L E I 
LEHOTH'WAN, a town of Bohemia, in the circle of 
Leitmeritz: four miles north-weft of Leitmeritz. 
LE'HRE, a river which rifes in the principality of 
Verden, and runs into the Aller fix miles above the town 
of Verden. 
LE'HRBERG, a town of Germany, in the margravate 
of Anfpach, on the UnterRetzat: five miles north-weft 
of Anfpach. 
LE'HSO, a town of Arabia Deferta: 140 miles fouth of 
Cafhem. 
LEHS'TEN, or Lehesten, a town of Saxony, in the 
principality of Altenburg, celebrated for quarries of flate : 
forty-five miles fouth-foutli-weft of Altenburg, and le- 
venteen north-eaft of Coburg. Lat. 50. 25. N. Ion. 11. 
35 - E - 
LEHTIMA'KI, a town of Sweden, in the government 
of Wafa: fixty-five miles eaft-louth-eaft of Wafa. 
LEIBAU'. See Liebau. 
LEI'BEN, a town of Auftria: ten miles weft-north- 
weft of Crems.—Another, fourteeit miles louth-weft of 
Crems. 
LEIBLIN'GEN, or Lyptingen, a town of Germany, 
in the lordlhip of Nellenburg, whence the French were 
driven by the Auftrians in March 1799 : llx m *' es eaft °f 
Tuttlingen. 
LEIB'NITZ (Godfrey William de), an eminent Ger¬ 
man mathematician and philofopher, was born at Leipfic 
in the year 1646. When he was only fix years of age, he 
had the misfortune to lofe his father, who was profelfor of 
moral philofophy, and fecretary, to the univerfity of that 
city ; after which his mother placed him under the care 
of able matters, who were foon gratified by obferving the 
rapid progrefs which he made in learning. Belides pro¬ 
fiting by their inftruftions, when he was fiulficiently maf- 
ter of the Latin and Greek languages, he availed himfelf 
of the advantage of a large and well-chofen library which 
his father had left him; and read all the hooks which it 
contained in regular order; as the poets, orators, hifto- 
rians, civilians, philofophers, mathematicians,and divines. 
This courfe of reading, to which he applied with the 
greateft aftiduity, and with a very tenacious memory, was 
the means of introducing him to a confiderable acquaint¬ 
ance with the different branches of fcience and literature. 
He knew many of the principal poets by heart; and even 
in his old age could repeat Virgil almoft word for word. 
He had himfelf a talent for verbifying, and is faid to Tiave 
compofed, in one day, a poem of three hundred Latin 
verfes, without any elifion. By the attention which he 
thus early paid to claftical and polite learning, he laid the 
foundation of that correct and elegant tafte which appears 
in all his writings. 
When he was fifteen years of age, Leibnitz became a 
ftudent in the univerfity of Leipfic, where he profecuted 
with unufual fuccefs the various ftudies of law, medicine, 
philofophy, and theology, and made himfelf well acquaint¬ 
ed with many eminent writers in each. In the univer¬ 
fity of Jena, where he finilhed his academical ftudies, the 
principal objects of his attention were hiftory, law, and 
mathematics. Upon his return to Leipfic in 1663, he 
maintained a thefis “De principiis individuationis;” and 
in the following year he was admitted to the degree of 
M. A. At this time he continued to ftudy philofophy, 
particularly in the writings of Plato and Ariftotle, whom 
he endeavoured to reconcile; as he afterwards attempted 
to reconcile Ariftotle with Des Cartes. On thefe ftudies 
he was fo intent, that he fpent whole days in meditation, 
in a foreft near Leipfic. He principally devoted himfeif, 
however, to the ftudy of law; in which faculty he w'as 
admitted bachelor in 1665. During the following year 
he fupplicated for his degree of dodtor; but was refufed, 
under the pretence that he was too young, being then but 
twenty years of age. But it was lurmifed, that the real 
caufe ot this refulal was, his having rejected the princi¬ 
ples of Ariftotle and the fchoolmen. Refenting this af¬ 
front, he went to Altdorf, where he maintained a thefis 
Vol. XII, No, 843, 
LEI 453 
“De cafibus perplexisand, in the public deputations 
on this occafion, difplayed fucb uncommon abilities, that 
he had the degree of doftor conferred on him, and was 
even offered a profefforfliip extraordinary in law, which 
he declined. In the fame year, he publiihed his Ars Com- 
binatoria ; a work intended to Ihow in what manner uni- 
verfal arithmetic may be applied to the elucidation of other 
fciences. This was accompanied with A mathematical 
Demonftfation of the Exiltence of God. Though this 
early production was not entirely approved by his own 
mature judgment, it bore evident marks of an inventive 
genius. 
