ABSTRACT
Marie Jean Antoine de Caritat, marquis de Condorcet, was born at Saint Quentin, in Picardy, a on the 17th of September, 1744. It is said that at an early age he gave tokens of the talents that distinguished him. The bent of his genius led him to the study of the exact sciences. It is the distinction of these pursuits that they lead at once to celebrity. Condorcet was the friend of Turgot, a minister whose virtues and genius attached to him all the more enlightened men of the day. His ministry, however, was stormy, since he was among the first who endeavoured to bring a remedy to the ruined finances of France, without being permitted to strike at the root of the evil – unequal taxation and extravagant expenditure. His edict touching the sale of corn excited popular commotions, and was attacked by Necker.
