The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1825-01-11 00:00:00

7-70

~.~Ow'~'

AN ANIMAL CLOCK.

..!~ --~-

The note, of which the following is an abstract, was sent
to the Society of Natural Sciences of Switzerland, and is
inserted in the Bibhotheque Universelle, vol. xxvii. page
160.
Monsieur Cheeannes, whilstresiding during last summer'
at Waartens, near EcheHens, ha: occasion to hear some
account of a man, who, without any uncertainty or mis-'
take, could indicate the precise hour by day or nighty and
even the minutes and seconds ; and this, it was said, he
did by consulting his pulse. Induced by these reports to
make close inquiry es to theAffoundation, he visited the
man and'obtained the following results:—
His name is Jean Deniel Clievalley, aged 67 years. In
his youth, the ringing of bells and vibrations of pendulums
constantly attracted his attention, and he gradually con-
tracted a habit of counting isochronoua vibrations, and dis-
played considerable ability in calculations. When strong
enough, he took pleasure in sounding the bells at school
and in church ; and in his nut ution to town and church
clocks, he observed, that the beats were 20 or Z 1 per minute,
but more particularly 20, counting from the moment of de-
parture to that of return. After this he endeavoured to
force his attention to the reservation, as long aspoasible, of
an interval movement, similar as to the extent of time and
number of vibrations. "At first," he says, "by adding
20 vibrations to other 20, or minute to minute, he could
easily arrive at the conclusion of an hour, and mark all the
subdivisions which he wished, and that without confusion ;
but the thoughts and corporeal occupations suffered by this
attention. By degrees 1 was able to count whilst thinking
and acting; but I could not proceed far, because my mind,
making a certain effort for a length of time, though but
slightly serelible t' myself, became fatigued, and dropped
the chain of c'lculation. Nevertheless, in 1789, 1 suc-
ceeded in acquiring the invariable possession of this faculty,
which has never since left or deceived me."
Ile was then 22 years of age, and occupied at a school ;
but, in consequence of some singular habits, as that of
sounding belie, and of some mystical notions he had ac-
quired, and also certain disputes about the erection of the
village clocks, he was dismissed, and went to his mill,
where continuing to sound his bells and make his clocks
strike, he was nicknamed the Mummy of the Mill.
Being on board the steam-boat on the lake of Geneva
(July 11., 1823), lie soon attracted attention by his re-
marks, that so many minutes and seconds had passed since
they had left Geneva, or passed other places; and, after a
while, lie engaged to indicate to the crowd about him the
passing of a quarter of an hour, or as many minutes and
seconds as any one chose, and that during a conversation
the moat diversified with those standing by; and further,
to indicate by the voice the moment when the hand passed
over the quarter minutes, or lialf-minutes, or any other
subdivision previously stipulated, during the whole course
of the experiment. This lie did without mistake, notwith-
standing the exertions of those about hint to distract his
attention, and clapped his hands at the conclusion of the
time fixed.
M. Chavannes then reverts to his own observations. The
man said, " I have acquired by imitation, labour and pa-
tience, an internal movement, which neither thoughts, nor
labour, nor any thing, can stop; it is similar to that of a
pendulum, which, at each motion of going and returning,
gives me the space of three seconds, so that twenty adieus
make a minute, and these I add to others continually."
The calculations by which he obtained subdivisions of the
second, were not clearly understood by M. Cheyennes, but
the man offered freely to give proof of his power. On try-
ing him for a number of minutes, he shook his bead at the
time appointed, altered his voice at the quarter, half, and
three-quarter minute', and arrived accurately at the end of
the period named. Ile seemed to assist himself in a slight
decree by an application of mnemonics, and sometimes, in
idea, applied religious names to his minutes up to the fifth,
when he recommenced ; this lie carried through the hour,
and then commenced again. On being told that the coun-
try people said he made use of his pulse as an indicator,
he laughed at the notion, and said it was far too irregular
for any such purpose.
He admitted that his internal movement was not so sure
and constant during the night; " nevertheless it is easy to
comprehend," lie said, " that, when I hays not been too
much fatigued in the evening, and my sleep is soft, if,
after having awakened me without baste, you ask me what
the hour is, I shall reflect a second or two, and my answer
will not be ten minutes in error. The approach of day
renews the movement if it .has been stopped, or reetiliewit,
if it has been deranged, for the rest of the day." When
asked how lie could renew the movement when it had.
ceased, or was very indistinct, he said, " Sir, I am only a
poor man ; it is nut a gift of Heaven ; I obtained this fa-
culty u the result of labours and calculaCons too long to
be described ; the experiment has been made at night many
thugs, and I will make it for you ashen you please." M.
Cheyennes had not, however, the opportunity of snaking
this experiment, but lie felt quite convinced of the 111311 s
powers. Ile states that the man is deaf, and cannot hear,
at present, the sound of his clock or watch ; and further,
that neither of these vibrate twenty times in a minute,
which is always the number indicated by the motions of
Clievalley when he wishes to illustrate his internal move-
ment; and he is convinced, according to what he has seen,
that this man possesses a kind of internal movement,
which indicate:, minutes and seconds with the utmost ex-
actness.