From Altdorf, Leibnitz went to Nuremberg, to vifit 
the learned men in that univerfity ; and, foon after, the 
baron de Boinebourg, firft minifterofthe eleCtor of Mentz, 
palling through that place, and meeting with Leibnitz at 
an entertainment, conceived lo high an opinion of his abi¬ 
lities and learning, that he adviled him to apply hinilelf 
particularly to the ftudy of law and hiftory; and gave 
him the ftrongeft afiurances, that he would engage the 
elector, John Philip de Schonborn, to invite him to his 
court. Upon this, Leibnitz removed to Frankfort on the 
Maine, in the neighbourhood of Mentz ; and, as a proof 
of the attention which he had paid to the ftudy of jurif- 
prudence, in the year 1668 he publiihed his Nova Metkodus 
Docenda: Difcrndaque Jurifprudaitia ; which gained him 
great applaufe. In the lame year he wrote a treatife, to 
induce the Poles to choofe the eleflor palatine their king; 
which fo highly pleafed the elector, that he invited the 
author to his court. This invitation he was prevented 
from accepting by the baron Boinebourg, who obtained 
for him the office of counlellor of the chamber of review 
in the chancery of Mentz. Still, however, Leibnitz per- 
fifted in his philofopbical inquiries; and in the year 1670, 
he reprinted, with a preface and notes, the treatife of Ma¬ 
rius Nizolius de Berfello, “ De veris Principiis, et vera 
Ratione Philofophandi, contra Pfeudo-philofopbos to 
which he fubjoined a letter, “ De Ariftotele recentioribus 
reconciliabili.” 
Finding now that it was in vain to colleft any con¬ 
fident fyltem from former philofophers, he determined to 
exercife his own invention in framing a new hypothefis. 
This firft effort of his philofophical genius produced a 
work in 1671, entitled, Theoria Motus Concrai, inferibed to 
the Royal Society in London ; the principles of which 
were further explained in another work, entitled, Theoria. 
Aldus Abjlrabli, dedicated to the French Academy of Sci¬ 
ences. The iolution of the phenomena of nature, pro- 
poled in thefe treatifes, the author afterwards abandoned 
for his doflrine of monads. In the year 1672, Leibnitz 
went to Paris, to manage fome affairs at the French court 
for baron Boinebourg. Here tie became acquainted with 
the greateft part of the eminent literati in that metropolis, 
and made further and confiderable progrefs in the ltudy 
of mathematics and philofophy; which lie owed chiefly', 
as he fays, to the works of Pafcal, Gregory St. Vincent, 
and Huygens. While he was thus engaged, having ob- 
ferved the imperfeblion of Pafcal’s arithmetical machine, 
he invented a new one, which met with the approbation 
of the minifter Colbert, and the Academy'of Sciences. In 
this body he was offered a feat, with a penfion, and had 
the profpedt of many other advantages if he would fettle 
at Paris ; but, as it was neceffary that for this purpole he 
fliould embrace the catholic religion, his firft attachment 
to proteftantilm induced him to decline the propofal. 
I11 1673, upon the death of baron Boinebourg, he took 
a tour to England, where he became acquainted with Mr. 
Oldenburg, the fecretary, and Mr. John Collins, a diftin- 
guilhed member, of the Royal Society ; from whom it 
leems he received fome hints of the method of fluxions - 
which had been invented, in 1664 or 1665, by the then 
Mr. Ifaac Newton. Thefe hints appear to have led Leib¬ 
nitz to the invention of the calcuhis differentalis, which is 
the fame method ofanalyfis with jluxions, though under a 
different name. The claim of thefe two great men to the 
5 Z difeovery 
