CAM 



318 



C A M 



Camphor 



II 

 Campy- 



nema. 



ed at Paris in 3 vols, 8vo. with a folio atlas of plates, 

 under the title of " (Enwres de Pierre Camper 

 qui out pour oljet VHisloire Naturelle, Physiolo- 

 gic, et I'AnatQrtiie Compare," to which is prefixed, 

 An Essay on his ,ife and Writings" by his son ; 

 and two eulogiums ; viz. one by Vicq. d'Azyr, and 

 the other by Condorcet. 



If the abilities of Camper as a philosopher entitle 

 him to our respect and admiration ; the better quali- 

 ties of his heart call for our esteem. He was dis- 

 tinguished by his domestic and social virtues, and 

 performed the duties of a eon and of a father with 

 the most affectionate solicitude. He often sacrificed 

 his own inclinations to the wishes of his aged parents, 

 and sweetened their declining years by his presence 

 and tender attention. Though his literary labours 

 occupied much of his time, yet the education of 

 his children was always his favourite employment, 

 and we cannot better conclude this sketch of his 

 life than with the affectionate testimony of his son : 

 " Les tendres soins de mes parens pour mon bon- 

 heur, leur douce et franche intimite, mille et mille 

 bienfaits dont ils m'ont comble depuis le jour de ma 

 naissance jusqu'a 1'instant ou un meilleur monde est 

 devenu leur partage, rappeleront sans cesse a ma me- 

 nioire ces paroles admirables de la doctrine des Chi- 

 nois : Qu'on ne sauroit survivre a un pere, a une 

 mere, que pour les plettrer chaque moment de la vie'' 

 (p) 



CAMPHOR is a substance contained in many 

 vegetables, and is of extensive use in the materia 

 medica. The camphor of commerce is obtained from 

 the laurus camphora, a forest tree which abounds 

 in Borneo and Sumatra. It is found in perpendicu- 

 lar veins, near the centre of the largest and oldest 

 trees, from which it is picked out by means of knives. 

 It is generally procured, however, by sublimation. 

 Small pieces of the stem and branches of the tree 

 are put into an alembic, to the head of which is a- 

 dapted a capital, containing straw. When exposed 

 with a little wa^er to a moderate heat, the camphor 

 is volatilized, and attaches itself to the straw. 



Camphor is also obtained by sublimation from ano- 

 ther species of laurus, which grows in Japan ; but 

 this kind is not so much esteemed in the East as that 

 which is obtained from Sumatra and Borneo. Cam- 

 phor is likewise procured from the Laurus Cinna- 

 momum, the Laurus Sassafras, the Launis Cassia, 

 the Maranta Galanga, the Kcempfceria rotunda, and 

 the Asarum Europeum', ginger, the seeds of carda- 

 mom, and long pepper ; and from the essential oils 

 of juniper, sage, hyssop, thyme, peppermint, rose- 

 mary, and lavender. See Asiatic Researches, vol. 

 iv. p. 19; Phil. Trans. 1805 ; Nicholson's Journal, 

 vol. x. p. 132; Collect. Academ. Part. Etr. torn, 

 xiii. p, 4>3 ; Disc. Prelim, et Part. Franc, torn. ii. 

 p. 206 223 ; and the Journal de la Blancherie, 

 1785, p. 393. See CHEMISTRY and MATERIA ME- 

 DICA. (o) 



CAMPHOROSMA, a genus of plants of the 

 class Tetrandria, and order Monogynia. See BO- 

 TANY, p. 126. 



CAMPYNEMA, a genus of plants, of the class 

 Hexandria, and order Monogynia. See BOTANY, 



p. 96 ; and Brown's Prodrornus Plant. Nov. Holl 

 p. 290. 



CAMUS, CHARLES ETIENNE LEWIS, a celebrated 

 French mathematician, was born at Cressy in Pn e , on 

 the 25th of August, 1699, and was the son of Etienne 

 Camus, a surgeon of that place. At a very early age 

 he displayed a great attachment to mechanical pur- 

 suits, and while his companions were amusing them- 

 selves at play, he was often found constructing some 

 machine, with no other instrument but a knife. Be- 

 fore the eleventh year of his age, he felt such a pas- 

 sion for mathematical learning, that he entreated his 

 parents to send him to the college at Paris ; but from 

 the narrowness of their circumstances,, they at first 

 hesitated about the prudence of such a step ; and it 

 was only from a well founded confidence in the wis- 

 dom and talents of their son, that they at last resol- 

 ved to send him to the college of Navarre. 



In a short time Camus became one of the best 

 scholars at the college ; and at the end of two years 

 he was able to give lessons in mathematics, and thus 

 to defray all the expences of his education. 



Under the care of the celebrated Varignon, Camus 

 applied himself to the study of the higher branches 

 of mathematics, and he at the same time directed his 

 attention to the subjects of civil and military archi- 

 tecture, mechanics, and astronomy. His knowledge 

 of these subjects gained him the acquaintance and 

 friendship of M. De Cotte, Couplet, and Cassini, and 

 paved the way for his introduction into the acade- 

 my of sciences. In the year 1727, that learned body 

 having proposed as the prize subject, " The best 

 method of masting vessels," Camus entered the lists, 

 and had the good fortune to be among the number 

 of those whose memoirs on this subject were publish- 

 ed by the academy in the Recueil des Prix. 



In consequence of this proof of his talents, Camus 

 obtained, on the 13th August 1727, the place of 

 adjunct mechanician, vacant by the promotion of M. 

 Pitot. In the year 1728, he wrote a memoir on ac- 

 celerated motion by living forces, a subject which was 

 then agitated with much heat. On the 16th December, 

 1730, the academy of architecture appointed him pro- 

 fessor of that science ; and in 1733, he was honoured 

 with the office of secretary to the same academy. He 

 obtained the degree of associate to the academy of sci- 

 ences on the 18th of April, 1733. On this occasion 

 the celebrated Clairaut was his competitor, and ap- 

 peared upon counting the votes to have a majority of 

 one in his favour. It was imagined, however, that some 

 mistake had been committed in taking down the votes, 

 and in consequence of this suspicion, the king, at the 

 request of the academy, nominated both the candi- 

 dates. 



In the year 1736, Camus was sent along with 

 Clairaut, Maupertius, and Monnier, to measure a de- 

 gree of the meridian at the north polar circle. Du- 

 ring this operation, which was completed in 1737, 

 Camus rendered himself highly useful, not merely as 

 an astronomer, but as a mechanician and an artist ; 

 and to his address and genius the operation owed a 

 great part of its success. 



When M. Mairan succeeded Fontenelle as secre- 

 tary to the academy, Camus was appointed, on the 



Camus. 