LAW INTELLIGENCE.

COURT OF KING'S BENCH, MONDAY, JAx. 10.

• - - - - - ---
ST•TE OF rue COUNTIII.—We cannot allow a single
post to pass without warning the people against the arts of
the faction to entrap them into some situation, by which
their own safety would be compromised, and the peace of
the country endangered. It is delightful, notwithstanding
the efforts to drive the pcople into rebellion, that there is
an almost general tranquillity throughout the island.
There is one unhappy exception, the particulars of which
have not yet arrived. In Clogher, ft appears, there has
been blood shed, at:alive* have been lost.—Cork Southerl
Reporter.
llre understand that Bills of Indictment have been sent
up to the Grand Jury, and returned found, against Mr.
Nicholas Murray Mansfield, Under-Sheriff for the City of
Dublin, for a conspiracy to impede the exercise of the
functions of the Commissioners of Inquiry, by refusing to
give information, at the suit of the Attorney-General,
touching the abuses of the Sheriff's Office.—Dublin Free-1
Mall's Journal.

We have learned, that Mr. Henry Staines, at the in-
stance of the Attorney-General, is joined with the Crown
Solicitor in the prosecution against the Morning. Star.—
Paper.
Roca NoriCE.—(From the Waterford Mail of Satur-
day.)—Yestertlay morning, between the hours of twelve
and one o'clock, a. Y. a Rock notice was served by an
armed party on Michael Finn) (tenant to Alderman Mor-
gany of shim city,) who hell lately gone to reside on the
lands of Kilmacomhe, in the barony of Gaultier, county
IVaterford. The notice was nailed up against the dwell-
ing-house, and the psrty on going away fired several shots.
There was something peculiarly daring in this outrage, as
a reward has been for some time offered for the discovery
of the perpetrators of a similar offence against the same in-
dividual, and there is a police station within less than two
miles of the spot. The Magistrates who usually act in this
barony sat yesterday to investigate this affair, and proper
steps have been taken to protect the present occupants in
their farms. The following is a copy of the notice:—
" I see that ye are not said by that notice Weave you, so this
is the second We are Giving you. and the Jut We Will Give you,
and I do assure you, that ye will die the Cruelest of deaths, if ye
do not surrender this °mond immediately, for We Will perform
an Event. With the Greatest Severity and Maliciousness if ye do
not surrender. So As not to spare the life of man Woman or Child
A four looted beast belonging to you, an this is a good precaution
for you, And even there Vere some of the Fraternity Who Did
not approve of Giving you this notice for they are so malicious
against you, Sine, ye made nothing of the first notice, ye got.
And exclusive!, these Destructions, We will not leave an indivi-
dual house in that town without burning, so that nothing but
Shrieks and Lamentations will be Instil in that town. So it is
yourselves hare to avoid these Destructions by Leaving that place.
" CAPTAIN HOCK."

