takensufficiently deep root in the habits of the people, to be safe frominnovation; very few institutions offer a combination of studiessuch as, in its ensemble, meets the demands of modern civilization. All is done by the single efforts of individuals or ofcorporations, too often guided by the needs of the moment. ThusAmerican science lacks the scope which is characteristic of higherinstruction in our old Europe. Objects of art are curiosities butlittle appreciated and usually still less understood. On the otherhand, the whole population shares in the advanced educationprovided for all. . . From Springfield the railroad follows thecourse of the Connecticut as far as Hartford, turning then directlytoward the sea-coast. The valley strikingly resembles that of theRhine between Carlsruhe and Heidelberg. The same rock, the sameaspect of country, and gres bigarre* (* Trias. ) everywhere. Theforest reminds one of Odenwald and of Baden-Baden. Nearer the coastare cones of basalt like those of Brissac and the Kaiserstuhl. Theerratic phenomena are also very marked in this region; polishedrocks everywhere, magnificent furrows on the sandstone and on thebasalt, and parallel moraines defining themselves like rampartsupon the plain. 

At New Haven I passed several days at the house of ProfessorSilliman, with whom I have been in correspondence for severalyears. The University (Yale) owes to the efforts of the Professor afine collection of minerals and extensive physical and chemicalapparatus. Silliman is the patriarch of science in America. Forthirty years he has edited an important scientific journal, thechannel through which, ever since its foundation, Europeanscientific researches have reached America. . . One of hissons-in-law, Mr. Shepard, * (* An error: Mr. Shepard was not theson-in-law of Professor Silliman. --ED. ) is also chemical professorin the University of South Carolina. Another, Mr. Dana, still avery young man, strikes me as likely to be the most distinguishednaturalist of the United States. He was a member of the expeditionaround the world under the command of Captain Wilkes, and has justpublished a magnificent volume containing monographs of all thespecies of polyps and corals, with curious observations on theirmode of growth and on the coral islands. I was surprised to find inthe collection at New Haven a fine specimen of the great fossilsalamander of Oeningen, the "Homo diluvii testis" of Scheuchzer. 

From New Haven I went to New York by steamboat. The Sound, betweenLong Island and the coast of Connecticut, presents a succession ofcheerful towns and villages, with single houses scattered over thecountry, while magnificent trees overhang the sea; we constantlydisturbed numbers of aquatic birds which, at our approach, fluttered up around the steamer, only to alight farther on. I havenever seen such flocks of ducks and gulls. 

At New York I hastened to see Auguste Mayor, of whom my uncle willno doubt have given you news, since I wrote to him. Obliged tocontinue my road in order to join Mr. Gray at Princeton I stoppedbut one day in New York, the greater part of which I passed withMr. Redfield, author of a paper on the fossil fishes ofConnecticut. His collection, which he has placed at my disposal, has great interest for me; it contains a large number of fossilfishes of different kinds, from a formation in which but onespecies has been found in Europe. The new red sandstone ofConnecticut will also fill a gap in the history of fossil fishes, and this acquisition is so much the more important, because, at theepoch of the gres bigarre, a marked change took place in theanatomical character of fishes. It presents an intermediate typebetween the primitive fishes of the ancient deposits and the moreregular forms of the jurassic deposits. 

Mr. Asa Gray, professor of botany at Cambridge, near Boston, hadoffered to accompany me on my journey to Washington. We were tomeet at the house of Professor Torrey, at Princeton, a small townhalf a day's journey from New York, and the seat of a considerableuniversity, one of the oldest in the United States. The physicaldepartment, under the direction of Professor Henry, is remarkablyrich in models of machinery and in electrical apparatus, to whichthe professor especially devotes himself. The museum contains acollection of animals and fossil remains. In the environs of thetown, in the ditches, is found a rare kind of turtle, remarkablefor the form of the jaws and the length of the tail. I wish verymuch to procure one, were it only to oblige Professor JohannesMuller, of Berlin, who especially desires one for investigation. But I have failed thus far; the turtles are already withdrawn intotheir winter quarters. Mr. Torrey promises me some, however, in thespring. It is not easy to get them because their bite is dreaded. 

After this I passed four days in Philadelphia. Here, notwithstanding my great desire to see the beautiful country alongthe shores of the rich bay of Delaware and the banks of theSchuylkill, between which the city lies, I was entirely occupiedwith the magnificent collections of the Academy of Science and ofthe Philosophical Society. The zoological collections of theAcademy of Science are the oldest in the United States, the onlyones, except those of the Wilkes Expedition, which can equal ininterest those of Europe. There are the collections of Say, theearliest naturalist of distinction in the United States; there arealso the fossil remains and the animals described by Harlan, byGodman, and by Hayes, and the fossils described by Conrad andMorton. Dr. Morton's unique collection of human skulls is also tobe found in Philadelphia. Imagine a series of six hundred skulls, mostly Indian, of all the tribes who now inhabit or formerlyinhabited America. Nothing like it exists elsewhere. Thiscollection alone is worth a journey to America. Dr. Morton has hadthe kindness to give me a copy of his great illustrated workrepresenting all the types of his collection. Quite recently agenerous citizen of Philadelphia has enriched this museum with thefine collection of birds belonging to the Duke of Rivoli. He boughtit for 37, 000 francs, and presented it to his native city. 

The number of fossil remains comprised in these collections is veryconsiderable; mastodons especially, and fossils of the cretaceousand jurassic deposits. . . Imagine that all this is at my fulldisposal for description and illustration, and you will understandmy pleasure. The liberality of the American naturalists toward meis unparalleled. 

I must not omit to mention Mr. Lea's collection of fresh-watershells, --a series of the magnificent Unios of the rivers and lakesof America, comprising four hundred species, represented by somethirty specimens of each. Mr. Lea has promised me specimens of allthe species. Had I not been bound by an engagement at Washington, and could I have remained three or four days longer in order tolabel and pack them, I might have taken at once these valuableobjects, which will be of great importance in verifying andrectifying the synonyms of European conchologists. After havingseen the astonishing variations undergone by these shells in theirgrowth, I am satisfied that all which European naturalists havewritten on this subject must be revised. Only with the help of avery full series of individuals can one fully understand theseanimals, and we have only single specimens in our collections. If Ihad time and means to have drawings made of all these forms, thecollection of Mr. Lea would be at my command for the purpose, andthe work would be a very useful one for science. 

There are several other private and public collections atPhiladelphia, which I have only seen cursorily; that of the MedicalSchool, for instance, and that of the older Peale, who discoveredthe first mastodon found in the United States, now mounted in hismuseum. Beside these, there is the collection of Dr. Griffith, richin skulls from the Gulf of Mexico; that of Mr. Ord, and others. During my stay in Philadelphia, there was also an exhibition ofindustrial products at the Franklin Institute, where I especiallyremarked the chemical department. There are no less than threeprofessors of chemistry in Philadelphia, --Mr. Hare, Mr. Booth, andMr. Frazer. The first is, I think, the best known in Europe. 

How a nearer view changes the aspect of things! I thought myselftolerably familiar with all that is doing in science in the UnitedStates, but I was far from anticipating so much that is interestingand important. What is wanting to all these men is neither zeal norknowledge. In both, they seem to compete with us, and in ardor andactivity they even surpass most of our savans. What they need isleisure. I have never felt more forcibly what I owe to the king forenabling me to live for science alone, undisturbed by anxieties anddistractions. Here, I do not lose a moment, and when I receiveinvitations outside the circle of men whom I care particularly toknow, I decline, on the ground that I am not free to dispose for mypleasure of time which does not belong to me. For this no one canquarrel with me, and so far as I myself am concerned, it is muchbetter. 

I stopped at Baltimore only long enough to see the city. It wasSunday, and as I could make no visits, and was anxious to arrive ingood time at Washington, I took advantage of the first train. Thecapital of the United States is laid out upon a gigantic scale, and, consequently, portions of the different quarters are often tobe traced only by isolated houses here and there, --a conditionwhich has caused it to be called the "City of MagnificentDistances. " Some of the streets are very handsome, and the capitolitself is really imposing. Their profound veneration for thefounder of their liberty and their republic is a noble trait of theAmerican people. The evidences of this are to be seen everywhere. No less than two hundred towns, villages, and counties bear hisname, rather to the inconvenience of the postal administration. 

After having visited the capitol and the presidential mansion, anddelivered my letters for the Prussian Minister, I went to theMuseum of the National Institute. I was impatient to satisfy myselfas to the scientific value of the results obtained in the field ofmy own studies by the voyage of Captain Wilkes around the world, --this voyage having been the object of equally exaggerated praiseand criticism. I confess that I was agreeably surprised by therichness of the zoological and geological collections; I do notthink any European expedition has done more or better; and in somedepartments, in that of the Crustacea, for example, the collectionat Washington surpasses in beauty and number of specimens all thatI have seen. It is especially to Dr. Pickering and Mr. Dana thatthese collections are due. As the expedition did not penetrate tothe interior of the continents in tropical regions, the collectionsof birds and mammals, which fell to the charge of Mr. Peale, areless considerable. Mr. Gray tells me, however, that the botanicalcollections are very large. More precious, perhaps, than all thecollections are the magnificent drawings of mollusks, zoophytes, fishes, and reptiles, painted from life by Mr. Drayton. All theseplates, to the number of about six hundred, are to be engraved, andindeed are already, in part, executed. I can only compare them tothose of the Astrolabe, although they are very superior in varietyof position and naturalness of attitude to those of the FrenchExpedition. This is particularly true of the mollusks and fishes. The zoophytes are to be published; they are admirable in detail. The hydrographic portion and the account of the voyage, edited byCaptain Wilkes (unhappily he was absent and I did not see him), hasbeen published for some time, and comprises an enormous mass ofinformation, its chief feature being charts to the number of twohundred. It is amazing; the number of soundings extraordinarilylarge. * (* Agassiz subsequently took some part in working up thefish collections from this expedition, but the publication wasstopped for want of means to carry it on. )

At Washington are also to be seen the headquarters of the CoastSurvey, where the fine charts of the coasts and harbors now makingunder direction of Dr. Bache are executed. These charts areadmirably finished. Dr. Bache, the superintendent, was in camp, sothat I could not deliver my letters for him. I saw, however, Colonel Abert, the head of the topographic office, who gave meimportant information about the West for the very season when I amlikely to be there. I am indebted to him also for a series ofdocuments concerning the upper Missouri and Mississippi, Californiaand Oregon, printed by order of the government, and for acollection of fresh-water shells from those regions. I should liketo offer him, in return, such sheets of the Federal Map as haveappeared. I beg Guyot to send them to me by the first occasion. 

As I was due in Boston on an appointed day I was obliged to defermy visit to Richmond, Charleston, and other places in the South. Ihad, beside, gathered so much material that I had need of a fewquiet weeks to consider and digest it all. Returning therefore toPhiladelphia, I made there the acquaintance of Mr. Haldeman, authorof a monograph on the fresh-water shells of the United States. Ihad made an appointment to meet him at Philadelphia, being unableto make a detour of fifty leagues in order to visit him at his ownhome, which is situated beyond the lines of rapid transit. He is adistinguished naturalist, equally well versed in several branchesof our science. He has made me acquainted, also, with a youngnaturalist from the interior of Pennsylvania, Mr. Baird, professorat Dickinson College, in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, who offered meduplicates from his collections of birds and other animals. Inorder to avail myself more promptly of this and like acquisitions, I wish that M. Coulon would send me at the close of the winter allthat he can procure of the common European birds, of our smallmammalia, and some chamois skins, adding also the fish that Charlesput aside for me before his departure. It would be safest to sendthem to the care of Auguste Mayor. 

At Philadelphia I separated from my traveling companion, Mr. Gray, who was obliged to return to his home. From Philadelphia, Mr. Haldeman and Mr. Lea accompanied me to Bristol, where Mr. Vanuxempossesses an important collection of fossils from ancient deposits, duplicates of which he promises me. Mr. Vanuxem is one of theofficial geologists of the State of New York, and author of one ofa series of volumes upon the geology of the State, about which Ishall presently have something to say. To gain time I took thenight train from Bristol to New York, and arrived at Mayor's atmidnight, having written him to expect me. 

The next day I visited the market, and in five days I had filled agreat barrel with different kinds of fish and fresh-water turtles, beside making several skeletons and various dissections ofmollusks. Wishing to employ my time as usefully as possible, Ipostponed my visits to the savans of the city, and the delivery ofmy letters, till I was on the eve of departure, that I might avoidall invitations. I had especial pleasure in making the acquaintanceof the two Le Contes, father and son, who own the finest collectionof insects in the United States. I can easily make some thousandexchanges with them when I receive those that M. Coulon has putaside for me, with a view to exchange. . . Every morning AugusteMayor went with me to the market before going to his office andhelped me to carry my basket when it was too heavy. One day Ibrought back no less than twenty-four turtles, taken in one draughtof the net. I made four skeletons, and dissected several others. Under such conditions the day ought to have thirty-six workinghours. 

Were I an artist, instead of describing my voyage from New York toAlbany, I would draw you a panorama of the shores of the Hudson. Iknow nothing except the banks of the Rhine to compare with those ofthis magnificent river. The resemblance between them is striking;the sites, the nature of the rocks, the appearance of the towns andvillages, the form of the Albany bridges, even the look of theinhabitants, of whom the greater number are of Dutch or Germanorigin, --all are similar. 

I stopped at West Point to make the acquaintance of ProfessorBailey of the Military School there. I already knew him byreputation. He is the author of very detailed and interestingresearches upon the microscopic animalcules of America. I had apamphlet to deliver to him from Ehrenberg, who has received fromhim a great deal of material for his large work on fossilInfusoria. I spent three most delightful days with him, passedchiefly in examining his collections, from which he gave me manyspecimens. We also made several excursions in the neighborhood, inorder to study the erratic phenomena and the traces of glaciers, which everywhere cover the surface of the country. Polished rocks, as distinct as possible; moraines continuous over large spaces;stratified drift, as on the borders of the glacier of Grindelwald;in short, all the usual accompaniments of the glaciers are there, and one may follow the "roches moutonnees" with the eye to a greatdistance. 

Albany is the seat of government of the State of New York. It has amedical school, an agricultural society, a geological museum, ananatomical museum, and a museum of natural history. The governmenthas just completed the publication of a work, unique of its kind, anatural history of the State in sixteen volumes, quarto, withplates; twenty-five hundred copies have been printed, only fivehundred of which are for sale, the rest being distributedthroughout the State. Four volumes are devoted to geology andmining alone, the others to zoology, botany, and agriculture. Yes, twenty-five hundred copies of a work in sixteen volumes, quarto, scattered throughout the State of New York alone! When I think thatI began my studies in natural history by copying hundreds of pagesfrom a Lamarck which some one had lent me, and that to-day there isa State in which the smallest farmer may have access to a costlywork, worth a library to him in itself, I bless the efforts ofthose who devote themselves to public instruction. . . I have notneglected the opportunity offered by the North River (the Hudson)for the study of the fresh-water fishes of this country. I havefilled a barrel with them. The species differ greatly from ours, with the exception of the perch, the eel, the pike, and the sucker, in which only a practiced eye could detect the difference; all therest belong to genera unknown in Europe, or, at least, inSwitzerland. . . 

I was fortunate enough to procure also, in the few days of my stay, all the species taken in the lakes and rivers around Albany. Several others have been given me from Lake Superior. Since myreturn to Boston I have been collecting birds and comparing themwith those of Europe. If M. Coulon could obtain for me a collectionof European eggs, even the most common, I could exchange them foran admirable series of the native species here. I have alsoprocured several interesting mammals; among others, two species ofhares different from those I brought from Halifax, stripedsquirrels, etc. 

I will tell you another time something of the collections of Bostonand Cambridge, the only ones in the United States which can rivalthose of Philadelphia. To-day I have made my first attempt atlecturing. Of that, also, I will tell you more in my next letter, when I know how it has been liked. It is no small matter to satisfyan audience of three thousand people in a language with which youare but little familiar. . . 

CHAPTER 14. 

1846-1847: AGE 39-40. 

Course of Lectures in Boston on Glaciers. Correspondence with Scientific Friends in Europe. House in East Boston. Household and Housekeeping. Illness. Letter to Elie de Beaumont. Letter to James D. Dana. 

THE course at the Lowell Institute was immediately followed by oneupon glaciers, the success of which was guaranteed by privatesubscription, --an unnecessary security, since the audience, attracted by the novelty and picturesqueness of the subject, aswell as by the charm of presentation and fullness of illustration, was large and enthusiastic. 

Agassiz was evidently encouraged himself by his success, for towardthe close of his Lowell Lectures he writes as follows:--

TO CHANCELLOR FAVARGEZ. 

BOSTON, December 31, 1846. 

. . . Beside my lecture course, now within a few days of itsconclusion, and the ever-increasing work which grows on my hands inproportion as I become familiar with the environs of Boston, whereI shall still remain a few weeks longer, I have so much to do inkeeping up my journals, notes, and observations that I have notfound a moment to write you since the last steamer. . . Never didthe future look brighter to me than now. If I could for a momentforget that I have a scientific mission to fulfill, to which I willnever prove recreant, I could easily make more than enough bylectures which would be admirably paid and are urged upon me, toput me completely at my ease hereafter. But I will limit myself towhat I need in order to repay those who have helped me through adifficult crisis, and that I can do without even turning aside frommy researches. Beyond that all must go again to science, --therelies my true mission. I rejoice in what I have been able to do thusfar, and I hope that at Berlin they will be satisfied with theresults which I shall submit to competent judges on my return. If Ionly have time to finish what I have begun! You know my plans arenot wont to be too closely restricted. 

Why do you not write to me? Am I then wholly forgotten in yourpleasant circle while my thoughts are every day constantly with myNeuchatel friends?. . . 

Midnight, January 1st. A happy new year to you and to all membersof the Tuesday Club. Bonjour et bon an. . . 

Some portions of Agassiz's correspondence with his European friendsand colleagues during the winter and summer of 1847 give a clew tothe occupations and interests of his new life, and keep up thethread of the old one. 

LOUIS AGASSIZ TO M. DECAISNE. 

February, 1847. 

. . . I write only to thank you for the pleasure your note gave me. When one is far away, as I am, from everything belonging to one'spast life, the merest sign of friendly remembrance is a boon. Donot infer from this that America does not please me. On thecontrary, I am delighted with my stay here, although I do not quiteunderstand all that surrounds me; or I should perhaps rather saythat many principles which, theoretically, we have been wont tothink perfect in themselves, seem in their application to involveresults quite contrary to our expectations. I am constantly askingmyself which is better, --our old Europe, where the man ofexceptional gifts can give himself absolutely to study, openingthus a wider horizon for the human mind, while at his sidethousands barely vegetate in degradation or at least indestitution; or this new world, where the institutions tend to keepall on one level as part of the general mass, --but a mass, be itsaid, which has no noxious elements. Yes, the mass here isdecidedly good. All the world lives well, is decently clad, learnssomething, is awake and interested. Instruction does not, as in someparts of Germany for instance, furnish a man with an intellectualtool and then deny him the free use of it. The strength of Americalies in the prodigious number of individuals who think and work atthe same time. It is a severe test of pretentious mediocrity, butI fear it may also efface originality . . . You are right inbelieving that one works, or at least that one CAN work, betterin Paris than elsewhere, and I should esteem myself happy if I hadmy nest there, but who will make it for me? I am myself incapableof making efforts for anything but my work. . . 

AGASSIZ TO MILNE EDWARDS. 

May 31, 1847. 

. . . After six weeks of an illness which has rendered me unfit forserious work I long to be transported into the circle of my Parisfriends, to find myself again among the men whose devotion toscience gives them a clear understanding of its tendency andinfluence. Therefore I take my way quite naturally to the RueCuvier and mount your stairs, confident that there I shall findthis chosen society. Question upon question greets me regardingthis new world, on the shore of which I have but just landed, andyet about which I have so much to say that I fear to tire mylisteners. 

Naturalist as I am, I cannot but put the people first, --the peoplewho have opened this part of the American continent to Europeancivilization. What a people! But to understand them you must liveamong them. Our education, the principles of our society, themotives of our actions, differ so greatly from what I see here, that I should try in vain to give you an idea of this great nation, passing from childhood to maturity with the faults of spoiledchildren, and yet with the nobility of character and the enthusiasmof youth. Their look is wholly turned toward the future; theirsocial life is not yet irrevocably bound to exacting antecedents, and thus nothing holds them back, unless, perhaps, a considerationfor the opinion in which they may be held in Europe. This deferencetoward England (unhappily, to them, Europe means almost exclusivelyEngland) is a curious fact in the life of the American people. Theyknow us but little, even after having made a tour in France, orItaly, or Germany. From England they receive their literature, andthe scientific work of central Europe reaches them through Englishchannels. . . Notwithstanding this kind of dependence upon England, in which American savans have voluntarily placed themselves, I haveformed a high opinion of their acquirements, since I have learnedto know them better, and I think we should render a real service tothem and to science, by freeing them from this tutelage, raisingthem in their own eyes, and drawing them also a little more towardourselves. Do not think that these remarks are prompted by theleast antagonism toward English savans, whom no one more thanmyself has reason to regard with affection and esteem. But sincethese men are so worthy to soar on their own wings, why not helpthem to take flight? They need only confidence, and some specialrecognition from Europe would tend to give them this. . . 

Among the zoologists of this country I would place Mr. Dana at thehead. He is still very young, fertile in ideas, rich in facts, equally able as geologist and mineralogist. When his work on coralsis completed, you can better judge of him. One of these days youwill make him a correspondent of the Institute, unless he killshimself with work too early, or is led away by his tendency togeneralization. Then there is Gould, author of the malacologicfauna of Massachusetts, and who is now working up the mollusks ofthe Wilkes Expedition. De Kay and Lea, whose works have long beenknown, are rather specialists, I should say. I do not yet knowHolbrook personally. Pickering, of the Wilkes Expedition, is a wellof science, perhaps the most erudite naturalist here. Haldemanknows the fresh-water gasteropods of this country admirably well, and has published a work upon them. Le Conte is a criticalentomologist who seems to me thoroughly familiar with what is doingin Europe. In connection with Haldeman he is working up thearticulates of the Wilkes Expedition. Wyman, recently madeprofessor at Cambridge, is an excellent comparative anatomist, andthe author of several papers on the organization of fishes. . . Thebotanists are less numerous, but Asa Gray and Dr. Torrey are knownwherever the study of botany is pursued. Gray, with hisindefatigable zeal, will gain upon his competitors. . . Thegeologists and mineralogists form the most numerous class among thesavans of the country. The fact that every state has its corps ofofficial geologists has tended to develop study in this directionto the detriment of other branches, and will later, I fear, tend tothe detriment of science itself; for the utilitarian tendency thusimpressed on the work of American geologists will retard theirprogress. With us, on the contrary, researches of this kindconstantly tend to assume a more and more scientific character. Still, the body of American geologists forms, as a whole, a mostrespectable contingent. The names of Charles T. Jackson, JamesHall, Hitchcock, Henry and William Rogers (two brothers), have longbeen familiar to European science. After the geologists, I wouldmention Dr. Morton, of Philadelphia, well known as the author ofseveral papers upon fossils, and still better by his great workupon the indigenous races of America. He is a man of science in thebest sense; admirable both as regards his knowledge and hisactivity. He is the pillar of the Philadelphia Academy. 

The chemists and physicists, again, form another utilitarian classof men in this country. As with many of them purely scientific workis not their sole object, it is difficult for an outsider todistinguish between the clever manipulators and those who havehigher aims. . . 

The mathematicians have also their culte, dating back to Bowditch, the translator of the "Mecanique celeste, " and the author of a workon practical navigation. He died in Boston, where they are nowerecting a magnificent monument to his memory. Mr. Peirce, professor at Cambridge, is considered here the equal of our greatmathematicians. It is not for me, who cannot do a sum in addition, to pretend to a judgment in the matter. * (* Though Agassiz was nomathematician, and Peirce no naturalist, they soon found that theirintellectual aims were the same, and they became very closefriends. )

You are familiar, no doubt, with the works of Captain Wilkes andthe report of his journey around the world. His charts are muchpraised. The charts of the coasts and harbors of the United States, made under the direction of Dr. Bache and published at governmentexpense, are admirable. The reports of Captain Fremont concerninghis travels are also most interesting and instructive; to botanistsespecially so, on account of the scientific notes accompanyingthem. 

I will not speak at length of my own work, --my letter is alreadytoo long. During the winter I have been chiefly occupied in makingcollections of fishes and birds, and also of the various woods. Theforests here differ greatly from ours in the same latitude. I haveeven observed that they resemble astonishingly the forests of theMolasse epoch, and the analogy is heightened by that between theanimals of this country and those of the eastern coasts of Asia ascompared with those of the Molasse, such as the chelydras, andreas, etc. I will send a report upon this to M. Brongniart as soon as Ihave the time to prepare it. On the erratic phenomena, also, I havemade numerous observations, which I am anxious to send to M. DeBeaumont. These phenomena, so difficult of explanation with us, become still more complicated here, both on account of theircontact with the sea and of the vast stretches of flat country overwhich they extend. 

For the last few days I have been especially occupied with thedevelopment of the medusae. In studying the actiniae I have made astriking discovery, and I should be glad if you would communicateit to the Academy in advance of the illustrated paper on the samesubject, which I hope soon to send you. Notwithstanding theirstar-like appearance, the star-fishes have, like the sea-urchins, indications by no means doubtful, of a symmetrical disposition oftheir organs in pairs, and an anterior and posterior extremityeasily recognized by the special form of their oral opening. I havenow satisfied myself that the madrepores have something analogousto this in the arrangement of their partitions, so that I amtempted to believe that this tendency to a symmetrical arrangementof parts in pairs, is a general character of polyps, disguised bytheir radiating form. Among the medusae something similar exists inthe disposition of the marginal appendages and the ocelli. I attachthe more importance to these observations, because they may lead toa clearer perception than we have yet reached of the naturalrelations between the radiates and the other great types of theanimal kingdom. 

This summer I hope to explore the lower lakes of Canada, and alsothe regions lying to the eastward as far as Nova Scotia; in theautumn I shall resume my excursions on the coast and in theAlleghenies, and shall pass a part of the winter in the Carolinas. I will soon write to Monsieur Brongniart concerning my plans fornext year. If the Museum were desirous to aid me in myundertakings, I should like to make a journey of exploration nextsummer in a zone thus far completely neglected by naturalists, theregion, namely, of the small lakes to the west of Lake Superior, where the Mississippi takes its rise, and also of that lyingbetween this great basin of fresh water and the southern arm ofHudson Bay. I would employ the autumn in exploring the great valleyof the Mississippi, and would pass the winter on the borders of theGulf of Mexico. 

To carry out such projects, however, I have need of largerresources than I can create by my own efforts, and I shall soon beat the end of the subsidy granted me by the King of Prussia. Ishall, however, subordinate all these projects to the possibilitiesof which you kindly tell me. Notwithstanding the interest offeredby the exploration of a country so rich as this, notwithstandingthe gratifying welcome I have received here, I feel, after all, that nowhere can one work better than in our old Europe, and thefriendship you have shown me is a more than sufficient motive, impelling me to return as soon as possible to Paris. Remember meto our common friends. I have made some sufficiently interestingcollections which I shall forward to the Museum; they will showyou that I have done my best to fulfill my promises, forgettingno one. . . 

In the summer of 1847 Agassiz established himself in a small houseat East Boston, sufficiently near the sea to be a convenientstation for marine collections. Here certain members of his oldworking corps assembled about him, and it soon became, like everyplace he had ever inhabited, a hive of industry. Chief among hiscompanions were Count Francois de Pourtales, who had accompaniedhim to this country; Mr. E. Desor, who soon followed him toAmerica; and Mr. Jacques Burkhardt, who had preceded them all, andwas now draughtsman in chief to the whole party. To his labors weresoon added those of Mr. A. Sonrel, the able lithographic artist, who illustrated the most important works subsequently published byAgassiz. To an exquisite skill in his art he added a quick, intelligent perception of structural features from the naturalist'spoint of view, which made his work doubly valuable. Besides thoseabove-mentioned, there were several assistants who shared thescientific work in one department or another. 

It must be confessed that this rather original establishment hadthe aspect of a laboratory rather than a home, domestic comfortbeing subordinate to scientific convenience. Every room served insome sort the purposes of an aquarium or a studio, while garret andcellar were devoted to collections. The rules of the household weresufficiently elastic to suit the most erratic student. A slidingscale for meals allowed the greatest freedom for excursions alongthe neighboring shores and beaches, and punctuality in work was theonly punctuality demanded. 

Agassiz himself was necessarily often absent, for the maintenanceof the little colonydepended in great degree upon his exertions. During the winter of 1847, while continuing his lectures in Bostonand its vicinity, he lectured in other places also. It is difficultto track his course at this time; but during the winters of 1847and 1848 he lectured in all the large eastern cities, New York, Albany, Philadelphia, and Charleston, S. C. Everywhere he drew largecrowds, and in those days his courses of lectures were rarelyallowed to close without some public expression of gratitude andappreciation from the listeners. Among his papers are preservedseveral sets of resolutions from medical and scientific societies, from classes of students, and from miscellaneous audiences, attesting the enthusiasm awakened by his instruction. What heearned in this way enabled him to carry on his work and support hisassistants. Still, the strain upon his strength, combined with allthat he was doing beside in purely scientific work, was severe, andbefore the twelvemonth was out he was seriously ill. At this timeDr. B. E. Cotting, a physician whose position as curator of theLowell Institute had brought him into contact with Agassiz, tookhim home to his house in the country, where he tended him throughsome weeks of tedious illness, hastening his convalescence byexcursions in all the neighboring country, from which they returnedladen with specimens, --plants, birds, etc. In this hospitable homehe passed his fortieth birthday, the first in this country. Hishost found him standing thoughtful and abstracted by the window. "Why so sad?" he asked. "That I am so old, and have done solittle, " was the answer. 

After a few weeks he was able to return to his work, and the nextletter gives some idea of his observations, especially upon thetraces of glacial action in the immediate vicinity of Boston andupon the shores of Massachusetts Bay. Indeed, he never lost sightof these features, which had caught his attention the moment helanded on the continent. In one of his later lectures he gives astriking account of this first impression. 

"In the autumn of 1846, " he says, "six years after my visit toGreat Britain in search of glaciers, I sailed for America. When thesteamer stopped at Halifax, eager to set foot on the new continentso full of promise for me, I sprang on shore and started at a briskpace for the heights above the landing. On the first undisturbedground, after leaving the town, I was met by the familiar signs, the polished surfaces, the furrows and scratches, the LINEENGRAVING, so well known in the Old World; and I became convincedof what I had already anticipated as the logical sequence of myprevious investigations, that here also this great agent had beenat work. " The incident seems a very natural introduction to thefollowing letter, written a few months later:--

TO ELIE DE BEAUMONT. 

BOSTON, August 31, 1847. 

. . . I have waited to write until I should have some factssufficiently important to claim your attention. In truth, the studyof the marine animals, which I am, for the first time, able toobserve in their natural conditions of existence, has engrossed mealmost exclusively since I came to the United States, and onlyincidentally, as it were, I have turned my attention topaleontology and geology. I must, however, except the glacialphenomena, a problem, the solution of which always interests medeeply. This great question, far from presenting itself more simplyhere, is complicated by peculiarities never brought to my notice inEurope. Happily for me, Mr. Desor, who had been in Scandinaviabefore joining me here, called my attention at once to certainpoints of resemblance between the phenomena there and those which Ihad seen in the neighborhood of Boston. Since then, we have madeseveral excursions together, have visited Niagara, and, in short, have tried to collect all the special facts of glacial phenomena inAmerica. . . You are, no doubt, aware that the whole rocky surfaceof the ground here is polished. I do not think that anywhere in theworld there exist polished and rounded rocks in better preservationor on a larger scale. Here, as elsewhere, erratic debris arescattered over these surfaces, scratched pebbles impacted in mud, forming unstratified masses mixed with and covered by large erraticboulders, more or less furrowed or scratched, the upper ones beingusually angular and without marks. The absence of moraines, properly so-called, in a country so little broken, is notsurprising; I have, however, seen very distinct ones in somevalleys of the White Mountains and in Vermont. Up to this timethere had been nothing very new in the aspect of the phenomena as awhole; but on examining attentively the internal arrangement of allthese materials, especially in the neighborhood of the sea, onesoon becomes convinced that the ocean has partially covered andmore or less remodeled them. In certain places there are patches ofstratified sand interposed between masses of glacial drift-deposit;elsewhere, banks of sand and pebbles crown the irregularities ofthe glacial deposit, or fill in its depressions; in otherlocalities the glacial pebbles may be washed and completely clearedof mud, retaining, however, their markings; or again, thesemarkings may have disappeared, and the material is arranged inlines or ramparts, as it were, of diverse conformation, in whichMr. Desor recognized all the modifications of the "oesars" ofScandinavia. The disposition of the oesars, as seen here, isevidently due entirely to the action of the waves, and theirfrequency along the coast is a proof of this. In a late excursionwith Captain Davis on board a government vessel I learned tounderstand the mode of formation of the submarine dikes borderingthe coast at various distances, which would be oesars were theyelevated; with the aid of the dredge I satisfied myself of theiridentity. With these facts before me I cannot doubt that the oesarsof the United States consist essentially of glacial materialremodeled by the sea; while farther inland, though here and therereaching the sea-coast, we have unchanged glacial drift deposit. Atsome points the alteration is so slight as to denote only amomentary rise of the sea. Under these circumstances one wouldnaturally look for fossils in the drift, and M. Desor, in companywith M. De Pourtales, was the first to find them, at Brooklyn, inLong Island, which lies to the south of New York. They wereimbedded in a glacial clay deposit, having all the ordinarycharacter of such deposits, with only slight traces of stratifiedsand. It is true that the greater number of these fossils (allbelonging to species now living on the coast) were broken intoangular fragments, not excepting even the thick tests of the Venusmercenaria. . . 

The suburb of Boston where I am living (East Boston) is built on anisland, one kilometer and a half long, extending from north tosoutheast, and varying in width at different points from two to sixor seven hundred metres. Its height above the sea-level is aboutsixty feet. This little island is composed entirely of glacialmuddy deposit, containing scratched pebbles mixed with largerboulders or blocks, and covered also with a considerable number ofboulders of divers forms and dimensions. At East Boston you cannotsee what underlies this deposit; but no doubt it rests upon arounded mass of granite, polished and grooved like several othersin Boston harbor. . . 

In our journey to Niagara, Mr. Desor and I assured ourselves thatthe river deposits, in which, among other things, the mastodon isfound with the fresh-water shells of Goat Island, are posterior tothe drift. It is a fact worth consideration that the mastodonsfound in Europe are buried in true tertiary formations, while thegreat mastodon of the United States is certainly posterior to thedrift. . . In another letter I will tell you something of myobservations upon the geographical distribution of marine animalsat different depths and on different bottoms, and also upon therelations between this distribution and that of the fossils in thetertiary deposits. . . * (* I have left out a portion of this letterwhich appeared in the first edition of the book, because I learnedthat the facts there given concerning the deposit of Zostera marinawere not substantiated, and that Agassiz consequently did notforward the letter in its first form. The remainder of this chapterappears in this edition for the first time. --E. C. A. )

Although so deeply interested by the geological features of thecountry, Agassiz was nevertheless drawn even more strongly to thestudy of the marine animals for which his position on the sea-coastgave him such opportunities as he had never before had. The nextletter shows how fully his time was occupied, and how fascinatingthis new field of observation was to him. The English is still alittle foreign. He was not yet quite at home in the language whichhe afterward wrote and spoke with such fluency. 

TO JAMES D. DANA. 

EAST BOSTON, September, 1847. 

. . . What have you thought of me all this time, not having writtena single line neither to you nor to Professor Silliman after thekind reception I have met with by your whole family? Pray excuse meand consider, if you please, the difficulty under which I labor, having every day to look after hundreds of new things which alwayscarry me beyond usual hours of working, when I am then so muchtired that I can think of nothing. Nevertheless, it is a delightfullife to be allowed to examine in a fresh state so many things ofwhich I had but an imperfect knowledge from books. The Bostonmarket supplies me with more than I can examine. 

Since I had the pleasure of seeing you I have been very successfulin collecting specimens, especially in New York and Albany. InWashington I have been delighted to see the collections of theExploring Expedition. They entitle you to the highest thanks fromall scientific naturalists, and I hope it will be also felt in thesame manner by your countrymen at large. . . I long for theopportunity of studying your fossil shells. As soon as I have goneover my Lowell lectures I hope to be able to move. I shall onlypack up what I have already collected; but I cannot yet tell youprecisely the time. 

I began studying your "Zoophytes, " but it is so rich a book that Iproceed slowly. For years I have not learned so much from a book asfrom yours. As I soon saw I would not be able to go through in ashort time, I sent a short preliminary report to one of our mostwidely diffused papers, "Preussische Staats Zeitung, " giving onlythe general impression of your work, and I shall send to Erichson afuller scientific report after I have done with the whole volume. 

As I happen to have a lithograph of the original specimen of theHomo deluvii testis of Scheuchzer, I will forward it to ProfessorSilliman with this letter. I expect you will find it thecounterpart of the specimen in your museum; or very nearly in thesame state of preservation. 

Having just lately received my books, I also inclose a pamphletfrom Ehrenberg, which he desired me to leave with you, and alsothe books Professor Silliman has had the kindness to lend me. . . I have made many observations which I wish to publish, but I canfind no time to write them for you now. I must wait till theweather is so dull as to bring nothing into the hands of gunnersand fishermen. . . 

So closed his first year in America. The second unfolded eventsboth in the home he had left and in the one to which he hadunconsciously come, which were to shape his future career, andexert the most powerful influence upon his whole life. 

CHAPTER 15. 

1847-1850: AGE 40-43. 

Excursions on Coast Survey Steamer. Relations with Dr. Bache, the Superintendent of the Coast Survey. Political Disturbances in Switzerland. Change of Relations with Prussia. Scientific School established in Cambridge. Chair of Natural History offered to Agassiz. Acceptance. Removal to Cambridge. Literary and Scientific Associations there and in Boston. Household in Cambridge. Beginning of Museum. Journey to Lake Superior. "Report, with Narration. ""Principles of Zoology, " by Agassiz and Gould. Letters from European Friends respecting these Publications. Letter from Hugh Miller. Second Marriage. Arrival of his Children in America. 

One of Agassiz's great pleasures in the summer of 1847 consisted inexcursions on board the Coast Survey steamer Bibb, then employed inthe survey of the harbor and bay of Boston, under command ofCaptain (afterward Admiral) Charles Henry Davis. Under no morekindly auspices could Agassiz's relations with this department ofgovernment work have been begun. "My cabin, " writes Captain Davis, after their first trip together, "seems lonely without you. "

Hitherto the sea-shore had been a closed book to the Swissnaturalist, and now it opened to him a field of research almost asstimulating as his own glaciers. Born and bred among the mountains, he knew marine animals only as they can be known in dried andalcoholic specimens, or in a fossil state. From the Bibb he writesto a friend on shore: "I learn more here in a day than in monthsfrom books or dried specimens. Captain Davis is kindness itself. Everything I can wish for is at my disposal so far as it ispossible. "

Dr. Bache was at this time Superintendent of the Coast Survey, andhe saw at once how the work of the naturalist might ally itselfwith the professional work of the Survey to the greater usefulnessof both. From the beginning to the end of his American life, therefore, the hospitalities of the United States Coast Survey wereopen to Agassiz. As a guest on board her vessels he studied thereefs of Florida and the Bahama Banks, as well as the formations ofour New England shores. From the deck of the Bibb, in connectionwith Count de Pourtales, his first dredging experiments wereundertaken; and his last long voyage around the continent, fromBoston to San Francisco, was made on board the Hassler, a CoastSurvey vessel fitted out for the Pacific shore. Here was anotherdetermining motive for his stay in this country. Under no othergovernment, perhaps, could he have had opportunities so invaluableto a naturalist. 

But events were now passing in Europe which made his formerposition there, as well as that of many of his old friends, whollyunstable. In February, 1848, the proclamation of the Frenchrepublic broke upon Europe like a clap of thunder from a clear sky. The news created great disturbances in Switzerland, and especiallyin the canton of Neuchatel, where a military force was immediatelyorganized by the republican party in opposition to theconservatives, who would fain have continued loyal to the Prussianking. For the moment all was chaos, and the prospects ofinstitutions of learning were seriously endangered. The republicanparty carried the day; the canton of Neuchatel ceased to be adependence of the Prussian monarchy, and became merged in thegeneral confederation of Switzerland. 

At about the same time that Agassiz, in consequence of this changeof conditions, was honorably discharged from the service of thePrussian king, a scientific school was organized at Cambridge, Massachusetts, in direct connection with Harvard University. Thisschool, known as the Lawrence Scientific School, owed its existenceto the generosity of Abbott Lawrence, formerly United StatesMinister at the Court of St. James. He immediately offered thechair of Natural History (Zoology and Geology) to Agassiz, with asalary of fifteen hundred dollars, guaranteed by Mr. Lawrencehimself, until such time as the fees of the students should beworth three thousand dollars to their professor. This time nevercame. Agassiz's lectures, with the exception of the more technicalones addressed to small classes, were always fully attended, butspecial students were naturally very few in a department of purescience, and their fees never raised the salary of the professorperceptibly. This was, however, counterbalanced in some degree bythe clause in his contract which allowed him entire freedom forlectures elsewhere, so that he could supplement his restrictedincome from other sources. 

In accordance with this new position Agassiz now removed hisbachelor household to Cambridge, where he opened his first coursein April, 1848. He could hardly have come to Harvard at a moreauspicious moment, so far as his social and personal relations wereconcerned. The college was then on a smaller scale than now, butupon its list of professors were names which would have givendistinction to any university. In letters, there were Longfellowand Lowell, and Felton, the genial Greek scholar, of whomLongfellow himself wrote, "In Attica thy birthplace should havebeen. " In science, there were Peirce, the mathematician, and Dr. Asa Gray, then just installed at the Botanical Garden, and JeffriesWyman, the comparative anatomist, appointed at about the same timewith Agassiz himself. To these we might almost add, as influencingthe scientific character of Harvard, Dr. Bache, the Superintendentof the Coast Survey, and Charles Henry Davis, the head of theNautical Almanac, since the kindly presence of the former wasconstantly invoked as friend and counselor in the scientificdepartments, while the latter had his residence in Cambridge, andwas as intimately associated with the interests of Harvard as if hehad been officially connected with the university. 

A more agreeable set of men, or one more united by personalrelations and intellectual aims, it would have been difficult tofind. In connection with these names, those of Prescott, Ticknor, Motley, and Holmes also arise most naturally, for the literary menand scholars of Cambridge and Boston were closely united; and ifEmerson, in his country home at Concord, was a little morewithdrawn, his influence was powerful in the intellectual life ofthe whole community, and acquaintance readily grew to friendshipbetween him and Agassiz. Such was the pleasant and cultivatedcircle into which Agassiz was welcomed in the two cities, whichbecame almost equally his home, and where the friendships he madegradually transformed exile into household life and ties. 

In Cambridge he soon took his share in giving as well as receivinghospitalities, and his Saturday evenings were not the lessattractive because of the foreign character and somewhat unwontedcombination of the household. Over its domestic comforts nowpresided an old Swiss clergyman, Monsieur Christinat. He had beenattached to Agassiz from childhood, had taken the deepest interestin his whole career, and, as we have seen, had assisted him tocomplete his earlier studies. Now, under the disturbed condition ofthings at home, he had thrown in his lot with him in America. "Ifyour old friend, " he writes, "can live with his son Louis, it willbe the height of his happiness. " To Agassiz his presence in thehouse was a benediction. He looked after the expenses, and acted ascommissary in chief to the colony. Obliged, as Agassiz was, frequently to be absent on lecturing tours, he could, with perfectsecurity, intrust the charge of everything connected with thehousehold to his old friend, from whom he was always sure of anaffectionate welcome on his return. In short, so far as an old mancould, "papa Christinat, " as he was universally called in thismiscellaneous family, strove to make good to him the absence ofwife and children. 

The make-up of the settlement was somewhat anomalous. The house, though not large, was sufficiently roomy, and soon after Agassizwas established there he had the pleasure of receiving under hisroof certain friends and former colleagues, driven from theirmoorings in Europe by the same disturbances which had prevented himfrom returning there. The arrival among them of Mr. Guyot, withwhom his personal and scientific intimacy was of such longstanding, was a great happiness. It was especially a blessing atthis time, for troubles at home weighed upon Agassiz and depressedhim. His wife, always delicate in health, had died, and althoughhis children were most affectionately provided for in her familyand his own, they were separated from each other, as well as fromhim; nor did he think it wise to bring them while so young, toAmerica. The presence, therefore, of one who was almost like abrother in sympathy and companionship, was now more than welcome. His original staff of co-workers and assistants still continuedwith him, and there were frequent guests besides, chieflyforeigners, who, on arriving in a new country, found their firstanchorage and point of departure in this little Europeansettlement. 

The house stood in a small plot of ground, the cultivation of whichwas the delight of papa Christinat. It soon became a miniaturezoological garden, where all sorts of experiments in breeding andobservations on the habits of animals, were carried on. A tank forturtles and a small alligator in one corner, a large hutch forrabbits in another, a cage for eagles against the wall, a tame bearand a family of opossums, made up the menagerie, varied from timeto time by new arrivals. 

