THE INCORPORATORS 167 



inherited from his father. After attending the schools of Sher- 

 burne, he entered Yale College and was graduated in 1850. 

 He became tutor there in 1853, and on the death of Professor 

 Stanley, the Corporation appointed Newton, at the early age of 

 twenty-five to the professorship of mathematics, a position which 

 he held until his death. Early in his career he spent a year in 

 studies in Europe, and was greatly influenced by the teaching 

 of Chasles of Paris in higher geometry, which influence showed 

 itself in his contributions to the Mathematical Monthly in 1858 

 and the three following years. Although this branch of science 

 for many years was his favorite study, Professor Newton 

 ultimately turned his attention to astronomy, and especially to 

 the subject of meteors or " shooting stars." The wonderful 

 display of meteors in 1833 had created such an interest in the 

 country, and so much material had been collected concerning 

 previous showers, that in 1861 the Connecticut Academy of 

 Arts and Sciences appointed a committee of which Professor 

 Newton was a member, to promote systematic observations on the 

 August and November showers in different localities. As an 

 aid to this work, he prepared a valuable map of the heavens for 

 plotting meteor tracks, and as a result of his studies of the obser- 

 vations, published in 1865 a paper on the paths of more than a 

 hundred meteors, observed on the nights of August 10 and 

 November 13, 1863. Continuing his researches on the orbits 

 of meteoroids, and the times of their reappearance, Professor 

 Newton solved many important problems regarding them, and 

 raised this branch of research to an honorable place in astro- 

 nomical science. M. Faye remarked of his results in 1867, in the 

 Comptes Rendus, " We may find in the works of Mr. Newton, of 

 the United States, the most advanced expression of the state 

 of science on this subject." 



From meteors he turned his attention to statistical studies of 

 the orbits of comets, and in the following years published several 

 important papers containing the results of his investigations of 

 the relationships of these two classes of celestial objects. Im- 

 portant as were these researches, his serious life work was that 



