ABSTRACT
In 1525 a pestilence broke out and ravaged Montpellier and the surrounding country, and Nostradamus, aware that certain districts were without doctors, quitted Montpellier and set out upon a tour of the villages attacked by the contagion. One of the greatest savants of the century, Jules Cesar Scaliger, having heard—as all France had heard—of the immense reputation of Nostradamus, communicated with him in order that he might judge for himself if the commotion had real foundation. A man of the age of Nostradamus, handsome and enjoying so great a reputation, naturally excited the attentions of family men who possessed marriageable daughters, and several people of considerable standing presented themselves with a view to arranging an alliance. The name of Nostradamus, then, had long been pronounced with the most profound respect when an event occurred which added a new lustre to his reputation.
