BIOGRAPHICAL MEMORANDA 



really felt unhappy and guilty if he did not work in the evening, per- 

 haps out of a sense of duty left over from the early years when he had 

 to spend all his time studying in order properly to prepare himself 

 for teaching a science that was new to him. No doubt this attitude 

 was intensified by the feeling that he had incurred the obligation to 

 strive towards attaining a level of excellence such as Beijerinck had 

 also reached by working incessantly. 



Kluyver had no ear for music, though he listened occasionally to 

 an opera on the radio, gaily humming along. Apart from his interest 

 in tennis and major sports events, he had no 'worldly hobbies' to which he 

 could turn for relaxation. His only ruling passion was for work, 'bound 

 by neither time nor eternity', and aided by his enormous reservoir of 

 physical strength and power of recuperation. He never pampered him- 

 self; and, although appreciative of the good things of this earth, he 

 would not go out of his way to acquire them, and generally adhered 

 to an austere regime. It was only a few months before his death that 

 he confessed to having taken the first after-dinner nap in his life; 'the 

 colloquium had been so tedious and complicated' was his apology. He 

 was quite susceptible to the charms of travel. His visit to Rome in 

 connexion with the 6th International Congress for Microbiology had 

 filled him with such admiration and love for the Eternal City that he 

 allowed himself the uncommon luxury of going to the cinema to see 

 'Roman Holiday'; a strong additional motive was the fact that the 

 leading actress was of Dutch descent. Nonetheless, it would never oc- 

 cur to him to travel for its own sake. If he went on a short vacation at 

 all, he usually stayed in Holland, most often in the country near Koot- 

 wijk, where there was ample opportunity for walks in the woods, hunting 

 mushrooms and picking blueberries with the children. From the small 

 things in life - a beautiful morning, a subtle joke shared, the first 

 drawings of his granddaughter, Eja, which he proudly displayed in 

 his study - he derived a keen and genuine pleasure. 



What was the end to which Kluyver dedicated practically his entire 

 life? It is certain that the pursuit of microbiology cannot be the only 

 answer. Of necessity, during the first decade of his professorship this 

 had to be his major occupation; but as soon as his accomplishments 

 permitted, he branched out and attempted to relate his field to oth- 

 ers, giving scope to his wide interests and desire for integration. Con- 



60 



