Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 21.djvu/491

Rh s c o s c o 469 university, as he did again in 1809, when he added several other subjects. In his voyage of 1807 he commenced, as in all subsequent voyages he continued, the study of the meteorology and natural history of the polar regions; among the earlier results are his original observations on snow crystals. In 1809 Professor Jameson of Edinburgh brought Scoresby's arctic papers before the Wernerian Society of that city, of which he was at once elected a member. Soon after attaining his majority, in 1811, Scoresby was promoted to the command of the " Resolu- tion," and in the same year married the daughter of a shipbroker. In 1813 he changed the "Resolution" for the "Esk," in both vessels bringing home large and pro- fitable captures. In his voyage of 1813 Scoresby ascer- tained that the temperature of the polar ocean is warmer at considerable depths than it is on the surface. Each subsequent spring found Scoresby in search of whales, and no less eagerly of fresh additions to scientific knowledge. His letters of this period to Sir Joseph Banks no doubt gave the first impulse to the modern search for the north- west passage. In 1819 he was elected a fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, and among other papers of the year was one communicated to the Royal Society of London through Sir Joseph Banks, "On the Anomaly in the Variation of the Magnetic Needle," touching upon a subject of the first scientific importance. In 1820 appeared Scoresby's History and Description of the Arctic Regions, in which he gathers up the results of his own observation, as well as those of previous navigators, and which still remains a standard authority. In his voyage of 1822 to Greenland, among other scientific work, Scoresby surveyed 400 miles of the east coast, between 69 30 and 72 30' N., with so much accuracy that the Govern- ment expeditions of the next year were unable to make any substantial correction, although they attempted to ignore his work. This was the last of Scoresby's arctic voyages. On his return he found his wife dead, and this event, acting upon his naturally pious spirit along with other influences, decided him to enter the church. After two years of residence in Cambridge, he in 1825 was ordained and on 17th July was appointed curate of Bass- ingby. Meantime had appeared at Edinburgh, in 1823, his Journal of a Voyage to the Northern Whale-Fishery, including Researches and Discoveries on the Eastern Coast of Greenland. The faithful and successful discharge of his clerical duties at Bassingby, in the mariners' chapel at Liverpool, at Exeter, and at Bradford did not prevent Scoresby from taking as much interest in science as he did during his whaling voyages. In 1824 the Royal Society elected him a fellow, and the Paris Academy of Sciences an honorary corresponding member. From the first he was an active member and official of the British Association, to which he made several important contributions, one being " An Exposition of some of the Laws and Phenomena of Magnetic Induction." To the progress of terrestrial mag- netism especially Scoresby is recognized as having largely contributed. Of the sixty papers which follow his name in the Royal Society list many are more or less connected with this department of research. But his observations extended into many other departments, including certain branches of optics. In order to obtain additional data for his theories on magnetism he made a voyage to Aus- tralia in 1856, the results of which were published in a posthumous work, Journal of a Voyage to Australia for Magnetical Research, edited by Archibald Smith (1859). He made two visits to America, in 1844 and 1848 ; on his return home from the latter visit he made some valuable observations on the height of Atlantic waves, the results of which were given to the British Association. Scoresby interested himself much in social questions, especially the improvement of the condition of factory operatives. He also published numerous works and papers of a religious character, a list of which, as well as of his many scientific papers, is appended to the Life of William Scoresby by his nephew, Dr R. E. Scoresby-Jackson (1861). In 1850 he published a work on the Franklin expedition, urging the prosecution of the search for the missing ships, and giving the valuable results of his own experience in arctic naviga- tion. Scoresby was twice married after the death of his first wife, to Miss Elizabeth Fitzgerald in 1828, and in 1849 to Miss Georgina Kerr. After his third marriage Scoresby built a villa at Torquay, where he spent the remainder of his life, and where he died, 21st March 1857. He was a man of simple but deep piety, amiable, cheerful, and guileless. SCORPION". See ARACHNID A, vol. ii. p. 281 sq. SCOT, MICHAEL, whose fame as a magician has sur- rounded his history with legend, is sometimes claimed by the Italians as a native of Salerno and by the Spaniards as a native of Toledo ; but there is no reason to doubt the Scottish origin to which his name testifies. Scottish tradi- tion is unanimous in identifying him with Sir Michael Scot of Balwearie in Fif eshire, but the ascertainable dates place some difficulties in the way of this. The traditional date of Scot's birth is 1190, but this does not harmonize well with the embassy to Norway attributed to Sir Michael Scot in 1290. Some accordingly have fixed the date of his birth approximately as 1214, but apparently without any further reason than is afforded by the supposed date of his death in 1291. But Jourdain 1 refers to certain manu- script translations of Scot's which are expressly dated "1217 at Toledo." This would accord fairly well with the date 1190, the translations being executed by Scot soon after the conclusion of his student period. Scot is said to have studied at Oxford, whence he proceeded, as was usual, to Paris, then the centre of mediaeval learning, devoting himself especially to philosophy and mathematics. Du Boulay, the historian of the university of Paris, adds that he received the degree of doctor of theology and ac- quired a brilliant reputation in that faculty. There is no evidence of this, however, in his writings. At Toledo, where he also studied, Scot acquired a knowledge of Arabic. It is not likely that his knowledge extended to Greek and the other Eastern tongues mentioned by the earlier bibliographers. His knowledge of Arabic was sufficient to open up to him the Arabic versions of Aris- totle and the multitudinous commentaries of the Arabians upon them, with which Western Christendom had only lately become acquainted in Latin translations (see SCHO- LASTICISM). It also brought him into contact with the original works of Avicenna and Averroes. His own first work was done as a translator. He was one of the savants whom Frederick II. attracted to his brilliant court, and at the instigation of the emperor he superintended (along with Hermannus Alemannus) a fresh translation of Aris- totle and the Arabian commentaries from Arabic into Latin. There exist translations by Scot himself of the Historia Animalium, the De Anima, and De Coelo, along with the commentaries of Averroes upon them. This connexion with Frederick and Averroes both of evil reputation in the Middle Ages doubtless contributed to the formation of the legend which soon enveloped Michael Scot's name. His own books, however, dealing as they do almost exclusively with astrology, alchemy, and the occult sciences generally, are mainly responsible for his popular reputation. The chief of these according to the more critical views of recent investigators are Super Auc- torem Spherse, printed at Bologna in 1495 and at Venice in 1631 ; De Sole et Luna, printed at Strasburg, 1622, 1 JtechercJies sur les anciennes traductions Latines d'Aristote, p. 133.