152 MEMOIR OF AUGUSTUS DE MOEGAN. 



1845. I have not anything to retaliate upon the Hist. Math. Sc. 



at present, but if you are preparing a new edition I will look at 



it in the vacation quoad Mathematics and Mathematical Physics. 



You duly acknowledged the receipt of my corrections about 



Milbourne and Horrocks. I remain, dear sir, 



Yours very truly, 



A. DE MORGAN. 



To Sir John Herschel. 



7 Camden Street, July 21, 1845. 



MY DEAR SIR JOHN, I hope you have found rest agreeable 

 after your Cambridge labours. 



I have had a book by me for years called ' An Original Theory 

 or New Hypothesis of the Universe,' by Thomas Wright of 

 Durham, London, 1750, 4to, 30 mezzotinto engravings. I had 

 always supposed it to be Ocular and Elizabethan, 1 if you know 

 what that means, and so put it among my curiosities of that 

 kind. But overhauling my limbo to write an article about 

 quiddities I began to examine this book, and I find it is at great 

 length the true theory of the milky way as a resolvable nebula, 

 with distribution of the universe into patches of starlight. 



It was a book published by subscription, and therefore not 

 much repandu. It was seeing Dr. Smith's (Harmonic Smith's) 

 name among the subscribers which first made me suspect it was 

 not a heaven-born genius who wrote it. 



Yours very truly, 



A. DE MORGAN. 



To Captain Smyth. 



7 Camden Street, Nov. 3, 1845. 



MY DEAR CAPTAIN SMYTH, I find there is a circumstance 

 about * Poliphilns ' which Brunet does not mention. The 

 author's name is Francis Colonna; if the thirty-eight initial 

 letters of the thirty-eight chapters be written down, they make 

 Folium/rater Franciscus Columno, peramavit. 



Yours truly, 



A. DE MORGAN. 



1 Those accustomed to the writer's expressions will see in this a 

 paraphrase of the slang, ' My eye and Betty Martin.' 



