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MOBILE AND WIRELESS
NETWORKS SECURITY
This page intentionally left blank
 MOBILE AND WIRELESS
NETWORKS SECURITY

Proceedings of the MWNS 2008 Workshop

Singapore 9 April 2008

editors

Maryline Laurent-Maknavicius
Hakima Chaouchi
TELECOM SudParis, France

World Scientific
NEW JERSEY • LONDON • SINGAPORE • BEIJING • SHANGHAI • HONG KONG • TA I P E I • CHENNAI
 Published by
World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd.
5 Toh Tuck Link, Singapore 596224
USA office: 27 Warren Street, Suite 401-402, Hackensack, NJ 07601
UK office: 57 Shelton Street, Covent Garden, London WC2H 9HE

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

MOBILE AND WIRELESS NETWORKS SECURITY

Proceedings of the MWNS 2008 Workshop
Copyright © 2008 by World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd.
All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form or by any means,
electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information storage and retrieval
system now known or to be invented, without written permission from the Publisher.

For photocopying of material in this volume, please pay a copying fee through the Copyright
Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, USA. In this case permission to
photocopy is not required from the publisher.

ISBN-13 978-981-283-325-9 (pbk)

ISBN-10 981-283-325-0 (pbk)

Printed in Singapore.

Chelsea - Mobile & Wireless.pmd 1 4/16/2008, 3:25 PM

 v

CONTENTS

Message from the General Chairs vii

MWNS 2008 Committees ix

Toward a New Ad hoc Node Design for Secure Service Deployment over
Ad hoc Network 1
Hakima Chaouchi and Marykine Laurent-Maknavicius

TCA: Topology Change Attack in Peer-to-Peer Networks 13

Mahdi Abdelouahab, Hani Ragab Hassen, Abdelmadjid Bouabdallah,
Mohammed Achemlal and Sylvie Laniepce

Device Pairing using Unidirectional Physical Channels 27

Nitesh Saxena and Md. Borhan Uddin

An Industrial and Academic Joint Experiment on Automated

Verification of a Security Protocol 39
Olivier Heen, Thomas Genet, Stephane Geller and Nicolas Prigent

A Performance-Based Approach to Selecting a Secure Service Discovery

Architecture 55
Slim Trabelsi, Guillaume Urvoy Keller, Yves Roudier
and Yves Roudier

A Solution for Defending against Denial of Service Attack on

Wireless LAN 67
Dinh-Thuc Nguyen, Ngoc-Bao Tran and Minh-Duc Nguyen-Ho
This page intentionally left blank
 vii

MESSAGE FROM THE GENERAL CHAIRS

Information and Communication technology is nowadays undeniably the

fundamental pillar of any company seeking a high level of effectiveness, and
reactivity. In fact, communication technologies made it possible to improve
productivity, and have constrained the companies to adapt their working
methods to survive to market competition. However, one cannot ignore the
existence of intrinsic and extrinsic vulnerabilities of these communication
systems, which confers on networks security fundamental role. Even if networks
have evolved from wired to wireless networks, network security objectives
remained the same for both; to preserve integrity, confidentiality and availability
of information and networks resources. Several mechanisms have been
developed to achieve these goals. For instance, we can mention authentication,
encryption, access control… According to the network environment, certain
security mechanisms are not mature enough due to the youth of certain network
technologies such as wireless, ad hoc or sensor networks. However, even with
the maturity, and even if they are already largely implemented in the market
network security products, like firewalls and VPNs, certain mechanisms still
need improvements. It is also important to consider resource limitations of
mobile terminals and radio-communications in order to adapt security
mechanisms of wired networks to wireless networks’ context. We attend a
major evolution of networks that could be summarized by the need to allow the
user to communicate in any place statically or while moving. This was possible
thanks to the evolution of wireless and mobile networks, and the evolution of
mobile terminals’ design. Even if security solutions are not yet finalized in those
environments, the deployment of wireless networks is already effective and will
tend to be deployed even more because of the increasing need of user’s
mobility, flexibility and services. In order to achieve this challenge, industrial
and academic research groups are working on one hand developing wireless and
mobile technologies, with or without infrastructure, offering more and more
resources and security, and on the other hand, developing autonomous terminals
increasingly powerful (PDA, telephones…). This workshop (MWNS 2008) is a
viii

first initiative to gather security researchers in both wireless and mobile

networks so that they can present their latest research results in this field and
provide good discussion about the existing security issues and challenges in this
resource limited and easy spying networks; the wireless and mobile networks.

Hakima Chaouchi, Maryline Laurent-Maknavicius

Editors of a French book by Hermes 2007 “Security of
wireless and mobile networks”, 3 volumes.
 ix

MWNS 2008 COMMITTEES

Workshop Chairs
M. Maknavicius Institut TELECOM, TELECOM &
H. Chaouchi Management SudParis, France

Technical Program Chair

O. Heen Thomson R&D, France Thomson R&D, France

Technical Program Committee

K. Al Agha LRI, France
N. Alonistioti University of Pireus, Greece
J. Araujo Alcatel-Lucent, France
J.W. Atwood Concordia University, Canada
F. Bader CTTC, Spain
A.-L. Beylot ENSEEIHT, France
A. Bouabdallah UTC, France
H. Chaouchi TELECOM & Management SudParis
I. Chrisment Nancy University, France
V. Friderikos Centre for Telecommunication Research
of London, UK
I. Ganchev University of Limerick, Ireland
M. Gerlach Fokus, Germany
W. Haddad Ericsson, Sweden
A. Hecker TELECOM ParisTech, France
O. Heen Thomson R&D, France
J. Leneutre TELECOM ParisTech, France
M. Maknavicius Telecom & Management SudParis, France
K. Masmoudi Cyber Networks, France
x

A. Mellouk University Paris 12, France

M. Minier INSA-Lyon, France
H. Moustafa France Telecom, France
P. Muhlethaler INRIA, France
J.M. Nogueira UFMG, Brazil
M. O'Droma, University of Limerick, Ireland
O. Rojas Instituto Tecnologico de Jiquilpan,
Mexico
P. Schoo DoCoMo Euro-Labs, Germany
A. Serhrouchni TELECOM ParisTech, France
 1

TOWARD A NEW AD HOC NODE DESIGN FOR SECURE

SERVICE DEPLOYMENT OVER AD HOC NETWORK*

HAKIMA CHAOUCHI
Institut TELECOM, TELECOM & Management SudParis, France
LOR/SAMOVAR/CNRS UMR-5157

MARYLINE LAURENT-MAKNAVICIUS
Institut TELECOM, TELECOM & Management SudParis, France
LOR/SAMOVAR/CNRS UMR-5157

Abstract- Security in ad hoc networks is a major issue when it comes to real deployment
of services over this sort of networks. A large amount of research effort was directed
toward routing in ad hoc networks, however securing the connectivity and the packet
transmission is a brake in relying on an ad hoc network as any other infrastructure based
network. In this paper, we propose a secured architecture over ad hoc network based on
the AAA concept (Authentication, Authorisation, Accounting), and a new ad hoc nodes
design for any kind of ad hoc nodes to securely support part or full AAA services.