But Agassiz could not be long in any place without beginning toform a museum. When he accepted the chair offered him at Cambridge, there were neither collections nor laboratories belonging to hisdepartment. The specimens indispensable to his lectures weregathered almost by the day, and his outfit, with the exception ofthe illustrations he had brought from Europe, consisted of ablackboard and a lecture-room. There was no money for the necessaryobjects, and the want of it had to be supplied by the professor'sown industry and resources. On the banks of the Charles River, justwhere it is crossed by Brighton Bridge, was an old wooden shantyset on piles; it might have served perhaps, at some time, as abathing or a boat house. The use of this was allowed Agassiz forthe storing of such collections as he had brought together. Pineshelves nailed against the walls served for cases, and with a tableor two for dissection this rough shelter was made to do duty as akind of laboratory. The fact is worth noting, for here was thebeginning of the Museum of Comparative Zoology in Cambridge, nowadmitted to a place among the great institutions of its kind in theworld. 

In the summer of 1848 Agassiz organized an expedition entirelyafter his own heart, inasmuch as it combined education withobservation in the field. The younger portion of the partyconsisted of several of his special pupils, and a few other Harvardstudents who joined the expedition from general interest. Besidethese, there were several volunteer members, who were eithernaturalists or had been attracted to the undertaking by their loveof nature and travel. Their object was the examination of theeastern and northern shores of Lake Superior from Sault Ste. Marieto Fort William, a region then little known to science or totourists. Agassiz taught along the road. At evening, around thecamp-fire, or when delayed by weather or untoward circumstances, hewould give to his companions short and informal lectures, it mightbe on the forest about them, or on the erratic phenomena in theimmediate neighborhood, --on the terraces of the lake shore, or onthe fish of its waters. His lecture-room, in short, was everywhere;his apparatus a traveling blackboard and a bit of chalk; while hisillustrations and specimens lay all around him, wherever the partychanced to be. 

To Agassiz himself the expedition was of the deepest interest. Glacial phenomena had, as we have seen, met him at every turn sincehis arrival in the United States, but nowhere had he found them ingreater distinctness than on the shores of Lake Superior. As theevidence accumulated about him, he became more than ever satisfiedthat the power which had modeled and grooved the rocks all over thecountry, and clothed it with a sheet of loose material reaching tothe sea, must have been the same which had left like traces inEurope. In a continent of wide plains and unbroken surfaces, and, therefore, with few centres of glacial action, the phenomena weremore widely and uniformly scattered than in Europe. But theirspecial details, down to the closest minutiae, were the same, whiletheir definite circumscription and evenness of distribution forbadethe idea of currents or floods as the moving cause. Here, aselsewhere, Agassiz recognized at once the comprehensive scope ofthe phenomena. The whole history reconstructed itself in his mind, to the time when a sheet of ice clothed the land, reaching theAtlantic sea-board, as it now does the coast of Spitzbergen and theArctic shores. 

He made also a careful survey of the local geology of LakeSuperior, and especially of the system of dykes, by the action ofwhich he found that its bed had been excavated, and the outline ofits shores determined. But perhaps the inhabitants of the lakeitself occupied him even more than its conformation or itssurrounding features. Not only for its own novelty and variety, butfor its bearing on the geographical distribution of animals, thefauna of this great sheet of fresh water interested him deeply. Onthis journey he saw at Niagara for the first time a livinggar-pike, the only representative among modern fishes of the fossiltype of Lepidosteus. From this type he had learned more perhapsthan from any other, of the relations between the past and thepresent fishes. When a student of nineteen years of age, his firstsight of a stuffed skin of a gar-pike in the Museum of Carlsruhetold him that it stood alone among living fishes. Its true alliancewith the Lepidosteus of the early geological ages became clear tohim only later in his study of the fossil fishes. He then detectedthe reptilian character of the type, and saw that from thearticulation of the vertebrae the head must have moved more freelyon the trunk than that of any fish of our days. To his greatdelight, when the first living specimen of the gar-pike, or modernLepidosteus, was brought to him, it moved its head to the right andleft and upward, as a Saurian does and as no other fish can. 

The result of this expedition was a valuable collection of fishesand a report upon the fauna and the geology of Lake Superior, comprising the erratic phenomena. A narrative written by JamesElliot Cabot formed the introduction to the report, and it was alsoaccompanied by two or three shorter contributions on specialsubjects from other members of the party. The volume wasillustrated by a number of plates exquisitely drawn and colored onstone by A. Sonrel. 

This was not Agassiz's first publication in America. His"Principles of Zoology" (Agassiz and Gould) was published in 1848. The book had a large sale, especially for schools. Edition followededition, but the sale of the first part was checked by the want ofthe second, which was never printed. Agassiz was always swept alongso rapidly by the current of his own activity that he was sometimesforced to leave behind him unfinished work. Before the time camefor the completion of the second part of the zoology, his ownknowledge had matured so much, that to be true to the facts, hemust have remodeled the whole of the first part, and for this henever found the time. Apropos of these publications the followingletters are in place. 

FROM SIR RODERICK MURCHISON. 

BELGRAVE SQUARE, October 3, 1849. 

. . . I thank you very sincerely for your most captivating generalwork on the "Principles of Zoology. " I am quite in love with it. Iwas glad to find that you had arranged the nummulites with thetertiary rocks, so that the broad generalization I attempted in mylast work on the Alps, Apennines, and Carpathians is completelysustained zoologically, and you will not be sorry to see thestratigraphical truth vindicated (versus E. De Beaumont and--). Ibeseech you to look at my memoir, and especially at my reasoningabout the miocene and pliocene divisions of the Alps and Italy. Itseems to me manifest that the percentage system derived from marinelife can never be applied to tertiary TERRESTRIAL successions. . . 

My friends have congratulated me much on this my last effort, andas Lyell and others most interested in opposing me have beenforward in approval, I begin to hope that I am not yet quite doneup; and that unlike the Bishop of Oviedo, my last sermon "ne sentpas de l'apoplexie. " I have, nevertheless, been desperately out ofsorts and full of gout and liver and all kinds of irritation thissummer, which is the first for many a long year in which I havebeen unable to take the field. The meeting at Birmingham, however, revived me. Professor W. Rogers will have told you all about ourdoings. Buckland is up to his neck in "sewage, " and wishes tochange all underground London into a fossil cloaca of pseudocoprolites. This does not quite suit the chemists charged withsanitary responsibilities; for they fear the Dean will poison halfthe population in preparing his choice manures! But in this as ineverything he undertakes there is a grand sweeping view. 

When are we to meet again? And when are we to have a "stand-upfight" on the erratics of the Alps? You will see by the abstract ofmy memoir appended to my Alpine affair that I have taken the fieldagainst the extension of the Jura! In a word, I do not believe thatgreat trunk glaciers ever filled the valleys of the Rhone, etc. Perhaps you will be present at our next meeting of the BritishAssociation at Edinburgh, August, 1850. Olim meminisse juvabit! andthen, my dear and valued and most enlightened friend, we may studyonce more together the surface of my native rocks for "auld langsyne. ". . . 

FROM CHARLES DARWIN. 

DOWN, FARNBOROUGH, KENT, June 15 [1850, probably]. 

MY DEAR SIR, I have seldom been more deeply gratified than by receiving yourmost kind present of "Lake Superior. " I had heard of it, and hadmuch wished to read it, but I confess it was the very great honorof having in my possession a work with your autograph, as apresentation copy, that has given me such lively and sincerepleasure. I cordially thank you for it. I have begun to read itwith uncommon interest, which I see will increase as I go on. 

The Cirripedia, which you and Dr. Gould were so good as to send me, have proved of great service to me. The sessile species fromMassachusetts consist of five species. . . Of the genus Balanus, onthe shores of Britain, we have ONE species (B. PerforataBruguiere), which you have not in the United States, in the sameway as you exclusively have B. Eburneus. All the above speciesattain a somewhat larger average size on the shores of the UnitedStates than on those of Britain, but the specimens from the glacialbeds of Uddevalla, Scotland, and Canada, are larger even than thoseof the United States. 

Once again allow me to thank you with cordiality for the pleasureyou have given me. 

Believe me, with the highest respect, your truly obliged, C. DARWIN. 

The following letter from Hugh Miller concerning Agassiz'sintention of introducing "The Footprints of the Creator" to theAmerican public by a slight memoir of Miller is of interest here. It is to be regretted that with this exception no letters have beenfound from him among Agassiz's papers, though he must have been infrequent correspondence with him, and they had, beside theirscientific sympathy, a very cordial personal relation. 

EDINBURGH, 2 STUART STREET, May 25, 1850. 

DEAR SIR, I was out of town when your kind letter reached here, and foundsuch an accumulation of employment on my return that it is only nowI find myself able to devote half an hour to the work of reply, andto say how thoroughly sensible I am of the honor you propose doingme. It never once crossed my mind when, in writing my littlevolume, the "Footprints, " I had such frequent occasion to refer tomy master, our great authority in ichthyic history, that he himselfwould have associated his name with it on the other side of theAtlantic, and referred in turn to its humble writer. 

In the accompanying parcel I send you two of my volumes, which youmay not yet have seen, and in which you may find some materials foryour proposed introductory memoir. At all events they may furnishyou with amusement in a leisure hour. The bulkier of the two, "Scenes and Legends, " of which a new edition has just appeared, andof which the first edition was published, after lying several yearsbeside me, in 1835, is the earliest of my works to which I attachedmy name. It forms a sort of traditionary history of a district ofScotland, about two hundred miles distant from the capital, inwhich the character of the people has been scarce at all affectedby the cosmopolitanism which has been gradually modifying andaltering it in the larger towns; and as it has been frequentlyremarked, --I know not with what degree of truth, --that there is acloser resemblance between the Scotch and Swiss than between anyother two peoples of Europe, you may have some interest indetermining whether the features of your own country-folk are notsometimes to be seen in those of mine, as exhibited in my legendaryhistory. Certainly both countries had for many ages nearly the samesort of work to do; both had to maintain a long and ultimatelysuccessful war of independence against nations greatly morepowerful than themselves; and as their hills produced little elsethan the "soldier and his sword, " both had to make a trade abroadof that art of war which they were compelled in self-defense toacquire at home. Even in the laws of some nations we find themcuriously enough associated together. In France, under the oldregime, the personal property of all strangers dying in thecountry, SWISS AND SCOTS EXCEPTED, was forfeited to the king. 

The other volume, "First Impressions of England and its People, "contains some personal anecdotes and some geology. But thenecessary materials you will chiefly find in the article from the"North British Review" which I also inclose. It is from the pen ofSir David Brewster, with whom for the last ten years I have spent afew very agreeable days every year at Christmas, under the roof ofa common friend, --one of the landed proprietors of Fifeshire. SirDavid's estimate of the writer is, I fear, greatly too high, buthis statement of facts regarding him is correct; and I think youwill find it quite full enough for the purposes of a brief memoir. With his article I send you one of my own, written about six yearsago for the same periodical, as the subject is one in which, fromits connection with your master study, --the natural history offishes, --you may take more interest than most men. It embodies, from observation, what may be regarded as THE NATURAL HISTORY OFTHE FISHERMAN, and describes some curious scenes and appearanceswhich I witnessed many years ago when engaged, during a truantboyhood, in prosecuting the herring fishery as an amateur. Many ofmy observations of natural phenomena date from this idle, and yetnot wholly wasted, period of my life. 

With the volumes I send also a few casts of my less fragilespecimens of Asterolepis. Two of the number, those of the externaland internal surfaces of the creature's cranial buckler, are reallyvery curious combinations of plates, and when viewed in a slantlight have a decidedly sculpturesque and not ungraceful effect. Ihave seen on our rustic tombstones worse representations of angels, winged and robed, than that formed by the central plates of theinterior surface when the light is made to fall along their higherprotuberances, leaving the hollows in the shade. You see how trulyyour prediction regarding the flatness of the creature's head issubstantiated by these casts; it is really not easy to know how, placed on so flat a surface, the eyes could have been veryavailable save for star-gazing; but as nature makes no mistakes insuch matters, it is possible that the creature, like theflatfishes, may have lived much at the bottom, and that most of theseeing it had use for may have been seeing in an upward direction. None of my other specimens of bucklers are so entire and in so gooda state of keeping as the two from which I have taken the casts, but they are greatly larger. One specimen, nearly complete, exhibits an area about four times as great as the largest of thesetwo, and I have fragments of others which must have belonged tofish still more gigantic. The two other casts are of specimens ofgill covers, which in the Asterolepis, as in the sturgeon, consisted each of a single plate. In both the exterior surface ofthe buckler and of the operculum the tubercles are a good dealenveloped in the stone, which is of a consistency too hard to beremoved without injuring what it overlies; but you will find themin the smaller cast which accompanies the others, and which, asshown by the thickness of the plate in the original, indicatestheir size and form in a large individual, very characteristicallyshown. So coral-like is their aspect, that if it was from such acast, not a fossil (which would, of course, exhibit thepeculiarities of the bone), that Lamarck founded his genusMonticularia, I think his apology for the error might almost bemaintained as good. I am sorry I cannot venture on taking castsfrom some of my other specimens; but they are exceedingly fragile, and as they are still without duplicates I am afraid to hazardthem. Since publishing my little volume I have got several newplates of Asterolepis, --a broad palatal plate, covered withtubercles, considerably larger than those of the creature'sexternal surface, --a key-stone shaped plate, placed, when in situ, in advance of the little plate between the eyes, which form thehead and face of the effigy in the centre of the buckler, --and aside-plate, into which the condyloid processes of the lower jawwere articulated, and which exhibited the processes on which thesehinged. There are besides some two or three plates more, whoseplaces I have still to find. The small cast, stained yellow, istaken from an instructive specimen of the jaws of coccosteus, andexhibits a peculiarity which I had long suspected and referred toin the first edition of my volume on the Old Red Sandstone inrather incautious language, but which a set of my specimens nowfully establishes. Each of the under jaws of the fish was furnishedwith two groups of teeth: one group in the place where, inquadrupeds, we usually find the molars; and another group in theline of the symphyses. And how these both could have acted is aproblem which our anatomists here--many of whom have carefullyexamined my specimen--seem unable, and in some degree, indeed, afraid to solve. 

I have written to the Messrs. Gould, Kendall & Lincoln to say thatthe third edition of the "Footprints" differs from the first andsecond only by the addition of a single note and an illustrativediagram, both of which I have inclosed to them in my communication. I anticipate much pleasure from the perusal of your work on LakeSuperior, when it comes to hand, which, as your publishers haveintrusted it to the care of a gentleman visiting this country, will, I think, be soon. It is not often that a region so remote andso little known as that which surrounds the great lake of Americais visited by a naturalist of the first class. From such a terraincognita, at length unveiled to eyes so discerning, I anticipatestrange tidings. 

I am, my dear sir, with respect and admiration, very truly yours, HUGH MILLER. 

In the spring of 1850 Agassiz married Elizabeth Cabot Cary, daughter of Thomas Graves Cary, of Boston. This marriage confirmedhis resolve to remain, at least for the present, in the UnitedStates. It connected him by the closest ties with a large familycircle, of which he was henceforth a beloved and honored member, and made him the brother-in-law of one of his most intimate friendsin Cambridge, Professor C. C. Felton. Thus secure of favorableconditions for the care and education of his children, he calledthem to this country. His son (then a lad of fifteen years of age)had joined him the previous summer. His daughters, younger byseveral years than their brother, arrived the following autumn, andhome built itself up again around him. 

The various foreign members of his household had already scattered. One or two had returned to Europe, others had settled here inpermanent homes of their own. Among the latter were Professor Guyotand M. De Pourtales, who remained, both as scientific colleaguesand personal friends, very near and dear to him all his life. "PapaChristinat" had also withdrawn. While Agassiz was absent on alecturing tour, the kind old man, knowing well the opposition heshould meet, and wishing to save both himself and his friend thepain of parting, stole away without warning and went to NewOrleans, where he had obtained a place as pastor. This was a greatdisappointment to Agassiz, who had urged him to make his home withhim, a plan in which his wife and children cordially concurred, butwhich did not approve itself to the judgment of his old friend. M. Christinat afterward returned to Switzerland, where he ended hisdays. He wrote constantly until his death, and was always keptadvised of everything that passed in the family at Cambridge. Ofthe old household, Mr. Burkhardt alone remained a permanent memberof the new one. 

CHAPTER 16. 

1850-1852: AGE 43-45. 

Proposition from Dr. Bache. Exploration of Florida Reefs. Letter to Humboldt concerning Work in America. Appointment to Professorship of Medical College in Charleston, S. C. Life at the South. Views concerning Races of Men. Prix Cuvier. 

THE following letter from the Superintendent of the Coast Surveydetermined for Agassiz the chief events of the winter of 1851. 

FROM ALEXANDER DALLAS BACHE. 

WEBB'S HILL, October 30, 1850. 

MY DEAR FRIEND, Would it be possible for you to devote six weeks or two months tothe examination of the Florida reefs and keys in connection withtheir survey? It is extremely important to ascertain what they areand how formed. One account treats them as growing corals, anotheras masses of something resembling oolite, piled together, barrier-wise. You see that this lies at the root of the progress ofthe reef, so important to navigation, of the use to be made of itin placing our signals, of the use as a foundation forlight-houses, and of many other questions practically important andof high scientific interest. I would place a vessel at yourdisposal during the time you were on the reef, say six weeks. 

The changes at or near Cape Florida, from the Atlantic coast andits siliceous sand, to the Florida coast and its coral sand, mustbe curious. You will be free to move from one end of the reef tothe other, which will be, say one hundred and fifty miles. Motionto eastward would be slow in the windy season, though favored bythe Gulf Stream as the winds are "trade. " Whatever collections youmight make would be your own. I would only ask for the survey suchinformation and such specimens as would be valuable to itsoperations, especially to its hydrography, and some report on thesematters. As this will, if your time and engagements permit, lead toa business arrangement, I must, though reluctantly, enter intothat. I will put aside six hundred dollars for the two months, leaving you to pay your own expenses; or, if you prefer it, willpay all expenses of travel, including subsistence, to and from KeyWest, and furnish vessel and subsistence while there, and fourhundred dollars. 

What results would flow to science from your visit to that region!You have spoken of the advantage of using our vessels when theywere engaged in their own work. Now I offer you a vessel themotions of which you will control, and the assistance of theofficers and crew of which you will have. You shall be at noexpense for going and coming, or while there, and shall choose yourown time. . . 

Agassiz accepted this proposal with delight, and at once madearrangements to take with him a draughtsman and an assistant, inorder to give the expedition such a character as would make ituseful to science in general, as well as to the special objects ofthe Coast Survey. It will be seen that Dr. Bache gladly concurredin all these views. 

FROM ALEXANDER DALLAS BACHE. 

WASHINGTON, December 18, 1850. 

MY DEAR FRIEND, On the basis of our former communications I have been, as the timeserved, raising a superstructure. I have arranged with LieutenantCommander Alden to send the schooner W. A. Graham, belonging to theCoast Survey, under charge of an officer who will take an interestin promoting the great objects in which you will be engaged, to KeyWest, in time to meet you on your arrival in the Isabel of the15th, from Charleston to Key West. The vessel will be placed atyour absolute disposal for four to six weeks, as you may finddesirable, doing just such things as you require, and going to suchplaces as you direct. If you desire more than a general direction, I will give any specific ones which you may suggest. . . 

I have requested that room be made in the cabin for you and for twoaids, as you desire to take a draughtsman with you; and inreference to your enlarged plan of operating, of which I see theadvantage, I have examined the financial question, and propose toadd two hundred dollars to the six hundred in my letter of October30th, to enable you to execute it. I would suggest that you stop aday in Washington on your way to Charleston, to pick up thetopographical and geographical information which you desire, and tohave all matters of a formal kind arranged to suit your convenienceand wishes, which, I am sure, will all be promotive of the objectsin view from your visit to Florida. . . You say I shall smile ATyour plans, --instead of which, they have been smiled ON; now, thereis a point for you, --a true Saxon distinction. 

If you succeed (and did you ever fail!?) in developing for ourCoast Survey the nature, structure, growth, and all that, of theFlorida reefs, you will have conferred upon the country a pricelessfavor. . . 

The Superintendent of the Coast Survey never had cause to regretthe carte-blanche he had thus given. A few weeks, with thefacilities so liberally afforded, gave Agassiz a clew to all thephenomena he had been commissioned to examine, and enabled him toexplain the relation between the keys and the outer and innerreefs, and the mud swamps, or more open channels, dividing them, and to connect these again with the hummocks and everglades of themain-land. It remains to be seen whether his theory will hold good, that the whole or the greater part of the Florida peninsula has, like its southern portion, been built up of concentric reefs. Buthis explanation of the present reefs, their structure, laws ofgrowth, relations to each other and to the main-land, as well as tothe Gulf Stream and its prevailing currents, was of great practicalservice to the Coast Survey. It was especially valuable indetermining how far the soil now building up from accumulations ofmud and coral debris was likely to remain for a long time shiftingand uncertain, and how far and in what localities it might berelied upon as affording a stable foundation. When, at the meetingof the American Association in the following spring, Agassiz gavean account of his late exploration, Dr. Bache, who was present, said that for the first time he understood the bearing of the wholesubject, though he had so long been trying to unravel it. 

The following letter was written immediately after Agassiz'sreturn. 

TO SIR CHARLES LYELL. 

CAMBRIDGE, April 26, 1851. 

. . . I have spent a large part of the winter in Florida, with aview of studying the coral reefs. I have found that they constitutea new class of reefs, distinct from those described by Darwin andDana under the name of fringing reefs, barrier reefs, and atolls. Ihave lately read a paper upon that subject before the AmericanAcademy, which I shall send you as soon as it is printed. The caseis this. There are several concentric reefs separated by deepchannels; the peninsula of Florida itself is a succession of suchreefs, the everglades being the filled-up channels, while thehummocks were formerly little intervening islands, like themangrove islands in the present channels. But what is quiteremarkable, all these concentric reefs are upon one level, abovethat of the sea, and there is no indication whatever of upheaval. You will find some observations upon upheavals, etc. , in Silliman, by Tuomey; it is a great mistake, as I shall show. The Tortugas area real atoll, but formed without the remotest indication ofsubsidence. 

Of course this does not interfere in the least with the views ofDarwin, for the whole ground presents peculiar features. I wish youwould tell him something about this. One of the most remarkablepeculiarities of the rocks in the reefs of the Tortugas consists intheir composition; they are chiefly made up of CORALLINES, limestone algae, and, to a small extent only, of real corals. . . 

Agassiz's report to the Coast Survey upon the results of this firstinvestigation made by him upon the reefs of Florida was notpublished in full at the time. The parts practically most importantto the Coast Survey were incorporated in their subsequent charts;the more general scientific results, as touching the physicalhistory of the peninsula as a whole, appeared in various forms, were embodied in Agassiz's lectures, and were printed some yearsafter in his volume entitled "Methods of Study. " The originalreport, with all the plates prepared for it, was published in the"Memoirs of the Museum of Comparative Zoology, " under thesupervision of Alexander Agassiz, after the death of his father. Itforms a quarto volume, containing some sixty pages of text, withtwenty-two plates, illustrative of corals and coral structure, anda map of Southern Florida with its reefs and keys. 

This expedition was also of great importance to Agassiz'scollections, and to the embryo museum in Cambridge. It laid thefoundation of a very complete collection of corals of all varietiesand in all stages of growth. All the specimens, from huge coralheads and branching fans down to the most minute single corals, were given up to him, the value of the whole being greatly enhancedby the drawings taken on the spot from the living animals. 

To this period belongs also the following fragment of a letter toHumboldt. 

TO ALEXANDER VON HUMBOLDT. 

[Probably 1852, --date not given. ]

. . . What a time has passed since my last letter! Had you not beenconstantly in my thoughts, and your counsels always before me as myguide, I should reproach myself for my silence. I hope my twopapers on the medusae, forwarded this year, have reached you, andalso one upon the classification of insects, as based upon theirdevelopment. I have devoted myself especially to the organizationof the invertebrate animals, and to the facts bearing upon theperfecting of their classification. I have succeeded in tracing thesame identity of structure between the three classes of radiates, and also between those of mollusks, as has already been recognizedin the vertebrates, and partially in the articulates. It is truly apleasure for me now to be able to demonstrate in my lectures theinsensible gradations existing between polyps, medusae, andechinoderms, and to designate by the same name organs seemingly sodifferent. Especially has the minute examination of the thicknessof the test in echinoderms revealed to me unexpected relationsbetween the sea-urchin and the medusa. No one suspects, I fancy, atthis moment, that the solid envelope of the Scutellae and theClypeasters is traversed by a net-work of radiating tubes, corresponding to those of the medusae, so well presented byEhrenberg in Aurelia aurita. If the Berlin zoologists will take thetrouble to file off the surface of the test of an Echinarachniusparma, they will find a circular canal as large and as continuousas that of the medusae. The aquiferous tubes specified above openinto this canal. But the same thing may be found under variousmodifications in other genera of the family. Since I have succeededin injecting colored liquid into the beroids, for instance, andkeeping them alive with it circulating in their transparent mass, Iam able to show the identity of their zones of locomotive fringes(combs), from which they take their name of Ctenophorae, with theambulacral (locomotive) apparatus of the echinoderms. Furnishedwith these facts, it is not difficult to recognize true beroidalforms in the embryos of sea-urchins and star-fishes, published byMuller in his beautiful plates, and thus to trace the medusoidorigin of the echinoderms, as the polypoid origin of the medusaehas already been recognized. I do not here allude to theirprimitive origin, but simply to the general fact that amongradiates the embryos of the higher classes represent, in miniature, types of the lower classes, as, for instance, those of theechinoderms resemble the medusae, those of the medusae the polyps. Having passed the greater part of last winter in Florida, where Iwas especially occupied in studying the coral reefs, I had the bestopportunity in the world for prosecuting my embryologicalresearches upon the stony corals. I detected relations among themwhich now enable me to determine the classification of theseanimals according to their mode of development with greatercompleteness than ever before, and even to assign a superior orinferior rank to their different types, agreeing with theirgeological succession, as I have already done for the fishes. I amon the road to the same results for the mollusks and thearticulates, and can even now say in general terms, that the mostancient representatives of all the families belonging to thesegreat groups, strikingly recall the first phases in the embryonicdevelopment of their successors in more recent formations, and eventhat the embryos of comparatively recent families recall familiesbelonging to ancient epochs. You will find some allusion to theseresults in my Lectures on Embryology, given in my "Lake Superior, "of which I have twice sent you a copy, that it might reach you themore surely; but these first impressions have assumed greatercoherence now, and I constantly find myself recurring to my fossilsfor light upon the embryonic forms I am studying and vice versa, consulting my embryological drawings in order to decipher thefossils with greater certainty. 

The proximity of the sea and the ease with which I can visit anypart of the coast within a range of some twenty degrees give meinexhaustible resources for the whole year, which, as time goes on, I turn more and more to the best account. On the other hand, theabundance and admirable state of preservation of the fossils foundin our ancient deposits, as well as the regular succession of thebeds containing them, contribute admirable material for this kindof comparative study. . . 

In the summer of 1851 Agassiz was invited to a professorship at theMedical College in Charleston, S. C. This was especially acceptableto him, because it substituted a regular course of instruction tostudents, for the disconnected lectures given to miscellaneousaudiences, in various parts of the country, by which he was obligedto eke out his small salary and provide for his scientificexpenses. While more fatiguing than class-room work, thesescattered lectures had a less educational value, though, on theother hand, they awakened a very wide-spread interest in the studyof nature. The strain of constant traveling for this purpose, themore harassing because so unfavorable to his habits of continuouswork, had already told severely upon his health; and from thispoint of view also the new professorship was attractive, aspromising a more quiet, though no less occupied, life. The lectureswere to be given during the three winter months, thus occupying theinterval between his autumn and spring courses at Cambridge. 

He assumed his new duties at Charleston in December, 1851, and bythe kindness of his friend Mrs. Rutledge, who offered him the useof her cottage for the purpose, he soon established a laboratory onSullivan's Island, where the two or three assistants he had broughtwith him could work conveniently. The cottage stood within hearingof the wash of the waves, at the head of the long, hard sand beachwhich fringed the island shore for some three or four miles. Therecould hardly be a more favorable position for a naturalist, andthere, in the midst of their specimens, Agassiz and his band ofworkers might constantly be found. His studies here were of thegreater interest to him because they connected themselves with hisprevious researches, not only upon the fishes, but also upon thelower marine animals of the coast of New England and of the Floridareefs; so that he had now a basis for comparison of the faunascattered along the whole Atlantic coast of the United States. Thefollowing letter gives some idea of his work at this time. 

TO PROFESSOR JAMES D. DANA. 

CHARLESTON, January 26, 1852. 

MY DEAR FRIEND, You should at least know that I think of you often on these shores. And how could I do otherwise when I daily find new small crustacea, which remind me of the important work you are now preparing on thatsubject. 

Of course, of the larger ones there is nothing to be found afterProfessor Gibbes has gone over the ground, but among the lowerorders there are a great many in store for a microscopic observer. I have only to regret that I cannot apply myself more steadily. Ifind my nervous system so over-excited that any continuous exertionmakes me feverish. So I go about as much as the weather allows, andgather materials for better times. 

Several interesting medusae have been already observed; amongothers, the entire metamorphosis and alternate generation of a newspecies of my genus tiaropsis. You will be pleased to know thathere, as well as at the North, tiaropsis is the medusa of acampanularia. Mr. Clark, one of my assistants, has made very gooddrawings of all its stages of growth, and of various other hydroidmedusae peculiar to this coast. Mr. Stimpson, another verypromising young naturalist, who has been connected with me for sometime in the same capacity, draws the crustacea and bryozoa, ofwhich there are also a good many new ones here. My son and my oldfriend Burkhardt are also with me (upon Sullivan's Island), andthey look after the larger species, so that I shall probably havegreatly increased my information upon the fauna of the Atlanticcoast by the time I return to Cambridge. 

In town, where I go three times a week to deliver lectures at theMedical College (beside a course just now in the evening alsobefore a mixed audience), I have the rest of my family, so thatnothing would be wanting to my happiness if my health were onlybetter. . . What a pity that a man cannot work as much as he wouldlike; or at least accomplish what he aims at. But no doubt it isbest it should be so; there is no harm in being compelled bynatural necessities to limit our ambition, --on the contrary, thebetter sides of our nature are thus not allowed to go to sleep. However, I cannot but regret that I am unable at this time to tracemore extensively subjects for which I should have ampleopportunities here, as for instance the anatomy of the echinoderms, and also the embryology of the lower animals in general. . . 

This winter, notwithstanding the limitations imposed upon his workby the state of his health, was a very happy one to Agassiz. Asmentioned in the above letter his wife and daughters hadaccompanied him to Charleston, and were established there inlodgings. Their holidays and occasional vacations were passed atthe house of Dr. John E. Holbrook (the "Hollow Tree"), anexquisitely pretty and picturesque country place in theneighborhood of Charleston. Here Agassiz had been received almostas one of the family on his first visit to Charleston, shortlyafter his arrival in the United States. Dr. Holbrook's name, as theauthor of the "Herpetology of South Carolina, " had long beenfamiliar to him, and he now found a congenial and affectionatefriend in the colleague and fellow-worker, whose personalacquaintance he had been anxious to make. Dr. Holbrook's wife, adirect descendant of John Rutledge of our revolutionary history, not only shared her husband's intellectual life, but had herselfrare mental qualities, which had been developed by an unusuallycomplete and efficient education. The wide and various range of herreading, the accuracy of her knowledge in matters of history andliterature, and the charm of her conversation, made her adelightful companion. She exercised the most beneficent influenceupon her large circle of young people, and without any effort toattract, she drew to herself whatever was most bright and clever inthe society about her. The "Hollow Tree, " presided over by itshospitable host and hostess was, therefore, the centre of astimulating and cultivated social intercourse, free from all geneor formality. Here Agassiz and his family spent many happy daysduring their southern sojourn of 1852. The woods were yellow withjessamine, and the low, deep piazza was shut in by vines and roses;the open windows and the soft air full of sweet, out-of-doorfragrance made one forget, spite of the wood fire on the hearth, that it was winter by the calendar. The days, passed almost whollyin the woods or on the veranda, closed with evenings spent notinfrequently in discussions upon the scientific ideas and theoriesof the day, carried often beyond the region of demonstrated factsinto that of speculative thought. An ever-recurring topic was thatof the origin of the human race. It was Agassiz's declared beliefthat man had sprung not from a common stock, but from variouscentres, and that the original circumscription of these primordialgroups of the human family corresponded in a large and general waywith the distribution of animals and their combination into faunae. * (* See "Sketch of the Natural Provinces of the Animal World andtheir Relation to the Different Types of Man" included in Nott &Gliddon's "Types of Mankind". ) His special zoological studies weretoo engrossing to allow him to follow this line of investigationclosely, but it was never absent from his view of the animalkingdom as a whole. He valued extremely Mrs. Holbrook's thoughtfulsympathy, and as the following letter connects itself with thewinter evening talks by the "Hollow Tree" fireside, and wassuggested by them, it may be given here, though in date it is alittle in advance of the present chapter. 

TO MRS. HOLBROOK. 

CAMBRIDGE, July, 1852. 

. . . I am again working at the human races, and have opened anotherline of investigation in that direction. The method followed byformer investigators does not seem to me to have been altogetherthe best, since there is so little agreement between them. Thedifficulty has, no doubt, arisen on one side from the circumstancethat the inquirer sought for evidence of the unity of all races, expecting the result to agree with the prevailing interpretation ofGenesis; and on the other from too zoological a point of view inweighing the differences observed. Again, both have almost setaside all evidence not directly derived from the examination of theraces themselves. It has occurred to me that as a preliminaryinquiry we ought to consider the propriety of applying to man thesame rules as to animals, examining the limits within which theyobtain, and paying due attention to all circumstances bearing uponthe differences observed among men, from whatever quarter in thestudy of nature they may be gathered. What do the monkeys say tothis? or, rather, what have they to tell in reference to it? Thereare among them as great, and, indeed, even greater, differencesthan among men, for they are acknowledged to constitute differentgenera, and are referred to many, indeed to more than a hundred, species; but they are the nearest approach to the human family, andwe may at least derive some hints from them. How much mixture thereis among these species, if any, is not at all ascertained; indeed, we have not the least information respecting their intercourse; butone point is certain, --zoologists agree as little among themselvesrespecting the limits of these species as they do respecting theaffinities of the races of men. What some consider as distinctspecies, others consider as mere varieties, and these varieties orspecies differ in particulars neither more constant nor moreimportant than those which distinguish the human races. The factthat they are arranged in different genera, species, and varietiesdoes not lessen the value of the comparison; for the point inquestion is just to know whether nations, races, and what have alsobeen called families of men, such as the Indo-Germanic, theSemitic, etc. , do not in reality correspond to the families, genera, and species of monkeys. Now the first great subdivisionsamong the true monkeys (excluding Makis and Arctopitheci) arefounded upon the form of the nose, those of the new world having abroad partition between the nostrils, while those of the old worldhave it narrow. How curious that this fact, which has been known tonaturalists for half a century, as presenting a leading featureamong monkeys, should have been overlooked in man, when, inreality, the negroes and Australians differ in precisely the samemanner from the other races; they having a broad partition, andnostrils opening sideways, like the monkeys of South America, whilethe other types of the human family have a narrow partition andnostrils opening downward, like the monkeys of Asia and Africa. Again, the minor differences, such as the obliquity of the anteriorteeth, the thickness of the lips, the projection of thecheek-bones, the position of the eyes, the characteristic hair, orwool, afford as constant differences as those by which thechimpanzees, orangs, and gibbons are separated into distinctgenera; and their respective species differ no more than do theGreeks, Germans, and Arabs, --or the Chinese, Tartars, and Finns, --or the New Zealanders and Malays, which are respectively referredto the same race. The truth is, that the different SPECIES admittedby some among the orangs are in reality RACES among monkeys, orelse the races among men are nothing more than what are calledspecies among certain monkeys. . . Listen for a moment to thefollowing facts, and when you read this place a map of the worldbefore you. Upon a narrow strip of land along the Gulf of Guinea, from Cape Palmas to the Gaboon, live two so-called species ofchimpanzee; upon the islands of Sumatra and Borneo live three orfour orangs; upon the shores of the Gulf of Bengal, including theneighborhood of Calcutta, Burmah, Malacca, Sumatra, Borneo, andJava together, ten or eleven species of gibbons, all of which arethe nearest relatives to the human family, some being as large ascertain races of men; altogether, fifteen species of anthropoidmonkeys playing their part in the animal population of the worldupon an area not equaling by any means the surface of Europe. Someof these species are limited to Borneo, others to Sumatra, othersto Java alone, others to the peninsula of Malacca; that is to sayto tracts of land similar in extent to Spain, France, Italy, andeven to Ireland; distinct animals, considered by most naturalistsas distinct species, approaching man most closely in structuraleminence and size, limited to areas not larger than Spain or Italy. Why, then, should not the primitive theatre of a nation of men havebeen circumscribed within similar boundaries, and from thebeginning have been as independent as the chimpanzee of Guinea, orthe orangs of Borneo and Sumatra? Of course, the superior powers ofman have enabled him to undertake migrations, but how limited arethese, and how slight the traces they have left behind them. . . Unfortunately for natural history, history so-called has recordedmore faithfully the doings of handfuls of adventurers than the realhistory of the primitive nations with whom the migrating tribescame into contact. But I hope it will yet be possible to dive underthese waves of migration, to remove, as it were, the trace of theirpassage, and to read the true history of the past inhabitants ofthe different parts of the world, when it will be found, if allanalogies are not deceptive, that every country equaling in extentthose within the limits of which distinct nationalities are knownto have played their part in history, has had its distinctaborigines, the character of which it is now the duty ofnaturalists to restore, if it be not too late, in the same manneras paleontologists restore fossil remains. I have already made someattempts, by studying ancient geography, and I hope the task mayyet be accomplished. . . Look, for instance, at Spain. The Iberiansare known as the first inhabitants, never extending much beyond thePyrenees to the Garonne, and along the gulfs of Lyons and Genoa. Asearly as during the period of Phoenician prosperity they raisedwool from their native sheep, derived from the Mouflon, still foundwild in Spain, Corsica, and Sardinia; they had a peculiar breed ofhorses, to this day differing from all other horses in the world. Is this not better evidence of their independent origin, than isthe fancied lineage with the Indo-Germanic family of their Orientaldescent? For we must not forget, in connection with this, that theBasque language was once the language of all Spain, that which theIberian spoke, and which has no direct relation to Sanskrit. 

I have alluded but slightly to the negro race, and not at all tothe Indians. I would only add with reference to these that I beginto perceive the possibility of distinguishing different centres ofgrowth in these two continents. If we leave out of considerationfancied migrations, what connection can be traced, for instance, between the Eskimos, along the whole northern districts of thiscontinent, and the Indians of the United States, those of Mexico, those of Peru, and those of Brazil? Is there any real connectionbetween the coast tribes of the northwest coast, the moundbuilders, the Aztec civilization, the Inca, and the Gueranis? Itseems to me no more than between the Assyrian and Egyptiancivilization. And as to negroes, there is, perhaps, a still greaterdifference between those of Senegal, of Guinea, and the Caffres andHottentots, when compared with the Gallahs and Mandingoes. Butwhere is the time to be taken for the necessary investigationsinvolved in these inquiries? Pray write to me soon what you say toall this, and believe me always your true friend, L. AGASSIZ. 

In the spring of 1852, while still in Charleston, Agassiz heardthat the Prix Cuvier, now given for the first time, was awarded tohim for the "Poissons Fossiles. " This gratified him the morebecause the work had been so directly bequeathed to him by Cuvierhimself. To his mother, through whom he received the news inadvance of the official papers, it also gave great pleasure. "Yourfossil fishes, " she says, "which have cost you so much anxiety, somuch toil, so many sacrifices, have now been estimated at theirtrue value by the most eminent judges. . . This has given me suchhappiness, dear Louis, that the tears are in my eyes as I write itto you. " She had followed the difficulties of his task too closelynot to share also its success. 

CHAPTER 17. 

1852-1855: AGE 45-48. 

Return to Cambridge. Anxiety about Collections. Purchase of Collections. Second Winter in Charleston. Illness. Letter to James D. Dana concerning Geographical Distribution and Geological Succession of Animals. Resignation of Charleston Professorship. Propositions from Zurich. Letter to Oswald Heer. Decision to remain in Cambridge. Letters to James D. Dana, S. S. Haldeman, and Others respecting Collections illustrative of the Distribution of Fishes, Shells, etc. , in our Rivers. Establishment of School for Girls. 

Agassiz returned from Charleston to Cambridge in the early spring, pausing in Washington to deliver a course of lectures before theSmithsonian Institution. By this time he had become intimate withProfessor Henry, at whose hospitable house he and his family werestaying during their visit at Washington. He had the warmestsympathy not only with Professor Henry's scientific work andcharacter, but also with his views regarding the SmithsonianInstitution, of which he had become the Superintendent shortlyafter Agassiz arrived in this country. Agassiz himself was soonappointed one of the Regents of the Institution and remained uponthe Board until his death. 

Agassiz now began to feel an increased anxiety about hiscollections. During the six years of his stay in the United Stateshe had explored the whole Atlantic sea-board as well as the lakeand river system of the Eastern and Middle States, and had amassedsuch materials in natural history as already gave his collections, in certain departments at least, a marked importance. In the loweranimals, and as illustrating the embryology of the marineinvertebrates, they were especially valuable. It had long been afavorite idea with him to build up an embryological department inhis prospective museum; the more so because such a provision on anylarge scale had never been included in the plan of the greatzoological institutions, and he believed it would have a direct andpowerful influence on the progress of modern science. Thecollections now in his possession included ample means for thiskind of research, beside a fair representation of almost allclasses of the animal kingdom. Packed together, however, in thenarrowest quarters, they were hardly within his own reach, muchless could they be made available for others. His own resourceswere strained to the utmost, merely to save these preciousmaterials from destruction. It is true that in 1850 the sum of fourhundred dollars, to be renewed annually, was allowed him by theUniversity for their preservation, and a barrack-like woodenbuilding on the college grounds, far preferable to the bath-houseby the river, was provided for their storage. But the cost ofkeeping them was counted by thousands, not by hundreds, and thegreater part of what Agassiz could make by his lectures outside ofCambridge was swallowed up in this way. It was, perhaps, theknowledge of this which induced certain friends, interested in himand in science, to subscribe twelve thousand dollars for thepurchase of his collections, to be thus permanently secured toCambridge. This gave him back, in part, the sum he had alreadyspent upon them, and which he was more than ready to spend again intheir maintenance and increase. 

The next year showed that his over-burdened life was beginning totell upon his health. Scarcely had he arrived in Charleston andbegun his course at the Medical College when he was attacked by aviolent fever, and his life was in danger for many days. Fortunately for him his illness occurred at the "Hollow Tree, "where he was passing the Christmas holidays. Dr. And Mrs. Holbrookwere like a brother and sister to him, and nothing could exceed thekindness he received under their roof. One young friend who hadbeen his pupil, and to whom he was much attached, Dr. St. JulianRavenel, was constantly at his bedside. His care was invaluable, for he combined the qualities of physician and nurse. Under suchwatchful tending, Agassiz could hardly fail to mend if cure werehumanly possible. The solicitude of these nearer friends seemed tobe shared by the whole community, and his recovery gave generalrelief. He was able to resume his lectures toward the end ofFebruary. Spite of the languor of convalescence his elastic mindwas at once ready for work, as may be seen by the following extractfrom one of his first letters. 

TO JAMES D. DANA. 

SULLIVAN'S ISLAND, CHARLESTON, February 16, 1853. 

. . . It seems, indeed, to me as if in the study of the geographicaldistribution of animals the present condition of the animal kingdomwas too exclusively taken into consideration. Whenever it can bedone, and I hope before long it may be done for all classes, itwill be desirable to take into account the relations of the livingto the fossil species. Since you are as fully satisfied as I amthat the location of animals, with all their peculiarities, is notthe result of physical influences, but lies within the plans andintentions of the Creator, it must be obvious that the successiveintroduction of all the diversity of forms which have existed fromthe first appearance of any given division of the animal kingdom upto the present creation, must have reference to the location ofthose now in existence. For instance, if it be true among mammaliathat the highest types, such as quadrumana, are essentiallytropical, may it not be that the prevailing distribution of theinferior pachyderms within the same geographical limits is owing tothe circumstance that their type was introduced upon earth during awarmer period in the history of our globe, and that their presentlocation is in accordance with that fact, rather than related totheir degree of organization? The pentacrinites, the lowest of theechinoderms, have only one living representative in tropicalAmerica, where we find at the same time the highest and largestspatangi and holothuridae. Is this not quite a parallel case withthe monkeys and pachyderms? for once crinoids were the onlyrepresentatives of the class of echinoderms. May we not say thesame of crocodiles when compared with the ancient giganticsaurians? or are the crocodiles, as an order, distinct from theother saurians, and really higher than the turtles? Innumerablequestions of this kind, of great importance for zoology, aresuggested at every step, as soon as we compare the presentdistribution of animals with that of the inhabitants of formergeological periods. Among crustacea, it is very remarkable thattrilobites and limulus-like forms are the only representatives ofthe class during the paleozoic ages; that macrourans prevailed inthe same manner during the secondary period; and that brachyuransmake their appearance only in the tertiary period. Do you discoverin your results any connection between such facts and the presentdistribution of crustacea? There is certainly one feature in theirclassification which must appear very striking, --that, taken on alarge scale, the organic rank of these animals agrees in the mainwith their order of succession in geological times; and this factis of no small importance when it is found that the samecorrespondence between rank and succession obtains through allclasses of the animal kingdom, and that similar features aredisplayed in the embryonic growth of all types so far as now known. 

But I feel my head is growing dull, and I will stop here. Let meconclude by congratulating you on having completed your great workon crustacea. . . 

