Christmas day, 1642. He lost his father when he was an infant, so that the care of his education devolved upon his mother, who was a person of excellent understanding. She married again; but never forgot her son. After he had been under the direction of a private tutor, she placed him, when he was ten years old, with the very famous William Walker, head-master of the ancient Free School at Grantham in Lincolnshire, which was erected in 1549, by the pious Dr. Richard Fox, Bishop of Winchester. Here did Newton learn the first rudiments of that learning, for which he was afterwards so remarkable. His mother took him home at the age of twelve, or fourteen, with a view to his being able to manage his own estate: but perceiving his ardent attachment to books, she sent him back to Grantham, where he had been a favourite with the head master. When he was eighteen years of age he was placed at Cambridge, at Trinity College. Here he formed an intimacy with the famous divine, Dr. Isaac Barrow. The doctor and Newton studied geometry and natural philosophy together. Dr. Barrow was most eminent as a preacher in London for many years. At Cambridge Mr. Newton was also very intimate with the Honourable Charles Montague, afterwards Earl of Halifax and Lord Privy Seal ; whose friendship to Mr. Newton continued for life, as will appear afterwards.

We proceed in this memoir upon the authority

of two accounts of Sir Isaac Newton, printed at Edinburgh, 1727 and 1736. We believe these memoirs of him (published ten years after his death) to be good authority. There is a large work of British biography, designed for great libraries, in thirty volumes, quarto, in which no doubt the Life of Sir Isaac Newton will be inserted. But we intend this single volume for the use of the young, and those who cannot obtain those large and expensive works; but who will be glad to hear the authentic particulars of this great man in this small compass, and collected from the memoirs before mentioned, which were printed at Edinburgh a few years after his death; his wonderful discoveries of astronomy have been more and more confirmed, and fully proved to be true.

The famous Rev. William Whiston, who was professor of mathematics at Cambridge, was also a great astronomer and natural philosopher, he died in 1752, twenty-five years after the death of Sir Isaac Newton: he was a good and learned man, and followed up the experiments and experience of Newton with great talents and diligence; but Sir Isaac was his model and pattern. Mr. Whiston followed the road which had been fully laid out by our illustrious philosopher. Newton's original and superior talents were fully acknowledged all over Europe; while, void of all parade, ostentation, or self-conceit, he had said of himself that he was only conscious of being able to fix his mind to

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geometry and mathematics with firm attention, by which he found light would appear by degrees with full conviction of truth." This diligent perseverance is not commonly united with genius: most young men have not patience to attain to any perfection; they fly off to some new object, and therefore do not gain knowledge. The rudiments of education are of the greatest importance. - If young men are unsteady, or always in haste to fly away from the lesson which they think dull, they will never be able to obtain any thing perfect or noble in learning. He, who has patience and good talents united, will always be distinguished in life, while the giddy self-sufficient young man will be like a mere butterfly, which hastens from flower to flower, but can make no honey like the bee.

Mr. Newton had from early life surveyed the stars, and the beauty of the moon-light evenings had given him true gratification; he had got many telescopes to examine them, but found they might be greatly improved. Telescopes came from Italy of 100 feet in length. He made some himself only 30 or 25 feet in length, by which he examined the stars, and by measuring them, and their distances, he found his own telescopes were superior to those which were brought from the continent. He was so deeply interested in the study of astronomy, that he often, in youth, as well as at forty years of age, would forget his dinner, and his sleep, while fixed in the study of the stars. He took out the degree of Bachelor of Arts at Cambridge in his

twenty-second year; and soon after printed his work entitled "A New Theory of Light," which was greatly admired by the first philosophers in Britain, France, and Germany. But he was not by any means vain-glorious. He said "all he knew or saw only made him more and more humble." As to the weak and feeble state of mankind, when compared with the glory, power, and wisdom of God, he said "This world and all it contained seemed like only the beginning of great things," or like the infancy of man in the sight of God, who seemed to say to man "so far only art thou to go. Behold my law, and be thou perfect, by humility, faith, and patience." His " Theory of Light" was published in quarto, and in 1700 he printed his work "On Optics" in quarto; and afterwards his "Principles of Natural Philosophy and Mathematics" in quarto. He gained more and more fame amongst all the learned. He proceeded with various works both in English and Latin. He wrote his System of the World, and on Chronology, both in quarto. He wrote on the Longitude by order of the House of Commons. He wrote his great and distinguished work styled " Principia" in 1680. In 1686 he was chosen a member of the House of Commons. By the blessing of God his health and his eyes were remarkably good, and notwithstanding his great labours of mind, by night and day was he occupied, his friends said, "his brain had infinite strength, and that his head and his eyes were not subject to any weakness, like those of

other men." But this strength of brain was only from perfect command of temper. He was able to preserve a most tranquil and serene disposition. If he was praised for his extraordinary mental labours, he used to declare that if he had any merit, or had been able to do the world any service, it was only from industry and patient thought, by keeping the subject (under consideration) constantly before him, waiting till the dawning opened gradually, by little and little, into a full and clear light. By this calm temper he had a kind of horror if attacked by discord, or violent disputes. He had been exposed to this, on the subject of his Optic Lectures. He had been warm in defence of his just principles; and from that hour, he never would permit himself to be engaged in arguments of self-defence again. He said to a friend "I blamed my own imprudence for parting with so real a blessing as my quiet tranquillity, to run after a mere shadow;" by which shadow he meant the praise of the world. Fontenelle', the great philosopher of astronomy who wrote an excellent work "On the Plurality of Worlds" was a warm friend of Sir Isaac Newton, and said "he found this shadow (public fame) did not escape from him afterwards." It followed him more and more; and when he did not oppose or dispute with any opponent, all the world united in attesting, after the fullest experiments, and demonstrations,

1 See Fontenelle.