B U F 



B U F 



gundv, September tlie 7t.h, 1707. He mnnifcftcd an caily 

 iiiclinalioii to the fcienccs, wliicli diverted him from purfuiii^ 

 tlie proftfTion of the law, to which his firll ftudles at Dijon 

 were devoted, and for which his father had defigned iiim. 

 The fcience which feems to have engaged his earhell -attach- 

 ment was aftronomy ; with a view to which lie applied with 

 fuch ardour to the ftndy of geometry, tliat he always carried 

 ill his pocket the ele-r.ents of Euclid. At the age of 30, he 

 travelled into Icaly, and in the courfeof his tour he direfted 

 his attention to the plicnomena of nature more than to the 

 prodiitlions of art ; and at this early period he was alfo 

 ambitious of acquiring the art of writing with eafe nud 

 elegance. In 1728 he fucceedcd to the eftate of his mother, 

 elHmattd at about l2,OOol. a year; which, by rend-ring his 

 circumdances affluent and independent, enabled him to in- 

 dulge his tafte in thofe fcientific refearches and literary pur- 

 fuits, to which his future life was devoted. Having con- 

 cluded his travels, at the age of 21J, with a journey to 

 England, he afterwards refided partly at Paris, where, in 

 1739, he was appointed fuperintendant of the royal garden 

 and cabinet, and part',' on his ellate at Montbard. Al- 

 though he was fond of fociety, and by no means infenfible to 

 the ?ittra£lions of the fair fey, he was indefatigable in his 

 application, and is faid to have employed 14 hours every day 

 in ftudy. We learn from the biographical anecdotes relat- 

 ing to him, coUetted by Herault de Sechclles, and publiflicd 

 sn Peltier's " Paris, pendant I'Annee i79';,etl'Annee 1796," 

 that he would fometimes return from the fuppers at Pan's 

 at two in the morning, when he was young, and order a boy 

 to call him at five ; and if he lingered in bed, to drag him 

 out on the floor. At this early hour it was his cuftom, at 

 Montbard, to drefs, powder, dictate letters, and regulate his 

 domellic concerns. At fix he retired to his (ludy, which 

 was a pavilion called the tower of St. Louis, about a furlong 

 from the houfe, at the extremity of the garden, and which 

 was accommodated only with an ordinary wooden dcdc and 

 an arm chair. Within this was another fanftuary, denomi- 

 nated by prince Henry of Prudia " the Cradle of Natural 

 Hiftory," in which he was accuflomed to compofe. On 

 this retreat no one was fuffered to intrude. At nine his 

 breakfaft, which confiiled of two glafies of wine and a bit of 

 bread, was brought to his ftudy ; and after breakfaft he 

 wrote for about two hours, and then returned to his lioufe. 

 At dinner he indulged himfelf in all the gaieties and trifles 

 which occurred at table, and in a freedom of converfation, 

 which obliged the ladies to withdraw. When dinner was 

 finiflied, he paid little attention cither to his family or 

 gueils ; but having flept about an hour in his room, he took 

 a folitary walk, and then he would cither converfe with his 

 friends or fit at his defl-c, examining papers that were fub- 

 mitted to his judgment. This kind of life he pafled for '',0 

 years ; and to one who exprelfed his alloniftiment at his 

 great reputation, he replied, " Have net I fpcnt fifty years 

 at mv de(k ?" At nine he retired to bed. In this courfe 

 he prolonged his life, notv.-ithflanding excruciating futfcrings 

 occafioncd by the gravel and llone, which he bore with An- 

 gular fortitude and patience, to his Sill year; and retained 

 his fenfcs till within a few h' urs of his difiolulion, which 

 happened on the K'.th of April, 1788. His body was em- 

 balmed, and prefented firft at St. Medard's cliurch, and 

 afterwards conveyed to Montbard, where he had given orders 

 in his will to be interred m tlie fame vault with his wife. 

