In March of 1866 he writes the following to his father :
"I was born with ambition and a sense of duty not only to one nation but towards the whole of humanity. In order to satisfy these urges and to retain my own individual independence, my aim in life will be best achieved, as far as I can see at present, if I follow a career in science."
Through the father's letters we get an idea of what was happening behind the scenes in the political life of his time. In December 1867 for example, he wrote the following to his son:
"For once my letter is overdue, a rare occurrence in our correspondence, if you were ever to
become a minister yourself, which heaven forbid, you would discover, particularly in
Hungary, that you can never carry out those closest to your heart ... There are moments when
I'm overtaken by the feeling that I'm confronted by a rock which I must lift, but am unable to
do so by myself and cannot rely on the help of others. Indeed where could I find the people
who would help me to change the system of education in our country? "
In a later letter he writes to his son :
".... I console myself with the thought that you will continue my
labours and so the establishment of Hungarian culture and science may not be credited to me
alone, but to us both jointly. Recognition will be shared by us both."
In 1869 the young Eötvös, thirsty for adventure, plans to join Petermann the German geographer on his expedition to the Spitzbergen. His father disagrees with his son's plans and writes the following:
"On this occasion, however, I do see the need to warn you of my situation, which demands that economies be made by the whole family, including yourself. For years I've almost always been in a situation in which my expenses exceed my income ... I willingly give whatever is necessary to further your scientific studies ... but I must ask you to forgo certain luxuries for the sake of us all, and your planned expedition is one of them. I'm not referring to the Transylvanian expedition but the one to the Arctic."
At his father's request Eötvös gave up the plan to travel and applied all his energy to preparing for his examinations. In his letter of July 8th, 1870 he says:
"... I've had the results of my doctorate today. And my greatest delight is that this news will bring you pleasure. I passed my finals with first class honours, a distinction envied by many."