projection, which serves for all latitudes. He shewed me, 1649, the best way of making an arch was a parabola with a chaine; so he tooke off his girdle from his cassock, and applied it to the wall thus:

He invented and made with his owne handes a paire of saile (or beame) compasses, which will divide an inch into a hundred or thousand parts, with a sagitta to turne about it with a handle: this handle turnes a skrew of a very fine thread, and on the back of the saile or beame is a graduation. With these compasses he made the quadrants aforesayd. He gave me a paire of these compasses, which I shewed to the Royall Societie at their first institution, which they well liked, and I presented them as a rarity to my honoured friend, Edmund Wyld, Esq'. There are but two of them in the world.

Mem. that at the Epiphanie, 1649, when I was at his house, he then told me his notion of

cureing diseases, &c. by transfusion of bloud out of one man into another, and that the hint came into his head, reflecting on Ovid's story of Medea and Jason, and that this was a matter of ten yeares before that time; about a yeare after he and I went to trye the experiment, but 'twas on a hen, and the creature too little and our tooles not good: I then sent him a surgeon's lancet. A: I received a letter from him concerning this subject, which many yeares since I shewed, and was read and entered in the bookes of the Royall Societie, for Dr. Lower would have arrogated the invention to himselfe, and now one R. Griffith, Dr. of Physique, of Richmond, is publishing a booke of the transfusion of bloud, and desires to insert Mr. Potter's letter.*

A: D 166.. he was chosen fellowe of the Royall Societie, and was there admitted and received with much respect. As he was never a strong man, so in his later times he had his health best, only about four or five yeares before his death his eie-sight was bad, and before he dyed quite lost. He dyed.. and is buryed in . . . . of the chancell, at Kilmanton.

Memorand. he played at chesse as well as most men. Col. Bishop, his contemporary at Trinity

* Mem. Mr. Lloyd tells me that Libavius speakes of the transfusion of bloud, which I dare sweare Mr. F. Potter never sawe in his life.

coll. is accounted the best of England. I have heard Mr. Potter, say that they two have played at Trin. Col. (I thinke 2 daies together) and neither got the maistery. He would say that he lookt upon the play at chesse very fitt to be learnt and practised by young men, because it would make them to have a foresight, and be of use to them (by consequence) in their ordering of humane affaires. Quod N.B.

He hath told me that he had oftentimes dreamt that he was at Rome, and being in fright that he should be seised on and brought before the pope, I did wake with that feare.* 'Twas pitty that such a delicate inventive witt should be staked in an obscure corner, from whence men rarely emerge to higher preferment, but contract a mossc on them like an old pale in an orchard for want of ingeniose conversation, which is a great want even to the deepest thinking men (as Mr. Hobbes hath often said to me). The last time I sawe this kind friend of mine, Octob. 1674, I had not seen him in 3 yeares before, and his lippitude then was come even to blindnesse, which did much grieve me to behold. He had let his beard be uncutt, which was wont to be but little. I asked

* Pope.... (against whom Ro. Grotest, Bp. of Lincolne wrote) dreamt that the Bishop of Lincolne came to him, and gave him a great blowe over the face with his staffe. Vide Platinum.

him why he did not get some cousin or kinsman of his to be with him, and looke to him now in his great age? He answer'd me, "That he had tryed that way, and found it not so well; for they did begrudge what he spent, that 'twas too much, and went from them, whereas his servants (strangers) were kind to him, and tooke care of him.

"A. D. 1625, December 10, hora decima inventum est Mysterium Bestiæ." These words I found wrote in his Greeke Testament. He told me the notion came into his mind as he was goeing up staires into his chamber at Trin. coll. which was yo senior fellowe's chamber then. He lay with his brother, Dr. Hannibal Potter. This chamber is now united to the President's lodgeings.

In the troublesome times 'twas his happinesse never to be sequestred. He was once maliciously informed against to the Comittee at Wells (a thing very common in those times), when he came before them, one of them (I have forgot his name) gave him a pint of wine, and gave him great prayse, and bade him goe home, and feare nothing,

SR ROBERT POYNTZ,

(Kt of ye Bath.)

His seate was Iron Acton, in com. Gloc. wch came to that family by match of da. and heire, temp. Hen. III. Mr. Player, Mr. Anth. Ettrick's son-in-lawe, who bought this estate, June, 1684, hath all the old evidences, and can farther informe me. But this family and Clifford are y very same, as may be seen by the pedigree of Clifford, who was de Pons till he gott Cliffordcastle, in com. Hereff. juxta com. Brecon. This family have had a great estate, and were men of note at Court. S Rob. son of S: John P. of whom I now write, and wth whom I had some small acquaintance, was a loyall, sober, and learned person. His study, law; chiefly towards the Civil Lawe. Since ye King's restauration he published in print, a pamphlet, about the bignesse of a good play-booke, entitled, The Right of Kings, or to that purpose, but to my best remembrance, that is the very title.

As I remember he told me when I was of Trin. coll. Oxon, 1643, that he was of Lincoln college. He maried first, Gresill, one of the da. and coheires of . . . . . Gibbons, of . . . . . . Kent, by whom he had only two daughters. After her decease he had a naturall sonne by Cicely Smyth, who had been his lady's chamber-mayd, whose