Agassiz returned to the North in the spring of 1853 by way of theMississippi, stopping to lecture at Mobile, New Orleans, and St. Louis. On leaving Charleston he proffered his resignation with deepregret, for, beside the close personal ties he had formed, he wasattached to the place, the people, and to his work there. He hadhoped to establish a permanent station for sustained observationsin South Carolina, and thus to carry on a series of researcheswhich, taken in connection with his studies on the New Englandcoast and its vicinity, and on the Florida reefs and shores, wouldafford a wide field of comparison. This was not to be, however. TheMedical College refused, indeed, to accept his resignation, granting him, at the same time, a year of absence. But it soonbecame evident that his health was seriously shaken, and that heneeded the tonic of the northern winter. He was, indeed, neverafterward as strong as he had been before this illness. 

The winter of 1854 was passed in Cambridge with such quiet and restas the conditions of his life would allow. In May of that year hereceived an invitation to the recently established University ofZurich, in Switzerland. His acceptance was urged upon the ground ofpatriotism as well as on that of a liberal endowment both for theprofessor, and for the museum of which he was to have charge. Theoffer was tempting, but Agassiz was in love (the word is not toostrong) with the work he had undertaken and the hopes he had formedin America. He believed that by his own efforts, combined with theenthusiasm for science which he had aroused and constantly stroveto keep alive and foster in the community, he should at lastsucceed in founding a museum after his own heart in the UnitedStates, --a museum which should not be a mere accumulation, howevervast or extensive, of objects of natural history, but should have awell-combined and clearly expressed educational value. As we shallsee, neither the associations of his early life nor the mosttempting scientific prizes in the gift of the old world coulddivert him from this settled purpose. The proposition from Zurichwas not official, but came through a friend and colleague, for whomhe had the deepest sympathy and admiration, --Oswald Heer. To workin his immediate neighborhood would have been in itself atemptation. 

TO PROFESSOR OSWALD HEER. 

CAMBRIDGE, January 9, 1855. 

MY HONORED FRIEND, How shall I make you understand why your kind letter, though itreached me some months ago, has remained till now unanswered. Itconcerns a decision of vital importance to my whole life, and insuch a case one must not decide hastily, nor even with tooexclusive regard for one's own preference in the matter. You cannotdoubt that the thought of joining an institution of my nativecountry, and thus helping to stimulate scientific progress in theland of my birth, my home, and my early friends, appeals to all Ihold dear and honorable in life. On the other side I have now beeneight years in America, have learned to understand the advantagesof my position here, and have begun undertakings which are not yetbrought to a conclusion. I am aware also how wide an influence Ialready exert upon this land of the future, --an influence whichgains in extent and intensity with every year, --so that it becomesvery difficult for me to discern clearly where I can be most usefulto science. Among my privileges I must not overlook that of passingmuch of my time on the immediate sea-shore, where the resources forthe zoologist and embryologist are inexhaustible. I have now ahouse distant only a few steps from an admirable locality for thesestudies, and can therefore pursue them uninterruptedly throughoutthe whole year, instead of being limited, like most naturalists, tothe short summer vacations. It is true I miss the larger museums, libraries, etc. , as well as the stimulus to be derived fromassociation with a number of like-minded co-workers, all strivingtoward the same end. With every year, however, the number of ableand influential investigators increases here, and among them aresome who might justly claim a prominent place anywhere. . . 

Neither are means for publication lacking. The larger treatiseswith costly illustrations appear in the Smithsonian Contributions, in the Transactions of the American Philosophical Society, in thoseof the Academy of Natural Sciences, and in the Memoirs of theAmerican Academy; while the smaller communications find a place inSilliman's Journal, in the Journal of the Boston Natural HistorySociety, and in the proceedings of other scientific societies. Museums also are already founded;. . . And beside these there are anumber of private collections in single departments of zoology. . . Better than all this, however, is the lively and general interesttaken in the exploration of the country itself. Every scientificexpedition sent out by the government to the interior, or to theWestern States of Oregon and California, is accompanied by ascientific commission, --zoologists, geologists, and botanists. Bythis means magnificent collections, awaiting only ableinvestigators to work them up, have been brought together. Indeed, I do not believe that as many new things are accumulated anywhereas just here, and it is my hope to contribute hereafter to the morecritical and careful examination of these treasures. Under thesecircumstances I have asked myself for months past how I ought todecide; not what were my inclinations, for that is not thequestion, --but what was my duty toward science? After the mostcareful consideration I am no longer in doubt, and though itgrieves me to do so, I write to beg that you will withdraw from anyaction which might bring me a direct call to the professorship inZurich. I have decided to remain here for an indefinite time, underthe conviction that I shall exert a more advantageous and moreextensive influence on the progress of science in this country thanin Europe. 

I regret that I cannot accept your offer of the Oeningen fossils. In the last two years I have spent more than 20, 000 francs on mycollection, and must not incur any farther expense of that kind atpresent. As soon, however, as I have new means at my command such acollection would be most welcome, and should it remain in yourhands I may be very glad to take it. Neither can I make anyexchange of duplicates just now, as I have not yet been able tosort my collections and set aside the specimens which may beconsidered only as materials for exchange. Can you procure for meGlarus fishes in any considerable number? I should like to purchasethem for my collection, and do not care for single specimens ofevery species, but would prefer whole suites that I may revise myformer identifications in the light of a larger insight. 

Remember me kindly to all my Zurich friends, and especially toArnold Escher. . . 

Agassiz's increasing and at last wholly unmanageable correspondenceattests the general sympathy for and cooperation with hisscientific aims in the United States. In 1853, for instance, he hadissued a circular, asking for collections of fishes from variousfresh-water systems of the United States, in order that he mightobtain certain data respecting the laws of their distribution andlocalization. To this he had hundreds of answers coming from allparts of the country, many of them very shrewd and observing, giving facts respecting the habits of fishes, as well as concerningtheir habitat, and offering aid in the general object. Nor werethese empty promises. A great number and variety of collections, now making part of the ichthyological treasures of the Museum atCambridge, were forwarded to him in answer to this appeal. Indeed, he now began to reap, in a new form, the harvest of his wanderinglecture tours. In this part of his American experience he had comeinto contact with all classes of people, and had found some of hismost intelligent and sympathetic listeners in the working class. Now that he needed their assistance he often found his co-laborersamong farmers, stock-raisers, sea-faring men, fishermen, andsailors. Many a New England captain, when he started on a cruise, had on board collecting cans, furnished by Agassiz, to be filled indistant ports or nearer home, as the case might be, and returned tothe Museum at Cambridge. One or two letters, written to scientificfriends at the time the above-mentioned circular was issued, willgive an idea of the way in which Agassiz laid out suchinvestigations. 

TO JAMES D. DANA. 

CAMBRIDGE, July 8, 1853. 

. . . I have been lately devising some method of learning how faranimals are truly autochthones, and how far they have extendedtheir primitive boundaries. I will attempt to test that questionwith Long Island, the largest of all the islands along our coast. For this purpose I will for the present limit myself to thefresh-water fishes and shells, and for the sake of comparison Iwill try to collect carefully all the species living in the riversof Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey, and see whether they areidentical with those of the island. Whatever may come out of suchan investigation it will, at all events, furnish interesting dataupon the local distribution of the species. . . I am almostconfident that it will lead to something interesting, for there isone feature of importance in the case; the present surface of LongIsland is not older than the drift period; all its inhabitantsmust, therefore, have been introduced since that time. I shall seethat I obtain similar collections from the upper course of theConnecticut, so as to ascertain whether there, as in theMississippi, the species differ at different heights of the riverbasin. . . 

TO PROFESSOR S. S. HALDEMAN, COLUMBIA, PENNSYLVANIA. 

CAMBRIDGE, July 9, 1853. 

. . . While ascending the great Mississippi last spring I was struckwith the remarkable fact that the fishes differ essentially in thedifferent parts of that long water-course, --a fact I had alreadynoticed in the Rhine, Rhone, and Danube, though there thedifference arises chiefly from the occurrence, in the higher Alpineregions, of representatives of the trout family which are not foundin the main river course. In the Mississippi, however, the case isotherwise and very striking, inasmuch as we find here, at separatelatitudes, distinct species of the same genera, somewhat like thedifferences observed in distinct water-basins; and yet the river isever flowing on past these animals, which remain, as it were, spell-bound to the regions most genial to them. The question atonce arises, do our smaller rivers present similar differences? Ihave already taken steps to obtain complete collections of fishes, shells, and crayfishes from various stations on the Connecticut andthe Hudson, and their tributaries; and I should be very happy if Icould include the Susquehanna, Delaware, and Ohio in mycomparisons. My object in writing now is to inquire whether youcould assist me in making separate collections, as complete aspossible, of all these animals from the north and west branches ofthe Susquehanna, from the main river either at Harrisburg orColumbia, and from the Juniata, also from the Schuylkill, Lehigh, and Delaware, and from the Allegheny and Monongahela. I have Swissfriends in the State of New York who have promised me to collectthe fishes from the head-waters of the Delaware and Susquehannawithin the limits of the State of New York. I cannot, of course, expect you to survey your State for me, but among your acquaintancein various parts of your State are there not those who, with properdirections, could do the work for me? I would, of course, gladlyrepay all their expenses. The subject seems to me so important asto justify any effort in that direction. Little may be added to theknowledge of the fishes themselves, for I suppose most of thespecies have been described either by De Kay, Kirtland, or Storer;but a careful study of their special geographical distribution mayfurnish results as important to zoology as the knowledge of thespecies themselves. If you cannot write yourself, will you give methe names of such persons as might be persuaded to aid in thematter. I know from your own observations in former times that youhave already collected similar facts for the Unios, so that youwill at once understand and appreciate my object. . . 

He writes in the same strain and for the same object to ProfessorYandell, of Kentucky, adding: "In this respect the State ofKentucky is one of the most important of the Union, not only onaccount of the many rivers which pass through its territory, butalso because it is one of the few States the fishes of which havebeen described by former observers, especially by Rafinesque in his"Ichthyologia Ohioensis, " so that a special knowledge of all hisoriginal types is a matter of primary importance for any one whowould compare the fishes of the different rivers of the West. . . Doyou know whether there is anything left of Rafinesque's collectionof fishes in Lexington, and if so, whether the specimens arelabeled, as it would be very important to identify his species fromhis own collection and his own labels? I never regretted more thannow that circumstances have not yet allowed me to visit your Stateand make a stay in Louisville. "

In 1854 Agassiz moved to a larger house, built for him by thecollege. Though very simple, it was on a liberal scale with respectto space; partly in order to accommodate his library, consisting ofseveral thousand volumes, now for the first time collected andarranged in one room. He became very fond of this Cambridge home, where, with few absences, he spent the remainder of his life. Thearchitect, Mr. Henry Greenough, was his personal friend, and fromthe beginning the house adapted itself with a kindly readiness towhatever plans developed under its roof. As will be seen, thesewere not few, and were sometimes of considerable moment. For hiswork also the house was extremely convenient. His habits in thisrespect were, however, singularly independent of place andcircumstance. Unlike most studious men, he had no fixed spot in thehouse for writing. Although the library, with the usual outfit ofwell-filled shelves, maps, large tables, etc. , held his materials, he brought what he needed for the evening by preference to thedrawing-room, and there, with his paper on his knee, and his booksfor reference on a chair beside him, he wrote and read as busily asif he were quite alone. Sometimes when dancing and music were goingon among the young people of the family and their guests, he drew alittle table into the corner of the room, and continued hisoccupations as undisturbed and engrossed as if he had been incomplete solitude, --only looking up from time to time with apleased smile or an apt remark, which showed that he did not losebut rather enjoyed what was going on about him. 

His children's friends were his friends. As his daughters grew up, he had the habit of inviting their more intimate companions to hislibrary for an afternoon weekly. On these occasions there wasalways some subject connected with the study of nature underdiscussion, but the talk was so easy and so fully illustrated thatit did not seem like a lesson. It is pleasant to remember that inlater years Mr. Ralph Waldo Emerson revived this custom for his owndaughters; and their friends (being, indeed, with few changes, thesame set of young people as had formerly met in Agassiz's library)used to meet in Mr. Emerson's study at Concord for a similarobject. He talked to them of poetry and literature and philosophyas Agassiz had talked to them of nature. Those were golden days, not to be forgotten by any who shared their happy privilege. 

In the winter of 1855 Agassiz endeavored to resume his publiclectures as a means of increasing his resources. He was again, however, much exhausted when spring came, and it seemed necessaryto seek some other means of support, for without consideringscientific expenses, his salary of fifteen hundred dollars did notsuffice for the maintenance of his family. Under thesecircumstances it occurred to his wife and his two older children, now of an age to assist her in such a scheme, that a school foryoung ladies might be established in the upper part of the new andlarger house. By the removal of one or two partitions, ample roomcould be obtained for the accommodation of a sufficient number ofpupils, and if successful such a school would perhaps make good ina pecuniary sense the lecturing tours which were not only a greatfatigue to Agassiz, but an interruption also to all consecutivescientific work. In consultation with friends these plans werepartly matured before they were confided to Agassiz himself. Whenthe domestic conspirators revealed their plot, his surprise andpleasure knew no bounds. The first idea had been simply toestablish a private school on the usual plan, only referring to hisgreater experience for advice and direction in its generalorganization. But he claimed at once an active share in the work. Under his inspiring influence the outline enlarged, and when thecircular announcing the school was issued, it appeared under hisname, and contained these words in addition to the programme ofstudies: "I shall myself superintend the methods of instruction andtuition, and while maintaining that regularity and precision in thestudies so important to mental training shall endeavor to preventthe necessary discipline from falling into a lifeless routine, alike deadening to the spirit of teacher and pupil. It is farthermy intention to take the immediate charge of the instruction inPhysical Geography, Natural History, and Botany, giving a lecturedaily, Saturdays excepted, on one or other of these subjects, illustrated by specimens, models, maps, and drawings. "

In order not to interrupt the course of the narrative, the historyof this undertaking in its sequence and general bearing on his lifeand work may be completed here in a few words. This school securedto him many happy and comparatively tranquil years. It enabled himto meet both domestic and scientific expenses, and to pay the heavydebt he had brought from Europe as the penalty of his "FossilFishes" and his investigations on the glaciers. When the schoolclosed after eight years he was again a free man. With an increasedsalary from the college, and with such provision for the Museum(thanks to the generosity of the State and of individuals) asrendered it in a great degree independent, he was never againinvolved in the pecuniary anxieties of his earlier career. Theoccupation of teaching was so congenial to him that his part in theinstruction of the school did not at any time weigh heavily uponhim. He never had an audience more responsive and more eager tolearn than the sixty or seventy girls who gathered every day at theclose of the morning to hear his daily lecture; nor did he evergive to any audience lectures more carefully prepared, morecomprehensive in their range of subjects, more lofty in their toneof thought. As a teacher he always discriminated between thespecial student, and the one to whom he cared to impart only such aknowledge of the facts of nature, as would make the world at leastpartially intelligible to him. To a school of young girls he didnot think of teaching technical science, and yet the subjects ofhis lectures comprised very abstruse and comprehensive questions. It was the simplicity and clearness of his method which made themso interesting to his young listeners. "What I wish for you, " hewould say, "is a culture that is alive, active, susceptible offarther development. Do not think that I care to teach you this orthe other special science. My instruction is only intended to showyou the thoughts in nature which science reveals, and the facts Igive you are useful only, or chiefly, for this object. "

Running over the titles of his courses during several consecutiveyears of this school instruction they read: Physical Geography andPaleontology; Zoology; Botany; Coral Reefs; Glaciers; Structure andFormation of Mountains; Geographical Distribution of Animals;Geological Succession of Animals; Growth and Development ofAnimals; Philosophy of Nature, etc. With the help of drawings, maps, bas-reliefs, specimens, and countless illustrations on theblackboard, these subjects were made clear to the pupils, and thelecture hour was anticipated as the brightest of the whole morning. It soon became a habit with friends and neighbors, and especiallywith the mothers of the scholars, to drop in for the lectures, andthus the school audience was increased by a small circle of olderlisteners. The corps of teachers was also gradually enlarged. Theneighborhood of the university was a great advantage in thisrespect, and Agassiz had the cooperation not only of hisbrother-in-law, Professor Felton, but of others among hiscolleagues, who took classes in special departments, or gavelectures in history and literature. 

This school opened in 1855 and closed in 1863. The civil war thenengrossed all thoughts, and interfered somewhat also with thesuccess of private undertakings. Partly on this account, partlyalso because it had ceased to be a pecuniary necessity, it seemedwise to give up the school at this time. The friendly relationsformed there did not, however, cease with it. For years afterwardon the last Thursday of June (the day of the annual closing of theschool) a meeting of the old pupils was held at the Museum, whichdid not exist when the school began, but was fully establishedbefore its close. There Agassiz showed them the progress of hisscientific work, told them of his future plans for the institution, and closed with a lecture such as he used to give them in theirschool-days. The last of these meetings took place in 1873, thelast year of his own life. The memory of it is connected with agift to the Museum of four thousand and fifty dollars from a numberof the scholars, now no longer girls, but women with their owncares and responsibilities. Hearing that there was especial need ofmeans for the care of the more recent collections, they hadsubscribed this sum among themselves to express their affection fortheir old teacher, as well as their interest in his work, and inthe institution he had founded. His letter of acknowledgment to theone among them who had acted as their treasurer makes a fittingclose to this chapter. 

. . . Hardly anything in my life has touched me more deeply than thegift I received this week from my school-girls. From no source inthe world could sympathy be more genial to me. The money I shallappropriate to a long-cherished scheme of mine, a special work inthe Museum which must be exclusively my own, --the arrangement of aspecial collection illustrating in a nutshell, as it were, all therelations existing among animals, --which I have deferred becauseother things were more pressing, and our means have beeninsufficient. The feeling that you are all working with me will beeven more cheering than the material help, much needed as that is. I wish I could write to each individually. I shall try to find somemeans of expressing my thanks more widely. Meantime I write to youas treasurer, and beg you, as far as you can do so without too muchtrouble, to express my gratitude to others. Will you also say tothose whom you chance to meet that I shall be at the Museum on thelast Thursday of June, at half-past eleven o'clock. I shall bedelighted to see all to whom it is convenient to come. The Museumhas grown not only in magnitude, but in scientific significance, and I like from time to time to give you an account of itsprogress, and of my own work and aims. How much thought and careand effort this kind plan of yours must have involved, scattered asyou all are! It cannot have been easy to collect the names andaddresses of all those whose signatures it was delightful to me tosee again. Words seem to me very poor, but you will accept foryourself and your school-mates the warm thanks and affectionateregards of your old friend and teacher. 

L. R. AGASSIZ. 

CHAPTER 18. 

1855-1860: AGE 48-53. 

"Contributions to Natural History of the United States. "Remarkable Subscription. Review of the Work. Its Reception in Europe and America. Letters from Humboldt and Owen concerning it. Birthday. Longfellow's Verses. Laboratory at Nahant. Invitation to the Museum of Natural History in Paris. Founding of Museum of Comparative Zoology in Cambridge. Summer Vacation in Europe. 

A few months earlier than the school circular Agassiz issuedanother prospectus, which had an even more important bearing uponhis future work. This was the prospectus for his "Contributions tothe Natural History of the United States. " It was originallyplanned in ten volumes, every volume to be, however, absolutelyindependent, so that the completeness of each part should not beimpaired by any possible interruption of the sequence. The mass oforiginal material accumulated upon his hands ever since his arrivalin America made such a publication almost imperative, but thecostliness of a large illustrated work deterred him. The "PoissonsFossiles" had shown him the peril of entering upon such anenterprise without capital. Perhaps he would never have dared toundertake it but for a friendly suggestion which opened a way outof his perplexities. Mr. Francis C. Gray, of Boston, who felt notonly the interest of a personal friend in the matter, but also thatof one who was himself a lover of letters and science, proposed anappeal to the public spirit of the country in behalf of a workdevoted entirely to the Natural History of the United States. Mr. Gray assumed the direction of the business details, set thesubscription afloat, stimulated its success by his own liberalcontributions, by letters, by private and public appeals. Theresult far exceeded the most sanguine expectations of thoseinterested in its success. Indeed, considering the purelyscientific character of the work, the number of subscribers for itwas extraordinary, and showed again the hold Agassiz had taken uponthe minds and affections of the people in general. The contributorswere by no means confined to Boston and Cambridge, although theMassachusetts list was naturally the largest, nor were they foundexclusively among literary and scientific circles. On the contrary, the subscription list, to the astonishment of the publishers, wasincreased daily by unsolicited names, sent in from all sections ofthe country, and from various grades of life and occupation. Inreference to the character of this subscription Agassiz says in hisPreface: "I must beg my European readers to remember that this workis written in America, and more especially for Americans; and thatthe community to which it is particularly addressed has verydifferent wants from those of the reading public in Europe. Thereis not a class of learned men here distinct from the othercultivated members of the community. On the contrary, so general isthe desire for knowledge, that I expect to see my book read byoperatives, by fishermen, by farmers, quite as extensively as bythe students in our colleges or by the learned professions, and itis but proper that I should endeavor to make myself understood byall. " If Agassiz, perhaps, overestimated in this statement theappreciation of the reading public in the United States for purescientific research, it was because the number and variety of hissubscribers gave evidence of a cordiality toward his work whichsurprised as much as it gratified him. On the list there were alsosome of his old European subscribers to the "Poissons Fossiles, "among them the King of Prussia, who still continued, under theinfluence of Humboldt, to feel an interest in his work. 

FROM HUMBOLDT TO AGASSIZ. 

September 1, 1856. 

. . . I hear that by some untoward circumstances, no doubtaccidental, you have never received, my dear Agassiz, the letterexpressing the pleasure which I share with all true lovers ofscience respecting your important undertaking, "Contributions tothe Natural History of the United States. " You must have beenastonished at my silence, remembering, not only the affectionaterelations we have held to each other ever since your first sojournat Paris, but also the admiration I have never ceased to feel forthe great and solid works which we owe to your sagacious mind andyour incomparable intellectual energy. . . I approve especially thegeneral conceptions which lie at the base of the plan you havetraced. I admire the long series of physiological investigations, beginning with the embryology of the so-called simple and lowerorganisms and ascending by degrees to the more complicated. Iadmire that ever-renewed comparison of the types belonging to ourplanet, in its present condition, with those now found only in afossil state, so abundant in the immense space lying between theshores opposite to northern Europe and northern Asia. Thegeographical distribution of organic forms in curves of equaldensity of occupation represents in great degree the inflexions ofthe isothermal lines. . . I am charged by the king, who knows thevalue of your older works, and who still feels for you theaffectionate regard which he formerly expressed in person, torequest that you will place his name at the head of your long listof subscribers. He wishes that an excursion across the Atlanticvalley may one day bring you, who have so courageously bravedAlpine summits, to the historic hill of Sans Souci. . . 

Something of Agassiz's astonishment and pleasure at theencouragement given to his projected work is told in his letters. To his old friend Professor Valenciennes, in Paris, he writes: "Ihave just had an evidence of what one may do here in the interestof science. Some six months ago I formed a plan for the publicationof my researches in America, and determined to carry it out withall possible care and beauty of finish. I estimated my materials atten volumes, quarto, and having fixed the price at 60 francs (12dollars) a volume, thought I might, perhaps, dispose of fivehundred. I brought out my prospectus, and I have to-day seventeenhundred subscribers. What do you say to that for a work which is tocost six hundred francs a copy, and of which nothing has as yetappeared? Nor is the list closed yet, for every day I receive newsubscriptions, --this very morning one from California! Where willnot the love of science find its niche!". . . 

In the same strain he says, at a little later date, to Sir CharlesLyell: "You will, no doubt, be pleased to learn that the firstvolume of my new work, 'Contributions to the Natural History of theUnited States, ' which is to consist of ten volumes, quarto, is nowprinting, to come out this summer. I hope it will show that I havenot been idle during ten years' silence. I am somewhat anxiousabout the reception of my first chapter, headed, 'Classification, 'which contains anything but what zoologists would generally expectunder that head. The subscription is marvelous. Conceive twenty-onehundred names before the appearance of the first pages of a workcosting one hundred and twenty dollars! It places in my hands themeans of doing henceforth for Natural History what I had neverdreamed of before. ". . . 

This work, as originally planned, was never completed. It was cutshort by ill-health and by the pressure of engagements arising fromthe rapid development of the great Museum, which finally became, aswill be seen, the absorbing interest of his life. As it stands, the"Contributions to the Natural History of the United States"consists of four large quarto volumes. The first two are dividedinto three parts, namely: 1st. An Essay on Classification. 2nd. TheNorth American Testudinata. 3rd. The Embryology of the Turtle, --thelatter two being illustrated by thirty-four plates. The third andfourth volumes are devoted to the Radiata, and consist of fiveparts, namely: 1st. Acalephs in general. 2nd. Ctenophorae. 3rd. Discophorae. 4th. Hydroida. 5th. Homologies of the Radiates, --illustrated by forty-six plates. * (* The plates are of rareaccuracy and beauty, and were chiefly drawn by A. Sonrel, thoughmany of the microscopic drawings were made by Professor H. J. Clark, who was at that time Agassiz's private assistant. For detailsrespecting Professor Clark's share in this work, and alsoconcerning the aid of various kinds furnished to the author duringits preparation, the reader is referred to the Preface of thevolumes themselves. )

For originality of material, clearness of presentation, and beautyof illustration, these volumes have had their full recognition asmodels of scientific work. Their philosophy was, perhaps, too muchout of harmony with the current theories of the day to beacceptable. In the "Essay on Classification" especially, Agassizbrought out with renewed earnestness his conviction that the animalworld rests upon certain abstract conceptions, persistent andindestructible. He insists that while physical influences maintain, and within certain limits modify, organisms, they have neveraffected typical structure, --those characters, namely, upon whichthe great groups of the animal kingdom are united. From his pointof view, therefore, what environment can do serves to emphasizewhat it cannot do. For the argument on which these conclusions arebased we refer to the book itself. The discussion of this questionoccupies, however, only the first portion of the volume, two thirdsof which are devoted to a general consideration of classification, and the ideas which it embodies, with a review of the modernsystems of zoology. 

The following letter was one of many in the same tone received fromhis European correspondents concerning this work. 

FROM RICHARD OWEN. 

December 9, 1857. 

. . . I cannot permit a day to elapse without thanking you for thetwo volumes of your great work on American zoology, which, fromyour masterly and exhaustive style of treatment, becomes the mostimportant contribution to the right progress of zoological sciencein all parts of the world where progress permits its cultivation. It is worthy of the author of the classical work on fossil fishes;and such works, like the Cyclopean structures of antiquity, arebuilt to endure. I feel and I beg to express a fervent hope thatyou may be spared in health and vigor to see the completion of yourgreat plan. 

I have placed in Mr. Trubner's hands a set of the numbers (6) of my"History of British Fossil Reptiles, " which have already appeared;a seventh will soon be out, and as they will be sent to you insuccession I hope you will permit me to make a small and inadequatereturn for your liberality in the gift of your work by adding yourname to the list of my subscribers. . . 

Believe me always truly yours, RICHARD OWEN. 

Agassiz had promised himself that the first volume of his new workshould be finished in time for his fiftieth birthday, --a milestonealong the road, as it were, to mark his half century. Upon thisself-appointed task he spent himself with the passion dominated bypatience, which characterized him when his whole heart was benttoward an end. For weeks he wrote many hours of the day and a greatpart of the night, going out sometimes into the darkness and theopen air to cool the fever of work, and then returning to his deskagain. He felt himself that the excitement was too great, and inproportion to the strain was the relief when he set the seal offinis on his last page within the appointed time. 

His special students, young men who fully shared his scientificlife and rewarded his generosity by an affectionate devotion, knowing, perhaps, that he himself associated the completion of hisbook with his birthday, celebrated both events by a serenade on theeve of his anniversary. They took into their confidence Mr. OttoDresel, warmly valued by Agassiz both as friend and musician, andhe arranged their midnight programme for them. Always sure offinding their professor awake and at work at that hour, theystationed the musicians before the house, and as the last stroke oftwelve sounded, the succeeding stillness was broken by men's voicessinging a Bach choral. When Agassiz stepped out to see whence camethis pleasant salutation, he was met by his young friends bringingflowers and congratulations. Then followed one number after anotherof the well-ordered selection, into which was admitted here andthere a German student song in memory of Agassiz's own universitylife at Heidelberg and Munich. It was late, or rather early, sincethe new day was already begun, before the little concert was overand the guests had dispersed. It is difficult to reproduce withanything like its original glow and coloring a scene of this kind. It will no more be called back than the hour or the moonlight nightwhich had the warmth and softness of June. It is recorded here onlybecause it illustrates the intimate personal sympathy betweenAgassiz and his students. 

For this occasion also were written the well-known birthday versesby Longfellow, which were read the next day at a dinner given toAgassiz by the "Saturday Club. " In speaking of Longfellow'srelation to this club, Holmes says "On one occasion he read a shortpoem at the table. It was in honor of Agassiz's birthday, and Icannot forget the very modest, delicate musical way in which heread his charming verses. " Although included in many collections ofLongfellow's Poems, they are reproduced here, because the storyseems incomplete without them. 

THE FIFTIETH BIRTHDAY OF AGASSIZ. 

 It was fifty years ago, In the pleasant month of May, In the beautiful Pays de Vaud, A child in its cradle lay. 

 And Nature, the old nurse, took The child upon her knee, Saying: "Here is a story-book Thy Father has written for thee. "

 "Come wander with me, " she said, "Into regions yet untrod; And read what is still unread In the manuscripts of God. "

 And he wandered away and away With Nature, the dear old nurse, Who sang to him night and day The rhymes of the universe. 

 And whenever the way seemed long, Or his heart began to fail, She would sing a more wonderful song, Or tell a more marvelous tale. 

 So she keeps him still a child, And will not let him go, Though at times his heart beats wild For the beautiful Pays de Vaud;

 Though at times he hears in his dreams The Ranz des Vaches of old, And the rush of mountain streams From glaciers clear and cold;

 And the mother at home says, "Hark! For his voice I listen and yearn; It is growing late and dark, And my boy does not return!"

May 28, 1857. 

Longfellow had an exquisite touch for occasions of this kind, whether serious or mirthful. Once, when some years after thisAgassiz was keeping Christmas Eve with his children andgrandchildren, there arrived a basket of wine containing six oldbottles of rare vintage. They introduced themselves in a charmingFrench "Noel" as pilgrims from beyond the sea who came to giveChristmas greeting to the master of the house. Gay pilgrims werethese six "gaillards, " and they were accompanied by the followingnote:--

"A Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all the house of Agassiz!

"I send also six good wishes in the shape of bottles. Or is itwine?

"It is both; good wine and good wishes, and kind memories of you onthis Christmas Eve. "

H. W. L. 

An additional word about the "Saturday Club, " the fame of which hasspread beyond the city of its origin, may not be amiss here. Notwithstanding his close habits of work Agassiz was eminentlysocial, and to this club he was especially attached. Dr. Holmessays of it in his volume on Emerson, who was one of its mostconstant members: "At one end of the table sat Longfellow, florid, quiet, benignant, soft-voiced, a most agreeable rather than abrilliant talker, but a man upon whom it was always pleasant tolook, --whose silence was better than many another man'sconversation. At the other end sat Agassiz, robust, sanguine, animated, full of talk, boy-like in his laughter. The stranger whoshould have asked who were the men ranged along the sides of thetable would have heard in answer the names of Hawthorne, Motley, Dana, Lowell, Whipple, Peirce, the distinguished mathematician, Judge Hoar, eminent at the bar and in the cabinet, Dwight, theleading musical critic of Boston for a whole generation, Sumner, the academic champion of freedom, Andrew, 'the great War Governor'of Massachusetts, Dr. Howe, the philanthropist, William Hunt, thepainter, with others not unworthy of such company. " We may completethe list and add the name of Holmes himself, to whose presence theclub owed so much of its wit and wisdom. In such company the guestswere tempted to linger long, and if Holmes has described the circlearound the table, Lowell has celebrated the late walk at nightacross the bridge as he and Agassiz returned to Cambridge on foottogether. To break the verse by quotation would mar the quiet sceneand interrupt the rambling pleasant talk it so graphicallydescribes. But we may keep the parting words:

"At last, arrived at where our paths divide, 'Good night!' and, erethe distance grew too wide, 'Good night!' again; and now withcheated ear I half hear his who mine shall never hear. "

(* See Memorial poem, entitled "Agassiz", by James Russell Lowell. )

Agassiz was now the possessor of a small laboratory by theimmediate sea-coast. It was situated on the northeastern shore ofNahant, within a stone's throw of broken and bold rocks, where thedeep pools furnished him with ever fresh specimens from naturalaquariums which were re-stocked at every rise of the tide. Thislaboratory, with a small cottage adjoining, which was shared duringthe summer between his own family and that of Professor Felton, wasthe gift of his father-in-law, Mr. Cary. So carefully were hiswishes considered that the microscope table stood on a flat rocksunk in the earth and detached from the floor, in order that nofootstep or accidental jarring of door or window in other parts ofthe building might disturb him at his work. 

There, summer after summer, he pursued his researches on themedusae; from the smaller and more exquisite kinds, such as thePleurobrachyias, Idyias, and Bolinas, to the massive Cyaneas, withtheir large disks and heavy tentacles, many yards in length. Nothing can be prettier than the smaller kinds of jellyfishes. Their structure is so delicate, yet so clearly defined, their colorso soft, yet often so brilliant, their texture so transparent, thatyou seek in vain among terrestrial forms for terms of comparison, and are tempted to say that nature has done her finest work in thesea rather than on land. Sometimes hundreds of these smallermedusae might be seen floating together in the deep glass bowls, orjars, or larger vessels with which Agassiz's laboratory at Nahantwas furnished. When the supply was exhausted, new specimens wereeasily to be obtained by a row in a dory a mile or two from shore, either in the hot, still noon, when the jelly-fish rise toward thesurface, or at night, over a brilliantly phosphorescent sea, whenthey are sure to be abundant, since they themselves furnish much ofthe phosphorescence. In these little excursions, many new andinteresting things came to his nets beside those he was seeking. The fishermen, also, were his friends and coadjutors. They neverfailed to bring him whatever of rare or curious fell into theirhands, sometimes even turning aside from their professional callingto give the laboratory preference over the market. 

Neither was his summer work necessarily suspended during winter, his Cambridge and Nahant homes being only about fifteen milesdistant from each other. He writes to his friends, the Holbrooks, at this time, "You can hardly imagine what a delightful placeNahant is for me now. I can trace the growth of my little marineanimals all the year round without interruption, by goingoccasionally over there during the winter. I have at this momentyoung medusae budding from their polyp nurses, which I expect tosee freeing themselves in a few weeks. " In later years, when hisinvestigations on the medusae were concluded, so far as anyteaching from the open book of Nature can be said to be concluded, he pursued here, during a number of years, investigations upon thesharks and skates. For this work, which should have made one of theseries of "Contributions, " he left much material, unhappily notready for publication. 

In August, 1857, Agassiz received the following letter from M. Rouland, Minister of Public Instruction in France. 

TO PROFESSOR AGASSIZ. 

PARIS, August 19, 1857. 

SIR, By the decease of M. D'Orbigny the chair of paleontology in theMuseum of Natural History in Paris becomes vacant. You are French;you have enriched your native country by your eminent works andlaborious researches. You are a corresponding member of theInstitute. The emperor would gladly recall to France a savant sodistinguished. In his name I offer you the vacant chair, and shouldcongratulate your country on the return of a son who has shownhimself capable of such devotion to science. 

Accept the assurance of my highest esteem, ROULAND. 

Had it been told to Agassiz when he left Europe that in ten yearshe should be recalled to fill one of the coveted places at theJardin des Plantes, the great centre of scientific life andinfluence in France, he would hardly have believed himself capableof refusing it. Nor does a man reject what would once have seemedto him a great boon without a certain regret. Such momentary regrethe felt perhaps, but not an instant of doubt. His answer expressedhis gratitude and his pleasure in finding himself so remembered inEurope. He pleaded his work in America as his excuse for declininga position which he nevertheless considered the most brilliant thatcould be offered to a naturalist. In conclusion he adds: "Permit meto correct an error concerning myself. I am not French, although ofFrench origin. My family has been Swiss for centuries, and spite ofmy ten years' exile I am Swiss still. "

The correspondence did not end here. A few months later the offerwas courteously renewed by M. Rouland, with the express conditionthat the place should remain open for one or even two years toallow time for the completion of the work Agassiz had now on hand. To this second appeal he could only answer that his work here wasthe work not of years, but of his life, and once more decline theoffer. That his refusal was taken in good part is evident from thefact that the order of the Legion of Honor was sent to him soonafter, and that from time to time he received friendly letters fromthe Minister of Public Instruction, who occasionally consulted himupon general questions of scientific moment. 

This invitation excited a good deal of interest among Agassiz's oldfriends in Europe. Some urged him to accept it, others applaudedhis resolve to remain out of the great arena of competition andambition. Among the latter was Humboldt. The following extract isfrom a letter of his (May 9, 1858) to Mr. George Ticknor, ofBoston, who had been one of Agassiz's kindest and best friends inAmerica from the moment of his arrival. "Agassiz's large andbeautiful work (the first two volumes) reached me a few days since. It will produce a great effect both by the breadth of its generalviews and by the extreme sagacity of its special embryologicalobservations. I have never believed that this illustrious man, whois also a man of warm heart, a noble soul, would accept thegenerous offers made to him from Paris. I knew that gratitude wouldkeep him in the new country, where he finds such an immenseterritory to explore, and such liberal aid in his work. "

In writing of this offer to a friend Agassiz himself says: "On oneside, my cottage at Nahant by the sea-shore, the reef of Florida, the vessels of the Coast Survey at my command from Nova Scotia toMexico, and, if I choose, all along the coast of the Pacific, --andon the other, the Jardin des Plantes, with all its accumulatedtreasures. Rightly considered, the chance of studying nature mustprevail over the attractions of the (Paris) Museum. I hope I shallbe wise enough not to be tempted even by the prospect of a newedition of the 'Poissons Fossiles. '"

To his old friend Charles Martins, the naturalist, he writes: "Thework I have undertaken here, and the confidence shown in me bythose who have at heart the intellectual development of thiscountry, make my return to Europe impossible for the present; and, as you have well understood, I prefer to build anew here ratherthan to fight my way in the midst of the coteries of Paris. Were Ioffered absolute power for the reorganization of the Jardin desPlantes, with a revenue of fifty thousand francs, I should notaccept it. I like my independence better. "

The fact that Agassiz had received and declined this offer from theFrench government seemed to arouse anew the public interest in hisprojects and prospects here. It was felt that a man who was readyto make an alliance so uncompromising with the interests of sciencein the United States should not be left in a precarious anddifficult position. His collections were still heaped together in aslight wooden building. The fact that a great part of them werepreserved in alcohol made them especially in danger from fire. Aspark, a match carelessly thrown down, might destroy them all inhalf an hour, for with material so combustible, help would beunavailing. This fear was never out of his mind. It disturbed hispeace by day and his rest by night. That frail structure, crowdedfrom garret to cellar with seeming rubbish, with boxes, cases, barrels, casks still unpacked and piled one above the other, heldfor him the treasure out of which he would give form and substanceto the dream of his boyhood and the maturer purpose of his manhood. The hope of creating a great museum intelligently related in allits parts, reflecting nature, and illustrating the history of theanimal kingdom in the past and the present, had always tempted hisimagination. Nor was it merely as a comprehensive and orderlycollection that he thought of it. From an educational point of viewit had an even greater value for him. His love of teaching promptedhim no less than his love of science. Indeed, he hoped to make hisideal museum a powerful auxiliary in the interests of the schoolsand teachers throughout the State, and less directly throughout thecountry. He hoped it would become one of the centres for theradiation of knowledge, and that the investigations carried onwithin its walls would find means of publication, and be a fresh, original contribution to the science of the day. This hope wasfully realized. The first number of the Museum Bulletin waspublished in March, 1863, the first number of the IllustratedCatalogue in 1864, and both publications have been continued withregularity ever since. * (* At the time of Agassiz's death nearlythree volumes of the Bulletin had been published, and the thirdvolume of the "Memoirs" (Illustrated Catalogue Number 7) had beenbegun. )

In laying out the general plan, which was rarely absent from histhought, he distinguished between the demands which the specialistand the general observer might make upon an institution intended toinstruct and benefit both. Here the special student should find inthe laboratories and work rooms all the needed material for hisinvestigations, stored in large collections, with duplicates enoughto allow for that destruction of specimens which is necessarilyinvolved in original research. The casual visitor meanwhile shouldwalk through exhibition rooms, not simply crowded with objects todelight and interest him, but so arranged that the selection ofevery specimen should have reference to its part and place innature; while the whole should be so combined as to explain, so faras known, the faunal and systematic relations of animals in theactual world, and in the geological formations; or, in other words, their succession in time, and their distribution in space. 

A favorite part of his plan was a room which he liked to call hissynoptic room. Here was to be the most compact and yet the fulleststatement in material form of the animal kingdom as a whole, anepitome of the creation, as it were. Of course the specimens mustbe few in so limited a space, but each one was to be characteristicof one or other of the various groups included under every largedivision. Thus each object would contribute to the explanation ofthe general plan. On the walls there were to be large, legibleinscriptions, serving as a guide to the whole, and making this rooma simple but comprehensive lesson in natural history. It wasintended to be the entrance room for visitors, and to serve as anintroduction to the more detailed presentation of the same vastsubject, given by the faunal and systematic collections in theother exhibition rooms. 

The standard of work involved in this scheme is shown in many ofhis letters to his students and assistants, to whom he looked foraid in its execution. To one he writes: "You will get your synopticseries only after you have worked up in detail the systematiccollection as a whole, the faunal collections in their totality, the geological sequence of the entire group under consideration, aswell as its embryology and geographical distribution. Then alonewill you be able to know the representatives in each series whichwill best throw light upon it and complete the other series. "

He did not live to fill in this comprehensive outline with thecompleteness which he intended, but all its details were fullyexplained by him before his death, and since that time have beencarried out by his son, Alexander Agassiz. The synoptic room, andin great part the systematic and faunal collections, are nowarranged and under exhibition, and the throngs of visitors duringall the pleasant months of the year attest the interest theyexcite. 

This conception, of which the present Museum is the expression, wasmatured in the brain of the founder before a brick of the buildingwas laid, or a dollar provided for the support of such aninstitution. It existed for him as his picture does for the artistbefore it lives upon the canvas. One must have been the intimatecompanion of his thoughts to know how and to what degree itpossessed his imagination, to his delight always, yet sometimes tohis sorrow also, for he had it and he had it not. The thought alonewas his; the means of execution were far beyond his reach. 

His plan was, however, known to many of his friends, and especiallyhe had explained it to Mr. Francis C. Gray, whose intellectualsympathy made him a delightful listener to the presentation of anyenlightened purpose. In 1858 Mr. Gray died, leaving in his will thesum of fifty thousand dollars for the establishment of a Museum ofComparative Zoology, with the condition that this sum should beused neither for the erection of buildings nor for salaries, butfor the purely scientific needs of such an institution. Though thisbequest was not connected in set terms with the collections alreadyexisting in Cambridge, its purpose was well understood; and Mr. Gray's nephew, Mr. William Gray, acting upon the intention of hisuncle as residuary legatee, gave it into the hands of the Presidentand Fellows of Harvard University. In passing over this trust, thefollowing condition, among others, was made, namely: "That neitherthe collections nor any building which may contain the same shallever be designated by any other name than the Museum of ComparativeZoology at Harvard. " This is worth noting, because the title waschosen and insisted upon by Agassiz himself in opposition to manywho would have had it called after him. To such honor as might befound in connecting his own name with a public undertaking of anykind he was absolutely indifferent. It was characteristic of him towish, on the contrary, that the name should be as impersonal and ascomprehensive as the uses and aims of the institution itself. Yethe could not wholly escape the distinction he deprecated. Thepopular imagination, identifying him with his work, hasre-christened the institution; and, spite of its legal title, itsfamiliar designation is almost invariably the "Agassiz Museum. "

Mr. Gray's legacy started a movement which became every day moreactive and successful. The university followed up his bequest by agrant of land suitable for the site of the building, and since theGray fund provided for no edifice, an appeal was made to theLegislature of Massachusetts to make good that deficiency. TheLegislature granted lands to the amount of one hundred thousanddollars, on condition that a certain additional contribution shouldbe made by private subscription. The sum of seventy-one thousandone hundred and twenty-five dollars, somewhat exceeding thatstipulated, was promptly subscribed, chiefly by citizens of Bostonand Cambridge, and Agassiz himself gave all the collections he hadbrought together during the last four or five years, estimated, merely by the outlay made upon them, at ten thousand dollars. Thearchitects, Mr. Henry Greenough and Mr. George Snell, offered theplan as their contribution. The former had long been familiar withAgassiz's views respecting the internal arrangements of thebuilding. The main features had been discussed between them, andnow, that the opportunity offered, the plan was practically readyfor execution. These events followed each other so rapidly thatalthough Mr. Gray's bequest was announced only in December, 1858, the first sod was turned and the corner-stone of the future Museumwas laid on a sunny afternoon in the following June, 1859. * (* Theplan, made with reference to the future increase as well as thepresent needs of the Museum, included a main building 364 feet inlength by 64 in width, with wings 205 feet in length by 64 inwidth, the whole enclosing a hollow square. The structure erected1859-60 was but a section of the north wing, being two fifths ofits whole length. This gave ample space at the time for theimmediate requirements of the Museum. Additions have since beenmade, and the north wing is completed, while the Peabody Museumoccupies a portion of the ground allotted to the south wing. )

This event, so full of significance for Agassiz, took place a fewdays before he sailed for Europe, having determined to devote thefew weeks of the college and school vacation to a flying visit inSwitzerland. The incidents of this visit were of a wholly domesticnature and hardly belong here. He paused a few days in Ireland andEngland to see his old friends, the Earl of Enniskillen and SirPhilip Egerton, and review their collections. A day or two inLondon gave him, in like manner, a few hours at the British Museum, a day with Owen at Richmond, and an opportunity to greet oldfriends and colleagues called together to meet him at Sir RoderickMurchison's. He allowed himself also a week in Paris, madedelightful by the cordiality and hospitality of the professors ofthe Jardin des Plantes, and by the welcome he received at theAcademy, when he made his appearance there. The happiest hours ofthis brief sojourn in Paris were perhaps spent with his old anddear friend Valenciennes, the associate of earlier days in Paris, when the presence of Cuvier and Humboldt gave a crowning interestto scientific work there. 

