The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1885-01-22

kNffe Was OFSGtH 10y WHO tOulu
rcllearse 4O, 900 words, whether sense or
nonsense, as they were dictated, and
then repeat them in the reversed order
without making single mistake. a
physician, about sixty years ago. could
repeat the whole Of Paradise Lost
without mistake. although he had not
tead it for twenty years. Euler, the
great mathematician, when lie became
blind could repeat the whole Of Iirgils
=. Encidl. and could remember the first
line and the last line in every page Of
the particular edition which he had been
accustomed to read before he became
blind. One kind Of retcntise memory
may be considered as the result Of sheer
work, il determination toward one par
ticlilar achievement, without reference
either 10 cultivation or to memory on
other subjects. This is frequently shown
! ly persons iii humble life III regard 10
/ the Bible.
IN old bcggarman at Stirling, known
! about fifty years ago rs Blind Alick,
| afforded an instance Of this. III. knc "
the whole Of the Bible by heart, inso-
much that IL sentence was read 10
| him, lc could name hook, chapter, and
verse: or il the book, chapter, aud verse
were namc:l, h. could give the exact
I! words. \ gentleman, to test him. r.
r.atcd verse, purposcly making one
verbal inaccuracy. .Alick hcsitatcd,
named the place where the passage WAS
to lie found, but at the same time
pointed out the verbal error. The same
gentleman asked him to repeat tll.
ninetieth verse of the seventh chapter
Of the book OF Numbers. Alick almost
instantly replied: There is no such
verse That chapter has only eighty
n.nc verses. G;asscndi had acquired
by heart 5000 Latin verses, and III
order to give his memory exercise he
was in the habit daily OF rcciting GDo
verses from different languages. Saun.
. derson, another mathematician, could
repeat all Horaccs odcs, and great
part Of the other Latin authors.
A Wonderful Miracle.
fCor. Loadon News
At one part Of our route, we got a
: glimpse Of tho great salt desert--the
Dasht-i-kavir. Let any one look at the
map Of Persia, and it will be found that
there il d great space in its center,
which il a desert. We have been travel
ing from Teheran, close to its northern
| border, at times almost touching it, and
one morning we got sight Of a large
; white cxpanse. This was the salt crust
from which the desert is named. II
, there is much Of it as white as the por
ton we saw, those who have to cross i,
are not to be envicd. Near to it q striking
mirage was produced. Whether the salt
or the whiteness had any influence my
scientific requirements are unable to de
tcrmine. There were few ordinary
looking hills; We passed close to then
the day after. These assumed the mos
! fantastic shapes. First their form.
= raised in the air till they became towers
g or steeplcs; then horizontal elongati0I
y took place this was at the top-and thu
appearance of a railway yiaduct was th'
. result, such as the Britannia bridge.
}, Every few minutes a change occurred
y the horizontal line broke down il
3 parts, and one hill became an ironcla.
!. ram, the ram being beautifully dcfnot
ard bowsptit above. The ship had
Il also, turret, and while gazing a. it
n funnel rose up, telescope like, as men
7, of-Mars' tunnels are. and great hol
n opened through the hull, as ii the enc
e my's shot had done its work: a f.,
o minutes more and the hills resumes
u their ordinary shapes; the influence the
il moved to the right, and a more distan
d range began ID change; in th's rase
n number Of small peaks rose up, wit
y larger ones among them. Some beaam
,e towers while others became columns
4 and we easily could have fancied that
4 was the ruins Of temples and other in
a portant structures, the remains Of anciel
q city, we were gazing at. have scei, ii
. mirage in the desert often before, bl
81 81 never anything like this.