But now such sympathy was destined to offer itself as a
means of education and improvement. For there were in Jena just then two
scientific associations, one for natural history and botany, the other
for mineralogy, as it was then called. Many of the young students, who
had shown living interest and done active work in natural science, were
invited to become members by the President, and this elevating pleasure
was also offered to me. At the moment I certainly possessed few
qualifications for membership; the most I could say was that my faculty
for arranging and classifying might be made of some use in the Natural
History Society, and this, indeed, actually came to pass. Although my
admission to this society had no great effect upon my later life,
because it was dissolved at the death of its founder, and I did not keep
up my acquaintance with the other members afterwards, yet it awakened
that yearning towards higher scientific knowledge which now began to
make itself forcibly felt within me.
During my residence at the university I lived in a very retired and
economical way; my imperfect education, my disposition, and the state of
my purse alike contributing to this.
Pages:
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77