136 ALEXANDER VON HUMBOLDT. 



was the act of a true philanthropist, and of one who had 

 a keen perception of the value of education. The hours of 

 instruction were at first restricted to the afternoon and evening 

 of every Wednesday and Saturday ; but the interest excited both 

 in teacher and pupils soon became so great, that the lessons 

 were continued up to eleven o'clock at night. 



It may easily be understood that Steben should have be- 

 come so endeared to Humboldt that in after life he thus ex- 

 pressed himself: 'Steben has exercised so powerful an influ- 

 ence upon my mode of thought, I there projected so many of 

 my greatest plans, I there abandoned myself so completely to 

 feeling, that I almost dread the impression it would make 

 upon me were I to see it again. During my stay there, 

 especially in the autumn and winter of 1793, I was kept in a 

 constant state of such nervous tension, that I could never see 

 the lights of the cottages at Spitzberg shining through the 

 evening mist without emotion. On this side the ocean no 

 place would ever seem to me its equal ! ' 



It was not till March 13, 1794, that Humboldt transmitted 

 a report to the minister Von Heinitz upon the free mining 

 schools which he had established ; almost immediately after- 

 wards a similar school was set on foot at Wunsiedel, and both 

 were maintained for many years with good results. 



While expending so much care upon the intellectual wants 

 of the miners, he was by no means unmindful of their material 

 interests. A proof of his unselfish consideration for the subor- 

 dinate officials is given in the following passage from a subse- 

 quent letter to the minister Von Heinitz, dated May 21, 1795. 

 The minister had sent him a present of a sum of money in re- 

 cognition of his services, but Humboldt declined the gift and 

 continued: 'So far I have done nothing to deserve it. It would 

 be laying myself open to the charge of pecuniary motives, from 



which I am quite free I would beg very humbly of 



your Excellency to distribute this sum during the winter. 

 Such men as Birnbaum and Barrisch have a greater claim 

 upon your consideration than I have. Another request which 

 I also venture to make interests me much more. I have sum- 

 moned young Sievert from Wettin to Arzberg as foreman. To 

 him alone is due the impulse which the mines have received; 



