MANUSCRITS AND AUTOGRAPHS - Part 1

See original version (French)

Michel ADANSON (1727-1806), botanist, explored Senegal for 5 years. Autograph letter signed "à l'ami bienfaisant du Philosophe" [Bélanger]. 3 pp. in-4. Paris, 4 February 1796 (15 pluviôse year 4). Address on the back. A very long and superb letter devoted entirely to his project for a very vast encyclopaedic publication, encompassing the 3 kingdoms of nature, which he had been advocating for 20 years and which never saw the light of day. " [...1° of the plan or method, 2° of the scope or content, 3° of the mode or manner of execution of my Universal Encyclopaedia founded on the principles of an entirely new philosophy, those of the sets of relationships of all the parts, qualities and powers of each of the 80 thousand species of existence, arranged, according to their differences, in a graduated and nuanced series, in such a way that one cannot move a single one of these existences without disturbing the order of the nuances of their differences indicated and fixed by the very nature of these existences. It is in these specific differences of the 80 thousand species of existence (limited until now to 15 or 20 thousand at most, in the most extensive catalogue of the famous Linnaeus) and of all their qualities and powers that consist the essence and the definitions of each of the hundred thousand articles of human knowledge, chosen from the 2 to 3 million of the immense fund of this universal philosophy, definitions that the wise have desired and waited for so vainly since the Prince of the Philosophers Aristotle, and whose execution could only be hoped for in a work of this scope, embracing more than ¾ of the existences of our globe. This number of hitherto unknown existences, for the most part, and certainly not thus developed in all their relations and their definitions thus nuanced and brought to a number, so to speak, immense and overwhelming for even the most extended memory, are a culminating point of knowledge at which the universal Philosopher once reached, admires nothing more, learns almost nothing more, sees only fillings, some gaps to be filled, of which the most essential are not so much the 20 or 30 thousand unknown existences (which are missing and remain to be sought and found to complete this series of 80 thousand up to the 100 thousand or so which make up our globe) as the new and useful facts or principles [?]. These are the new principles that serve as the most solid and extensive basis for the method of this universal encyclopaedic philosophy; these are the useful results of the definitions of all human knowledge, finally fixed by them 25 years ago (in 1775) when I read the very detailed plan on 15 February 1775 in 18 pages in-4° at the Academy of Sciences, and which was printed with the report of its commissioners in 4 pages [...]. It would be essential for you and your esteemed and benevolent friends to come one day, or even immediately, after our philosophical lunch, between 3 or 4 o'clock at the latest, to take at least a 1st look at this 30ne of more general articles of this Encyclopaedia, on the unique collection of 80 thousand figures, on the suites, as complete as they are precious for their notes, of the objects in his cabinet, his numerous articles added and corrected on the famous Encyclopaedia of the genius Diderot. So here I am at the dawn of this beautiful day which should bring me together, on this globe, in the happy abode of beneficent friendship, with the esteemed talents of these men as virtuous as they are enlightened and benevolent protectors of the septuagenarian philosopher, and make him enjoy, for the 1st time, the happiness he sacrificed and lost by occupying himself all his life with the happiness of the whole of humanity! [...] " [On 15 February 1775 Adanson submitted to the Académie des Sciences the plan for an immense work covering all known beings. It consisted of 27 large volumes explaining the relationships between all entities; there were one hundred and fifty additional volumes devoted to 40,000 species, a glossary of 200,000 words, special memoirs, 40,000 figures and 30,000 specimens from the three kingdoms of nature. A committee strongly advised Adanson to publish separately all that was his own work, leaving aside what was merely a compilation. Adanson stubbornly rejected the advice, and the work, which he continued and to which he devoted his resources, was never published. At the time, the young but ambitious Antoine-Laurent de Jussieu, nephew of Bernard de Jussieu, considered the classification proposed by Adanson to be a copy of that proposed by his uncle, whereas it was rather the result of their past cooperation; however, Adanson's work had just paved the way for his own, Genera plantarum (1789)].

François ARAGO (1786-1853), astronomer. Autograph manuscript, 1 p. ¼ in-folio, [shortly after 1845]. Draft tribute to Joseph Lakanal, who played an important role in the establishment of the Muséum and the first École normale. "Considering that during the most difficult times of our revolution, Mr Lakanal contributed through his active and persevering zeal to preserving for the country in general and for the city of Paris in particular, very valuable collections of objects of art and science; considering that the Museum of Natural History, the first École normale, the Écoles centrales, the primary schools and the Institut were created on the initiative and largely through the great influence of this courageous citizen [...]". An article from the Musée des familles is attached.

ASTRONOMY. Correspondence addressed to François-Auguste CLAUDE (Strasbourg 1858-1938), astronomer, calculator at the Bureau des Longitudes. Most date from 1911. Envelopes preserved. - Maurice CORTIER (1879-1914), explorer. 6 autograph letters signed (one incomplete), 16 pp. in-8. Very interesting correspondence, several written from Gao (Niger) including statements of observations. + 4 drafts of replies. - Henri ROCQUES-DESVALLÉES (1854-1929), astronomer, calculator at the Bureau des Longitudes. Autograph letter signed, 3 pp. in-8, including 2 pages of calculations. - Émile RABIOULLE (1887-1914), astronomer at the Paris Observatory then in Toulouse and Algiers. 2 autograph letters signed. 5 pp. in-8 and in-12. Letters devoted to his calculations for the observation of stars. - Eugène COSSERAT (1866-1931), mathematician and astronomer. Autograph letter signed + 2 from his brother François. About an astrolabe for the Toulouse Observatory. - 2 other unidentified letters.

Jean-Louis-Paul-François de Noailles, 2nd duc d'AYEN (1739-1824), military officer and chemist, member of the Académie des sciences, of which he was president 3 times. Autograph letter (written in the 3rd person) to Charles Claude Flahaut de La Billarderie comte d'Angiviller (1730-1809), arts administrator, last director general of the King's buildings. 1 p. in-4. 31 March [1780]. "The Duc d'Ayen sends Monsieur le Comte d'Angiviller the brief he had the honour of telling him about for a water conduit. If this request is contrary to the established rule or to justice, monsieur le comte d'Angiviller is asked to send him a reply [...]".

Jean-Louis BAUDELOCQUE (1745-1810), obstetrician and professor of obstetrics. Autograph letter signed to M. Fougeron, pharmacy student. 1 p. in-8. Paris, 21 November 1806. Address on the back with wax seal and postmarks. He is responding to a recommendation that his uncle asked him to make to Desgenettes. "I told him of your fears about conscription, of the desire you had to be placed before the time when you could be called up, and on all that he promised to be useful to you [...]".

