48 THE LIFE OF PASTEUR 



When Pasteur on his arrival called on this family, he ha< 

 the feeling that happiness lay there. He had seen at Arboii 

 how, through the daily difficulties of manual labour, his parent! 

 looked at life from an exalted point of view, appreciating i 

 from that standard of moral perfection which gives dignity 

 and grandeur to the humblest existence. In this family o 

 a higher social position than his own he again found the sam< 

 high ideal, and, with great superiority of education, the sam< 

 simple-mindedness. When Pasteur entered for the first tim< 

 the Laurent family circle, he immediately felt the delightfu 

 impression of being in a thoroughly congenial atmosphere ; i 

 communion of thoughts and feelings seemed established afte 

 the first words, the first looks exchanged between him an< 

 his hosts. 



In the evening, at the restaurant where most of the younge 

 professors dined, he heard others speak of the kindliness an< 

 strict justice of the Rector; and everyone expressed respec 

 for his wonderfully united family. 



At one of M. Laurent's quiet evening " at homes," Berth 

 was saying of Pasteur, " You do not often meet with such j 

 hard worker; no attraction ever can take him away from hi 

 work." The attraction now came, however, and it was sucl 

 a powerful one that, on February 10, only a fortnight after hii 

 arrival, Pasteur addressed to M. Laurent the following officia 

 letter : 



11 SIR, 



" An offer of the greatest importance to me and to you: 

 family is about to be made to you on my behalf ; and I feel i 

 my duty to put you in possession of the following facts, whicl 

 may have some weight in determining your acceptance 01 

 refusal. 



" My father is a tanner in the small town of Arbois in th< 

 Jura, my sisters keep house for him, and assist him with hii 

 books, taking the place of my mother whom we had the mis 

 fortune to lose in May last. 



"My family is in easy circumstances, but with nc 

 fortune; I do not value what we possess at more than 50,00( 

 francs, and, as for me, I have long ago decided to hanc 

 over to my sisters the whole of what should be my share 

 I have therefore absolutely no fortune. My only means 



