ife was early brought under the influence of nature, of useful
handiwork, and of religious feelings; or, as I prefer to say, the
primitive and natural inclinations of every human being were even in my
case also tenderly fostered in the germ. I must mention here, with
reference to my ideas regarding the nature of man, to be treated of
later, and as throwing light upon my professional and individual work,
that at this time I used repeatedly, and with deep emotion, to resolve
to try and be a good and brave man. As I have heard since, this firm
inward resolution of mine was in flagrant contrast with my outward life.
I was full of youthful energy and in high spirits, and did not always
know how properly to moderate my vivacity. Through my want of restraint
I got into all kinds of scrapes. Often, in my thoughtlessness, I would
destroy the things I saw around me, in the endeavour to investigate and
understand them.

My father was prevented by his manifold occupations from himself
instructing me. Besides, he lost all further inclination to teach me,
after the great trouble he found in teaching me to read--an art which
came to me with great difficulty. As soon as I could read, therefore, I
was sent to the public village school.

The position in which my father stood to the village schoolmasters, that
is to say, to the Cantor,[5] and to the master of the girls' school, and
his judgment of the value of their respective teaching, decided him to
send me to the latter. This choice had a remarkable influence on the
development of my inner nature, on account of the perfect neatness,
quiet, intelligence, and order which reigned in the school; nay, I may
go further, and say the school was exactly suitable for such a child as
I was. In proof of this I will describe my entrance into the school. At
that time church and school generally stood in strict mutual
relationship, and so it was in our case. The school children had their
special places in church; and not only were they obliged to attend
church, but each child had to repeat to the teacher, at a special class
held for the purpose every Monday, some passage of Scripture used by the
minister in his sermon of the day before, as a proof of attention to the
service. From these passages that one which seemed most suitable to
children was then chosen for the little ones to master or to learn by
heart, and for that purpose one of the bigger children had during the
whole week, at certain times