521 



SINCLAIR, SIR JOHN. 



SINDIA, FAMILY OF. 



522 



about a year, and where ho became acquainted with Dr. Halley, Mr. 

 Caswell, Dr. Jurin, and Mr. Ditton ; from the conversation of the last 

 gentleman, who was then mathematical master of Christ's Hospital, 

 he gained, not as a pupil, but as a friend, a considerable accession to 

 his knowledge of science. 



On the resignation of Dr. Robert Sinclair, Mr. Simson was appointed, 

 in 1711, to succeed him as professor of mathematics in the University 

 ofGlosgow. He theu applied himself to the duties of his office, and 

 regularly gave lectures on five days in each week during the session of 

 seven months. This practice he continued for nearly fifty years ; but 

 in 1758, beiug then seventy-one years of age, he was obliged 'to employ 

 an assistant, and three years afterwards the Rev. Dr. Williamson, who 

 had been one of his pupils, was appointed his successor. 



In 1735 Dr. Simson published in 4to a 'Treatise on Conic Sections,' 

 and a second edition in 1750 : in this work the investigations are 

 conducted ngreeably to the spirit of the ancient geometry, and proposi- 

 tions are introduced expressly that it might serve as an introduction 

 to the treatise of Apollonius on the same subject. 



By the advice, it is said, of Dr. Halley, Simson early directed his 

 att> ntion to a restoration of the works of the Greek geometers, and his 

 first effort was made on the porisms of Enclid; a branch of the ancient 

 analysis which is only known from the short account in the works of 

 Pappus. In this difficult task however he succeeded, but his * Tract' 

 on the subject was not published till after his death. Having acquired 

 a port of key to that analysis, he undertook a restoration of the 'loci 

 plani ' of Apollouius, and this be completed about the year 1738. 

 The work was first published in 1746, and Dr. Simson acquired by it 

 the reputation of being one of the most elegant geometers of the age. 

 Another subject on which the peculiar talents of Dr. Simson were 

 exercised, was the 'sectio determinata' of Apollonius, and this also he 

 was so fortunate as to restore. The work appears to have been com- 

 menced at an early period of his life, but it was only published, along 

 with the Porisms, after his death. 



A perfect edition of the principal part of Euclid's ' Elements ' was 

 the next object of Dr. Simson's labours. Numerous errors were 

 known to exist in the Greek copies, and the correction of these was a 

 task worthy of a scholar who had made the ancient geometry almost 

 exclusively his study. An edition of the 'Elements' and of the 

 'Data' was published in 4to about 1758, and the work has always 

 enjoyed a high character both for precision in the definitions and 

 accuracy in the' demonstrations. It is probable that the British 

 mathematician has even corrected errors which existed in the original 

 text, though his high regard for Euclid has led him to assume that all 

 thoso which he has discovert d have arisen from the negligence or 

 tmskilfulness of the ancient editors or copyists. Having been very 

 generally used for the purposes of elementary instruction, many 

 editions of this work have since been published. 



After his retirement Dr. Simeon employed himself chiefly in correct- 

 ing his mathematical writings ; but though he had several works 

 nearly fit for publication, he printed none except a new edition of 

 Euclid's ' Data.' He WHS seriously ill only during a few weeks pre- 

 viously to his death, which took place October 1, 1768, in the eighty- 

 fir#t year of his age. 



In 1776 Earl Stanhope published, at his own expense, and for 

 private circulation, the above-mentioned restorations of Euclid's books 

 of Porisms, and of the two books of Apollonius ' De Sectione Deter- 

 minata :' together with these works the same nobleman published a 

 tract on the limits of ratios and another on logarithms, both of which 

 had also been written by Dr. Simson. An edition of the works of 

 Pappus was found among the Doctor's manuscripts, and was sent by 

 his executors to the University of Oxford. 



Dr. Simeon, though devoted to geometry, was well acquainted with 

 the modern analysis, and the latter was occasionally the subject of 

 his college lectures; it is however to be regretted that so much of his 

 time was spent in the effort to restore the precise works of the 

 ancients, when it might have been more profitably employed in 

 forming a connected system of their analysis, and in showing its appli- 

 cation to the solution of problems relating to physical science. He 

 was never married, and the greater part of his long life was spent 

 within the walls of the college ; his hours of study, his exercises, and 

 even his amusements being regulated with great precision. In his 

 disposition he was cheerful and Eociable; and his conversation, which 

 was animated, abounded with literary anecdote and good humour, 

 though he w as subject, when in company, to occasional fits of absence. 

 He was a man of strict integrity and pure morals, and he appears to 

 have had just impressions of religion, -though he never allowed the 

 subject to be introduced in mixed society. 



SINCLAIR, SIR JOHN, Bart., third sou of G. Sinclair, Esq., 

 heritable sheriff of Caithness, was born at Thurso castle, in the county 

 of Caithness, in the year 1754. He embraced the profession of the 

 law, and was called to the English bar in 1782, having been admitted 

 a member of the faculty of advocates in Scotland in the year 1775. 



In 1780 he was chosen member for his native county, and sat in 

 the house during several successive parliaments, sometimes for 

 Caithness, sometimes for other places. He was created a baronet in 

 1786, and in 1810 was honoured with a seat at the board of privy 

 council. He was likewise a member of several learned societies, and 

 became extensively known by his writings, which, for more than fifty 



years, issued rapidly from the press. His death took place at Edin- 

 burgh, on December 21, 1835, in the eighty-second year of his age. 



