4 AN ACCOUNT OF THE EARLY MATHEMATICAL AND 



ancient geometrical analysis was much cultivated by Lavvson, 

 Crakelt, VViltlbore, and others, and the editors* of our mathe- 

 matical periodicals vied with each other in their endeavours 

 to obtain purely geometrical solutions to all questions sup- 

 posed to admit of this method of procedure. Mr. Dalton 

 does not seem to have been sufficiently aware of this desire 

 on the part of the conductors of those periodicals to which 

 he contributed, and hence we have another reason, besides 

 inexperience, for the failure of many of his juvenile efforts. 

 On almost every occasion his early algebraical solutions had 

 to give place to the purely geometrical ones furnished by 

 more experienced correspondents. But Mr. Dalton's ambi- 

 tion was not of that uncertain character which quails at diffi- 

 culties and relapses into indifference when confronted with 

 neglect: — "perseverance overcomes every obstacle" was a 

 motto he had learned in early youth, and when he renewed 

 his attempts to obtain a place in the " pages of the im- 

 perishable Diary," he had so far improved his opportunities of 

 acquiring information that success was almost certain. The 

 selection of questions for the year 1787 embraced nearly all 

 the branches of mathematics then cultivated by English 

 geometers, and yet he correctly solved thirteen out of the list 

 oi fifteen, the prize question included. His solution of ques- 

 tion 850 is inserted at length in the Diary as having been 

 furnished by " Mr. John Dalton, teacher of mathematics in 

 Kendal," and is probably the earliest printed specimen of his 

 mathematical writings. 



Mr. Dalton. however, did not confine himself to mathema- 

 matics alone. At the early age of twenty-two he had turned 

 his attention to chemistry, and was already conversant with 

 several French authors on that subject. In the Ladies 

 Diary and Supplement for 1788 he favours the editor with 

 his opinions on the " composition of India rubber, or elastic 

 gum ;" some " account of which," he observes, " may be seen 



