Part 8 (1/2)

”It was the wish of the gentlemen present, to obtain a knowledge of the method by which the child was enabled to answer, with so much facility and correctness, the questions thus put to him; but to all their inquiries upon this subject (and he was closely examined upon this point) he was unable to give them any information. He positively declared (and every observation that was made seemed to justify the a.s.sertion) that he did not know how the answers came into his mind. In the act of multiplying two numbers together, and in the raising of powers, it was evident (not only from the motion of his lips, but also from some singular facts which will be hereafter-mentioned) that some operation was going forward in his mind; yet that operation could not, from the readiness with which the answers were furnished, be at all allied to the usual mode of proceeding with such subjects: and, moreover, he is entirely ignorant of the common rules of arithmetic, and cannot perform, upon paper, a simple sum in multiplication or division. But in the extraction of roots, and in mentioning the factors of high numbers, it does not appear that any operation can take place, since he will give the answer immediately, or in a very few seconds, where it would require, according to the ordinary method of solution, a very difficult and laborious calculation; and moreover, the knowledge of a prime number cannot be obtained by any known rule.

”It has been already observed, that it was evident, from some singular facts, that the child operated by certain rules known only to himself.

This discovery was made in one or two instances, when he had been closely pressed upon that point. In one case he was asked to tell the square of 4395: he at first hesitated, fearful that he should not be able to answer it correctly; but when he applied himself to it, he said, it was 19,316,025. On being questioned as to the cause of his hesitation; he replied, that he did not like to multiply four figures by four figures: but, said he, 'I found out another way; I multiplied 293 by 293, and then multiplied this product twice by the number 15, which produced the same result.' On another occasion, his highness the duke of Gloucester asked him the product of 21,734, multiplied by 543: he immediately replied, 11,801,562; but, upon some remark being made on the subject, the child said that he had, in his own mind, multiplied 65202 by 181. Now, although, in the first instance, it must be evident to every mathematician, that 4395 is equal to 293 15, and consequently that (4395){2} = (293){2} (15){2}; and, further, that in the second case, 543 is equal to 181 3, and consequently that 21734 (181 3) = (21734 3) 181; yet it is not the less remarkable, that this combination should be immediately perceived by the child, and we cannot the less admire his ingenuity in thus seizing instantly the easiest method of solving the question proposed to him.

”It must be evident, from what has here been stated, that the singular faculty which this child possesses is not altogether dependent upon his memory. In the multiplication of numbers, and in the raising of powers, he is doubtless considerably a.s.sisted by that remarkable quality of the mind: and in this respect he might be considered as bearing some resemblance (if the difference of age did not prevent the justness of the comparison) to the celebrated Jedidiah Buxton, and other persons of similar note. But, in the extraction of the roots of numbers, and in determining their factors, (if any,) it is clear, to all those who have witnessed the astonis.h.i.+ng quickness and accuracy of this child, that the memory has little or nothing to do with the process. And in this particular point consists the remarkable difference between the present and all former instances of an apparently similar kind.

”It has been recorded as an astonis.h.i.+ng effort of memory, that the celebrated Culer (who, in the science of a.n.a.lysis, might vie even with Newton himself,) could remember the first six powers of every number under 100. This, probably, must be taken with some restrictions: but, if true to the fullest extent, it is not more astonis.h.i.+ng than the efforts of this child; with this additional circ.u.mstance in favour of the latter, that he is capable of verifying, in a very few seconds, every figure which he may have occasion for. It has been further remarked, by the biographer of that eminent mathematician, that 'he perceived, almost at a single glance, the factors of which his formulae were composed; the particular system of factors belonging to the question under consideration; the various artifices by which that system may be simplified and reduced; and the relation of the several factors to the conditions of the hypothesis. His expertness in this particular probably resulted, in a great measure, from the ease with which he performed mathematical investigations by head. He had always accustomed himself to that exercise; and, having practised it with a.s.siduity, (even before the loss of sight, which afterwards rendered it a matter of necessity,) he is an instance to what an astonis.h.i.+ng degree it may be acquired, and how much it improves the intellectual powers. No other discipline is so effectual in strengthening the faculty of attention: it gives a facility of apprehension, an accuracy and steadiness to the conceptions; and (what is a still more valuable acquisition) it habituates the mind to arrangement in its reasonings and reflections.'