1. Introduction
Ad hoc network is dynamically changing its network topology. It is an
infrastructure-less network created by mobile nodes in an ad hoc way. In an ad
hoc network, mobile nodes come and go as they wish, so the topology of the
network is changing quite rapidly. This creates new challenges for the routing
protocols to be used in ad hoc networks. Most of the traditional protocols don't
fit very well into ad hoc networks. New routing protocols [1, 2] were developed
but none of them is really deployed.
In the context of Always On era, ad hoc technologies integration with the
infrastructure is without any doubt an interesting approach for extending at low
cost the network access coverage. However a real and business oriented service
deployment over ad hoc network requires firstly security of the communications
and resource accounting. The lack of security and accounting mechanisms is the
major issue that slows down the deployment of ubiquitous services. We believe

*
This work was performed in the context of the French research project SARAH, ANR 2006
2

that the integration of ad hoc and infrastructure-based technologies coupled with

efficient security and accounting techniques is the answer for the urgent demand
of network operators for appropriate architectures to host secure and large scale
ubiquitous services.
There are several threats in ad hoc networks. First, those related to wireless
data transmission such as eavesdropping, message replaying, message distortion
and active impersonation. Second, those related to ad hoc construction of the
network. This means that attacks can come also from inside the ad hoc network.
Therefore we cannot trust one centralized node, because if this node would be
compromised the whole network would be useless. Another problem is
scalability. Ad hoc networks can have hundreds or even thousands of mobile
nodes. This introduces important challenges to security mechanisms [3].
As most of the security issues in ad hoc networks are caused by trustless
nodes, the authentication process is a strong solution to identify misbehaving
nodes. Nevertheless, ensuring authentication service in a self organized network
is not easy to realize. We propose in this work to build a secured ad hoc
infrastructure framework where the AAA service which is classically
centralized in the infrastructure network is decomposed into three sub-services
and partly executed by the infrastructure network. The authentication service
(Aaa), the authorization and accounting services (aAA). These services will be
securely distributed by the servicing ad hoc nodes. For this purpose, a trust
management framework is necessary. Furthermore, we propose a new design of
ad hoc nodes that enables any kinds of ad hoc nodes to securely support part or
full AAA services, and to act as individual or delegated ad hoc service providers
to other ad hoc nodes.
One obvious and original consequence of the secured framework and node
design would be the integration of ad hoc technology in the service value chain
by the introduction of a new service provider (ad hoc network service provider),
and a new network access provider (ad hoc network). Users provided with one
or more suitably designed ad hoc node(s) are also able to join the service value
chain by offering their nodes capacity to some well known ad hoc (service or
network access) providers. The classical operator then will make profit by
offering in addition to his classical services (access to Internet), new services for
ad hoc nodes. For instance, it will act as a third party between the servicing ad
hoc nodes, and the customers (local ad hoc nodes). The operator acting as a
third party for the servicing and served ad hoc nodes will guarantee the AAA
service and a secured transaction for exchanged services (peer-to-peer, packet
forwarding, resource consumption…).
 3

2. AAA in ad hoc networks

Typically authentication, authorization, and accounting are more or less
dependent on each other. However, separate protocols are used to achieve the
AAA functionality. IETF AAA working group is trying to design one AAA
protocol that could be used in a variety of applications. The IRTF AAAARCH
group is also trying to build a general architecture for AAA systems. Mobile Ad
Hoc networking (MANET) brings new challenges to providing the AAA
functionality. Ad Hoc networks are by their nature rapidly changing and
dynamic. There isn't necessarily any network infrastructure present. These and
other features of ad hoc networks present many new requirements for security
protocols in ad hoc networks [4].
Several research works are conducted on the classically centralized AAA
functions [5, 6], but very few studied the possible interactions between AAA
and ad hoc network. For instance, [7] focuses mainly on the authentication
architecture for enabling distant users to access to services (like internet)
through an ad hoc network.
Authentication is necessary in ad hoc network as in wired network to help
identify the participating nodes to the ad hoc network. Of course, authentication
is not enough to secure communications between ad hoc nodes. One way to deal
with low physical security and availability constraints is the distribution of trust
[4]. Trust can be distributed to a collection of nodes. If all t+1 nodes will be
unlikely compromised, then a consensus of t+1 nodes is trustworthy [3].
Authorization is also needed to avoid malicious host to be able to wreak
havoc inside the network. This can be prevented by keeping control of what
hosts are allowed to do inside the ad hoc network. Authorization also needs
some sort of distributed structure to avoid single point of failure. This is why the
traditional way of using access control lists (ACL) in one central server isn't
adequate in ad hoc networks.
Accounting features are quite specialized in ad hoc networks. Because
basically there is no network infrastructure that is providing the service, there
isn't either the same kind of service provider concept as in traditional networks.
In ad hoc networks, individual mobile hosts are providing service to each others.
There can be two cases in the charging point of view. One is the case where
there is no need to use charging. In this situation all the hosts have decided
together that they want to form an ad hoc network for their own need to
communicate with each other free of charge. This could mean that they all
belong to the same organization like in the case of military units or they are in
the same place and want to communicate like in a meeting. So, this sort of ad
4

hoc network is like an intranet. In the other case, individual mobile nodes are
just participating in the network to communicate with other nodes. In this case,
if some mobile node acts as a router in the network, providing connectivity
between two nodes that are not within each others range, then it would be
reasonable to charge some money for this service [4].
It is true that ad hoc networks started within common interest communities,
where charging was probably not the first goal. With the generalisation of small
communicating devices other situations will arise where collaboration is
technically possible, but where participants will demand a fair reward for it.
Thus, the need for precise ad hoc accounting is likely to increase in next decade.

2.1. AAA systems

Ad hoc networks and general AAA systems can be seen as oxymoron. The
biggest problem is related to the varying nature of the network. There are
no home domains or foreign domains, because the networks are built in an
ad hoc way. Also the term service provider will have different meaning than
before. This affects the existing AAA systems because some of the basic
building blocks of their architecture are missing from the ad hoc networks. In
fact the existing AAA architecture is centralized whereas ad hoc network is
decentralized.
One approach [4] to provide authentication and authorization functionalities
in ad hoc networks could be to use trust management based approaches like
PolicyMaker or Keynote2. These are decentralized by nature and can provide
the requested functionality in ad hoc networks quite easily. Also other protocols
like SASL or ISAKMP/IKE could be used to provide the authentication
functionality.

