140 On Statements hij Prof. Plai/fair [Feb. 



ties he delivered lectures, which he afterwards published (in 1707 

 and 1710) under the titles, '* Praelectiones Astronomicse," &c. 

 and ** Pnelectiones Physico-Matheniuticae, Cantabrigian in 

 Scholis Publicis habitse, quibus Philosophia Illustrissimi Newtoni 

 Mathematica explicatius traditur et facilius demonstratur ; a 

 Gulielmo Whiston, AM. et Matheseos Protessore Lucasiano. In 

 usum Juventutis Academical." In 1707 the celebrated Saunder- 

 son, having acquired an extraordinary portion of mathematical 

 knowledge, came to Cambridge with the intention of fixing him- 

 self in the University by means of it. And though the subject 

 was already occupied by Whiston, the blind geometer was 

 encouraged, with the permission of the Professor himself, to 

 give a course of lectures on " the Principia, Optics, and Arith- 

 metica Universalis, of Newton : " which lectures, we are informed 

 by his biographers, became extraordinarily popular. In 1711 

 Slaunderson succeeded to the Lucasian professorship ; which he 

 held till 1739; so that 1 presume I may here venture to break 

 off the chain of evidence of an uninterrupted succession, from 

 the time of Newton himself, of professors who have delivered 

 his philosophy from the chair which he had occupied. And so 

 much for the claim of its priority in the academical prelections of 

 other places. 



It is further asserted that though the professors in England 

 might, at an early period, be Newtonians, us, for instemce, David 

 Gregory, who removed from Edinburgh to Oxford in 1()90; **the 

 real and efficient system of the Universities was not cast in that 

 mould till long afterwards." Now why we should suppose the 

 lectures of the scholar at Edinburgh or St. Andrew's, to have 

 been more efficient than the lectures either of the same person 

 or of his master J at one of the English Universities, 1 am com- 

 pletely at a loss to discover. I do not, however, mean that 

 the sublime system of our wonderful philosopher was universally 

 adopted or understood as soon as it was dehvered. I believe^ 

 that at that time the possession of the knowledge and qualifica- 

 tions requisite for the study of the Principia was very rare in any 

 University ; and the reception of that memorable work among 

 the great continental geometers is a sufficient proof that it was 

 not sure of finding; favour even with men of eminent mathema- 

 tical attainments, and great love of truth. It must of necessity 

 have required some time to pervade so great a number of per- 

 sons, of such various talents and tastes, as are in the Enghsh 

 Universities thought necessary for effectual instruction. Espe- 

 cially too when it is considered that the subject to which the 

 discoveries referred, formed only a part, and at that time not a 

 prominent part, of the course of academical studies. We do, 

 however, find very early indications of the Newtonian principles 

 making their way into all parts of the system of the University. 

 About 1694, the celebrated Samuel Clarke, then an undergra- 

 duate, defended in the schools a question taken from the philo- 