Antoine BECQUEREL (1788-1878), physicist, professor at the Muséum, president of the Académie des Sciences. 4 autograph letters signed to the chemist Edmond Frémy (1814-1894), professor at the Muséum. 5 pp. in-8. 1858 and n.d. Address on the back. As he had to go to the funeral of M. Geoffroy, he was unable to receive the person responsible for putting his notes in order. He comments on a successful recommendation he made. One letter refers to a temporary quarrel between the two scholars. "The wording that you propose to me smoothes out all the difficulties, since each of us retains all our rights. It is unfortunate that you did not think of it sooner, as you would have avoided clouds between us, which fortunately have now dissipated and there will no longer be any trace to disturb our friendly relations [...]".

Torbern Olof Bergman (1735-1784), Swedish mineralogist and chemist. Autograph letter signed to the physicist Jean-Baptiste Le Roy (1720-1800), member of the Académie des Sciences and inventor of the first positive and negative electric machine ever used. 3 pp. folio. Upsala, 18 October 1763. Address on the back with wax seal. In Latin. Very long and important scientific letter, in Latin, entirely devoted to electrical experiments and the work of Benjamin Franklin, with mathematical formula. "[...] Electrica vero imprimis adfero, nam et te hisse labiribus invigilarescio, et meam quoz qualemcunq operan per aliquot annos (quantum alia negotia siverint) exercuerunt. Systema Franklinianum mox mihi valde arrisit, cum inde mira facilitate et congruentia phoenomena miche nota explicari possent, interim tamen quin absg ulteriori examine hance amplecter hypothesin, veritatis prohibuit amor. Huic itag scrutinio multum impendi temporis, conclusiones ex Franklini principiis colligendo, harumg cum experimentis comparatione. De duobus, usg contratrus elextricitatis generibus, multa variag experimenta memet plene convicerunt, sed quid de natura electricitatis sic dicta neativa vel resinosa sit sta tuendum, adhuo dubius hiereo [...] Inveni legem ab aliis detecham, quod numurum utrag simul generetur, plerumg veram asse, nonnullas tamen reperi exceptions, quas proxima vice commemorabo. Vidi quog parvas circumstantias friciones sape etficere, ut quod libet ex confricatis pro lubitu fieri potess vel pritivum vel negativum. Dominus Wilson tales varias ante me observavit, sed quod interdum calor idem prastet, adhut nemo, quantum scio, probavit [...]".

Jacques-Henri BERNARDIN DE SAINT-PIERRE (1737-1814), botanist and writer, intendant of the Jardin des Plantes. Autograph letter signed "De Saint Pierre" to citoyen Gislain. ½ p. in-4. Paris, 18th July 1793. He sends him "the list of people employed at the Jardin national des plantes signed by me and stamped by the minister [...]".

Daniel BERTHELOT (1865-1927), physicist, son of Marcellin Berthelot, member of the Académie des sciences; Becquerel's assistant at the Muséum laboratory, he succeeded Pierre Curie as professor at the École de Physique et Chimie. His most important work was on ultraviolet light; he was also one of the main propagators of Einstein's theories on Relativity and published several works on the subject. He was also president of the Société Française de Physique. An archive box containing a set of autograph manuscripts and notes, approximately 150 pages, mainly in-4. Important set of scientific manuscripts, very corrected drafts of texts, articles and letters on Relativity, Quantum Theory, etc., some with mathematical developments and graphs. Attached is a bag containing numerous press cuttings on the work of Daniel Berthelot (+ qq. brochures, qq. handwritten notes and qq. letters addressed to him) and 2 bulletins of the International Society of Electricians (1916) full of Berthelot's manuscripts.

Jean-Baptiste BIOT (1774-1862), astronomer and physicist, pioneer in the use of polarised light, member of the Académie française. Autograph manuscript signed "B..t", 10 pp. in-4, with numerous erasures and corrections. Superb article on Volta for Michaud's Biographie universelle. "Our feeling for Volta's genius is so strong and so deep that we hardly think we should mention a few of the particular instruments he devised, which have come into general use in all physics cabinets and chemistry laboratories [...]. We hasten to move on to the great discovery of the development of electricity by the mutual contact of bodies, an absolutely new and unforeseen principle that Volta recognised with extreme sagacity, that he brought to light by a series of experiments as skilfully as they were wisely conducted, and from which he deduced an application so happy and extraordinary that it is still, if it is possible, a greater discovery than the very principle from which it was derived. This is Volta's true, great claim to immortality [...]".

Charles-Lucien BONAPARTE (1803-1857), ornithologist. Autograph letter signed to Isidore Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire. 3 pp. ½ in-4. Spa, 27th August 1849. Address on the back. Beautiful letter on the Roman Republic, written from his exile, asking for the support of his fellow members of the Academy of Sciences [he took an active part in the Roman insurrection (1847-1849); in 1849, he was elected to the Roman assembly, took part in the creation of the Roman Republic; he became vice-president of the legislative council and took part in the defence of Rome against the forty thousand French soldiers sent by his cousin, Louis-Napoléon; he left Rome after the Republican army was defeated in July 1849; he landed in Marseille, but had to leave the country on Louis-Napoléon's orders; he then went into exile in Leiden]. "Despite your silence, I cannot doubt your old and sincere friendship and your interest in me in these painful circumstances [...]. You are aware of the unworthy and anti-French way in which I have been treated!... what shall I say unworthy?... worthy in every way of the cowardly assassins of the Roman Republic, and of the pygmies who dream of empire without glory, and who through false ambition and greed for gold or power betray the cause of France even more than that of the peoples they oppress by deceiving a great and generous nation. Many friends have urged me and urge me to speak out in the House against the abuse of power which has distanced me and is distancing me from the country where I was born and to which (I defy anyone to prove the contrary), I have never renounced, like several of my relatives who were representatives of the French people by name, etc., while serving in my exile as a representative of the French people. while in exile for half a century serving the cause of freedom, civilisation and progress in America, England and Italy, unable to do so in France, which certainly never had to be ashamed of me as one of its children! He pleaded his case at length, explaining his actions and denying that he had taken up arms against France. He asked for the support of his fellow members of the Institut. "As a member of the Institut, doesn't this body owe me protection and support? That's what I asked myself! If Arago has done so much for Mellori in this capacity with foreign governments, will I not find someone who will take the initiative for me? That's what I've come to ask you, along with some advice that is as patriotic as it is enlightened". He added in a postscript: "I leave it to you to judge whether it is useful and appropriate to make this letter known or the sentiments it contains: in any case, I shall be obliged to you to communicate it to Arago and Milne-Edwards, with my affectionate compliments which extend to everyone, those of my colleagues in Paris who will remember me and especially Messrs Le Verrier, Duméril, Blainville, Valenciennes, Jussieu, etc.".