3. Related work: AAA architecture over infrastructure based ad hoc

networks
As described in [8], the introduction of AAA into ad hoc environment is not an
easy task due to the self organising aspect of the ad hoc network. The objective
of this approach is to design a functional bridge (architecture) between the ad
hoc network and the infrastructure network when it is available to support
secured exchange of services between the ad hoc nodes. The designed
architecture named AdIN (Ad hoc/Infrastructure) is represented in Figure 1. It
targets deploying several mechanisms such as authentication, authorization,
accounting, and key management. Neighbour and Service discovery
Other documents randomly have
different content
Middlebury College, Vermont, to whom Mr. Page THEIR NATURE.
communicated his valuable observations, in a
paper expressed in the following terms: ‘I was at the west door of
my house, on Monday morning, the 14th of December, 1807, about
daylight; and perceiving the sky suddenly illuminated, I raised my
eyes and beheld a meteor of a circular form, in the south-westerly
part of the heavens, rapidly descending to the south, leaving behind
it a vivid, sparkling train of light. The atmosphere near the south
part of the horizon was very hazy; but the passage of the meteor
behind the clouds was visible until it descended below the
mountains, about twenty miles south of this place. There were
white, fleecy clouds scattered about the sky, but none so dense as to
obscure the track of the meteor. I now lament that I did not make
more particular observations at the time; and I should probably, until
this day, have considered it to be what is commonly called a “falling
star,” had I not read in the New York papers an account of the
explosion of a meteor, and the falling of some meteoric stones near
New Haven, Connecticut, which, by recurring to circumstances then
fresh in my recollection, I found to be on the same morning that I
observed the meteor at Rutland. I am indebted to my learned friend
Dr. Samuel Williams for his aid and directions in ascertaining the
situation of the meteor when I first observed it, and its course, and
also for the order of my observations: Form, circular; magnitude,
less than a quarter of the diameter of the moon; color, red, vivid
light; tail, or train of light, about eight times the length of its
diameter, at the least, projected opposite to its course.’”
I quote these to give you some idea of the appearance of this
meteor, and likewise of Mr. Bowditch’s diligence. From the
examination of all the accounts given him, he came to the
conclusion that the body moved at the rate of more than three miles
per second, and at the height of eighteen miles above the surface of
the earth. With regard to the magnitude of the body, the results
were less accurate; and the probability is, that all the body did not
fall, but merely passed through the air, and continued on its course
into unknown regions of space.[10]
 The other papers I shall not mention, because EUROPEAN FAME.
they are upon subjects difficult to be
comprehended. The last appeared in the volumes ACADEMIC
HONORS.
of the Memoirs of the Academy published in 1820.
All these papers were read by the astronomers and mathematicians
of Europe, and the consequence was, that Mr. Bowditch was chosen
a member of many of the learned societies instituted there for the
promotion of science. In 1818 he was chosen into the Royal
Societies of London and Edinburgh, and in the year following was
enrolled on the list of the Royal Irish Academy. While I am upon this
subject, I would state that he afterwards was elected associate of
the Astronomical Society of London, of the Academies of Berlin and
Palermo, and had a correspondence with most of the astronomers of
Europe. The National Institute of France was about choosing him
one of its candidates for the position of foreign member, only eight
of which are chosen from the whole world. He died before any
election was held.
In addition to the papers to the Academy, Mr. LITERARY
Bowditch published several articles in reviews, &c. LABORS.
One of them is an interesting history of modern
astronomy, which is intended to give us an account of the lives and
doings of the most celebrated astronomers of modern times. Such
were his principal literary labors, and the greater part of them were
performed during his residence in Salem.
The article on modern astronomy was prepared a few years after
his removal to Boston. To that removal let us now turn. In 1823
overtures were made to him to control two institutions in Boston,
one for life insurance, the other for marine risks. The offers were too
liberal for him to refuse. His duties to his family compelled him to
accept them. On his determination being known, his fellow-citizens
paid him a pleasant tribute of respect and love by inviting him to a
public and farewell dinner.
As the family left Salem, Mr. Bowditch and his REMOVAL TO
wife often thought that, after remaining eight or BOSTON.
ten years at Boston, they would return, in order that their bodies
might be laid by the side of those of their ancestors. But new friends
awaited them in Boston; new ties were formed there; and although
they always looked to their native place as the seat of many of their
most beloved associations, they both lived in Boston until their
deaths.
His engagements of a public nature, during his residence in
Boston, were similar to those he had whilst at Salem. For many
years he managed both of the institutions to which he had been
called. But the directors, finding that the duties of one were
sufficient to occupy all his attention, broke up the Marine Insurance
Company, and Mr. Bowditch (or Dr. Bowditch, as he was now
generally called, having received the degree of Doctor of Laws from
Harvard University in 1816) devoted himself to the life insurance
office. This he raised to be one of the greatest institutions in New
England. By an alteration in the charter, proposed by Dr. Bowditch,
this became, in fact, a great savings bank, where immense sums are
now yearly put in trust for widows and orphans. The only difference
in his habits, caused by his removal to Boston, was an enlargement
of his sphere of labor. All objects of public utility still engaged his
attention.
The system of popular lectures, of which we have now so many,
commenced with the Mechanic Institution of which he was the first
president. He was zealous for the improvement of the Boston
Athenæum, and was very influential towards getting for it large
sums of money, and in making it more liberal in its rules.
An honor was conferred upon him, after his SERVICES TO
arrival in Boston, which he thought as high as any HARVARD
ever received. Having had two honorary degrees COLLEGE.
from Harvard University, and having been one of
the board of overseers of that institution for many years, he was
finally chosen a member of the corporation, or council of seven men,
who guide the whole of the concerns of that important institution.
How different the commencement and termination of the career of
the poor son of a cooper, who at ten years of age left school, and
yet at the end of life was one of the chief directors in the first
literary institution in America!
CHAPTER X.
 Sketch of the life of La Place, author of the “Mécanique
Céleste.”—Newton’s labors.—Halley’s comet.—The importance
of astronomy to navigation.—Comets; Dr. Bowditch translates
the Mécanique Céleste; difficulties attending the undertaking;
objects he had in view; first volume analyzed; Newton’s error
pointed out.

