ON MATHEMATICAL TABLES. 167 



by dots, except between place and date, where the publisher's name almost 

 invariably occurs ; so that, this being understood, the separation by a comma 

 was considered sufficient. If the work of the Report had to be performed over 

 again, we should adopt a set of fixed rules with regard to the use of initial 

 capitals in the printing of words in titles, instead of leaving the matter to 

 caprice or the printer ; as it is, the treatment in this respect has been fairly 

 uniform, but might have been better. Such details may seem insignificant ; but 

 it is desirable that nothing should be regarded as arbitrary. With regard to 

 the number of pages assigned to books in § 5, there is also a certain want of 

 uniformitj^: at first we merely looked at the number on the last page, and 

 (having assured ourselves that the pagination was continuous) regarded that 

 as the number of pages, ignoring the few pages at the beginning (usually 

 with a roman pagination) that are devoted to preface &c. ; but afterwards 

 we included these also. Our object merely was to give an idea of the size 

 of the work ; so that (except in the cases where the interest of the book was 

 bibliographical, when we took pains to be quite accurate) it was not thought 

 necessary always to count pages that were not numbered. Sometimes it 

 seemed desirable to give the number of pages occupied by the tables instead 

 of the number in the whole book ; and in a few cases, where the pages were 

 not numbered, it was not considered worth while to count them, or even give 

 an estimate. It may be remarked that very frequently (we think we might 

 say more often than not) the pages on which extensive tabular matter is 

 printed are not numbered. 



Art. 5. The distinction mentioned in § 2, art. 8, between works that are 

 and works that are not described in the Report, viz. that the names of the 

 authors of the former, when the works are referred to, are printed in small 

 capitals, and of the latter in roman characters, has been adhered to as carefully 

 as possible ; but it has been found to be very troublesome and unsatisfactory. 

 We have generally thought it sufficient to print the name in small capitals 

 only once in a paragraph ; and when there is no risk of mistake (as in the 

 description of the work in question itself) the name has been printed in 

 ordinary roman type : the distinction will not be retained in future Reports. 



Also, with reference to the meanings to be attached to the words 8vo, 4to, 

 &c., explained in § 2, art. 9, experience has shown that it is more conve- 

 nient to use these terms in their technical significations, viz. as defined by 

 the number of pages to the sheet ; and in future Reports they will be so 

 used. It should be stated that, except in the case of a few books of no 

 bibliographical interest, these have been the meanings actually adopted. 

 Care was taken that this should be so in regard to all works of bibliogra- 

 phical interest ; and in most other cases the size, as estimated by the eye, 

 agrees with the technical signification. 



Art. 6. In § 1 it is stated that the Committee had determined to print and 

 stereotype certain tables of e-' and e"^, and of hyperbolic sines and cosines 

 which had been commenced by the reporter, and that they were then in the 

 press. Only four pages were set tip when the above statement was written ; 

 and shortly afterwards, when the elliptic functions (referred to further on 

 in art. 16) were in process of calculation, it became clear that they would 

 occupy BO much attention that it was not likely that the tables of e^ &c. 

 could be continued by the reporter till after their completion, and, further, 

 that the publication of the elliptic functions would tax the resources of the 

 Committee to such an extent that it was not probable that they would have 

 the means of printing any thing else, at all events for some time. These 

 tables were therefore withdrawn ; and the reporter contemplates completing 