Alexis BOYER (1757-1833), anatomist, Napoleon's first surgeon. 2 signed autograph pieces. 1 p. in-8 oblong and 1 p. in-8. Without lei or date. - Medical certificate for General Marescot. As surgeon-in-chief of the Hôpital de la Charité, he certifies that General Marescot is attacked by a paralysis of the bladder "for which I gave him care jointly with Doctor Pommier, and that following this illness, to which a nervous fever has been added, and that it "becomes an urgent and indispensable necessity" for him to go and stay in the country. - Medical prescription based on gayac resin to be dissolved "in a pint of brandy". "A teaspoonful of this tincture is to be taken every morning in a cup of germander tea [...]". Engraved portrait attached.

Alexandre BRONGNIART (1770-1847), mineralogist. Autograph letter signed to the English botanist Philip Barker Webb (1793-1854). 2 pp. in-8. 7 January 1839. Address on the back. Slight wetness but not serious. Analysis of rocks sent by Webb. "I send you back, sir, your named rocks. They presented me with more difficulties than I anticipated at first sight, and to make my determination clearer and more reasoned, I have added to the name the characters that these rocks represent. You can use them as you wish. I have taken the liberty of keeping a sample that is completely duplicate in every respect of this Leucostous n°8. It's a specimen that I don't have of a new modification, at least that's how I see it". He was able to see Mr Berthollet but did not have information about the vacancy in Toulouse. He will talk to Moquin-Tandon about it.

Georges-Louis Leclerc, comte de BUFFON (1707-1788), naturalist. Partly printed, signed. 1 p. folio. Paris, 8th October 1779. Some foxing. Order to the bankers Sellouf & Perrouteau to pay a sum of 6000 livres to M. Lamant "for repayment of advance". Document also signed by 4 other members of the Compagnie d'Épurement de charbon de terre.

Frédéric CAILLIAUD (1787-1869), explorer and naturalist; he made several successful expeditions in the upper Nile valley, as far as Abu-Simbel and the ruins of Meroe, becoming the first European to penetrate this region. On his return to France, he turned his attention to natural history, particularly molluscs. Autograph letter signed to Treuttel & Wurtz bookshops. 1 p. ¼ in-4. 8 July 1826. Address on the back with postmarks. On the sale of his work Voyage à Méroé, au Fleuve Blanc au-delà de Fazoql, dans le midi du royaume de Sennâr, à Syouah, et dans cinq autres oasis, fait dans les années 1819, 1820, 1821 et 1822, in 4 volumes of text and 2 of atlas (1826-1827). "I have received your letter of 6 current in which you observe that the discount on the separate text of the work should be the same as that on the plates; I cannot agree to this condition, as I have to realise that the text being detached from the atlas will certainly be detrimental to the sale of these plates; but in order to meet at least part of your request, I will give you the 13th copy, and we are, of course, paying 15 per cent, and the payments will be made closer together than usual. If, under these conditions, you can take on the sale of this work, and you would like me to send you 50 copies so that you have some on hand, please let me know [...]".

Michel CHASLES (1793-1880), mathematician and famous autograph collector. 4 autograph letters signed to the chemist Edmond Frémy (1814-1894), professor at the Muséum. 4 pp. in-8 with his embossed cipher. 1859-1872 and n.d. "If you wish to speak on Monday, you must come in person to renew your request to your vice-president [...]". "Mr E.B. [Edmond Becquerel?] may have neglected to send his notice to the free academics. They are entitled to take part in the discussion of titles in the committee [...]". "If you were free tomorrow evening, Thursday, and came to have a cup of tea, you would give me great pleasure, and you would give me the opportunity, which I impatiently await, to ask you to lecture your friend Mr Longet, from whom I received two beautiful volumes yesterday [...]". "...] Earlier I heard from Mr Decaisne that you were not in Paris. I was planning to go to the Museum [...]".

CHEMISTS. 7 letters. Eugène CHEVREUL (Muséum letterhead), Jean-Baptiste DUMAS (3, as Minister of Agriculture and Commerce), Henri SAINTE-CLAIRE DEVILLE (2, one on the letterhead of the Chemistry Laboratory of the ENS, the other about tests for a process for making medals), Baron THÉNARD (1824). Enclosed are 2 early 19th-century manuscripts, in unidentified hands, one entitled "Purification du Rhodium" (½ p. in-4), the other of 9 pp. in-4 numbered 5 to 8 (incomplete from beginning) and formerly attributed to Silvestre de Sacy: notes on metals and chemical elements: chromium, columbium, titanium, uranium, cerium, tellurium, bismuth, etc.

Alphonse CHOSSON (Romans 1838-1907), geologist, chief mining engineer. Autograph letter signed, 4 pp. in-8, "Malatia" [Malatya, Turkish Kurdistan], 30 December 1865. Letter written during his geological and mineralogical mission to Turkey for the Ottoman government (from 1863 to 1866), illustrated with sketches. "...] Since then, I have made a quick visit to the Argana copper mine. This mine consists of an immense deposit of copper pyrite and iron pyrite, located at a shallow depth below the ground [he illustrates his point with a geological section] [...] This gallery, which has not been maintained, has collapsed and water has invaded the workings to a height of 15 to 20 metres above the level of the gallery [...]. The ore is thoroughly roasted in grate boxes and then subjected to black copper smelting in furnaces about 3 m high. We do not cast for matte. As a result, black copper is very poor and contains a very high proportion of iron, which makes refining very difficult. The fuel is very damp wood. Coal is totally unknown here [...]. From Argana I came to Malatia to find out about a supposed new mine found by the Pasha of Kharpont. This is a lie! This mine is old and was worked about 25 years ago by Afens Pasha; it is known as the Tépé-Khan mine, 8 hours from Malatia. Only 8 to 10 months were worked there with the help of the armed forces; when the troops withdrew, the Kurds destroyed everything that had been done and the miners were forced to withdraw [...]. The neighbourhood is made up of Kurdish villages that do not recognise the authority of the government. Yesterday they brought me a fossil found in the limestone near Malatia; it looks like a nautilus [he illustrates his point with a sketch]. I intend to visit the site to find others and get a better idea of the species [...]".