In a former part of this story of Dr. Bowditch’s MÉCANIQUE

life, you will remember that I stated that on his last CÉLESTE.
voyage he commenced his notes upon the
“Mécanique Céleste” of La Place. It was on the first day of
November, during his disagreeable voyage homewards, in 1803, that
he wrote his first note to the work which was destined to occupy
much of his time from that moment until his death, thirty-five years
afterwards, in Boston. This work certainly deserves some of our
attention, if he thought it worthy of receiving the attention of so
many years of his life. A brief account of the life of the author of the
original work may interest you, and will serve as an introduction to
the book itself.
Pierre Simon La Place was born on the 23d of LA PLACE.
March, in the year 1749, at Beaumont, on the
borders of the beautiful and fertile country of SKETCH OF HIS
LIFE.
ancient Normandy, situated in the north-western
part of France. He was the son of simple peasants in that country,
and from his earliest years was remarkable for the extraordinary
powers of memory, and intense love of study, with which he was
endowed. In early life every branch of learning was delightful to him.
He seemed eager to gain knowledge merely, without regard to the
object of his study. But he soon began to distinguish himself upon
the subject of theology. This pursuit, however, was soon ended, and
by some means, of which no details now remain, his mind was led to
mathematics, and from that moment he was devoted to them. After
spending his youth at his native place, and having taught
mathematics there, he, at the age of eighteen years, went to Paris,
to seek a wider sphere in his pursuit of knowledge. Bearing several
letters of recommendation as a youth of great promise, he presented
himself at the abode of D’Alembert, who at that time was the first
mathematician of France, and contended with Euler, at Berlin, for the
honor of being the first in the world. But the letters upon which the
youth depended so much proved of no use. D’Alembert passed them
by in silent neglect, without even deigning to receive at his own
house the bearer of them. But La Place was fully bent upon success,
and relying upon the force of his own genius as a more powerful
recommendation than any letters, he sent to D’Alembert an essay,
written by himself, upon a very abstruse subject relating to
mechanics. The professor, struck with its elegance and the great
learning displayed by it, soon afterwards called upon the writer, and
addressed him in these words: “You see, sir, that I think
recommendations are worth but very little; and for yourself they are
wholly unnecessary. By your own writings you can make yourself
better known than by any other means. They are sufficient. I will do
all I can for you.” In a few days after this conversation, the young
man was appointed professor of mathematics in the public military
school at Paris. From this period until the end of his life he was
occupied upon the science which he was thus called, at this early
age, to teach publicly at the capital of France. He became daily more
acquainted with the great men of the nation, and was himself
making additions to the scientific acquirements of the age, thus
giving eminent proofs of his genius. He was chosen member of the
French Academy, a society of learned men united for the purpose of
advancing the cause of learning, and he stood soon very high
amongst them.
His chief work, the “Celestial MÉCANIQUE
Mechanics,”—“Mécanique Céleste,”—he began to CÉLESTE.
publish in 1799, and finished the fourth volume in
GENIUS OF LA
1805.[11] This placed him much above all his PLACE.
contemporaries. In it he had not only combined
many things which he himself had discovered, but likewise gave a
history, as it were, of all that had been done by geometricians from
the time of Sir Isaac Newton until his own day. La Place found many
things detached, but his genius proved that many apparently
discordant facts could be explained by Newton’s theory of universal
gravitation. His labor must have been immense. All Europe rang with
the fame of this production, which was said to be beyond anything
ever performed before by man. The echo of its fame reached
America, and Dr. Bowditch obtained the volumes, as they were
successively published. The first two he received in part payment for
his labors on the “Navigator.”
Soon after his arrival home from his fourth voyage, Dr. Bowditch
was taking his accustomed walk towards the lower part of the town
of Salem, and met his old friend, Captain Prince. They entered into
conversation, and Dr. Bowditch remarked that he had, a short time
before, received a book from France, which he had long wished for,
having heard that it was superior to anything ever before written by
man, and which very few were able to comprehend. This work was
that to which I have been alluding, and it now renders Dr. Bowditch’s
own name familiarly known among mathematicians.
Later in life, La Place published a work called the SYSTEM OF THE
“System of the World.” In this, which, WORLD.
comparatively speaking, is not difficult to be read
by almost any one, he attempts to give a plain and simple statement
of all that is known in regard to those wise and magnificent laws,
whereby this solar system is kept together in perfect harmony, while
at the same time it is sailing onward through fields of space.
La Place, however, was not a truly noble man, LA PLACE A
because he was not strictly just. It is said that he SENATOR.
was willing to attribute to himself the discoveries of
DR. BOWDITCH’S
others. On Napoleon Bonaparte’s becoming first LABORS.
consul in France, La Place was made one of the
ministers of the state; but he was soon found to be better fitted for
study than for the practical duties of a public office. Accordingly he
retired after a few weeks’ service, but was made a member of the
Senate, of which he became president. After finishing his political
career, he published other works of great moment; but of those I
shall not speak. About the year 1827 he was seized with an acute
disorder, which soon terminated his life. His last words are
remarkable, as conveying the same truth that every wise man has
upon his lips at the hour of death. As he reviewed the amount of his
learning, which was in one respect greater than that of any man
living, he exclaimed, “What we know here is very little, but what we
are ignorant of is immense.” Every man is compelled to become
silent and modest as he sees death approach. La Place was like
other common men. He died as a man, and was buried, and the
men of science felt sad that one so learned and of so strong an
intellect should have departed. Endowed by the Almighty with the
loftiest powers of intellect, he stood alone, and commanded the
respect, if he did not always gain the love, of his associates. Dr.
Bowditch, though he regarded La Place as the greatest
mathematician that had ever lived, had little real sympathy with his
character.
We must now try to give you a short account of LAWS OF
the “Mécanique Céleste,” and of Dr. Bowditch’s GRAVITY.
labors upon it. The original work consists of five
HALLEY’S COMET.
volumes, but Dr. Bowditch lived to finish the
translation of and commentary upon only the first GRANDEUR OF
four. There are about fifteen hundred pages in the MAN.
original, while there are three thousand eight
MOON’S
hundred and eighteen in the American translation. MOTIONS.
The object of the original work may be known from
the following introductory remarks by La Place, on the occasion of
printing the first volume, in 1798: “Newton, towards the end of the
last century, published his discovery of the laws of gravity, or of the
power by which the solar system is held together. Since that period,
geometricians have succeeded in bringing under this law all the
known phenomena of the system of the universe. I mean to bring
together those scattered themes and facts upon this subject, so as
to form one whole, which shall embrace all the known results of
gravity upon the motions, forms, &c., of the fluid and solid bodies
that compose our solar system, as well as of those other similar
systems that are spread around in the immensity of space.” You
probably all understand from this quotation the general object of the
“Mécanique Céleste.” La Place likewise informs us that the work is
divided into two parts. In the first he proposes to give the methods
for determining the motions of the heavenly bodies, their forms, the
motions of the oceans and seas upon their surfaces, and finally the
movements of rotation of these spheres about their own axes. In the
second part, he promises to apply the rules which he has given in
the first to the planets and the satellites which move around them,
and likewise to the comets. The first part is found in the first two
volumes, the second part occupies the last two. From these few
remarks you will perceive the immense task imposed upon himself
by La Place, and at the same time the grandeur of it. How
wonderful, that a simple man can attempt to mark out the course of
the heavenly bodies, which we see clustering around us at night! But
how much more wonderful does man become, when we find he has
the power to foretell to us the return of comets that have never
been seen by any one living now—comets that have been, during
our lives, travelling into the far-off fields of space! Strange that a
simple man can prophesy, to a day, their return! Many of us now
living remember a beautifully bright and clear comet, which in 1835
appeared, as had been predicted, after an absence of seventy-six
years. It was called Halley’s comet, after its first discoverer. At first it
seemed like a bright speck in the heavens towards the north; but
the next night it was larger. It seemed to approach, with fearful
rapidity, from evening to evening, and, sweeping in majesty across
our western sky, disappeared gradually in its progress towards the
sun, around which it whirled, and again appeared, more faintly
visible than before, just over our eastern horizon, as if to give us one
more glimpse of itself, a strange messenger of the Almighty, before
it passed off on its far-distant journey, not to return until those who
were then young and free as air, are all laid quietly in the grave, or
have become enfeebled and decrepit by the approach of age. Truly,
