Bost, Jean Augustin

Bost, Jean Augustin a French philanthropist, was born at Moutiers-Grandval, in Berne, in 1817. He was apprenticed to a bookbinder at Geneva, but love for music led him to Paris to be instructed by the great masters there. Under the influence of pastor L. Meyer he was induced to study for the ministry, and the young artist, being twenty-three years of age, passed one year of study at Sainte- Foy and two years at Montauban. But bodily infirmities obliged him to abandon his studies, and he went to Laforce, a small village in the Dordogne. The pulpit there being vacant, Bost administered to the spiritual wants of the people, and his services were highly appreciated. Without having completed his studies, the Free Church, which then originated (1844), received him among her ministers. Here Bost founded the many asylums which made his name so famous. He died in 1881. See Bouvier, Le Pasteur John Bost, Fondateur des Asilesde La-force (Paris, 1881).; Lichtenberger, Encyclopedie des Sciences Religieuses, s.v. (B. P.)