48 LOUIS AGASSIZ 



congratulate itself that Agassiz's youth 

 and genius conspired so often, first to 

 blind his judgment of probable results, 

 and then to bend the results themselves 

 aside from all probability. 



Two incidents stand out from his Pa- 

 risian experiences, connected with two 

 generous gifts from Cuvier and Hum- 

 boldt, respectively. One was a wholly 

 unexpected gift of money, generously and 

 delicately offered by Humboldt, which 

 came at the very darkest hour, when it 

 had crossed even Agassiz's mind that he 

 might be forced by fear of absolute star- 

 vation to abandon museums, draughts- 

 men, teachers, and all, and go home to 

 live more cheaply as a physician or a 

 tutor in Switzerland. It was only two 

 hundred dollars, but ihe effect it pro- 

 duced was enormous. "My benefactor 

 and friend it is too much ! . . . My 

 parents will now readily consent that I 

 should devote myself entirely to science. ' 7 

 And then to his parents: "Oh! if my 



