“What signifies philosophy that does not apply to some use? May we not learn from hence, that black cloths are not so fit to wear in a hot sunny climate, or season, as white ones; because, in such clothes the body is more heated by the sun when we walk abroad, and are at the same time heated by the exercise, which double heat is apt to bring on putrid dangerous fevers?—that soldiers and seamen, who must march and labour in the sun, should, in the East or West Indies, have a uniform of white?—that summer hats for men or women, should be white, as repelling that heat which gives head-achs to many, and to some the fatal stroke that the French call the coup de soliel?—that the ladies’ summer hats, however, should be lined with black, as not reverberating on their faces those rays which are reflected upwards from the earth or water?—that the putting a white cap of paper or linen, within the crown of a black hat, as some do, will not keep out the heat, though it would if placed without?—that fruit-walls being blackened, may receive so much heat from the sun in the day-time, as to continue warm, in some degree, through the night, and thereby preserve the fruit from frosts, or forward its growth?—with sundry other particulars, of less or greater importance, that will occur from time to time to attentive minds?”

Thirty Soldiers having deserted, so to place them in a Ring, that you may save any Fifteen you please, and it shall seem the Effect of Chance.

This recreation is usually proposed thus: Fifteen Christians and fifteen Turks being in a ship at sea, in a violent tempest, it was deemed necessary to throw half the number of persons overboard, in order to disburden the ship, and save the rest; to effect this, it was agreed to be done by lot, in such a manner, that the persons being placed in a ring, every ninth man should be cast into the sea, till one half of them were thrown overboard. Now, the pilot, being a Christian, was desirous of saving those of his own persuasion: how ought he therefore to dispose the crew, so that the lot might always fall upon the Turks?

This question may be resolved by placing the men according to the numbers annexed to the vowels in the words of the following verse:—

Po-pu-le-am Jir-gam Ma-ter Re-gi-na fe-re-bat.
4521 31 12 231 221

from which it appears, that you must place four of those you would save first; then five of those you would punish. After this, two of those to be saved, and one to be punished; and so on. When this is done, you must enter the ring, and beginning with the first of the four men you intend to save, count on to nine; and turn this man out to be punished; then count on, in like manner, to the next ninth man, and turn him out to be punished; and so on for the rest.

It is reported that Josephus, the author of the Jewish History, escaped the danger of death by means of this problem; for being governor of Joppa, at the time that it was taken by Vespasian, he was obliged to secrete himself with thirty or forty of his soldiers in a cave, where they made a firm resolution to perish by famine rather than fall into the hands of the conqueror; but being at length driven to great distress, they would have destroyed each other for sustenance, had not Josephus persuaded them to die by lot, which he so ordered, that all of them were killed except himself and another, whom he might easily destroy, or persuade to yield to the Romans.

Three Persons having each chosen, privately, one out of three Things,—to tell them which they have chosen.

Let the three things, for instance, be a ring, a guinea, and a shilling, and let them be known privately to yourself by the vowels a, e, i, of which the first, a, signifies one, the second, e, two, and the third, i, three.

Then take 24 counters, and give the first person 1, which signifies a, the second 2, which represents e, and the third 3, which stands for i; then, leaving the other counters upon the table, retire into another room, and bid him who has the ring take as many counters from the table as you gave him; he that has the guinea, twice as many, and he that has the shilling four times as many.