236 The University of California Magazine. 



the work of farming and manufacturing. There is a long 

 account, in the autobiography, of the making of a gun by one 

 of the older brothers in the family. 



Ivike all Southern boys the Le Contes were taught the use 

 of a gun, and Joseph was congratulated upon the killing of 

 his first squirrel at a very early age. The death of the little 

 animal, however, caused the young hunter more grief than 

 pride in his achievement. 



The father of Joseph Le Conte was a man of great culture, 

 possessed of a fine scientific mind. His relation to his children 

 was intimate and very beautiful, and he took great pains to 

 give them opportunities for observation and the accumulation 

 of practical knowledge. Long before the days of kinder- 

 gartens, he instinctively trained his children by the best of 

 those methods. His mother was very musical and artistic, 

 and from her Joseph received the taste for the beautiful that 

 ennobled his science. 



The Le Conte children daily walked to the little country 

 school, followed by a small negro with their lunch basket. 

 Of the teachers in this school none influenced the life of Joseph 

 to any extent, save Alexander Stephens, afterwards vice-presi- 

 dent of the Confederacy and governor of his state. Georgia 

 conferred upon Stephens every possible honor. Professor Le 

 Conte frequently met Mr. Stephens in the South and in Wash- 

 ington, and the famous statesman always spoke of the great 

 influence that Louis Le Conte had exerted over him. 



When Joseph entered the University of Georgia, he was 

 strong, athletic, a good swimmer, fond of the hunt and of all 

 out of door life. In the University his place was recognized 

 as that of a distinguished student, an athlete and a debator. 

 In the Phi Kappa Society, he took part in many debates, 

 thereby gaining that power of expression that made him suc- 

 cessful as a public speaker. 



After graduating from the University of Georgia, Joseph 

 and his brother John entered the College of Physicians and 

 Surgeons in New York. 