great is God, who made the comet; but to me man also seems full of
grandeur, when I find him capable of even foretelling the exact
passage of such a body. Yet La Place enables any man to prophesy
this; and in his “Mécanique Céleste” we may find all the methods of
investigation necessary for this object. But he likewise tells us the
forms of the planets; he enables us to measure the ring which
surrounds the planet Saturn, and enables us to decide, at least in
some degree the form and mass of the sun. In this same work he
treats of those curious phenomena, which, as we see them daily, we
think of little moment—the flow and ebb of the sea, or, in other
words, high and low tides,—and the causes of them. He treats of the
motion of the earth about its centre, and of the same motions in the
moon and planets. These are the chief objects of the first and
second volumes. The third volume, as we have already hinted,
contains questions of great intricacy, and of immense importance;
namely, the exact motions of the planets around the sun, as affected
by all the attractions exerted upon them by the various bodies of the
universe; and the still more important motions of our moon around
the earth. I say important, because the exact knowledge of the
course of this body is of the greatest moment to every sailor who
attempts to go from one country to another over the trackless
ocean. By means of observations upon this planet, the seaman can
sail over distant waters for many months, and be able to return,
when he may wish, to his own home in safety. Hence the importance
of the astronomer to the simple navigator of our planet. The history
of Dr. Bowditch is another proof of the truth of this statement. By his
accurate knowledge of astronomy, by his ability to follow La Place in
his investigations of all the motions of the solar system, he was
enabled to produce a work on navigation which is sought for
wherever the English language is spoken, as it combines the best
methods of using the results of pure astronomy in the art of
navigation. The “Practical Navigator” would never have maintained
its hold upon the community as it has done, if Dr. Bowditch had not
been as skilful in mathematics and astronomy as in the details of
navigation.
But to return to the “Mécanique Céleste.” The JUPITER’S
fourth volume contains similar investigations, SATELLITES.
namely, the motions of the satellites, or moons,
about the other planets. Our moon’s motions about PLANET
the earth, and the revolutions of Jupiter’s satellites NEPTUNE.
are the most important. Jupiter has four satellites.
These were the first that the invention of the telescope by Galileo
revealed to man; and by their frequent revolutions around the
planet, they have in their turn shown to us many of the laws which
govern the whole planetary system, besides many curious and
interesting facts in regard to their own forms and masses. From the
eclipses or disappearances of the first satellite, when it passes on
the side of the planet opposite to that at which the observer from
the earth is looking, it has demonstrated the velocity of light. Finally,
the author treats of the seven moons, or satellites, of Saturn, and
likewise of those of the planet Herschel, about which much less is
known.[12]
After attending to these subjects, La Place POWERS ACTING
investigates the powers which act upon comets, UPON COMETS.
which tend to turn from their courses those bodies,
which, as I have before said, are flying in very many directions
throughout the universe, and which are liable to be moved out of
their direction by the actions of some planets near which they may
come. This was the case with a comet in 1770, whose course was
wholly changed by the planet Jupiter drawing it towards its own
body. To investigate the various laws of these disturbing forces is
one subject of this volume. Some other subjects are treated of, but
of these I shall now not speak.
From this brief account of the “Mécanique NOTES ON
Céleste” you may judge of the difficulties which the MÉCANIQUE
original writer had to overcome in making it, and of CÉLESTE.
the immense labor requisite. But La Place
frequently supposes that a proposition is perfectly intelligible to his
reader because it is so to him. Having such a powerful mind, he is
able to see at a glance that for which any one else would require a
long demonstration, before he could become thoroughly master of
the subject. The consequence of this is, an obscurity in the work,
which has made it doubly difficult of comprehension. Several years
ago, but a long time after Dr. Bowditch had read and made notes
upon the whole work, an English writer said that there were scarcely
twelve men in Europe capable of comprehending it. Dr. Bowditch,
feeling that it was the most valuable work upon astronomy published
in modern times, had undertaken the translation of it, and had made
notes thereupon, for the purpose of “amusing his leisure hours.”
Upon its being known that he had finished the task, the American
Academy offered to publish it. Dr. Bowditch would not allow this, and
reserved the publication until he was able to do so at his own
expense. Let us see, now, what service Dr. Bowditch intended to
perform by his translation and commentary. His first object was to
lay before America the greatest work on the science of astronomy
ever published. Secondly, his aim was to bring that work down to
the comprehension of young men, and students of mathematics, by
filling up the places left by La Place without demonstration. Thirdly,
he meant to give the history of the science of astronomy for the
interval between the publication of the original work and that at
which the translation appeared. Fourthly, he wished to collect
together all the discoveries which he had made during the forty
years of his life that he had devoted to science. His first aim was
gained by the translation. His second was completely successful, for
he was assured by correspondents, both in America and Europe,
that he had enabled several to read the immortal work of La Place,
who never would have done so had not Dr. Bowditch published his
Commentary. The royal astronomer at Palermo says, in a printed
work published after the first two volumes of the translation had
reached him, “Bowditch’s Commentary should be translated into
Italian;” and Lacroix, a celebrated French mathematician, advised a
young Swiss to read La Place in the American edition rather than in
the original. But what pleased the commentator more than anything
else, were the frequent letters from young men residing in various
parts of America, expressing gratitude for the benefits they had
received from his work. When I think of these, I am reminded of the
epithet bestowed upon Dr. Bowditch since his death, and by one well
capable of judging, namely, “Father of American Mathematics.” He
has given a tone to the study of science which will be long felt.
In regard to the third object, all critics allow that he was eminently
successful in giving the history of science up to the time proposed.
Upon the fourth point, we might refer, first, to the immense
increase of bulk of the work, as a proof, but I prefer to mention a
few details; and in order to this, let us examine the Commentary,
and let it speak for itself. But it must be remembered, that, in
making this examination, I must omit many circumstances, because
you would not understand or feel interested in any greater detail.
In the first volume he points out two errors of La ERRORS IN IT.
Place, one of which relates to the motion of the
earth; and the other is of much importance. It PERMANENCE OF
THE SOLAR
relates to the permanency of our solar system, as it SYSTEM.
is commonly called. You all doubtless know that the
sun is situated in the centre, and the planets, with ERROR IN
our earth, revolve around this luminary, which PRINCIPIA.
gives light and heat to all. Now, these bodies
revolve in certain fixed “nearly circular” directions, and La Place
thought that they would always continue to do so, and that Mercury,
Venus, the Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, and Herschel would forever
continue to wheel around in their accustomed orbits. Dr. Bowditch
proves, however, that though this may be true of the three larger
planets,—Jupiter, Saturn, and Herschel,—it is not equally certain,
from the proofs given by La Place, that our earth, or any of the other
smaller planets, may not fly off into regions far remote from those in
which they have been revolving for ages. This error had been made
the subject of a paper to the American Academy at an earlier period
of his life. But it must not be supposed that there is any proof that
the solar system will not continue to exist for many long ages. On
the contrary, there is no doubt that it will last millions of years. Dr.
Bowditch merely wished to assert that La Place’s argument and
calculation did not prove as much as the French mathematician
thought they did. In this volume Dr. Bowditch likewise alludes to a
topic which he had made the subject of a communication, a long
time previously, to the American Academy; I refer to a mistake in
Newton’s “Principia,” which he discovered when quite young, and
had sent an account of to the president of Harvard College. This
gentleman referred the question to the professor of mathematics,
who believed the youth was mistaken. Doubtless he thought it very
strange that a simple youth should presume to correct anything
published by so eminent a man as Newton. The error of the
professor will become less singular when you learn that the same
mistake escaped the notice of all the commentators on the
“Principia,”—that is, for more than a century,—and that the cause of
the original communication being made to the Academy was the
attempt of Mr. Emerson, an Englishman, to prove the correctness of
the English philosopher. Every one, I believe, now allows that Dr.
Bowditch was correct, and that a considerable error would result, in
calculating the orbit of a comet, from using Newton’s calculations.
CHAPTER XI.
 Commentary continued; second volume.—Discussion between the
English and French mathematicians; Dr. Bowditch’s criticisms.
—Errors in La Place in regard to the earth, &c.—Third
volume; motions of the moon.—Fourth volume; many errors
discovered in it.—Halley’s Comet.—Curious phenomena of
capillary attraction.

