FERGUSON, JAMES, a celebrated lecturer, and writer on astronomy and other branches of natural philosophy, was born at Keith, a small town in the county of Banff, in the north of Scotland, in the year 1710. While his father was teaching his eldest son to read the Scotch Catechism, James was busy in learning the same lesson, without the knowledge of any person, and as soon as the Catechism was unemployed, he studied the lesson which had been taught to his brother, and, on the occurrence of any diffi culty, he had recourse to an old woman who lived in the neighbourhood. Some time afterwards, his father was as tonished to find James reading by himself. He imme diately taught him writing, and, with about three months attendance at the grammar school of Keith, this was all the education which our author ever received.
When he was about seven or eight years of age, a part of his father's roof fell in, and a prop and a lever were applied to an upright spar to raise it to its former place. The facility with which it was effected excited the asto nishment of the young mechanic, and led him to think on the means by which it was accomplished. He immediate ly began to construct levers; he discovered that the power was proportional to the length of the different parts of the lever on either side of the prop. He invented the wheel and axle, by endeavouring to make a lever that would raise bodies to any height ; and by means of a turning lathe of his father's, and a little knife, he was enabled to make models of these different machines. Ferguson afterwards wrote out a short account of these machines, illustrated with figures ; and upon sheaving it to a gentleman, he was surprised to learn that the same things had been known before, and was much pleased to observe that his own ac count coincided with what he found in other books.
In consequence of his father's poverty, James began the occupation of a shepherd, and hence he has been ridicu lously represented by Lalande, as having been shepherd to the king of England for Scotland.* His nights were now spent in studying the stars, while in the day-time lie made models of mills and spinning wheels. Our author next went into the service of a farmer of the name of James Glashan. When his work was over, he went into the fields with a blanket about him, and having stretched a thread with small beads upon it, he slid the beads till they hid particular stars from his eye, and then laying the thread down upon a piece of paper, he marked the stars upon it according to their respective positions. His mas
ter at first laughed at this apparently ridiculous occupa tion; but as soon as he knew the object of it, he not only encouraged him to proceed, but often performed young Ferguson's work with his own hand, that he might leave him time during the day to make clean copies of his rude planispheres. He soon after received from the minister of Keith a map of the earth, and compasses, ruler, pens, ink and paper, for the purpose of copying it ; and his ge nerous master frequently took the threshing flail out of his hands and worked himself, while Ferguson was sitting beside him in the barn busy with his ruler and compasses. Upon his return to the minister of Keith with the copy of his map, he saw a man of the name of Cantley painting a sun-dial, and shewed him the copy of the map. Cantley was butler to Mr Grant of Achoynaney, and appears to have man of singular attainments. Ferguson had the good fortune to be introduced to Mr Grant, who in vited him to live in his house,—a request with which he gladly complied as soon as his term of servitude was over. Cantley taught him decimal arithmetic and algebra, and they had just begun geometry, when Cantley left the ser vice of Mr Grant for that of the Earl of Fife, who lived at several miles distance. " Cantley," says Mr Ferguson, " was the most extraordinary man that I ever was ac quainted with, or perhaps ever shall see ; for he was a complete master of arithmetic, a good mathematician, a master of music on every known instrument except the harp, understood Latin, French, and Greek, let blood ex tremely well, and could even prescribe as a physician on any urgent occasion." Having received from this extraordinary butler a pre sent of Gordon's Geographical Grammar, Ferguson con structed a globe from the description which is there given of it ; and having delineated upon it a map of the world, he was enabled to solve all the common problems in geo graphy and astronomy.