412 A Century of /Science 



picion that the mathematicians ought not to treat 

 all this with such undisguised contempt, at least. 

 Now I have no fear for TT ; but I do think it pos- 

 sible that general opinion might in time demand 

 that the crowd of circle-squarers, etc., should be 

 admitted to the honours of opposition; and this 

 would be a time-tax of five per cent, one man with 

 another, upon those who are better employed." At 

 any rate, continues De Morgan, with a twinkle in 

 the corner of his eye, whether in chastising cranks 

 he has any motive but public good " must be re- 

 ferred to those who can decide whether a mis- 

 sionary chooses his pursuit solely to convert the 

 heathen." He confesses that perhaps he may have 

 a little of the spirit of Colonel Quagg, whose prin- 

 ciple of action was thus succinctly expressed : " I 

 licks ye because I kin, and because I like, and 

 because ye 's critters that licks is good for ! " 



Among the creatures whose malady seemed to 

 call for such drastic treatment was Captain For- 

 man, R. N., who in 1833 wrote against the law of 

 gravitation, and got not a word of notice. Then 

 he wrote to Sir John Herschel and Lord Brougham, 

 asking them to get his book reviewed in some of 

 the quarterlies. Receiving no answer from these 

 gentlemen, he addressed in one of the newspapers 

 a card to Lord John Russell, inveighing against 



