—De Morgan, A.
Budget of Paradoxes (London, 1872), p. 37.
[2152]. Stifel, the most acute and original of the early mathematicians of Germany, ... relates ... that whilst a monk at Esslingen in 1520, and when infected by the writings of Luther, he was reading in the library of his convent the 13th Chapter of Revelations, it struck his mind that the Beast must signify the Pope, Leo X.; He then proceeded in pious hope to make the calculation of the sum of the numeral letters in Leo decimus, which he found to be M, D, C, L, V, I; the sum which these formed was too great by M, and too little by X; but he bethought him again, that he has seen the name written Leo X., and that there were ten letters in Leo decimus, from either of which he could obtain the deficient number, and by interpreting the M to mean mysterium, he found the number required, a discovery which gave him such unspeakable comfort, that he believed that his interpretation must have been an immediate inspiration of God.—Peacock, George.
Encyclopedia of Pure Mathematics (London, 1847); Article “Arithmetic,” sect. 89.
[2153]. Perhaps the best anagram ever made is that by Dr. Burney on Horatio Nelson, so happily transformed into the Latin sentence so truthful of the great admiral, Honor est a Nilo. Reading this, one is almost persuaded that the hit contained in it has a meaning provided by providence or fate.
This is also amusingly illustrated in the case of the Frenchman André Pujom, who, using j as i, found in his name the anagram, Pendu à Riom. Riom being the seat of justice for the province of Auvergne, the poor fellow, impelled by a sort of infatuation, actually committed a capital offence in that province, and was hanged at Riom, that the anagram might be fulfilled.
New American Cyclopedia, Vol. 1; Article “Anagram”
[2154]. The most remarkable pseudonym [of transposed names adopted by authors] is the name of “Voltaire,” which the celebrated philosopher assumed instead of his family name, “François Marie Arouet,” and which is now generally allowed to be an anagram of “Arouet, l. j.,” that is, Arouet the younger.
Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th Edition; Article “Anagram”
[2155]. Perhaps the most beautiful anagram that has ever been composed is by Jablonsky, a former rector of the school at Lissa. The occasion was the following: When while a young man king Stanislaus of Poland returned from a journey, the whole house of Lescinsky assembled to welcome the family heir. On this occasion Jablonsky arranged for a school program, the closing number of which consisted of a ballet by thirteen pupils impersonating youthful heroes. Each of them carried a shield on which appeared in gold one of the letters of the words Domus Lescinia. At the end of the first dance the children were so arranged that the letters on their shields spelled the words Domus Lescinia. At the end of the second dance they read: ades incolumis (sound thou art here). After the third: omnis es lucida (wholly brilliant art thou); after the fourth: lucida sis omen (bright be the omen). Then: mane sidus loci (remain our country’s star); and again: sis columna Dei (be a column of God); and finally: I! scande solium (Proceed, ascend the throne). This last was the more beautiful since it proved a true prophecy.