Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1845-10-04

AN INTELLECTUAL PRODIGY.
The following article, taken from The Wes,er,,
Epascopdi,an, published at Gambler. Ohio. is from
lhe pen OF Rev. George Dennison, formerly Pro-
iessor Oh mathematics in Kenyon College, and now
resident of Newark, Ohio:
WONDERFUL. CHILD.
Mr. EDIToH Perhaps you have seen in the not;ca na
Pes OF the day mention made Of child in this ycni,y f
most astonishing intellectual ability Being on visit 10 INV
father yesterday went to this child and verly believe
him TO supass any thing Of the kind on record II h
OF man. and to opena door by which we are permitted 81
time to something of what minds are and what ,h
become when this natural body shall have been exchanged
for the spiritual.
This chlds is T. H. Stafford, Jr he is now n;ns
and six months Of age, Of small STATURE and pad cou
tenance his little much larger than my two fingers
he is of noble carriage frank and vet not forward His eve
his remarkable feature being very large and veyv
bright and when excited rolls in its socket with an almost
spasmodc force while his little hand is thrown over them both
In such way as to indicate pain. told that there is
scarcely any thing in the circle Of sciences with which this
child is not acquainted. History and particularly natural
history, is his avore, examined him. however, in nothing
but mathematics and astronomy. His father and myself
old school scholars together and every opportunity
was given me to test the child thoroughly.
will proceed to give account of long exami-
nation While the child not yet in from the field
where, with his little sister, he gone gather wild ber-
nes examined an almanac in manuscript for A. d. 1916,
all of which this child has wrought ALONE much of it,
including of the ecpses before witnesses with whom
acquainted About twelve days have already spent
BY adult in copying in fair hand the almost egbe writ
ing OF his tiny fingers We examining the projection
Of the ecpses which he himself had made and subsequently
calculated when he in told him Of the blind student
in Kenyon College, who studying the Dierental and
Integral Calculus He seemed much pleased and said he
did not think he could have done that without sight then
asked him Of the projection which lay before he mmed-
ately commenced full explanation, and felt his little
infant hand rapidly the diagram, and listened
his child like expressions If the presence some
In Int
did he appear eul and when told him any thing he did
not already know, he always repaid it with smile
asked him. If two equal circles cut each other to the
tent of LIZ their diameter, what would be thus cut
away Quicker than could think he said I" the l44th
part" then asked him, if 3l2 digits were thus cut
and he instantly said i-l6 asked him how he knew,
and he said Ia, and Ia squared is l-l6" asked
him why he squared it He said, it in semicrce
and must be SO in circle then told him the rule ho-
mologous Sides and he smiled and said he understood it,
then asked him, two legs Of right anged triangle were
gven ~ and the other 6 what the hypohenuse would
be and he instantly replied $50 wouldn't it Yes !"
then said suppose the legs and &c. then what In
half minute, and without pencil he replied ssl7 1885,"
then asked if the legs and Is then what He was
rather longer in answering, but took pencil and replied
"l6553 asked him why he carried this last three de-
cmals when be had carried the other four He said the
other easier, and tried to tell why asked him
if he could carry that any further decmals with pencil
He said he thought he could and taking the pencil n say
three minutes, returned the following "l6 562944l49"
believe there in about the 9Th decimal although
X.
detected it as quick thought had he tried
asked him the product Of l-l4x7654 He instantly
replied l-l30s asked him the square root of He in
santly replied 236o67 saying he had slot" Of them in
his memory and did not have to cast them.
gave him the following questions The square of 465
He said "2l6225" The cube of 90 He answered 1876.
asked him If might try him the fourth power He
said yes if would not beyond two figures asked him
the fourth power of u.s. His eye whed and he sprang like
to the door, hung by hand the door post and
came, in say threeourhs of minute, and replied thirty
millions six hundred and forty thousand hundred and
twenty five, (3l 640 625 His father asked him verify
that with pencil He replied cit is Just as well to take
the cube Of rs from the book and multiply by u.s. and rs is
"a of l00 add two cphers, multiply by and divide by y
all of which done quickly have written it. and with
the result before asked him what were the factors
Of 7640 He instantly said "40x I9l, or 20x $780, or
tx 1920, SIX 1928" asked him the factors of the deci-
mails 07s54i He Immediately said !" it is not regular il
will take double factor l.lxl7x06x07 y which as
down omitted the points before the and \ and he
instantly took the pencil and made them himself
As he had performed all these in his head, DESTROYS
OF knowing what his process therefore gave him
of four figures to be multiplied by another Of four figures
the slate. He took the first figure run through as
do from right left and then the second line back
again from left to right and He did not multiply ORE
figure Of the multplcand by ITSELF but always two eg hi
the case gave him the mupcand 5642, and the LEFT
hand figure OF the multper B. and, instead Of sayrg
times s, and setting under the 2 he said times Sc
l6s, which he in its proper place. but recorded il l6s
because the figure being he knew there be one
already been recorded, he the 90 the right Of tie
other, thus, 1926. His calculations entirely outstrp H.
capability of his pencil to record them.
tried to make his parents feel that he treasure lent
The mother evidently felt So but the father seemed unw
ling yield the fond belief that he might become as wonder
man as he surely is child. At all events, b
feel if have something of what yet may be when
mortality shall have been swallowed up Of life.
GEORGE DENNISON
Royahon, Vermont, August 2, ls45