Knoxville journal. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1874-1986, 1875-01-14
Curious But Useless Fruits OF In
genuity.

IT Is curious to notice, as most OF US
doubtless have, how many skillful pen
men have expended their labor, and
perchance at the same time ruined their
eyesight, in an effort to crowd the great
est number of words into the smallest
possible space. Several such instances
are alluded to In a recent article in
Chambers Journal
Peter Bale, some time Clerk of the
Chancery, wrote the Lords Prayer, the
Creed, the Commandments, couple of
prayers, his own name and official posi-
ton, with the date of the year, month
and Queens reign, in such small charac-
tiers that he was able to inclose the
paper bearing them in "the head OF
ring" This odd piece of work Master
Peter presented TO Queen Elizabeth, to-
gether with IAN excellent spectacle, by
him devised, for the easier reading there
of" wherewith the Queen read all that
was written.
Another adept at microscopic penman-
ship contrived to get the Lords Prayer,
the Greed, the whole Of the Command.
mei,ts and his name within the compass
OF silver penny; and Liverpool rival
wrote Goldsmith's Traveller contain
ing 4SS lines, in a square of three and
half inches; the entire book of Malachi"
in sort Of pyramid the size of an or
binary little finger; while a circle three
sixteenths of an inch in diameter gave
him room enough for the Lords Prayer.
Pliny affirms the existence OF copy Of
the "Iliad" which could be kept In nut
shell, which perhaps accounts for
Prof. Schneider taking the trouble to
procure stereographic copy Of Ger.
man translation Of Homer's famous
work, filling 800 pages, but yet so dimin-
utive that nutshell sufficed TO hold it
an achievement surpassed by the Toledo
printers edition of Don Quixotc," oc.
cupying only fifty-one cigarette papers.
1t has been gravely recorded that an
artist of the sixteenth century contrived
to delineate a city on such minute
scale that fly would cover the entire
painting. We believe that story just as
much as we believe in the Dutch
woman's landscape, the size of grain OF
corn, in which those with eyes to see
could plainly discern a mill with its sails
bent, and the miller toiling up the stairs
with sack, horse drawing cart, and
several persons trudging along the .oun-
try road.
Father Johannes Baptisto Ferrantus
made twenty-five wooden cannon, all
properly furnished, for his peppercorn,
and then was obliged to manufacture
thirty wooden cups ere he could pro-
nounce the casket full. Trade-scants
Ark, as the museum Of Charles l.s
gardener was called, boosted the posses.
sion of a peppercorn containing set OF
chessmen. Hadrianus Junius saw at
Mechlin cherry-stone basket in which
were fourteen pair Of dice, the spots
upon them easily discernible by the
ordinarily good eye; and in the Dresden
Museum may perhaps yet be seen
cherry-stone carved with $50 human
faces, plainly distinguishable with the
aid of microscope.
In 1916, continues the writer in Cham
bers' Journal, admirers Of little wonders
could see plenty of such marvels In Lon
don. At one shop was exhibited Q com
mon Barcelona nutshell, holding q tea
table, teaboard, dozen cups and sau-
GERS, with sugar dish and slop basin,
bottle, funnel, fifteen drinking glasses,
Ave punch bowls, ten RUNNERS, pestle
and mortar and two sets OF nincpins AL
Of polished ivory. exqisitely fashioned,
and to be easily seen without the help OF
septic glasses" The ingenious artist,
we are told, was poor. poetical, pcnuri-
Gus mortal, who, being, BY the cruel des.
tinv NJ the DlanetS driven 10 the laws OF