 His funeral was attended by a great concourfe of academi- 

 cians, and perfons of rank and literary dillinflion ; and a 

 crowd of at lealt 20,000 fpeflators afft nliled in the (Ireets 

 through which the hearfe was to pafs. When his body was 

 opened, '17 ftones were found in his bladder, fome of which 

 Vol.. V, 



were a . large as a fmall bean ; and of tliefe 37 were cryftallizeJ 



in a triangular form, weighing altogether 2 ounces and 6 

 drams. All his other parts were perftOUy found ; liia brain was 

 found to be larger tlian the ordinary fize ; and it was the 

 opinion of the gentlemen of the faculty who examined the 

 body, that the operation of lithotomy might have been per- 

 f jrmed without the lead danger ; but to this mode of relief 

 M. BulTon had invincible objedions. He left one for, wlio 

 lell a victim to the atrocities under Robefpierre. This fon 

 had ercdled a monument to his father in the gardens of Mont- 

 bard ; wliit h confiiled of afimplc column, withthisinfcription ; 

 " Excelfa; turri humilis columna 

 Parenti fuo filins Bvtfon, 1785." 



The father, upon feeing this monument, burft into tears, 

 and faid to the yeiung man, " Son, this will do you honour." 

 Biiifon was a member of the French Academy, and per- 

 petiial treafurer of the Academy of Sciences. With a view 

 to the prcfervation of his tranquillity, he wifely avoided the 

 intrigues and purtiis that dilgracefnlly occupi(d moll of 

 the French literati in his time ; nor did he ever reply to 

 the attacks that were made >ipon his works. In 1771 

 his cftate was treded into a cornte ; and thus the decoration 

 of rank, to which he was by no means indifferent, was 

 annexed to the fuperior dignity he had acquired as one of 

 the moft didinguidied members of the republic of letters. 



Before we give an account of his works, we (liall mention 

 a few particulars relating to his peifon and charadler. His 

 figure was noble and manly, and his countenance, even in ad- 

 vanced age, and notvvithllanding excruciating pains, which 

 deprived him of lleep fometimes for 16 fucceffive nights, was 

 calm and placid, and exhibited traces of fingnlar intelligence. 

 Vanity, however, which feemed to have been his predominant 

 paiTion, extended even to his perfon and to all its exterior 

 ornaments. He was particularly fond of having his hair 

 neatly dreffed, and for this purpofe lie employed the frifcur, 

 in old age, twice or thrice a day. To his drefs he was 

 peculiarly attentive ; and took pleafnre in appearing on 

 Sundays before the peafantry of Montbard in laced clothes. 

 At table he indulged in indelicate and licentious pleafantries, 

 and he was fond of hearing every goffiping tale which his 

 attendants could relate. In his general intercourfe with 

 females he was as lax and unguarded as in his converfation. 

 During the life of his wife, he was chargeable with frequent 

 infidelities ; and he proceeded to the very unwarrantable ex- 

 treme of debauching young women, and even of employing 

 means to procure abortion. His confidence, in the latter 

 period of his life, was almoft wholly engrolTcd by a made- 

 moifelle Bleffeau, who lived with him for many years. His 

 vanity betrayed itielf on a variety of oceafions in relation to 

 his literary performances. Thefe were often the fubjedts of 

 his difcourfe, and even of hisconmiendation. When he was 

 recommending tlie perufal of capital works in every depart- 

 ment of tafte and fcience, he added, with fingular nrefump- 

 tiou and felf-confidencc ; " Capital works are fcarce ; I 

 know but five great geniufes ; — Newton, Bacon, Leibnitz, 

 Montefquieu, and my/il/'." He was in the habit of reciting 

 to th.ofc wlio vifited him whole pages of his compofitions, 

 for he feemed to know tliem almoft all by heart ; but not- 

 withrtanding his vanity, lie lillened to objeflions, entered into 

 a difcuffiin of them, and furrendcred his own opinion to that 

 of others, when his judgment was convinced. He cxprcfl'ed 

 himfelf with rapture concerning the pleafnres accruing from 

 ftudy ; and he declared his preference of the writings to the 

 converfations of learned men, which almoft always difap- 

 pointed !iim ; and therefore he voluntarily feclnded himfelf 

 from fociety with fuch, and in company was fond of triCing. 

 He maintained, however, an extcnfive correfpondcnce with 

 J P fevcr.1l 



