Eye-witness account of Newton's death

Author: John Conduitt

Source: Keynes Ms. 130.15, King's College, Cambridge, UK

Published online: August 2004

Additional Information
- Notes on the Electronic Edition
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- Revision History
  - 1 January 2001
    - Catalogue information compiled by Rob Iliffe, Peter Spargo & John Young
  - 1 June 2004
    - Tagged transcription by Rebekah Higgitt
  - 1 August 2004
    - Checked against microfilm by John Young
  - 25 October 2006
    - Coding audited and updated to Newton v2.0 DTD by Michael Hawkins
  - 20 April 2009
    - Updated to Newton V3.0 (TEI P5 Schema) by Michael Hawkins
  - 29 September 2011
    - Catalogue exported to teiHeader by Michael Hawkins
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Related Texts
- This document is part of Keynes Ms. 130
  The previous part of this document is Notes on Newton's suitability for canonisation if not deification [Keynes Ms. 130.14]
  The next part of this document is Note on Newton's 'unpromising' infancy and (deleted) eulogy of Alexander Pope [Keynes Ms. 130.16]

<1>

& the book commonly laying before him & which he read often at last was a duodecimo bible I found his eyes bloodshod one morning & he complained something swam before his eyes & when I asked him what he thought had occasioned that disorder he said he believed that he had overstrained the optick nerves for the morning or two last past he had waked before the sun was quite up & had endeavoured to see what a clock it was on his {wat{ch}} by a very little light that came thro the curtain & shutter upon which he left that off & found out the hour by feeling the hand & his eyes soon recov{ered} at one time he had thought so intensely on the sun & looked so much on the body of it to make his observations that for some time it appeared constantly before his eyes – He wrote small but very distinct & legible hand & to the last his hand was very steady —

Had voided two stones broken – together as big as a pea – 3 years ago

Came to town perfectly well told me the 1^st of March — the sunday before he had slept from 11. to 8 – his great fatigue in town brought his distemper upon him – he was ill on the friday following being 3^d – continued so – I not hear{ing} till Saturday the 11. sent Mead & Cheselden – stone in bladder he seemed easier on Wednesday – 15 & wee had some hopes – but he grew worse & weaker & weaker on Friday a violent looseness – his senses perfectly on Saturday 18 – a long discourse with D^r Mead – that evening grew weak{er} & all Sunday was quite insensible & seemed to be quiet & free fom pain – on Monday the 20^th at 1 – in the morning he died without any appearance of pain —–

made no necessities

patient thought

Philosophy less mischeivous

day Oliver died measure force of wind by jumping with & against it

use legs have legs —–

<2>

handiness —– Earl Pembroke's {song} have legs & use legs – day Oliver died – tried —

Morality of Socrates – knowledge of Pythagoras Story of Socrates standing in the market place 24 – hours {distrait} –

His furnace at Cambridge preserved religiously & shewn to strangers —

Story of Caton the joiner at Cambridge who made a square hollow piece of wood nine foot deep filled with water, glasses at distance let fall balls of wax – Sir Isaac at bottom looking glass broke – wonder being very thick – Caton you do not know the force of water —