From Paris he hastened on to his mother in Switzerland, devoting toher and to his immediate family all the time which remained to himbefore returning to his duties in Cambridge. They were very happyweeks, passed, for the most part, in absolute retirement, atMontagny, near the foot of the Jura, where Madame Agassiz was thenresiding with her daughter. The days were chiefly spent in anold-fashioned garden, where a corner shut in by ivy and shaded bytrees made a pleasant out-of-door sitting-room. There he told hismother, as he had never been able to tell her in letters, of hislife and home in the United States, and of the Museum to which hewas returning, and which was to give him the means of doing for thestudy of nature all he had ever hoped to accomplish. His quiet stayhere was interrupted only by a visit of a few days to his sister atLausanne, and a trip to the Diablerets, where his brother, then agreat invalid, was staying. He also passed a day or two at Geneva, where he was called to a meeting of the Helvetic Society, whichgave him an opportunity of renewing old ties of friendship, as wellas scientific relations, with the naturalists of his own country, with Pictet de la Rive, de Candolle, Favre, and others. 

CHAPTER 19. 

1860-1863: AGE 53-56. 

Return to Cambridge. Removal of Collection to New Museum Building. Distribution of Work. Relations with his Students. Breaking out of the War between North and South. Interest of Agassiz in the Preservation of the Union. Commencement of Museum Publications. Reception of Third and Fourth Volumes of "Contributions. "Copley Medal. General Correspondence. Lecturing Tour in the West. Circular Letter concerning Anthropological Collections. Letter to Mr. Ticknor concerning Geographical Distribution of Fishes in Spain. 

On his return to Cambridge at the end of September, Agassiz foundthe Museum building well advanced. It was completed in the courseof the next year, and the dedication took place on the 13thNovember, 1860. The transfer of the collections to their new andsafe abode was made as rapidly as possible, and the work ofdeveloping the institution under these more favorable conditionsmoved steadily on. The lecture rooms were at once opened, not onlyto students but to other persons not connected with the university. Especially welcome were teachers of schools for whom admittance wasfree. It was a great pleasure to Agassiz thus to renew andstrengthen his connection with the teachers of the State, withwhom, from the time of his arrival in this country, he had heldmost cordial relations, attending the Teachers' Institutes, visiting the normal schools, and associating himself actively, asfar as he could, with the interests of public education inMassachusetts. From this time forward his college lectures wereopen to women as well as to men. He had great sympathy with thedesire of women for larger and more various fields of study andwork, and a certain number of women have always been employed asassistants at the Museum. 

The story of the next three years was one of unceasing butseemingly uneventful work. The daylight hours from nine or teno'clock in the morning were spent, with the exception of the hourdevoted to the school, at the Museum, not only in personalresearches and in lecturing, but in organizing, distributing, andsuperintending the work of the laboratories, all of which wasdirected by him. Passing from bench to bench, from table to table, with a suggestion here, a kindly but scrutinizing glance there, hemade his sympathetic presence felt by the whole establishment. Noman ever exercised a more genial personal influence over hisstudents and assistants. His initiatory steps in teaching specialstudents of natural history were not a little discouraging. Observation and comparison being in his opinion the intellectualtools most indispensable to the naturalist, his first lesson wasone in LOOKING. He gave no assistance; he simply left his studentwith the specimen, telling him to use his eyes diligently, andreport upon what he saw. He returned from time to time to inquireafter the beginner's progress, but he never asked him a leadingquestion, never pointed out a single feature of the structure, never prompted an inference or a conclusion. This process lastedsometimes for days, the professor requiring the pupil not only todistinguish the various parts of the animal, but to detect also therelation of these details to more general typical features. Hisstudents still retain amusing reminiscences of their despair whenthus confronted with their single specimen; no aid to be had fromoutside until they had wrung from it the secret of its structure. But all of them have recognized the fact that this one lesson inlooking, which forced them to such careful scrutiny of the objectbefore them, influenced all their subsequent habits of observation, whatever field they might choose for their special subject ofstudy. One of them who was intending to be an entomologistconcludes a very clever and entertaining account of such a firstlesson, entirely devoted to a single fish, with these words: "Thiswas the best entomological lesson I ever had, --a lesson whoseinfluence has extended to the details of every subsequent study; alegacy the professor has left to me, as he left it to many others, of inestimable value, which we could not buy, with which we couldnot part. "* (* "In the Laboratory with Agassiz", by S. H. Scudder. )

But if Agassiz, in order to develop independence and accuracy ofobservation, threw his students on their own resources at first, there was never a more generous teacher in the end than he. All hisintellectual capital was thrown open to his pupils. His originalmaterial, his unpublished investigations, his most preciousspecimens, his drawings and illustrations were at their command. This liberality led in itself to a serviceable training, for hetaught them to use with respect the valuable, often unique, objectsintrusted to their care. Out of the intellectual good-fellowshipwhich he established and encouraged in the laboratory grew thewarmest relations between his students and himself. Many of themwere deeply attached to him, and he was extremely dependent upontheir sympathy and affection. By some among them he will never beforgotten. He is still their teacher and their friend, scarcelymore absent from their work now than when the glow of hisenthusiasm made itself felt in his personal presence. 

But to return to the distribution of his time in these busy days. Having passed, as we have seen, the greater part of the day in theMuseum and the school, he had the hours of the night for writing, and rarely left his desk before one or two o'clock in the morning, or even later. His last two volumes of the "Contributions, " uponthe Acalephs, were completed during these years. In the mean time, the war between North and South had broken out, and no Americancared more than he for the preservation of the Union and theinstitutions it represented. He felt that the task of those whoserved letters and science was to hold together the intellectualaims and resources of the country during this struggle for nationalexistence, to fortify the strongholds of learning, abating nothingof their efficiency, but keeping their armories bright against thereturn of peace, when the better weapons of civilization shouldagain be in force. Toward this end he worked with renewed ardor, and while his friends urged him to suspend operations at the Museumand husband his resources until the storm should have passed over, he, on the contrary, stimulated its progress by every means in hispower. Occasionally he was assisted by the Legislature, and earlyin this period an additional grant of ten thousand dollars was madeto the Museum. With this grant was begun the series of illustratedpublications already mentioned, known as the "Bulletin of theMuseum of Comparative Zoology in Cambridge. "

During this period he urged also the foundation of a NationalAcademy of Sciences, and was active in furthering its organizationand incorporation (1863) by Congress. With respect to this effort, and to those he was at the same time making for the Museum, he waswont to recall the history of the University of Berlin. In anappeal to the people in behalf of the intellectual institutions ofthe United States during the early years of the war he says: "Awell known fact in the history of Germany has shown that the momentof political danger may be that in which the firmest foundationsfor the intellectual strength of a country may be laid. When in1806, after the battle of Jena, the Prussian monarchy had beencrushed and the king was despairing even of the existence of hisrealm, he planned the foundation of the University of Berlin, bythe advice of Fichte, the philosopher. It was inaugurated the veryyear that the despondent monarch returned to his capital. Sincethat time it has been the greatest glory of the Prussian crown, andhas made Berlin the intellectual centre of Germany. "

It may be added here as an evidence of Agassiz's faith in theinstitutions of the United States and in her intellectual progressthat he was himself naturalized in the darkest hour of the war, when the final disruption of the country was confidently prophesiedby her enemies. By formally becoming a citizen of the United Stateshe desired to attest his personal confidence in the stability ofher Constitution and the justice of her cause. 

Some light is thrown upon the work and incidents of these years bythe following letters:--

FROM SIR PHILIP DE GREY EGERTON. 

LONDON, ALBEMARLE ST. , April 16, 1861. 

MON CHER AGASS, * (* An affectionate abbreviation which Sir Philipoften used for him. )

I have this morning received your handsome and welcome present ofthe third volume of your great undertaking, and this reminds me howremiss I have been in not writing to you sooner. In fact, I havehad nothing worth writing about, and I know your time is toovaluable to be intrenched upon by letters of mere gossip. I havenot of course had time to peruse any portion of the monograph, butI have turned over the pages and seen quite enough to sharpen myappetite for the glorious scientific feast you have so liberallyprovided. And now that the weight is off your mind, I hope shortlyto hear that you are about to fulfill this year the promise youmade of returning to England for a good long visit, only postponedby circumstances you could not have foreseen. Now that you haveyour son as the sharer of your labors, you will be able to leavehim in charge during your absence, and so divest your mind of allcare and anxiety with reference to matters over the water. Here weare all fighting most furiously about Celts and flint implements, struggle for life, natural selection, the age of the world, racesof men, biblical dates, apes, and gorillas, etc. , and the last duelhas been between Owen and Huxley on the anatomical distinction ofthe pithecoid brain compared with that of man. Theologicalcontroversy has also been rife, stirred up by the "Essays andReviews, " of which you have no doubt heard much. For myself, I havebeen busy preparing, in conjunction with Huxley, another decade offossil fishes, all from the old red of Scotland. . . Enniskillen isquite well. He is now at Lyme Regis. . . 

At about this time the Copley Medal was awarded to Agassiz, adistinction which was the subject of cordial congratulation fromhis English friends. 

FROM SIR RODERICK MURCHISON. 

BELGRAVE SQUARE, March, 1862. 

MY DEAR AGASSIZ, Your letter of the 14th February was a great surprise to me. Iblamed myself for not writing you sooner than I did on the eventwhich I had long been anxious to see realized; but I took it forgranted that you had long before received the official announcementfrom the foreign secretary that you were, at the last anniversaryof the Royal Society, the recipient of the highest honor which ourbody can bestow, whether on a foreigner or a native. . . On going tothe Royal Society to-day I found that the President and Secretarieswere much surprised that you had never answered the official lettersent to you on the 1st or 2nd December by the Foreign Secretary, Professor Muller, of Cambridge. He wrote to announce the award, andtold you the Copley Medal was in his safe keeping till you wrote tosay what you wished to have done with it. I have now recommendedhim to transmit it officially to you through the United StatesMinister, Mr. Adams. In these times of irritation, everything whichsoothes and calms down angry feelings ought to be resorted to; andI hope it may be publicly known that when our newspapers werereciprocating all sorts of rudenesses, the men of science ofEngland thought of nothing but honoring a beloved and eminentsavant of America. 

I thank you for your clear and manly view of the North and South, which I shall show to all our mutual friends. Egerton, who is nowhere, was delighted to hear of you, as well as Huxley, Lyell, andmany others. . . 

In a paper just read to the Geological Society Professor Ramsay hasmade a stronger demand on the powers of ice than you ever did. Heimagines that every Swiss lake north and south (Geneva, Neuchatel, Como, etc. ) has been scooped out, and the depressions excavated bythe abrading action of the glaciers. 

FROM SIR PHILIP DE GREY EGERTON. 

ALBEMARLE ST. , LONDON, March 11, 1862. 

MON CHER AGASS, As I am now settled in London for some months, I take the firstopportunity of writing to congratulate you on the distinction whichhas been conferred upon you by the Royal Society, and I will saythat you have most fully earned it. I rejoice exceedingly in thedecision the Council have arrived at. I only regret I was not onthe Council myself to have advocated your high claims and taken ashare in promoting your success. It is now long since I have heardfrom you, but this terrible disruption between the North and Southhas, I suppose, rendered the pursuit of science rather difficult, and the necessary funds also difficult of attainment. I should likevery much to hear how you are getting on, and whether there is anylikelihood of your being able to come over in the course of thesummer or autumn. I fully expected you last year, and was very muchdisappointed that you could not realize your intention. I have thisday sent to you through Bailliere, the last decade of the JermynSt. Publications. * (* Publications of the Geological Survey ofEngland. ) You will see that Huxley has taken up the subject of theDevonian fishes in a truly scientific spirit. . . 

FROM OWEN TO AGASSIZ. 

BRITISH MUSEUM, August 30, 1862. 

MY DEAR AGASSIZ, I have received, and since its reception have devoted most of myspare moments to the study of, your fourth volume of the "NaturalHistory of the United States, "--a noble contribution to ourscience, and worthy of your great name. 

The demonstration of the unity of plan pervading the diversities ofthe Polyps, Hydroids, Acalephal and Echinodermal modifications ofyour truly natural group of Radiates, is to my mind perfect, and Itrust that the harsh and ugly and essentially error-breeding nameof Coelenterata may have received its final sentence of exile fromlasting and rational zoological terminology. 

I shall avail myself of opportunities for bringing myself to yourrecollection by such brochures as I have time for. One of them willopen to your view something of the nature of the contest herewaging to obtain for England a suitable Museum of Natural History, equivalent to her wealth and colonies and maritime business. Inthis I find you a valuable ally, and have cited from the Reports ofyour Museum of Comparative Zoology in support of my own claims forspace. 

I was glad to hear from Mr. Bates that the Megatherium had not goneto the bottom, but had been rescued, and that it was probably erethis in your Museum at Cambridge. I trust it may be so. 

A line from you or the sight of any friend of yours is alwayscheering to me. Our friends Enniskillen and Egerton are bothwell. . . 

I remain ever truly yours, RICHARD OWEN. 

As has been seen by a previous letter from Sir Roderick Murchison, Agassiz tried from time to time to give his English friends morejust views of our national struggle. The letter to which thefollowing is an answer is missing, but one may easily infer itstenor, and the pleasure it had given him. 

TO SIR PHILIP DE GREY EGERTON. 

NAHANT, MASSACHUSETTS, August 15, 1862. 

. . . I feel so thankful for your words of sympathy, that I lose notan hour in expressing my feeling. It has been agonizing week afterweek to receive the English papers, and to see there the nobledevotion of the men of the North to their country and itsgovernment, branded as the service of mercenaries. You know I amnot much inclined to meddle with politics; but I can tell you thatI have never seen a more generous and prompt response to the callof country than was exhibited last year, and is exhibiting now, inthe loyal United States. In the last six weeks nearly 300, 000 menhave volunteered, and I am satisfied that the additional 300, 000will be forthcoming without a draft in the course of the nextmonth. And believe me, it is not for the sake of the bounty theycome forward, for our best young men are the first to enlist; ifanything can be objected to these large numbers of soldiers, it isthat it takes away the best material that the land possesses. Ithank you once more for your warm sympathy. I needed it the more, as it is almost the first friendly word of that kind I havereceived from England, and I began to question the humanity of yourcivilization. . . Under present circumstances, you can well imaginethat I cannot think of leaving Cambridge, even for a few weeks, much as I wish to take some rest, and especially to meet your kindinvitation. But I feel that I have a debt to pay to my adoptedcountry, and all I can now do is to contribute my share towardmaintaining the scientific activity which has been awakened duringthe last few years, and which even at this moment is on theincrease. 

I am now at Nahant, on the sea-shore, studying embryology chieflywith reference to paleontology, and the results are mostsatisfactory. I have had an opportunity already of tracing thedevelopment of the representatives of three different families, upon the embryology of which we had not a single observation thusfar, and of making myself familiar with the growth of many others. With these accessions I propose next winter seriously to return tomy first scientific love. . . 

I have taken with me to the sea-shore your and Huxley's"Contributions to the Devonian Fishes, " and also your notice ofCarboniferous fish-fauna; but I have not yet had a chance to studythem critically, from want of time, having been too successful withthe living specimens to have a moment for the fossils. The seasonfor sea-shore studies is, however, drawing rapidly to an end, andthen I shall have more leisure for my old favorites. 

I am very sorry to hear such accounts of the sufferings of themanufacturing districts in England. I wish I could foretell the endof our conflict; but I do not believe it can now be ended beforeslavery is abolished, though I thought differently six months ago. The most conservative men at the North have gradually come to thisconviction, and nobody would listen for a moment to a compromisewith the southern slave power. Whether we shall get rid of it bywar measures or by an emancipation proclamation, I suppose thePresident himself does not yet know. I do not think that we shallwant more money than the people are willing to give. Privatecontributions for the comfort of the army are really unbounded. Iknow a gentleman, not among the richest in Boston, who has alreadycontributed over 30, 000 dollars; and I heard yesterday of ashop-boy who tendered all his earnings of many years to the reliefcommittee, --2, 000 dollars, retaining NOTHING for himself, --and soit goes all round. Of course we have croakers and despondentpeople, but they no longer dare to raise their voices; from which Iinfer that there is no stopping the storm until by the naturalcourse of events the atmosphere is clear and pure again. 

Ever truly your friend, LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

Agassiz had now his time more at his own disposal since he hadgiven up his school and had completed also the fourth volume of his"Contributions. " Leisure time he could never be said to have, buthe was free to give all his spare time and strength to the Museum, and to this undivided aim, directly or indirectly, the remainder ofhis life was devoted. Although at intervals he received generousaid from the Legislature or from private individuals for thefurther development of the Museum, its growth outran suchprovision, and especially during the years of the war the problemof meeting expenses was often difficult of solution. To provide forsuch a contingency Agassiz made in the winter of 1863 the mostextensive lecturing tour he had ever undertaken, even in hisbusiest lecturing days. He visited all the large cities and some ofthe smaller towns from Buffalo to St. Louis. While veryremunerative, and in many respects delightful, since he wasreceived with the greatest cordiality, and lectured everywhere toenthusiastic crowds, this enterprise was, nevertheless, of doubtfuleconomy even for his scientific aims. Agassiz was but fifty-six, yet his fine constitution began to show a fatigue hardly justifiedby his years, and the state of his health was already a source ofserious anxiety to his friends. He returned much exhausted, andpassed the summer at Nahant, where the climate always benefitedhim, while his laboratory afforded the best conditions for work. Ifthis summer home had a fault, it was its want of remoteness. He wasalmost as much beset there, by the interruptions to which a man inhis position is liable, as in Cambridge. 

His letters show how constantly during this nominal vacation hisMuseum and its interests occupied his thoughts. One is to hisbrother-in-law, Thomas G. Cary, whose residence was in SanFrancisco, and who had been for years his most efficient aid inobtaining collections from the Pacific Coast. 

TO MR. THOMAS G. CARY. 

CAMBRIDGE, March 23, 1863. 

DEAR TOM, For many years past your aid in fostering the plans of the Museumin Cambridge has greatly facilitated the progress of thatestablishment in everything relating to the Natural History ofCalifornia, and now that it has become desirable to extend ourscheme to objects which have thus far been neglected I make anotherappeal to you. 

Every day the history of mankind is brought into more and moreintimate connection with the natural history of the animalcreation, and it is now indispensable that we should organize anextensive collection to illustrate the natural history of theuncivilized races. Your personal acquaintance with business friendsin almost every part of the globe has suggested to me the proprietyof addressing to you a circular letter, setting forth the objectswanted, and requesting of you the favor to communicate it as widelyas possible among your friends. 

To make the most instructive collections relative to the naturalhistory of mankind, two classes of specimens should be broughttogether, one concerning the habits and pursuits of the races, theother concerning the physical constitution of the races themselves. 

With reference to the first it would be desirable to collectarticles of clothing and ornaments of all the races of men, theirimplements, tools, weapons, and such models or drawings of theirdwellings as may give an idea of their construction; small canoesand oars as models of their vessels, or indications of theirprogress in navigation; in one word, everything that relates totheir avocations, their pursuits, their habits, their mode ofworship, and whatever may indicate the dawn or progress of the artsamong them. As to articles of clothing, it would be preferable toselect such specimens as have actually been worn or even cast off, rather than new things which may be more or less fanciful and notindicate the real natural condition and habits of a race. 

With regard to the collections intended to illustrate the physicalconstitution of the races it is more difficult to obtaininstructive specimens, as the savage races are generally inclinedto hold sacred all that relates to their dead; yet whenever anopportunity is afforded to obtain skulls of the natives ofdifferent parts of the world, it should be industriously improved, and good care taken to mark the skulls in such a way that theirorigin cannot be mistaken. Beside this, every possible effortshould be made to obtain perfect heads, preserved in alcohol, sothat all their features may be studied minutely and compared. Wherethis cannot be done portraits or photographs may be substituted. 

Trusting that you may help me in this way to bring together inCambridge a more complete collection, illustrative of the naturalhistory of mankind than exists thus far anywhere, * (* All theethnographical collections of the Museum of Comparative Zoologyhave now been transferred to the Peabody Museum, where they moreproperly belong. )

I remain, ever truly your friend and brother, LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

The following letter to Mr. Ticknor is in the same spirit asprevious ones to Mr. Haldeman and others, concerning thedistribution of fishes in America. It is given at the risk of somerepetition, because it illustrates Agassiz's favorite idea that akey to the original combination of faunae in any given system offresh waters, might be reached through a closer study than has yetbeen possible of the geographical or local circumscription of theirinhabitants. 

TO MR. GEORGE TICKNOR. 

NAHANT, October 24, 1863. 

MY DEAR SIR, Among the schemes which I have devised for the improvement of theMuseum, there is one for the realization of which I appeal to youraid and sympathy. Thus far the natural productions of the riversand lakes of the world have not been compared with one another, except what I have done in comparing the fishes of the Danube withthose of the Rhine and of the Rhone, and those of the greatCanadian lakes with those of the Swiss lakes. 

I now propose to resume this subject on the most extensive scale, since I see that it has the most direct bearing upon thetransmutation theory. . . First let me submit to you my plan. 

Rivers and lakes are isolated by the land and sea from one another. The question is, then, how they came to be peopled with inhabitantsdiffering both from those on land and those in the sea, and howdoes it come that every hydrographic basin has its own inhabitantsmore or less different from those of any other basin? Take theGanges, the Nile, and the Amazons. There is not a living being inthe one alike to any one in the others, etc. Now to advance theinvestigation to the point where it may tell with reference to thescientific doctrines at present under discussion, it is essentialto know the facts in detail, with reference to every fresh-waterbasin on earth. I have already taken means to obtain the tenants ofall the rivers of Brazil, and partly of Russia, and I hope you maybe able to put me in the way of getting those of Spain, if not ofsome other country beside. The plan I propose for that countrywould be worthy of the Doctors of Salamanca in her brightest days. If this alone were carried out, it would be, I believe, sufficientto settle the whole question. 

My idea is to obtain separate collections from all the principalrivers of Spain and Portugal, and even to have several separatecollections from the larger rivers, one from their lower course, one from their middle course, and another from their head-waters. Take, for instance, the Douro. One collection ought to be made atOporto, and several higher up, among its various tributaries and inits upper course; say, one at Zamora and Valladolid, one atSalamanca from the Tormes River, one at Leon from the Esla River, one at Burgos and Palencia from the northern tributaries, one atSoria and Segovia from the southern tributaries. If this could bedone on such a scale as I propose, it would in itself be a workworthy of the Spanish government, and most creditable to any manwho should undertake it. The fact is that nothing of the kind hasever been done yet anywhere. A single collection from the Minhowould be sufficient, say from Orense or Melgaco. From the northernrivers along the gulf of Biscay all that would be necessary wouldbe one thoroughly complete collection from one of the little riversthat come down from the mountains of Asturias, say from Oviedo. 

The Ebro would require a more elaborate survey. From its uppercourse, one collection would be needed from Haro or Frias orMiranda; another from Saragossa, and one from its mouth, includingthe minnows common among the brackish waters near the mouth oflarge rivers. In addition to this, one or two of the tributaries ofthe Ebro, coming down from the Pyrenees, should be explored in thesame manner; say one collection from Pampeluna, and one from Urgel, or any other place on the southern slope of the Pyrenees. Acollection made at Barcelona from the river and the brackishmarshes would be equally desirable; another from the river atValencia, and, if possible, also from its head-waters at Ternel;another from the river Segura at Murcia, and somewhere in themountains from its head-waters. Granada would afford particularinterest as showing what its mountain streams feed. A collectionfrom the Almeria River at Almeria, or from any of the small riversof the southern coast of Spain, would do; and it would be the moreinteresting if another from the river Xenil could be obtained at ornear Granada, to compare with the inhabitants of the waters uponthe southern slope of the Sierra Nevada. 

Next would come the Guadalquivir, from which a collection should bemade at San Lucar, with the brackish water species; another atSeville or Cordova, one among the head-waters from the SierraNevada, and another from the mountains of the Mancha. From theGuadiana a collection from Villa Real, with the brackish species;one from Badajoz, and one from the easternmost headwaters, andabout where the river is lost under ground. 

The Tagus would again require an extensive exploration. In thefirst place a thorough collection of all the species found in thegreat estuary ought to be made with the view of ascertaining howfar marine Atlantic species penetrate into the river basin; thenone from Santarem, and another either from Talavera or Toledo orAranjuez, and one from the head-waters in Guadalaxara, and anotherin Molina. 

The collections made at different stations ought carefully to bekept in distinct jars or kegs, with labels so secure that noconfusion or mistake can arise. But the specimens collected at thesame station may be put together in the same jar. These collectionsrequire, in fact, very little care. (Here some details about modeof putting up specimens, transportation, etc. ) If the same personshould collect upon different stations, either in the same or indifferent hydrographic basins, the similarity of the specimensshould not be a reason for neglecting to preserve them. What isaimed at is not to secure a variety of species, but to learn inwhat localities the same species may occur again and again, andwhat are the localities which nourish different species, no matterwhether these species are in themselves interesting or not, new toscience or known for ages, whether valuable for the table or unfitto eat. The mere fact of their distribution is the point to beascertained, and this, as you see, requires the most extensivecollections, affording in themselves comparatively little interest, but likely to lead, by a proper discussion of the facts, to themost unexpected philosophical results. . . Do, please, what you canin this matter. Spain alone might give us the materials to solvethe question of transmutation versus creation. I am going to make asimilar appeal to my friends in Russia for materials from thatcountry, including Siberia and Kamschatka. Our own rivers are noteasily accessible now. 

Ever truly your friend, L. AGASSIZ. 

CHAPTER 20. 

1863-1864: AGE 56-57. 

Correspondence with Dr. S. G. Howe. Bearing of the War on the Position of the Negro Race. Affection for Harvard College. Interest in her General Progress. Correspondence with Emerson concerning Harvard. Glacial Phenomena in Maine. 

AGASSIZ'S letters give little idea of the deep interest he felt inthe war between North and South, and its probable issue withreference to the general policy of the nation, and especially tothe relation between the black and white races. Although anyjudgment upon the accuracy of its conclusions would now bepremature, the following correspondence between Agassiz and Dr. S. G. Howe is nevertheless worth considering, as showing how theproblem presented itself to the philanthropist and the naturalistfrom their different stand-points. 

FROM DR. S. G. HOWE. 

PORTSMOUTH, August 3, 1863. 

MY DEAR AGASSIZ, You will learn by a glance at the inclosed circular the object ofthe commission of which I am a member. 

The more I consider the subject to be examined and reported upon, the more I am impressed by its vastness; the more I see that itsproper treatment requires a consideration of political, physiological, and ethnological principles. Before deciding uponany political policy, it is necessary to decide several importantquestions, which require more knowledge for their solution than Ipossess. 

Among these questions, this one occupies me most now. Is itprobable that the African race, represented by less than twomillion blacks and a little more than two million mulattoes, unrecruited by immigration, will be a persistent race in thiscountry? or will it be absorbed, diluted, and finally effaced bythe white race, numbering twenty-four millions, and continuallyincreased by immigration, beside natural causes. 

Will not the general practical amalgamation fostered by slaverybecome more general after its abolition? If so, will not theproportion of mulattoes become greater and that of the pure blacksless? With an increase and final numerical prevalence of mulattoesthe question of the fertility of the latter becomes a veryimportant element in the calculation. Can it be a persistent racehere where pure blacks are represented by 2, and the whites by20-24?

Is it not true that in the Northern States at least the mulatto isunfertile, leaving but few children, and those mainly lymphatic andscrofulous?

In those sections where the blacks and mulattoes together make fromseventy to eighty and even ninety per cent of the whole populationwill there be, after the abolition of slavery, a sufficiently largeinflux of whites to counteract the present numerical preponderanceof blacks?

It looks now as if the whites would EXPLOITER the labors of theblacks, and that social servitude will continue long in spite ofpolitical equality. 

You will see the importance of considering carefully the naturallaws of increase and their modification by existing causes beforedeciding upon any line of policy. 

If there be irresistible natural tendencies to the growth of apersistent black race in the Gulf and river States, we must notmake bad worse by futile attempts to resist it. If, on the otherhand, the natural tendencies are to the diffusion and finaldisappearance of the black (and colored) race, then our policyshould be modified accordingly. 

I should be very glad, my dear sir, if you could give me your viewsupon this and cognate matters. If, however, your occupations willnot permit you to give time to this matter, perhaps you will assistme by pointing to works calculated to throw light upon the subjectof my inquiry, or by putting me in correspondence with persons whohave the ability and the leisure to write about it. 

I remain, dear sir, faithfully, SAMUEL G. HOWE. 

TO DR. S. G. HOWE. 

NAHANT, August 9, 1863. 

MY DEAR DOCTOR, When I acknowledged a few days ago the receipt of your invitationto put in writing my views upon the management of the negro race aspart of the free population of the United States, I stated to youthat there was a preliminary question of the utmost importance tobe examined first, since whatever convictions may be formed uponthat point must necessarily influence everything else relating tothe subject. The question is simply this: Is there to be apermanent black population upon the continent after slavery iseverywhere abolished and no inducement remains to foster itsincrease? Should this question be answered in the negative, it isevident that a wise policy would look to the best mode of removingthat race from these States, by the encouragement and accelerationof emigration. Should the question be answered, on the contrary, inthe affirmative, then it is plain that we have before us one of themost difficult problems, upon the solution of which the welfare ofour own race may in a measure depend, namely, the combination inone social organization of two races more widely different from oneanother than all the other races. In effecting this combination itbecomes our duty to avoid the recurrence of great evils, one ofwhich is already foreshadowed in the advantage which unscrupulousmanagers are taking of the freedmen, whenever the latter arebrought into contact with new social relations. 

I will, for the present, consider only the case of the unmixednegroes of the Southern States, the number of which I suppose to beabout two millions. It is certainly not less, --it may be a littlemore. From whatever point of view you look upon these people youmust come to the conclusion that, left to themselves, they willperpetuate their race ad infinitum where they are. According to theprevalent theory of the unity of mankind it is assumed that thedifferent races have become what they are in consequence of theirsettlement in different parts of the world, and that the wholeglobe is everywhere a fit abode for human beings who adaptthemselves to the conditions under which they live. According tothe theory of a multiple origin of mankind the different races havefirst appeared in various parts of the globe, each with thepeculiarities best suited to their primitive home. Aside from thesetheoretical views the fact is, that some races inhabit veryextensive tracts of the earth's surface, and are now found uponseparate continents, while others are very limited in their range. This distribution is such that there is no reason for supposingthat the negro is less fitted permanently to occupy at least thewarmer parts of North and South America, than is the white race toretain possession of their more temperate portions. Assuming ourpure black race to be only two millions, it is yet larger than thewhole number of several races that have held uninterruptedpossession of different parts of the globe ever since they havebeen known to the white race. Thus the Hottentots and theAbyssinians have maintained themselves in their respective homeswithout change ever since their existence has been known to us, even though their number is less than that of our pure blackpopulation. The same, also, is the case with the population ofAustralia and of the Pacific islands. The Papuan race, the Negrillorace, the Australian race proper, distinct from one another, aswell as from all other inhabitants of the earth, number each fewerinhabitants than already exist of the negro race in the UnitedStates alone, not to speak of Central and South America. 

This being the case there is, it seems to me, no more reason toexpect a disappearance of the negro race from the continent ofAmerica without violent interference, than to expect adisappearance of the races inhabiting respectively the South SeaIslands, Australia, the Cape of Good Hope, or any other part of theglobe tenanted by the less populous races. The case of the AmericanIndians, who gradually disappear before the white race, should notmislead us, as it is readily accounted for by the peculiarcharacter of that race. The negro exhibits by nature a pliability, a readiness to accommodate himself to circumstances, a proneness toimitate those among whom he lives, --characteristics which areentirely foreign to the Indian, while they facilitate in every waythe increase of the negro. I infer, therefore, from all thesecircumstances that the negro race must be considered as permanentlysettled upon this continent, no less firmly than the white race, and that it is our duty to look upon them as co-tenants in thepossession of this part of the world. 

Remember that I have thus far presented the case only withreference to the Southern States, where the climate is particularlyfavorable to the maintenance and multiplication of the negro race. Before drawing any inference, however, from my first assertion thatthe negro will easily and without foreign assistance maintainhimself and multiply in the warmer parts of this continent, let usconsider a few other features of this momentous question of race. Whites and blacks may multiply together, but their offspring isnever either white or black; it is always mulatto. It is ahalf-breed, and shares all the peculiarities of half-breeds, amongwhose most important characteristics is their sterility, or atleast their reduced fecundity. This shows the connection to becontrary to the normal state of the races, as it is contrary to thepreservation of species in the animal kingdom. . . Far frompresenting to me a natural solution of our difficulties, the ideaof amalgamation is most repugnant to my feelings. It is now thefoundation of some of the most ill-advised schemes. But wherever itis practiced, amalgamation among different races produces shades ofpopulation, the social position of which can never be regular andsettled. From a physiological point of view, it is sound policy toput every possible obstacle to the crossing of the races, and theincrease of half-breeds. It is unnatural, as shown by their veryconstitution, their sickly physique, and their impaired fecundity. It is immoral and destructive of social equality as it createsunnatural relations and multiplies the differences among members ofthe same community in a wrong direction. 

From all this it is plain that the policy to be adopted toward themiscellaneous colored population with reference to a more or lessdistant future should be totally different from that which appliesto the pure black; for while I believe that a wise social economywill foster the progress of every pure race, according to itsnatural dispositions and abilities, and aim at securing for it aproper field for the fullest development of all its capabilities, Iam convinced also that no efforts should be spared to check thatwhich is inconsistent with the progress of a higher civilizationand a purer morality. I hope and trust that as soon as thecondition of the negro in the warmer parts of our States has beenregulated according to the laws of freedom, the colored populationin the more northern parts of the country will diminish. By anatural consequence of unconquerable affinities, the colored peoplein whom the negro nature prevails will tend toward the South, whilethe weaker and lighter ones will remain and die out among us. 

Entertaining these views upon the fundamental questions concerningthe races, the next point for consideration is the policy to beadopted under present circumstances, in order to increase theamount of good which is within our grasp and lessen the evil whichwe may avert. This will be for another letter. 

Very truly yours, LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

FROM THE SAME TO THE SAME. 

August 10, 1863. 

MY DEAR DOCTOR, I am so deeply impressed with the dangers awaiting the progress ofcivilization, should the ideas now generally prevalent aboutamalgamation gain sufficient ascendancy to exert a practicalinfluence upon the management of the affairs of the nation, that Ibeg leave to urge a few more considerations upon that point. 

In the first place let me insist upon the fact that the populationarising from the amalgamation of two races is always degenerate, that it loses the excellences of both primitive stocks to retainthe vices or defects of both, and never to enjoy the physical vigorof either. In order clearly to appreciate the tendencies ofamalgamation, it is indispensable to discriminate correctly betweenthe differences distinguishing one race from another and thoseexisting between different nationalities of the same race. Forwhile the mixture of nationalities of the same race has alwaysproved beneficial as far as we are taught by history, the mixtureof races has produced a very different result. We need only look atthe inhabitants of Central America, where the white, the negro, andthe Indian races are more or less blended, to see the banefuleffects of such an amalgamation. The condition of the Indians onthe borders of civilization in the United States and in Canada, intheir contact with the Anglo-Saxons as well as with the French, testifies equally to the pernicious influence of amalgamation ofraces. The experience of the Old World points in the same directionat the Cape of Good Hope, in Australia; everywhere, in fact, history speaks as loudly in favor of the mixture of clearly relatednations as she does in condemnation of the amalgamation of remoteraces. We need only think of the origin of the English nation, ofthat of the United States, etc. The question of breeding in-and-in, that of marriage among close relations, is again quite distinct. Infact, there is hardly a more complicated subject in physiology, orone requiring nicer discriminations, than that of themultiplication of man, and yet it is constantly acted upon as if itneeded no special knowledge. I beseech you, therefore, while youare in a position to exert a leading influence in the councils ofthe nation upon this most important subject to allow nopreconceived view, no favorite schemes, no immediate object, tobias your judgment and mislead you. I do not pretend to be inpossession of absolute truth. I only urge upon you theconsideration of unquestionable facts before you form a finalopinion and decide upon a fixed policy. Conceive for a moment thedifference it would make in future ages for the prospects ofrepublican institutions, and our civilization generally, if insteadof the manly population descended from cognate nations the UnitedStates should be inhabited by the effeminate progeny of mixedraces, half Indian, half negro, sprinkled with white blood. Can youdevise a scheme to rescue the Spaniards of Mexico from theirdegradation? Beware, then, of any policy which may bring our ownrace to their level. 

These considerations lead me naturally to the inquiry into thepeculiarities of the two races, in order to find out what may bemost beneficial for each. I rejoice in the prospect of universalemancipation, not only from a philanthropic point of view, but alsobecause hereafter the physiologist and ethnographer may discuss thequestion of the races and advocate a discriminating policyregarding them, without seeming to support legal inequality. Thereis no more one-sided doctrine concerning human nature than the ideathat all men are equal, in the sense of being equally capable offostering human progress and advancing civilization, especially inthe various spheres of intellectual and moral activity. If this beso, then it is one of our primary obligations to remove everyobstacle that may retard the highest development, while it isequally our duty to promote the humblest aspirations that maycontribute to raise the lowest individual to a better condition inlife. 

The question is, then, what kind of common treatment is likely tobe the best for all men, and what do the different races, takensingly, require for themselves? That legal equality should be thecommon boon of humanity can hardly be matter for doubt nowadays, but it does not follow that social equality is a necessarycomplement of legal equality. I say purposely legal equality, andnot political equality, because political equality involves anequal right to every public station in life, and I trust we shallbe wise enough not to complicate at once our whole system with newconflicting interests, before we have ascertained what may be thepractical working of universal freedom and legal equality for tworaces, so different as the whites and negroes, living under onegovernment. We ought to remember that what we know of the negro, from the experience we have had of the colored population of theNorth, affords but a very inadequate standard by which to judge ofthe capabilities of the pure blacks as they exist in the South. Weought, further, to remember that the black population is likely atall times to outnumber the white in the Southern States. We shouldtherefore beware how we give to the blacks rights, by virtue ofwhich they may endanger the progress of the whites before theirtemper has been tested by a prolonged experience. Social equality Ideem at all times impracticable, --a natural impossibility, from thevery character of the negro race. Let us consider for a moment thenatural endowments of the negro race as they are manifested inhistory on their native continent, as far as we can trace themback, and compare the result with what we know of our owndestinies, in order to ascertain, within the limits of probability, whether social equality with the negro is really an impossibility. 

We know of the existence of the negro race, with all its physicalpeculiarities, from the Egyptian monuments, several thousand yearsbefore the Christian era. Upon these monuments the negroes are sorepresented as to show that in natural propensities and mentalabilities they were pretty much what we find them at the presentday, --indolent, playful, sensual, imitative, subservient, good-natured, versatile, unsteady in their purpose, devoted andaffectionate. From this picture I exclude the character of thehalf-breeds, who have, more or less, the character of their whiteparents. Originally found in Africa, the negroes seem at all timesto have presented the same characteristics wherever they have beenbrought into contact with the white race; as in Upper Egypt, alongthe borders of the Carthaginian and Roman settlements in Africa, inSenegal in juxtaposition with the French, in Congo in juxtapositionwith the Portuguese, about the Cape and on the eastern coast ofAfrica in juxtaposition with the Dutch and the English. While Egyptand Carthage grew into powerful empires and attained a high degreeof civilization; while in Babylon, Syria, and Greece were developedthe highest culture of antiquity, the negro race groped inbarbarism and NEVER ORIGINATED A REGULAR ORGANIZATION AMONGTHEMSELVES. This is important to keep in mind, and to urge upon theattention of those who ascribe the condition of the modern negrowholly to the influence of slavery. I do not mean to say thatslavery is a necessary condition for the organization of the negrorace. Far from it. They are entitled to their freedom, to theregulation of their own destiny, to the enjoyment of their life, oftheir earnings, of their family circle. But with all this nowheredo they appear to have been capable of rising, by themselves, tothe level of the civilized communities of the whites, and thereforeI hold that they are incapable of living on a footing of socialequality with the whites in one and the same community withoutbecoming an element of social disorder. * (* I fear the expression"social equality" may be misunderstood in this connection. It meanshere only the relations which would arise from the mixture of thetwo races, and thus affect the organization of society as a whole. It does not refer to any superficial or local social rules, such assharing on common ground public conveyances, public accommodations, and the like. --ED. )

I am not prepared to state what political privileges they are fitto enjoy now; though I have no hesitation in saying that theyshould be equal to other men before the law. The right of owningproperty, of bearing witness, of entering into contracts, of buyingand selling, of choosing their own domicile, would give them ampleopportunity of showing in a comparatively short time what politicalrights might properly and safely be granted to them in successiveinstallments. No man has a right to what he is unfit to use. Ourown best rights have been acquired successively. I cannot, therefore, think it just or safe to grant at once to the negro allthe privileges which we ourselves have acquired by long struggles. History teaches us what terrible reactions have followed tooextensive and too rapid changes. Let us beware of granting too muchto the negro race in the beginning, lest it become necessaryhereafter to deprive them of some of the privileges which they mayuse to their own and our detriment. All this I urge with referenceto the pure blacks of the South. As to the half-breeds, especiallyin the Northern States, I have already stated it to be my opinionthat their very existence is likely to be only transient, and thatall legislation with reference to them should be regulated withthis view, and so ordained as to accelerate their disappearancefrom the Northern States. 

Let me now sum up my answer to some of your direct questions. 

1st. Is it probable that the African race will be a persistent racein this country, or will it be absorbed, diluted, and finallyeffaced by the white race?

I believe it will continue in the Southern States, and I hope itmay gradually die out at the North, where it has only an artificialfoothold, being chiefly represented by half-breeds, who do notconstitute a race by themselves. 

2nd. Will not the practical amalgamation fostered by slavery becomemore general after its abolition?

Being the result of the vices engendered by slavery, it is to behoped that the emancipation of the blacks, by securing to them alegal recognition of their natural ties, will tend to diminish thisunnatural amalgamation and lessen everywhere the number of theseunfortunate half-breeds. My reason for believing that the coloredpopulation of the North will gradually vanish is founded in greatdegree upon the fact that that population does not increase whereit exists now, but is constantly recruited by an influx from theSouth. The southern half-breeds feel their false position at theSouth more keenly than the blacks, and are more inclined to escapeto the North than the individuals of purer black blood. Remove theoppression under which the colored population now suffers, and thecurrent will at once be reversed; blacks and mulattoes of the Northwill seek the sunny South. But I see no cause which should checkthe increase of the black population in the Southern States. Theclimate is genial to them; the soil rewards the slightest laborwith a rich harvest. The country cannot well be cultivated withoutreal or fancied danger to the white man, who, therefore, will notprobably compete with the black in the labors of the field, thusleaving to him an opportunity for easy and desirable support. 

3rd. In those sections where the blacks and mulattoes together makefrom seventy to eighty and even ninety per cent of the populationwill there be, after the abolition of slavery, a sufficiently largeinflux of whites to counteract the present numerical preponderanceof blacks?

To answer this question correctly we must take into considerationthe mode of distribution of the white and of the colored populationin the more Southern States. The whites inhabit invariably thesea-shores and the more elevated grounds, while the blacks arescattered over the lowlands. This peculiar localization is renderednecessary by the physical constitution of the country. The lowlandsare not habitable in summer by the whites between sunset andsunrise. All the wealthy whites, and in the less healthy regionseven the overseers, repair in the evening to the sea-shore or tothe woodlands, and return only in the morning to the plantation, except during the winter months, after the first hard frost, whenthe country is everywhere habitable by all. This necessarily limitsthe area which can be tenanted by the whites, and in some Statesthat area is very small as compared with that habitable by theblacks. It is therefore clear that with a free black population, enjoying identical rights with the whites, these States will sooneror later become negro States, with a comparatively small whitepopulation. This is inevitable; we might as soon expect to changethe laws of nature as to avert this result. I believe it may in acertain sense work well in the end. But any policy based upondifferent expectations is doomed to disappointment. 

4th. How to prevent the whites from securing the lion's share ofthe labor of the blacks?

This is a question which my want of familiarity with the operationsof the laboring classes prevents me from answering in a mannersatisfactory to myself. Is it not possible to apply to thesuperintendence of the working negroes something like the systemwhich regulates the duties of the foreman in all our manufacturingestablishments?

I should like to go on and attempt to devise some scheme inconformity with the convictions I have expressed in these letters. But I have little ability in the way of organizing, and then thesubject is so novel that I am not prepared to propose anything verydefinite. 

Ever truly yours, LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

FROM DR. S. G. HOWE. 

NEW YORK, August 18, 1863. 

MY DEAR AGASSIZ, I cannot refrain from expressing my thanks for your promptcompliance with my request, and for your two valuable letters. 

Be assured I shall try to keep my mind open to conviction and toforbear forming any theory before observing a wide circle of facts. I do not know how you got the idea that I had decided in favor ofanything about the future of the colored population. I havecorresponded with the founders of "La Societe Cosmopolite pour lafusion des races humaines" in France, --an amalgamation society, founded upon the theory that the perfect man is to be the result ofthe fusion of all the races upon earth. I have not, however, thehonor of being a member thereof. Indeed, I think it hardly exists. I hear, too, that several of our prominent anti-slavery gentlemen, worthy of respect for their zeal and ability, have publiclyadvocated the doctrines of amalgamation; but I do not know uponwhat grounds. 

