Another monument, or rather statue, by Bosio, of Antoine de Montyon, was removed from the old Hôtel Dieu when it was pulled down, and placed over the last burial-place of the philanthropist. Originally interred at Vaugirard, M. de Montyon's body was afterwards placed under the peristyle of the hospital, where it remained until the demolition. M. de Montyon is principally known by his _prix de vertu_ given annually by the Immortals of the Institut. But he left other legacies for prizes: to whomsoever should discover the means of rendering certain industries less unhealthy; to a poor French subject who should write a book the most conducive to morals; for the advancement of medical science or surgery; also for the poor who require aid on leaving the Paris hospitals. All the prizes are distributed by the Academy, and the whole sum left amounted to some seven millions of francs, a considerable fortune seventy years ago (1820) when M. de Montyon died. The principal prize, _pour l'action la plus vertueuse_, generally falls to the lot of some obscure person, who has passed years of self-sacrificing devotion to the old, the sick, or the poor; virtuous actions, in M. de Montyon's opinion, being those unrecorded works of love and charity which are done in simple homes, without excitement or glamour; works which become great because of their very monotony and which prove the patience and unselfishness of the true Christian. À LA MEMOIRE D'ANTOINE J. B. ROBERT AUGET DE MONTYON, BARON DE MONTYON, CONSEILLER D'ÉTAT, DONT L'INÉPUISABLE BIENFAISANCE ET L'INGÉNIEUSE CHARITÉ ONT ASSURÉ APRÈS SA MORT, COMME DURANT SA VIE, DES ENCOURAGEMENTS AUX SCIENCES, DES RÉCOMPENSES AUX ACTIONS VERTUEUSES, DES SOULAGEMENTS À TOUTES LES MISÈRES HUMAINES. NÉ LE 23 DEC. 1733.--MORT LE 29 DEC. 1820. ICI REPOSE SA DÉPOUILLE MORTELLE TRANSPORTÉE DE LA COMMUNE DEMEURE DES MORTS À L'ENTRÉE DE L'ASILE DES PAUVRES, SOUFFRANTS ET SECOURUS, COMME À SA PLACE LÉGITIME, PAR LA PIEUSE RECONNAISSANCE. DE L'AUTORITÉ MUNICIPALE ET DE L'ADMINISTRATION DES HOSPICES AUXQUELLES SE SONT ASSOCIÉES L'ACADÉMIE FRANÇAISE ET L'ACADÉMIE DES SCIENCES, XXVI MAI M.D.CCC.XXXVIII. M. de Montyon was a remarkable man, in that he refused the exalted office of Keeper of the Seals offered him by Louis XVI., for fear of his moral character deteriorating: "Dites à Sa Majesté que je suis confus de ses bontés. Si je fais un peu de bien dans la place que j'occupe, c'est que je ne suis pas en évidence. En acceptant celle que l'on me propose, je serais exposé à toutes les intrigues, à toutes les cabales de l'envie; je n'aurais peut-être ni le talent ni la force nécessaires pour y résister; dans le doute, je dois m'abstenir." SAINT-LAURENT.