Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-09-06
KING OF AUTOGRAPH FoRGERs
THE story of the mathematician who had


l hole cut in his door so that pet cat
could come in and out at pleasure, and cut
a smaller hole when this cat had kittens so
they could enjoy the same convenience, may
or may not be true; but there is an entirely
true story concerning Michel Chasles, the
famous French geometrician, which has some
points of decided similarity, and brings in the
doings Of one Irene Lucas, who, beyond all
question, was the greatest counterfelter OF
autograph letters, at least as regards amount
produced, that the world has ever seen.
Twenty thousand letters, all from
famous people, is no mean record, and one
that may remain forever unequaled.
1t must be admitted that Lucas was ex-
ceptionally favored by the friendship of
Chasles, who from 1861 to 1869 was steady
client and bought almost the total output,
paying in all one hundred and forty thou
sand francs. This was not a large sum, con-
sidering that among the letters he acquired
were six from Alexander the Great to Arts
totle, a challenge from julius Caesar to Yer
cingetorx, three missives of Cleopatra ad-
Pompey, one from Germius julius to Jesus,
one from Eschylus to Pythagoras, twelve
from Jeanne dare, one from Judas to
Mary Magdalene, one from Lazarus, ten
from Pontius Plate, one from Sappho, one
from Mohammed to the King of France, ex-
cerpts from the writings of Caligula, Dante,
Spinoza, Luther, Rubens, Saint Jerome, and
a multitude of hardly lesser personalities.
1t is true that Michel Chasles did make
some objection to the fact that all these let
tiers were in French, whereas it is not stated
historically that Caesar and Cleopatra, for
example, were in the habit of using that
tongue for their private correspondence;
but Lucas parted this protest in a way that
was in keeping with his dignity as col
lector of famous letters, by offering to take
back all he had sold to Chasles and return
to him the hundred and forty thousand
francs. Chasles was so touched by this con-
vincing proof of his sincerity that the dis
cussion ended in his lending Lucas twenty
louis to meet some pressing obligations.
How man having need of eighty dollars
could return twenty-eight thousand requires
great mathematician to determine.
1t was the greed of England in wishing to
keep for Isaac Newton the honor of discov-
ering the law of gravitation that caused the
bubble to burst and deprived Lucas of a
steady and very genteel occupation.
With such solemnity as beftted striking
proof of the worlds Indebtedness to France,
Michel Chasles presented to the Academy
of Sciences a letter from Blaise Pascal to
Newton, dated May 20, 1854, and proving
beyond all question that he PASCAL was
really the discoverer of the law usually at
tributed to Newton.
1t is true that at the date of this letter
Newton was hardly eleven years DID,
rather young to have attracted the attention
of the great Pascal,-but there was still
another proof of the falsity of the document.
The author is made to speak of @la mousse
du cafe" and coffee was not introduced into
France until seven years after his death.
All England arose and protested. They
had given their gold medal to Michel Chasles;
but they insisted on keeping universal gravi-
tation.
Shortly afterward Lucas was brought to
trial. and a sentence of two years imprison-
ment ended a career not without entertain
ing elements -Orville Poets