”It is not intended to draw a comparison between the humble, though astonis.h.i.+ng, efforts of this infant prodigy, and the gigantic powers of that ill.u.s.trious character, to whom a reference has just been made: yet we may be permitted to hope and expect that those wonderful talents, which are so conspicuous at this early age, may, by a suitable education, be considerably improved and extended; and that some new light will eventually be thrown upon those subjects, for the elucidation of which his mind appears to be peculiarly formed by nature, since he enters the world with all those powers and faculties which are not even attainable by the most eminent, at a more advanced period of life. Every mathematician must be aware of the important advantages which have sometimes been derived from the most simple and trifling circ.u.mstance; the full effect of which has not always been evident at first sight. To mention one singular instance of this kind:--The very simple improvement of expressing the powers and roots of quant.i.ties by means of indices, introduced a new and general arithmetic of exponents: and this algorithm of powers led the way to the invention of logarithms, by means of which all arithmetical computations are so much facilitated and abridged. Perhaps this child possesses a knowledge of some more important properties connected with this subject: although he is incapable at present of giving any satisfactory account of the state of his mind, or of communicating to others the knowledge which it is so evident he does possess; yet there is every reason to believe, that, when his mind is more cultivated, and his ideas more expanded, he will be able not only to divulge the mode by which he at present operates, but also point out some new sources of information on this interesting subject.

”The case is certainly one of great novelty and importance; and every literary character, and every friend to science, must be anxious to see the experiment fairly tried, as to the effect which a suitable education may produce on a mind const.i.tuted as his appears to be. With this view, a number of gentlemen have taken the child under their patronage, and have formed themselves into a committee for the purpose of superintending his education. Application has been made to a gentleman of science, well known for his mathematical abilities, who has consented to take the child under his immediate tuition: the committee, therefore, propose to withdraw him for the present from public exhibition, in order that he may fully devote himself to his studies. But whether they shall be able to accomplish the object they have in view, will depend upon the a.s.sistance which they may receive from the public. What further progress this child made under the patronage and tuition of his kind and benevolent friends, the editor is not, at present, able to ascertain.”

We proceed to a CURIOUS INSTANCE OF MATHEMATICAL TALENT.

A singular instance of early mathematical talent has been made known by Mr. Gough, in the Philosophical Magazine.--Thomas Gasking, the son of a journeyman shoemaker of Penrith, was but nine years of age when the account was written: ”he was, (says the writer), however, in consequence of the education given him by his father, (an acute and industrious man,) become well acquainted with the leading propositions of Euclid, reads and works algebra with facility, understands and uses logarithms, and has entered on the study of fluxions. On being examined, he demonstrated propositions from the first books of Euclid; discovered the unknown side of a triangle, from the two sides and the angle given; and solved cases in spherical trigonometry. In algebra, he gave the solutions of a number of quadratic equations; answered questions which contained two unknown quant.i.ties; and applied algebra to geometry. He answered problems relating to the maxima of numbers and of geometrical magnitudes, with ease; and, on many other mathematical points, gave very high promises of future excellence.”

The following remarkable account of a STONE EATER, is given as a fact in several respectable works.

In 1760, was brought to Avignon, a true lithophagus, or stone-eater. He not only swallowed flints of an inch and a half long, a full inch broad, and half an inch thick; but such stones as he could reduce to powder, such as marble, pebbles, &c. he made into paste, which was to him a most agreeable and wholesome food. I examined this man, says the writer, with all the attention I possibly could; I found his gullet very large, his teeth exceedingly strong, his saliva very corrosive, and his stomach lower than ordinary, which I imputed to the vast number of flints he had swallowed, being about five-and-twenty, one day with another. Upon interrogating his keeper, he told me the following particulars: ”This stone-eater,” says he, ”was found three years ago, in a northern uninhabited island, by some of the crew of a Dutch s.h.i.+p. Since I have had him, I make him eat raw flesh with the stones; I could never get him to swallow bread. He will drink water, wine, and brandy, which last liquor gives him infinite pleasure. He sleeps at least twelve hours in a day, sitting on the ground, with one knee over the other, and his chin resting on his right knee. He smokes almost all the time he is not asleep, or is not eating. The flints he has swallowed, he voids somewhat corroded, and diminished in weight; the rest of his excrements resembles mortar.”

