188 
Hermann  Hager. 
f  Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
1       April,  1897. 
wife,  who  also  suffered  from  influenza,  on  being  informed,  on  the 
day  of  her  husband's  funeral,  of  his  death,  closed  her  eyes  forever 
on  the  very  same  day. 
More  than  any  other  of  his  German  contemporaries,  Dr.  Hager 
was,  in  the  American  sense,  a  self-made  man.  The  stamp  of  the 
autodidact  remained  impressed  upon  his  character,  his  labors  and 
his  writings  and  imparted  to  them  the  charm  and  the  force  of  orig- 
inality. He  was  a  man  of  rare  talents,  with  a  keen  and  discrimi- 
nating intellect  and  an  excellent  memory.  The  style  of  his  writings 
was  lucid  and  attractive  ;  he  also  was  a  clever  draughtsman,  drawing 
with  his  own  pen  nearly  all  the  sketches  for  the  abundant  illustra- 
tions of  his  works.  Intense  work  was  to  him  always  a  labor  of  love. 
Like  most  men  of  originality  and  genius,  Dr.  Hager  was  also  bent 
upon  critical  reflection  and  upon  an  unreserved  candid  expression  of 
his  opinion.  However  stern  and  straightforward  his  intellectual 
powers  and  the  courage  of  his  honest  conviction  made  him,  his 
mind  was  as  gentle  and  forbearing  as  that  of  a  child.  In  his  long 
and  active  career,  by  no  means  free  from  cares  and  disappointments, 
and  in  a  profession  replete  with  antagonistic  and  uncharitable 
elements,  Dr.  Hager  has  not  been  spared  the  cruel  stings  and  even 
the  calumnies  of  adversaries,  particularly  of  those  more  fortunate  in 
inheritance  and  patronage,  and  more  successful  in  public  position 
and  honors,  which  favors  he  never  sought  by  submission  or  flattery. 
Although  a  recognized  master  of  his  profession,  a  prolific  and  excel- 
lent writer,  and  expert  in  pharmacopoeial  work  and  a  man  of  world- 
wide fame,  Dr.  Hager  has  never  been  called  upon  to  participate  in 
the  elaboration  or  the  revision  of  a  pharmacopoeia ;  nor  has  he  ever 
received,  from  the  Government  or  the  State  authorities,  any  public 
recognition  or  distinction  for  his  eminent  merits  for  the  advance- 
ment and  the  reputation  of  German  pharmacy ;  whereas  the  pro- 
fession of  many  countries  has  paid  its  respects  to  the  great  master 
by  enrolling  his  famous  name  in  the  lists  of  honorary  member- 
ship in  their  national  associations — first  among  them  the  American 
Pharmaceutical  Association  and  several  colleges  of  pharmacy  in  the 
United  States. 
As  long  as  pharmacy  remains  a  distinct  profession  and  retains  its 
glorious  history,  the  names  of  Hermann  Hager  and  F.  A.  Fliickiger1 
xAmer.  Jour,  of  Phar.  (1895),  Vol.  67,  p.  65. 
