The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1904-09-09
MARYEI5S GA lIlEM0RY
BONE REMARKABLE INSTANCES or
THE POWER OF RECOLLECTION.


An EnElsshnAan vhoae Svonaerra1
GIFT Of Relocation Rrought Dismny
10 voItaire-A Reporter who DId
Not Have 20 Take Notes.
Extraordinary memories have at
tracted the attention OF men in MI
ages aud In these days man with
retenuye memory is considered to be
more or less gifted.
Some good instances OF remnrkahIe
memories are to be gathered from tire
records OF Greece and Rome. Tliemls-
tocles, n famous Greek general. Is said
to have known every citizen In Athens.
No doubt Ohio, the Roman emperor.
owed mnch or his success to remark.
able memory. lie learned the name OF
every soldier and officer In 6Ss army
and this, among other things. rendered
him SO popular that he was at length
acclaimed emperor
HOrtensius. the Roman orator. is said
to have been able, after sitting whole
day Mt public sule. to give m ac--
count from memory of all things sold.
with the prices and names OF the pur-
chasers.
Coming to later times. the following
nnecdote affords an instuuce OF won
y
lishman went to Frederick the Great
of Prussia Cor the express purpose of
giving him an exhibition of his powers
OF recollection Frederick sent for Vol
taire, who wns then residing ut the
Prussfan court. AT the kings request
Yoltaire read n long poem which he
had just composed. The Englishmnn
was present and was In such position
that he could hear every word OF the
poem, though he was concealed from
Voltaire's notice. After the reading of
the poem Frederick observed TO the au-
thor that the production could not be
an original one, as there was foreign
gentleman present Who could recitd-
every word of 1t. Eoltaire listened iP
RmHzement to the stranger as he re
peated. word for word. the poem which
he had been Mt so much pains in com
posing, and, giving way to momen.
tary outbrenk of passion. he tore the
manuscript In pieces. lie was then In
formed how the Englishman had be
come acquainted with his poem, and
his anger being nppeased he was VIII
ing to 10 penance by copying down the
work from the second repetition Of tie
stranger. who was able TO go through
1t as before.
There lived in the sixteenth century
ut Padua law student who had train
ed his memory TO such 4 high degree
of perfection that he could recte So
600 words after once hearing them
read.
Jedediah Buxton. an nliteratc per
son of the eighteenth century, used to
put his memory TO a curious use. On
one occasion he mentioned the qpantt
~ of ale he had drunk free Of cost
since he was twelve years old and the
names of the gentlemen who had given
it to him. The whole amounted to
BIG pints.
AS again showing That retentiye gifts
were not found In the educated alone.
there is notable instance of Blind
Jamie" who lived some years ago in
Stirling. lie was poor, uneducated
man and totally blind, yet he could
actually repeat after a few minutes
consideration any verse required from
any part of the Bible. even the Obscur-
est and least important.
An instance Of wager being Won
by n feat of memory was TINT of
person who repeated an entire newspa-
per, advertisements as we'll, after a
single reading.
The power OF retaining events has
sometimes been manifest in marked
degree \ laboring man named Nc
Cartney. at hfty-four years Of age,
cInimed that he could recollect the
events OF every day for forty years.
4 test WINS made by well known
public man who had kept q written
record for forty-fve years. The mans
statement was fully corroborated-in-
deed. SO accurate was his recollection
that he could recall without apparent
effort the state OF the weather ON any
given day during those forty years.
Another instance of a wager being
won by a feat Of recollection was that
81 Mr.. Futter, who several years ago
was n well known 1.-THE collector In
Norfolk he wagered that lie could
recollect every word of u sermon that
was TO be preached and afterward
write it out verbatim. He was not seen
TO take notes and at the close Of the
sermon retired to room and wrote out
the sermon. ON comparison with the
manuscript, which the preacher had
been asked TO bring for the purpose. y
was found TO vary In one Instance
only, where n synonym had been used
but in that Mr.. Futter was proved 70
be correct, for the clergyman had a
distinct recollection of substituting one
word for the other In his delivery
Wnen reporting was AOto'tuNi :"
houses of parliament and any one seen
TO make notes was Immediately eject
ed the speeches, nevertheless. We're
published In the public press. 1t was
discovered that one Woodflll used to
be present IN the gallery during the
speeches and, sitting with his head be-
tween his hands. actually committed
the speeches TO memory. They We're
afterTvard published.
Lord MucnulAy had marvellous III
M. -. ...l1nt he r-sml