Georges CLAUDE (1870-1960), French physicist. Important file of 13 manuscripts, working notes and letters relating to the research he carried out from 1928 to 1935 on the thermal energy of the seas, in Cuba, Brazil and in the laboratory. A fine collection of his research on the boiling of water, hydraulic machines, ultrasound, etc. - 4 autograph pieces containing working notes on Cuban hydraulic machines with drawings and calculations. In-8 oblong or in-12 oblong. - Draft letter to Carlos Rojes, Cuban Minister of War and Navy (Havana, 30 October 1928. 1 p. in-4. Requests permission to consult the hydraulic maps in his Ministry containing the latest results of research carried out by the American army on the coast of Cuba. - Note on solar studies, studies on water at various stages of boiling, on the rates of heating and warming of water used for research into the extraction of energy from the seas. 4 pp. large in-4. Pencil on paper. - Preparatory note to present the results of his research with Paul Boucherot [(1869-1943), a physicist specialising in the transient phenomena of short-circuiting and coupling alternators to their magnetic leaks] relating the particularities they were able to find in their research to extract energy from the seas. 1 October 1928. 1 page in-8. - Research note on ultrasound. 25 October 1929. 1 page in-8. - 3 letters concerning a lecture to be given by Georges Claude in Rouen in 1931 to present to the Société Industrielle the results of his experiments in Cuba. The first is a draft letter from Claude to Camille Lion (1 p. ¼ in-8 on his letterhead). The other two are typed letters signed by Camille Lion, addressed to M. Cauderay. 2 pp. large in-4 on his letterhead. - Note indicating that he is returning to Cuba around 25 September, etc. 11 August 1928. 1 p. large in-4. - Note on André Marty. 31 October 1929. 1 p. in-8. Letterhead. Attached is a reprint-à-part containing an extract from his report to the Académie des Sciences on research into the thermal energy of the seas, with remarks by Arsène d'Arsonval. Session of 18 March 1935. 7 pp. in-4. [Georges Claude is the author of a large number of works with considerable practical consequences. In 1897, he showed that acetylene could be safely transported by dissolving it in acetone, and this process was immediately adopted by industry. In 1902, he perfected an industrial process for liquefying air by expansion with external work; he used liquid air to prepare oxygen and nitrogen. In 1909, he experimented with liquid oxygen explosives, which were used industrially from 1912. In 1910, he showed how neon tubes could be used for lighting. He discovered the multiplication of the absorbent power of porous coal at low temperatures, a property exploited to obtain high voids. In 1917, he invented a process for synthesising ammonia using a pressure of a thousand atmospheres. From 1926 onwards, he was concerned with finding new sources of energy; he carried out tests on the use of the temperature difference between deep marine waters and the surface layers. He was elected a member of the Académie des Sciences in 1924 (Dictionnaire des inventeurs et inventions, Thomas de Galiana and Michel Rival, p. 247).

Georges CUVIER (1769-1832), zoologist and palaeontologist. Autograph letter signed to citizen Berthier, secretary of the Lycée républicain. 1 p. in-4, "Au Jardin des Plantes", 13 nivose an 8 [3 January 1800]. Address on the back. After his appointment to the Lycée Républicain in place of Brongniart. "You treat with too much kindness a light friendly service, which I propose to render to C. Brongniart, who finds himself in a difficult situation. Brongniart, who is currently overloaded with work. I do not flatter myself at all to fill the void that this kind and learned Professor will leave for natural history by switching to teaching chemistry; but I will at least do my utmost to make myself less unworthy of the interest shown in me by the Lycée administration. I will be able to take the hours that C. My first lesson will be on the division of animals into classes, and the characteristics of these classes.

Georges CUVIER (1769-1832), zoologist and palaeontologist. Autograph letter signed to M. Dinet, professor at the Faculty of Science in Paris. ½ p. in-4, headed. Paris, 6 May 1809. Mounted under passe-partout with an engraved portrait (letter and portrait have been separated). He sends her his diploma. Attached is a pencil drawing of a fish (fossil?) by another hand, and old engravings of fossils.

Georges-Frédéric CUVIER (1773-1838), zoologist and palaeontologist, brother of Georges. Autograph letter signed to the chemist Jean-Pierre-Joseph d'Arcet (1777-1844). 3 pp. in-8, headed "Instruction Publique". Dated "17 August". Address on the back. Paper a little browned. Heating for the King's menagerie at the Muséum. He sends his thanks "for the kindness you have shown in looking after our studies, and for the trouble you have taken in sending me your fine work, on which I have no comment to make. Thanks to you the King's menagerie will be heated, as reason and the conservation of the animals demanded. Yesterday I gave your plans to Mr Molinos, who should have the honour of seeing you. I thought I should give them to him straight away so as not to prolong the delay I was causing, and to satisfy him: for he was complaining loudly about the delay [...]".

César DESPRETZ (1791-1863), chemist and physicist, President of the Académie des Sciences. 6 autograph letters signed to the chemist Edmond Frémy (1814-1894), professor at the Muséum. 6 pp. in-8. 1859-1861 and n.d. Some addresses on the back, one stamped. Nice correspondence between these two chemists against a background of competition between scientists, in which he fiercely defends his work (discoverer of mustard gas, he did important research in thermodynamics and was the first to study the transformation of carbon into diamond). "Since several chemists claim that chemistry has done what I have just done with so much trouble, please be so kind as to show me a work that resembles mine in some respects". "Would you tell me if there are any experiments on this question: a mixture of equal atomic weights, or in another ratio of two metals, e.g. copper and lead, is precipitated with hydrogen sulphide. The precipitates are separated into four. Do we know the composition of these products? I was going to do some experiments with this in mind, I need them for my work, but as I already have to do a large number of them, I would not do them if they were already done by a chemist [...]". "I beg you to accept a copy of my old chemistry. It is impossible for me to find a clean, new copy. It has not been in the bookshop for a long time [...]". "Please send me a copy of Mr Pelouze's paper on Prout's law. I am not stealing anything from your friend. I am only quoting it, I will show you all of it, the memoir on metallic acids [...]", etc.

