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Mr. James Swinburne considered that 

 the author's papers gave rise to very- 

 good discussions, partly because they 

 were of great value, partly because he 

 always selected a subject which was 

 fashionable at the moment, and partly 

 because he always gave a good deal to 

 disagree with. With regard to the 

 author's assumption of the curve of sines, 

 he could not see how that afforded any 

 help. In practical work, the only use he 

 had ever found in the curve of sines was 

 in seeing whether an instrument, which 

 had really a coefficient of self-induction, 

 would give a reading within a certain 

 percentage error. But in dealing with 

 machines the assumption seemed to him 

 to be an absurdity. It was only taken 

 because it admitted of a great many 

 mathematical calculations; but if the 

 mathematical calculations were based 

 upon empirical data he thought it was a 

 pity to make them. Of course it was 

 continually said that by Fourier's theo- 

 rem any curve could be made up of 

 curves of sines. In practical work elec- 



