362 WOMAN IN SCIENCE 



enabled distinguished men of science to achieve results that 

 would otherwise have been impossible. Among these to 

 mention only a few were Mme. Lavoisier and Mme. Curie 

 in chemistry, Mme. Lapaute and Miss Herschel in astron- 

 omy, Mrs. Agassiz and Mme. Coudreau in natural science 

 and exploration, Mme. Schliemann and Mme. Dieulafoy 

 in archaeology. 



One of the most illustrious women inspirers of France 

 was Catherine de Parthenay, who, after attaining woman- 

 hood, became the brilliant Princess de Rohan, and was 

 recognized as one of the most learned and most remarkable 

 women of the sixteenth century. As a young girl she 

 exhibited rare intelligence and displayed special aptitude 

 for the exact sciences. For this reason her mother saw 

 to it that her child had the benefit of instruction under the 

 ablest masters that could be secured. 



The most noted of these was Francois Viete, the learned 

 French mathematician, who is justly regarded as the 

 father of modern algebra. In his day, especially in the 

 higher classes of society, the education given to women 

 was often more thorough than that afforded to men. For 

 this reason, too, women not infrequently became distin- 

 guished in astronomy, which was then usually known 

 under the name of astrology. 



Viete, in initiating his gifted pupil into the principles 

 of this science, became himself so enthusiastic a student of 

 astronomy that he determined to prepare an elaborate work 

 on the subject something on the plan of the Almagest of 

 Ptolemy a work which he designated Harmonicum Ce- 

 leste. 



In order that the instruction given his pupil might not 

 be lacking in precision, Viete wrote out, with the most 

 scrupulous care, the lessons designed for her benefit. The 

 manuscripts containing these lessons were long preserved 

 among the family archives, but nearly all of them were 