Jean-Baptiste DUHAMEL (1624-1706), astronomer, physicist and metaphysician, was the first perpetual secretary of the Académie des Sciences when it was founded by Colbert in 1666. Autograph manuscript, 6 pp. in-8. August-September 1675. Precious personal diary of Jean-Baptiste Duhamel, reporting on experiments by Mariotte, Cassini, etc., in particular during sessions at the Académie des sciences. "[...] M. Dodart proposed that an experiment be carried out on the distillation of the spirit of urine of children and old people to see if the spirit of children's urine is sulphurous and the spirit of old people's urine is acidic and dissolves gold [...]. Mr Marchand brought a plant named Lotus syncata flora purpurio, which has been described: this plant has not yet been described by any author [...]. Mr. Mariotte brought a pipe from his bench 15 feet one inch high, including half the height of a reservoir eight inches high, which contained a pint of water; we experimented that these eleven pints flowed in thirty seconds through a circular opening of six lines, made in the middle of the base. A second experiment was carried out with a tin tray, at the top of which there was a circular hole precisely one inch in diameter. Having made the water flow into the tub in such a way that it continuously overflowed by about the height of one line of the circular opening, three pints came out in 75 seconds [...]. Mr Cassini brought observations of the last eclipse made in England, which agree very well with those made at the observatory [...]. Mr Mariotte brought a report concerning a monster which came into the world on the eleventh of June 1675, it had two testes, 7 arms, 7 legs, a single trunk, two hearts attached by their base separated by their points in a single pericardium [...]. On Wednesday 28th August 1675 [...After leaving the bottle at a very gentle heat, the liquor took on the colour of garnet; the distilled vinegar having drawn no liquor from it, this coloured liquor, charged with the dye of garnet, lost its acidity [...]. M. Cassini read the observations he had made of Saturn and its satellites [...]. On Saturday the 7th of September 1675, Mr Cassini read his hypotheses concerning the movement of vibration in the moon, which he will continue on the first day [...]". Very rare 17th century scientific autograph manuscript.

Robert Kennedy DUNCAN (1868-1914), American chemist of Canadian origin, professor at Washington & Jefferson College in Washington; in 1901, he went to Paris to study radioactivity with Pierre and Marie Curie. 3 typed letters signed to Henri Becquerel. 2 pp. in-8 and 2 pp. in-4, Chemical Laboratory letterheads. Washington, Sept. 1901 - April 1902. In English and French. He has received his two publications and proposes to review them, but will wait for his agreement. "I am now writing to ask you to give me your distinguished advice on a research project that I have been considering. The study of radioactivity has led me to consider the physical basis of the sense of smell. On this subject, I have read Professor Tyndall's research in which he proves the power of absorption that odoriferous emanations have on radiant heat. I also came across an article by Mr Will. Ramsay in the English "Nature" of 22 June 1882, page 188, in which he suggests that it should be possible to obtain a spectrum resulting from the absorption of heat by odoriferous emanations (heat absorption spectrum). The whole article seems to me to be full of possibilities. Would you be so kind as to tell me whether this idea has been worked on [...]". In a third letter, he sent him a proof of his article on radioactivity and asked for his opinion. "The article will be published in the August number of Harper's Magazine. The subject proved too abstruse for McClure's constituency, but it was gladly accepted by Harper's as a fitting sequel to Prof. J.J. Thomson's article on Cathode Rays [...]".

ENTOMOLOGY. Original drawing (pen, watercolour and pencil), captioned. 14 x 18 cm. Cut corners. 19th century. Beautiful watercolour drawing of a dragonfly, with this caption: "Aeschna maculatissima (spotted aeschnea) life size". On the side, two pencil sketches of the same insect (top view and front view).

[ENTOMOLOGY]. Set of 17 documents. Scientific correspondence addressed to the entomologist Alfred CHOBAUT (1860-1926), in particular a specialist in the insects of the Vaucluse and Mont-Ventoux (Vaucluse): - ABEILLE DE PERRIN, Elzéar (1843-1910), French entomologist. C.V.A.S. S.l.n.d. 2 pp. in-16 oblong. He wishes his correspondent "numerous beetles in our vicinity, mixed with new species to which Providence and your skill have accustomed you, numerous triongulins [beetle larvae] in our tubes; finally combined clientele and entomology; numerous two- or six-legged friends [...]". - SAINTE-CLAIRE-DEVILLE, Jean (1870-1932), French entomologist, specialist in beetles. 4 L.A.S. on letter-card. 1908 to 1910. 4 pp. in-12 square. About the examination and study of dorytomus, ellescus, scanicus, Corticaria cribricollis, Coryphium chobauti (named after his correspondent) and many other beetles. -BOURGEOIS, Jules (1847-1911), Alsatian entomologist. He had a collection of more than 15,000 beetles and described several hundred of them. C.A.S. 1910. 2 pp. in-12. About his catalogue of Vosges beetles and Mont Ventoux malacoderms. - BAER Gustave Adolphe (1839-1918), French entomologist. L.A.S. on letter-card. 1910. 1 p. in-12 square. About entomological equipment: netting, pins, etc. - SICARD, Henri (on the entomological hunts of Montlouis).

[Paul ERMAN (Berlin 1764-1861)], German physicist. Manuscript of 5 ½ pp. in-4. [1824]. "Notice sur une effet réciprocité d'action isolante et conductive (sic) que le platine incandescent de la lampe aphlogistique de Davy exerce sur les deux électricités - Extrait d'un mémoire de Mr Erman inséré dans le volume des Mémoires de l'académie de Berlin pour les années 1818 et 1819". Manuscript by an unidentified hand, published in Gay-Lussac and Arago's Annales de Chimie et de Physique, Tome XXV, 1824, pp. 278-285, with a few corrections that have been taken into account in the edition.

Hervé FAYE (1814-1902), astronomer. Autograph letter signed to Urbain Le Verrier. 1 p. ½ in-8, no place or date [England, (Cambridge?) Second Empire period]. About a controversy between Le Verrier and the British astronomer and director of the Cambridge Observatory, George Biddell Airy (perhaps about the controversy between the English and the French over the priority of the discovery of Neptune, a discovery made at the same time by Le Verrier in France and John Couch Adams under the direction of George Biddell Airy, at the Cambridge Observatory in England. This controversy lasted for years, including the naming of the new planet.) Hervé Faye was sent to England to see Airy in order to settle the matter. "I didn't write to you yesterday because the day before everything was going well and I wasn't expecting any setbacks that evening. This setback has had a bad effect here. Mr Airy even said that we should probably consider the matter finished. But I went to fetch your letter; I read it to him and reassured him in every way that you were making this operation a capital affair. I urged him to send you a short dispatch, convinced that you would take it to the minister or even to the Emperor in order to obtain the lifting of the obstacles, which are no doubt very ridiculous in essence, that are being put in your way. Finally, I said that the government itself would be annoyed if you did not succeed in an affair that involves the cooperation of both countries, especially at the moment. Mr Airy has easily recovered from his bout of discouragement and you have nothing to fear on that score. Everything will be fine. I think I can assure you that Mr Airy is keen to please you [...]".

