Chapter XX (5)

The _carrier_ is a variety of the common domestic pigeon, and which, from the superior attachment that it shows to its native place, is employed in many countries as the most expeditious courier. The letters are tied under its wing, it is let loose, and in a very short space returns to the home it was brought from, with its advices. This practice was much in vogue in the East; and at Scanderoon, till of late years, it was used on the arrival of a ship, to give the merchants at Aleppo a more expeditious notice than could be done by any other means. In our own country, these aerial messengers have been employed for a very singular purpose, having been let loose at Tyburn at the moment the fatal cart was drawn away, to notify to distant friends the departure of the unhappy criminal.

In the East, the use of these birds seems to have been greatly improved, by having, if we may use the expression, relays of them ready to spread intelligence to all parts of the country; thus it is stated by Ariosto (canto 15), that the governor of Damiata circulated the news of the death of Orrilo. “As soon as the commandant of Damiata heard that Orrilo was dead, he let loose a pigeon, under whose wing he had tied a letter. This fled to Cairo, from whence a second was despatched to another place, as is usual; so that, in a very few hours, all Egypt was acquainted with the death of Orrilo.”

But the simple use of them was known in very early times. Anacreon tells us (ode ix.) that he conveyed his billet-doux to Bathyllus by a dove.

Taurosthenes also, by means of a pigeon he had decked with purple, sent advice to his father, who lived in the isle of Ægina, of his victory in the olympic games, on the very day he had obtained it.[86] And, at the siege of Modena, Hirtius without, and Brutus within the walls, kept, by the help of pigeons, a constant correspondence; baffling every stratagem of the besieger, Antony, to intercept their couriers. In the times of the crusades, there are many more instances of these birds of peace being employed in the service of war: Joinville relates one during the crusade of _Saint Louis_, and Tasso another, during the siege of Jerusalem.--_Pennant’s British Zoology._

The Dutch variety is the most valuable; a pair of the best kind being worth from five to eight pounds. It is lighter than the English pigeon, and flies nearly as fast again. It proceeds at the rate of 60 miles an hour, and has been known to complete a journey of 800 miles, but this; it is presumed, is not continuous, but assisted by occasional rest. The bird learns but one lesson; it may carry from Antwerp to London, or to any other place, but it will only pass between two such places. It evidently travels by sight; when tossed, it circles, then rises in a spiral, observes its route and darts off. It will not fly at night; and, should the day be foggy, it is delayed, and sometimes lost.

Footnote 86:

_Ælian. Var. Hist._ lib. ix. c. 2. Pliny, lib. x. c. 24, says that
swallows have been made use of for the same purpose. Their rate of
flight has been estimated at a mile in a minute, for ten hours, or
600 miles per day.

Note 53, p. 371.--ORIGIN OF POPULAR CEREMONIES.

The soothsayers attributed many mystic properties to the coral; and it was believed to be capable of giving protection against the influence of _Evil Eyes_: it was even supposed that coral would drive away devils and evil spirits; hence arose the custom of wearing amulets composed of it around the neck, and of making crowns of it. Pliny and Dioscorides are very loud in the praises of the medicinal properties of this substance; and Paracelsus says that it should be worn round the necks of infants, as an admirable preservative against fits, sorcery, charms, and even against poison. It is a curious circumstance that the same superstitious belief should exist among the negroes of the West Indies, who affirm that the colour of coral is always affected by the state of health of the wearer, it becoming paler in disease. In Sicily it is also commonly worn as an amulet by persons of all ranks; as a security against an _evil eye_, a small twisted piece, somewhat resembling a horn, is worn at the watch-chain, under the name of _Buon Fortuna_, and is occasionally pointed at those who are supposed to entertain evil intention. His late Sicilian Majesty was celebrated for his faith in, and frequent use of, the _buon fortuna_.--But to return to the coral usually suspended around the necks of children in our own country. In addition to the supposed virtues of the coral, it may be remarked that silver bells are usually attached to it, which are generally regarded as mere accompaniments to amuse the child by their jingle; but the fact is, that they have a different origin, having been designed to frighten away evil spirits. For the same superstitious objects were bells introduced into our churches as a species of charm against storms and thunder, and the assaults of Satan.

In farther illustration of the truth, that a custom has frequently survived the tradition of its origin, it may be here observed, that the common practice of persons who are unable to write, making their mark or _cross_, is derived from our Saxon ancestors, who affixed the sign of the cross, as a signature to a deed, whether they could write or not. Several charters still remain, to which kings and persons of great eminence affix “_Signum Crucis manu propriá pro ignorantiá literarum_.” Hence is derived the expression of _signing_ instead of _subscribing_ a paper. In like manner, the physician of the present day continues to prefix to his prescriptions the letter R, which is generally supposed to mean _Recipe_, but which, in truth, is a relict of the astrological symbol of Jupiter, formerly used as a species of superstitious invocation.

Note 54, p. 379.--INVENTION OF THE GAME OF CHESS.

