Henry Moyes was a lecturer on natural philosophy

Natural philosophy

Natural philosophy or the philosophy of nature , is a term applied to the study of nature and the physical universe that was dominant before the development of modern science...

. As an itinerant public speaker he helped raise 18th century popular interest in the new field of chemistry

Chemistry

Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....

. He mixed with the greatest engineers and scientists of the day and attended the Lunar Society

Lunar Society

The Lunar Society of Birmingham was a dinner club and informal learned society of prominent figures in the Midlands Enlightenment, including industrialists, natural philosophers and intellectuals, who met regularly between 1765 and 1813 in Birmingham, England. At first called the Lunar Circle,...

. In London he shared a room in George Street, Hanover Square

Hanover Square

Hanover Square may refer to:* Hanover Square, London, England* Hanover Square, Manhattan, New York City, USA** Hanover Square , elevated station* Hanover Square, Syracuse, USA-See also:* Hanover Square Rooms, London...

 with Adam Walker

Adam Walker (inventor)

Adam Walker was an English inventor, writer, and popular science lecturer connected with York.-Life:He was the son of a woollen manufacturer in Patterdale, Westmorland, England. Mainly self-taught, he attended fashionable lectures on experimental philosophy in Manchester and established his own...

 where lectures were given to small groups of gentry. Moyes was described as an excellent lecturer in philosophy by Joseph Priestley

Joseph Priestley

Joseph Priestley, FRS was an 18th-century English theologian, Dissenting clergyman, natural philosopher, chemist, educator, and political theorist who published over 150 works...

. His portrait was painted by John Russell

John Russell (painter)

John Russell was an English painter renowned for his portrait work in oils and pastels, and as a writer and teacher of painting techniques.-Life and work:...

.

He came from a humble Kirkcaldy

Kirkcaldy

Kirkcaldy is a town and former royal burgh in Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. The town lies on a shallow bay on the northern shore of the Firth of Forth; SSE of Glenrothes, ENE of Dunfermline, WSW of Dundee and NNE of Edinburgh...

 background and, was blinded

Blindness

Blindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...

 aged three by smallpox

Smallpox

Smallpox was an infectious disease unique to humans, caused by either of two virus variants, Variola major and Variola minor. The disease is also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera, which is a derivative of the Latin varius, meaning "spotted", or varus, meaning "pimple"...

. In 1766 he was, however, befriended by Adam Smith

Adam Smith

Adam Smith was a Scottish social philosopher and a pioneer of political economy. One of the key figures of the Scottish Enlightenment, Smith is the author of The Theory of Moral Sentiments and An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations...

, when the latter was in Kirkcaldy writing his Wealth of Nations. The boy showed precocious aptitude and, as well as teaching Moyes himself, Smith secured the patronage of David Hume

David Hume

David Hume was a Scottish philosopher, historian, economist, and essayist, known especially for his philosophical empiricism and skepticism. He was one of the most important figures in the history of Western philosophy and the Scottish Enlightenment...

 and Thomas Reid

Thomas Reid

The Reverend Thomas Reid FRSE , was a religiously trained Scottish philosopher, and a contemporary of David Hume, was the founder of the Scottish School of Common Sense, and played an integral role in the Scottish Enlightenment...

 in the young man's education.

Being blind, he required assistance for demonstrations and his assistant, nephew William Nicol, would himself become notable for his contributions to science

Nicol prism

A Nicol prism is a type of polarizer, an optical device used to produce a polarized beam of light from an unpolarized beam. See polarized light. It was the first type of polarizing prism to be invented, in 1828 by William Nicol of Edinburgh...

.

During 1784–6, he toured the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 giving successful lectures in in Boston

Boston

Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...

, Philadelphia, Baltimore

Baltimore

Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...

, Princeton

Princeton, New Jersey

Princeton is a community located in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It is best known as the location of Princeton University, which has been sited in the community since 1756...

 and Charleston, South Carolina

Charleston, South Carolina

Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...

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