6# Biographical Anecdotes of Charles Hatlon. L.L.D. 



the astronomer royal ; after which the Society entrusted tc> 

 Mr. Hutton the important charge of making the calcula- 

 tions, and drawing the proper conclusions from them. 

 The result was, that the mean density of the earth was 

 found to be in proportion to that of the hill of Schehallion, 

 as 9 to .'>, so that when the actual density of the h-ill shall 

 be ascertained, the real density of the earth wiH in some. 

 measure be determined. 



The year following, Dr, Hntton gave anotlier paper, as a 

 supplement to the preceding, which contained " Calcula- 

 tions to determine at what point in the sido- of the hill it3 

 attraction will be greatest."' 'Ihe next connnunication, 

 which was in the year 17 BO, was a long tract on cubic 

 equations-, and this was followed, in 1783, by " A project 

 tor a new division of the quadraitl;." This was the last of 

 his comnuniicalions to thc'iVansactions, as, it seems, a stop 

 was put to his usefulness in this way by a misunderstanding 

 between him and the Society, in fonsequcuce of which he 

 resinned his office in the year 178i. 



Soon after, that i-s in llSfr, Dr. Outton published a 

 volume cf mathematical and philosophical tracts, in quarto, 

 containing a lumiber ot curious papers, which would pro- 

 bably have appeared in the Philosophical Transactions had 

 not the before-mentioned misunderstanding taken place. 

 One of these tracts consists of " New experiments ia 

 artillery for determining the force of tired gun-powder ; 

 the initial velocity of cannon-balls ; the ranges of pieces of 

 cannot^ at different elevations ; the resistance of the ajr to 

 projectiles ; the effect of different lengths- of cannon, and 

 of different quantities of pov.der," Sec. These ex.periment9 

 were made in the years 1783, 178-i-., and 1785. 



Besides these, Dr. Tlutton has given to the public several 

 other useful and ingenious works on nKUhcmitical subjects; 

 as, in 1781, a folio volume, containing "Tables of the pro- 

 ducts and powers of numbers," published bv order of the 

 Commissioners' of Longitude: — In 17S5, " Mathematical 

 tables of the common hyperbolic and logistic logarithms ; 

 also sines, tangents, and secants, versed sines, both natural 

 and loi!ariihmic,with several other tables-useful in mathema- 

 tical calculations; to which is prefixed an original history of 

 the discoveries and writings relating to> these subjects ;" 

 a second edition of this work was printed in 1794: — In 

 17S6, " The compendious measurer; being a brief yet 

 comprchens'ive treatise oti mensuration and practical ge- 

 ometry ; with ;m introduction to decimal and duodecimal 

 urithnietic, atlapted lu practice and the use of schools."" 



This 