I do, indeed, hold that in this, as in other matters, we are to dothe manifest right, regardless of consequences. If you ask me whois to decide what is the manifest right, I answer, that in morals, as well as in mathematics, there are certain truths so simple as tobe admitted at sight as axioms by every one of common intelligenceand honesty. The right to life is as clear as that two and two makefour, and none dispute it. The right to liberty and to ownership ofproperty fairly earned is just as clear to the enlightened mind asthat 5 x 6 = 30; but the less enlightened may require to reflectabout it, just as they may want concrete signs to show that fivetimes six do really make thirty. As we ascend in numbers and inmorals, the intuitive perceptions become less and less; and thoughthe truths are there, and ought to be admitted as axiomatic, theyare not at once seen and felt by ordinary minds. 

Now so far as the rights of blacks and the duties of whites aremanifest to common and honest minds, so far would I admit the firstand perform the second, though the heavens fall. I would not onlyadvocate entire freedom, equal rights and privileges, and opencompetition for social distinction, but what now seems to me theshocking and downward policy of amalgamation. But the heavens arenot going to fall, and we are not going to be called upon to favorany policy discordant with natural instincts and cultivated tastes. 

A case may be supposed in which the higher race ought to submit tothe sad fate of dilution and debasement of its blood, --as on anisland, and where long continued wrong and suffering had to beatoned for. But this is hardly conceivable, because, even in whatseems punishment and atonement, the law of harmonious developmentstill rules. God does not punish wrong and violence done to onepart of our nature, by requiring us to do wrong and violence toanother part. Even Nemesis wields rather a guiding-rod than ascourge. We need take no step backward, but only aside, to getsooner into the right path. 

Slavery has acted as a disturbing force in the development of ournational character and produced monstrous deformities of a bodilyas well as moral nature, for it has impaired the purity and loweredthe quality of the national blood. It imported Africans, and, toprevent their extinction by competition with a more vigorous race, it set a high premium on colored blood. It has fostered andmultiplied a vigorous black race, and engendered a feeble mulattobreed. Many of each of these classes have drifted northward, rightin the teeth of thermal laws, to find homes where they would neverlive by natural election. Now, by utterly rooting out slavery, andby that means alone, shall we remove these disturbing forces andallow fair play to natural laws, by the operation of which, itseems to me, the colored population will disappear from theNorthern and Middle States, if not from the continent, before themore vigorous and prolific white race. It will be the duty of thestatesman to favor, by wise measures, the operation of these lawsand the purification and elevation of the national blood. 

In the way of this is the existence of the colored population ofthe Northern and Middle States. Now, while we should grant to everyhuman being all the rights we claim for ourselves, and bear in mindthe cases of individual excellence of colored people, we must, Ithink, admit that mulattoism is hybridism, and that it is unnaturaland undesirable. It has been brought to its present formidableproportions by several causes, --mainly by slavery. Its evils are tobe met and lessened as far as may be, by wise statesmanship and byenlightenment of public opinion. These may do much. 

Some proclaim amalgamation as the remedy, upon the theory that bydiluting black blood with white blood in larger and largerproportions, it will finally be so far diluted as to beimperceptible and will disappear. They forget that we may not dothe wrong that right may come of it. They forget that no amount ofdiffusion will exterminate whatever exists; that a pint of inkdiffused in a lake is still there, and the water is only the lesspure. 

Others persist that mulattoism is not and cannot be persistentbeyond four generations. In other words, that like some otherabnormal and diseased conditions it is self-limiting, and that thebody social will be purged of it. 

In the face of these and other theories, it is our duty to gatheras many facts and as much knowledge as is possible, in order tothrow light upon every part of the subject; nobody can furnish morethan you can. 

Faithfully yours, SAMUEL G. HOWE. * (* In this correspondence with Dr. Howe, one ortwo phrases in Agassiz's letters are interpolated from a thirdunfinished letter, which was never forwarded to Dr. Howe. Thesesentences connect themselves so directly with the sense of theprevious letters that it seemed worth while to add them. --ED. )

The Museum and his own more immediate scientific work mustnaturally take precedence in any biography of Agassiz, and perhaps, for this reason, too little prominence has been given in thesepages to his interest in general education, and especially in thegeneral welfare and progress of Harvard College. He was deeplyattached to the University with which he had identified himself inAmerica. While he strained every nerve to develop his ownscientific department, which had no existence at Harvard until hisadvent there, no one of her professors was more concerned thanhimself for the organization of the college as a whole. A lover ofletters as well as a devotee of nature, he valued every provisionfor a well proportioned intellectual training. He welcomed thecreation of an Academic Council for the promotion of free andfrequent interchange of opinion between the different heads ofdepartments, and, when in Cambridge, he was never absent from themeetings. He urged, also, the introduction of university lectures, to the establishment of which he largely contributed, and which hewould fain have opened to all the students. He advocated theextension of the elective system, believing that while it mightperhaps give a pretext for easy evasion of duty to the moreinefficient and lazy students, it gave larger opportunities to thebetter class, and that the University should adapt itself to thelatter rather than the former. "The bright students, " he writes toa friend, "are now deprived of the best advantages to be had here, because the dull or the indifferent must still be treated aschildren. "

The two following letters, from their bearing on general universityquestions, are not out of place here. Though occasioned by a slightmisconception, they are so characteristic of the writers, and oftheir relation to each other, that it would be a pity to omit them. 

TO RALPH WALDO EMERSON. 

December 12, 1864. 

MY DEAR EMERSON, If your lecture on universities, the first of your course, has beencorrectly reported to me, I am almost inclined to quarrel with youfor having missed an excellent chance to help me, and advance thetrue interests of the college. You say that Natural History isgetting too great an ascendancy among us, that it is out ofproportion to other departments, and hint that a check-rein wouldnot be amiss on the enthusiastic professor who is responsible forthis. 

Do you not see that the way to bring about a well-proportioneddevelopment of all the resources of the University is not to checkthe natural history department, but to stimulate all the others?not that the zoological school grows too fast, but that the othersdo not grow fast enough? This sounds invidious and perhaps somewhatboastful; but it is you and not I who have instituted thecomparison. It strikes me you have not hit upon the best remedy forthis want of balance. If symmetry is to be obtained by cutting downthe most vigorous growth, it seems to me it would be better to havea little irregularity here and there. In stimulating, by everymeans in my power, the growth of the Museum and the means ofeducation connected with it, I am far from having a selfish wish tosee my own department tower above the others. I wish that every oneof my colleagues would make it hard for me to keep up with him, andthere are some among them, I am happy to say, who are ready to runa race with me. Perhaps, after all, I am taking up the cudgelsagainst you rather prematurely. If I had not been called to NewHaven, Sunday before last, by Professor Silliman's funeral, Ishould have been present at your lecture myself. Having missed it, I may have heard this passage inaccurately repeated. If so, youmust forgive me, and believe me always, whatever you did or did notsay, Ever truly your friend, LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

FROM RALPH WALDO EMERSON. 

CONCORD, December 13, 1864. 

DEAR AGASSIZ, I pray you have no fear that I did, or can, say any word unfriendlyto you or to the Museum, for both of which blessings--the cause andthe effect--I daily thank Heaven! May you both increase andmultiply for ages!

I cannot defend my lectures, --they are prone to be clumsy andhurried botches, --still less answer for any report, --which I neverdare read; but I can tell you the amount of my chiding. I ventedsome of the old grudge I owe the college now for forty-five years, for the cruel waste of two years of college time on mathematicswithout any attempt to adapt, by skillful tutors, or by privateinstruction, these tasks to the capacity of slow learners. I stillremember the useless pains I took, and my serious recourse to mytutor for aid which he did not know how to give me. And now I seeto-day the same indiscriminate imposing of mathematics on allstudents during two years, --ear or no ear, you shall all learnmusic, --to the waste of time and health of a large part of everyclass. It is both natural and laudable in each professor to magnifyhis department, and to seek to make it the first in the world if hecan. But of course this tendency must be corrected by securing inthe constitution of the college a power in the head (whethersingular or plural) of coordinating all the parts. Else, importantdepartments will be overlaid, as in Oxford and in Harvard, naturalhistory was until now. Now, it looks as if natural history wouldobtain in time to come the like predominance as mathematics havehere, or Greek at Oxford. It will not grieve me if it should, forwe are all curious of nature, but not of algebra. But the necessityof check on the instructors in the head of the college, I am sureyou will agree with me, is indispensable. You will see that myallusion to naturalists is only incidental to my statement of mygrievance. 

But I have made my letter ridiculously long, and pray you toremember that you have brought it on your own head. I do not knowthat I ever attempted before an explanation of any speech. 

Always with entire regard yours, R. W. EMERSON. 

At about this time, in September, 1864, Agassiz made an excursioninto Maine, partly to examine the drift phenomena on the islandsand coast of that State, and partly to study the so-called"horse-backs. " The journey proved to be one of the most interestinghe had made in this country with reference to local glacialphenomena. Compass in hand, he followed the extraordinary ridges ofmorainic material lying between Bangor and Katahdin, to the EbeeneMountains, at the foot of which are the Katahdin Iron Works. Returning to Bangor, he pursued, with the same minuteinvestigation, the glacial tracks and erratic material from thatplace to the seacoast and to Mount Desert. The details of thisjourney and its results are given in one of the papers contained inthe second volume of his "Geological Sketches. " In conclusion, hesays; "I suppose these facts must be far less expressive to thegeneral observer than to one who has seen this whole set ofphenomena in active operation. To me they have been for many yearsso familiar in the Alpine valleys, and their aspect in thoseregions is so identical with the facts above described, thatparadoxical as the statement may seem, the presence of the ice isnow an unimportant element to me in the study of glacial phenomena;no more essential than is the flesh to the anatomist who studiesthe skeleton of a fossil animal. "

This journey in Maine, undertaken in the most beautiful season ofthe American year, when the autumn glow lined the forest roads withred and gold, was a great refreshment to Agassiz. He had been farfrom well, but he returned to his winter's work invigorated andwith a new sense of hope and courage. 

CHAPTER 21. 

1865-1868: AGE 58-61. 

Letter to his Mother announcing Journey to Brazil. Sketch of Journey. Kindness of the Emperor. Liberality of the Brazilian Government. Correspondence with Charles Sumner. Letter to his Mother at Close of Brazil Journey. Letter from Martius concerning Journey in Brazil. Return to Cambridge. Lectures in Boston and New York. Summer at Nahant. Letter to Professor Peirce on the Survey of Boston Harbor. Death of his Mother. Illness. Correspondence with Oswald Heer. Summer Journey in the West. Cornell University. Letter from Longfellow. 

THE next important event in the life of Agassiz, due in the firstinstance to his failing health, which made some change of scene andclimate necessary, is best announced by himself in the followingletter. 

TO HIS MOTHER. 

CAMBRIDGE, March 22, 1865. 

DEAR MOTHER, You will shed tears of joy when you read this, but such tears areharmless. Listen, then, to what has happened. A few weeks ago I wasthinking how I should employ my summer. I foresaw that in going toNahant I should not find the rest I need after all the fatigue ofthe two last years, or, at least, not enough of change andrelaxation. I felt that I must have new scenes to give me new life. But where to go and what to do?

Perhaps I wrote you last year of the many marks of kindness I havereceived from the Emperor of Brazil, and you remember that at thetime of my debut as an author, my attention was turned to thenatural history of that country. Lately, also, in a course oflectures at the Lowell Institute, I have been led to compare theAlps, where I have passed so many happy years, with the Andes, which I have never seen. In short, the idea came to me gradually, that I might spend the summer at Rio de Janeiro, and that, with thepresent facilities for travel, the journey would not be toofatiguing for my wife. . . Upon this, then, I had decided, when mostunexpectedly, and as the consummation of all my wishes, my pleasuretrip was transformed into an important scientific expedition forthe benefit of the Museum, by the intervention of one of myfriends, Mr. Nathaniel Thayer. By chance I met him a week ago inBoston. He laughed at me a little about my roving disposition, andthen asked me what plans I had formed for the Museum, in connectionwith my journey. I answered that, thinking especially of my health, I had provided only for the needs of myself and my wife during anabsence of six or eight months. Then ensued the followingconversation. 

"But, Agassiz, that is hardly like you; you have never been awayfrom Cambridge without thinking of your Museum. "

"True enough; but I am tired, --I need rest. I am going to loaf alittle in Brazil. "

"When you have had a fortnight of that kind of thing you will be asready for work as ever, and you will be sorry that you have notmade some preparation to utilize the occasion and the localities inthe interest of the Museum. "

"Yes, I have some such misgiving; but I have no means for anythingbeyond my personal expenses, and it is no time to ask sacrificesfrom any one in behalf of science. The country claims all ourresources. 

"But suppose some one offered you a scientific assistant, allexpenses paid, what would you say?"

"Of that I had never thought. "

"How many assistants could you employ?"

"Half a dozen. "

"And what would be the expense of each one?"

"I suppose about twenty-five hundred dollars; at least, that iswhat I have counted upon for myself. "

After a moment's reflection he resumed:--

"If it suits you then, Agassiz, and interferes in no way with theplans for your health, choose your assistants among the employeesof your Museum or elsewhere, and I will be responsible for all thescientific expenses of the expedition. ". . . 

My preparations are made. I leave probably next week, from NewYork, with a staff of assistants more numerous, and, I think, aswell chosen, as those of any previous undertaking of the kind. * (*Beside the six assistants provided for by Mr. Thayer, there were anumber of young volunteer aids who did excellent work on theexpedition. )

. . . All those who know me seem to have combined to heighten theattraction of the journey, and facilitate it in every respect. ThePacific Mail Steamship Company has invited me to take passage withmy whole party on their fine steamer, the Colorado. They will takeus, free of all expense, as far as Rio de Janeiro, --an economy offifteen thousand francs at the start. Yesterday evening I receiveda letter from the Secretary of the Navy, at Washington, desiringthe officers of all vessels of war stationed along the coasts I amto visit, to give me aid and support in everything concerning myexpedition. The letter was written in the kindest terms, andgratified me the more because it was quite unsolicited. I am reallytouched by the marks of sympathy I receive, not only from nearfriends, but even from strangers. . . I seem like the spoiled childof the country, and I hope God will give me strength to repay indevotion to her institutions and to her scientific and intellectualdevelopment, all that her citizens have done for me. 

I am forgetting that you will be anxious to know what special workI propose to do in the interest of science in Brazil. First, I hopeto make large collections of all such objects as properly belong ina Museum of Natural History, and to this end I have chosen fromamong the employees of our Museum one representative from eachdepartment. My only regret is that I must leave Alex in Cambridgeto take care of the Museum itself. He will have an immense amountof work to do, for I leave him only six out of our usual staff ofassistants. In the second place, I intend to make a special studyof the habits, metamorphoses, anatomy, etc. , of the Amazonianfishes. Finally, I dream sometimes of an ascension of the Andes, ifI do not find myself too old and too heavy for climbing. I shouldlike to see if there were not also large glaciers in this chain ofmountains, at the period when the glaciers of the Alps extended tothe Jura. . . But this latter part of my plan is quite uncertain, and must depend in great degree upon our success on the Amazons. Accompanied as I am with a number of aides naturalistes, we oughtto be able among us to bring together large collections, and evento add duplicates, which I can then, on my return, distribute tothe European Museums, in exchange for valuable specimens. 

We leave next week, and I hope to write you from Rio a letter whichwill reach you about the date of my birthday. A steamer leavesBrazil once a month for England. If my arrival coincides with herdeparture you shall not be disappointed in this. 

With all my heart, YOUR LOUIS. 

The story of this expedition has been told in the partlyscientific, partly personal diary published after Agassiz's return, under the title of "A Journey in Brazil, " and therefore a fullaccount of it here would be mere repetition. He was absent sixteenmonths. The first three were spent in Rio de Janeiro, and inexcursions about the neighborhood of her beautiful bay and thesurrounding mountains. For greater efficiency and promptness hedivided his party into companies, each working separately, some incollecting, others in geological surveys, but all under onecombined plan of action. 

The next ten months were passed in the Amazonian region. This partof the journey had the charm of purely tropical scenery, andAgassiz, who was no less a lover of nature than a naturalist, enjoyed to the utmost its beauty and picturesqueness. Much of thetime he and his companions were living on the great river itself, and the deck of the steamer was by turns laboratory, dining-room, and dormitory. Often, as they passed close under the banks of theriver, or between the many islands which break its broad expanseinto narrow channels, their improvised working room wasovershadowed by the lofty wall of vegetation, which lifted itsdense mass of trees and soft drapery of vines on either side. Stillmore beautiful was it when they left the track of the main riverfor the water-paths hidden in the forest. Here they were rowed byIndians in "montarias, " a peculiar kind of boat used by thenatives. It has a thatched hood at one end for shelter from rain orsun. Little sun penetrates, however, to the shaded "igarape"(boat-path), along which the montaria winds its way under a vaultof green. When traveling in this manner, they stopped for thenight, and indeed sometimes lingered for days, in Indiansettlements, or in the more secluded single Indian lodges, whichare to be found on the shores of almost every lake or channel. Inthis net-work of fresh waters, threading the otherwise impenetrablewoods, the humblest habitation has its boat and landing-place. Withhis montaria and his hammock, his little plantation of bananas andmandioca, and the dwelling, for which the forest about him suppliesthe material, the Amazonian Indian is supplied with all thenecessities of life. 

Sometimes the party were settled, for weeks at a time, in morecivilized fashion, in the towns or villages on the banks of themain river, or its immediate neighborhood, at Manaos, Ega, Obydos, and elsewhere. Wherever they sojourned, whether for a longer or ashorter time, the scientific work went on uninterruptedly. Therewas not an idle member in the company. 

From the time he left Rio de Janeiro, Agassiz had the companionshipof a young Brazilian officer of the engineer corps, Major Coutinho. Thoroughly familiar with the Amazons and its affluents, at homewith the Indians, among whom he had often lived, he was the pearlof traveling companions as well as a valuable addition to thescientific force. Agassiz left the Amazonian valley in April, andthe two remaining months of his stay in Brazil were devoted toexcursions along the coast, especially in the mountains back ofCeara, and in the Organ mountains near Rio de Janeiro. 

From beginning to end this journey fulfilled Agassiz's brightestanticipations. Mr. Thayer, whose generosity first placed theexpedition on so broad a scientific basis, continued to give it hiscordial support till the last specimen was stored in the Museum. The interest taken in it by the Emperor of Brazil, and theliberality of the government toward it, also facilitated allAgassiz's aims and smoothed every difficulty in the path. Onstarting he had set before himself two subjects of inquiry. Thesewere, first, the fresh-water fauna of Brazil, of the greaterinterest to him, because of the work on the Brazilian Fishes, withwhich his scientific career had opened; and second, her glacialhistory, for he believed that even these latitudes must have been, to a greater or less degree, included in the ice-period. The firstthree months spent in Rio de Janeiro and its environs gave him thekey to phenomena connected with both these subjects, and hefollowed them from there to the head-waters of the Amazons, as anIndian follows a trail. The distribution of life in the rivers andlakes of Brazil, the immense number of species and their localcircumscription, as distinct faunae in definite areas of the samewater-basin, amazed him; while the character of the soil and othergeological features confirmed him in his preconceived belief thatthe glacial period could not have been less than cosmic in itsinfluence. He was satisfied that the tropical, as well as thetemperate and arctic regions, had been, although in a less degree, fashioned by ice. 

Just before leaving the United States he received a letter offriendly farewell from Charles Sumner, and his answer, written onthe Rio Negro, gives some idea of the conditions under which hetraveled, and of the results he had obtained. As the lettersexplain each other, both are given here. 

FROM CHARLES SUMNER. 

WASHINGTON, March 20, 1865. 

MY DEAR AGASSIZ, It is a beautiful expedition that you are about to commence, --incontrast with the deeds of war. And yet you are going forth toconquer new realms, and bring them under a sway they have not yetknown. But science is peaceful and bloodless in her conquests. Mayyou return victorious! I am sure you will. Of course you will seethe Emperor of Brazil, whose enlightened character is one of thehappy accidents of government. . . You are a naturalist; but you area patriot also. If you can take advantage of the opportunitieswhich you will surely enjoy, and plead for our country, to the endthat its rights may be understood, and the hardships it has beenobliged to endure may be appreciated, you will render a service tothe cause of international peace and good-will. 

You are to have great enjoyment. I imagine you already very happyin the scenes before you. I, too, should like to see Nature in hermost splendid robes; but I must stay at home and help keep thepeace. Good-by--Bon voyage!

Ever sincerely yours, CHARLES SUMNER. 

TO CHARLES SUMNER. 

RIO NEGRO; ON BOARD THE BRAZILIAN WAR STEAMER IBICUHY, December 26, 1865. 

MY DEAR SUMNER, The heading of these lines tells a long and interesting story. HereI am, sailing on the Rio Negro, with my wife and a young Brazilianfriend, provided with all the facilities which modern improvements, the extraordinary liberality of the Brazilian government, and thekindness of our commander can bestow, and pursuing my scientificinvestigations with as much ease as if I were in my study, or inthe Museum at Cambridge, --with this enormous difference, that I amwriting on deck, protected by an awning from the hot sun, andsurrounded by all the luxuriance of the richest tropicalvegetation. 

The kind reception I met at the hands of the emperor on my arrivalat Rio has been followed by every possible attention and mark ofgood-will toward me personally, but usually tendered in such a wayas to show that an expression of cordiality toward the UnitedStates was intended also in the friendly feeling with whicheverything was done to facilitate my researches. In the firstplace, the emperor gave me as a traveling companion an extremelyintelligent and well-educated Brazilian, the man of all others whomI should have chosen had I been consulted beforehand; and for thesix months during which we have been on our journey here, I havenot been able to spend a dollar except for my personal comfort, andfor my collections. All charges for transportation of persons andbaggage in public conveyances, as well as for specimens, haveeverywhere been remitted by order of the government. This is notall; when we reached Para the Brazilian Steamship Company placed asteamer at my disposal, that I might stop where I pleased on theway, and tarry as long as I liked instead of following the ordinaryline of travel. In this way I ascended the Amazons to Manaos, andfrom there, by the ordinary steamer, reached the borders of Peru, making prolonged stays at Manaos and at Ega, and sending outexploring parties up the Javary, the Jutay, the Ica, etc. On myreturn to Manaos, at the junction of the Rio Negro and the Amazons, I found the Ibicuhy awaiting me with an order from the Minister ofPublic Works, placing her at my disposal for the remainder of mystay in the waters of the Amazons. 

The Ibicuhy is a pretty little war steamer of 120 horse power, carrying six thirty-two pound guns. On board of her, and in companywith the President of the Province, I have already visited thatextraordinary network of river anastomoses and lakes, stretchingbetween the river Madeira and the Amazons to the river Tapajos, andnow I am ascending the Rio Negro, with the intention of going up asfar as the junction of the Rio Branco with the Rio Negro. That theBrazilian government should be able and willing to offer suchfacilities for the benefit of science, during a time of war, whenall the resources of the nation are called upon in order to put anend to the barbarism of Paraguay, is a most significant sign of thetendencies prevailing in the administration. There can be no doubtthat the emperor is the soul of the whole. This liberality hasenabled me to devote all my resources to the making of collections, and the result of my researches has, of course, been proportionateto the facilities I have enjoyed. Thus far, the whole number offishes known from the Amazons has amounted to a little over onehundred, counting everything that may exist from these waters, inthe Jardin des Plantes, the British Museum, the museums of Munich, Berlin, Vienna, etc. ; while I have collected and now hold, in goodstate of preservation, fourteen hundred and forty-two species, andmay get a few hundred more before returning to Para. I have so manyduplicates that I may make every other museum tributary to ours, sofar as the fresh-water animals of Brazil are concerned. This mayseem very unimportant to a statesman. But I am satisfied that itaffords a standard by which to estimate the resources of Brazil, asthey may be hereafter developed. The basin of the Amazons isanother Mississippi, having a tropical climate, tempered bymoisture. Here is room for a hundred million happy human beings. 

Ever truly your friend, L. AGASSIZ. 

The repose of the return voyage, after sixteen months of suchuninterrupted work, and of fresh impressions daily crowding uponeach other, was most grateful to Agassiz. The summary of thisdelightful journey may close as it began with a letter to hismother. 

AT SEA, July 7, 1866. 

DEAR MOTHER, When you receive this letter we shall be, I hope, at Nahant, whereour children and grandchildren are waiting for us. To-morrow weshall stop at Pernambuco, where I shall mail my letter to you by aFrench steamer. 

I leave Brazil with great regret. I have passed nearly sixteenmonths in the uninterrupted enjoyment of this incomparable tropicalnature, and I have learned many things which have enlarged my rangeof thought, both concerning organized beings and concerning thestructure of the earth. I have found traces of glaciers under thisburning sky; a proof that our earth has undergone changes oftemperature more considerable than even our most advancedglacialists have dared to suggest. Imagine, if you can, floatingice under the equator, such as now exists on the coasts ofGreenland, and you will probably have an approximate idea of theaspect of the Atlantic Ocean at that epoch. 

It is, however, in the basin of the Amazons especially, that myresearches have been crowned with an unexpected success. Spix andMartius, for whose journey I wrote, as you doubtless remember, myfirst work on fishes, brought back from there some fifty species, and the sum total known now, taking the results of all thetravelers who have followed up the inquiry, does not amount to twohundred. I had hoped, in making fishes the special object of myresearches, to add perhaps a hundred more. You will understand mysurprise when I rapidly obtained five or six hundred, and finally, on leaving Para, brought away nearly two thousand, --that is to say, ten times more than were known when I began my journey. * (* Thisestimate was made in the field when close comparison of specimensfrom distant localities was out of the question. The wholecollection has never been worked up, and it is possible that thenumber of new species it contains, though undoubtedly greatly inexcess of those previously known from the Amazons, may prove to beless than was at first supposed. --ED. ) A great part of this successis due to the unusual facilities granted me by the Braziliangovernment. . . To the Emperor of Brazil I owe the warmestgratitude. His kindness to me has been beyond all bounds. . . Heeven made for me, while he was with the army last summer, acollection of fishes from the province of Rio Grande du Sud. Thiscollection would do honor to a professional naturalist. . . 

Good-by, dear mother. 

With all my heart, YOUR LOUIS. 

The following letter from old Professor Martius in Munich, ofuncertain date, but probably in answer to one of March, 1866, isinteresting, as connecting this journey with his own Brazilianexpedition almost half a century before. 

FROM PROFESSOR MARTIUS. 

February 26, 1867. 

MY DEAR FRIEND, Your letter of March 20th last year was most gratifying to me as atoken of your affectionate remembrance. You will easily believethat I followed your journey on the Amazons with the greatestinterest, and without any alloy of envy, though your expedition wasundertaken forty years later than mine, and under circumstances somuch more favorable. Bates, who lived for years in that country, has borne me witness that I was not wanting in courage and industryduring an exploration which lasted eleven months; and I thereforebelieve that you also, in reviewing on the spot my description ofthe journey, will not have passed an unfavorable judgment. Ourgreatest difficulty was the small size of our boat which was soweak as to make the crossing of the river always dangerous. I shalllook forward with great pleasure to the more detailed account ofyour journey, and also the plan of your route, which I hope youwill send me. Can you tell me anything about the human skeletons atthe Rio St. Antonio in St. Paul? I am very glad to know that youhave paid especial attention to the palms, and I entreat you tosend me the essential parts of every species which you hold to benew, because I wish to work out the palms for the FloraBrasiliensis this year. I wish I might find among them some newgenus or species, which then should bear your name. 

Do you intend to publish an account of your journey, or shall youconfine yourself entirely to a report on your observations onNatural History? With a desire to explain the numerous names ofanimals, plants, and places, which are derived from the Tupeelanguage, I have studied it for years that I might be able to useit fluently. Perhaps you have seen my "Glossaria lignareusbrasiliensium. " It contains also 1150 names of animals. To thiswork belong, likewise, my ethnographical contributions, of whichforty-five sheets are already printed, to be published I hope nextyear. I am curious to hear your geological conclusions. I am myselfinclined to the belief that men existed in South America previousto the latest geological catastrophes. As you have seen so manyNorth American Indians, you will be able to give interestingexplanations of their somatic relations to the South AmericanIndians. Why could you not send me, as secretary of themathematical and physical section, a short report of your principalresults? It would then be printed in the report of our meetings, which, as the forerunner of other publications, could hardly failto be agreeable to you. You no doubt see our friend Asa Grayoccasionally. Remember me cordially to him, and tell him I lookeagerly for an answer to my last letter. The year 'sixty-six hastaken from us many eminent botanists, Gusone, Mettenius, VonSchlechtendal, and Fresenius. I hear but rarely from our excellentfriend Alexander Braun. He does not resist the approach of old ageso well as you, my dear friend. You are still the activenaturalist, fresh and well preserved, to judge by your photograph. Thank you for it; I send mine in return. My wife still holds inwarm remembrance the days when you, a bright, pleasant youngfellow, used to come and see us, --what a long stretch of time liesbetween. Much is changed about me. Of former friends only Kobelland Vogel remain; Zuccarini, Wagner, Oken, Schelling, Sieber, Fuchs, Walther, --all these have gone home. All the pleasanter is itthat you, on the other side of the ocean, think sometimes of yourold friend, to whom a letter from you will be always welcome. Remember me to your family, though I am not known to them. May thepresent year bring you health, cheerfulness, and the full enjoymentof your great and glorious success. 

With warm esteem and friendship, always yours, MARTIUS. 

Agassiz arrived in Cambridge toward the end of August, 1866. Afterthe first excitement of meeting family and friends was over, hetook up his college and museum work again. He had left for Brazilat the close of a course before the Lowell Institute, and his firstpublic appearance after his return was on the same platform. Therush for tickets was far in excess of the supply, and he waswelcomed with the most ardent enthusiasm. It continued unabated tothe close, although the lectures borrowed no interest from personaladventure or incidents of travel, but dealt almost wholly with theintellectual results and larger scientific generalizations growingout of the expedition. Later in the winter he gave a course also atthe Cooper Institute, in New York, which awakened the same interestand drew crowds of listeners. The resolution offered by Bancroft, the historian, at the close of the course, gives an idea of itscharacter, and coming from such a source, may not unfitly betranscribed here. 

RESOLVED, That the thanks of this great assembly of delightedhearers be given to the illustrious Professor Agassiz, for thefullness of his instruction, for the clearness of his method ofillustration, for his exposition of the idea as antecedent to form;of the superiority of the undying, original, and eternal force overits transient manifestations; for happy hours which passed toorapidly away; for genial influences of which the memory will lastthrough our lives. 

All his leisure hours during the winter of 1867 were given to thereview and arrangement of the great collections he had broughthome. 

TO SIR PHILIP DE GREY EGERTON. 

MUSEUM OF COMPARATIVE ZOOLOGY, CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS. , March 26, 1867. 

I know you will be pleased to hear that I have returned to thestudy of fishes, and that I am not likely to give it up again foryears to come. My success in collecting in the Amazons has been sounexpected that it will take me years to give an account of what Ihave found, and I am bound to show that the strange statements thathave gone abroad are strictly correct. Yes, I have about eighteenhundred new species of fishes from the basin of the Amazons! Thecollection is now in Cambridge, for the most part in goodpreservation. It suggests at once the idea that either the otherrivers of the world have been very indifferently explored, or thattropical America nourishes a variety of animals unknown to otherregions. In this dilemma it would be worth while to send somenaturalist to investigate the Ganges or the Bramaputra, or some ofthe great Chinese rivers. Can it not be done by order of theBritish government?

Please send me whatever you may publish upon the fossil fishes inyour possession. I frequently sigh for another session in yourmuseum, and it is not improbable that I shall solicit an invitationfrom you in a few years, in order to revise my views of the wholesubject in connection with what I am now learning of the livingfishes. By the way, I have eleven hundred colored drawings of thespecies of Brazil made from life by my old friend Burkhardt, whoaccompanied me on this journey. 

My recent studies have made me more adverse than ever to the newscientific doctrines which are flourishing now in England. Thissensational zeal reminds me of what I experienced as a young man inGermany, when the physio-philosophy of Oken had invaded everycentre of scientific activity; and yet, what is there left of it? Itrust to outlive this mania also. As usual, I do not ask beforehandwhat you think of it, and I may have put my hand into a hornet'snest; but you know your old friend Agass, and will forgive him ifhe hits a tender spot. . . 

The summer of 1867 was passed very tranquilly at his Nahantlaboratory, in that quiet work with his specimens and hismicroscope which pleased him best. The following letter toProfessor Benjamin Peirce, who was then Superintendent of the CoastSurvey, shows, however, his unfailing interest in the bearing ofscientific researches on questions of public utility. 

TO PROFESSOR PEIRCE, SUPERINTENDENT OF THE COAST SURVEY. 

NAHANT, September 11, 1867. 

DEAR SIR, Far from considering your request a tax upon my time, it gives methe greatest pleasure to have an opportunity of laying before yousome statements and reflections, which I trust may satisfy you thatgeology and natural history can be made subservient to the greatinterests of a civilized community, to a far greater extent than isgenerally admitted. 

The question of the harbor of Boston, for instance, has ageological and zoological side, thus far only indirectlyconsidered. In order to ascertain whence the materials are derivedwhich accumulate in the harbor, the shores ought to be studiedgeologically with a kind of accuracy and minuteness, never requiredby geological surveys made for economical purposes. The banks ofthe harbor, wherever it is not rock-bound, consist of drift, whichitself rests upon the various rock formations of the district. Nowthis drift, as I have ascertained, formerly extended many milesbeyond our present shores, and is still slowly washed away by theaction of tides, winds, and currents. Until you know with precisionthe mineralogical composition of the drift of the immediatevicinity, so accurately indeed as to be able to recognize it in anynew combination into which it may be brought when carried off bythe sea, all your examination of soundings may be of little use. Should it, however, be ascertained that the larger amount of loosematerial spreading over the harbor is derived from some one orother of the drift islands in the bay, the building of sea-walls tostop the denudation may be of greater and more immediate use thanany other operation. Again, it is geologically certain that all thedrift islands of the harbor have been formed by the encroachment ofthe sea upon a sheet of drift, which once extended in unbrokencontinuity from Cape Ann to Cape Cod and farther south. This sheetof drift is constantly diminishing, and in centuries to come, which, notwithstanding the immeasurable duration of geologicalperiods, may be reached, I trust, while the United States stillremains a flourishing empire, it will be removed still further; sofar indeed, that I foresee the time when the whole peninsula ofCape Cod shall disappear. Under these circumstances, it is the dutyof a wise administration to establish with precision the rate andthe extent of this destruction, that the coming generations may beforewarned. In connection with this I would advise the making of athorough survey of the harbor, to ascertain the extent of rocksurface and of drift, and the relative position of the two, withmaps to show their relations to the different levels of the sea, whereby the unequal action of the tides upon the various beachesmay be estimated. 

The zoological side of the question relates to the amount of loosematerials accumulating in consequence of the increase of animal andvegetable life, especially of those microscopic beings which, notwithstanding their extraordinary minuteness, form in course oftime vast deposits of solid materials. Ehrenberg has shown that theharbor of Wismar, on the Prussian coast of the Baltic, is filling, not in consequence of the accumulation of inorganic sediments, butby the rapid increase and decay of innumerable animalcules. To whatextent such deposits may accumulate has also been shown byEhrenberg, who ascertained, many years ago, that the city of Berlinrests upon a deposit of about eighteen feet in thickness, consisting almost exclusively of the solid parts of suchmicroscopic beings. These two cases may suffice to show howimportant may be a zoological investigation of the harbor deposits. 

I need hardly add that the deposits floated into the harbor, by thenumerous rivers and creeks which empty into it, ought to beinvestigated with the same care and minuteness as the driftmaterials. This investigation should also include the drainage ofthe city. 

But this is only a small part of the application I would recommendto be made of geological and zoological knowledge, to the purposesof the Coast Survey. The reefs of Florida are of the deepestinterest, and the mere geodetic and hydrographic surveys of theirwhole range would be far from exhausting the subject. It is mydeliberate opinion that the great reefs of Florida should beexplored with as much minuteness and fullness as the Gulf Stream, and that the investigation will require as much labor as has thusfar been bestowed on the Gulf Stream. Here again geological andzoological knowledge is indispensable to the completion of thework. The reef is formed mainly by the accumulation of solidmaterials from a variety of animals and a few plants. The relationsof these animals and plants to one another while alive, in and uponthe reef, ought to be studied more fully than has been the caseheretofore, in order to determine with certainty the share theyhave in the formation of these immense submarine walls so dangerousto navigation. The surveys, as they have been made thus far, furnish only the necessary information concerning the present formand extent of the reef. But we know that it is constantly changing, increasing, enlarging, spreading, rising in such a way and at sucha rate, that the surveys of one century become insufficient for thenext. A knowledge of these changes can only be obtained by anaturalist, familiar with the structure and mode of growth of theanimals. The survey I made about fifteen years ago, at the requestof your lamented predecessor, could only be considered as areconnaissance, in view of the extent and importance of the work. Iwould, therefore, recommend you to organize a party speciallydetailed to carry on these investigations in connection with, andby the side of, the regular geodetic and hydrographic survey. Here, also, would geological knowledge be of great advantage to theexplorer. In confirmation of my recommendation I need only remindyou of a striking fact in the history of our science. More thanthirty years ago, before Dana and Darwin had published theirbeautiful investigations upon the coral reefs, a pupil of mine, thelate Armand Gressly, had traced the structure and mode of growth ofcoral reefs and atolls in the Jura mountains, thus anticipating, bya geological investigation, results afterward obtained by dredgingin the ocean. The structure of the reefs of our shores is, therefore, more likely to be fully understood by one who isentirely familiar with zoology and geology than by a surveyor whohas no familiarity with either of these sciences. 

There is another reason why I would urge upon you the applicationof natural sciences to the work of the survey. The depth of theocean is a great obstacle to a satisfactory exploration of itsbottom. But we know now that nearly all dry land has been seabottom before it was raised above the level of the water. This isat least the case with all the stratified rocks and aqueousdeposits forming part of the earth's crust. Now it would greatlyfacilitate the study of the bottom of the sea if, afterascertaining by soundings the general character of the bottom inany particular region, corresponding bottoms on dry land wereexamined, so that by a comparison of the one with the other, bothmight be better understood. The shoals of the southern coast ofMassachusetts have been surveyed, and their position is now knownwith great accuracy; but their internal structure, their mode offormation, is only imperfectly ascertained, owing to the difficultyof cutting into them and examining in situ the materials of whichthey are composed. Nothing, on the contrary, is easier than toexplore the structure or composition of drift hills which are cutthrough by all our railroad tracks. Now the shoals and rips ofNantucket have their counterparts on the main-land; and even alongthe shores of Boston Harbor, in the direction of Dorchester andMilton, such shoals may be examined, far away from the waters towhich they owe their deposits. Here, then, is the place to completethe exploration, for which soundings and dredgings give onlyimperfect information. 

I need not extend these remarks further in order to satisfy you ofthe importance of geological and zoological researches inconnection with the regular operations of the Coast Survey. Permitme, however, to add a few words upon some points which, as it seemsto me, belong legitimately to the Coast Survey, and to whichsufficient attention has not yet been paid. I allude, first, to thesalt marshes of our shores, their formation and uses, as well astheir gradual disappearance under the advance of the sea; second, to the extended low islands in the form of reefs along the coast ofthe Southern States, the bases of which may be old coral reefs;third, the form of all our estuaries, which has resulted from theconflict of the sea with the drift formation, and is therefore, ina measure, a geological problem; fourth, the extensive deposits offoraminifera along the coast, which ought to be compared with thedeposits of tripoli found in many tertiary formations; fifth, thegeneral form and outline of our continent, with all itsindentations, which are due to their geological structure. Indeed, the shore everywhere is the result of the conflict of the oceanwith the rock formation of the land, and therefore as much aquestion for geology as geodesy to answer. 

Should the preceding remarks induce you to carry my suggestionsinto practical operation, be assured that it will at all times giveme the greatest pleasure to contribute to the success of youradministration, not only by advice, but by actual participation inyour work whenever that is wanted. The scientific men of Americalook to you for the publication of the great results alreadysecured by the Coast Survey, well knowing that this nationalenterprise can only be benefited by the high-minded course whichhas at all times marked your intellectual career. 

Ever truly your friend, L. AGASSIZ. 

This year closed for Agassiz with a heavy sorrow. His mother'shealth had been failing of late, and November brought the news ofher death. Separated though they were, there had never been anybreak in their intercourse. As far as he could, he kept her advisedof all his projects and undertakings, and his work was no lessinteresting to her when the ocean lay between them than when hecould daily share it with her. She had an unbounded sympathy withhim in the new ties he had formed in this country, and seemedindeed as intimately allied with his later life here as with itsearlier European portion. 

His own health, which had seemed for a time to have regained thevigor of youth, broke down again in the following spring, and anattack about the region of the heart disabled him for a number ofweeks. To this date belongs a short correspondence between Agassizand Oswald Heer. Heer's work on the Fossil Flora of the Arctics hadrecently appeared, and a presentation copy from him reached Agassizas he was slowly regaining strength after his illness, althoughstill confined to the house. It could not have come at a happiermoment, for it engrossed him completely, and turned his thoughtsaway from the occupations which he was not yet allowed to resume. The book had a twofold interest for him: although in another branchof science, it was akin to his own earlier investigations, inasmuchas it reconstructed the once rich flora of the polar regions as hehimself had reconstructed the fauna of past geological times; itclothed their frozen fields with forests as he had sheeted nowfertile lands with ice. In short, it appealed powerfully to theimagination, and no child in the tedious hours of convalescence wasever more beguiled by a story-book than he by the pictures whichthis erudite work called up. 

AGASSIZ TO OSWALD HEER. 

CAMBRIDGE, May 12, 1868. 

MY HONORED COLLEAGUE, Your beautiful book on the Fossil Arctic Flora reached me, just asI was recovering from a tedious and painful illness. I could, therefore, take it in hand at once, and have been delighted withit. You give a captivating picture of the successive changes whichthe Arctic regions have undergone. No work could be more valuable, either as a means of opening recent investigations in Paleontologyto the larger public, or of advancing science itself. If I can findthe time I mean to prepare an abridgment in popular form for one ofour reviews. Meantime I have written to Professor Henry, Superintendent of the Smithsonian Institution at Washington, thathe should subscribe for a number of copies to be distributed amongless wealthy establishments. I hope he will do this, and I shallcontinue to urge it, since my friendly relations with him give me aright so to do. I have, moreover, written to the directors ofvarious prominent institutions, in order that your work, so far asis possible for works of that kind, may become known in the UnitedStates, and reach such persons as would naturally be interested init. . . 

With friendly remembrance, yours always, LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

The answer is some months later in date, but is given here for itsconnection. 

FROM OSWALD HEER. 

ZURICH, December 8, 1868. 

MY HONORED FRIEND, Your letter of last May gave me the greatest pleasure, and I shouldhave answered it earlier had I not heard that you had gone to theRocky Mountains, and supposed, therefore, that my letter wouldhardly find you at home again before the late autumn. I will delaywriting no longer, --the more so because I have received, throughthe Smithsonian Institution, your great work on the Natural Historyof the United States. Valuable as it is in itself, it has a doubleattraction for me as the gift of the author. Accept my warm thanks. It will always be to me a token of your friendly regard. It gave megreat satisfaction to know that my Fossil Arctic Flora had met withyour approval. Since then many new facts have come to light tendingto confirm my results. The Whymper Expedition brought to England anumber of fossil plants, which have been sent to me forexamination. I found eighty species, of which thirty-two from NorthGreenland are new, so that we now know 137 species of Mioceneplants from North Greenland (70 degrees north latitude). It was areal delight to me to find the fruit cup of the Castanea [chestnut]inclosing three seeds (three Kastanica) and covered with prickleslike the Castanea vesca; and, furthermore, I was able to prove bythe flowers, which were preserved with the fruit, that thesupposition given in the Arctic Flora (page 106) was correct;namely, that the leaves of the Fagus castaneafolia Ung. Trulybelong to a Castanea. As several fruits are contained in one fruitcup, this Miocene Castanea must have been nearer to the Europeanspecies (C. Vesca) than to the American Castanea (the C. PumilaMicha). The leaves have been drawn in the Flora Arctica, and arealso preserved in the Whymper collection. 

I have received very beautiful and large leaves of the Castaneawhich I have called C. Ungeri, from Alaska. I am now occupied inworking up this fossil Alaskan flora; the plants are in great partdrawn, and contain magnificent leaves. The treatise will bepublished by the Swedish Academy in Stockholm; I hope to send you acopy a few months hence. This flora is remarkable for itsresemblance to the European Miocene flora. The liquidambar, as wellas several poplars and willows, cannot be distinguished from thoseof Oeningen; the same is true of an Elm, a Carpinus, and others. AsAlaska now belongs to the United States, it is to be hoped thatthese collecting stations, which have already furnished suchmagnificent plants, will be farther ransacked. . . Hoping that youhave returned safely from your journey, and that these lines mayfind you well, I remain, with cordial greeting, Sincerely yours, OSWALD HEER. 

