no uncommon phenomenon among the an- 
cients, appears from the following pafTage 
in Cicero, who, in fpeaking of the Greek 
philofopher, fays in qua difficile eft enume- 
rare quot viri^ quanta fcientia, quantaque in 
fuis Jludiis varietate et copia fuerint y qui non 
una aliqua in rejeperatim elaborarent^ fed om- 
nia qiuzcunque effent, vel fcientite pervejliga- 
tione, vel diflerendi ratione comprehenderent. 
Gefner, the great Swifs naturalift, was fo 
aftonilhing a prodigy of knowledge, that 
Boerhaave ufed to call him MonJIrum erudi- 
tionis. His extenfive learning appears truly 
wonderful, when we confider, that he fhone 
in the midft of a dark world; in an age of 
grofs ignorance, and deprefled by indigence. 
He lived early in the i6th century. 
Genius, application and memory, are 
doubtlefs neceflary to the attainment of 
what may be called univerfal knowledge: by 
univerfal knowledge, I mean an intimate ac- 
quaintance with fome fciences, and fome- 
what more than a fuperficial knowledge of 
the principles of all : but, I believe, the la- 
bour of becoming thus univerfally learned 
is not fo very herculean as we generally 
imagine j and that it depends principally on 
a ju~ 