The burials within the London Bills of Mortality have-
this year deereasod 350. In Chester they have materially
increased. Some attribute our local mortality to Gas—our
opinion is, it is owing to a deficiency of Gas.—Chester
Cliroukle.
We are assured that the cuckoo has been heard in the
beginning of the present week in the western part of tii:s
county ; and a wren's nest was found last week with vas
in it in this neighbourhood.—t-Ercter P4ing Pest.

THE BRITISH PRESS.

Sittings at Guildhall, &fore LORD Came JUSTICE ABBOTT
and COMMON Jacks.
LAME V. DE0II0IITON•
Mr.Cu ler TY opened the pleadings. This was an action brought
by the plaintiff to recover compensation in damages for slanderous
words spoken by the defendant to the prejudice of the plaintiff, in
his calling as a salesman of cattle. The defendant pleaded Not
Guilty, upon which issue was joined.
Mr. Gra kur stated the case to the Jury. The defendant,
Win. Broughton, la a farmer, residing in Norfolk, and the plain.
tilt Wm. Lamb, is a salesman in Smithfield cattle market. The
defendant's drover delivered to the plaintiff, on the oth of February
last, nine head of cattle, which the latter took to Smithfield market
the next day to sell fur the defendant. The plaintiff, in the course
of the market hours, met the defendant, and told him by mistake
that be had sold six of the rattle:—two to Mr. Miller, fur 511. •
61. two to Sir. Collingwuod, for 4 ; and twe to Mr. Joiner, for 511 f.
The tact, however, was, that the plaintiff had sold only five of
the beast,., Mr. Jenner having been the purchaser of one at 231.,
instead of tan, as stated by him to the defendant. tie discovered
the mistake shortly after he left the defendant, but did not deem it
necessary to inform the latter of it at that time, as the defendant
had seen four of his cattle driven from the market unsold. On
the Monday following the plaintiff sold for the defendant the re-
maining four beasts, and lent an account of the proceeds, with a
check on his banker for the amount, to the defendant. This ac-
count, however, not being satisfactory, the defendant, on the 23t1
of the eame month, applied to the plaintiff for an explanation, on
which occasion the plaintiff informed him of the mistake which he
had made, in stating that he had sold six of the cattle, when he
had in tact sold only live of then). The defendant did tot feel
satisfied at this representation, and called plaintiff' a rogue and a
cheat, and threatened et the same time that he would arrest him for
having pocketed his money. Nothing further ensued at that time;
the account still remained as already delivered, and no proceedings
were taken on either tide. On the 15th of April following, the
plaintiff and the defendant met at a cattle-fair. in Norwich. De-
tendant, in the presence of several persona there, asked the plain-
tiff when he would pay him the money lie owed him. The plain-
tiff asked what stoney ? saying lie did nut understand hint • upon
which the defendant said, ••• You are a thief and a rogue, and have
taken me money, and put it into your own pocket." Plaintiff then
observed to some of the persons present, who would be called as
I witnesses to prove the facts, that he should certainly enter an action
against the defendant, and desired they would take notice of the
words spoken by him.. The Learned Counsel then proceeded to
observe, that those words were calculated to do the plaintiff-very
material injury in his business as a.salesinan, inasmuch as they Jens
putetl to hunt a fraudulent act, which of course would prevent other
deals from consigning cattle to him thereafter. Ile should be
able to establish, by the evidence of the persons whom he had
named—Miller, Collingwood, and Jenner, that the plaintiffonly
sold five of the defendant's beasts on the oth February, instead of
' six, as erroneously stated by the plaintiff to the defendant, and that
the account delivered by the plaintiff to the defendant was a cor-
rect one. Il'hen be should have done this, he then should require
of than such damages as would be sufficient to mark theirsense of
the unjustifiable conduct of the defendant, and at the same time
serve to set the plaintiff 's character in such a light before the world,
ea would do away with any injury that might have attached to it
In consequence of the slanderous and claummous expressions used
by the defendant.
Several witnesses were then called, who proved the different sales
made by the plaintiff, as stated by the Learned Counsel, and also
the slanderous words used by .the defendant. They all said the
words were, in their opir.ion, spoken in reference to the particular
transaction as to the sale ut the defendant's beasts by the
plaintiff.
Mr. SCAIILETT, in addressing the Jury on behalf of the defend.
ant, observed, that the nature of the defence he had to make was,