Shortly after Agassiz's recovery, in July, 1868, he was invited byMr. Samuel Hooper to join a party of friends, tired members ofCongress and business men, on an excursion to the West, underconditions which promised not only rest and change, but anopportunity for studying glacial phenomena over a broad region ofprairie and mountain which Agassiz had never visited. They were tomeet at Chicago, keep on from there to St. Paul, and down theMississippi, turning off through Kansas to the eastern branch ofthe Pacific Railroad, at the terminus of which they were to meetGeneral Sherman with ambulances and an escort for conveyance acrossthe country to the Union Pacific Railroad, returning then byDenver, Utah, and Omaha, and across the State of Iowa to theMississippi once more. This journey was of great interest toAgassiz, and its scientific value was heightened by a subsequentstay of nearly two months at Ithaca, N. Y. , on his return. CornellUniversity was then just opened at Ithaca, and he had accepted anappointment as non-resident professor, with the responsibility ofdelivering annually a course of lectures on various subjects ofnatural history. New efforts in behalf of education alwaysattracted him, and this drew him with an even stronger magnet thanusual, involving as it did an untried experiment--the attempt, namely, to combine the artisan with the student, manual labor withintellectual work. The plan was a generous one, and stimulated bothpupils and teachers. Among the latter none had greater sympathywith the high ideal and broad humanity of the undertaking thanAgassiz. * (* Very recently a memorial tablet has been placed in theChapel at Cornell University by the trustees, recording theirgratitude for the share he took in the initiation of theinstitution. )

Beside the enthusiasm which he brought to his special work, hefound an added pleasure at Cornell in the fact that the region inwhich the new university was situated contained another chapter inthe book of glacial records he had so long been reading, and madealso, as the following letter tells us, a natural sequence to hisrecent observations in the West. 

TO M. DE LA RIVE. 

ITHACA, October 26, 1868. 

. . . I am passing some weeks here, and am studying the erraticphenomena, and especially the formation of the many small lakeswhich literally swarm in this region, and are connected in variousways with the glacial epoch. The journey which I have justcompleted has furnished me with a multitude of new facts concerningthe glacial period, the long continuance of which, and itsimportance with reference to the physical history of the globe, become daily more clear to me. The origin and mode of formation ofthe vast system of our American rivers have especially occupied me, and I think I have found the solution of the problem which theypresent. This system reproduces the lines followed by the waterover the surface of the ground moraines, which covered the wholecontinent, when the great sheet of ice which modeled the driftbroke up and melted away. This conclusion will, no doubt, be asslow of acceptance as was the theory of the ancient extension ofglaciers. But that does not trouble me. For my own part I amconfident of its truth, and after having seen the idea of a glacialepoch finally adopted by all except those who are interested inopposing it on account of certain old and artificial theories, Ican wait a little till the changes which succeeded that epoch arealso understood. I have obtained direct proof that the prairies ofthe West rest upon polished rock. It has happened in the course ofrecent building on the prairie, that the native rock has been laidbare here and there, and this rock is as distinctly furrowed by theaction of the glacier and by its engraving process, as the Handeck, or the slopes of the Jura. I have seen magnificent slabs inNebraska in the basin of the river Platte. Do not the physicistsbegin to think of explaining to us the probable cause of changes soremarkable and so well established? We can no longer evade thequestion by supposing these phenomena to be due to the action ofgreat currents. We have to do first with sheets of ice, five or sixthousand feet in thickness (an estimate which can be tested byindirect measurements in the Northern States), covering the wholecontinent, and then with the great currents which ensued upon thebreaking up of that mass of ice. He who does not distinguishbetween these two series of facts, and perceive their connection, does not understand the geology of the Quaternary epoch. . . 

Of about this date is the following pleasant letter from Longfellowto Agassiz. Although it has no special bearing upon what precedes, it is inserted here, because their near neighborhood and constantpersonal intercourse, both at Cambridge and Nahant, made lettersrare between them. Friends who see each other so often areinfrequent correspondents. 

ROME, December 31, 1868. 

MY DEAR AGASSIZ, I fully intended to write you from Switzerland, that my lettermight come to you like a waft of cool air from a glacier in theheat of summer. But alas! I did not find cool air enough formyself, much less to send across the sea. Switzerland was as hot asCambridge, and all life was taken out of me; and the letterremained in the inkstand. I draw it forth as follows. 

One of the things I most wished to say, and which I say first, isthe delight with which I found your memory so beloved in England. At Cambridge, Professor Sedgwick said, "Give my love to Agassiz. Give him the blessing of an old man. " In London, Sir RoderickMurchison said, "I have known a great many men that I liked; but ILOVE Agassiz. " In the Isle of Wight, Darwin said, "What a set ofmen you have in Cambridge! Both our universities put togethercannot furnish the like. Why, there is Agassiz, --he counts forthree. "

One of my pleasantest days in Switzerland was that passed atYverdon. In the morning I drove out to see the Gasparins. In theirabundant hospitality they insisted upon my staying to dinner, andproposed a drive up the valley of the Orbe. I could not resist; soup the lovely valley we drove, and passed the old chateau of theReine Berthe, one of my favorite heroines, but, what was far moreto me, passed the little town of Orbe. There it stands, with itsold church tower and the trees on the terrace, just as when youplayed under them as a boy. It was very, very pleasant to behold. . . Thanks for your letter from the far West. I see by the papersthat you have been lecturing at the Cornell University. 

With kindest greetings and remembrances, always affectionatelyyours, H. W. L. 

CHAPTER 22. 

1868-1871: AGE 61-64. 

New Subscription to Museum. Additional Buildings. Arrangement of New Collections. Dredging Expedition on Board the Bibb. Address at the Humboldt Centennial. Attack on the Brain. Suspension of Work. Working Force at the Museum. New Accessions. Letter from Professor Sedgwick. Letter from Professor Deshayes. Restored Health. Hassler Voyage proposed. Acceptance. Scientific Preparation for the Voyage. 

Agassiz returned to Cambridge to find the Museum on an improvedfooting financially. The Legislature had given seventy-fivethousand dollars for an addition to the building, and privatesubscriptions had doubled this sum, in order to provide for thepreservation and arrangement of the new collections. Inacknowledging this gift of the Legislature in his Museum Report for1868 Agassiz says:--

"While I rejoice in the prospect of this new building, as affordingthe means for a complete exhibition of the specimens now stored inour cellars and attics and encumbering every room of the presentedifice, I yet can hardly look forward to the time when we shall bein possession of it without shrinking from the grandeur of ourundertaking. The past history of our science rises before me withits lessons. Thinking men in every part of the world have beenstimulated to grapple with the infinite variety of problems, connected with the countless animals scattered without apparentorder throughout sea and land. They have been led to discover theaffinities of various living beings. The past has yielded up itssecrets, and has shown them that the animals now peopling the earthare but the successors of countless populations which have precededthem, and whose remains are buried in the crust of our globe. Further study has revealed relations between the animals of pasttime and those now living, and between the law of succession in theformer and the laws of growth and distribution in the latter, sointimate and comprehensive that this labyrinth of organic lifeassumes the character of a connected history, which opens before uswith greater clearness in proportion as our knowledge increases. But when the museums of the Old World were founded, these relationswere not even suspected. The collections of natural history, gathered at immense expense in the great centres of humancivilization, were accumulated mainly as an evidence of man'sknowledge and skill in exhibiting to the best advantage, not onlythe animals, but the products and curiosities of all sorts fromvarious parts of the world. While we admire and emulate theindustry and perseverance of the men who collected these materials, and did in the best way the work it was possible to do in theirtime for science, we have no longer the right to build museumsafter this fashion. The originality and vigor of one generationbecome the subservience and indolence of the next, if we onlyrepeat the work of our predecessors. They prepared the ground forus by accumulating the materials for extensive comparison andresearch. They presented the problem; we ought to be ready with thesolution. If I mistake not, the great object of our museums shouldbe to exhibit the whole animal kingdom as a manifestation of theSupreme Intellect. Scientific investigation in our day should beinspired by a purpose as animating to the general sympathy, as wasthe religious zeal which built the Cathedral of Cologne or theBasilica of St. Peter's. The time is passed when men expressedtheir deepest convictions by these wonderful and beautifulreligious edifices; but it is my hope to see, with the progress ofintellectual culture, a structure arise among us which may be atemple of the revelations written in the material universe. If thisbe so, our buildings for such an object can never be toocomprehensive, for they are to embrace the infinite work ofInfinite Wisdom. They can never be too costly, so far as costsecures permanence and solidity, for they are to contain the mostinstructive documents of Omnipotence. "

Agassiz gave the winter of 1869 to identifying, classifying, anddistributing the new collections. A few weeks in the spring were, however, passed with his friend Count de Pourtales in a dredgingexpedition on board the Coast Survey Steamer Bibb, off the coast ofCuba, on the Bahama Banks, and among the reefs of Florida. Thisdredging excursion, though it covered a wider ground than anyprevious one, was the third deep-sea exploration undertaken by M. De Pourtales under the auspices of the Coast Survey. Hisinvestigations may truly be said to have exercised a powerfulinfluence upon this line of research, and to have led the way tothe more extended work of the same kind carried on by the CoastSurvey in later years. He had long wished to show his old friendand teacher some of the rich dredging grounds he had discoveredbetween Florida and the West Indies, and they thoroughly enjoyedthis short period of work together. Every day and hour brought somenew interest, and excess of material seemed the only difficulty. 

This was Agassiz's last cruise in the Bibb, on whose hospitabledeck he had been a welcome guest from the first year of his arrivalin this country. The results of this expedition, as connected withthe present conformation of the continent and its probablegeological history in the past, were given as follows in the MuseumBulletin of the same year. 

REPORT UPON DEEP SEA DREDGINGS. *

(* "Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology" 1 Number 13 1869pages 368, 369. )

BY LOUIS AGASSIZ. 

From what I have seen of the deep-sea bottom, I am already led toinfer that among the rocks forming the bulk of the stratified crustof our globe, from the oldest to the youngest formation, there areprobably none which have been formed in very deep waters. If thisbe so, we shall have to admit that the areas now respectivelyoccupied by our continents, as circumscribed by the two hundredfathom curve or thereabout, and the oceans at greater depth, havefrom the beginning retained their relative outline and position;the continents having at all times been areas of gradual upheavalwith comparatively slight oscillations of rise and subsidence, andthe oceans at all times areas of gradual depression with equallyslight oscillations. Now that the geological constitution of ourcontinent is satisfactorily known over the greatest part of itsextent, it seems to me to afford the strongest evidence that thishas been the case; while there is no support whatever for theassumption that any part of it has sunk again to any very greatdepth after its rise above the surface of the ocean. The fact thatupon the American continent, east of the Rocky Mountains, thegeological formations crop out in their regular succession, fromthe oldest azoic and primordial deposits to the cretaceousformation, without the slightest indication of a great subsequentsubsidence, seems to me the most complete and direct demonstrationof my proposition. Of the western part of the continent I am notprepared to speak with the same confidence. Moreover, the positionof the cretaceous and tertiary formations along the low groundseast of the Allegheny range is another indication of the permanenceof the ocean trough, on the margin of which these more recent bedshave been formed. I am well aware that in a comparatively recentperiod, portions of Canada and the United States, which now standsix or seven hundred feet above the level of the sea, have beenunder water; but this has not changed the configuration of thecontinent, if we admit that the latter is in reality circumscribedby the two hundred fathom curve of depth. 

The summer was passed in his beloved laboratory at Nahant (as itproved, the last he ever spent there), where he was stillcontinuing the preparation of his work on sharks and skates. At theclose of the summer, he interrupted this occupation for one towhich he brought not only the reverence of a disciple, but alife-long debt of personal gratitude and affection. He had beenentreated to deliver the address at the Humboldt CentennialCelebration (September 15, 1869), organized under the auspices ofthe Boston Society of Natural History. He had accepted theinvitation with many misgivings, for to literary work as such hewas unaccustomed, and in the field of the biographer he felthimself a novice. His preparation for the task was conscientiousand laborious. For weeks he shut himself up in a room of the PublicLibrary in Boston and reviewed all the works of the great master, living, as it were, in his presence. The result was a very conciseand yet full memoir, a strong and vigorous sketch of Humboldt'sresearches, and of their influence not only upon higher educationat the present day, but on our most elementary instruction, untilthe very "school-boy is familiar with his methods, yet does notknow that Humboldt is his teacher. " Agassiz's picture of thisgenerous intellect, fertilizing whatever it touched, was made themore life-like by the side lights which his affection for Humboldtand his personal intercourse with him in the past enabled him tothrow upon it. Emerson, who was present, said of this address, "that Agassiz had never delivered a discourse more wise, morehappy, or of more varied power. " George William Curtis writes ofit: "Your discourse seems to me the very ideal of such an address, --so broad, so simple, so comprehensive, so glowing, so profoundlyappreciative, telling the story of Humboldt's life and work as I amsure no other living man can tell it. " In memory of this occasionthe "Humboldt Scholarship" was founded at the Museum of ComparativeZoology. 

It is hardly worth while to consider now whether this effort, addedto the pressing work of the year, hastened the attack whichoccurred soon after, with its warning to Agassiz that hisovertasked brain could bear no farther strain. The first seizure, of short duration, but affecting speech and motion while it lasted, was followed by others which became less and less acute until theyfinally disappeared. For months, however, he was shut up in hisroom, absolutely withdrawn from every intellectual effort, andforbidden by his physicians even to think. The fight with his ownbrain was his greatest difficulty, and perhaps he showed as muchpower in compelling his active intellect to stultify itself inabsolute inactivity for the time, as he had ever shown in giving itfree rein. Yet he could not always banish the Museum, thepassionate dream of his American life. One day, after dictatingsome necessary directions concerning it, he exclaimed, with a sortof despairing cry, "Oh, my Museum! my Museum! always uppermost, byday and by night, in health and in sickness, always--ALWAYS!"

He was destined, however, to a few more years of activity, thereward, perhaps, of his patient and persistent struggle forrecovery. After a winter of absolute seclusion, passed in his sickchamber, he was allowed by his physician, in the spring of 1870, toseek change at the quiet village of Deerfield on the ConnecticutRiver. Nature proved the best physician. Unable when he arrived totake more than a few steps without vertigo, he could, before manyweeks were over, walk several miles a day. Keen as an Egyptologistfor the hieroglyphics of his science, he was soon deciphering thelocal inscriptions of the glacial period, tracking the course ofthe ice on slab and dike and river-bed, --on every natural surface. The old music sang again in his ear and wooed him back to life. 

In the mean time, his assistants and students were doing all intheir power to keep the work of the Museum at high-water mark. Thepublications, the classification and arrangement of the more recentcollections, the distribution of such portions as were intended forthe public, the system of exchanges, went on uninterruptedly. Theworking force at the Museum was, indeed, now very strong. In greatdegree it was, so to speak, home-bred. Agassiz had graduallygathered about him, chiefly from among his more special students, astaff of assistants who were familiar with his plans and shared hisenthusiasm. To these young friends he was warmly attached. It wouldbe impossible to name them all, but the knot of younger men whowere for years his daily associates in scientific work, whosesympathy and cooperation he so much valued, and who are now intheir turn growing old in the service of science, will read theroll-call between the lines, and know that none are forgotten here. Years before his own death, he had the pleasure of seeing severalof them called to important scientific positions, and it was acogent evidence to him of the educational efficiency of the Museum, that it had supplied to the country so many trained investigatorsand teachers. Through them he himself teaches still. There was aprophecy in Lowell's memorial lines:--

 "He was a Teacher: why be grieved for him Whose living word still stimulates the air? In endless file shall loving scholars come, The glow of his transmitted touch to share. "

Beside these, there were several older, experienced naturalists, who were permanently or transiently engaged at the Museum. Somewere heads of departments, while others lent assistanceoccasionally in special work. Again the list is too long forenumeration, but as the veteran among the older men Mr. J. G. Anthony should be remembered. Already a conchologist of fortyyears' standing when he came to the Museum in 1863, he devotedhimself to the institution until the day of his death, twenty yearslater. Among those who came to give occasional help were Mr. Lesquereux, the head of paleontological botany in this country; M. Jules Marcou, the geologist; and M. De Pourtales, under whose carethe collection of corals was constantly improved and enlarged. Thelast named became at last wholly attached to the Museum, sharingits administration with Alexander Agassiz after his father's death. 

To this band of workers some accessions had recently been made. More than two years before, Agassiz had been so fortunate as tosecure the assistance of the entomologist, Dr. Hermann Hagen, fromKonigsberg, Prussia. He came at first only for a limited time, buthe remained, and still remains, at the Museum, becoming more andmore identified with the institution, beside filling a place asprofessor in Harvard University. His scientific sympathy andsupport were of the greatest value to Agassiz during the rest ofhis life. A later new-corner, and a very important one at theMuseum, was Dr. Franz Steindachner, of Vienna, who arrived in thespring of 1870 to put in final order the collection of Brazilianfishes, and passed two years in this country. Thus Agassiz's handswere doubly strengthened. Beside having the service of the salariedassistants and professors, the Museum received much gratuitous aid. Among the scientific volunteers were numbered for years Francois dePourtales, Theodore Lyman, James M. Barnard, and Alexander Agassiz, while the business affairs of the institution were undertaken byThomas G. Cary, Agassiz's brother-in-law. The latter had long beenof great service to the Museum as collector on the Pacific coast, where he had made this work his recreation in the leisure hours ofa merchant's life. * (* For the history of the Museum in later timesreference is made to the regular reports and publications of theinstitution. )

Broken as he was in health, it is amazing to see the amount of workdone or directed by Agassiz during this convalescent summer of1870. The letters written by him in this time concerning the Museumalone would fill a good-sized volume. Such a correspondence isunfit for reproduction here, but its minuteness shows that almostthe position of every specimen, and the daily, hourly work of everyindividual in the Museum, were known to him. The details ofadministration form, however, but a small part of the material ofthis correspondence. The consideration and discussion of the futureof the Museum with those most nearly concerned, fill many of theletters. They give evidence of a fostering and far-reaching care, which provided for the growth and progress of the Museum, longafter his own share in it should have ceased. 

In reviewing Agassiz's scientific life in the United States, itsbrilliant successes, and the genial generous support which itreceived in this country, it is natural to give prominence to thebrighter side. And yet it must not be forgotten that like all menwhose ideals outrun the means of execution, he had moments ofintense depression and discouragement. Some of his letters, writtenat this time to friends who controlled the financial policy of theMuseum, are almost like a plea for life. While the trustees urgesafe investments and the expenditure of income alone, he believesthat in proportion to the growth and expansion of the Museum willbe its power of self-maintenance and its claim on the community atlarge. In short, expenditure seemed to him the best investment, insuring a fair return, on the principle that the efficiency andusefulness of an institution will always be the measure of thesupport extended to it. The two or three following letters, inanswer to letters from Agassiz which cannot be found, show howearnestly, in spite of physical depression, he strove to keep theMuseum in relation with foreign institutions, to strengthen theformer, and cooperate as far as possible with the latter. 

FROM PROFESSOR VON SIEBOLD. 

MUNICH, 1869. 

. . . Most gladly shall I meet your wishes both with regard to thefresh-water fishes of Central Europe and to your desire for themeans of direct comparison between the fishes brought by Spix fromBrazil and described by you, and those you have recently yourselfcollected in the Amazons. The former, with one exception, are stillin existence and remain undisturbed, for since your day no one hascared to work at the fishes or reptiles. Schubert took no interestin the zoological cabinet intrusted to him; and Wagner, who laterrelieved him of its management, cared chiefly for the mammals. Ihave now, however, given particular attention to the preservationof everything determined by you, so far as it could be found, andam truly glad that this material is again to be called into theservice of science. Of course I had to ask permission of the"General Conservatorium of Scientific Collections" before sendingthis property of the state on so long a journey. At my urgentrequest this permission was very cordially granted by Herr vonLiebig, especially as our collection is likely to be increased bythe new forms you offer us. 

As to the fresh-water fishes I must beg for a little time. At thefish market, in April or May, I can find those Cyprinoids, themales of which bear at the spawning season that characteristiceruption of the skin, which has so often and so incorrectly led tothe making of new species. . . 

From your son Alexander I receive one beautiful work after another. Give him my best thanks for these admirable gifts, which I enterwith sincere pleasure in my catalogue of books. You are indeedhappy to have such a co-worker at your side. At the nextopportunity I shall write my thanks to him personally. 

How is Dr. Hermann Hagen pleased with his new position? I think thepresence of this superior entomologist will exert a powerful andimportant influence upon the development of entomology in NorthAmerica. . . 

FROM PROFESSOR G. P. DESHAYES. 

MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY, PARIS, February 4, 1870. 

Your letter was truly an event, my dear friend, not only for me butfor our Museum. . . How happy you are, and how enviable has beenyour scientific career, since you have had your home in freeAmerica! The founder of a magnificent institution, to which yourglorious name will forever remain attached, you have the means ofcarrying out whatever undertaking commends itself to you as useful. Men and things, following the current that sets toward you, aredrawn to your side. You desire, and you see your desires carriedout. You are the sovereign leader of the scientific movement aroundyou, of which you yourself have been the first promoter. 

What would our old Museum not have gained in having at its head aman like you! We should not now be lying stagnant in a space soinsufficient that our buildings, by the mere force ofcircumstances, are transformed into store-houses, where objects ofstudy are heaped together, and can be of no use to any one. . . Youcan fancy how much I envy your organization. It depressed me toread your letter, with its brilliant proposals of exchange, remembering how powerless we are to meet even a small number ofthem. Your project is certainly an admirable one; to find thescientific nomenclature where it is best established, and by thehelp of good specimens transport it to your own doors. Nothingcould be better, and I would gladly assist in it. But to succeed inthis excellent enterprise one must have good duplicate specimens;not having them, one must have money. As a conclusion to yourletter, the question of money was brought before my assembledcolleagues, but the answer was vague and uncertain. I must, then, find resources in some other way, and this is what I propose to do. . . [Here follow some plans for exchange. ] Beside this, I willbusy myself in getting together authentic collections from ourFrench seas, both Oceanic and Mediterranean, and even from otherpoints in the European seas. Meantime, you shall have your sharehenceforth in whatever comes to me. . . I learn from your son thatyour health is seriously attacked. I was grieved to hear it. Takecare of yourself, my dear friend. You are still needed in thisworld; you have a great work to accomplish, the end and aim ofwhich you alone are able to reach. You must, therefore, still standin the breach for some years to come. 

Your letter, which shows me the countless riches you have to offerat the Museum, puts me in the frame of mind of the child who wasoffered his choice in a toy-shop. "I choose everything, " he said. Icould reply in the same way. I choose all you offer me. Still, onemust be reasonable, and I will therefore name, as the thing Ichiefly desire, the remarkable fauna dredged from the Gulf Stream. Let me add, however, in order to give you entire freedom, thatwhatever you may send to the Museum will be received with sincereand ardent gratitude. 

And so, farewell, my dear friend, with a warm shake of the hand andthe most cordial regard. 

DESHAYES. 

The next is in answer to a letter from Agassiz to the veterannaturalist, Professor Sedgwick, concerning casts of well-knownfossil specimens in Cambridge, England. Though the casts wereunattainable, the affectionate reply gave Agassiz keen pleasure. 

FROM PROFESSOR ADAM SEDGWICK. 

THE CLOSE, NORWICH, August 9, 1871. 

MY VERY DEAR AND HONORED FRIEND, . . . I of course showed your letter to my friend Seeley, and aftersome consultation with men of practical knowledge, it wasconsidered almost impossible to obtain such casts of the reptilianbones as you mention. The specimens of the bones are generally sorugged and broken, that the artists would find it extremelydifficult to make casts from them without the risk of damagingthem, and the authorities of the university, who are theproprietors of the whole collection in my Museum, would beunwilling to encounter that risk. Mr. Seeley, however, fullyintends to send you a gutta-percha cast of the cerebral cavity ofone of our important specimens described in "Seeley's Catalogue, "but he is full of engagements and may not hitherto have realizedhis intentions. As for myself, at present I can do nothing excepthobble daily on my stick from my house to the Cathedral, for I amafflicted by a painful lameness in my left knee. The load of yearsbegins to press upon me (I am now toiling through my 87th year), and my sight is both dim and irritable, so that, as a matter ofnecessity, I am generally compelled to employ an amanuensis. Thatpart is now filled by a niece who is to me in the place of a deardaughter. 

I need not tell you that the meetings of the British Associationare still continued, and the last session (this year at Edinburgh)only ended yesterday. Let me correct a mistake. I met you first atEdinburgh in 1834, the year I became Canon, and again at Dublin in1835. . . It is a great pleasure to me, my dear friend, to see againby the vision of memory that fine youthful person, that benevolentface, and to hear again, as it were, the cheerful ring of the sweetand powerful voice by which you made the old Scotchmen start andstare, while you were bringing to life again the fishes of theirold red sandstone. I must be content with the visions of memory andthe feelings they again kindle in my heart, for it will never be myhappiness to see your face again in this world. But let me, as aChristian man, hope that we may meet hereafter in heaven, and seesuch visions of God's glory in the moral and material universe, asshall reduce to a mere germ everything which has been elaborated bythe skill of man, or revealed to God's creatures. I send you an oldman's blessing, and remain, Your affectionate friend, ADAM SEDGWICK. 

In November, 1870, Agassiz was able to return to Cambridge and theMuseum, and even to resume his lectures, which were as vigorous andfresh as ever. So entirely did he seem to have recovered, that inthe course of the winter the following proposition was made to himby his friend, Professor Benjamin Peirce, then Superintendent ofthe Coast Survey. 

FROM PROFESSOR PEIRCE. 

COAST SURVEY OFFICE, WASHINGTON, February 18, 1871. 

. . . I met Sumner in the Senate the day before yesterday, and heexpressed immense delight at a letter he had received fromBrown-Sequard, telling him that you were altogether free fromdisease. . . Now, my dear friend, I have a very serious propositionfor you. I am going to send a new iron surveying steamer round toCalifornia in the course of the summer. She will probably start atthe end of June. Would you go in her, and do deep-sea dredging allthe way round? If so, what companions will you take? If not, whoshall go?. . . 

FROM AGASSIZ TO PROFESSOR PEIRCE. 

CAMBRIDGE, February 20, 1871. 

. . . I am overjoyed at the prospect your letter opens before me. Ofcourse I will go, unless Brown-Sequard orders me positively to stayon terra firma. But even then, I should like to have a hand inarranging the party, as I feel there never was, and is not likelysoon again to be, such an opportunity for promoting the cause ofscience generally, and that of natural history in particular. Iwould like Pourtales and Alex to be of the party, and both wouldgladly join if they can. Both are as much interested about it as Iam, and I have no doubt between us we may organize a working team, strong enough to do something creditable. It seems to me that thebest plan to pursue in the survey would be to select carefully afew points (as many as time would allow) on shore, from which towork at right angles with the coast, to as great a distance as theresults would justify, and then move on to some other head-land. Ifthis plan be adopted, it would be desirable to have one additionalobserver to make collections on shore, to connect with the resultof the dredgings. This would be the more important as, with theexception of Brazil, hardly anything is known of the shore faunaeupon the greater part of the South American coast. For shoreobservations I should like a man of the calibre of Dr. Steindachner, who has spent a year on the coast of Senegal, andwould thus bring a knowledge of the opposite side of the Atlanticas a starting basis of comparison. . . 

After consultation with his physicians, it was decided that Agassizmight safely undertake the voyage in the Hassler, that it mightindeed be of benefit to his health. His party of naturalists, asfinally made up, consisted of Agassiz himself, Count de Pourtales, Dr. Franz Steindachner, and Mr. Blake, a young student from theMuseum, who accompanied Agassiz as assistant and draughtsman. Dr. Thomas Hill, ex-president of Harvard University, was also on theexpedition, and though engaged in special investigations of hisown, he joined in all the work with genial interest. The vessel wascommanded by Captain (now Commodore) Philip C. Johnson, whosecourtesy and kindness made the Hassler a floating home to theguests on board. So earnest and active was the sympathy felt by himand his officers in the scientific interests of the expedition, that they might be counted as a valuable additional volunteercorps. Among them should be counted Dr. William White, ofPhiladelphia, who accompanied the expedition in a partlyprofessional, partly scientific capacity. 

The hopes Agassiz had formed of this expedition, as high as thoseof any young explorer, were only partially fulfilled. Hisenthusiasm, though it had the ardor of youth, had none of itsvagueness. In a letter to Mr. Peirce, published in the MuseumBulletin at this time, there is this passage: "If this world ofours is the work of intelligence and not merely the product offorce and matter, the human mind, as a part of the whole, should sochime with it, that from what is known it may reach the unknown. Ifthis be so, the knowledge gathered should, within the limits oferror which its imperfection renders unavoidable, enable us toforetell what we are likely to find in the deepest abysses of thesea. " He looked, in short, for the solution of special problemsdirectly connected with all his previous work. He believed thedeeper sea would show forms of life akin to animals of earliergeological times, throwing new light on the relation between thefossil and the living world. In the letter above quoted, he evennamed the species he expected to find most prevalent in thosegreater depths: as, for instance, representatives of the olderforms of Ganoids and Selachians; Cephalopods, resembling the moreancient chambered shells; Gasteropods, recalling the tertiary andcretaceous types; and Acephala, resembling those of the jurassicand cretaceous formations. He expected to find Crustaceans also, more nearly approaching the ancient Trilobites than those nowliving on the surface of the globe; and among Radiates he lookedfor the older forms of sea-urchins, star-fishes, and corals. Although the collections brought together on this cruise were richand interesting, they gave but imperfect answers to thesecomprehensive questions. Owing to defects in the dredgingapparatus, the hauls from the greatest depths were lost. 

With reference to the glacial period he anticipated still morepositive results. In the same letter the following passage occurs:"There is, however, still one kind of evidence wanting, to removeall doubt that the greater extension of glaciers in former ages wasconnected with cosmic changes in the physical condition of ourglobe. Namely, all the phenomena relating to the glacial periodmust be found in the southern hemisphere, accompanied by the samecharacteristic features as in the north, but with this essentialdifference, --that everything must be reversed. The trend of theglacial abrasions must be from the south northward, the lee-side ofabraded rocks must be on the north side of the hills and mountainranges, and the boulders must have traveled from the south to theirpresent position. Whether this be so or not, has not yet beenascertained by direct observation. I expect to find it sothroughout the temperate and cold zones of the southern hemisphere, with the exception of the present glaciers of Terra del Fuego andPatagonia, which may have transported boulders in every direction. Even in Europe, geologists have not yet sufficiently discriminatedbetween local glaciers and the phenomena connected with theirdifferent degrees of successive retreat on the one hand; and, onthe other, the facts indicating the action of an extensive sheet ofice moving over the whole continent from north to south. Among thefacts already known from the southern hemisphere are the so-calledrivers of stone in the Falkland Islands, which attracted theattention of Darwin during his cruise with Captain Fitzroy, andwhich have remained an enigma to this day. I believe it will not bedifficult to explain their origin in the light of the glacialtheory, and I fancy they may turn out to be ground moraines similarto the 'horsebacks' in Maine. 

"You may ask what this question of drift has to do with deep-seadredging? The connection is closer than may at first appear. Ifdrift is not of glacial origin, but is the product of marinecurrents, its formation at once becomes a matter for the CoastSurvey to investigate. But I believe it will be found in the end, that so far from being accumulated by the sea, the drift of thePatagonian lowlands has been worn away by the sea to its presentoutline, like the northern shores of South America and Brazil. ". . . 

This is not the place for a detailed account of the voyage of theHassler, but enough may be told to show something of Agassiz's ownshare in it. A journal of scientific and personal experience, keptby Mrs. Agassiz under his direction, was nearly ready forpublication at the time of his death. The two next chapters, devoted to the cruise of the Hassler, are taken from thatmanuscript. A portion of it appeared many years ago in the pages ofthe "Atlantic Monthly. "

CHAPTER 23. 

1871-1872: AGE 64-65. 

Sailing of the Hassler. Sargassum Fields. Dredging at Barbados. From the West Indies to Rio de Janeiro. Monte Video. Quarantine. Glacial Traces in the Bay of Monte Video. The Gulf of Mathias. Dredging off Gulf of St. George. Dredging off Cape Virgens. Possession Bay. Salt Pool. Moraine. Sandy Point. Cruise through the Straits. Scenery. Wind Storm. Borja Bay. Glacier Bay. Visit to the Glacier. Chorocua Bay. 

The vessel was to have started in August, but, owing to variousdelays in her completion, she was not ready for sea until the lateautumn. She finally sailed on December 4, 1871, on a grayafternoon, which ushered in the first snow-storm of the New Englandwinter. Bound for warmer skies, she was, however, soon in thewaters of the Gulf Stream, where the work of collecting began inthe fields of Sargassum, those drifting, wide-spread expanses ofloose sea-weed carrying a countless population, lilliputian insize, to be sure, but very various in character. Agassiz was noless interested than other naturalists have been in the oldquestion so long asked and still unanswered, about the Sargassum. "Where is its home, and what its origin? Does it float, a rootlesswanderer on the deep, or has it broken away from some submarineattachment?" He had passed through the same region before, in goingto Brazil, but then he was on a large ocean steamer, while from thelittle Hassler, of 360 tons, one could almost fish by hand from theSargassum fields. Some of the chief results are given in thefollowing letter. 

TO PROFESSOR PEIRCE. 

ST. THOMAS, December 15, 1871. 

. . . As soon as we reached the Gulf Stream we began work. Indeed, Pourtales had organized a party to study the temperatures as soonas we passed Gay Head, and will himself report to you his results. My own attention was entirely turned to the Gulf weed and itsinhabitants, of which we made extensive collections. Ourobservations on the floating weed itself favor the view of thosewho believe it to be torn from rocks, on which Sargassum naturallygrows. I made a simple experiment which seems to me conclusive. Anybranch of the sea-weed which is deprived of its FLOATS sinks atonce to the bottom of the water, and these floats are not likely tobe the first parts developed from the spores. Moreover, afterexamining large quantities of the weed, I have not seen a singlebranch, however small, which did not show marks of having been tornfrom a solid attachment. 

You may hardly feel an interest in my zoological observations, butI am sure you will be glad to learn that we had the bestopportunity of carefully examining most of the animals known toinhabit the Gulf weed, and some also which I did not know to occuramong them. The most interesting discovery of our voyage thus far, however, is that of a nest built by a fish, and floating on thebroad ocean with its living freight. On the 13th, Mr. Mansfield, one of our officers, brought me a ball of Gulf weed which he hadjust picked up, and which excited my curiosity to the utmost. Itwas a round mass of Sargassum about the size of two fists. The bulkof the ball was made up of closely packed branches and leaves, heldtogether by fine threads, running through them in every direction, while other branches hung more loosely from the margin. Placed in alarge bowl of water it became apparent that the loose branchesserved to keep the central mass floating, cradle-like, betweenthem. The elastic threads, which held the ball of Gulf weedtogether, were beaded at intervals, sometimes two or three beadsclose together, or a bunch of them hanging from the same cluster ofthreads, or occasionally scattered at a greater distance from eachother. Nowhere was there much regularity in the distribution of thebeads. They were scattered pretty uniformly throughout the wholeball of seaweed, and were themselves about the size of an ordinarypin's head. Evidently we had before us a nest of the most curiouskind, full of eggs. What animal could have built this singularnest? It did not take long to ascertain the class to which itbelonged. A common pocket lens revealed at once two large eyes onthe side of the head, and a tail bent over the back of the body, asin the embryo of ordinary fishes shortly before the period ofhatching. The many empty egg cases in the nest gave promise of anearly opportunity of seeing some embryos, freeing themselves fromtheir envelope. Meanwhile a number of these eggs containing liveembryos were cut out of the nest and placed in separate glass jars, in order to multiply the chances of preserving them; while the nestas a whole was secured in alcohol, as a memorial of our discovery. 

The next day I found two embryos in my glass jars; they movedoccasionally in jerks, and then rested a long time motionless onthe bottom of the jar. On the third day I had over a dozen of theseyoung fishes, the oldest beginning to be more active. I need notrelate in detail the evidence I soon obtained that these embryoswere actually fishes. . . But what kind of fish was it? At about thetime of hatching, the fins differ too much from those of the adult, and the general form has too few peculiarities, to give any clew tothis problem. I could only suppose it would prove to be one of thepelagic species of the Atlantic. In former years I had made acareful study of the pigment cells of the skin in a variety ofyoung fishes, and I now resorted to this method to identify myembryos. Happily we had on board several pelagic fishes alive. Thevery first comparison I made gave the desired result. The pigmentcell of a young Chironectes pictus proved identical with those ofour little embryos. It thus stands, as a well authenticated fact, that the common pelagic Chironectes of the Atlantic, named Ch. Pictus by Cuvier, builds a nest for its eggs in which the progenyis wrapped up with the materials of which the nest itself iscomposed; and as these materials consist of the living Gulf weed, the fish cradle, rocking upon the deep ocean, is carried along asin an arbor, which affords protection and afterwards food also, toits living freight. This marvelous story acquires additionalinterest, when we consider the characteristic peculiarities of thegenus Chironectes. As its name indicates, it has fin-like hands;that is to say, the pectoral fins are supported by a kind of longwrist-like appendage, and the rays of the ventrals are not unlikerude fingers. With these limbs these fishes have long been known toattach themselves to sea-weeds, and rather to walk than to swim intheir natural element. But now that we know their mode ofreproduction, it may fairly be asked if the most important use oftheir peculiarly constructed fins is not the building of theirnest?. . . There thus remains one closing chapter to the story. Maysome naturalist, becalmed among the Gulf weed, have the goodfortune to witness the process by which the nest is built. . . 

This whole investigation was of the greatest interest to Agassiz, and, coming so early in the voyage, seemed a pleasant promise ofits farther opportunities. The whole ship's company soon shared hisenthusiasm, and the very sailors gathered about him in theintervals of their work, or hung on the outskirts of the scientificcircle. A pause of a few days was made at one or two of the WestIndian islands, at St. Thomas and Barbados. At the latter, thefirst cast of the large dredge was made on a ledge of shoals in adepth of eighty fathoms, and, among countless other things, anumber of stemmed crinoids and comatulae were brought up. An ardentstudent of the early fossil echinoderms, it was a great pleasure toAgassiz to gather their fresh and living representatives. It waslike turning a leaf of the past and finding the subtle thread whichconnects it with the present. 

TO PROFESSOR PEIRCE. 

PERNAMBUCO, January 16, 1872. 

MY DEAR PEIRCE, I should have written to you from Barbados, but the day before weleft the island was favorable for dredging, and our success in thatline was so unexpectedly great, that I could not get away from thespecimens, and made the most of them for study while I had thechance. We made only four hauls, in between seventy-five and onehundred and twenty fathoms. But what hauls! Enough to occupy half adozen competent zoologists for a whole year, if the specimens couldbe kept fresh for that length of time. The first haul brought up aChemidium-like sponge; the next gave us a crinoid, very much likethe Rhizocrinus lofotensis, but probably different; the third, aliving Pleurotomaria; the fourth, a new genus of Spatangoids, etc. , etc. , not to speak of the small fry. We had the crinoid alive forten or twelve hours. When contracted, the pinnules are pressedagainst the arms, and the arms themselves shut against one another, so that the whole looks like a swash made up of a few long, coarsetwines. When the animal opens, the arms at first separate withoutbending outside, so that the whole looks like an inverted pentapod;but gradually the tips of the arms bend outward as the arms divergemore and more, and when fully expanded the crown has the appearanceof a lily of the L. Martagon type, in which each petal is curvedupon itself, the pinnules of the arms spreading laterally more andmore, as the crown is more fully open. I have not been able todetect any motion in the stem traceable to contraction, thoughthere is no stiffness in its bearing. When disturbed, the pinnulesof the arms first contract, the arms straighten themselves out, andthe whole gradually and slowly closes up. It was a very impressivesight for me to watch the movements of the creature, for it notonly told of its own ways, but at the same time afforded a glimpseinto the countless ages of the past, when these crinoids, so rareand so rarely seen nowadays, formed a prominent feature of theanimal kingdom. I could see, without great effort of theimagination, the shoal of Lockport teeming with the many genera ofcrinoids which the geologists of New York have rescued from thatprolific Silurian deposit, or recall the formations of my nativecountry, in the hill-sides of which also, among fossils indicatingshoal water deposits, other crinoids abound, resembling still moreclosely those we find in these waters. The close affinities ofRhizocrinus with Apiocrinoids are further exemplified by the factthat when the animal dies, it casts off its arms, like Apiocrinus, the head of which is generally found without arms. And now thequestion may be asked, what is the meaning of the occurrence ofthese animals in deep waters at the present day, when, in formerages, similar types inhabited shallow seas? Of the fact there canbe no doubt, for it is not difficult to adduce satisfactoryevidence of the shoal-like character of the Silurian deposits ofthe State of New York; their horizontal position, combined with thegradual recession of the higher beds in a southerly direction, leaves no doubt upon this point; and in the case of the jurassicformation alluded to above, the combination of the crinoids withfossils common upon coral reefs, and their presence in atolls ofthat period, are satisfactory proofs of my assertion. What does itmean, then, when we find the Pentacrinus and Rhizocrinus of theWest Indies in deep water only? It seems to me that there is butone explanation of the fact, namely, that in the progress of theearth's growth, we must look for such a displacement of theconditions favorable to the maintenance of certain lower types, asmay recall most fully the adaptations of former ages. It was inthis sense I alluded, in my first letter to you, to the probabilityof our finding in deeper water representatives of earliergeological types; and if my explanation is correct, my anticipationis also fully sustained. But do the deeper waters of the presentconstitution of our globe really approximate the conditions for thedevelopment of animal life, which existed in the shallower seas ofpast geological ages? I think they do, or at least I believe theyapproach it as nearly as anything can in the present order ofthings upon earth; for the depths of the ocean alone can placeanimals under a pressure corresponding to that caused by the heavyatmosphere of earlier periods. But, of course, such high pressureas animals meet in great depths cannot be a favorable condition forthe development of life; hence the predominance of lower forms inthe deep sea. The rapid diminution of light with the increasingdepth, and the small amount of free oxygen in these waters undergreater and greater pressure, not to speak of other limitationsarising from the greater uniformity of the conditions of existence, the reduced amount and less variety of nutritive substances, etc. , etc. , are so many causes acting in the same direction and withsimilar results. For all these reasons, I have always expected tofind that the animals living in great depths would prove to be of astanding, in the scale of structural complications, inferior tothose found in shoal waters or near shore; and the correlationelsewhere pointed out between the standing of animals and theirorder of succession in geological times (see "Essay onClassification ") justifies another form of expression of thesefacts, namely, that in deeper waters we should expect to findrepresentatives of earlier geological periods. There is in all thisnothing which warrants the conclusion that any of the animals nowliving are lineal descendants of those of earlier ages; nor doestheir similarity to those of earlier periods justify the statementthat the cretaceous formation is still extant. It would be just astrue to nature to say that the tertiaries are continued in thetropics, on account of the similarity of the miocene mammalia tothose of the torrid zone. 

We have another case in the Pleurotomaria. It is not long since ithas been made known that the genus Pleurotomaria is not altogetherextinct, a single specimen having been discovered about ten yearsago in the West Indies. Even Pictet, in the second edition of hisPaleontology, still considers Pleurotomaria as extinct, and asbelonging to the fossiliferous formations which extend from theSilurian period to the Tertiary. Of the living species found atMarie Galante, nothing is known except the specific characteristicsof the shell. We dredged it in one hundred and twenty fathoms, onthe west side of Barbados, alive, and kept it alive for twenty-fourhours, during which time the animal expanded and showed itsremarkable peculiarities. It is unquestionably the type of adistinct family, entirely different from the other Mollusks withwhich it has been hitherto associated. Mr. Blake has made finecolored drawings of it, which may be published at some futuretime. . . The family of the Pleurotomariae numbers between four andfive hundred fossil species, beginning in the Silurian deposits, butespecially numerous in the carboniferous and jurassic formations. 

The sponges afford another interesting case. When the first numberof the great work of Goldfuss, on the fossils of Germany, made itsappearance, about half a century ago, the most novel types it madeknown were several genera of sponges from the jurassic andcretaceous beds, described under the names of Siphonia, Chemidium, and Scyphia. Nothing of the kind has been known among the living tothis day; and yet, the first haul of the dredge near Barbados gaveus a Chemidium, or, at least, a sponge so much like the fossilChemidium, that it must remain for future comparisons to determinewhether there are any generic differences between our living spongeand the fossil. The next day brought us a genuine Siphonia, anothergenus thus far only known from the jurassic beds; and it is worthrecording, that I noticed in the collection of Governor Rawsonanother sponge, --brought to him by a fisherman who had caught it onhis line, on the coast of Barbados, --which belongs to the genusScyphia. Thus the three characteristic genera of sponges from thesecondary formation, till now supposed to be extinct, are all threerepresented in the deep waters of the West Indies. . . 

Another family of organized beings offers a similar testimony tothat already alluded to. If there is a type of Echinodermscharacteristic of a geological period, it is the genus Micraster ofthe cretaceous formation, in its original circumscription. Nospecies of this genus is known to have existed during the Tertiaryera, and no living species has as yet been made known. You maytherefore imagine my surprise when the dredge first yielded threespecimens of a small species of that particular group of the genus, which is most extensively represented in the upper cretaceous beds. 

Other examples of less importance might be enumerated; suffice itnow to add that my expectation of finding in deep waters animalsalready known, but thus far exceedingly rare in museums, is alreadyin a measure realised. . . 

Little can be said of the voyage from the West Indies to Rio deJaneiro. It had the usual vicissitudes of weather, with here andthere a flight (so it might justly be called) of flying-fish, aschool of porpoises or dog-fish, or a sail in the distance, tobreak the monotony. At Rio de Janeiro it became evident that theplan of the voyage must be somewhat curtailed. This was madenecessary partly by the delays in starting, --in consequence ofwhich the season would be less favorable than had been anticipatedalong certain portions of the proposed route, --and partly by thedefective machinery, which had already given some trouble to theCaptain. The Falkland Islands, the Rio Negro, and the Santa Cruzrivers were therefore renounced; with what regret will beunderstood by those who know how hard it is to be forced to breakup a scheme of work, which was originally connected in all itsparts. The next pause was at Monte Video; but as there was a strictquarantine, Agassiz was only allowed to land at the Mount, a hillon the western side of the bay, the geology of which he was anxiousto examine. He found true erratics--loose pebbles, granite, gneiss, and granitic sandstone, having no resemblance to any native rock inthe vicinity--scattered over the whole surface of the hill to itsvery summit. The hill itself had also the character of the "rochesmoutonnees" modeled by ice in the northern hemisphere. As thesewere the most northern erratics and glaciated surfaces reported inthe southern hemisphere, the facts there were very interesting tohim. 

