- CHARACTERS. 
moft important art. After he had 
at great expence made many pri- 
vate experiments, and was convinc- 
ed of the utility of his method, he 
_ daid before the Emperor an account 
of his difcevery ; who gave orders 
that a decifive experiment on a large 
quantity of ore fhould be made at 
Schemnitz in Hungary. To fee 
this, he invited many of the moft 
~celebrated chymifts and metallur- 
gifts of Europe ; and Ferber, Elhu- 
jer, Charpentier, Trebra, Poda, and 
many more were prefent, and ap- 
proved of his invention. On this 
—_ approbation, he publifhed, 
y order of the Emperor, his Trea- 
tife on the Proce/s of Amalgamation, 
with a great many engravings of 
the requifite inftruments and ma- 
chinery. To fuppofe that his fuc- 
cefs, whilft it brought him fame and 
emolument, did not draw upon him 
the envy and ill-will of many of his 
brother metallurgifts and affociates 
in office, would {how a great igno- 
Fance of what is daily pailing in 
common life. Envy has its thare 
€ven in maintaining order in foci- 
ety: it is this which tends to keep 
the great from rifing higher, whilit 
a contrary paflion lifts up the little, 
or prevents them from falling {till 
lower. 
_ Though great cabals were raifed 
againit him, and againft the intro- 
duction of his method, yet the ad- 
vantages of it in many cafes were 
fo very evident, that the Emperor 
ordered it to be ufed in his Hunga- 
sian mines; and, as a recompenfe 
for his difcovery, gave him for ten 
years the third part of the favings 
arifing from its application, and four 
per cent. of this third part for the 
next twenty years. Even this did 
not defend him from being haraffed 
by his enemies; obftacles were {till 
387 
thrown in the way to prevent the 
introduction and fuccefs of his dif- 
covery, and to defraud him of his 
well-earned recompenfe- 
Though he fuffered very much 
in the latter part of his life, yet this 
did not prevent him from continu- 
ing his literary purfuits. In 1790 
he publifhed his Catalogue Methodique 
raifonné of the colleétion of foflils of 
Mifs Raab, which had been chiefly 
formed by his donations, This 
work, elegantly printed in two vo- 
lumes, was. well received by the 
public; —and he was writing the 
Foafiz Leopoldini, and a mineralogical 
work, when death put an end to his 
ufeful life, and to his fufferings. 
Netwithftanding the varied ad- 
vice of his phyficians, his difcafe 
continued. In fuch a ftate quacks 
find eafy accefs'to the fick. Who is 
not then ready to feize the noftrum 
of the bold pretender? One of ihefe 
gave him a deco¢tion which foon 
calmed his fufferings, and which he 
was affured would cure him in a few 
weeks. He continued the ufe of 
this for the laft five months of his 
‘life: it really diminifhed his pains 5 
but his friends obferved that his 
cheerfulnefs, which hitherto had not 
left him, diminifhed likewife, and 
that fpafms often attacked his up- 
per limbs. On the 21ft of July, 
1791, he was feized with fpafms and 
cold; the former foon fubfided on 
friction, but he loft his fpeeche On 
the fubfequent days he had diffe- 
rent attacks till the 28th, when he 
found himfelf better; but he was 
foon- attacked again with fpafims, 
and in thefe he expired. 
Born was of a middle fize and de- 
licateconftitution, dark complexion, 
black hair, and large black eye- 
brows. Wit and fatire, and a quick 
comprehenfion, were marked in his 
Bb2 eyes 5 