In the second volume of the Commentary, Dr. CRITIC OF IVORY

Bowditch makes very copious notes, in which he AND POISSON.
shows a perfect knowledge of the works of the
“I HAVE GOT IT!”
chief mathematicians of Europe. He stands as critic
between two of the eminent men of science of that day—Messrs.
Ivory and Poisson, the former an Englishman, the latter a
Frenchman; and in reference, likewise, to a difficult subject, namely,
the revolution or the turning of a fluid mass upon its own axis, as
our earth does. He not merely agrees with Mr. Poisson, but, by a
very simple illustration, proves the total inaccuracy of Mr. Ivory’s
views. I well remember the earnestness with which he studied this
subject. Day after day, he returned to the task of finding out some
“simple case,” with which to prove to the satisfaction of others the
truth of his own view. At length, when he did discover it, he jumped
up in ecstasy, and, rubbing his hands and forehead with delight,
walked about the library-room, crying out, “I have got it!”
Dr. Bowditch in this volume points out five errors or omissions
made by La Place, some of which are very important. One refers to
the form of our earth, and had been previously communicated to the
Academy. There is another of some moment, relative to the time
occupied in the revolution of one of Saturn’s rings, La Place having
made it longer than was true.
Finally, on the subject of the motion of the earth about its centre
of gravity, he points out an error, in which La Place gives to two
numbers only one third of their true value.
In the third volume, occupied as it is with the motions of the
planets and of the moon, and with all the phenomena accompanying
these, Dr. Bowditch shows much learning, and his OLBERS AND
power of bringing modern science to the thorough GAUSS.
study of any topic. As in the previous volume, he
labors without fear upon subjects treated of with much earnestness
by La Place, Poisson, and Pontecoulant, in France, and Plana in Italy.
On the theory of the motions of the moon,—a very difficult and
interesting subject,—Dr. Bowditch makes very copious notes; and
the volume terminates with an appendix of more than two hundred
and fifty pages, in which he gives the history of modern astronomy,
in reference to the calculations of the movements of planets and
comets. In this he speaks of Olbers and Gauss. The former, from
having discovered three planets since the beginning of this century,
was called “The fortunate Columbus of the Heavens.” The latter was
one of the most remarkable men in the world for the rapidity with
which he was able to perform the most tedious and troublesome
calculations.[13]
We come now to the last volume, in printing the ERRORS IN LA
thousandth page of which he died. It was the most PLACE.
difficult to him of the whole, and probably will raise
him higher, in the estimation of the scientific world, than either of
the others. In the first place, I would remark, that either from the
difficulty of the subject, or from the inattention of La Place, an
unusual number of errors was discovered. No less than twenty-four
errors or omissions are pointed out. Many of these seem
insignificant, but often, as may be supposed, they materially affect
the calculation. Most of them refer to the derangements and the
motions of Jupiter’s satellites—a subject which occupies three
hundred and fourteen pages of the volume. The keenness of Dr.
Bowditch’s criticism is again perceived while treating upon a subject
in dispute between Plana and La Place. Dr. Bowditch points out one
mistake, and Poisson another, whereby Plana’s views are proved to
coincide entirely with La Place’s, instead of being opposed to them.
I find a note upon Halley’s comet, to which I NOTE ON
alluded as presenting a grand spectacle in our HALLEY’S COMET.
western sky a few years since, and I cannot forbear mentioning the
coincidence. Dr. Bowditch, when making his notes upon the subject
of the motions and revolutions of comets, speaks of Halley’s comet,
and mentions all that is known about it, and its probable
appearance. This note was prepared some time before it was
printed. It terminates thus: “Since writing the preceding part of this
note the comet has again appeared, and, at the time of printing this
page, is visible in the heavens, not far distant from the place
corresponding to the elements of Mr. Pontecoulant.”
The work, so far as Dr. Bowditch is concerned, CAPILLARY
finishes with the most curious and difficult subject ATTRACTION.
of capillary attraction, or that power whereby a
LA PLACE AND
liquid rises in narrow tubes beyond the level of the POISSON.
fluid outside, as we see familiarly in sponges, and
cloths, and in very minute glass tubes. You may think this subject of
little moment; yet La Place thought it more curious than almost any
other, and he earnestly calls the attention of mathematicians to it. It
is a subject so difficult of investigation, that it requires the keenest
efforts of the best intellects to rightly understand it. After La Place’s
investigations were published, Gauss considered the subject, and
arrived at results similar to those presented by La Place. But in 1831,
Poisson, the first mathematician then living, of whom we have
already spoken, put forth a work in which he announced many new
views. This he thought himself justified in doing, after taking into
consideration certain particulars which La Place had neglected. Dr.
Bowditch received the work while engaged in printing this volume.
He ceased printing, and devoted six months or more to a thorough
perusal of the new French work. The result was, that he proved that
without an exception, unless where an evident error was made by La
Place, the principles of this mathematician, when fairly carried out,
would produce all the results which Poisson had given as new in his
work. By this labor Dr. Bowditch proved that Poisson’s so-called new
theory of capillary attraction was founded in error. This is decidedly
the most important work of the translator. It places him much higher
than before in the scale of mathematical rank.
 I would willingly give a further analysis, but I forbear, because it
would not be interesting to you. It was in correcting this, his noblest
task, in the full strength of his intellect, that he was destined to die.
CHAPTER XII.
 Sketch of the life of La Grange, the equal of La Place; love Dr.
Bowditch had for this person’s character; comparison
between him and La Place; also between him and Dr.
Bowditch.—Conclusion of the Memoir

During this history I frequently have spoken of BOWDITCH AND

different individuals; but there is one about whom LA GRANGE.
little mention has been made, but of whose life I
wish to give you a short account, as his character resembles very
much that of Dr. Bowditch. His mind and heart were always regarded
by the American mathematician with feelings of respect and love,
such as he felt towards no other mathematician whose works he had
studied. An equal of La Place, it seems not improper to mention him;
and I know you will excuse the slight interruption in my story when
you perceive how the noble nature of La Grange seems to harmonize
with, and to illustrate, as it were, the life of Dr. Bowditch.
Joseph Louis La Grange, one of the most famous LIFE OF LA
geometricians of modern times, was born at Turin, GRANGE.
January 25, 1736. He was one of eleven children of
HIS INTELLECT
parents who became very poor, so that Joseph had AND MODESTY.
in early life to gain his own subsistence. When
young, he devoted himself to the classics, and read LA GRANGE AND
Latin constantly. At seventeen his taste for abstruse LA PLACE.
mathematics and geometry first showed itself; and LA GRANGE AND
from this period he continued studying by himself, BOWDITCH.
without aid. In two years he had acquired a
knowledge of all that was known upon the science, DEATH
GRANGE.
OF LA