With dredgings off the Rio de la Plata, and along the coast betweenthat and the Rio Negro, the vessel held on her way to the Gulf ofMathias, a deep, broad bay running some hundred miles inland, andsituated a little south of the Rio Negro. Here some necessaryrepairs enforced a pause, of which Agassiz took advantage fordredging and for studying the geology of the cliffs along the northside of the bay. As seen from the vessel, they seemed to bestratified with extraordinary evenness and regularity to within afew feet of the top, the summit being crowned with loose sand. Farther on, they sank to sand dunes piled into rounded banks andsoftly moulded ledges, like snow-drifts. Landing the next day at abold bluff marked Cliff End on the charts, he found the lowerstratum to consist of a solid mass of tertiary fossils, chieflyimmense oysters, mingled, however, with sea-urchins. Superbspecimens were secured, --large boulders crowded with colossalshells and perfectly preserved echini. From the top of the cliff, looking inland, only a level plain was seen, stretching as far asthe eye could reach, broken by no undulations, and covered withlow, scrubby growth. The seine was drawn on the beach, and yieldeda good harvest for the fish collection. At evening the vesselanchored at the head of the bay, off the Port of San Antonio. Thename would seem to imply some settlement; but a more lonely spotcannot be imagined. More than thirty years ago, Fitzroy had sailedup this bay, partially surveyed it, and marked this harbor on hischart. If any vessel has broken the loneliness of its waters since, no record of any such event has been kept. Of the presence of man, there was no sign. Yet the few days passed there were among thepleasantest of the voyage to Agassiz. The work of the dredge andseine was extremely successful, and the rambles inland weregeological excursions of great interest. Here he had the firstsight of the guanaco of the Patagonian plains. The weather wasfine, and at night-fall, to the golden light of sunset succeededthe fitful glow, over land and water, of the bonfires built by thesailors on the beach. Returning to the ship after dark, the variousparties assembled in the wardroom, to talk over the events of theday and lay out plans for the morrow. These are the brightest hoursin such a voyage, when the novelty of the locality gives a zest toevery walk or row, and all are full of interest in a new andexciting life. One is more tolerant even of monotonous naturalfeatures in a country so isolated, so withdrawn from human life andoccupation. The very barrenness seems in harmony with the intensesolitude. 

The Hassler left her anchorage on this desolate shore on an eveningof singular beauty. It was difficult to tell when she was on herway, so quietly did she move through the glassy waters, over whichthe sun went down in burnished gold, leaving the sky without acloud. The light of the beach fires followed her till they toofaded, and only the phosphorescence of the sea attended her intothe night. Rough and stormy weather followed this fair start, andonly two more dredgings were possible before reaching the Strait ofMagellan. One was off the Gulf of St. George, where giganticstar-fishes seemed to have their home. One of them, a superbbasket-fish, was not less than a foot and a half in diameter; andanother, like a huge sunflower of reddish purple tint, withstraight arms, thirty-seven in number, radiating from the disk, wasof about the same size. Many beautiful little sea-urchins came upin the same dredging. About fifty miles north of Cape Virgens, intolerably calm weather, another haul was tried, and this time thedredge returned literally solid with Ophiurans. 

On Wednesday, March 13th, on a beautifully clear morning, like thebest October weather in New England, the Hassler rounded CapeVirgens and entered the Strait of Magellan. The tide was just onthe flood, and all the conditions favorable for her run to herfirst anchorage in the Strait at Possession Bay. Here the workingforce divided, to form two shore parties, one of which, underAgassiz's direction, the reader may follow. The land above thefirst shore bluff at Possession Bay rises to a height of some fourhundred feet above the sea-level, in a succession of regularhorizontal terraces, of which Agassiz counted eight. On theseterraces, all of which are built, like the shore-bluffs, oftertiary deposits, were two curious remnants of a past state ofthings. The first was a salt-pool lying in a depression on thesecond terrace, some one hundred and fifty feet above the sea. Thispool contained living marine shells, identical with those now foundalong the shore. Among them were Fusus, Mytilus, Buccinum, Fissurella, Patella, and Voluta, all found in the same numericrelations as those in which they now exist upon the beach below. This pool is altogether too high to be reached by any tidalinfluence, and undoubtedly indicates an old sea-level, and acomparatively recent upheaval of the shore. The second was agenuine moraine, corresponding in every respect to those whichoccur all over the northern hemisphere. Agassiz came upon it inascending to the third terrace above the salt-pool and a littlefarther inland. It had all the character of a terminal moraine incontact with an actual glacier. It was composed of heterogeneousmaterials, --large and small pebbles and boulders impacted togetherin a paste of clayey gravel and sand. The ice had evidentlyadvanced from the south, for the mass had been pushed steeply up onthe southern side, and retained so sharp an inclination on thatface that but little vegetation had accumulated upon it. Thenorthern side, on the contrary, was covered with soil andovergrown; it sloped gently off, --pebbles and larger stones beingscattered beyond it. The pebbles and boulders of this moraine werepolished, scratched, and grooved, and bore, in short, all the usualmarks of glacial action. Agassiz was naturally delighted with thisdiscovery. It was a new link in the chain of evidence, showing thatthe drift phenomena are connected at the south as well as at thenorth with the action of ice, and that the frozen Arctic andAntarctic fields are but remnants of a sheet of ice, which hasretreated from the temperate zones of both hemispheres to the polarregions. The party pushed on beyond the moraine to a hill ofconsiderable height, which gave a fine view of the country towardMount Aymon and the so-called Asses' Ears. They brought back avariety of game, but their most interesting scientific acquisitionswere boulders from the moraine scored with glacial characters, andshells from the salt pool. 

Still accompanied by beautiful weather, the Hassler anchored at theElizabeth Islands and at San Magdalena. Here Agassiz had anopportunity of examining the haunts and rookeries of the penguinsand cormorants, and obtaining fine specimens of both. As thebreeding places and the modes of life of these animals have beendescribed by other travelers, there is nothing new to add from hisimpressions, until the vessel anchored, on the 16th March, beforeSandy Point, the only permanent settlement in the Strait. 

Here there was a pause of several days, which gave Agassiz anopportunity to draw the seine with large results for his marinecollections. By the courtesy of the Governor, he had also anopportunity of making an excursion along the road leading to thecoal-mines. The wooded cliffs, as one ascends the hills toward themines, are often bold and picturesque, and Agassiz found thatportions of them were completely built of fossil shells. There isan oyster-bank, some one hundred feet high, overhanging the road inmassive ledges that consist wholly of oyster-valves, with onlyearth enough to bind them together. He was inclined, from thecharacter of the shells, to believe that the coal must becretaceous rather than tertiary. 

On Tuesday, the 19th March, the Hassler left Sandy Point. Theweather was beautiful, --a mellow autumn day with a reminiscence ofsummer in its genial warmth. The cleft summit of Sarmiento wasclear against the sky, and the snow-fields, swept over by alternatelight and shadow, seemed full of soft undulations. The eveninganchorage was in the Bay of Port Famine, a name which marks thesite of Sarmiento's ill-fated colony, and recalls the story of themen who watched and waited there for the help that never came. Thestay here was short, and Agassiz spent the time almost wholly instudying the singularly regular, but completely upturned stratawhich line the beach, with edges so worn down as to be almostcompletely even with each other. 

For many days after this, the Hassler pursued her course, past aseemingly endless panorama of mountains and forests rising into thepale regions of snow and ice, where lay glaciers in which everyrift and crevasse, as well as the many cascades flowing down tojoin the waters beneath, could be counted as she steamed by them. Every night she anchored in the sheltered harbors formed by theinlets and fords which break the base of the rocky walls, and oftenlead into narrower ocean defiles penetrating, one knows notwhither, into the deeper heart of these great mountain masses. 

These were weeks of exquisite delight to Agassiz. The vessel oftenskirted the shore so closely that its geology could be studied fromthe deck. The rounded shoulders of the mountains, in markedcontrast to their peaked and jagged crests, the general characterof the snow-fields and glaciers, not crowded into narrow valleys asin Switzerland, but spread out on the open slopes of the loftierranges, or, dome like, capping their summits, --all this affordeddata for comparison with his past experience, and with theknowledge he had accumulated upon like phenomena in other regions. Here, as in the Alps, the abrupt line, where the rounded and wornsurfaces of the mountains (moutonnees, as the Swiss say) yield totheir sharply cut, jagged crests, showed him the ancient andhighest line reached by the glacial action. The long, serrated edgeof Mount Tarn, for instance, is like a gigantic saw, while thelower shoulders of the mass are hummocked into a succession ofrounded hills. In like manner the two beautiful valleys, separatedby a bold bluff called Bachelor's Peak, are symmetrically roundedon their slopes, while their summits are jagged and rough. 

On one occasion the Hassler encountered one of those sudden andstartling flaws of wind common to the Strait. The breeze, which hadbeen strong all day, increased with sudden fury just as the vesselwas passing through a rather narrow channel, which gave the windthe additional force of compression. In an inconceivably shorttime, the channel was lashed into a white foam; the roar of windand water was so great you could not hear yourself speak, thoughthe hoarse shout of command and the answering cry of the sailorsrose above the storm. To add to the confusion, a loose sail slattedas if it would tear itself in pieces, with that sharp, angry, rending sound which only a broad spread of loose canvas can make. It became impossible to hold the vessel against the amazing powerof the blast, and the Captain turned her round with the intentionof putting her into Borja Bay, not far from which, by good fortune, she chanced to be. As she came broadside to the wind in turning, itseemed as if she must be blown over, so violently did she careen. Once safely round, she flew before the wind, which now became herally instead of her enemy, and by its aid she was soon abreast ofBorja Bay. Never was there a more sudden transition from chaos topeace than that which ensued as she turned in from the tumult inthe main channel to the quiet waters of the bay. The Hassler almostfilled the tiny harbor shut in between mountains. She lay theresafe and sheltered in breathless calm, while the storm raged andhowled outside. These frequent, almost land-locked coves, are thesafety of navigators in these straits; but after this day'sexperience, it was easy to understand how sailing vessels may bekept waiting for months between two such harbors, struggling vainlyto make a few miles and constantly driven back by sudden squalls. 

In this exquisite mountain-locked harbor, the vessel wasweather-bound for a couple of days. Count Pourtales availed himselfof this opportunity to ascend one of the summits. Up to a height offifteen hundred feet, the rock was characterized by the smoothed, rounded surfaces which Agassiz had observed along his whole routein the Strait. Above that height all was broken and rugged, theline of separation being as defined as on any valley wall inSwitzerland. It was again impossible to decide, on such shortobservation, whether these effects were due to local glacialaction, or whether they belonged to an earlier general ice-period. But Agassiz became satisfied, as he advanced, that the two sets ofphenomena existed together, as in the northern hemisphere. Thegeneral aspect of the opposite walls of the Strait confirmed him inthe idea that the sheet of ice in its former extension had advancedfrom south to north, grinding its way against and over the southernwall to the plains beyond. In short, he was convinced that, as asheet of ice has covered the northern portion of the globe, so asheet of ice has covered also the southern portion, advancing, inboth instances, far toward the equatorial regions. His observationsin Europe, in North America, and in Brazil seemed here to havetheir closing chapter. 

With these facts in his mind, he did not fail to pause beforeGlacier Bay, noted for its immense glacier, which seems, as seenfrom the main channel, to plunge sheer down into the waters of thebay. A boat party was soon formed to accompany him to the glacier. It proved less easy of access than it looked at a distance. A broadbelt of wood, growing, as Agassiz afterward found, on anaccumulation of old terminal moraines, spanned the lower valleyfrom side to side. Through this wood there poured a glacial river, emptying itself into the bay. Strange to say, this glacier-washedforest, touching the ice on one side and the sea on the other, wasfull of flowers. The red bells of the glossy-leaved Desfontainia, the lovely pink blossoms of the Phylesia, the crimson berries ofthe Pennetia, stood out in bright relief from a background of mossytree-trunks and rocks. After an hour's walking, made laborious bythe spongy character of the ground, --a mixture of loose soil anddecaying vegetation, in which one sank knee-deep, --the gleam of theice began to shimmer through the trees; and issuing from the wood, the party found themselves in front of a glacier wall, stretchingacross the whole valley and broken into deep rifts, caves, andcrevasses of dark blue ice. The glacier was actually about a milewide; but as the central portion was pressed forward in advance ofthe sides, the whole front was not presented at once. It formed asharp crescent, with the curve turned outward. One of the caves inthis front wall was some thirty or forty feet high, about a hundredfeet deep, and two or three yards wide at the entrance. At thefurther end it narrowed to a mere gallery, where the roof waspierced by a circular window, quite symmetrical in shape, throughwhich one looked up to the blue sky and drifting clouds. There mustbe strange effects in this ice-cavern, when the sun is high andsends a shaft of light through its one window to illuminate theinterior. 

This first excursion was a mere reconnaissance. An approximate ideaof the dimensions of the glacier, and some details of itsstructure, were obtained on a second visit the following day. Theanchorage for the night was in Playa Parda Cove, one of the mostbeautiful of the many beautiful harbors of the Magellan Strait. Itis entered by a deep, narrow slit, cut into the mountains on thenorthern side of the Strait, and widening at its farther end into akind of pocket or basin, hemmed in between rocky walls bordered byforests, and overhung by snow and ice-fields. The next morning athalf-past three o'clock, just as moonlight was fading before thedawn, and the mountains were touched with the coming day, thereveille was sounded for those who were to return to Glacier Bay. This time Agassiz divided his force so that they could actindependently of each other, though under a general plan laid outby him. M. De Pourtales and Dr. Steindachner ascended the mountainto the left of the valley, following its ridge, in the hope ofreaching a position from which they could discover the source andthe full length of the glacier. In this they did not succeed, though M. De Pourtales estimated its length, as far as he could seefrom any one point, to be about three miles, beyond which it waslost in the higher range. It made part of a net-work of glaciersrunning back into a large massif of mountains, and fed by many aneve on their upper slopes. The depth as well as the length of thisglacier remains somewhat problematical, and indeed all theestimates in so cursory a survey must be considered asapproximations rather than positive results. The glazed surface ofthe ice is an impediment to any examination from the upper side. Itwould be impossible to spring from brink to brink of a crevasse, asis so constantly done by explorers of Alpine glaciers where theedges of the cracks are often snowy or granular. Here the edges ofthe crevasses are sharp and hard, and to spring across one of anysize would be almost certain death. There is no hold for an Alpinestock, no grappling point for hands or feet. Any investigation fromthe upper surface would, therefore, require special apparatus, andmuch more time than Agassiz and his party could give. Neither wasan approach from the side very easy. The glacier arches so much inthe centre, and slopes away so steeply, that when one is in thelateral depression between it and the mountain, one faces an almostperpendicular wall of ice, which blocks the vision completely. M. De Pourtales measured one of the crevasses in this wall, and foundthat it had a depth of some seventy feet. Judging from theremarkable convexity of the glacier, it can hardly be less in thecentre than two or three times its thickness on the edges, --something over two hundred feet, therefore. Probably none ofthese glaciers of the Strait of Magellan are as thick as those ofSwitzerland, though they are often much broader. The mountains arenot so high, the valleys not so deep, as in the Alps; the ice isconsequently not packed into such confined troughs. By some of theparty an attempt was made to ascertain the rate of movement, signals having been adjusted the day before for its measurement. During the middle of the day, it advanced at the rate of ten inchesand a fraction in five hours. One such isolated observation is ofcourse of little comparative value. For himself, Agassiz reservedthe study of the bay, the ancient bed of the glacier in its formerextension. He spent the day in cruising about the bay in thesteam-launch, landing at every point he wished to investigate. Hisfirst care was to examine minutely the valley walls over which theglacier must once have moved. Every characteristic feature, knownin the Alps as the work of the glaciers, was not only easilyrecognizable here, but as perfectly preserved as anywhere inSwitzerland. The rounded knolls to which De Saussure first gave thename of roches moutonnees were smoothed, polished, scratched, andgrooved in the direction of the ice movement, the marks runningmostly from south to north, or nearly so. The general trend of thescratches and furrows showed them to have been continuous from oneknoll to another. The furrows were of various dimensions, sometimesshallow and several inches broad, sometimes narrow with moredefined limits, gradually passing into mere lines on a verysmoothly polished surface. Even the curious notches scooped out ofthe even surfaces, and technically called "coups de gouge, " werenot wanting. In some places the seams of harder rock stood out fora quarter of an inch or so above adjoining decomposed surfaces; insuch instances the dike alone retained the glacial marks, which hadbeen worn away from the softer rock. 

The old moraines were numerous and admirably well preserved. Agassiz examined with especial care one colossal lateral moraine, standing about two miles below the present terminus of the ice andfive hundred feet above the sea-level. It consisted of the samerocks as those found on the present terminal moraine, part of thembeing rounded and worn, while large, angular boulders rested abovethe smaller materials. This moraine forms a dam across a trough inthe valley wall, and holds back the waters of a beautiful lake, about a thousand feet in length and five hundred in width, shuttingit in just as the Lake of Meril in Switzerland is held in its basinby the glacier of Aletsch. There are erratics some two or threehundred feet above this great moraine, showing that the glaciermust have been more than five hundred feet thick when it left thisaccumulation of loose materials at such a height. It then united, however, with a large glacier more to the west. Its greatestthickness, as an independent glacier, is no doubt marked, not bythe boulders lying higher up, but by the large moraine which shutsin the lake. The direct connection of this moraine with the glacierin its former extension is still further shown by two othermoraines, on lower levels and less perfect, but having the samerelation to the present terminus of the ice. The lower of these isonly one hundred and fifty feet above the actual level of theglacier. These three moraines occur on the western slope of thebay. The eastern slope is more broken, and while the rounded knollsare quite as distinct and characteristic, the erratics are moreloosely scattered over the surface. In mineralogical character theyagree with those on the western wall of the bay. Upon the summitsof some small islands at the entrance of the bay, there are alsosome remnants of terminal moraines, formed by the glacier when itreached the main channel; that is, when it was some three mileslonger than now. 

The more recent oscillations, marking the advance and retreat ofthe glacier within certain limits, are shown by the successivemoraines heaped up in advance of the present terminal wall. Thecentral motion here, as in all the Swiss glaciers, is greater thanthe lateral, the ice being pushed forward in the middle faster thanon the sides. But there would seem to be more than one axis ofprogression in this broad mass of ice; for though the centre ispushed out beyond the rest, the terminal wall does not present oneuniform curve, but forms a number of more or less projecting anglesor folds. A few feet in front of this wall is a ridge of loosematerials, stones, pebbles, and boulders, repeating exactly theoutline of the ice where it now stands; a few feet in advance ofthis, again, is another ridge precisely like it; still a few feetbeyond, another; and so on, for four or five concentric zigzagcrescent-shaped moraines, followed by two others more or lessmarked, till they fade into the larger morainic mass, upon whichstands the belt of wood dividing the present glacier from the bay. Agassiz counted eight distinct moraines between the glacier and thebelt of wood, and four concentric moraines in the wood itself. Itis plain that the glacier has ploughed into the forest within somenot very remote period, for the trees along its margin are loosenedand half uprooted, though not yet altogether decayed. In thepresence of the glacier one ceases to wonder at the effectsproduced by so powerful an agent. This sheet of ice, even in itspresent reduced extent, is about a mile in width, several miles inlength, and at least two hundred feet in depth. Moving forward asit does ceaselessly, and armed below with a gigantic file, consisting of stones, pebbles, and gravel, firmly set in the ice, who can wonder that it should grind, furrow, round, and polish thesurfaces over which it slowly drags its huge weight. At oncedestroyer and fertilizer, it uproots and blights hundreds of treesin its progress, yet feeds a forest at its feet with countlessstreams; it grinds the rocks to powder in its merciless mill, andthen sends them down, a fructifying soil, to the wooded shorebelow. 

Agassiz would gladly have stayed longer in the neighborhood ofGlacier Bay, and have made it the central point of a more detailedexamination of the glacial phenomena in the Strait. But thesouthern winter was opening, and already gave signs of itsapproach. At dawn on the 26th of March, therefore, the Hassler lefther beautiful anchorage in Playa Parda Cove, six large glaciersbeing in sight from her deck as she came out. The scenery duringthe morning had a new scientific interest for Agassiz, because thevessel kept along the northern side of the Strait, while the coursehitherto had been nearer the southern shore. He could thus bettercompare the differences between the two walls of the Strait. Thefact that the northern wall is more evenly worn, more rounded thanthe southern, had a special significance for him, as correspondingwith like facts in Switzerland, and showing that the ice-sheet hadadvanced across the Strait with greater force in its ascending thanin its descending path. The north side being the strike side, theice would have pushed against it with greater force. Such adifference between the two sides of any hollow or depression in thedirect path of the ice is well known in Switzerland. 

Later in the day, a pause was made in Chorocua Bay, where CaptainMayne's chart makes mention of a glacier descending into the water. There is, indeed, a large glacier on its western side, but soinaccessible, that any examination of it would have required daysrather than hours. No one, however, regretted the afternoon spenthere, for the bay was singularly beautiful. On either side, deepgorges, bordered by richly-wooded cliffs and overhung by ice andsnow-fields, were cut into the mountains. Where these channelsmight lead, into what dim recesses of ocean and mountain, couldonly be conjectured. The bay, with all its inlets and fiords, wasstill as a church. Voices and laughter seemed an intrusion, and alouder shout came back in echoes from far-off hidden retreats. Onlythe swift steamer-ducks, as they shot across, broke the glassysurface of the water with their arrow-like wake. From this pointthe Hassler crossed to Sholl Bay, and anchored at the entrance ofSmythe's Channel. As sunset faded over the snow mountains oppositeher anchorage, their white reflection lay like marble in the water. 

CHAPTER 24. 

1872: AGE 65. 

Picnic in Sholl Bay. Fuegians. Smythe's Channel. Comparison of Glacial Features with those of the Strait of Magellan. Ancud. Port of San Pedro. Bay of Concepcion. Three Weeks in Talcahuana. Collections. Geology. Land Journey to Santiago. Scenes along the Road. Report on Glacial Features to Mr. Peirce. Arrival at Santiago. Election as Foreign Associate of the Institute of France. Valparaiso. The Galapagos. Geological and Zoological Features. Arrival at San Francisco. 

The next day forces were divided. The vessel put out into theStrait again for sounding and dredging, while Agassiz, with asmaller party, landed in Sholl Bay. Here, after having made a fireand pitched a tent in which to deposit wraps, provisions etc. , thecompany dispersed in various directions along the shore, geologizing, botanizing, and collecting. Agassiz was especiallyengaged in studying the structure of the beach itself. He foundthat the ridge of the beach was formed by a glacial moraine, whileaccumulations of boulders, banked up in morainic ridges, concentricwith one another and with the beach moraine, extended far out fromthe shore like partly sunken reefs. The pebbles and boulders ofthese ridges were not local, or, at least, only partially so; theyhad the same geological character as those of the drift materialthroughout the Strait. 

The day was favorable for work, and there was little to remind oneof approaching winter. A creek of fresh water, that ran out uponone part of the beach, led up to a romantic brook, rushing downthrough a gorge bordered by moss-grown trees and carpeted by fernsand lichens in all its nooks and corners. This brook took its risein a small lake lying some half a mile behind the beach. Thecollections made along the shore in this excursion were large andvarious: star-fish, volutas, sea-urchins, sea-anemones, medusae, doris; many small fishes, also, from the tide-pools, beside anumber drawn in the seine. 

Later in the day, when the party had assembled around the beachfire for rest and refreshment, before returning to the vessel, their lunch was interrupted by strange and unexpected guests. Aboat rounded the point of the beach, and, as it came nearer, provedto be full of Fuegian natives, men, women, children, and dogs, their invariable companions. The men alone landed, some six orseven in number, and came toward the tent. Nothing could be morecoarse and repulsive than their appearance, in which the brutalityof the savage was in no way redeemed by physical strength ormanliness. They were almost naked, for the short, loose skins tiedaround the neck, and hanging from the shoulders, over the back, partly to the waist, could hardly be called clothing. With swollenbodies, thin limbs, and stooping forms; with a childish, yetcunning, leer on their faces, they crouched over the fire, spreading their hands toward its genial warmth, and all shriekingat once, "Tabac! tabac!" and "Galleta!"--biscuit. Tobacco there wasnone; but the remains of the lunch, such as it was, --hard bread andpork, --was distributed among them, and they greedily devoured it. Then the one who, judging from a certain deference paid him by theothers, might be the chief, or leader, seated himself on a stoneand sang in a singular kind of monotonous, chanting tone. Thewords, as interpreted by the gestures and expressions, seemed to bean improvisation concerning the strangers they had found upon thebeach, and were evidently addressed to them. There was somethingcurious in the character of this Fuegian song. Rather recitativethan singing, the measure had, nevertheless, certain divisions orpauses, as if to mark a kind of rhythm. It was brought to a closeat regularly recurring intervals, and ended always in the same way, and on the same note, with a rising inflection of the voice. Whenthe song was finished, a certain surprise and expectancy in thelisteners kept them silent. This seemed to trouble the singer, wholooked round with a comical air of inquiring disappointment. Thusreminded, the audience were quick to applaud, and then he laughedwith pleasure, imitated the clapping of the hands in an awkwardway, and nothing loth, began to sing again. 

The recall gun from the Hassler brought this strange scene to aclose, and the party hastened down to the beach, closely followedby their guests, who still clamorously demanded tobacco. Meanwhilethe women had brought the boat close to that of the Hassler at thelanding. They all began to laugh, talk, and gesticulate, and seemeda noisy grew, chattering unceasingly, with amazing rapidity, andall together. Their boat, with the babies and dogs to add to thetumult, was a perfect babel of voices. They put off at once, keeping as close as they could to the Hassler boat, and reachingthe vessel almost at the same time. They were not allowed to comeon board, but tobacco and biscuit, as well as bright calico andbeads for the women, were thrown down to them. They scrambled andsnatched fiercely, like wild animals, for whatever they couldcatch. They had some idea of barter, for when they found they hadreceived all that they were likely to get gratuitously, they heldup bows and arrows, wicker baskets, birds, and the largesea-urchins, which are an article of food with them. Even after thesteamer had started, they still clung to the side, praying, shrieking, screaming, for more "tabac. " When they found it ahopeless chase, they dropped off, and began again the same chantingrecitative, waving their hands in farewell. 

Always interested in the comparative study of the races, Agassizregretted that he had no other opportunity of observing the nativesof this region and comparing them with the Indians he had seenelsewhere, in Brazil and in the United States. It is true that heand his companions, when on shore, frequently came upon theirdeserted camps, or single empty huts; and their canoes followed theHassler several times, but never when it was convenient to stop andlet them come up with the vessel. This particular set were not in acanoe, but in a large boat of English build. Probably they hadstolen it, or had found it, perhaps, stranded on the shore. Theyare usually, however, in canoes of their own making. One can onlywonder that people ingenious enough to construct canoes so wellmodeled and so neatly and strongly put together, should haveinvented nothing better in the way of a house than a hut built offlexible branches, compared with which a wigwam is an elaboratedwelling. These huts are hood-like in shape, and too low for anyposture but that of squatting or lying down. In front is always ascorched spot on the ground, where their handful of fire hassmouldered; and at one side, a large heap of empty shells, showingthat they had occupied this place until they had exhausted thesupply of mussels, on which they chiefly live. When this is thecase, they move to some other spot, gather a few branches, reconstruct their frail shelter, and continue the same life. Untaught by their necessities, they wander thus, naked andhomeless, in snow, mist, and rain, as they have done for ages, asking of the land only a strip of beach and a handful of fire; andof the ocean, shell-fish enough to save them from starvation. 

The Hassler had now fairly entered upon Smythe's Channel, and wasanchored at evening (March 27th) in Otway Bay, a lake-like harbor, broken by islands. Mount Burney, a noble, snow-covered mountain, corresponding to Mount Sarmiento in grandeur of outline, was infull view, but was partially veiled in mist. On the following day, however, the weather was perfect for the sail past Sarmiento Rangeand Snowy Glacier, which were in sight all day. Blue could not bemore deep and pure, nor white more spotless, than their ice andsnow-fields. Toward the latter part of the day, an immense expanseof snow opened out a little beyond Snowy Range. It was covered withthe most curious snow hummocks, forming high cones over the wholesurface, their shadows slanting over the glittering snow in theafternoon sunshine. They were most fantastic in shape, and somefifty or sixty in number. At first sight, they resembled heaped-upmounds or pyramids of snow; but as the vessel approached, one groupof them, so combined as to simulate a fortification, showed a faceof rock where the snow had been blown away, and it seemed thereforeprobable that all were alike, --snow-covered pinnacles of rock. 

The evening anchorage on the 28th was in Mayne's Harbor, a prettyinlet of Owen's Island. Here the vessel was detained fortwenty-four hours by the breaking of the reversing rod. Theengineers repaired it to the best of their ability, with suchapparatus as they had, but it was a source of anxiety till a portwas reached where a new one could be supplied. The detention, hadit not been for such a cause, was welcome to the scientific party. Agassiz found the rounded and moutonnees surfaces and the generalmodeling of the outlines of ice no less marked here than in theStrait; and in a ramble over the hills above the anchorage, M. DePourtales came upon very distinct glacial scorings and furrows ondikes and ledges of greenstone and syenite. They were perfectlyregular, and could be connected by their trend from ledge to ledge, across intervening spaces of softer decomposed rock, from which allsuch surface markings had disappeared. 

The country above Mayne's Harbor was pretty, though somewhatbarren. Beyond the narrow belt of woods bordering the shore, thewalking was over soggy hummocks, with little growth upon themexcept moss, lichens, and coarse marsh grass. These were succeededby ridges of crumbling rock, between which were numerous smalllakes. The land seemed very barren of life. Even the shores of theponds were hardly inhabited. No song of bird or buzz of insectbroke the stillness. Rock after rock was turned over in the vainexpectation of finding living things on the damp under side atleast; and the cushions of moss were broken up in the samefruitless chase. All was barren and lifeless. Not so on the shore, where the collecting went on rapidly. Dredge and nets were at workall the morning, and abundant collections were made also from thelittle nooks and inlets of the beach. Agassiz found two newjelly-fishes, and christened them at once as the localitysuggested, one for Captain Mayne, the other for Professor Owen. Near the shore, birds also seemed more abundant. A pair ofkelp-geese and a steamer duck were brought in, and one of theofficers reported humming-birds flitting across the brook fromwhich the Hassler's tanks were filled. 

Early on the morning of the 30th, while mountains and snow-fields, woodland and water, still lay between moonlight and sunrise, theHassler started for Tarn Bay. It was a beautiful Easter Sunday, with very little wind, and a soft sky, broken by few clouds. Butsuch beginnings are too apt to be delusive in this region of wetand fog, and a heavy rain, with thick mist, came up in theafternoon. That night, for the first time, the Hassler missed heranchorage, and lay off the shore near an island, which affordedsome protection from the wind. A forlorn hope was detailed to theshore, where a large fire was kept burning all night, that thevessel might not lose her bearings and drift away. In the morningall was right again, and she kept on her course to Rowlet Narrows. 

This passage is formed by a deep gorge, cleft between lofty wallsover which many a waterfall foams from reservoirs of snow above. Agassiz observed two old glacier beds on the western side of thepass--two shallow depressions, lying arid and scored betweenswelling wooded ridges. He had not met in all the journey a betterlocality for the study of glacial effects than here. The sides ofthe channel show these traces throughout their whole length. Inthis same neighborhood, as a conspicuous foreground on the shore ofIndian Reach, to the south of Lackawanna Cove, is a large moraineresembling the "horse-backs, " in the State of Maine, New England. The top was as level as a railroad embankment. The anchorage forthe night was in Eden Harbor, and for that evening, at least, itwas lovely enough to deserve its name. The whole expanse of itsland-locked waters, held between mountains and broken by islands, was rosy and purple in the setting sun. The gates of the gardenwere closed, however, not by a flaming sword, but by animpenetrable forest, along the edge of which a scanty rim of beachhardly afforded landing or foothold. The collections here, therefore, were small; but a good haul was made with the trawl net, which gathered half-a-dozen species of echinoderms, some smallfishes, and a number of shells. Fog detained the vessel in EdenHarbor till a late hour in the morning, but the afternoon wasfavorable for the passage through the English Narrows, the mostcontracted part of Smythe's Channel. It is, indeed, a mere mountaindefile, through which the water rushes with such force that, innavigating it, great care was required to keep the vessel off therocks. Her anchorage at the close of the day was in Connor's Cove, a miniature harbor not unlike Borja Bay in the Strait. It was atranquil retreat. The water-birds seemed to find it so, for thesteamer ducks were trailing their long wakes through the water, anda large kind of stormy petrel sailed up to the vessel, and almostput himself into the hands of the sailors, with whom he remained anunresisting prisoner. 

Geologically, Agassiz found Connor's Cove of especial interest. Itruns east and west, opening on the eastern side of the channel; butthe knolls, that is to say, the rounded surfaces at its entrance, are furrowed across the cove, at right angles with it. In otherwords, the movement of the ice, always from south to north, hasbeen with Smythe's Channel, and across the Strait of Magellan. Indeed it seemed to Agassiz that all the glacial agency in Smythe'sChannel, the trend of the furrows, the worn surfaces whereon theywere to be found, and the steepness of southern exposures ascompared with the more rounded opposite slopes, pointed to the sameconclusion. 

On the third of April Agassiz left with regret this region of oceanand mountain, glacier, snow-field, and forest. The weeks he hadspent there were all too short for the work he had hoped to do. Yet, trained as he was in glacial phenomena, even so cursory anobservation satisfied him that in the southern, as in the northernhemisphere, the present glaciers are but a remnant of the ancientice-period. 

After two days of open sea and head winds, the next anchorage wasin Port San Pedro, a very beautiful bay opening on the north sideof Corcovado Gulf, with snow mountains in full sight; the Peak ofCorcovado and a wonderfully symmetrical volcanic mountain, Melimoya, white as purest marble to the summit, were clearlydefined against the sky. Forests clothed the shore on every side, and the shelving beach met the wood in a bank of wild Bromelia, most brilliant in color. Not only were excellent collections madeon this beach, but the shore was strewn with large accumulations oferratics. Among them was a green epidotic rock which Agassiz hadtraced to this spot from the Bay of San Antonio on the Patagoniancoast, without ever finding it in place. Some of the largerboulders had glacial furrows and scratches upon them, and all thehills bordering the shore were rounded and moutonnee. One of thegreat charms for Agassiz in the scenery of all this region, andespecially in the Strait of Magellan, was a kind of home feelingthat it gave him. Although the mountains rose from the ocean, instead of from the plain as in Switzerland, yet the snow-fieldsand the glaciers carried him back to his youth. To him, the sunsetof this evening in the Port San Pedro, with the singulartransparent rose color over the snow mountains, and the softsucceeding pallor, was the very reproduction of an Alpine sunset. 

The next morning brought a disappointment. From this point Agassizhad hoped to continue the voyage by the inside passage between themain-land and the island of Chiloe. This was of importance to him, on account of its geological relation to Smythe's Channel and theStrait of Magellan. In the absence of any good charts of thechannel, the Captain, after examining the shoals at the entrance, was forced to decide, almost as much to his own regret as to thatof Agassiz, not to attempt the further passage. Keeping up theouter coast of Chiloe, therefore, the vessel anchored before Ancudon the 8th of April. It was a heavenly day. The volcanic peak ofOsorno and the whole snowy Cordilleras were unveiled. The littletown above the harbor, with its outlying farms on the green andfertile hills around, seemed like the very centre of civilizationto people who had been so long out of the world. It is said to rainin Ancud three hundred and sixty-five days in the year. But on thisparticular afternoon it was a very sunny place, and the inhabitantsseemed to avail themselves of their rare privilege. Groups ofIndians, who had come across the river in the morning to sell theirmilk in the town, were resting in picturesque groups around theirempty milk-cans, the women wrapped in their long shawls, the men intheir ponchos and slouched hats; the country people were drivingout their double teams of strong, powerful oxen harnessed to woodentroughs filled with manure for the fields; the washerwomen werescrubbing and beating their linen along the roadside; the gardensof the poorest houses were bright with large shrubs of wildfuchsia, and, altogether, the aspect of the little place wascheerful and pretty. Agassiz had but two or three hours for a lookat the geology. Even this cursory glance sufficed to show him thatthe drift materials, even to their special mineralogical elements, were the same as in the Magellan Strait. Here they rested, however, on volcanic soil. 

Stopping at Lota for coal, but not long enough for any scientificwork, the Hassler entered Concepcion Bay on the 15th April, andanchored near Talcahuana, where she was to remain some three weeksfor the repair of her engine. This quaint, primitive little town isbuilt upon one of the finest harbors on the Pacific coast. Agassizwas fortunate in finding, through the kindness of Captain Johnson, a partially furnished house, where several large vacant rooms, opening on the "patio, " served admirably as scientificlaboratories. Here, then, he established himself with hisassistants. It was soon understood that every living thing wouldfind a market with him, and all the idle urchins about the townflocked to the house with specimens. An unceasing traffic of birds, shells, fish, etc. , went on there from morning to night, and to thevarious vendors were added groups of Indians coming to have theirphotographs taken. There were charming excursions and walks in theneighborhood, and the geology of the region was so interesting thatit determined Agassiz to go by land from Talcahuana to Valparaiso, on a search after any glacial tracks that might be found in thevalley lying between the Cordillera of the Andes and the CoastRange. Meanwhile the Hassler was to go on a dredging expedition tothe island of Juan Fernandez, and then proceed to Valparaiso, whereAgassiz was to join her a fortnight later. Although this expeditionwas under the patronage of the Coast Survey, the generosity of Mr. Thayer, so constantly extended to scientific aims, had followedAgassiz on this second journey. To his kindness he owed thepossibility of organizing an excursion apart from the direct objectof the voyage. This change of plan and its cause is told in thefollowing extract from his general report to Professor Peirce:--

APRIL 27th. 

While I was transcribing my Report, Pourtales came in with thestatement that he had noticed the first indication of an Andeanglacier in the vicinity. I have visited the locality twice since. It is a magnificent polished surface, as well preserved as any Ihave ever seen upon old glaciated ground or under glaciers of thepresent day, with well-marked furrows and scratches. Think of it! acharacteristic surface, indicating glacier action, in latitude 37degrees south, at the level of the sea! The place is only a fewfeet above tide level, upon the slope of a hill on which stand theruins of a Spanish fort, near the fishermen's huts of San Vicente, which lies between Concepcion Bay and the Bay of Aranco. Whetherthe polished surface is the work of a glacier descending from theAndes to the sea-shore or not, I have not yet been able todetermine. I find no volcanic pebbles or boulders in this vicinity, which, after my experience in San Carlos, I should expect all alongthe shore, if the glaciers of the Andes had descended to the levelof the ocean, in this part of the country. The erratics here havethe character of those observed farther south. It is true thefurrows and scratches of this polished surface run mainly from eastto west; but there are some crossing the main trend, at anglesranging from 20 to 30 degrees, and running south-east-north-west. Moreover, the magnetic variation is 18 degrees 3 degrees atTalcahuano April 23rd, the true meridian bearing to the right ofthe magnetic. I shall soon know what to make of this, as I startto-morrow for the interior, to go to Santiago and join the shipagain at Valparaiso. I have hired a private carriage, to be ableto stop whenever I wish so to do. I also take a small seine to fishfor fresh water fishes in the many streams intervening between thisplace and Valparaiso. The trend of the glacial scratches in SanVicente reminds me of a fact I have often observed in New Englandnear the sea-shore, where the glacial furrows dip to a considerableextent eastward toward the deep ocean, while further inland theirtrend is more regular and due North and South. . . 

"I had almost forgotten to say that I have obtained unquestionableevidence of the cretaceous age of the coal deposits of Lota and theadjoining localities, north and south, which are generally supposedto be tertiary lignites. They are overlaid by sandstone containingBaculites! I need not adduce other evidence to satisfy geologistsof the correctness of my assertion. I have myself collected a greatmany of these fossils, in beds resting upon coal-seams. Ever trulyyours, LOUIS AGASSIZ. "

On the 28th of April, then, Agassiz left Talcahuana, accompanied byMrs. Agassiz, and by Dr. Steindachner, who was to assist him inmaking collections along the way. They were to travel post, alongthe diligence road, until they reached Curicu, within half a day ofSantiago, where railroad travel began. It was a beautiful journey, and though the rainy season was impending, the fair weather wasuninterrupted. The way lay for the most part through anagricultural district of corn, wheat, and vineyards. In thisstrange land, where seasons are reversed, and autumn has changedplaces with spring, the work of harvest and vintage was just goingon. The road was full of picturesque scenes: troops of mules mightbe met, a hundred at a time, laden with corn-sacks; the queer, primitive carts of the country creaked along, carrying hugewine-jars filled with the fresh new juice of the grape; the roadwas gay with country people in their holiday dresses; the women, who wore their bright shawls like a kind of mantle, were sometimeson foot and sometimes pillioned behind the men, who were invariablyon horseback, and whose brilliant ponchos and fine riding added tothe impression of life and color. Rivers and streams were frequent;and as there were no bridges, the scenes at the fords, sometimescrossed on rafts, sometimes on flat boats, worked by ropes, wereexciting and picturesque. For rustic interiors along the road side, there were the huts of the working people, rough trellises oftree-trunks interwoven with branches; green as arbors while fresh, a coarse thatch when dry. There was always a large open space infront, sheltered by the projecting thatch of the house, andfurnished sometimes with a rough table and benches. Here would bethe women at their work, or the children at play, or sometimes thedrovers taking their lunch of tortillas and wine, while theiranimals munched their midday meal hard by. The scenery was oftenfine. On the third day the fertile soil, watered by many rivers, was exchanged for a sandy plain, broken by a thorny mimosascattered over the surface. This plain lay between the Cordilleraof the Andes and the Coast Range. As the road advanced fartherinland, the panorama of the Cordilleras became more and morestriking. In the glow of the sunset, the peaks of the abrupt, jagged walls and the volcano-like summits were defined against thesky in all their rugged beauty. There was little here to remind oneof the loveliness of the Swiss Alps. With no lower green slopes, nosoft pasturage grounds leading gently up to rocky heights, theAndes, at least in this part of their range, rise arid, stern, andbold from base to crest, a fortress wall unbroken by tree or shrub, or verdure of any kind, and relieved only by the rich and variedcoloring of the rock. 

The lodgings for the night were found in small towns along theroad, Tome, Chilian, Linarez, Talca, Curicu, and once, when therewas no inn within reach, at a hospitable hacienda. 

A brief sketch of the geological observations made on thisexcursion is found in a letter from Agassiz to Mr. Peirce. He neverwrote out, as he had intended to do, a more detailed report. 

OFF GUATEMALA, July 29, 1872. 

MY DEAR PEIRCE, . . . I have another new chapter concerning glacial phenomena, gathered during our land-journey from Talcahuana to Santiago. It isso complicated a story that I do not feel equal now to recordingthe details in a connected statement, but will try to give you themain facts in a few words. 

There is a broad valley between the Andes and the Coast Range, thevalley of Chilian, extending from the Gulf of Ancud, or Port deMott, to Santiago and farther north. This valley is a continuation, upon somewhat higher level, of the channels which, from the Straitof Magellan to Chiloe, separate the islands from the main-land, with the sole interruption of Tres Montes. Now this great valley, extending for more than twenty-five degrees of latitude, is aCONTINUOUS GLACIER BOTTOM, showing plainly that for its wholelength the great southern ice-sheet has been retreating southwardin it. I could find nowhere any indication that glaciers descendingfrom the Andes had crossed this valley and reached the shores ofthe Pacific. In a few brief localities only did I notice Andean, i. E. Volcanic, erratics upon the loose materials filling the oldglacier bottom. Between Curicu and Santiago, however, facing thegorge of Tenon, I saw two distinct lateral moraines, parallel toone another, chiefly composed of volcanic boulders, resting uponthe old drift, and indicating by their position the course of alarge glacier that once poured down from the Andes of Tenon, andcrossed the main valley, without, however, extending beyond theeastern slope of the Coast Range. These moraines are so well markedthat they are known throughout the country as the cerillos ofTenon, but nobody suspects their glacial origin; even thegeologists of Santiago assign a volcanic origin to them. What isdifficult to describe in this history are the successive retrogradesteps of the great southern ice-field that, step by step, leftlarger or smaller tracts of the valley to the north of it free ofice, so that large glacial lakes could be formed, and seem, indeed, always to have existed along the retreating edge of the greatsouthern glacier. The natural consequence is that there areeverywhere stratified terraces without border barriers (since thesewere formed only by the ice that has vanished), resting atsuccessively higher or lower levels, as you move north or south, upon unstratified drift of older date; the northernmost of theseterraces being the oldest, while those further south belong to latersteps in the waning of the ice-fields. From these data I infer thatmy suggestion concerning the trend of the strike upon the polishedand glaciated surface of the vicinity of Talcahuana, alluded to inthe postscript of my last letter, is probably correct. . . 

