FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   163   164   165   166   167   168   169   170   171   172   173   174   175   176   177   178   179  
180   181   182   183   184   185   186   187   188   189   190   191   192   193   194   195   196   197   198   199   200   201   202   203   204   >>   >|  
e person who turns it can move, than he could do without it." "Well," said Tommy, "I see it is a fine thing indeed to acquire knowledge, for by these means one not only increases one's understanding, but one's bodily strength. But are there no more, sir, of these ingenious contrivances, for I should like to understand them all?" "Yes," answered Mr Barlow, "there are more, and all of them you shall be perfectly acquainted with in time; but for this purpose you should be able to write, and comprehend something of arithmetic." _Tommy._--What is arithmetic, sir? _Mr Barlow._--That is not so easy to make you understand at once; I will, however, try to explain it. Do you see the grains of wheat which he scattered in the window? _Tommy._--Yes, sir. _Mr Barlow._--Can you count how many there are? _Tommy._--There are just five-and-twenty of them. _Mr Barlow._--Very well. Here is another parcel; how many grains are there? _Tommy._--Just fourteen. _Mr Barlow._--If there are fourteen grains in one heap, and twenty-five in the other, how many grains are there in all? or, how many do fourteen and twenty-five make? Tommy was unable to answer, and Mr Barlow proposed the same question to Harry, who answered, that, together, they made thirty-nine. "Again," said Mr Barlow, "I will put the two heaps together, and then how many will there be?" _Tommy._--Thirty-nine. _Mr Barlow._--Now, look, I have just taken away nineteen from the number; how many, do you think, remain? _Tommy._--I will count them. _Mr Barlow._--And cannot you tell without counting? How many are there, Harry? _Harry._--Twenty, sir. _Mr Barlow._--All this is properly the art of arithmetic, which is the same as that of counting, only it is done in a much shorter and easier way, without the trouble of having the things always before you. Thus, for instance, if you wanted to know how many barley-corns were in this sack, you would perhaps be a week in counting the whole number. _Tommy._--Indeed, I believe I should. _Mr Barlow._--If you understood arithmetic you might do it in five minutes. _Tommy._--That is extraordinary, indeed; I can hardly conceive it possible. _Mr Barlow._--A bushel of corn weighs about fifty pounds; this sack contains four bushels; so that there are just two hundred pounds weight in all. Now, every pound contains sixteen ounces, and sixteen times two hundred makes thirty-two hundred ounces. So that you have not
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   163   164   165   166   167   168   169   170   171   172   173   174   175   176   177   178   179  
180   181   182   183   184   185   186   187   188   189   190   191   192   193   194   195   196   197   198   199   200   201   202   203   204   >>   >|  



Top keywords:

Barlow

 
grains
 

arithmetic

 

hundred

 

fourteen

 

twenty

 
counting
 
number
 

pounds

 

thirty


sixteen

 

ounces

 

answered

 

understand

 

shorter

 
nineteen
 

easier

 
trouble
 

remain

 

Twenty


properly

 

bushel

 

weighs

 
extraordinary
 

conceive

 

bushels

 

weight

 

minutes

 
wanted
 

barley


instance

 

Indeed

 
understood
 

things

 

perfectly

 

contrivances

 
ingenious
 
acquainted
 

comprehend

 

purpose


strength
 

bodily

 

person

 

increases

 

understanding

 

acquire

 

knowledge

 
unable
 

answer

 
proposed