CANTON. 
74 * 
refidencc at Canton agreeable to an European, but the plea¬ 
sure naturally refillting from the Society of women. 
The manufactures of Canton are principally carried on 
in the fuburbs, though it has been frequently fuppofed 
tiiat they were confined to the city ; and this, by Come wri¬ 
ters, has been given as a reafon why Europeans are not per¬ 
mitted to enter within the gates. But this is a mifiake ; 
and perhaps the true reafon for this very fingular reTlraint 
is, that the hcufes in which they keep their women are 
chiefly within the city. At Wampoa, a large commodi¬ 
ous place for anchorage, and which is about twelve or 
fourteen miles from Canton, the European veflels lie and 
unload their cargoes, which are tranfmitted by lighters to 
the factories ; and by the fame conveyance receive their 
refpeClive freights. Between this place and the' city are 
three hoppo or cuftoro houfes, at which the boats palling 
•and re-palling are obliged to flop, and undergo witli it's 
pallengers an examination, in order to prevent fmuggling. 
This city is 340 leagues fouth of Pekin. Lat. 23. 10. N. 
Ion. 130. 3 3. E. Ferro. 
CAN'TON, a new town of the United States, in Nor¬ 
folk county, Malfachufetts, incorporated in 1797, it being 
formerly tIre northerly part of Stoughton. 
CAN'TON (John), an ingenious natural philofopher, 
born at Sroud, in Glouceflerfhire in 1718; was placed, 
when young, under the care of Mr. Davis, of the fame 
place, a very able mathematician, with whom, before he 
had attained the age of nine years, lie had gone through 
both vulgar and decimal arithmetic. He then proceeded 
to the mathematics, and particularly to algebra and aftro- 
jiorny ; when his father took him front fchool, and put him 
to learn his own btifinefs, which was that of a broad.cloth 
weaver. This circumftance was not-able to damp his zeal 
for the acquifition of knowledge. His leifure time was 
flail devoted to the afliduous cultivation of aftronomical 
Science ; and, by the help of the Caroline tables, he com¬ 
puted eclipfes of the moon, and other phenomena. His 
acquaintance with that Icience he applied likewife to the 
conllrutting of feveral kinds of dials. But, thefe (Indies 
being frequently purified to very late hours, his father, 
fearing that they would injure his health, forbade him the 
tile of a candle in his chamber any longer than for the 
purpofe of going to bed, and would himfelf often fee that 
•his injunflion was obeyed. The foil’s third of knowledge 
was, however, fogreat, that it made him attempt to evade 
the prohibition, and to find means of fecreting his light 
till the family had retired to reft, when lie rofe to prole- 
cnte, undillurbed, his favourite purfuits. It was during 
this prohibition, and at thefe hours, that he computed, 
and cut upon (lone, with no better inftmment than a com- 
anon knife, the lines of a large upright fun-dial, on which, 
befides the hour of the day, was fliewn the riling of the 
fun, his place in the ecliptic, and fome other particulars. 
.When this was finifliedj and'madeknown to his fattier, he 
permitted it to be placed againft the front of his houfe, 
where it excited the admiration of feveral gentlemen in 
•the neighbourhood, and introduced young Mr. Canton to 
their acquaintance. Among other perfons by whom he 
was particularly noticed, was the ingenious Dr. Henry 
Miles, who, perceiving that Mr. Canton polfelfed abilities 
too promilingto be confined within the narrow limits of a 
country town, prevailed on his father to fend him to Lon¬ 
don. Accordingly he arrived in the metropolis March 4, 
1737 ; and on the 6th of May following he articled hini- 
felf for the term of five years, to Mr. Samuel Watkins, 
mallei* of the academy in Spital-fquare. In this fituation, 
his ingenuity, diligence, and good conduct, were lb much 
exerted, that in May, 1742, he was taken into partnerlhip 
with Mr. Watkins for three years; which gentleman he 
afterwards fucceedcd in Spital-fquare, and there continued 
during his whole life. In 1744, he married Penelope, the 
eldell daughter of Mr. Thomas Colbrooke, and niece to 
James Colbrooke, Elq. banker in London. 
