DEHÉRAIN (Pierre-Paul). - Lot 32

DEHÉRAIN (Pierre-Paul). Born in Paris, 1830-1902. French agronomist, member of the Académie des Sciences from 1887, specialized in agricultural chemistry and soil fertilization. Autograph card signed "P. P. Dehérain" addressed to Dr. Léon Labbé. Avilly-Saint-Léonard, near Senlis (Oise), September 5, 1901. 2 pages in-12 oblong. Interesting letter concerning the elections to the Académie des Sciences and the interplay of influence in the academic world during the Third Republic. Dehérain begins by mentioning the death of "l'amiral", i.e. Admiral de Jonquières, during the summer, and the institutional consequences of this vacancy: "it will only be in October or November that we will begin to deal with this election". He specified that this succession would be preceded by the replacement of Henri de Lacaze-Duthiers. The letter is a vivid testimony to the academic and political networks of the time. Dehérain advises his correspondent, the surgeon and senator Léon Labbé, to seek the support of Berthelot and, above all, Charles de Freycinet, a "free academician" with "a lot of influence". He added: "I know that some people are thinking of Roland Bonaparte, but it's all still very vague". This document sheds light on the mechanisms of co-optation and the balance of influence within the Académie des Sciences at the turn of the 20th century, in an environment where scientists, politicians and leading figures of the Republic intersect. Léon Labbé was not finally elected to the Académie until 1903. A fine piece of scientific and political writing, elegantly and nervously written, giving a behind-the-scenes view of French academic life.