138 THE LIFE OF PASTEUR 



foolish not to take care of myself and continue to live amongst 

 those who love me, and who deserve my love for all the hap- 

 piness they give me. I intend to return to Paris some time 

 this month, and, in spite of your kind advice, I should like to 

 take up my College de France classes again this winter. 1 hope 

 to be allowed not to begin before January. But we shall talk 

 of all this in Paris. I remain your devoted and affectionate 

 friend." 



To end this academic episode, we will quote from Joseph 

 Bertrand's letter of thanks to Pasteur, who had sent him the 

 article: **. » . The public will learn, among other things^ 

 that the eminent members of the Academy admire and love 

 each other sometimes with no jealousy. This was rare in the 

 last century, and, if all followed your example, we should havf 

 over our predecessors one superiority worth many another.*' 



Thus Pasteur showed himself a man of sentiment as well 

 as a man of science; the circle of his affections was enlarg- 

 ing, as was the scope of his researches, but without any detri- 

 ment to the happy family life of his own intimate circle. That 

 little group of his family and close friends identified itself 

 absolutely with his work, his ideas and his hopes, each mem- 

 ber of it willingly subordinating his or her private interests to 

 the success of his investigations. He was at that time violently 

 attacked by his old adversaries as well as his new contradictors. 

 Pouchet announced everywhere that the question of spon- 

 taneous generation was being taken up again in England, in 

 Germany, in Italy and in America. Joly, Pouchet 's inseparable 

 friend, w^as about to make some personal studies and to write 

 some general considerations on the new silkworm campaign. 

 Pasteur, who had confidently said, **The year 1867 must be 

 the last to bear the complaints of silkworm cultivators T ' went 

 back to Alais in January, 1867. But, before leaving Paris, 

 Pasteur wrote out for himself a list of various improvements 

 and reforms which he desired to effect in the administration of 

 ihe Ecole Normale, showing that his interest in the great 

 school had by no means abated, in spite of his necessary 

 absence. He brought with him his wife and daughter, and 

 Messrs. Gernez and Maillot; M. Duclaux was to come later. 

 The worms hatched from the eggs of healthy moths and those 

 from diseased ones were growing more interesting every day; 

 they were in every instance exactly what Pasteur had pro- 

 phesied they would be- But besides studying his own silk- 



