THE INCORPORATORS 167 
inherited from his father. After attending the schools of Sher- 
burne, he entered Yale College and was graduated in 1850. 
He became tutor there in 1853, and on the death of Professor 
Stanley, the Corporation appointed Newton, at the early age of 
twenty-five to the professorship of mathematics, a position which 
he held until his death. Early in his career he spent a year in 
studies in Europe, and was greatly influenced by the teaching 
of Chasles of Paris in higher geometry, which influence showed 
itself in his contributions to the Mathematical Monthly in 1858 
and the three following years. Although this branch of science 
for many years was his favorite study, Professor Newton 
ultimately turned his attention to astronomy, and especially to 
the subject of meteors or “shooting stars.” ‘The wonderful 
display of meteors in 1833 had created such an interest in the 
country, and so much material had been collected concerning 
previous showers, that in 1861 the Connecticut Academy of 
Arts and Sciences appointed a committee of which Professor 
Newton was a member, to promote systematic observations on the 
August and November showers in different localities. As an 
aid to this work, he prepared a valuable map of the heavens for 
plotting meteor tracks, and as a result of his studies of the obser- 
vations, published in 1865 a paper on the paths of more than a 
hundred meteors, observed on the nights of August ro and 
November 13, 1863. Continuing his researches on the orbits 
of meteoroids, and the times of their reappearance, Professor 
Newton solved many important problems regarding them, and 
raised this branch of research to an honorable place in astro- 
nomical science. M. Faye remarked of his results in 1867, in the 
Comptes Rendus, “ We may find in the works of Mr. Newton, of 
the United States, the most advanced expression of the state 
of science on this subject.” 
From meteors he turned his attention to statistical studies of 
the orbits of comets, and in the following years published several 
important papers containing the results of his investigations of 
the relationships of these two classes of celestial objects. Im- 
portant as were these researches, his serious life work was that 
