M. DE LAPLACE. 89 



cessary delay, they proceeded to fill his place. The situ- 

 ation of Perpetual Secretary is not one which can long 

 be left vacant. The Academy named a commission to 

 present it with candidates ; it was composed of Messrs, 

 de Laplace, Arago, Legendre, Eossel, Prony, and La- 

 croix. The list presented was composed of the names of 

 Messrs. Biot, Fourier, and Arago. It is not necessary 

 for me to say with what obstinacy I opposed the inscrip- 

 tion of my name on this list ; I was compelled to give 

 way to the will of my colleagues, but I seized the first 

 opportunity of declaring publicly that I had neither the 

 expectation nor the wish to obtain a single vote ; that, 

 moreover, I had on my hands already as much work as I 

 could get through ; that in this respect M. Biot was in 

 the same position ; and that, in short, I should vote for 

 the nomination of M. Fourier. 



It was supposed, but I dare not flatter myself that it 

 was the fact, that my declaration exercised a certain in- 

 fluence on the result of the ballot. The result was as 

 follows : M. Fourier received thirty-eight votes, and M. 

 Biot ten. In a case of this nature each man carefully 

 conceals his vote, in order not to run the risk of future 

 disagreement with him who may be invested with the 

 authority which the Academy gives to the perpetual 

 secretary. I do not know whether I shall be pardoned 

 if I recount an incident which amused the Academy at 

 the time. 



M. de Laplace, at the moment of voting, took two 

 plain pieces of paper ; his neighbour was guilty of the 

 indiscretion of looking, and saw distinctly that the illus- 

 trious geometer wrote the name of Fourier on both of 

 them. After quietly folding them up, M. de Laplace put 

 the papers into his hat, shook it, and said to this same 



