4 HERMANN VON HELMHOLTZ 



Ciceronian style, and at a later time was wont to explain his 

 predilection for the Greek language by saying with his greater 

 son, that 'linguistic talent is not one thing, but like all other 

 intellectual functions the sum of different factors*. 



He was one of the most distinguished teachers of the 

 Gymnasium, and, with the mathematician Meyer, received 

 frequent ovations from his pupils. A prominent member of 

 the Prussian Civil Service writes : ' We reckoned it one of 

 our happiest hours when we could persuade him to read us 

 poems, dramas, ballads, and the like. Once, for instance, 

 I remember his giving us the first monologue in Faust, and 

 another time Burger's " Lied vom braven Mann" with so much 

 force and feeling that we sat silent and deeply moved ; in later 

 life, and even to the present day, his voice and his expressive 

 countenance have often come back to me/ 



Despite the conscientiousness of the pedagogue, however, 

 he was consumed with the enthusiasm and fire of the patriot. 

 Once at the request of his pupils he devoted the three hours 

 of German instruction which he gave the second class as 

 form-master to an account of the feeling that inspired the 

 Prussian people prior to 1813, an d they applauded him enthu- 

 siastically. But the Headmaster got wind of it, and the 

 favourite teacher received an intimation that any repetition 

 of the indiscretion would be punished by dismissal. This 

 was in the middle of the forties, when the pressure of 

 reaction in Church and State bore heavily upon Prussia, 

 and resulted in the so-called Treubund (league of faith) 

 to which the Headmaster and others of the teaching staff 

 belonged. 



Hence the discipline of silence was imposed upon Helm- 

 holtz for the sake of his family, though his discontent with 

 the political condition of Germany occasionally broke out in 

 private. His eldest son, Hermann, was born in 1821, the 

 daughters Marie and Julie soon after, and twelve years later 

 the second son, Otto. Later again there were two others, 

 Ferdinand and Heinrich, who died in infancy in the years 

 1836 and 1839. His income was inadequate, his salary only 

 being raised to 160 at the close of his teaching career, and 

 as a good husband and prudent father there was nothing for 

 him to do but to keep his political ideas to himself, and avoid 



