Agassis at Heidelberg, 2 1 



nine o*clock, when with some companion he perhaps 

 visited the Swiss Club. Such was the Hfe of the 

 young naturalist day after day. 



In later life Agassiz was distinguished among 

 naturalists by his strong religious convictions, and it 

 may be said that from his earliest days he showed 

 these predilections and possessed a mind of singular 

 purity. This is well illustrated in his letters to his 

 parents during his college life, which reflect the high 

 moral tone which pervaded his nature. Alone he 

 held his evening service after retiring, and in silence 

 communed with the distant loved ones, talking to 

 or with them, as he expressed it, in the conviction 

 that those at home also held him in their thoughts. 



Warm-hearted, with a magnetic manner, lovable 

 in the best sense, it is not surprising that Agassiz 

 made at this time many sincere friends, and that 

 the association often benefited both is well shown 

 by the zoological knowledge of Braun, who in later 

 years became the famous director of the Botanical 

 Gardens, Berlin, and the fund of information pos- 

 sessed by Agassiz on botanical subjects. 



Young Braun was captivated with his new comrade 

 and particularly impressed by his charm of manner. 

 He describes him to his family as a rare comet on 

 the Heidelberg horizon,'' and was never weary of 

 extolHnghis praises. He was attracted by the breadth 

 of Agassiz's reflections and by the intimacy he seemed 

 to have with all natural objects. He remarked with 

 surprise that the young man from Orbe was familiar 

 with the name of every animal they met, could tell 

 a bird as far as he could hear its song. 



