LOUIS AGASSIZ. [CHAP. xm. 



price asked for. " C'est asscz ! " was the invariable 

 answer of M. Christinat, who then triumphantly put the 

 purchase into his basket, marching off as if he were per- 

 fectly satisfied. As he was known all over the market 

 as the friend and housekeeper of Professor Agassiz, the 

 traders let him do what he pleased, but marked the differ- 

 ence of price in their books. At dinner, Papa Christinat 

 would say : " Comment trouvez-vous le gigot de mouton ? 

 ou le poisson ? " " Excellent ! " was the ready answer of 

 all the guests ; " Eh bien ! je ne 1'ai paye qu'un dollar et 

 quart," when the piece, according to the market value, 

 may have been two dollars or two dollars and a half. 

 Agassiz used to smile quietly and compliment Chris- 

 tinat on his fine bargain. But, alas ! at the end of the 

 month came long bills from the fisherman, the butcher, 

 and provision dealer, which put an end to Christinat's 

 method of purchasing at markets at low prices. 



All sorts of specimens in alcohol, and even alive, were 

 constantly coming by express, sent from all parts of 

 New England and even from more distant parts of the 

 country. One day, to the great amazement and amuse- 

 ment of all the inmates of Agassiz's American " Hotel 

 des Neuchatelois," the express brought a live big black 

 bear sent from the forests of Maine by an admirer of 

 Agassiz's lectures at the Lowell Institute. There was 

 no other indication on the label attached to the neck of 

 the animal. This time the professor had " caught a 

 Tartar " ; he had no place to keep it, and he begged an 

 expressman to keep it in his stable. There, all the 

 horses were made uneasy by such a neighbour, and 

 after a few days the animal was disposed of by poison- 