and began to correspond with the scientific men of

other lands. In 1755 he sent to Euler, then the greatest
mathematician in the world, and residing in Berlin, an answer to a
problem proposed by Euler, ten years before, to the learned men of
Europe, and which they had been unable to solve. He was appointed
professor of mathematics at Turin, at the age of nineteen years, and
soon afterwards originated the Academy of Sciences at that place. In
their Memoirs he published papers in which he not merely criticised
Euler and D’Alembert and others, but brought forward some very
curious new views of science, discovered by himself. Europe soon
resounded with his praises, and he was chosen member of all the
learned societies. In 1766, he was called to the court of Frederick
the Great, King of Prussia, to take the place of Euler, who was
summoned by the Emperor of Russia to St. Petersburg. Frederick
wrote to him thus: “Come to my court, for it is right that the
greatest mathematician in Europe should be near the greatest king.”
He accepted the situation thus offered, and remained there until
Frederick died; and soon afterwards he was invited by the French
government to go to Paris. From this time, with slight interruptions,
his fame continued to increase, and every one delighted to honor
him; for his labors did honor to his adopted country. One of the most
beautiful compliments, perhaps, ever paid to man, was the message
sent by the French government to the old father of La Grange at
Piedmont, when that country fell, by a revolution, under French
influence. “Go,” said the Minister of Foreign Affairs to his
ambassador, “go to the venerable father of the illustrious La Grange,
and say to him, that, after the events that have just taken place, the
French government look to him as the first object of their interest.”
The answer of the old man was touching: “This day is the happiest
of my life, and my son is the cause of it!” And thrice blessed must be
such a son, for he fills the last hours of his father’s life with peace.
When Bonaparte came into power, new honors were showered upon
him. But what was it that charmed Dr. Bowditch in the character of
La Grange? It was the combination of a giant intellect with extreme
modesty and simplicity, a sincere love of truth, and almost feminine
affections. He was a pure being, whose intellect equalled La Place’s,
but who at the same time was full of the utmost gentleness and
strict justice. He was at Berlin during the earlier part of La Place’s
career in Paris. In after-life, the two were friends. Both were great
geniuses; both were capable of the highest flights of thought, and of
bringing down to the comprehension of mankind the vast and wise
laws impressed by God on the system of the universe. La Place
became interested in political life. La Grange stood aside, quiet and
pleased with his own high thoughts. If his fellows wished him to take
upon himself any public duties, he took them cheerfully, and as
cheerfully resigned them. La Place courted honors; La Grange
meekly received them. La Place sometimes assumed the fruits of
other men’s labors to cover himself with their glory. In the heart of
La Grange sat humility, justice, and philanthropic love. In fact, La
Grange was full of the loftiest qualities and genius combined. La
Place had the latter. His genius alone recommended him to the
scientific men around him. Such were two men whose works Dr.
Bowditch read with the greatest pleasure. He often spoke with great
feeling of the noble traits in the character of La Grange. The features
and form of the head of Dr. Bowditch resembled those of the great
Italian. I have often thought that, as they were like each other in
countenance, so their dispositions and fortunes in life were more
nearly similar than is usual in this world. Both were born poor, and
early had to seek subsistence for themselves. Each devoted himself
early to the science of mathematics, and both became eminent in it.
Love of truth and a longing for it were strong traits in both; order
and regularity of life, and simplicity of food and regimen, belonged
to them equally. Above all, a sincere reverence for goodness, for true
modesty and delicate refinement, and a fine respect for the female
sex, were strikingly manifest in both. Both were moderate in their
desires, and both had the highest good of humanity at heart. Each
sought for quiet and retirement from the turmoil of life in his
“peaceful mathematics.” As the lives of both were beautiful, so was
the serenity of their death scenes. La Grange was attacked near the
end of March, 1813, by a severe fever, and the symptoms soon
became alarming. He saw the danger he was in, but still preserved
his serenity. “I am studying,” says he, “what is passing within me, as
if I were now engaged in some great and rare experiment.” On the
8th of April, his friends Messrs. Lacépède, Monge, and Chaptal
visited him, and in a long conversation which he entered into with
them, he showed that his memory was still unclouded, and his
intellect as bright as ever. He spoke to them of his actual condition,
of his labors, of his success, of the tenor of his life, and expressed
no regret at dying, except at the idea of being separated from his
wife, whose kind attentions had been unremittingly bestowed upon
him. He soon sank and died. Three days afterwards his body was
deposited in the Pantheon, as it is called, the burial-place for the
great men of France; and La Place and his friend Lacépède delivered
their tributes of praise and admiration over his grave. So peaceful
and calm was the death of Dr. Bowditch, whose life I have been
trying to place before you.
Dr. Bowditch’s health had been generally good, MRS. BOWDITCH.
though he never was robust. In 1808 he was
dangerously ill with a cough, and by the advice of a physician, he
took a journey in an open chaise. He was driven towards Pawtucket
and Providence, thence in a westerly direction through Hartford and
New Haven to Albany, and back again across the interior of
Massachusetts, as far as the fertile valley of the Connecticut River.
Thence passing upwards, he crossed on the southern borders of
Vermont and New Hampshire to Newburyport, and back to Salem.
This journey restored him, and he never afterwards suffered much
from cough, and generally enjoyed good health until his last illness.
In 1834 his wife died. His heart was borne down by the loss. She
had been to him always a loving and a tender companion, faithful
and true even to the minutest points. She had watched all his labors.
She had urged him onward in the pursuit of science, by telling him
that she would find the means of meeting any expense by her own
economy in her care of the family. She had watched the progress of
his greatest work, which, with his dying hands, he afterwards
dedicated to her memory. She had listened with delight to all the
praises that had come to him from his own countrymen and from
foreign lands; and now, when he was full of honor and yet active in
business, she was called to leave him. With her the real charm of life
departed, and many sad hours would have been the consequence, if
his sense of duty and devotion to science had not prevented them.
He attended now more closely to active engagements. He always
spoke of his wife with extreme fondness, and sometimes his tears
would flow in spite, apparently, of his efforts to restrain them. There
was a degree of sadness, however, which was perceptible only to his
family, that settled upon Dr. Bowditch during the last four years of
life, in consequence of this deprivation.
In the latter part of the summer and early days LAST ILLNESS.
of autumn of 1837, he began to feel that he was
losing strength, and had occasionally pains of great FAREWELL TO
FRIENDS.
severity. He continued to attend to the duties of his
office, however, without yielding to his suffering. In LOVE FOR HIS
January, 1838, he submitted to medical advice; but CHILDREN.
it was of no avail. He sank rapidly under a severe
and torturing disease, which, for the last fortnight of life, deprived
him of the power of eating or even of drinking anything, except a
small quantity of wine and water. Until the last moment of his life, he
was engaged in attending to the duties of the Life Office, and to the
publication of his Commentary on the “Mécanique Céleste.” During
this time, after he lost the power of visiting State Street, he used to
walk into his library, and there sit down among his beloved books,
and pass the hours in gentle conversation with his friends, of each
one of whom he seemed anxious to take a last farewell. He received
them daily, in succession, during the forenoon; and towards those
whom he loved particularly he showed his tenderness by kissing
them when they met and when they parted. His conversation with
them was of the most pleasant kind. He told them of his prospects
of death, of his past life, and of his perfect calmness and reliance on
God. He spoke to them of his love of moral worth. “Talents without
goodness I care little for,” said he to one of them. With his children
he was always inexpressibly affectionate. “Come, my dears,” said he,
“I fear you will think me very foolish, but I cannot help telling you all
how much I love you; for whenever any of you approach me, I feel
as if I had a fountain of love, which gushes out upon you.” He spoke
to them at the dead of the night, when he awoke, pleasant as a little
child, yet with the bright, clear mind of a philosopher. He told them
of his life, of his desire always to be innocent, to be active in every
duty, and in the acquirement of knowledge, and then alluded to a
motto that he had impressed upon his mind in early life, that a good
man must have a happy death. On one of these occasions he said, “I
feel now quiet and happy, and I think my life has been somewhat
blameless.”
It was noon, and all was quiet in his library. A WORDS OF
bright ray of light streamed through the half-closed COMFORT.
shutter. He was calm and free from pain. One of his
children bade him good by for a time. Stretching out his hand and
pointing to the sunlight, he said, “Good by, my son; the work is
done; and if I knew I were to be gone when the sun sets in the
west, I would say, ‘Thy will, O God, be done.’” Observing some
around him weeping, while he was quiet, he quoted his favorite
passage from Hafiz, one of the sweetest of the poets of Persia:—

“So live, that, sinking in thy last long sleep,

Calm thou mayst smile while all around thee weep.”

On another occasion, when one who was near him had a sad
countenance, he told her to be cheerful; and then, taking Bryant’s
Poems he read the four last verses of that exquisite little poem
called “The Old Man’s Funeral.” It is so beautiful in itself, that I want
you to read it; and perhaps you may like to see how he thought it
applied to his own condition. I have placed in parentheses his
remarks.
THE OLD MAN’S
FUNERAL.
 THE OLD MAN’S FUNERAL.

I saw an aged man upon his bier;

His hair was thin and white, and on his brow
A record of the cares of many a year—
Cares that were ended and forgotten now.
And there was sadness round, and faces bowed,
And women’s tears fell fast, and children wailed aloud.

Then rose another hoary man, and said,

In faltering accents, to that weeping train,
“Why mourn ye that our aged friend is dead?
Ye are not sad to see the gathered grain,
Nor when their mellow fruit the orchards cast,
Nor when the yellow woods shake down the ripened mast.

“Ye sigh not when the sun, his course fulfilled,

His glorious course, rejoicing earth and sky,
In the soft evening, when the winds are stilled,
Sinks where his islands of refreshment lie,
And leaves the smile of his departure spread
O’er the warm-colored heaven and ruddy mountain head.

“Why weep ye then for him, who, having won

The bound of man’s appointed years, at last,
Life’s blessings all enjoyed, life’s labors done,
Serenely to his final rest has passed? [I cannot agree to the next
two lines.]
While the soft memory of his virtues yet
Lingers like twilight hues when the bright sun is set.

