OF BAEON HUMBOLDT. 147 



his literary remains ; for lie could not conceive 

 better hands to which this legacy could be 

 entrusted. Alas ! this expectation was soon 

 realized. Only for a short time were these 

 remarkable brothers permitted to live more 

 closely together ; during which time Alexander 

 entered in an intimate relation with the friends 

 of his brother Wilhelm: with Gothe, Wolf, 

 Frau von Varnhagen, Korff, Cotta, Gentz, &c. 

 Many of the friends of Wilhelm von Humboldt 

 had been already called away ; amongst them, 

 Niebulir and Stein in the year 1831 ; Gothe and 

 Gentz in 1832 ; Hegel and Schleiermacher. In 

 the winter of 1834-35, Wilhelm von Humboldt 

 was seized by weakness, during his residence 

 at the Castle Tegel, attended by his eldest 

 daughter, Caroline. Alexander, who resided 

 in Berlin, watched with anxiety the state of his 

 brother's health. His physical prostration and 

 bended gait awakened his apprehension. A cold 

 which seized him, in addition to his other ail- 

 ments, on visiting the tomb of his deceased 

 wife on the return of her birthday, accelerated 

 his demise. On April 8th, 1835, he expired in 

 the arms of his brother Alexander. During 

 the last death-struggles of his beloved brother, 

 Alexander addressed a letter to Varnhagen, 

 which expressed his profound grief at the 



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