The following account of a POISON EATER is said to be an undoubted fact.

A man, about 106 years of age, formerly living in Constantinople, was known all over that city by the name of Solyman, the eater of corrosive sublimate. In the early part of his life, he accustomed himself, like other Turks, to the use of opium; but not feeling the desired effect, he augmented his dose to a great quant.i.ty, without feeling any inconvenience, and at length took a drachm of sixty grains daily. He went into the shop of a Jew apothecary, to whom he was unknown, asked for a drachm of sublimate, which he mixed in a gla.s.s of water, and drank directly.

The apothecary was dreadfully alarmed, because he knew the consequence of being accused of poisoning a Turk: but what was his astonishment, when he saw the same man return the next day for a dose of the same quant.i.ty. It is said that Lord Elgin, Mr. Smith, and other Englishmen, knew this man, and have heard him declare, that his enjoyment after having taken this active poison, is the greatest he ever felt from any cause whatever.

We now proceed to give an account of a very extraordinary faculty, ent.i.tled BLETONISM.

This is a faculty of perceiving and indicating subterraneous springs and currents by sensation. The term is modern, and derived from a Mr. Bleton, who excited universal attention by possessing this faculty, which seems to depend upon some peculiar organization. Concerning the reality of this extraordinary faculty, there occurred great doubts among the learned. But M. Thouvenel, a French philosopher, seems to have put the matter beyond dispute, in two memoirs which he published upon the subject. He was charged by Louis XVI. with a commission to a.n.a.lyze the mineral and medicinal waters of France; and, by repeated trials, he had been so fully convinced of the capacity of Bleton to a.s.sist him with efficacy in this important undertaking, that he solicited the ministry to join him in the commission upon advantageous terms. All this shews that the operations of Bleton have a more solid support than the tricks of imposture or the delusions of fancy. In fact, a great number of his discoveries are ascertained by respectable affidavits. The following is a strong instance in favour of Bletonism.--”For a long time the traces of several springs and their reservoirs in the lands of the Abbey de Verveins had been entirely lost. It appeared, nevertheless, by ancient deeds and t.i.tles, that these springs and reservoirs had existed. A neighbouring abbey was supposed to have turned their waters for its benefit into other channels, and a lawsuit was commenced upon this supposition. M. Bleton was applied to: he discovered at once the new course of the waters in question; his discovery was ascertained; and the lawsuit terminated.” M. Thouvenel a.s.signs principles upon which the impressions made by subterraneous waters and mines may be accounted for. Having ascertained a general law, by which subterraneous electricity exerts an influence on the bodies of certain individuals, eminently susceptible of that influence, and shewn that this law is the same whether the electrical action arise from currents of warm or cold water, from currents of humid air, from coal or metallic mines, from sulphur, and so on, he observes, that there is a diversity in the physical and organical impressions which are produced by this electrical action, according as it proceeds from different fossile bodies, which are more or less conductors of electrical emanations. There are also artificial processes, which concur in leading us to distinguish the different conductors of mineral electricity; and in these processes the use of electrometrical rods deserves the attention of philosophers, who might perhaps, in process of time, subst.i.tute in their place a more perfect instrument. Their physical and spontaneous mobility, and its electrical causes, are demonstrated by indisputable experiments. On the other hand, M. Thouvenel proves, by very plausible arguments, the influence of subterraneous electrical currents, compares them with the electrical currents of the atmosphere, points out the different impressions they produce, according to the number and quality of the bodies which act, and the diversity of those which are acted upon. The ordinary sources of cold water make impressions proportional to their volume, the velocity of their currents, and other circ.u.mstances. Their stagnation destroys every species of electrical influence; at least, in this state they have none that is perceptible. Their depth is indicated by geometrical processes, founded upon the motion and divergence of the electrical rays.

