2.36 
weaknefs of his conftitution, he was kept 
at that boarding-fchool for two years_lon- 
ger, namely till 1730, when he entered on 
his ftudies at the Mazarin College. There 
he performed his exercifes in rhetoric with 
a degree of fauccefs which is ftill remem- 
bered at that place of education. It muft, 
however, be confefled, that he might have 
had better mafters. One of the profeffors 
of rhetoric (for there are two at the Ma- 
zarin College), a man, in other refpects, 
well informed, efpecially in the fcholaftic 
part of his art, though he was deficient in 
point of tafte, often dictated in his clafs 
fubje&s of compofition, the preferibed 
plan and detail of which fo little fatisfied 
his young pupil that he frequently in- 
dulged in deviation from them, and, which 
is very furprifing, without giving the pro- 
feffor room fo find fault. Another of his 
preceptors, a fanatical] Janfenift,who wifhed 
to make his pupil a convert to his dogmas, 
and perhaps one day a fupporter of his 
party, very. much oppofed the tafte which 
the youth manifefted for the belles-letires, 
efpecially for Latin poetry, to which he de- 
voted’ all the time which his academic oc- 
cupations would allow. - The profeffor 
“pretended that poetry, to ufe his own 
words, ‘* dried up the heart” (def/échoit le 
ceur), and he advifed M. D’ Alembert to 
read no other poem than that of St. Prof 
per upon Grace; but the young ftudent 
preferred Horace and Virgil. 
His profeffor of philofophy, who was 
alfo a Janfenift of great confideration 
among his party, and an outrageous Car- 
tefian into the bargain, taught him no- 
thing for two years but the phyfical pre- 
motion, innate ideas, and the Cartefian 
wortices.. ‘The only advantage which M. 
D’ Alembert derived from his ftudies dur- 
ing thofe two years, was confined to fome 
leffons in elementary mathematics, which 
he received from M. Caron, then profef- 
for of that fcicnce in the Mazarin College, - 
and who, without being a profound geo- 
metrician, communicated the knowledge 
he poffefled with much perfpicuity and 
precifion. He was the only matter whole 
inftrutions in thofe fcienees M. D’Alem- 
bert ever enjoyed. ‘The paffion for the 
mathematics, which he had contraéted, 
gained daily acceffions of ftrength, and, 
during his courfe of law, which happily 
left him much leifure, M. D’ Alembest ar- 
dently deveted himfelf to thofe enchanting 
fludies. Without a mafter, alinoft with- 
out books, or a fingle friend to confult re- 
{pecting the difficulties which interrupt- 
ed his progrefs, he reforted to the public 
libraries, where he collected fome general 
; Memoirs of D’ Alembert. 
ideas, by rapidly glancing over books, 
and returning home he inveftigated in 
folitude his demonftrations and folutions. 
He was commonly fucce!sful in thofe ex- 
ertions ;: he even frequently difcovered im- 
portant propofitions, which he fuppofed 
to be new ; and he felt afterwards a kind 
of chagrin, which, however, was not un- 
mixed with fatisfattion, when he read 
thofe propafitions in books of whofe exift- 
ence he was ignorant when he made the 
difcoveries. : 
The Janfenifts, who, though no longer 
his mafters, ftill undertook to advife him, 
oppofed his ardour for the mathematics, 
in the fame manner, and by the fame rea- 
fons, with which they had combated his 
tafte. for poetry. ‘They admonifhed M. 
D°’Alembert to read their books of devo- 
tion, which difgufted him exceedingly. 
Yet, by way of accommodating matters 
with them, and, as if to pay his court to 
them, the young man, inttead of their ma- 
nuals of devotion, read their books of con- 
troverfy. In thefe laft treatifes, he found 
at leaft a fort of food which his mind re- 
quired, food {cmewhat light, itis true, but 
which gave to his avidity for information 
fome kind of exercife. “But the young 
man’s complaifance did not fatisfy his auf- 
tere diretors, whofe remonftrances exhaufi- 
ed his patience and finally difgufted him. 
At the fame time fome_other friends 
who were lefs unreafonable, alfo diffuaded 
M. D’Alembert from the ftudy of zeome- 
try, on account of the neceffity he Jay un- 
der of applying himfelf to fome profefiion 
which was more likely to improve his for- 
tune. This motive induced him to re- 
folve on the ftudy of medicine, and this 
net fo much from any predeliction he felt 
for the profeffion itlelf, as becaufe the 
purfuit of it was more nearly connected 
than jurifprudence with his favourite ftu- 
dy. In order that he might entirely de- 
vote himfelf 10 this new purfuit, M. D’A- ~ 
lembert at firft abandoned the ftudy of the ~ 
mathematics. He even fuppefed that he 
might avoid the temptation of returning 
to them, by carrying to a friend’s houfe 
the few mathematical books which he pof- 
feficd. But, by degrees almoft impercep- 
tible, the books found their way back to 
his lodgings ; and, after wafting a whole 
year in the ftudy of medicine, he finally 
determined ta furrender himfelf entirely 
to his predominating and almoft only paf- 
fion.' And‘ fo completely did he devote 
himfelf to its gratification, that, for feve- 
ral years, he abfolutely neglected the ftudy 
of the belles-lettres, of which he had been 
at firf{ fo much’ enamoured; nor did he 
refunte 
[O&ober t, | ‘ 
