OPPOSED TO GOVERNMENT DICTATION. 87 
of my conduct? Although in a third trial the majority 
of the Academy was decided in favour of the same engi- 
neer, I cannot regret that I supported up to the last 
moment with conviction and warmth the election of his 
competitor, M. Dulong. 
I do not suppose that, in the scientific world, any one 
will be disposed to blame me for having preferred M. 
Liouville to M. de Pontécoulant. 
Sometimes it happened that the Government wished to 
influence the choice of the Academy; with a strong 
sense of my rights I invariably resisted all dictation. 
Once this resistance acted unfortunately on one of my 
friends—the venerable Legendre; as to myself, I had 
prepared myself beforehand for all the persecutions of 
which I could be made the object. Having received 
from the Minister of the Interior an invitation to vote for 
M. Binet against M. Navier on the occurrence of a 
vacant place in the section of mechanics, Legendre nobly 
answered that he would vote according to his soul and 
his conscience. He was immediately deprived of a pen- 
sion which his great age and his long services rendered 
due tohim. The protégé of the authorities failed ; and, 
at the time, this result was attributed to the activity with 
which I enlightened the members of the Academy as to 
the impropriety of the Minister’s proceedings. 
On another occasion the King wished the Academy to 
name Dupuytren, the eminent surgeon, but whose char- 
acter at the time lay under grave imputations. Dupuy- 
tren was nominated, but several blanks protested against 
the interference of the authorities in academic elections. 
I said above that I had saved the Academy from some 
deplorable choices ; I will only cite a single instance, on 
which occasion I had the sorrow of finding myself in 
