The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1876-11-14

religious factions and bade them argue
which of their creeds was the right one.
81 see well enough" said the hardened
unbeliever, when they had finished their
discussion, 81 see there is nothing GER
tain except mathematics" With this
he turned his face to the wall. He had
ceased to live. A remarkable depend
ence upon the certainty Of mathemat-
les.
One who was not quite so confident
endeavored to make assurance doubly
sure" I quote from Scaliger and De
Thou, who both maintain that Hierony-
mus Cardan, a celebrated astronomer
and mathematician, who lived in Pavia
toward the middle of the sixteenth CEN
tufy, may be better known to students as
the discover Of "Cardan's suspension"
having foretold the day Of his death by
various calculations, starved himself 10
death for fear that his prediction would
not be verified, and that his beloved
science might suffer in consequence
thereof.
This might be called being imbued
with the spirit of the thing; but l think
that my next example goes step fur
ther still. "Creech, the celebrated com.
incubator on Lucretius," says Voitaire
in his "Dictionaire Philosophique,"
"wrOte. on his manuscript. N. Is.
must hang myself when | nave finished
my Commentary He kept his word
in order TO have the pleasure Of ending
his days like his author.
Champcenetz, the secretary of Rivarol,
during the French revolution of'93, in.
nocently asked, when he had heard OF
his dealh-sentence, whether a substi-
tute would not do.
Andre Chemer did not trouble himself
so far. Percelving his friend Roucher,
the author of the Months" poem not
unlike Thompson's "Seasons," he apos-
trophized HIM quite freely by reclting
the opening lines OF the first scene OF
"Andromache." After which he kept
silent until they arrived at the Barriere
du Trone Renverse, near which the
guillotine was erected. The hldeous
cart was met by flock OF sheep just
entering Paris. 1t brought to the young
authors mind the seventh Eclogue of
Virgil, which he closed with "rorrldas."
TORI. .da" corrected Roucher. His COM
panion did not answer until they had
mounted the scatfold, when he softly ap-
preached r R)ut he. ana t pped him OIL G
shoulder. You were light; l !orsol
tnat summer was feminine IN Latin"
That Montaigne should get up in his
dying hours to pay his servants their
salary, lor fear that his heir5 might neg
lect it or dispute the amount, is not SO
wonderful knowing what we do OF the
man and his principals; but that one oi
his very opposltes should have some
thoughts for mis- creditors after he should
be gone is rather surprising. Vaguelas,
author Of the "Remarques sur la Gram
maire Francaise," a not very strait
laced parsonage, did so, however. Not
withsCandlng mis- ample pension, he was
loaded with debts to GhaG extent that he
no longer dared appear in the street in
the daytime, but only went out at night,
proceeding which gave rise to his
friends calling MIN "Ine Owl" This
condition of things made him uneasy,
as was proved at mis- deagh In his will
After having disposed of mis- wardrobe
10 satisfy all outstanding claims, he
adds, Win perfect trankness and bon
homie: "But as there might still be left
some creditors who can not be paid,
even after everything is sold, in that
case my Wisn is that they shall sell my
body to some surgeon at the highest
price that snail be paid for it, and that
the amount shall be applied to the liqui.
dation of those debts which l may sLill
be owing in the world: 30 that, il l have
not succeeded in being useful during
my life, may be at least 80 after my
death" l wonder whether he ever
heard of Dryden's body being detained
by his credltors.-[ Tinsley's Mag tz,ne.