The new enterprise., 1905-05-25


IzA- boy only eight years old,
USSN l9lII and who accomplishes the
most astonishing feats
with figures, He calculates instantly,
without the aid of paper and pencil,
the answers TO problems which would
puzzle even a professor of mathematics
using the ordinary methods.
Young Hunters parents are well to
do, and his remarkable faculty will be
developed if possible. 1t may be that
when he reaches manhoods estate he
will lose this gift, as has been the case
with so many cases on records. On
the other hand, he may enjoy a sue.
cessful career, as has been the case
with few of such prodigies. \
writer recalls the career Of George
Parker Bidder, who was one Of the
most remarkable mathematical ge-
muses., and who followed up his pre-
cocious youth with a successful man
hood.
Bidder was born in 1906 at Morton
Hampstead, in DevOnshire, England,
where his father carried on a small
'A'AAANSS as a NAollfl4ldEblls W lltll OILY
four years old Bidder showed a most
extraordinary ability for calculation.
His peculiar talents soon attracted gen
eral attention, and his father found It
more profitable TO travel about the
country and exhibit his son as the
calculating phenomenon" than by fol-
lowing his humble trade. The boy was
taken to London and his peculiar tai
ents were investigated by the most
learned men Of his time, whom he as.
tonished by the rapidity with which
be answered the most difficult ques.
tions.
The following question was solved by
him in forty seconds: Suppose the
bail at the top of st. Paul's Cathedral
10 be six feet in diameter, what did the
gliding cost at 3lad per square mch?"
The answer, 1887 los Id, was given be-
fore the examiner had time to put the
figures of the example on paper. The
following question was answered in
sixty seconds; Suppose a city TO be
illuminated with 9999 lamps, each lamp
to consume one pint Of oil every four
hours in succession, how many gallons
would they consume in forty yearsg"
The answer contains nine figures
lG1,iS0Oj0 gallons. Another curious
question was: suppose the earth to
consist of 911,OO0,O00 Inhabitants, and
suppose they die in thirty years four
months, how many have returned TO
dust since the time of Adam, cOmput-
ing it to be 1850 years" This problem
offered 10 difficulties to the lad, who
nonchalantly ratified of the answer in
less than thirty seconds. Fortunately
for the boy, he attracted the attention
Of some eminent scholars, who had him
educated at Camberwell, and afterward
at Edinburgh. where he carried off all
the prizes for the study Of higher math-
cmatlcs. After his graduation from
college he pursued the profession Of
engineer and became associated with |
Robert Stephenson, and assisted in con-
structng the birmingham Railway.
Later in life he entered Parliament, |
and many stories are told of Bidders |
wonderful skill in detecting a flaw in |
some set Of elaborate calculations. !
He died at Dartmouth in 1878.
Another extraordinary child was |
Zerah COlburn, who was born at |
Cabot, VT, in 1904. His remarkable |
genius for abstruse mathematical prob
lens was displayed at an early age,
and when he was eight years old he |
solved the most difficult problems by |
the mere operation of his mind Asked
by an eminent mathematician to give |
the square Of 100000, he replied almost
instantly, giving the figures, 00990S,-
O00001, without any hesitation. He OBJ
served that he produced the result by |
multiplying the square Of 37,037 by the
square of %. He was then asked to
multiply answer twice by 40, and once
by %, a task which he accomplished
in less than two minutes, although the
answer consisted Of seventeen figures.
In FIVE seconds he gave the cube root
of 1898, ,34S,G77, and to all questions
Of similar nature he succeeded in giving
the correct answers. Professors and
scientific men endeavored to obtain q
knowledge of Colburn's methods, but
the boy declared he was unable to ex-
plain how the answers came into his
mind. He was ignorant of the COM
mOnest rules of arithmetic, and could
not even solve problem on paper, not
even a simple feat in multiplication or
division. Colburn's faculty of conf
putaton left him when he reached
manhood and he died at the early age
of thirty-six.