MNEMONICS. 



589 



36)48(1.2 

 9)12(1-2 



Mn*mo- inquired after will he obvious ; thus, 12 being within 

 *" c "- the num!>er 3'>, must, of necessity, l>e in tlv 

 "^Y^" room ; being above 9 it is equally clear that it cannot 

 be on the nr-t wall and being less than IS, it must, 

 neceitttrily, be in some part of t ie second wall ; and 

 as it exceeds the number of the first wall by 3. it fol- 

 lows of course, that its place must be in the third com- 

 pirtment of the second wall, if the number in ques- 

 <te higher than the number of the compartments 

 in one room, its plice will be readily found by divid- 

 ing it by th it number. Thus, suppose 48 to be the 

 number whose place is required : 



As 4S exceeds 36, we know that it can- 

 not be in the first room, the 1 is therefore 

 changed into two ; and the fraction re- 

 maining shews it to be in the twelfth com- 

 partment There being nine compartments 

 3 in every wall, this remainder, or number 



of the compartments, is divided by 9, for 

 the purpose of ascertaining the wall. Now, as the 

 ,r is contained more than once, but not twicr, in 

 the dividend, it follows that the compartment sought 

 must be on the second wall ; the remainder gives the 

 specific compartment. This operation, then, shews 

 that 48 is in the third com|iartment, on the second wall, 

 in the second room. This was the plan adopted by 

 the ancients, when they divided their rooms into parts; 

 but U-ing both complicated and difficult, Mr. Feinaigle 

 has rejected it in his system ; and another scheme has 

 been introduced in its place, which he conceives to be 

 more simple in its construction, less difficult in its ap- 

 plication, and much more extensive in it* power*. 

 He divides a wall in the following manner : 



These figures are arranged from left 

 to right, in the usual manner of writing, 

 and for the more easily remembering 

 their situation, it will be found, that if 

 two lines be drawn diagonally from the 

 four corners of the figure, they will intersect all the 

 odd numbers. The nine squares or compartment*, are 

 termed nlacet, and are called first place, second place, 

 &c. The same mode must be pursued with the three 

 remaining walls in this room, by which HUMUS four 

 walls are obtained, each divided into nine jilncrs. In 

 order to find the numlx-r :i in this nxi:n. we should na- 

 turally say (our times nine will be 3 i, and should, of 

 course, conclude that 36 would be in toe last place of 

 the last side or fourth wall of the room. Hut this cal- 

 culation is erroneous ; 6 must ever be in the same si- 

 i, which will be that occupied by the point in the 

 following figure : 



And the numbers 16, 2fi. and 36, will be 



in the corn- ponding situation on their 

 6 respective walls. 



It must now be determined how we 

 are to reckon these walls If we stand 



T* 







in a room with our back to the window-., tin- lir-t wall 

 is on our left, the second before u, the third on our 

 right, and the fourth behind us. We shall, however, 



icncc with the floor, airl divide it into nine parts, 

 in the s.ime manner as the walls. Where are 10, 20, 

 SO, tec. to IK; placed ' Lvery decade begins a new se- 

 ries, and the decimal is placed on the ceiling of the 

 room over its projier wall ; thus the first decimal, or 

 Jo, will le over the first wall ; the second deciiml, or 

 2i>, over the second wall, &c. ; and the fifth decimal, or 

 50, as its tenth-part exceeds the number of walls, will 

 be assigned to the ceiling of the room, and will conse- 



y be the highest number in the first room, form- 

 ing the connecting link between tliis room and the re. 



cond. When a second room is taken, the floor of it is 

 denominated the fifth wall, the wall on the left, the 

 sixth, &c., and as the number 50 was upon the ceiling 

 of the first so the number 100 will be upon the ceiling 

 of the second room. 



In order to remember a series of words, they are put 

 in the several squares or places, and the recollection of 

 them is assisted by associating some idea of relation be- 

 tween the objects and their situation ; and, as we find 

 by experience, that whatever is ludicrous, is calculated 

 to make a strong impression upon the mind, the more 

 ridiculous the association the better. To illustrate this 

 idea, Mr. Feinaigle. places the names of certain sensi- 

 ble objects in the different compartments, and connects 

 the ideas of their images by some story, so as to make 

 it almost impossible to forget the order in which they 

 are arranged. 



Another part of Mr. Feinaigle's system is the con- 

 verting figures into letters, a branch of the mnemonic 

 art wliich has been adverted to, we believe, by almost 

 every writer on the subject. Mr. Feinaigle uses the 

 consonants only, one or more of which are attached to 

 the series of figure', each figure having its appropriate 

 consonant The letters appropriated to the figures are 

 selected on account of some real or supposed resem- 

 blance. These letters, and the figures which they are 

 intended to represent, should be strongly impressed up- 

 on the memory, as the letters must be converted into 

 words by the introduction of vowels. The two conso- 

 nants representing two figures must be converted into 

 a word, to which should be affixed some striking idea ; 

 and the images represented connected together. The 

 objects, when selected, each being a word, must be ar- 

 ranged in the different placet, beginning with the floor, 

 and proceeding to the first, second, and third wails, 

 &c. In making these words it is necessary that the 

 two consonants required should be the two fatt in the 

 word ; if there be more than two, it is of no import- 

 ance, as the two first only will be needful. The con- 

 verting of figures into letters, and making sense by the 

 introduction of vowels, will be found applicable to 

 many of the purposes of common life. 



Mr. l-Yinaigle proceeds to observe, that if the reader 

 lias practised the instructions already given in a room 

 in wliich he is accustomed to spend the greater part of 

 his time, and this room should have been hung with 

 pictures, engravings, &c., he will have been very mate- 

 rially assisted in the remembrance of his /J/<T.V or loca- 

 lities. The transition is slight, but the impression is 

 permanent. Let us, says he, fill the squares or places 

 with some pictures of our own drawing ; the two rooms 

 will be then furnished, and it will be as easy to remem- 

 ber the symbols or hieroglyphics, as to remember the 

 situation or place of any picture, or article of furniture, 

 in a room. Mr. Feinaigle, has, accordingly, illustrated 

 M.irt of his s\ stem by some tables of symbols and 

 some diagrams, for which we must refer the reader to 

 the book itself; as it has been our object rather to give 

 an outline of his principles than a full exposition of his 

 method. For the same reason, we deem it unnecessary 

 to accompany the learned professor in his application 

 of these principles to the various sc; 



We have already admitted the possibility of giving 

 gre it assistance to the memory by means of arrange- 

 ment and association. It appears to us, however, that 

 the apparatus of most of the systems hitherto proposed 

 with that view is a great deal too complicated ; and that 

 a method might be devised much more simple in it 

 elements, more easy of acquisition, and equally well 

 adapted to 11 purposes of real utility. 