Towards the end of 1745, electricity, which feems early 
<0 have engaged Mr. Canton’s notice, received a capital 
improvement by die difeovery of the Eeyden phial. This 
event turned the thoughts of molt of the philofophers of 
Europe to that branch of natural philofophy ; and Mr, 
Canton, who was one of the firft to repeat and to pur. 
lue the experiment, found his. alTidnity rewarded by 
many capital difeoveries. Towards the end of 1749, he 
was concerned with Mr. Benjamin Robins in making ex. 
peri meats to determine to what height rockets may be 
made to alcend, and at what didance their light may be 
feen. In fjs 0 was rea d at the Royal Society Mr. Can. 
ton’s “Method of making artificial magnets, without the 
u/e of, and yet ftiperior to, any natural ones.” This pa. 
per procured him the honour of being eleCfed a member of 
the fbciety, and the prefent of their gold medal. The 
fame year lie was complimented with the degree of M. A. 
by the tiniverlity of Aberdeen; and in 1751 was chofen 
one of the council of the Royal Society. In 1752, he was 
lo lortunate as to be the firft perfon in England, who, by 
attracting the elcCtric fire from the clouds during a thun¬ 
der-dorm, verified Dr. Franklin’s hypothelis of the firm- 
larity of lightning and electricity. Next year his paper, 
entitled, “ Electrical Experiments, with an attempt to 
account for their feveral phenomena,” was read at the 
Royal Society. In the fame paper Mr. Canton mentioned 
his having difcoVered, by a great number of experiments, 
that fome clouds vvere in a politive and fome in a negative 
date ot eleClricity. Dr. Franklin, much about the fame 
time, made the like difeovery in America. This circum- 
dance induced that excellent philofopher, immediately on 
his arrival in England, to pay Mr. Canton a viiit, and 
gave rife to a friendship which ever after fublided'between 
them. In the Lady’s Diary for 1756, he anfwered the 
prize quedion, “ How can what we call the (hooting of 
liars be bed accounted for ; what is the fubdance of this 
phaenomenon ; and in what date of the atmofphere doth 
it mod frequently diew itfelfr” The folution, though 
anonymous, was fo fatisfaCtory to Mr. Thomas Simplon, 
who conducted that work, that he fent Mr. Canton the 
prize, accompamed with a note, in which lie laid he was 
lure that he was not midaken in the author of it, as no 
one befides, that lie knew of, could have anlvvered the 
quedion. Mr. Canton’s next communication to the pub¬ 
lic was a letter on the eleCtrical properties of the tourma¬ 
lin, in which the laws of that wonderful done are laid down 
in a very concife and elegant manner. On December 13th, 
1759, was read at the Royal Society, “ An attempt to 
account for the regular diurnal variation of the horizontal 
magnetic needle ; and a!fo for its irregular variation at the 
time of an Aurora Borealis.” On November 5th, 1761, 
lie communicated to the Royal Society an account of the 
tranfit of Venus, June 6, 1761, obferved in Spital-fquare. 
Mr. Canton’s next -communication was a letter addreded, 
to Dr. Benjamin Franklin, and read Feb. 4, 1762, contain, 
ing fome remarks on Mr. Delaval’s eleftrical experiments. 
On Dec. 16, in the fame year, lie made another valuable 
addition to philofophical knowledge, in a paper jntituled 
“ Experiments- to.prove that water is not illcompre(Tible.’ , 
Thele experiments are a complete refutation of the famous 
Florentine experiment, which fo many philofophers have 
mentioned as a proof of the ineompreljibility of water. 
On St. Andrew’s day, 1763, Mr, Canton was the third 
time eledted one of the council of the Royal Society; and 
on Nov. S, in the following year, were read before that 
learned body his farther “ Experiments and obfervations 
on the comprelTibiiity of water and other fluids.” The 
eftffbiilhment of this faff, in. oppolition to the received 
opinion, formed on the hafty decilion of the Florentine 
academy,.was thought to be deferving of the Society’s 
gold medal. It was accordingly prefented, to him Nov. 
30. 
The next communication of this ingenious author to 
-the Royal Society was on Dec. 21, 1768, being “ An eafy 
.method of makinga phofphorus that will imbibe and emit 
light, like the Bolognian ltone.” .When he firft ffiewed to 
Dr. Franklin the mlfantaneous light acquired by-fome of 
tim 