Gaëtano FONTANA (1645-1719), Italian astronomer. Autograph letter signed to Jean-Dominique Cassini. 2 pp. in-12. Modena, October 1699. Address on the back. Precious letter to Cassini giving him the readings taken in Modena of the total eclipse of the sun on 23 September 1699. Very rare.

Felice FONTANA (1730-1805), Italian naturalist, published works on vipers and venoms. Autograph letter signed to the Italian physiologist Leopold Caldani (1725-1813). 1 p. in-4. Florence, 3 June 1794. In Italian.

Louis GAYANT (died 1673), surgeon and anatomist, specialist in blood circulation; he was the first in France to perform a blood transfusion between dogs in 1667. Autograph manuscript signed, 6 pp. ½ in-4. Undated (circa 1667). Precious manuscript reporting on his experiments with blood transfusion. "Account of the research carried out last year [...] on anatomy". "Firstly, there was talk of the transfusion of blood from one animal into another, which was practised in England. At the same time, I had a number of blowtorches made in different ways to carry out experiments, because from the outset I thought it was possible; we carried them out on dogs by passing the blood from the carotid artery into the jugular vein or the crural vein, weighing the dogs to find out precisely how much blood they had given and received, Some of them died, and we did not see the beneficial results that the advocates of this operation promise themselves, which leads us to believe that it is useless for curing illnesses, either because of the difficulty of performing it on humans, or because of the danger of giving blood which, not being natural to the person receiving it, cannot bring relief [?] ". He also describes experiments on the brain.

Isidore GEOFFROY SAINT-HILAIRE (1805-1861), zoologist. Autograph letter signed. [Paris], 26 December 1855. 2 pp. in-8. On the letterhead of the Société Impériale Zoologique d'Acclimatation. Empress Eugénie de MONTIJO donates wild horses to the Museum of Natural History: "The two wild horses that Her Majesty the Empress has kindly donated to the Museum of Natural History are of the greatest interest to the institution and to science. I had heard of this remarkable species of soliped, but I had never seen it, even in skin or skeleton form. I therefore began to study it immediately". Nevertheless, the scientist did not know what country these beasts came from and would like to know their origin and the circumstances of their capture.

[Isidore GEOFFROY SAINT-HILAIRE]. Catherine (or Kate) McKEAN, American woman of science; she worked at the Jardin des Plantes in Paris and was in contact with French scientists such as Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire and Constant Duméril; she was also a collaborator of Henry Charles Carey (1793-1879). 6 autograph letters signed to Isidore Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 23 pp. in-8. Paris, London, Philadelphia and Baltimore, 1860-1861. On the situation in America at the time of Abraham Lincoln's election and on his translation and attempt to publish Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire's works in the United States. She recounts her trip to southern Europe and then her return to the United States, where she attempted to have her translations of Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire's works published. She then evoked the political climate that prevailed in America at the time of the presidential elections, which saw the victory of Abraham Lincoln. "This election has never been of greater importance because it involves a complete change in our politics, a change which will only become possible by shaking off the yoke of a party which, despite its name of "Democrat", is that of slavery. No doubt you take little interest in our political struggles, but I hold them to be of immense importance, not only to us, but also to the whole world [...]". She attached two lists of questions, asking for clarification, in order to complete her translation: "[...] 410. His resignation in 1841. Did you replace him? Have these two chairs at the Faculty of Science and the Museum only ever been held by your father and yourself? [...] ". After Lincoln's election, tensions in the country were higher than ever. "You know, no doubt, the threatening position in which we now find ourselves in this country, on the eve, it seems, of a revolution, the expectation of which paralyses everything and affects the interests of everyone. There is an almost complete suspension of social action and movement, with everyone congratulating themselves on being able to live from day to day. God only knows what the outcome will be, but I have a lot of faith in the people and in republican institutions, and I no longer see things as black as many people do. Almost all our ills are summed up in the burning issue of slavery [...]. Believe me, I often revisit, in my thoughts, this Jardin des plantes, which is of such interest to me and which I would like one day to be able to revisit in person. I see, with great regret, that you have lost the venerable M. Duméril. Another ring broken with this generation that has seen and done so many great things [...]. During the Christmas holidays, having a few hours at my disposal, I spent them going through the plates of the great work on Egypt [...]. I shall be very happy to receive a copy of your new work on the acclimatisation of animals [...]. I have sent your little article on the Species to the American Journal of Science, but I have not yet had a decisive reply; we have so many contributors that we often have to wait a few months before anyone pays any attention to it. Mr Agassiz is the journal's zoology associate [...]".

GEOLOGISTS and MINERALOGISTS. 5 letters Charles SAINTE-CLAIRE-DEVILLE (on the letterhead of the Montsouris Observatory, on the shipment of thermometers), André LAUGIER (on the subject of notes forgotten at the Academy), Alfred LACROIX (application for a vacant position), Albert GAUDRY (to a colleague on bibliographical research), Samuel HOPKINS (Geneva, 1834). Old engravings and an autograph visiting card from the mining engineer Michel LÉVY are enclosed.

Jean-Baptiste-François GIGOT D'ORCY (1755-1793), naturalist, entomologist and mineralogist, he had created an important cabinet of natural history in his residence of the place Vendôme. Autograph letter signed to the botanist Charles-Louis L'Héritier de Brutelle (1746-1800). 1 p. in-4. Dated "16 January", address on the back. Negotiations for the purchase of birds and insects for his natural history cabinet. "Once again, Sir, I thank you for your good intentions and for the preference you have shown me. I had foreseen that our amateurs would not want to overpay for Mr Frazer's insects, in order to have some rare ones to overpay for more common ones in very poor condition, I made him offers above what he would find in the evening and I even added that he could come back to me once I was certain that others would not pay him what I was offering. He has not shown me his birds and is due to leave tomorrow, taking his junk to England. I have no (?) interest in reptiles, but I am willing to add something to my offer, so that he will also reduce the size of his collection and leave us his birds and insects, because he says they have cost him a great deal of trouble and a great deal of money and cannot be paid for at his estimate [...]".