that the words complained of by the plaintiff in his record did not
have reference to the character of the plaintiff gererally, but to a
particular transaction, and might therefore be explained. The
evidence went to show that disputes had arisen between the plaintiff
and the defendant respecting the sale of some beasts ; the plaintiff
having represented that he had sold six of the defendant's beasts.
and then subsequently that he bad only sold five on that occasion ;
whereas the dettrulard insisted, or at least had reason to believe,'
that the former statement of the plaintiff was correct. At all events
it was clear that the parties could not agree on the statement of the
accounts; and the defendant, conceiving that the plaintiff had not
given him a true account, requested an explanation, but this not
being satisfactory, and still thinking that the plaintiff owed to-him
more money than he had accounted to him for, did, on the occasion
alluded to, at Norwich fair, ask the plaintiff when he meant to
pay him the money he owed him. The answer of the plaintiff was
What money ?---1 don't understand you ;" and then it was that
the defendant made use of the words complatned of. Now it must
be evident to the Jury that those words were not spoken by the de.
fendant as of the plaintiff's character generally, but had reference
solely and entirely to the matter in dispute between them. If so,
the words themselves amounted in het to no more than this—•• I
think you arc indebted to me for the value of one beast, and I have
I applied to you several times for an explanation, but you have not
1 yet given me a satisfactory one, and, until you do, I shall consider
1 you intend to cheat me, and that you are a rogue and a thief." It
certainly would be hard to say that words spoken under such sir-
cumstances made a man liable to an action for slander. Besides, it
really did appear by the accounts, even supposing that the plain-
-1 dire • gmewskrthat glue wia • sum of 4a. under-
-1 charged by the
Mr. GiJanlifte here huserupted the Learned Counsel, and ex-
plained that pert( the aunent, by showing that it was merely an
error in casting up the items, the sum being in the account, but
not included in the total.
1 Mr. I',CARLETT continued--Ainother reason why the plaintiff'
was not entitled to the verdict of *0 Jury, was, that the defendant
I had offered, that if the plaintiff would swear to the correctness of
his statement, hue should be vatisfited: and yet the plaintiff had DOI
done this. it was fair to infer that his reason wait, he would not
sweat to a falsehood. Upon the whole, inasmuch as the plaintiff
had, on his record, complained of the words spoken as having been
said of his character generally, whereas he (Mr. Scarlett) had, he
trusted, most satisfactorily, shown ehat they had reference solely to
a particular transaction, and were in fact spoken hypothetically--
that so long as the plaintiff refustd to explain his accounts, the
defendant should consider that he meant to cheat hint (defend-
ant) out of his property. The Learned Gentleman did hope the
Jury tumid consider that the plaintiff had failed to support Ilia
case, and that therefore the defendant was entitled to their verdict.
The LORD CHIEF JUSTICE, In summing up the evidence, ob-
served, that the Jury had heard a very ingenious argument on the
part of the defendant, that they were not to understand the wends
as being used generally of the plaintiff, but with reference to the
particular transaction which had been so fully explained to them
and the Court, and that they amounted to this—that the defendant
not being satisfied with the plaintiff's accounts, said to him, " If
you do not give me a satisfactory explanation, you arc a rogue and
• thief." His Lordship really did not know that a man was, under
any circumstances. justified in saying this to another per•on ; that,
however, was a point which be should leave for their consideration.
If they thought the words acre meant to impute to the plaintiff the
intention of pocketing the money of the defendant, then their ver-
dict ought to be for the plaintiff; with such temperate damages as
they should deem the justice of the cue to demand. The plaintiff
was certainly entitled so their verdict, unless, indeed, they could
take the words in that hypothetical sense in which they had been
by the defendant's Counsel represented to have been spoken.
The Jury, after consulting a few minutes, found a verdict for the
plaintiff—Damages 51. costa 40s.
Several other cases were disposed of, which partook of no public
interest whatever, the greater part of them being actions op bills of
I exchange, and requiring only the proof of the signatures of the dif-
ferent parties, and of the necessary notices, to entitle the plaintiff
in each case to recover.