Sir J. Sinclair did much for the improvement of his country. He 

 established a very useful society in Scotland in 1791 for improving 

 wool, and his exertions led to the formation of the Board of Agricul- 

 ture in 1793, of which he was the first president. Among the most 

 important of his numerous works may be mentioned his 'Statistical 

 Account of Scotland ; ' ' History of the Revenue of Great Britain ; ' 

 and ' Account of the Northern Districts of Scotland.' The first of 

 these is an extraordinary work, and displays an almost incredible 

 amount of labour and research. 



*Miss CATHERINE SINCLAIR, born in 1 800, the sixth daughter of Sir 

 John, after acting during her father's life as his secretary, distin- 

 guished herself after his decease by becoming hia biographer. She 

 has since acquired an extensive popularity by writing a large number 

 of novels and tales, chiefly religious in tone ; among others, ' Modern 

 Accomplishments," ' Modern Society,' ' The Journey of Life,' ' The 

 Business of Life,' ' Modern Flirtations,' ' Beatrice,' &c., most of which 

 have had a very large circulation. She has also written notices of a 

 tour in Wales, ' Scotland and the Scotch,' ' Shetland and the Shet- 

 landers,' a work called the ' Kaleidoscope,' several children's books, 

 and various others of a miscellaneous character. 



SINDIA, FAMILY OF. Two members of this family. Madhajeo 

 Sindia and Dowlut Row Sindia, occupy so conspicuous a place in the 

 history of India, that a brief notice of them seems nece-sary in this 

 work. The origin of this celebrated family of Mahratta chiefs and 

 princes is comparatively modern. The family were sudras, of the 

 peaceful tribe of kcombee, or cultivators. The first who distinguished 

 himself as a soldier was 



RANOJEE SINDIA, who was originally a potail, or head man of a 

 village. The Paishwa Bajerow, who succeeded his father Biswanath 

 Row in 1720, appointed Ranojee to the humble office of bearer of his 

 slippers. A circumstance which seemed to show his fidelity and 

 attachment to his master is said to have led to his promotion. Bajerow 

 one day found him asleep on his back, with the slippers firmly clasped 

 to his breast, and was so much pleased as to appoint him immediately 

 to a station in his body-guard. Ranojee Sindia was active and enter- 

 prising, and he was rapidly promoted. In 1743 he had risen to the 

 highest ratik of Mahratta chiefs ; for when Bajerow came into Malwa 

 in that year, Ranojee signed a bond which was required by the 

 emperor of Delhi, Mahomed Shah, as a surety for the good conduct of 

 his master the Paishwa. Before Ranojee died he had obtained the 

 hereditary government of one-half of the extensive province of Malwa. 

 By his wife, who belonged to his own tribe, he bad three son.s, Jeypah, 

 Duttagee, and Juttabah ; and by a Rajpoot woman he had two sons, 

 Tukajee and Madhajee, of whom 



MADHAJEE SINDIA became the head of the family. The date of his 

 birth is uncertain ; it was probably about 1743 ; he was present at the 

 battle of Paniput in 1761 when the Mahrattas were defeated by 

 Ahmed Shah Abdallah and his Afghans, in union with the Rajpoot 

 and Mohammedan princes of northern Hindustan. In this disastrous 

 battle one-half of the Mahratta army, which amounted to 200,000 

 men, are said to have been slain. Madhajee Sindia was pursued by an 

 Afghan horseman for many miles, who at length overtook him, and 

 left him for dead in a ditch, after having wounded him with his 

 battle-axe in the knee in such a manner as to render him lame for life. 

 The Sindia family, as well as the other Mahratta chiefs, were for a 

 time deprived of all their possessions in Malwa and Hindustan proper; 

 but this was not of long continuance. The Paishwa Bajerow died in 

 1761, and was succeeded by his son Madhoo Row, under whom, on 

 the death of Mulhar Row Holkar in 1764, Madhajee Sindia became 

 the most powerful of the Mahratta chiefs. Besides being the principal 

 leader of the household-horse of the Paishwa, he had a large army of 

 his own ; and the return of Ahmed Shah to Cabul, and the contests 

 among the Mohammedan princes under the weak Emperor Shah Alirn 

 II., in a few years afforded opportunity to him and his brother 

 Tukajee Sindia to recover their former hereditary government and 

 possessions in Malwa and northern Hindustan. 



In 1770, on the invitation of Nujeeb ud Dowlah, who was the 

 minister of Shah Alim, Madhajee Sindia, Bassajee Row, and Tukajee 

 Holkar entered Hindustan proper with their armies, for the purpose 

 of expelling the Sikhs, who had invaded the emperor's territories. 

 This was soon accomplished ; and on the death of Nujeeb ud Dowlah 

 in 1771, Madhajee Sindia obtained possession of Delhi, whither he 

 invited Shah Alim to return from Allahabad, where he had been living 

 under the protection of the British since 1755. In December the 

 same year the emperor was crowned with great pomp in his capital. 

 He was not however the less in subjection. Madhajee compelled him 

 to sign a commission by which he appointed the Paishwa vicegerent of 

 the empire ; and the Paishwa, by a like commission, appointed Madha- 

 jee his deputy. 



In 1772, and again in 1773, with his two colleagues Bassajee and 

 Holkar, Sindia invaded and ravaged Rohilcund, and was preparing to 

 cross the Ganges, when the murder of the young Paishwa Narrain 

 Row, the usurpation of the office by his uncle Ragoba, and the appear- 

 ance of the British and the nabob of Oude, who had been invited to 

 assist the Rohillas, caused him to return to Poona. A confederation 

 of Mahratta chiefs was got up against Ragoba, who, after a reign of a 



