Of her work and her husband's, volumes--veritable libraries--have been written since that spring morning in 1898, when after an all night vigil in a shack on the outskirts of Paris, she came forth with the great gift of radium to mankind. Scientists will go on adding to the bibliography of the marvelous element. But of Marie Curie herself, the woman, it is unlikely that the world will ever read more than the brief notes which compose this small book. It is her conviction, her philosophy, that "In science we should be interested in things, not persons." CHAPTER I THE CURIE FAMILY. INFANCY AND FIRST STUDIES OF PIERRE CURIE Pierre Curie's parents, who were educated and intelligent, formed a part of the _petite bourgeoisie_ of small means. They did not frequent fashionable society, but confined themselves entirely to the companionship of their relatives and a few intimate friends. Eugène Curie, Pierre's father, was a physician and the son of a physician. He knew very few kinsmen of his name, and very little about the Curie family, which was of Alsatian (Eugène Curie was born at Mulhouse in 1827) and Protestant origin. Even though his father was established in London, Eugène had been brought up in Paris, where he pursued his studies in the natural sciences and medicine, and worked as preparator under Gratiollet in the laboratories of the Museum. Doctor Eugène Curie's remarkable personality impressed all who approached him. He was a tall man, who in youth must have been blonde, with beautiful blue eyes of a clearness and brilliancy that were striking even in an advanced old age. These eyes, which had retained a child-like expression, reflected goodness and intelligence. He had indeed unusual intellectual capacities, a very live aptitude for the natural sciences, and the temperament of a scholar. Although he wished to consecrate his life to scientific work, family responsibilities following his marriage and the birth of two sons forced him to renounce this desire. The necessities of life obliged him to practice his medical profession. He continued, however, such experimental research as his means permitted, in particular undertaking an investigation upon inoculation for tuberculosis at a time when the bacterial nature of this malady was not yet established. His scientific avocations developed in him the habit of making excursions in search of the plants and animals necessary to his experiments, and this habit, as well as his love of Nature, gave him a marked preference for country life. Until the end of his life he conserved his love for science, and, without doubt, also, his regret at not having been able to devote himself exclusively to it.