Sir Humphry Davy. 219 



at the very moment when they first set their foot on the territory of 

 any science. Bacon had projected his great work, the Instauration 

 of the Sciences, before he was twenty two years old ; Newton had 

 made the greater part of his grand discoveries previous to his twenty 

 fourth year J and Leibnitz, though considerably advanced in life 

 when he began the study of mathematics, had scarcely commenced, 

 when he made his great discovery of the infinitesimal calculus.* 



These experiments on sea-weed, introduced young Davy to the 

 notice of Dr. Beddoes, who was about forming an Institution at Bris- 

 tol, for experiments on the medical properties of the gases, of the vir- 

 tues of which in certain diseases, especially those of the lungs, the 

 Doctor had conceived the most sanguine hopes ; since, being receiv- 

 ed into the system by respiration, they were susceptible of an appli- 

 cation to organs which were inaccessible to grosser medicines, while 

 one of them at least, oxygen, exhibited properties most friendly to an- 

 imal life. Young Davy gave an earnest of the lofty independence of 

 his mind, by stipulating that the entire conti'ol of the pneumatic insti- 

 tution should be submitted to him. It does not appear that witli all 

 his youthful ardor and enthusiasm, he was ever deluded by the vis- 

 ionary notions of his patron ; while the Institution furnished by its 

 novelty a most favorable opportunity for the development of his powers. 



We now find our young philosopher fairly embarked in the career 

 which he was to pursue for Hfe. We are not informed what it was 

 that drew off his attention from the study of the medical profession, 

 to which he had purposed to devote himself; still we cannot but con- 

 jecture, that it was the admiration kindled in his youthful bosom al- 

 ready panting for distinction, at the splendid honors that were achiev- 

 ed by Scheele and Black and Priestley and Lavoisier. We have 

 seen some examples, and read of many more, where early genius was 

 determined to some particular pursuit, in which it afterwards attained 

 to great eminence, by some incident trifling in itself perhaps, but still 

 such as to arrest the admiration of the young aspirant. Thus De- 

 mosthenes first conceived his passion for eloquence, on hearing the 

 orator Callistratus, and witnessing the applauses with which his per- 

 formance was rewarded. Tycho Brahe resolved to devote his hfe 

 to astronomy in consequence of his witnessing, when a child, an 

 eclipse of the sun, and being smitten with admiration for a science 

 which could thus penetrate into the secrets of futurity. We do not 

 regard the genius in such cases as created, but as developed. We 



* Playfair, Diss. II. Part 2, p. 9. 



