The American Trip. 



95 



Mr. Agassiz at my house. Every one came that 

 could come. They conversed very freely on several 

 subjects, and Agassiz showed the fulness of his 

 knowledge, and his remarkable powers of instant 

 observation. All seemed to feel what a precious 

 accession American science was to receive. 



" Not long afterwards, Mr. Agassiz accepted an 

 invitation to spend Christmas with us. We took 

 some pains, ourselves and our children, among whom 

 were then two bright boys, full of fun and frolic, 

 one in college, and one nearly prepared to enter. 

 He was easily entertained, entering heartily, joyously, 

 and hilariously, into everything, games and all, as if 

 he were still as young as the youngest, but full of 

 feeling, and moved, even to tears, by some poor 

 lines to him and his native land.'' 



A number of friends had followed Agassiz to this 

 country, among them Count Frangois de Pourtalfes, 

 who became one of America's distinguished natural- 

 ists, Mr. E. Desor, and Mr. Jacques Burkhardt, so 

 that his new home in East Boston often had much 

 the semblance of the old Swiss residence. Here, as 

 there, hard work was the order of the day, and this 

 bachelor's-hall, for so it might be called, as Mrs. 

 Agassiz and her children were still in Europe, became 

 the centre of scientific interest and head-quarters 

 for the naturalists — who had become inspired by 

 his methods and enthusiasm. 



The establishment of Agassiz in this home in East 

 Boston forms the beginning of an epoch in the scien- 

 tific history of America. From this little centre 

 waves began to radiate that spread over the entire 



