The Press. (Stafford Springs, Conn.) 1883-1935, 1907-01-09

could repeat 800 words after hearing
them once, but this is nothing COM
pared with the claims Of Seneca. In
his declarations in speaking Of the
former tenacity Of his memory he says
that he was able to repeat 1000 names
In the order In which they had been
given to him. He relates, too, that on
one occasion in his student days, after
the different pupils of his preceptor
had recited 200 unconnected verses, he
repeated them in a reverse order-that
is, he began with the last and proceed
ed to the first uttered. A still more re-
markable instance is mentioned by Sir
William Hamilton in his Lectures on
Metaphysics and Logic" He makes
the statement and cites Muretus as
authority that young Corsican could
repeat in either direct or reverse Or
der or begin at any point and repeat
both ways list of $4,000 names.
1t is related that both Horace Yer
net and Gustave Dore could paint a
portrait from memory. There is also
q story that Is more than tradition that
Wolfgang Mozart set down the whole
Of the Sistine Miserere from memory,
and that, too, from hearing it but
twice.
Giovanni Pico della Mirandola, Pas
NeIbuhr and Macaulay all were men
Of marvellous memories. Almost from
childhood Mirandola was noted for his
extraordinary memory. He studied
canon law at Bologna and then went
to Ferrara, where he mastered theol-
ogy and the different systems Of phi
losophy and became proficient in Lat
In, Greek, Hebrew, Chaldee and Ara
bic. The wide range of his learning is
best illustrated in the 900 theses he
proposed as subjects Of controversy at
Rome in 1885. Pascal says he never
forgot anything he read. Ben JON
son tells us that he could repeat all he
had ever written and whole books
that he had read. The same feat, too
is credited to Niebuhr, the historian.
1t is also told Of NeIbuhr that in his
youth while employed in one of the
public offices Of Denmark he was able
through his memory alone to complete
ly restore book of accounts that had
been partly destroyed. Leibnitz, like
Euler, is said to have been able to re-
peat the whole of the "Aeneid."
The many stories told of Macaulay's
almost portentous memory have been
related too often to bear repetition
Not a few of them are on seemingly
certain authority. William H Pres
colt, who met Macaulay about 1850,
has told US some interesting things of
his memory. l shall mention but one.
This was related to Prescott by Henry
Hallam, who said that Lord jeffrey
had once told him that, having tripped
up Macaulay in quotation from Par
adise Lost two days after Macaulay
came to him and said, You will not
catch me again in the Paradise" at |
which jeffrey opened the volume and |
took him up in a great many passages |
at random, In all Of which he went on
correctly repeating the original. Was
it not miraculous tour d'esprit? Ma
caulay does not hesitate to say now |
that he thinks he could restore the first |
six or seven books Of the Paradise in |
case they were lost"
There can be no doubt of the truth |
Of this and many Of the other stories |
told of Maeaulay's memory. He was
a man Of splendid talents. His knowl- |
edge Of English history was unsur-
passed by his contemporaries |
William Perrin in New York Herald.