Alphesadi, an Arabian writer, quoted by Montucla in his _Histoire des Mathematiques_, expressly mentions the invention of chess as of Indian origin, and relates the following very curious Indian tradition:--Ardschir, King of the Persians, having invented the game of _Tric-Trac_, and being exceedingly vain of it, a certain Indian, named Sessa, the son of Daher, invented the game of chess, and presented his chess-board and chess-men to the king of the Indies. The sovereign was so much pleased, that he desired Sessa to name his reward, when this man made the apparently modest request, that he should receive as a gift so much corn as could be estimated by beginning with one grain, and doubling as many times as there were squares upon the chess-board, viz. 64. The king felt displeased at having his munificence thus slighted by a request so limited and so unworthy to be a gift from royalty; but, as Sessa remained firm, orders were given to the chief minister that he should be satisfied: when, however, the visir had by calculation ascertained the enormous quantity of corn which would be required, he waited upon the king, and with some difficulty convinced him of the fact; upon which the king sent for Sessa,--and said to him, that he admired his powers of calculation even more than the ingenuity of the game which he had presented to him, and, in respect to his promise as to the corn, he was compelled to acknowledge himself to be insolvent.

Dr. Wallis, the friend of Sir Isaac Newton, and Savilian Professor of Oxford, found that the quantity of corn would be such as to be capable of forming a pyramid, the measurement of which would be nine English miles in height, and nine similar miles for each of the four sides of the base. After this, Montucla also states some elaborate calculations made by himself, and proves, amongst other remarkable facts, that the quantity of corn in question would cover 162,000 square leagues to the depth of one foot, French measure, which would be at least three times the extent of the surface of France as it was about the year 1796, and which he estimates at 50,000 square leagues.

Note 55, p. 388.--AN ARITHMETICAL TRICK.

This problem is to be found in Hutton’s Recreations, and is stated as follows:--

“A person having in one hand an _even_ number of shillings, and in the other an _odd_, to tell in which hand he has the even number.”

“Desire the person to multiply the number in the right hand by any even number whatever, and that in the left by any odd number; then bid him to add together the two products, and if the whole sum be odd, the even number of shillings will be in the right hand, and the odd number in the left; if the sum be even, the contrary will be the case. By a similar process, a person having in one hand a piece of gold, and in the other a piece of silver, we can tell in which hand he holds the gold, and in which the silver. For this purpose, some value represented by an even number, such as 8, must be assigned to the gold, and a value represented by an odd number, such as 3, must be assigned to the silver; after which the operation is exactly the same as in the preceding example.

“To conceal the artifice better, it will be sufficient to ask whether the sum of the two products can be halved without a remainder; for, in that case, the total will be even, and in the contrary case odd.

“It will be readily seen that the pieces, instead of being in the two hands of the same person, may be supposed to be in the hands of two persons, one of whom has the even number, or piece of gold, and the other the odd number, or piece of silver. The same operations may then be performed in regard to these two persons, as are performed in regard to the two hands of the same person, calling the one, privately, the right, and the other the left.”

Note 56, p. 389.--AN ALGEBRAIC PROBLEM.

It is by discovering the number of counters left on the board that this trick is performed. By means of a table the problem may be immediately solved; but as such a reference would be inconvenient, and, indeed, destructive to the magic of the trick, a Latin verse is substituted, which may be easily carried in the memory, and will be found to answer all the purposes of a table. In order, however, that the reader may become thoroughly acquainted with the machinery of the trick, we shall explain it in the words of its author. The problem is stated as follows: “_Three things being privately distributed to three persons, to guess that which each has got._”

Let the three things be a ring, a shilling, and a glove. Call the ring A, the shilling E, and the glove I; and in your own mind distinguish the persons by calling them first, second, and third. Then take twenty-four counters, and give one of them to the first person, two to the second, and three to the third. Place the remaining eighteen on the table, and then retire, that the three persons may distribute among themselves the three things proposed without your observing them. When the distribution has been made, desire the person who has the ring to take from the remaining eighteen counters as many as he has already; the one who has the shilling to take twice as many as he has already, and the person who has the glove to take four times as many; according to the above supposition then, the first person has taken one, the second four, and the third twelve; consequently, one counter only remains on the table. When this is done, you may return, and, by the number left, can discover what thing each person has taken, by employing the following words:----

1 2 3 5 6 7
_Salve_ _certa_ _animæ_ _semita_ _vita_ _quies._

To make use of these words, you must recollect, that in all cases there can remain only 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, or 7 counters, and never 4. It must likewise be observed, that each syllable contains one of the vowels, which we have made to represent the things proposed, and that the first syllable of each word must be considered as representing the first person, and the second syllable the second. This being comprehended, if there remains only one counter, you must employ the first word, or rather the two first syllables, _sal-ve_, the first of which, that containing A, shows that the first person has the ring represented by A; and the second syllable, that containing E, shows that the second person has the shilling represented by E; from which you may easily conclude that the third person has the glove. If two counters should remain, you must take the second word _cer-ta_, the first syllable of which, containing E, will show that the first person has the shilling represented by E; and the second syllable, containing A, will indicate that the second person has the ring represented by A. In general, whatever number of counters remain, that word of the verse which is pointed out by the same number must be employed.

Instead of the above Latin verse, the following French one might be used:--

1 2 3 5 6 7
_Par fer_ _César_ _jadis_ _devint_ _si grand_ _prince._

In using the above line, it must be considered as consisting only of six words.

This problem might be proposed in a manner somewhat different, and might be applied to more than three persons. Those of our readers who may be desirous of further information on the subject, must consult Bachet in the 25th of his _Problèmes plaisantes et délectables_.

THE END.

Transcriber’s Notes

In order to get illustrations close to long descriptions and discussions of them, a few long paragraphs have been divided in two at logical places.

One obvious typographical error in punctuation was corrected.

All footnotes have been relocated at the ends of chapters.

Descriptive captions have been added to the text version for many illustrations by the Transcribers and are deemed by them to be in the public domain.