Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1889-03-07
A BOY WONDER.
All revious Lightning CalcuIators Thrown
Far in the Shade.

A correspondent of the Kansas CITY
Times at Martins Ferry. o., SAYS there
is at present in that place a party Of
civil engineers running a line for the
extension of the Wheeling q Lake Erie
railway.
They are quartered at the Hotel May.
wood, and among them is a boy EN-.
ployed as pole carrier He is a little
past Is, and the fellow is the pride Of
the corps. He furnishes nightly enter
tainments in the parlors, not only for
the hotel guests but for a large mum.
Der of outsiders who have heard of his
wonderful genius.
The boys name is Willard U. Scott
and his home is New York City He
is natural "lightning calculator and
can answer almost any mathematical
question the instant ii IS propounded
He does not confiue himself to add
ton, multiplication. and division, is
most prodigies in his line do but be
goes off into compound proportion
board measure, the contents of SPHERE
cal and irregular bodies, and the Ike
The other evening a gentleman
asked: TO get a wedge two inches
wide at one end aud seven inches wide
al the other where must [ cut board
twelve inches wide at one end and
taperiug to a point at certain
length.
The answer came as quick as a tiasl
aud to prove it the interrogation solved
the problem mechanically and to
more perfectly demonstrate the propo'
siuon a carpenter who was a member
OF the party made the actual expert
meut next day with a saw and board
and found the answer correct.
Another problem given was selected
from a very antiquated PHILOSOPHY
which might have been used by Ben
Harrisons grandfather 1t read as
follows: Two gentlemen once went
cunning. One weighed 100 pounds
and tle other 200 pounds. They she.
a deer and were at a loss to determine
its weight. They placed pole on
LOG $50 that with one on one end ana
the other on the other end the poe
balanced They then exchanged ends
and it was found that the lighter man
with the deer on his lap balanced tls
heavier one on the long end OF ta3
pole. How much did the deer weigh:
One hundred and sixteen POUNDS
came the answer quick as a flash from
Scotty's lips, and after a long course
of figuring tie answer proved coI'
rect.
"What is the diameter Of circle
whose circumference is seventeen zee.
and tvo inc esq was asked him, ana
De answered Ii correctly before m
query was hardly outof the questionel
lips All such problems are answered
SO quickly that there can be no tll'
for thought Questions in multlPil..T,
ton he does without the use Of parIia.
products or addition, commencing
the left to write the answer In di'l'.
ion It'll the same, and no matter no"
many figures there are in the nun ,.
beers. the answer comes Just aSquleh''it
He can add up a four OF six column. u, Il
figures at once and subtract lN-
magic.
The most wonderful part of It an =
the fact that hecannot tell how he uo.'
it, and he saws that the answers co'N'
20 him by intuition. mi
In an interview | told him be c2u.-
make a fortune it he would tormU.,.
Il theory whereby others might "',
metaodically. lie answered th4'
knew It aud that he lad often t.tN
pun late words or even conceive w ,-
own mind the manner in Wilieh It'll
q b.