i6S LOUIS AGASSIZ. [CHAI-. xxi. 



the trapper one day brought a bag full of these fossil 

 bones, which he threw down on the floor at his feet. 

 To his surprise, he saw a well-preserved skull, resem- 

 bling that of a bear, which has since been described by 

 Dr. Leidy as Pal&osyops. 



If Agassiz had accepted the hospitality and help 

 most generously offered by Judge Carter, he would 

 have anticipated the discovery, made the year after, 

 in 1869, by Hayden's exploring party. But Agassiz 

 was too old and not strong enough to undertake a 

 horseback ride of sixty miles to reach Fort Bridger. 

 His experience on horseback the year previous, in the 

 province of Ceara, in Brazil, had entirely disgusted him 

 with this mode of conveyance, and he firmly declined 

 Judge Carter's invitation. 



This is another instance of the singular case of ata- 

 vism of his ancestors, the lake-dwellers of Switzerland. 

 Like them, Agassiz would go on any kind of boat, 

 however unsafe it might be ; but on land he trusted 

 only his legs. 



When, in 1875, during an exploration round Fort 

 Bridger, I told Judge Carter of the strong aversion 

 Agassiz had to riding horseback, he exclaimed, " Oh ! 

 if I had been aware of it, I would have brought with 

 me an ambulance, for I wanted so much to show him 

 the specimens." 



On his return to Cambridge, Agassiz stopped at 

 Cornell University, which was about to be inaugu- 

 rated, and where he had accepted an appointment 

 as non-resident professor. He assisted at the open- 

 ing of the University, and made one of his charac- 