Georges GILLES DE LA TOURETTE (1857-1904), famous neurologist, author of work on convulsive tics. 2 autograph letters signed to "my dear master", the sculptor and medallist Oscar Roty (1846-1911). 2 pp. ¼ in-8, letterheads to his address on rue de l'Université. Paris, 1899-1900. "I will be very happy to support the candidacy of our friend Goubert together with you, and I will be very honoured to do so". He suggested several possible meetings. "I will be very happy and very proud to be among you to give the good Goubert a well-deserved hug. Please be so kind as to include me among your members [...]. Our best wishes for a happy new year to Madame Roty, to whom you will please pay my respectful respects. And also to you, my dear master. As the old poet says, I will mark this year with a white stone, the year that allowed me to get to know you.

Jean-Noël HALLÉ (1754-1822), Napoleon's first physician, promoter of vaccinia and hygiene teaching. Autograph letter signed to the doctor Jean-Louis Bagot (1727-1794), who was mayor of Saint-Brieuc. 3 pp. in-4. Paris, 12th May 1780. On the epidemiological survey carried out in Brittany at the request of the Société Royale de Médecine [Bagot had been appointed by the King as physician for the epidemics of Brittany]. "Happy to be in a position to admire your work in discharging the duty imposed on me by the Royal Society [of Medicine] in handing over to me all that concerns the correspondence of the province of Brittany, I hasten to express to you all the esteem which your lights and your zeal have inspired in this company. In the details that you present, we can follow with pleasure the march of nature, well felt and expressed with clarity and precision. The description of St Brieuc that you put at the head of your correspondence is undoubtedly sufficient for the purpose that you propose to fulfil entirely. But in addition to the study of epidemic diseases and the different constitutions peculiar to each town and each canton, one of the aims of the society, by bringing together the topographical descriptions of each region, is to form a general topography of the different provinces that make up France [...]". An engraved portrait is included.

Jean HERMANN (1738-1800), naturalist and botanist from Alsace; his collections and library are at the origin of the Strasbourg Natural History Museum. Autograph letter signed to the botanist Charles-Louis L'Héritier de Brutelle (1746-1800), from Joseph Banks, London. 3 pp. in-4. Strasbourg, 16 March 1787. Address on the back with armorial wax seal. A very fine letter to L'Héritier, while he was staying with Joseph Banks in London, in which he talks about his natural history cabinet. "I didn't know you were in England. How I envy you! Not only for the beautiful things you see, but also and above all for the interesting people you meet. What a man Mr Banks is! How I admire him! Give him a thousand respectful compliments from me [...]. I had dared to recommend him to our Public Library for the history of plants on which he is working, but having learned from all sides that it will only be through his generosity that we will be able to obtain it, and that it will not be sold commercially, I fear I may have been indiscreet. He mentions a consignment of butterflies sent to M. d'Orcy [Jean-Baptiste-François Gigot d'Orcy]. "He sends him publications that he would have liked to give him, but the state of his fortune no longer allows him to do so. "I exhausted myself in a field I loved until my forty-sixth year, when I began to receive a salary, which is still rather mediocre. I have to do the chemistry, look after the garden, the labels, the seeds, the correspondence, look after my cabinet so that the animals do not die, have books and instruments at my own expense & for all this I have no one to help me; only I have just been promised that I will have a boy apothecary to relieve me. You can see what I can do with that at a time when all these sciences in the hands of the richest people are advancing by leaps and bounds. It saddens me and I see nothing prospering & that with all this work & the deterioration of my very meagre economic affairs, I can do nothing worthwhile in any part. You wouldn't believe how these thoughts dampen my spirits and make me more and more unfit for work. So for some time now I have been plunged into a deep melancholy [...]". Engraved portrait attached.

Xavier HOMMAIRE DE HELL (1812-1848), geologist and traveller, known for his travels in Western Asia and Russia; in 1846, with the painter Jules Laurens, he made an expedition to Persia, during which he died (in Ispahan). Autograph letter signed to the painter Jules Laurens (1825-1901). 1 p. in-8. [Paris, 2 October 1845]. Address on the back with postmarks. Rare letter to his travelling companion in Persia, the painter Jules Laurens, draughtsman of the scientific mission led by Hommaire de Hell. "Would you be so kind as to come and see me next Friday morning at about 10 o'clock. I would like to have a meeting with you to finalise our conditions, so that I know where I stand, if circumstances allow me to accept you as a travelling companion [...]".

William HUBER (1830-1895), geographer and civil engineer. Autograph manuscript signed, "Mesure des hauteurs", 27 pp. in-folio, illustrated with 6 ink sketches. [1875]. Scratches and numerous corrections. Important manuscript forming the 1st chapter (pp. 1 to 26, "physical geography") of the Instructions générales aux voyageurs published by the Société de Géographie (Delagrave, 1875).

Alexander von HUMBOLDT (1769-1859), German naturalist and explorer. Autograph letter signed to "Monseigneur" [Frederick William III (1770-1840), King of Prussia]. 4 pp. in-4. Paris, 4th September 1820. Beautiful letter to the King of Prussia Frederick William III: "If the arrival of Mr Voelker [the German miniaturist painter Gottfried Wilhelm V] gave me great satisfaction because of the great fame he rightly enjoys, it has become even more precious to me because of the gracious remembrance with which Your Serene Highness has deigned to honour me. Those were beautiful days in my life, when I enjoyed almost daily the happiness of being close to you, of sharing our sorrows and those of Her Royal Highness Princess Louise [whose depth of feeling equalled the breadth and originality of her spirit]. In offering you, Monseigneur, the respectful homage of gratitude, I like to anticipate the happy time when, before leaving Europe, I will go to your government to tell you of my devotion and admiration. Perhaps H.R.H., faithful to her old affections, will deign to give me some orders for the industrial products of the Celestial Empire of Yao. Mr Voelker was preceded in this country by a fine reputation based on the magnificent work by Count Hofmannsegg [Portuguese Flora or description of all the plants that grow naturally in Portugal by the German botanist Johann Centurius Count of Hofmannsegg, published from 1809 to 1820, with illustrations by Völker]. He left favourable impressions through his simple manners and the gentleness of his character. He seemed to me to be all the more satisfied with his stay because, owing to his absolute ignorance of the language, he remained deaf to all political quarrels [...]". [King Frederick William granted Humboldt a life annuity and entrusted him with various diplomatic missions.]