At Santiago Agassiz rested a day or two. Here, as everywherethroughout the country, he met with the greatest kindness andcordiality. A public reception and dinner were urged upon him bythe city, but his health obliged him to decline this and likehonors elsewhere. Among the letters awaiting him here, was onewhich brought him a pleasant surprise. It announced his election asForeign Associate of the Institute of France, --"one of the eight. "As the crowning honor of his scientific career, this was, ofcourse, very gratifying to him. In writing soon after to theEmperor of Brazil, who had expressed a warm interest in hiselection, he says: "The distinction pleased me the more because sounexpected. Unhappily it is usually a brevet of infirmity, or atleast of old age, and in my case it is to a house in ruins that thediploma is addressed. I regret it the more because I have neverfelt more disposed for work, and yet never so fatigued by it. "

From Santiago Agassiz proceeded to Valparaiso, where he rejoinedthe ship's company. The events of their cruise had been lesssatisfactory than those of his land-journey, for, owing to therottenness of the ropes, produced by dampness, the hauls of thedredge from the greatest depths had been lost. Several pauses fordredging in shallower waters were made with good success, nevertheless, on the way up the coast to Callao. From there theHassler put out to sea once more, for the Galapagos, arrivingbefore Charles Island on the 10th of June, and visiting insuccession Albemarle, James, Jarvis, and Indefatigable islands. 

Agassiz enjoyed extremely his cruise among these islands of suchrare geological and zoological interest. Purely volcanic incharacter, and of very recent formation, they yet support a faunaand flora quite their own, very peculiar and characteristic. Albemarle Island was, perhaps, the most interesting of all. It is abarren mountain rising from the sea, its base and slope coveredwith small extinct craters. No less than fifty--some perfectlysymmetrical, others irregular, as if blasted out on one side--couldbe counted from the deck as the vessel neared the shore. Indeed, the whole island seemed like some subterranean furnace, of whichthese craters were the chimneys. The anchorage was in Tagus Sound, a deep, quiet bay, less peaceful once, for its steep sides areformed by the walls of an old crater. 

The next day, June 15, was spent by the whole scientific party in aramble on shore. The landing was at the foot of a ravine. Climbingits left bank, they were led by a short walk to the edge of a largecrater, which held a beautiful lake in its cup. It was, in fact, acrater within a crater, for a second one, equally symmetrical, roseoutside and above it. Following the brink of this lake to its upperend, they struck across to the head of the ravine. It terminated ina ridge, which looked down upon an immense field or sea of hardenedlava, spreading over an area of several miles till it reached theocean. This ancient bed of lava was full of the most singular andfantastic details of lava structure. It was a field of charredruins, among which were more or less open caves or galleries, somelarge enough to hold a number of persons standing upright, othershardly allowing room to creep through on hands and knees. Roundeddomes were common, sometimes broken, sometimes whole; now and thensome great lava bubble was pierced with a window blasted out of theside, through which one could look down to the floor of a deep, underground hollow. 

The whole company, some six or eight persons, lunched in one of thecaves, resting on the seats formed by the ledges of lava along itssides. It had an entrance at either end, was some forty feet long, at least ten feet high in the centre, and perhaps six or eight feetwide. Probably never before had it served as a banqueting hall. Such a hollow tunnel or arch had been formed wherever the interiorof a large mass of lava, once cooled, had become heated again, andhad flowed out, leaving the outside crust standing. The whole storyof this lava bed is so clearly told in its blackened and extinctremains, that it needs no stretch of the imagination to recreatethe scene. It is again, a heaving, palpitating sheet of fire; thedead slags are aglow, and the burned-out furnaces cast up theirmolten, blazing contents, as of old. Now it is the home of thelarge red and orange-colored iguanas, of which a number werecaptured, both alive and dead. These islands proved, indeed, admirable collecting grounds, the more interesting from thepeculiarity of their local fauna. 

FROM AGASSIZ TO PROFESSOR PEIRCE. 

OFF GUATEMALA, July 29. 

. . . Our visit to the Galapagos has been full of geological andzoological interest. It is most impressive to see an extensivearchipelago, of MOST RECENT ORIGIN, inhabited by creatures sodifferent from any known in other parts of the world. Here we havea positive limit to the length of time that may have been grantedfor the transformation of these animals, if indeed they are in anyway derived from others dwelling in different parts of the world. The Galapagos are so recent that some of the islands are barelycovered with the most scanty vegetation, itself peculiar to theseislands. Some parts of their surface are entirely bare, and a greatmany of the craters and lava streams are so fresh, that theatmospheric agents have not yet made an impression on them. Theirage does not, therefore, go back to earlier geological periods;they belong to our times, geologically speaking. Whence, then, dotheir inhabitants (animals as well as plants) come? If descendedfrom some other type, belonging to any neighboring land, then itdoes not require such unspeakably long periods for thetransformation of species as the modern advocates of transmutationclaim; and the mystery of change, with such marked andcharacteristic differences between existing species, is onlyincreased, and brought to a level with that of creation. If theyare autochthones, from what germs did they start into existence? Ithink that careful observers, in view of these facts, will have toacknowledge that our science is not yet ripe for a fair discussionof the origin of organized beings. . . 

There is little to tell for the rest of the voyage that cannot becondensed into a few words. There was a detention for despatchesand for Coast Survey business at Panama, --a delay which was turnedto good account in collecting, both in the Bay and on the Isthmus. At San Diego, also, admirable collections were made, and pleasantdays were spent. This was the last station on the voyage of theHassler. She reached her destination and entered the Golden Gate onthe 24th of August, 1872. Agassiz was touched by his reception inSan Francisco. Attentions and kindnesses were showered upon himfrom all sides, but his health allowed him to accept only suchhospitalities as were of the most quiet and private nature. Hepassed a month in San Francisco, but was unable to undertake any ofthe well-known excursions to the Yosemite Valley or the greattrees. Rest and home became every day more imperative necessities. 

CHAPTER 25. 

1872-1873: AGE 65-66. 

Return to Cambridge. Summer School proposed. Interest of Agassiz. Gift of Mr. Anderson. Prospectus of Penikese School. Difficulties. Opening of School. Summer Work. Close of School. Last Course of Lectures at Museum. Lecture before Board of Agriculture. Illness. Death. Place of Burial. 

In October, 1872, Agassiz returned to Cambridge. To arrange thecollections he had brought back, to write a report of his journeyand its results, to pass the next summer quietly at his Nahantlaboratory, continuing his work on the Sharks and Skates, for whichhe had brought home new and valuable material, seemed the naturalsequence of his year of travel. But he found a new scheme ofeducation on foot; one for which he had himself given the firstimpulse, but which some of his younger friends had carefullyconsidered and discussed in his absence, being confident that withhis help it might be accomplished. The plan was to establish asummer school of natural history somewhere on the coast ofMassachusetts, where teachers from our schools and colleges couldmake their vacations serviceable, both for work and recreation, bythe direct study of nature. No sooner was Agassiz once more at homethan he was confronted by this scheme, and he took it up withcharacteristic ardor. Means there were none, nor apparatus, norbuilding, nor even a site for one. There was only the ideal, and tothat he brought the undying fervor of his intellectual faith. Theprospectus was soon sketched, and, once before the public, itawakened a strong interest. In March, when the Legislature ofMassachusetts made their annual visit to the Museum of Comparativezoology, Agassiz laid this new project before them as one of deepinterest for science in general, and especially for schools andcolleges throughout the land. He considered it also an educationalbranch of the Museum, having, as such, a claim on their sympathy, since it was in the line of the direct growth and continuance ofthe same work. Never did he plead more eloquently for the cause ofeducation. His gift as a speaker cannot easily be described. It wasborn of conviction, and was as simple as it was impassioned. Itkept the freshness of youth, because the things of which he spokenever grew old to him, but moved him to the last hour of his lifeas forcibly as in his earlier years. 

This appeal to the Legislature, spoken in the morning, chanced tobe read in the evening papers of the same day by Mr. John Anderson, a rich merchant of New York. It at once enlisted his sympathy bothfor the work and for the man. Within the week he offered toAgassiz, as a site for the school, the island of Penikese, inBuzzard's Bay, with the buildings upon it, consisting of afurnished dwelling-house and barn. Scarcely was this gift acceptedthan he added to it an endowment of 50, 000 dollars for theequipment of the school. Adjectives belittle deeds like these. Thebare statement says more than the most laudatory epithets. 

Agassiz was no less surprised than touched at the aid thusunexpectedly offered. In his letter of acknowledgment he says: "Youdo not know what it is suddenly and unexpectedly to find a friendat your side, full of sympathy, and offering support to a schemewhich you have been trying to carry out under difficulties and withvery scanty means. I feel grateful to you for making the road soeasy, and I believe you will have the permanent gratitude ofscientific men here and elsewhere, for I have the utmost confidencethat this summer school will give valuable opportunities fororiginal research, as well as for instruction. " At Agassiz'ssuggestion the school was to bear the name of "The Anderson Schoolof Natural History. " Mr. Anderson wished to substitute the name ofAgassiz for his own. This Agassiz absolutely refused to permit, saying that he was but one of many scientific men who had alreadyoffered their services to the school for the coming summer, some ofwhom would, no doubt, continue to work for it in the future, andall of whom would be equally indebted to Mr. Anderson. It was, therefore, most suitable that it should bear his name, and so itwas agreed. 

Thus the material problem was solved. Name and habitation werefound; it remained only to organize the work for which so fitting ahome had been provided. Mr. Anderson's gift was received toward theclose of March, and, in the course of the following month, thepreliminaries were concluded, and the property was transferred tothe trustees of the Anderson School. 

Few men would have thought it feasible to build dormitories andlaboratories, and provide working apparatus for fifty pupils aswell as for a large corps of teachers, between May and July. But toAgassiz no obstacles seemed insurmountable where great aims wereinvolved, and the opening of the school was announced for the 8thof July. He left Boston on Friday, the 4th of July, for the island. At New Bedford he was met by a warning from the architect that itwould be simply impossible to open the school at the appointeddate. With characteristic disregard of practical difficulties, heanswered that it must be possible, for postponement was out of thequestion. He reached the island on Saturday, the 5th, in theafternoon. The aspect was certainly discouraging. The dormitory wasup, but only the frame was completed; there were no floors, nor wasthe roof shingled. The next day was Sunday. Agassiz called thecarpenters together. He told them that the scheme was neither formoney, nor for the making of money; no personal gain was involvedin it. It was for the best interests of education, and for thatalone. Having explained the object, and stated the emergency, heasked whether, under these circumstances, the next day was properlyfor rest or for work. They all answered "for work. " Theyaccordingly worked the following day from dawn till dark, and bynight-fall the floors were laid. On Monday, the 7th, the partitionswere put up, dividing the upper story into two large dormitories;the lower, into sufficiently convenient working-rooms. On Tuesdaymorning (the 8th), with the help of a few volunteers, chieflyladies connected with the school, who had arrived a day or two inadvance, the dormitories, which were still encumbered by shavings, sawdust, etc. , were swept, and presently transformed into notunattractive sleeping-halls. They were divided by neat sets offurniture into equal spaces, above each of which was placed thename of the person to whom it was appropriated. When all was done, the large open rooms, with their fresh pine walls, floors, andceilings, the rows of white beds down the sides, and the manywindows looking to the sea, were pretty and inviting enough. Ifthey somewhat resembled hospital wards, they were too airy andcheerful to suggest sickness either of body or mind. 

Next, a large barn belonging to Mr. Anderson's former establishmentwas cleared, and a new floor laid there also. This was hardlyfinished (the last nails were just driven) when the steamer, withits large company, touched the wharf. There was barely time toarrange the seats and to place a table with flowers where theguests of honor were to sit, and Agassiz himself was to stand, whenall arrived. The barn was, on the whole, not a bad lecture-room ona beautiful summer day. The swallows, who had their nests withoutnumber in the rafters, flew in and out, and twittered softlyoverhead; and the wide doors, standing broadly open to the blue skyand the fresh fields let in the sea-breeze, and gave a view of thelittle domain. Agassiz had arranged no programme of exercises, trusting to the interest of the occasion to suggest what might bestbe said or done. But, as he looked upon his pupils gathered thereto study nature with him, by an impulse as natural as it wasunpremeditated, he called upon them to join in silently askingGod's blessing on their work together. The pause was broken by thefirst words of an address no less fervent than its unspokenprelude. * (* This whole scene is fitly told in Whittier's poem, "The Prayer of Agassiz". )

Thus the day, which had been anticipated with so much anxiety, passed off, unclouded by any untoward accident, and at evening theguests had departed. Students and teachers, a company of some fiftyor sixty persons, were left to share the island with the sea-gullswhose haunt it was. 

We will not enter into the daily details of the school. It was anew phase of teaching, even for Agassiz, old as he was in the work. Most of his pupils were mature men and women, some of whom had beenteachers themselves for many years. He had, therefore, trainedminds to deal with, and the experience was at that time as novel asit was interesting. The novelty has worn off now. Summer schoolsfor advanced students, and especially for teachers, have takentheir place in the general system of education; and, though thePenikese school may be said to have died with its master, it livesanew in many a sea-side laboratory organized on the same plan, insummer schools of Botany and field classes of Geology. The impetusit gave was not, and cannot be, lost, since it refreshed andvitalized methods of teaching. 

Beside the young men who formed his corps of teachers, among whomthe resident professors were Dr. Burt G. Wilder, of CornellUniversity, and Professor Alpheus S. Packard, now of BrownUniversity, Agassiz had with him some of his oldest friends andcolleagues. Count de Pourtales was there, superintending thedredging, for which there were special conveniences, Mr. Charles G. Galloupe having presented the school with a yacht for the expresspurpose. This generous gift gave Agassiz the greatest pleasure, andcompleted the outfit of the school as nothing else could have done. Professor Arnold Guyot, also, --Agassiz's comrade in younger years, --his companion in many an Alpine excursion, --came to the island togive a course of lectures, and remained for some time. It was theirlast meeting in this world, and together they lived over their daysof youthful adventure. The lectures of the morning and afternoonwould sometimes be followed by an informal meeting held on a littlehill, which was a favorite resort at sunset. There the wholecommunity gathered around the two old friends, to hear them talk oftheir glacial explorations, one recalling what the other hadforgotten, till the scenes lived again for themselves, and becamealmost equally vivid for their listeners. The subject came upnaturally, for, strange to say, this island in a New England baywas very suggestive of glacial phenomena. Erratic materials andboulders transported from the north were scattered over itssurface, and Agassiz found the illustrations for his lectures onthis topic ready to his hand. Indeed, some of his finest lectureson the ice-period were given at Penikese. 

Nothing could be less artificial, more free from constraint orformality, than the intercourse between him and his companions ofthis summer. He was at home with every member of the settlement. Ill-health did not check the readiness of his sympathy; languor didnot chill the glow of his enthusiasm. All turned to him for helpand inspiration. Walking over their little sovereignty together, hunting for specimens on its beaches, dredging from the boats, inthe laboratory, or the lecture-room, the instruction had always thecharacter of the freest discussion. Yet the work, although combinedwith out-of-door pleasures, and not without a certain holidayelement, was no play. On the part of the students, the applicationwas close and unremitting; on the part of the teachers, theinstruction, though untrammeled by routine, was sustained andsystematic. 

Agassiz himself frequently gave two lectures a day. In the morningsession he would prepare his class for the work of the day; in theafternoon he would draw out their own observations by questions, and lead them, by comparison and combination of the facts they hadobserved, to understand the significance of their results. Everylecture from him at this time was a lesson in teaching as well asin natural history, and to many of his hearers this gave hislectures a twofold value, as bearing directly upon their ownoccupation. In his opening address he had said to them: "You willfind the same elements of instruction all about you wherever youmay be teaching. You can take your classes out, and give them thesame lessons, and lead them up to the same subjects you areyourselves studying here. And this mode of teaching children is sonatural, so suggestive, so true. That is the charm of teaching fromNature herself. No one can warp her to suit his own views. Shebrings us back to absolute truth as often as we wander. "

This was the bright side of the picture. Those who stood nearest toAgassiz, however, felt that the strain not only of work, but of theanxiety and responsibility attendant upon a new and importantundertaking, was perilous for him. There were moments when thisbecame apparent, and he himself felt the danger. He persevered, nevertheless, to the end of the summer, and only left Penikese whenthe school broke up. 

In order to keep the story of this final effort unbroken, someevents of great interest to Agassiz and of importance to the Museumhave been omitted. In the spring the Museum had received a grant of25, 000 dollars from the Legislature. To this was added 100, 000dollars, a birthday gift to Agassiz in behalf of the institution heso much loved. This last sum was controlled by no official body andwas to be expended at his own good will and pleasure, either incollections, publications, or scientific assistance, as seemed tohim best. He therefore looked forward to a year of greater ease andefficiency in scientific work than he had ever enjoyed before. Onreturning from Penikese, full of the new possibilities thus openedto him, he allowed himself a short rest, partly at the sea-shore, partly in the mountains, and was again at his post in the Museum inOctober. 

His last course of lectures there was on one of his favoritetopics, --the type of Radiates as connected with the physicalhistory of the earth, from the dawn of organic life till now. Inhis opening lecture he said to his class: "You must learn to lookupon fossil forms as the antiquarian looks upon his coins. Theremains of animals and plants have the spirit of their timeimpressed upon them, as strongly as the spirit of the age isimpressed upon its architecture, its literature, its coinage. Iwant you to become so familiar with these forms, that you can readoff at a glance their character and associations. " In this spirithis last course was conceived. It was as far-reaching and as clearas usual, nor did his delivery evince failure of strength or ofmental power. If he showed in any way the disease which was eventhen upon him, it was by an over-tension of the nerves, which gaveincreased fervor to his manner. Every mental effort was, however, succeeded by great physical fatigue. 

At the same time he had undertaken a series of articles in the"Atlantic Monthly, " entitled, "Evolution and Permanence of Type. "They were to have contained his own convictions regarding theconnection between all living beings, upon which his studies hadled him to conclusions so different from the philosophy of the day. Of these papers, only one was completed. It was his last word uponscience; the correction of the proofsheets was the last act of hisworking life, and the article was published after his death. In ithe claimed that the law of evolution, in a certain sense as true tohim as to any so-called evolutionist, was a law "controllingdevelopment, and keeping types within appointed cycles of growth. "He maintained that this law acts within definite limits, and neverinfringes upon the great types, each one of which is, in his view, a structural unit in itself. Even metamorphoses, he adds, "have allthe constancy and invariability of other modes of embryonic growth, and have never been known to lead to any transition of one speciesinto another. " Of heredity he says: "The whole subject ofinheritance is exceedingly intricate, working often in a seeminglycapricious and fitful way. Qualities, both good and bad, aredropped as well as acquired, and the process ends sometimes in thedegradation of the type, and the survival of the unfit rather thanthe fittest. The most trifling and fantastic tricks of inheritanceare quoted in support of the transmutation theory; but little issaid of the sudden apparition of powerful original qualities, whichalmost always rise like pure creations, and are gone with their dayand generation. The noblest gifts are exceptional, and are rarelyinherited; this very fact seems to me an evidence of something moreand higher than mere evolution and transmission concerned in theproblem of life. In the same way the matter of natural and sexualselection is susceptible of very various interpretations. No doubt, on the whole, Nature protects her best. But it would not bedifficult to bring together an array of facts as striking as thoseproduced by the evolutionists in favor of their theory, to showthat sexual selection is by no means always favorable to theelimination of the chaff, and the preservation of the wheat. Anatural attraction, independent of strength or beauty, is anunquestionable element in this problem, and its action is seenamong animals as well as among men. The fact that fine progeny arenot infrequently the offspring of weak parents, and vice versa, points, perhaps, to some innate power of redress by which thecaprices of choice are counterbalanced. But there can be no doubtthat types are as often endangered as protected by the so-calledlaw of sexual selection. "

"As to the influence of climate and physical conditions, " hecontinues, "we all know their power for evil and for good uponliving beings. But there is, nevertheless, nothing more striking inthe whole book of nature than the power shown by types and speciesto resist physical conditions. Endless evidence may be brought fromthe whole expanse of land and air and water, showing that identicalphysical conditions will do nothing toward the merging of speciesinto one another, neither will variety of conditions do anythingtoward their multiplication. One thing only we know absolutely, andin this treacherous, marshy ground of hypothesis and assumption, itis pleasant to plant one's foot occasionally upon a solid fact hereand there. Whatever be the means of preserving and transmittingproperties, the primitive types have remained permanent andunchanged, --in the long succession of ages, amid all the appearanceand disappearance of kinds, the fading away of one species and thecoming in of another, --from the earliest geological periods to thepresent day. How these types were first introduced, how the specieswhich have successively represented them have replaced one another, --these are the vital questions to which no answer has been given. We are as far from any satisfactory solution of this problem as ifdevelopment theories had never been discussed. "

In conclusion, he sketches the plan of these articles. "I hope infuture articles to show, first, that, however broken the geologicalrecord may be, there is a complete sequence in many parts of it, from which the character of the succession may be ascertained;secondly, that, since the most exquisitely delicate structures, aswell as embryonic phases of growth of the most perishable nature, have been preserved from very early deposits, we have no right toinfer the disappearance of types because their absence disprovessome favorite theory; and, lastly, that there is no evidence of adirect descent of later from earlier species in the geologicalsuccession of animals. "

This paper contained the sentence so often quoted since, "Aphysical fact is as sacred as a moral principle. Our own naturedemands from us this double allegiance. " This expressed the secretof his whole life. Every fact in nature was sacred to him, as partof an intellectual conception expressed in the history of the earthand the beings living upon it. 

On the 2nd of December, he was called to a meeting of theMassachusetts Board of Agriculture at Fitchburg, where he lecturedin the evening on "The structural growth of domesticated animals. "Those who accompanied him, and knew the mental and physicaldepression which had hung about him for weeks, could not see himtake his place on the platform, without anxiety. And yet, when heturned to the blackboard, and, with a single sweep of the chalk, drew the faultless outline of an egg, it seemed impossible thatanything could be amiss with the hand or the brain that were sosteady and so clear. 

The end, nevertheless, was very near. Although he dined withfriends the next day, and was present at a family festival thatweek, he spoke of a dimness of sight, and of feeling "strangelyasleep. " On the 6th he returned early from the Museum, complainingof great weariness, and from that time he never left his room. Attended in his illness by his friends, Dr. Brown-Sequard and Dr. Morrill Wyman, and surrounded by his family, the closing week ofhis life was undisturbed by acute suffering and full of domestichappiness. Even the voices of his brother and sisters were notwholly silent, for the wires that thrill with so many humaninterests brought their message of greeting and farewell across theocean to his bedside. The thoughts and aims for which he had livedwere often on his lips, but the affections were more vivid than theintellect in these last hours. The end came very peacefully, on the14th of December, 1873. He lies buried at Mount Auburn. The boulderthat makes his monument came from the glacier of the Aar, not farfrom the spot where his hut once stood; and the pine-trees whichare fast growing up to shelter it were sent by loving hands fromhis old home in Switzerland. The land of his birth and the land ofhis adoption are united in his grave. 

INDEX. 

Aar, glacier. Last visit to. Boulder-monument from. 

Abert, Colonel. 

"Academy, The Little". 

Ackermann. 

Actiniae. 

Adelstaetten. 

Agassiz, Alexander. 

Agassiz, Auguste. 

Agassiz, Cecile Braun. Talent as an artist. 

Agassiz, Elizabeth Cary. 

Agassiz, Louis. As a teacher. Popular reading. Becomes pastor at Concise. Death. 

Agassiz, Jean Louis Rodolphe. Birthplace. First aquarium. Early education. Love of natural history. Boyish studies and amusements. Taste for handicraft; its after use. Adventure with his brother on the ice. Goes to Bienne. College of Bienne. Vacations. Own sketch of plans of study at fourteen. School and college note-books. Distaste for commercial life. Goes to Lausanne. To the medical school at Zurich. Copies books on natural history. First excursion in the Alps. Offer of adoption by a Genevese gentleman. Goes to Heidelberg. Student life. Described in Braun's letters. At Carlsruhe. Illness. At Munich. Description of Museum at Stuttgart. Of mammoth. At Munich. "The Little Academy". "Fresh-water fishes of Europe". Desire to travel. Vacation trip. Work on Brazilian fishes. Second vacation trip. Growing collections. Plans for travel with Humboldt. Doctor of philosophy. At Orbe and Cudrefin. Death of Dr. Mayor. Doctor of medicine. New interest in medicine. First work on fossil fishes. At Vienna. Negotiations with Cotta. University life. At home. Studies on cholera. Arrives in Paris. Homesickness. Cuvier gives him his fossil fishes. Last interview with Cuvier. Embarrassments. Offer from Ferussac. Plans for disposing of collection. Curious dream. Humboldt's gift. First sight of sea. Plans for going to Neuchatel. Inducements to stay in Paris. Birthday festival. Call to Neuchatel. First lecture at Neuchatel. Success as a teacher. Impulse given to science. Children's lectures. Call to Heidelberg. Declination. Sale of collection. Threatened blindness. Publishing "Fossil Fishes". Marriage. Growing reputation. Invited to England. Receives Wollaston prize. Views on classification and development. Difficulties in the work on "Fossil Fishes". First visit to England. Material for "Fossil Fishes". Return to Neuchatel. First relations with New England. Second visit to England. Various works. Receives Wollaston medal. First glacial work. Sale of original drawings of "Fossil Fishes". On the Jura. "glacial theory" announced. Opposition. Invitation to Geneva. To Lausanne. Death of his father. Lithographical press. Variety of work. Researches on mollusks. Chromolithographs. Elected into Royal Society. New glacial work. First English letter. "Etudes sur les Glaciers". On the glacier of the Aar. "Hotel des Neuchatelois". Work. Ascent of the Strahleck. Of the Siedelhorn. Second visit to England. In the Highlands. In Ireland. Researches in the interior of glacier. Ascent of the Ewigschneehorn. Of the Jungfrau. On the Viescher. The chalet of Meril. The Aletsch. The Col of Rotthal. The peak. The descent. Zoological work. Various publications. Unity in work. On glaciers. "Fossil Fishes". Gifts from the king of Prussia. Plans for visiting the United States. Microscopic study of fossil fishes. Critical point. Publishes "Fossil Fishes". Not an evolutionist. Belief in a Creator. Fish skeletons. Plan of creation. Last visit to glacier. Receives Monthyon prize. Publishes "Systeme Glaciaire". Sails for America. Arrives in Boston. Lectures. Their success. Visit to New Haven. Impressions. American hospitality. Mercantile Library Association. New York. Princeton. Philadelphia. American scientific men. Hudson River. West Point. Albany. Lectures on glaciers. American forests. Erratic phenomena. Medusae and polyps. Plans for travel. At East Boston. First birthday in America. On the "Bibb". First dredging. Leaves Prussian service. Professor at Harvard. Removes to Cambridge. Death of his wife. Begins a collection. Excursion to Lake Superior. "Principles of Zoology" published. Second marriage. Arrival of his children. Examination of Florida reefs. Radiates. Professor at Charleston, S. C. Laboratory on Sullivan's Island. The "Hollow Tree". Origin of human race. Receives the "Prix Cuvier". Lectures at Smithsonian Institution. Made regent of. Growth of collections. Their sale. Illness at Charleston. Relation of living to fossil animals. Return to the north. Invitation to Zurich. And refusal. Circular on collecting fishes. And response. New house in Cambridge. Manner of study. Weekly meetings. Renewed lectures. School for young ladies opened. And success. Courses of lectures. Close. "Contributions to the Natural History of the United States" projected. Concluded. Fiftieth birthday. Laboratory at Nahant. Invitation to Paris. Refusal, and reasons. Receives cross of Legion of Honor. Dangerous state of collections. An ideal museum. "Museum of Comparative Zoology" founded. Visit to Europe. Teaching at museum. Attitude during civil war. Urges founding National Academy. Naturalized. Receives Copley medal. Lecturing tour. Ethnographical collections. Hydrographical distribution of animals. Future of negro race. Visit to Maine. To Brazil. Return. At Lowell Institute. At Cooper Institute. Illness. Journey to the West. Professor at Cornell University. Address at Humboldt Centennial. Illness. Anxiety for Museum. Restored health. Hassler expedition. At Talcahuana. Journey from Talcahuana to Santiago. Elected Foreign Associate of the Institute of France. At the Galapagos islands. At San Francisco. Return to Cambridge. Summer school projected. Gift of Penikese. Opening of school. Last lectures at Museum. Last work. Last lecture. Last visit to Museum. Death. 

Agassiz, Rose Mayor. Sympathy with her son. At Concise. Visit to. Death. 

Albany. 

Albemarle Island. 

Aletsch, glacier of the. 

Alps, first excursion in. Later excursions. First permanent station. 

Amalgamation. 

Amazons, the. 

America, native races of. 

America, South, native races of. 

American forests. 

Ancud. 

Anderson, John. 

Anderson School of Natural History. Opening. 

Anthony, J. G. 

Asterolepis. 

Australian race. 

Austrian custom-house officers. 

Bache, A. D. 

Bachelor's Peak. 

Baer. 

Bailey, Professor. 

Baird, S. F. 

Balanus. 

Bancroft, George. 

Barbados. 

Barnard, J. M. 

Beaumont, Elie de. Aids Agassiz with a collection of fossil fishes. At the Helvetic Association at Neuchatel. 

Berlin, University of, quoted. 

Beroids. 

"Bibb" U. S. Coast Survey steamer. 

"Bibliographica Zoologica". 

Bienne, college at. 

Bischoff. 

Blake, J. H. 

Bombinator obstetricans, observations on. 

Bonaparte, Prince of Canino. 

Booth. 

Borja Bay. 

Boston. 

Boston, East. Laboratory. Observations upon the geology of, with reference to the glacial theory. 

Boston Harbor. 

Botany, questions in. 

Bowditch. 

Braun, Alexander. 

Brazil, visit to. Fresh-water fauna of. Glacier phenomena. 

Brewster, Sir David. 

Brongniart. 

Bronn. His collection now in Cambridge. 

Brown-Sequard, Dr. 

Buch, Leopold von. 

Buckland, Dr. Invites Agassiz to England. Acts as his guide to fossil fishes. To glacier tracks. A convert to glacial theory. Mentioned by Murchison. 

Burkhardt. 

Cabot, J. E. 

Cambridge. 

Cambridge, first mention of. 

Campanularia. 

Carlsruhe, Agassiz at. 

Cary, T. G. 

Castanea. 

Charleston, S. C. 

Charpentier. 

Chavannes, Professor. 

Chelius. 

Chemidium. 

Chemidium-like sponge. 

Chiem, lake of. 

Chilian, valley of. 

Chironectes pictus. 

Chorocua Bay. 

Christinat, Mr. 

Civil war. 

Clark, H. J. 

Coal deposits at Lota, age of. 

Coal mines at Sandy Point. 

Coast range. 

Coelenterata, Owen on the term. 

Collections, growth of. Embryological. Appropriation for. Place of storage. Sale. 

Concepcion Bay. 

Concise, Parsonage of. 

Connecticut geology. 

Connecticut River. 

Conner's Cove. 

Corcovado Gulf. 

Corcovado Peak. 

"Contributions to Natural History of the United States". 

Copley medal. 

Coral collection. 

Cordilleras. 

Cornell University. 

Cotting, B. E. 

Coulon, H. 

Coulon, L. 

Coutinho, Major. 

Crinoids, deep-sea and fossil, compared. 

Ctenophorae. 

Cudrefin. 

Curicu. 

Cuvier, Georges. Dedication to. Notes on Spix fishes. Reception of Agassiz. Gives material for fossil fishes. Last words. 

Cyclopoma spinosum, curious dream about. 

Cyprinus uranoscopus. 

Dana J. D. 

Darwin, C. Accepts glacier theory. On "Lake Superior". On Massachusetts cirripedia. Estimation of Darwinism. Of Agassiz. 

Davis, Admiral. 

Deep-sea dredgings. 

Deep-sea fauna. 

De Kay. 

De la Rive, A. , invites Agassiz to Geneva. 

Desor. 

Dinkel, Joseph. 

Dinkel, his description of Agassiz. 

Dollinger. 

Drayton. 

Drift-hills. 

Easter fete. 

Echinarachnius parma. 

Echinoderms, relation to medusae. 

Eden Harbor. 

Egerton, Lord Francis, buys original drawings. 

Egerton, Sir Philip. 

Elizabeth islands. 

Embryonic and specific development. 

Emerson, R. W. 

Emperor of Brazil. 

England. First visit to. Generosity of naturalists. Second visit to. 

English Narrows. 

Enniskillen, Lord. 

Equality of races. 

Escher von der Linth. 

Esslingen. 

Estuaries. 

Ethnographical circular. 

"Evolution and Permanence of Type". 

Ewigschneehorn. 

Fagus castaneafolia. 

Favre, E. , quotation from. 

Favre, L. , quotation from. 

Felton, C. C. 

Ferussac. 

Fishes. Classification. Collecting. Prophetic types. 

Fishes of America. 

Fishes of Brazil. 

Fishes, Spix's Brazilian. 

Fishes of Europe. Of Kentucky. Of New York. Of Switzerland. 

Fishes, fossil. Geological and genetic development. Study of bones. In English collections. Of the "Old Red". Of Sheppy. Of Connecticut. 

Fishes, Fossil. "Recherches sur les poissons fossiles". Receives Wollaston prize. Monthyon prize. Prix Cuvier. 

Fish-nest. 

Fitchburg, lecture at. 

Florida reefs. 

Forbes, Edward. 

Forbes, James D. 

Fossil Alaskan flora. 

"Fossil Arctic flora". 

Frazer. 

Fremont, J. C. 

Fuchs. 

Fuegian natives. 

Galapagos Islands. 

Galloupe, C. G. 

Geneva, invitation to. 

Geoffrey St. Hilaire's progressive theory, remarks on. 

Gibbes. 

Glacial marks in Scotland. "Roads of Glen Roy". In Ireland. In New England. In New York. At Halifax. At Brooklyn. At East Boston. On Lake Superior. In Maine. In Brazil. In New York. In Penikese. In western prairies. In South America. 

Glacial submarine dykes. 

Glacial phenomena. Lectures on. 

Glacial work. Gift from king of Prussia toward. "Systeme glaciaire" published. 

"Glacial theory". Opposition from Buch. From Humboldt. Studer's acceptance of. "Etudes sur les glaciers" published. Humboldt's later views. 

Glacier Bay. Moraine. 

Glaciers. First researches. Renewed. "blue bands". Advance. Hugi's cabin. Of the Aar. In the winter. The Rosenlaui. Boring. Glacier wells. Caves of the Viescher. Capillary fissures. Formation of crevasses. Sundials. Topographical survey. Stratification of neve. New work. 

Glaciers in Strait of Magellan. 

Glen Roy, roads of. 

Goeppingen. 

Gould, A. A. 

Gray, Asa. 

Gray, Francis C. Leaves a sum to found a Museum of Comparative Zoology. 

Gray, William. 

Greenough, H. 

Gressly, A. 

Griffith, Dr. Collection of. 

Grindelwald. 

Gruithuisen. 

Guyot, Arnold. On Agassiz's views. 

Hagen, H. A. 

Haldeman, S. S. 

Hall, J. 

Harbor deposits. 

Hare. 

Harvard University. 

Hassler expedition. 

Heath. 

Heer, Oswald. 

Heidelberg. Arrival at. Rambles in vicinity of. Student life at. Invitation to. 

Henry, Joseph. 

Hill, Thomas. 

Hitchcock. 

Hochstetter, the botanist. 

Holbrook, J. E. 

Holbrook, J. E. , Mrs. 

Holmes, O. W. Description of "Saturday Club". 

Hooper, Samuel. 

"Horse-backs". 

Hospice of the Grimsel. 

Hotel des Neuchatelois. Last of. 

Howe, Dr. S. G. On the future of the negro race. 

Hudson River. 

Hugi's cabin. 

Humboldt, Alexander von. Projects of travel with. Kindness. Writes to L. Coulon. Gives form for letter to the king. On succession of life. On Ehrenberg's discoveries. On his brother's death. Urges concentration and economy. Discourages glacial work. Opposes glacial theory. On works on "Fossil" and "Fresh-water" fishes. On his own works. Later views on glacial theory. Farewell words to Agassiz. 

Humboldt, centennial. 

Humboldt, scholarship. 

Humboldt, William von. Letter concerning his death, from his brother. 

Iberians. 

"Ibicuhy" the. 

Indian Reach. 

Invertebrates, relations of. 

Ithaca, N. Y. 

Jackson, C. T. 

Johnson, P. C. 

Kentucky, fishes of. 

Kobell. 

Koch, the botanist. 

Labyrinthodon. 

Lackawanna cove. 

Lake Superior. Excursion to. Glacial phenomena. Local geology. Fauna. 

Lake Superior, "Narrative" of. 

Lakes in New York, origin of. 

Lausanne, Agassiz at the college of. 

Lausanne, invitation to. 

Lava bed in Albemarle island. 

Lawrence, Abbott. 

Lawrence, Scientific school established. Agassiz made professor. 

Lea, Isaac, collection of shells. 

Leconte. 

Lepidosteus. 

Lesquereux. 

Letters:Agassiz to his brother Auguste. To his father. To his father and mother. To his mother. To his sister Cecile. To his sister Olympe. To his old pupils. To Elie de Beaumont. To Bonaparte, Prince of Canino. To A. Braun. To Dr. Buckland. To T. G. Cary. To James D. Dana. To L. Coulon. To Decaisne. To A. De la Rive. To Sir P. Egerton. To R. W. Emerson. To Chancellor Favargez. To S. S. Haldeman. To Oswald Heer. To Mrs. Holbrook. To S. G. Howe. To A. Von Humboldt. To J. A. Lowell. To Sir Charles Lyell. To Charles Martins. To Dr. Mayor. To Henri Milne-Edwards. To Benjamin Peirce. To Adam Sedgwick. To Charles Sumner. To Valenciennes. Auguste Agassiz to Louis Agassiz. M. Agassiz to Louis Agassiz. Madame Agassiz to Louis Agassiz. A. D. Bache to Louis Agassiz. Alexander Braun to Louis Agassiz. Leopold von Buch to Agassiz. Dr. Buckland to Agassiz. L. Coulon to Agassiz. Cuvier to Agassiz. Charles Darwin to Agassiz. A. De la Rive to Agassiz. G. P. Deshayes to Agassiz. Egerton to Agassiz. R. W. Emerson to Agassiz. Edward Forbes to Agassiz. Oswald Heer to Agassiz. Dr. Howe to Agassiz. A. Von Humboldt to AgassizA. Von Humboldt to Agassiz (extract). H. W. Longfellow to Agassiz. Sir Charles Lyell to Agassiz. Lady Lyell to Agassiz. L. Von Martius to Agassiz. Hugh Miller to Agassiz. Sir R. Murchison to Agassiz. Richard Owen to Agassiz. Benjamin Peirce to Agassiz. M. Rouland to Agassiz. Adam Sedgwick to Agassiz. C. T. Von Siebold to Agassiz. B. Silliman to Agassiz. Charles Sumner to Agassiz. Tiedemann to Agassiz. Alexander Braun to his father. To his mother. Charles Darwin to Dr. Tritten. A. Von Humboldt to Madame Agassiz. To L. Coulon. To G. Ticknor (extract). 

Leuckart. 

Leuthold. Death. 

Longfellow, H. W. Verses on Agassiz's fiftieth birthday. Christmas gift. 

Long Island Sound. 

Lota. 

Lota coal deposits. 

Lowell, James Russell. 

Lowell, John Amory. 

Lowell Institute. Lectures at. Reception at. Audience. 

Lyell, Sir Charles. Accepts glacial theory. 

Lyman, T. 

Madrepores. 

Magellan, Strait of. 

Mahir. 

Maine, visit to. 

Man, origin of. Compared with monkeys. Distinction of races. Form of nose. Geographical distribution. 

Man prehistoric in S. America. 

Marcou, J. 

Martius, L. Von. 

Mastodon of U. S. Compared to old world. 

Mathias, Gulf of. 

Mayne's Harbor. 

Mayor, Dr. Death of. 

Mayor, Auguste. 

Mayor, Francois. 

Mayor, Lisette. 

Mayor, Mathias. 

Meckel. 

Medusae. Relation to echinoderms. Beroids. Tiaropsis. Campanularia. 

Megatherium. 

Melimoya Mountain. 

Mellet, Pastor. 

Mercantile Library Association, meeting of. 

Meril, the chalets of. 

Michahelles. 

Micraster. 

Miller, Hugh. On "Footprints of the Creator". On "Scenes and Legends". On resemblance of Scotch and Swiss. On "First Impressions". On Asterolepis. On Monticularia. 

Mississippi, fishes in the. 

Mollusks, inner moulds of shells of. 

Monkeys. 

Monte Video. 

Monticularia. 

More. 

Morton, S. G. Collection of skulls. 

Motier. Birthplace of Agassiz. Inscription to Agassiz. 

Motley, J. L. 

Mount Burney. 

Mount Sarmiento. 

Mount Tarn. 

Munich. 

Murchison, Sir R. On glacial theory. Accepts it. Sends his Russian "Old Red" fishes. On "Principles of Zoology". On tertiary geology. 

Murchison, Sir R. 

Museum of Comparative Zoology. First beginning. Coral collection begun. Gift from pupils. Idea of museum. Publications. Mr. Gray's legacy. Name given. Popular name. Harvard University gives land. Legislative grant. Cornerstone laid. Plan. Dedication. Work at Museum. Public lectures. Additional grants. First Bulletin. Growth. New subscription. New building. Object and scope. New collections. Staff. A birthday gift. Last lectures by Agassiz. 

Nageli. 

Nahant, laboratory at. 

National Academy of Sciences founded. 

Negroes. 

Neuchatel. Plans for. Accepts professorship there. First lecture. Founding of Natural History Society. Museum. 

New Haven. 

New York, city of. 

"New York, Natural History of". 

Nicolet, C. 

"Nomenclator Zoologicus". 

Nuremberg. The Durer festival. 

Oesars. 

Oesterreicher. 

Oken. 

Orbe. 

Ord, collection. 

Osorno. 

Otway Bay. 

Owen's Island. 

Packard, A. S. 

Panama. 

Paris, Agassiz in. 

Peale, R. Museum. 

Peirce, B. 

Penikese Island. Glacial marks. 

Perty. 

Philadelphia. Academy of Science. American Philosophical Society. 

Phyllotaxis, first hint at the law of. 

Physio-philosophy. 

Pickering, Charles. 

Playa Parda Cove. 

Pleurotomaria. 

"Poissons d'eau douce". 

"Poissons fossiles". 

Port Famine. 

Port San Pedro. 

Portugal, plan for collections in. 

Possession Bay. Moraine. 

Pourtales, L. F. De. 

Pourtales, extract from his journal. 

Prescott, W. H. 

Princeton. 

"Principles of Zoology". 

Radiates, relations of. 

Ramsey, Prof. 

Ravenel, St. Julian. 

Redfield. 

Rhizocrinus. 

Rickley (Rickly), Mr. , director at college at Bienne. 

Ringseis. 

Rivers, American, origin of. 

Rogers, H. 

Rogers, W. B. 

Rosenlaui, glacier of the. 

Roththal, Col of. 

Rowlet Narrows. 

St. George, Gulf of. 

Salamander, fossil, at New Haven. 

Salt marshes. 

Salzburg. Precautions concerning students. 

San Antonio, Port of. 

San Diego. 

Sandy Point. 

San Francisco. 

San Magdalena. 

Santiago. 

San Vicente. 

Sargassum. 

Sarmiento Range. 

Saturday Club. 

Schelling. 

Schimper, Karl. 

Schimper, William. 

Schinz, Prof. Library and collection. 

School for young ladies opened. Success. Lectures at. Close. Yearly meeting of old pupils, --gift to the Museum. 

Schubert. 

Scudder, S. H. Description by, of a first lesson by Agassiz. 

Scyphia. 

Sea bottom. 

Sedgwick, Adam. On Geoffrey St. Hilaire's theory. Question on descent. 

Sedgwick, Adam. 

Seeley, H. G. 

Seiber. 

Sharks and skates. 

Shepard. 

Sholl Bay. Moraine at. 

Shore level, change of. 

Siebold, Letter of, about Agassiz at Munich. 

Siedelhorn, ascent of the. 

Silliman, Benjamin. Announces subscribers to "Fossil Fishes". Visit to. 

Siphonia. 

Smithsonian Institution. Lectures at. Agassiz becomes regent of. 

Smythe's Channel. 

Snell, G. 

Snowy Glacier. 

Snowy Range. 

Sonrel. 

Spain, plan for collecting in. 

Spatangus. 

Spix. His "Brazilian Fishes". 

Sponge, chemidium-like. 

Sponges, deep sea. 

Stahl. 

Starke. 

Steindachner, F. 

Steudel, the botanist. 

Stimpson, W. 

Strahleck, ascent of the. 

Studer. 

Stuttgart, Museum at. 

Sullivan's Island. 

Summer School of Natural History, plan for. 

Sumner, Charles. 

Tagus Sound. 

Talcahuana. 

Tarn Bay. 

Tenon. 

Thayer, Nathaniel, promotes Brazil expedition. 

Tiaropsis. 

Ticknor. 

Tiedemann, Professor. Invites Agassiz to Heidelberg. 

Torrey, Professor J. 

Tortugas. 

Traunstein. 

Trettenbach. 

United States. First thought of visiting. Idea given up. Resumed. Departure for. Impressions of. Scientific men. 

United States Coast Survey. Steamer "Bibb". Constant connection with. Examination of Florida reefs. Dredging expedition. 

United States Museum of Natural History. 

Valenciennes. 

Vallorbe. 

Valparaiso. 

Vanuxem. 

Vienna, visit to. 

Viescher Glacier, cave of. 

Vintage in Switzerland, the. 

Vogt, Karl. 

Volcanic islands. 

Volcanic soil. Boulders. 

Wahren. 

Wagler. 

Wagner. 

Walther. 

Waltl. 

Washington. 

Weber, J. C. 

West Point. 

White, W. 

Whymper collection. 

Wild, Mr. 

Wilder, B. G. 

Wilkes Exploring Expedition. Collection. 

Wollaston prize. 

Wollaston medal. 

Wyman, J. 

Wyman, Dr. Morrill. 

Yandell. 

Zuccarini. 

Zurich. Professorship offered.