Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-12-29
HE Is \ PRODIGY IN FIGURES.
Arthur Griffith AStOnishes the Scfen-
lists at New Haven.

tiS&s at New haven.
dispatch to the New York World from
New Haven, Conn, says: There are ten
scientific societies in session here, and all
have new and wonderful discoveries to re-
late. But not one of them can show the
wonder that the American Psychological
Society can-Arthur f. Griffith. a mathe-
matical prodigy. Today the two Yale sa-
wants of athematics-Profs Andrew Phil
lips and W. H. Beebe-put the boy through
his PAGES before a crowd of eager scien-
lists; never once did he fail
Il am the Oldest of five children" said
the youngster. who is nineteen, and a ma
tive of Milford, Ind. My father is a
stone mason and poor man. / learned
to count when / was two years old, and
when | was five l could count I'D to 40 900
l know the multiplied ton table up to 1870.
the cubes of all numbers up to 100 and the
fourth powers up to 30 l also know most
o. the multiplication table I'D to 900 but
not all of it.
There is nothing mysterious about the
way work. First, my knowledge of these
tables helps me; second, / can see all the
figures that are given to me mentally, Just
as If they were on a blackboard three feet
away.
II have worked out lot of rules for
myself that make arithmetical operations
very simple. L can give you the cube root
of any number in four seconds and the
square root in two seconds. l can multiply
fifteen numbers by any other fifteen and
carry them in my head
What is the cube root of 1867 e31?'' ask
ed the reporter suddenly.
The cube root of 367 .631?' retorted
young Griffith. Why, that's Ill"
He was right. 1t had taken him just
three seconds to go through the complicat-
ed operation. Asked what 1854 times
lbs was he gave the answer in a twin
king.
The two Yale professors tried him in
I1dltlOn ipg;,
division; fractions, factoring and decimaIs
He could do all their problems in a second
without pencil or paper. He multiplied six
numbers by five numbers and gave the an
sWer correctly in jiffy. Prof. Phillips and
Prof Beebe marveled. He could add three
columns of any length at the same time
and subtract long numbers with consum-
mate ease. The mathema ticians and psy-
biologists present pronounced the youth the
greatest arithmetical wonder of the CEN
fury.
Prof W, L. Bryan and E. H Lindley of
the University of Indiana have brought
young Griffith east.
He is a wonder" said DR.. BRYAN To-
night. We discovered him last September
pie are very poor and he is only fairly
bright. save in arithmetic. He has no dis
ease. His wonderful ability lies in his
prodigious memory and the tremendous
stock of rules he has made for himself for
shortening ordinary arithmetical opera
tions.
HE mas large number Of short methods
that he has worked out for himself We
md that he has worked out the compli-
Gated bfnomial theorem for himself-that
great problem that Sir Isaac Newton gave
to the world. Yet he has not done 1t by
algebra. but by arithmetic He has also
worked out number of the rules for rapid
calculation that can be found in the higher
text books, though he has never had access
to them. Other rules are of his own dis
covery.
For instance, he knows the last two
dtgits of all squares and cubes by heart.
The rest he gets in his mind by apprnxt-
nation We have tested him with the most
delicate instruments to determine his speed
For small operations he Is no quicker than
you or I. But large ones he can do in his
head while We are putting the numbers
down on paper.
For instance, to multiply o945 to the
fifth power he does 1t in exactly Is opera
tons, while the ordinary method REQUIRES
1856 different ones
"Other arithmetical wonders have de-
clned to tell the source of their powers or
have been very hazy about them But
Griffith is free to tell all about it. He has a
great many facts of arithmetic in his head
and many short ways of working He ex-
poets to get out book on 1t shortly
He Is not in college; In fact, he could
not pass the entrance examinations Meth
er does he know anything of higher mathe-
matics-logarithms, the calculus geometry.
algebra and the like. 1t Is only numbers
he knows.
Young Griffith looks like the country how
that he is. with an ungainly body ana his
feet and hands. But he has fine head
and face and keen eyes. He hopes TO turn
his mathematical ability to account.