COLLECTIONS. 95 



the real names of his friends: each had a 

 nickname, Molluscus, Cyprinus, Rhubarb, 

 etc." 



From this glimpse into " The Little Acad- 

 emy " we return to the thread of the home 

 letters, learning from the next one that Agas- 

 siz's private collections were assuming rather 

 formidable proportions when considered as 

 part of the household furniture. Brought 

 together in various ways, partly by himself, 

 partly in exchange for duplicates, partly as 

 pay for arranging specimens in the Munich 

 Museum, they had already acquired, when 

 compared with his small means, a considerable 

 pecuniary value, and a far higher scientific 

 importance. They included fishes, some rare 

 mammalia, reptiles, shells, birds, an herbarium 

 of some three thousand species of plants col- 

 lected by himself, and a small cabinet of min- 

 erals. After enumerating them in a letter to 

 his parents he continues : " You can imagine 

 that all these things are in my way now that 

 I cannot attend to them, and that for want 

 of room and care they are piled up and in 

 danger of spoiling. You see by my list that 

 the whole collection is valued at two hundred 

 louis ; and this is so low an estimate that 

 even those who sell objects of natural his- 