Alexander von HUMBOLDT (1769-1859), German naturalist and explorer. Autograph letter signed to "my respectable friend". 1 p. in-8 oblong. [Paris], "this Wednesday 1808". Humboldt documents himself. "I am in great need of the work by Abbé Hervas [Lorenzo Hervas y Panduro (1735-1809)] in Rome, Historia del hombre in 2-3 volumes [Historia de la vida del hombre, in 7 volumes]. I believe it is written in Spanish (Histoire physique et morale de l'homme), so I would be happy with a translation. He asked if the Imperial Library had a copy. "The same Hervas published a work on American languages.

François Paul JAUVY (1760-1822), botanist, specialist in the flowers of the Alpes-Maritimes. Autograph letter signed and addressed to the botanist Louis Gérard de Cotignac (1733-1819), himself a specialist in Provençal plants and the Southern Alps. In 1761, he published "Flora gallo-provincialis", the first work on the flora of Provence. Grasse, 21 January 1814. 3 pp. large in-4. Fine scientific letter, notably on his discovery of the Narcissus lotus, endorsed by Candolle. Jauvy scoured the Estérel massif and Laval for his botanical hunts and describes a number of his research projects: Astragalus, inula odora, inula crithmoides, anthyllis, etc. He recounts his exchanges with Jaume Saint-Hilaire, praises Emeric de Castellane "that indefatigable botanist" who was unable to find Tournefort's fern in the Pyrenees, known as "Filicula Montana folio vario", and mentions the cryptogamy work of Samuel Elisée Bridel-Brideri (1761-1828), the mycologist Christiaan Hendrik Persoon (1761-1836), the botanist Dominique Villars (1745-1814) and others. Jauvy congratulated his correspondent on the rich work on the flora of Provence: it surpassed that of the Turin botanist Carlo Allioni (1728-1804) on the flora of Piedmont, which he strongly criticised. He refers to the work on the olive tree by the botanist and agronomist Jean-Louis-Auguste Loiseleur-Deslongchamps (1774-1849) [whose Flores were illustrated by Redouté and Bessa] and denounces the latter's attempts at plagiarism, particularly through his translations of Latin works "adorned with the peacock feathers of appropriation". Loiseleur had asked Jauvy for a great deal of information and samples of plants "new to him" in order to appropriate them. He recounts a quarrel between himself, Loiseleur, Wilden and Gouan over Narcissus gouani, and lists the erroneous names given to this plant: "Finally, M. de Candolle, rejecting Linné's Nacissus odorus, has given it the name Narcissus Lotus, which he honours me for having found in Grasse [...]". François Paul Jauvy and Louis Gérard de Cotignac both built up exceptional herbariums containing several thousand plants from Provence, the Alpes-Maritimes and the Southern Alps. The latter is kept at the Muséum départemental du Var in Toulon.

Bernard de JUSSIEU (1699-1777), botanist. Autograph letter signed [to François-Alexis Fresnel, sieur Dugage (1722-1785)]. 2 pp. in-4. No place or date [circa 1775-1777]. Wear resulting in a small hole in the text and small cut in the margin. Rare letter decorated with plant prints (which probably accompanied it), addressed to the husband of Élisabeth DUGAGE DE POMMEREUL (1733-1782), one of the very first women botanists, who herborized at the Jardin du Roi [she attended the classes of Antoine-Laurent de Jussieu and André Thouin, head gardener at the Jardin du roi, enlisted her help to count and identify the grasses growing in the garden beds of the École de botanique; she tried to work out a classification reconciling Tournefort's system with that of Linnaeus; Linnaeus the younger named a plant in her honour, Pommereulla cornucopiae]. "A thousand and one thanks, Sir, for your kind letter and the good news it contains: it could not have come at a better time and you will not be mistaken in thinking that we were all deeply worried about your health and that of Madame Dugage; the state of weakness in which we had seen her here increased our fears. We did not know what to make of your silence [...]. Our interest in the two travellers is too strong for anyone to doubt our joy at receiving your letter. Why did you keep it so short? It would have cost you so little to make our pleasure last a few minutes longer; I thought you had promised me details of your journey and I was counting on that. Your kind companion, whom our ladies hold in the highest esteem, will probably have been obliged to take very short days, since you stayed so long to catch this temperate climate of which you give me such a beautiful description [...]. I have just written to the eldest doctor in the rue des Bernardins. I tell him at length about you and Madame Dugage; I tell him that this sweet patient absolutely wants a divorce from her ills, that since she has been living in Bières, her health seems to want to recover there in spite of all those who condemned her along the way. Such good news will give him infinite pleasure, I have no doubt, as he has asked me for it several times [...]. I would also like to point out to him that Madame Dugage has not lost sight of natural history and that she has bought a gentle and elegant horse to ride around a country she is delighted with and where she is in the best of health. Our ladies are all doing wonderfully, and they are very grateful to you and to Madame Dugage: they regret that her health did not allow her to stay longer in Lyon. They hope that she will make a full recovery and ask her to accept a thousand kind regards on their behalf. The abbot, Mr Pallier d'américain, my nephew De Senevrier and I add our respects [...]".

Antoine-Laurent JUSSIEU (1748-1836), French botanist and director of the Natural History Museum. Autograph letter signed. Paris, 27 Messidor year 6 [15 July 1798]. 1 p. folio. Fine engraved letterhead of the Muséum d'Histoire naturelle with vignette "à la ruche". Long letter from Antoine-Laurent de Jussieu concerning the retention of an employee of the Museum of Natural History who was dear to him, Captain Piault, "he has shown great zeal for the Museum and has earned the esteem of the professors who are all sincerely attached to him and who hope, in the interests of the establishment, that he is retained in his post". He talks about the work and various courses at the institution, etc. A fine document.

Adrien de JUSSIEU (1797-1853), botanist, he replaced his father, Antoine-Laurent de Jussieu, in the chair of botany at the Muséum. Autograph letter signed to Alphonse de Cailleux (1788-1876), painter, curator and administrator of the Royal Museums. 1 p. in-4. [Paris], 2 March 1833. Address on the back with postmarks. "Allow me to ask your kindness for admission tickets to the Museum for mornings and Mondays. The title of member of the Institut is the one I will use to obtain this favour [...]".

Sylvestre-François LACROIX (1745-1843), mathematician. - Autograph letter signed to the mathematician Louis Puissant (1769-1843). 1 p. in-8. Address on the back. He sends him a letter from M. Strum so that he can write his report. - Autograph letter signed to the bookseller Michaud. 2 pp. in-8. 30 May 1811. Letter about the articles he is writing for the Biographie universelle (Barrow, Bernoulli, etc.).