“His youth was innocent, [yes, I believe mine was innocent; not
guilty, certainly,] his riper age
Marked with some act of goodness every day, [no, not every day
—sometimes,]
And watched by eyes that loved him, calm and sage, [O, yes,
watched by eyes that loved him; and O how calm but I
 watched by eyes that loved him; and O, how calm, but I
cannot add sage,]
Faded his late declining years away.
Cheerful he gave his being up, and went
To share [he hopes] the holy rest that waits a life [he hopes] well
spent.

“That life was happy; every day he gave

Thanks for the fair existence that was his; [yes, every morning,
when I awoke and saw the beautiful sun rise, I thanked God
that he had placed me in this beautiful world,]
For a sick fancy made him not her slave,
To mock him with her phantom miseries.
No chronic tortures racked his aged limb,
For luxury and sloth had nourished none for him. [Yes, that is all
true.]

“And I am glad that he has lived thus long,

And glad that he has gone to his reward;
Nor deem that kindly nature did him wrong,
Softly to disengage the vital cord, [O, how softly, how sweetly, is
the cord disengaging!]
When his weak hand grew palsied, and his eye
Dark with the mists of age, it was his time to die.” [Yes, it was his
time to die; remember this; do not look sad or mournful; it is
his time to die.]

One of the pleasant effects of his illness was his LOVE OF

new love for flowers. He had never shown any FLOWERS AND
great pleasure in them during life, although a rose, MUSIC.
or lily of the valley, was frequently in his vest
during the summer. One day during his illness, Miss —— sent him a
nosegay, in the centre of which was a white camellia japonica. “Ah!
how beautiful!” he exclaimed; “tell her how much I am pleased;
place them where I can see them. Tell her that the japonica is to me
the emblem of her spotless heart.” Music, too, as it had been his
delight in early life, now served to soothe his last hours. One
evening, when surrounded by his family, and he was free from all
pain, the door of the library was suddenly opened, and his favorite
tune of Robin Adair was heard coming from some musical glasses in
the entry. Its plaintiveness was always delightful to him: and after
listening to it till it died away, he exclaimed, “O, how beautiful! I feel
as if I should like to have the tune that I have loved in life prove my
funeral dirge.”
It was on the 15th of March, 1838, that, being HIS DEATH.
too feeble to walk, he was drawn for the last time
into the library. On the next day he was confined to the bed. On that
day an incident took place which I cannot forbear to mention. He
had called his daughter his Jessamine, and about twenty-four hours
before his death she obtained for him that delicate white flower. He
took it and kissed it many times. He then returned it with these
words: “Take it, my love; it is beautiful; it is the queen of flowers.
Let it be for you, forever, the emblem of truth and of purity. Let it be
the Bowditch arms. Place it in your mother’s Bible, and by the side of
La Place’s bust, and to-morrow, if I am alive, I will see it.”
In the evening he drew a little water into his parched mouth.
“How delicious!” he murmured. “I have swallowed a drop from

‘Siloa’s brook, that flowed

Fast by the oracle of God.’”

On the morrow, 17th of March, 1838, he died. Had he lived nine

days more, he would have exactly completed his sixty-fifth year. On
the next Sabbath he was laid quietly by the side of his wife Mary.
Snow-flakes fell gently upon the coffin as it was carried into Trinity
Church vaults.
There both the bodies remained until a few years since, when
they were removed to Mount Auburn.
 FOOTNOTES
[1] You will know better, by and by, about the Revolutionary
War. I will merely state now, that this war was between America
and Great Britain, in order to free ourselves from the power of
England. The reason why the British King had anything to do with
America was this: Many years ago, a number of people came over
from England, and settled in this country; and of course the small
colony needed the aid of the government from which it
originated. After a time the people here wanted to govern
themselves, and they therefore went to battle about it, because
England would not grant them all their wishes. This contest,
which lasted for several years, was terminated by the United
States becoming free from the power of Great Britain.
[2] It is now in existence, and was kept in his library during his
lifetime, and for many years afterwards. His library, at the time of
his death, consisted of several thousand books, which, during his
long life, he had collected. Yet, to my mind, the little Almanac is
the most valuable book of the whole, because it was the first
evidence he gave of his perseverance, and of the tendencies of
his mind. It is now, with his other manuscripts, preserved in the
Public Library of the City of Boston.
The manuscripts and his whole library were given to the city
when the opening of Devonshire Street, in continuation of
Winthrop and Otis Place, required the removal of the house
where they had been preserved from the time of Mr. Bowditch’s
death.
[3] This was the famous battle of the Nile. It won for Nelson
the title of “Baron of the Nile.”
[4] From Rev. Dr. Bentley’s manuscript Journal.
[5] Dr. Bentley’s Journal, above cited.
[6] This and similar acts committed by Great Britain were the
prominent causes of the war between the United States and
England in 1812.
 [7] An expression of which sailors make use when speaking of
the captain of the vessel, and on this occasion overheard by Mr.
Bowditch, as two sailors whispered one to another, as they
passed him on the deck.
[8] It is still (1869) used in the American, and often in the
English marine service. The twenty-eighth edition was only
recently published; about seventy-five thousand copies have been
issued since the first edition was printed under the special
direction of Mr. Bowditch.
[9] Chief Justice Parsons, it is said, used to say that moment
was one of the most exciting of his life; and he could not forbear
throwing up his hat and joining in the shout with which the boys
saluted the first returning light of the sun.
[10] Since the first edition of this memoir, the whole subject of
meteoric stones has been more thoroughly investigated by
astronomers. Professor Loomis, of New Haven, says (Elements of
Astronomy, 1869, page 209), “In the year 1833, shooting stars
appeared in extraordinary numbers, on the morning of November
14. It was estimated that they fell at the rate of five hundred and
seventy-five per minute. Most of these meteors moved in paths,
which, if traced backward, would meet in a point near Gamma, in
the constellation Leo. A similar exhibition took place on the 12th
of November, 1799, and there are recorded ten other similar
appearances at about the same period of the year.
“There was a repetition of this remarkable display of meteors
on the morning of November 14, 1866, when the number
amounted to one hundred and twenty-six per minute; also
November 14, 1867, when the number of meteors for a short
time amounted to two hundred and twenty per minute; and
November 14, 1868, the display was about equally remarkable.”
Professor Loomis concludes that “these meteors belong to a
system of bodies describing an elliptic orbit about the sun, and
making a revolution in thirty-three years.”
The Weston meteor, or aerolite, observed by Dr. Bowditch, is
mentioned by Professor Loomis, as one of “great brilliancy.” “The
entire weight of the fragments discovered was at least three
hundred pounds.... The length of the visible path of this meteor
exceeded one hundred miles. It moved about fifteen miles per
second.”
 [11] A fifth was printed several years afterwards, on which Mr.
Bowditch made some notes, and which he meant to have
published, but death prevented him from so doing.
[12] Since the first edition of this memoir, one of the most
extraordinary results ever obtained in astronomy by the use of
these same methods of investigation has been made known.
Messrs. Leverrier, a French astronomer, and Adams of England,
calculated very exactly the general characteristics and course of a
planet, which, from the disturbances of the courses of other well-
known planets, was supposed to exist. In 1846, Leverrier
requested a German astronomer to point his telescope, at a
certain time, towards a certain part of the heavens, and there
was the long-suspected planet, previously never seen! It was
named Neptune. It is sixty times larger than our earth, and its
orbit is nearly thirty times farther distant from the sun.
[13] Within the last few years numerous other smaller bodies
(asteroids) have been discovered—not less than eighty being now
known.
 *** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK NAT THE
NAVIGATOR. A LIFE OF NATHANIEL BOWDITCH. FOR YOUNG
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