Speaking of him as he was at college at about twenty years of age, one of his comrades has told us[1] "Jaurès was without any sense of the value of money: to tell the truth, he lived happy as a king without a halfpenny in his pocket, often not having enough to take an omnibus—withal very generous when it happened that he had a few silver coins. Moreover, as little practical as possible, … he kept no accounts and easily got into a mess over any calculation. Very neglectful in dress, but without the slightest affectation about it. The question of the toilette did not exist for him, and in the same way he ignored in his innocence many worldly proprieties, and one may say all exterior elegance. This disdain amused us, ravished us, and was the occasion of many jokes. Some verses long preserved the memory of 'one of Jaurès' hats.' But we had a profound esteem for him, we venerated this naiveté, this truly childlike simplicity of heart."
Jaurès passed through all his examinations with great success. At the final Agrégation, taken at the end of his career at the Ecole Normale, he was evidently expected to do well, and his eloquence being already recognized, the amphitheatre where the oral tests took place was filled when it came to Jaurès' turn to speak. It emptied immediately afterwards for the next student, Lesbazeilles, leaving only the examiners
- ↑ Quelques pages sur J. Jaurès, by L. Levy-Bruhl.
