HUMBOLDT TO M. COULON. 217 



No answer to this letter has been found 

 beyond such as is implied in the following to 

 M. Coulon. 



HUMBOLDT TO M. COULON, FILS. 



BERLIN, January 21, 1833. 



... It gives me great pleasure to acknowl- 

 edge the flattering welcome offered by you 

 and your fellow-citizens to M. Agassiz, who 

 stands so high in science, and whose intel- 

 lectual qualities are enhanced by his amiable 

 character. They write me from Heidelberg 

 that they intend the place of M. Leuckart in 

 zoology for my young friend. The choice is 

 proposed by M. Tiedemann, and certainly noth- 

 ing could be more honorable to M. Agassiz. 

 Nevertheless, I hope that he will refuse it. 

 He should remain for some years in your 

 country, where a generous encouragement fa- 

 cilitates the publication of his work, which is 

 of equal importance to zoology and geology. 



I have spoken with M. Ancillon, and have 

 left with him an official notice respecting the 

 purchase of the Agassiz collection. The dif- 

 ficulty will be found, as in all human affairs, 

 in the prose of life, in money. M. Ancillon 

 writes me this morning : " Your paper in fa- 

 vor of M. Agassiz is a scientific letter of credit 



