The daily republic. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1853-1853, 1853-07-15
From the Ncsp Orleans Advertiser gy-
Extraordinary Faculty for Calculate

We mentioned among our news items the other
day the circumstance of youth in Arkansas, OF
twenty years of age, who was an idiot, except in
the extraordinary faculty he possesses for the COM
putation of numbers. He can give correct an
swers, instantaneously, to the most difficult ques-
tiOns propounded-by mental operation, for he
has no education whatever.
1t is singular thing that this faculty has been
seldom, if ever, found in persons Of well-culti-
waited or superior mind. 1t seems as though Gull
tivation destroyed it. Zerah Colborne, whose
extraordinary powers many Of our readers well
remember, entirely lost the faculty as he APP
preached mans estate.
In the year 1888, DR.. Rush, of Philadelphia,
published account of the existence of the calcu-
lating faculty in negro man, slave in Virginia,
which is perhaps one of the most interesting cases
on record. This man was farm slave on a poor
Virginia farm near Alexandria, where he worked
hard in the fields all his life. He could neither
read nor write, and was, moreover, u native OF
Africa. He had no idea Of the advantages of edu-
cation, but rather prided himself upon his igno-
rance, "because, " said he, "many learned men
| be great FOOLS" Tom Fullerton that was his
faculty he possessed-or the way he came by it
which none of his predecessors equally gifted
have been enabled to do.
| He showed that in his case at least it was in a
greater or less degree the result of laborious
and natural effort-a sort of self-discipline by
which his powers were slowly cultivated and per-
fected. He remembered when he could only
count ten; and-when, by dint Of application, he
could count hundred, he thought, as he said, he
was ga very clever fellow Having thus got an
insight into the nature of numbers, lie proceeded
to try his powers.
| The first thing he did, according to DR.. Rush,
was to count the number of hairs on COW 8 tail
which he found to be exactly 2,872 After this
he exercised himself by counting the number OF
grains in bushel Of wheat, and in the same
quantity Of flax, &c. Thomas had quite prac-
teal turn, and he made his talent useful to his
mistress in a number of ways. How he acquired
his faculty for intricate calculations does moi
appear
of Philadelphia, citizens of the highest rcspecta.
bility and integrity, visited Fuller. When they
saw him he was over seventy years of age. Upon
being brought to his arithmetic, there was no evil
donce of decay of his powers. The first question
asked him was, how many seconds there were il
ia year and half, to which he gave a correct an
swer in two minutes. To the similar but NOR,
difficult question-how many seconds man ha
lived who is seventy years, seventeen days, ant
twelve hours old, he replied in minute and
half, 2,2lO, 500 300 seconds, which will be fount
| to be the correct answer.
| A curious circumstance occurred in connexiol
with this answer, showing that whatever wal
Toms mode of arriving at these results it wa.
one of reason and thought. One of the gentlemen
who questioned him had cphered out the sun
with a pen, and his result did not agree with
Toms. He told Tom SO, assuring him he wal
wrong, and that his answer gave too many Sec
onds upon which Tom Immediately exclaimed
s'Stop, massa, you forgot dc leap year" 1t then
appeared the gentleman had forgotten to allow fol-
the seventeen intercalculafy days g57