TEACHER--“In what year was the battle of Waterloo fought?”
PUPIL--“I don’t know.”
TEACHER--“It’s simple enough if you only would learn how to
cultivate artificial memory. Remember the twelve apostles. Add half
their number to them. That’s eighteen. Multiply by a hundred. That’s
eighteen hundred. Take the twelve apostles again. Add a quarter of
their number to them. That’s fifteen. Add to what you’ve got. That’s
1815. That’s the date. Quite simple, you see, to remember dates if
you will only adopt my system.”