Scientific Memoirs, Part xii. 235 



Bodies, which move in Orbits of any Inclination and Elliptic Eccen- 

 tricity whatever, by M. Hansen, Director of the Observatory at 

 Gotha. — Results of the Magnetic Observations in Munich during the 

 period of three years, 1840, 1841, 1842, by Dr. J. Lamont. With a 

 plate. — Observations of the Magnetic Inclination at Gottingen, by 

 Professor C. F. Gauss. — Sketch of the Analytical Engine invented 

 by Charles Babbage, Esq., by L. F. Menabrea of Turin, Officer of the 

 Military Engineers : with copious Notes by the Translator. 



The rules prescribed for the publication of the Foreign Scientific Memoirs 

 prevented the Editor from inserting in that work the following author- 

 ized statement of the facts connected with the history of Mr. Babbage' s 

 Calculating Engines. As those facts may be interesting to our readers, 

 we take this opportunity of communicating them. 



ADDITION TO THE MEMOIR OF M. MENABREA ON THE ANA- 

 LYTICAL ENGINE. SCIENTIFIC MEMOIRS, VOL. III. PART 

 XII. P. 666. 



Much misapprehension having arisen as to the circumstances 

 attending the invention and construction of Mr. Babbage's Cal- 

 culating Engines, it is necessary to state from authority the facts 

 relating to them. 



In 1823, Mr. Babbage, who had previously invented an Engine 

 for calculating and printing tables by means of differences, under- 

 took, at the desire of the Government, to superintend the con- 

 struction of such an Engine. He bestowed his whole time upon 

 the subject for many years, refusing for that purpose other avo- 

 cations which would have been attended with considerable pecu- 

 niary advantage. During this period about £17,000 had been 

 expended by the Government in the construction of the Differ- 

 ence Engine. A considerable part of this sum had from time 

 to time been advanced by Mr. Babbage for the payment of the 

 workmen, and was of course repaid ; but it was never contem- 

 plated by either party that any portion of this sum should be 

 appropriated to Mr. Babbage himself, and in truth not one sin- 

 gle shilling of the money was in any shape whatever received 

 by Mr. Babbage for his invention, his time, or his services, a 

 fact which Sir Robert Peel admitted in the House of Commons 

 in March 1843. 



Early in 1833 the construction of this Engine was suspended 

 on account of some dissatisfaction with the workmen, which it 

 is now unnecessary to detail. It was expected that the interrup- 

 tion, which arose from circumstances over which Mr. Babbage 

 had no control, would be only temporary. About twelve 

 months after the progress of the Difference Engine had been 

 thus suspended, Mr, Babbage discovered a principle of an en- 

 tirely new order, the power of which over the most complicated 

 arithmetical operations seemed nearly unbounded. The inven- 



