Page:The Annual Register 1758.djvu/360

 .74^ ANNUAL REGISTER, 1758.

fion, they doubled their acute angle, by prolonging the two lines beyond their iiuerfedtion ; thus X, to denote two fives, or ten. After they had doubled, trebled, and quadrupled this double acute angle thus, XX. XXX. XXXX. they then, for the fame reafon which induced them firll to make 3 linglc ai)g!e, and then to double It, joined two fmgle Itrokes in ano- ther form, and, inliead of an acute angle, made a right angle L, to denote fifty. When this 50 was doubled, they then doubled the right angle thus E, to denote 100 ; and having numbered this double right angle four times, thus, EC ELE. EELE. when they can:e to Vhe iifth number, as before, they reverted it, and put a iingle ftroke before it, thus O, to denote 500, and when this 500 was doubled, then they alfo doubled their ciouble right angle, fetting two double right angles oppofite to each other, vith a fingle ftroke between them, thus EO to denote one thoufand ; when this note for 1000 had been four times repeated, then they put down 1^3 for 5,030, EE03 for lo.oco, and 0!IEI for 50,000, EEE 1:133 for ico.ooo, 11111 for 500,000, and EEEEI3333 for one million.

That the Romans did not origi- rally write M for 1000, and C for lor, but fquare charaders, as they are written above, we are ex- prefsly informed by Paulu'? Manu- lius ; but the corners of the an- gles being cut off by tranfciibcrs for difpatch, thefe figures were gradually brought into vvhat are 'now numerr.l letters. When the corners of EO were made round. It flood thus qi3. which is fo near the Gothic CO, that it foon deviated jnto that letter j fo O having the

corner made round flood thus ir>. and then Cufily deviated into D. E alfo became a plain C by the fame means; the fingle redtangle wh'ich denoted 5c, was without alteration, a capital L ; the double acute angle was an X ; the fingle acute angle a V confonant; and a plain fingie ftroke, the letter I. and thus thefe feven letters, M, D, C, L, X, V, I, became nume- rals.

And as a further proof of this hypothefis, let it be confidered, that ciD and 10 are full ufed for 1000 and 500, inftead of M and D ; and this mark CD, or this Q;, denote 1000, which may be eafily derived from this figure ElU, but cannot be deviations from, or cor- ruptions of the Roman letter M. 1 am, Mr. Urban, yours, and Philarithmus's very humble Servant,

A. B.

^n account offe-veral ixonderful par- ticularities difco'vered on cpening a hi'ue that had a few days htfort received a young Jnx arm.

From Dr. Snvammerdam^s Bock of Nature, or Hijiory cf InJeSli.

HAppening to be in the country on the 25th of July, 1 ob- fervcd a great fwarm of bees, which, on its hanging to an elm, I ordered to be received into a hive ; but in a little time they all left this new habitation, and Hei back to the elm, where they hung entangled by each others legs. The lemale bee had not dropt from the hive with the others : I was therefore obliged to have rccourfe to another (baking; when having brought the female into the hive, all the rell followed.

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