20
History of Mnemonics.
an interesting fact that out of twenty-four systems published since 1830, the keys of eighteen are merely re-arrangements of Winckelmann's alphabet given above.
Leibnitz, the great German philosopher, also wrote on mnemonics, a MS. by him being preserved in the Library of Hanover.[1] The MS. claims to reveal a secret how numbers, especially those of chronology, &c., can be conveyed to the memory so as never to be forgotten. His
- ↑ The Baron Aretin in his "Systematische Auleitung zur Theorie und Praxis der Mnemonik," 1810, refers to this secret as follows:—The following treaty (from Leibnitz's own hand) is to be found in the Archives of Hanover, and I received it from the kindness of Court-Councillor Feder:—
A Secret by means of which all numbers, and specially those used in chronology, and a great many others, can be committed to memory, remembered without any torture of the mind and never forgotten. . . . . . . . If you will remember without any torment for your memory and your mind many numbers, it is only necessary to use some help: some have tried it in various ways, but without any particular success, not till somebody invented this process and by many experiments perfected it.
The elements of the alphabet are 24, and are divided into vowels and consonants.
The vowels only offer us a secondary utility, but the consonants a primary one. The consonants are the following: B, C, D, F, G, K, L, M, N, P, Q, R, S, T, to which are added W and Z, V.
We have the numbers: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 0.
If larger numbers are given, they are composed out of these, such as 1 and 2 make up 12; this is very clear. But as nothing tortures so much memory as a thing reported in numbers, which it is, however, exceedingly important to know and commit to memory, you will use the following means, which is very useful and conducive to memory.
Place the consonants in this way and think which are the numbers, and you will easily extricate yourself:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 B C F G L M N R S D P Q V T W K Z 1657.
Die Sundflüth geschah unter dem Baümlein.
(The Flood took place under the small tree.)
1402.
BaGaDoC discovered.
