TRANSLATOR'S INTRODUCTION, xxix 



it appeared as Appendix to the Tentamen, 

 1832." 



The profound mathematical ability of Bol- 

 yai Janos showed itself physically not only in 

 his handling of the violin, where he was a 

 master, but also of arms, where he was unap- 

 proachable. 



It was this skill, combined with his haughty 

 temper, which caused his being retired as Cap- 

 tain on June 16th, 1833, though it saved him 

 from the fate of a kindred spirit, the lamented 

 Galois, killed in a duel when only 19. Bolyai, 

 when in garrison with cavalry officers, was 

 provoked by thirteen of them and accepted all 

 their challenges on condition that he be per- 

 mitted after each duel to play a bit on his 

 violin. He came out victor from his thirteen 

 duels, leaving his thirteen adversaries on the 

 square. 



He projected a universal language for 

 speech as we have it for music and for mathe- 

 matics. 



He left parts of a book entitled: Principia 

 doctrinae novae quantitatum imaginariarum 

 perfectae uniceque satisfacientis, aliaeque dis- 

 quisitiones analyticae et analytico - geome- 

 tricae cardinales gravissimaeque; auctore 



