A Sportsman 257 



where about the landing, covered over perhaps by the 

 shingle or loose earth. Joe came smihng toward me 

 the following inoming with the lost button, which his 

 careful search had discovered about the landing, and 

 received the reward of his honesty, which caused his 

 absence during the two following days, passed in the 

 celebration of his fortunate find. 



I had a curiosity one evening to make a rough cal- 

 culation what one of these old Roman coins would 

 amount to if placed at six per cent, interest and com- 

 pounded from the time of the destruction of Pompeii 

 by the eruj^tion of the blown-out volcano which origin- 

 ally occupied the site of the present Vesuvius, in the 

 seventy-ninth year of the Christian era. This exhib- 

 ited the immense power of interest, which eats up the 

 substance of original value, and imtiringly proceeds 

 day and night in its accretive growth. The value of 

 this coin, which I estimated at an intrinsic value of ten 

 cents, although worth probably a little more, would 

 amount on the basis of doubhng in periods of eleven 

 years at six per cent, per annum, compounded, 

 to the sum of S102.40; call it $100 for even figures. 

 From the year 79 to 1905 are 1826 years; this 

 divided by eleven gives a quotient of 165 periods 

 of eleven years each. It will be observed that 

 each period of eleven years gives an addition of 

 three ciphers to the original sum. Therefore, in 165 

 periods of eleven years each, there would be 495 ci- 

 phers to be added to the original ten cents, giving an 

 amount which is not expressable in the language of 

 arithmetic. Roughly square the circle of the earth, 

 which cannot be done accurately, and a discrepancy in 

 amovint of the size of the moon will be of small account. 



