220 LOUIS AGASSIZ. [CHAP. ix. 



During the meeting of the Helvetic Society of Natural 

 Sciences at Lausanne, the 25th and 26th of July, 

 Agassiz made a verbal communication in regard to his 

 researches on the glaciers, speaking of the new and 

 more practical direction given to his studies, and insist- 

 ing on the stratification of the glaciers and the blue 

 bands of ice, and on the formation of crevasses. At 

 the same meeting, he spoke of the great value of fossil 

 fishes in determining the ages of the " terrains," and 

 more particularly of the squaloid teeth, like those of 

 the true sharks, or squalodonts, the Ptycholepis of the 

 Chalk, the Strophodus of the Jura, the Acrodus of the 

 Lias, and the Psamnodus of the Coal measures. 



His great sociability, which attracted so many people 

 to the " Hotel des Neuchatelois," was exercised on 

 rather a large scale in Neuchatel, if we may judge by 



the following letter : 



NEUCHATEL, 23 decembre, 1843. 

 PROFESSEUR JULES PICTET DE LA RIVE, 

 Geneve. 



Mon cher ami, Favre vous aura fait part du desir que j'ai de 

 reunir ici quelques amis Jeudi prochain. Je viens insister aupres de 

 vous pour que vous soyez de la partie. 



En arrivant Mercredi soir et en descendant " Aux Alpes," vous 

 trouverez Merian, Escher, Studer et Valentin. 



IAm de mes guides irTa procure tin jeune chamois dont nous 

 depecerons les os Jeudi chez moi. Faites-moi le plaisir devenir; 

 si vous pouvez, amenez les Plantamour. 



Votre tout devoue, 



Ls. AGASSIZ. 



His prodigious power of attraction is shown in his 

 ability to bring together, for a single dinner party, at 



