xvm THE LIFE OF KARL WILHELM SCHEELE 



zenith of scientific eminence; it was then that he reached the 

 climax of his European fame as the most expert, the most 

 deep thinking, and the most untiring single-handed experi- 

 menter the world has ever known. 



To the sad loss of science, however, this bright northern 

 star, whilst at its fullest effulgency, when it was shining 

 more brilliantly than ever it had shone before, was suddenly 

 extinguished, never to shine again except by the im mortal 

 light which, during its short existence, it had thrown upon 

 some of the most complex substances and phenomena of 

 nature. The precise cause of Scheele's death is unknown : 

 Some say that his early privation, together with the hard toil 

 and study continued from his youth up to the day of his death, 

 particularly his prolonging his studies and experiments during 

 the night when he should have been at rest, had sapped 

 and undermined his constitution. No doubt, during his experi- 

 ments at night he would be exposed not only to draughts, of 

 which, being absorbed in his work, he would pay no heed, but 

 also to sudden alterations of temperature, from perspiring in 

 a hot laboratory he would pass into a cold room. At any rate 

 he is supposed to have been laid up with a rheumatic attack 

 for a couple of months, at the end of which he breathed his 

 last. He was, at the time of his death, engaged on some 

 further researches on Prussian blue and prussic acid, and 

 Girardin would almost assert that he fell a victim to prussic 

 acid poisoning. Scheele apparently was not aware of the deadly 

 nature of that acid. Girardin says," Scheele, qui a tant contribue 

 a eclairer histoire de ce redoubtable compose, et qui est mort 

 subitement dans le cours de nouvelles recherches sur cet acide, 

 passe pour en avoir etc la premiere victime." But the com- 

 piler of the present biography cannot find any corroboration 

 of Girardin's qualified assertion. Everything, indeed, points to 

 the contrary. Scheele had in fact intended, as soon as his 



