Record. xlvii 



won the love of all who enjoyed the rare privilege of knowing 

 him. His enthusiastic devotion to science appealed irresistibly 

 to men of large wealth, and awakened in them the desire to 

 cooperate in his work through generous donations of money. His 

 impressive earnestness, and the persuasive eloquence with which 

 he presented the claims of science to public recognition, pro- 

 cured liberal appropriations from the Massachusetts legislature 

 for the Museum at Cambridge. The advancement of scientific 

 research and teaching engrossed all his powers. He had a sub- 

 lime faith in his great mission, and through his own great faith 

 he engendered faith in others. 



Agassiz's last paper,* corrected by him just before his final 

 illness, contains a pregnant sentence formulating the fundamental 

 conviction which dominated his life-work : — '^ A physical fact is as 

 sacred as a moral principle. Our own nature demands from us 

 this double allegiance." Supremely loyal to facts, he was im- 

 patient of theories which he regarded as in contravention of 

 facts; he resented most of all the assumption, by persons dis- 

 qualified by ignorance of facts, of authority to prejudicate great 

 problems in nature. In questions of interpretation of facts, 

 he was tolerant of differences of opinion; but anti-theistic con- 

 ceptions and 'Hhe exaggeration of rehgious fanaticism [assuming] 

 to prescribe to scientific men what they are allowed to see or to 

 find in nature," f were alike repugnant to him. As professor, in 

 the Academie de Neuchdtel, he stood as the champion of liberty 

 of scientific thought and teaching, as against clerical dictation. 

 The word of God, written in his creation, was an immediate 

 and supreme revelation to man; but he respected in others the 

 same unrestricted freedom of thought which he demanded for 

 himself. Espousal of opinions antagonistic to his own opposed no 

 barrier to friendship, so long as discussion was kept free from 

 disingenuousness or injurious personalities. Insistence on what 

 he regarded as error did not lessen his appreciation of the work 

 of an opponent. With Darwin he kept up a close friendship 

 through all the stress growing out of his uncompromising opposi- 

 tion to the doctrine of transmutation of species. 



At Heidelberg Agassiz formed a close friendship with two young 

 botanists — Alexander Braun and Karl Schimper. Braun, life- 

 long friend of our own Dr. George Engelmann, like him, united 

 sane philosophical opinions to large and varied attainments and 



* "Evolution and Permanency of Type." Atlantic Monthly, January, 

 1874. 



t Letter to Professor Adam Sedgwick, June, 1855. 