We shall conclude this chapter with some EXTRAORDINARY INSTANCES OF LONGEVITY.

In October, 1712, a prodigy is said to have appeared in France, in the person of one Nicholas Petours, who one day entered the town of Coutances.

His appearance excited curiosity, as it was observed that he had travelled on foot: he therefore gave the following account of himself, viz. That he was one hundred and eighteen years of age, being born at Granville, near the sea, in the year 1594; that he was by trade a shoemaker; and had _walked_ from St. Malo's to Coutances, which is twenty-four leagues distant, in two days. He seemed as active as a young man. He said, ”He came to attend the event of a lawsuit, and that he had had four wives; with the first of whom he lived fifty years, the second only twenty months, and the third twenty-eight years and two months, and that to the fourth he had been married two years; that he had had children by the three former, and could boast a posterity which consisted of one hundred and nineteen persons, and extended to the _seventh_ generation.” He further stated, ”that his family had been as remarkable for longevity as himself; that his mother lived until 1691; and that his father, in consequence of having been _wounded_, died at the age of one hundred and twenty-three, that his uncle and G.o.dfather, Nicholas Petours, curate of the parish of Balcine, and afterward canon and treasurer of the cathedral of Coutances, died there, aged above one hundred and thirty-seven years, having celebrated ma.s.s five days before his decease. Jacqueline Fauvel, wife to the park-keeper of the bishop of Coutances, (he said,) died in consequence of a fright, in the village of St. Nicholas, aged one hundred and twenty-one years, and that she was able to spin eight days before her decease.” Among the refugees from this part of France, we have known and heard of many instances of longevity, but certainly none equal to these.

CHAP. VII.

CURIOSITIES RESPECTING MAN.--(_Continued._)

_Combustion of the Human Body, produced by the long immoderate Use of Spirituous Liquors. From the Journal de Physique, Pluviose, Year 8: written by Pierre Aime Lair._

In natural as well as civil history, there are facts presented to the meditation of the observer, which, though confirmed by the most convincing testimony, seem, on the first view, to be dest.i.tute of probability. Of this kind is that of people consumed without coming into contact with common fire, and of bodies being thus reduced to ashes. How can we conceive that fire, in certain circ.u.mstances, can exercise so powerful an action on the human body as to produce this effect? One might be induced to give less faith to these instances of combustion, as they seem to be rare. I confess, that at first they appeared to me worthy of very little credit; but they are presented to the public as true, by men whose veracity seems unquestionable. Bianchini, Mossei, Rolli, Le Cat, Vicq.

d'Azyr, and several men distinguished by their learning, have given certain testimony of the facts. Besides, is it more surprising to experience such incineration than to void saccharine urine, or to see the bones softened, or of the diabetes mellitus. This marbific disposition, therefore, would be one more scourge to afflict humanity; but in physics, facts being always preferable to reasoning, I shall here collect those which appear to me to bear the impression of truth; and, lest I should alter the sense, I shall quote them just as they are given in the works from which I have extracted them.

We read in the transactions of Copenhagen, that in 1692, a woman of the lower cla.s.s, who for three years had used spirituous liquors to such excess that she would take no other nourishment, having sat down one evening on a straw chair to sleep, was consumed in the night-time, so that next morning no part of her was found, but the skull, and the extreme joints of the fingers; all the rest of her body, says Jacobeus, was reduced to ashes.

The following extract of the memoir of Bianchini, is taken from the Annual Register for 1763:--The Countess Cornelia Bandi, of the town of Cesena, aged 62, enjoyed a good state of health. One evening, having experienced a sort of drowsiness, she retired to bed, and her maid remained with her till she fell asleep. Next morning, when the girl entered to awaken her mistress, she found nothing but the remains of her mistress, in a most horrid condition. At the distance of four feet from the bed was a heap of ashes, in which could be distinguished the legs and arms untouched.