(Philip), a most extraordinary influence of the early and rapid exertion of mental faculties. This surprising genius was the son of Francis Baratiere, minister of the French church at Schwobach near Nuremberg, where he was born Jan. 10th 1721. The French was his mother-tongue, together with some words of High Dutch; but by means of his father indefatigably teaching Latin to him, it became as familiar to him as the rest: so that, without knowing the rules of grammar, he at four years of age talked French to his mother, Latin to his father, High Dutch to the maid or neighbouring children; and all this without mixing or confounding the respective languages. About the middle of his fifth year he acquired Greek in like manner; so that in 15 months he perfectly understood all the Greek books in the Old and New Testament, which he readily translated into Latin. When he was five years and eight months old, he entered upon Hebrew; and in three years time was so expert in the Hebrew text, that from a bible without points, he could give the sense of the original in Latin or French; or translate extempore the Latin or French versions into Hebrew, almost word for word; and had all the Hebrew psalms by heart. He composed at this time a dictionary of rare and difficult Hebrew words, with critical remarks and philological observations, in about 400 pages in 4to; and, about his tenth year, amused himself for twelve months with the Rabinical writers. With these he intermixed a knowledge of the Chaldaic, Syriac, and Arabic; and acquired a taste for divinity and ecclesiastical antiquity, by studying the Greek fathers, and councils of the first four ages of the church. In the midst of these occupations, a pair of globes coming into his possession, he could in 8 or 10 days time resolve all the problems on them; and in about three months, in Jan. 1735, devised his project for the discovery of the longitude, which he communicated to the Royal Society at London and the Royal Academy of Sciences at Berlin. In June 1731, he was matriculated in the university of Altorf; and at the close of the year 1732, he was presented by his father at the meeting of the reformed churches of the circle of Franconia; who, astonished at his wonderful talents, admitted him to assist in the deliberations of the synod; and to preserve the memory of so singular an event, it was ordered to be registered in their acts. In 1734, the Margrave of Brandenburgh Anspach granted this young scholar the use of whatever books he wanted from the Anspach library, together with a pension of 50 florins, which he enjoyed three years; and his father receiving a call to the French church at Stettin in Pomerania, young Baratiere was, on the journey, admitted master of arts, with universal applause, at the university of Hall; at Berlin he was honoured with several conversations with the king of Prussia, and was received into the royal academy. Towards the close of his life he acquired a taste for medals, inscriptions, and antiquities; metaphysical inquiries, and experimental philosophy, intervening occasionally between these studies. He wrote several essays and dissertations; made astronomical remarks, and laborious calculations; took great pains toward a history of the heresies of the anti-trinitarians, and of the 30 years war in Germany; his last publication, which appeared in 1749, was on the succession of the bishops of Rome. The final work he engaged in, and for which he had gathered large materials, was Inquiries concerning the Egyptian Antiquities. But the splendour of this blazing meteor was now almost exhausted: he was always weak and sickly; and died October 5, 1749, aged 19 years 8 months and 16 days. He published 11 different pieces, and left 26 manuscripts on various subjects, the contents of which may be seen in his life written by M. Formey professor of philosophy at Berlin.