Mr. T. S. Davies on Geometry and Geometers, 203 



to it, in the form of an appendix, when translated. This, how- 

 ever, in a subsequent letter he proposes to replace by a few 

 occasional scholia. Nourse appears to have sent him the 

 translation in MS. ; which, though so easy to make, he con- 

 sidered to be very faulty, and an amended translation in its 

 turn was only somewhat less faulty. It ended in two Trinity 

 men, who were reading for fellowships, recommended by 

 Dr. Hamilton, being employed. Their remuneration was ten 

 guineas ! 



The following is one of the most singular facts, perhaps, in 

 Irish Church history : — 



" Let him [his friend Matthew Raper] know I would write to him 

 had I any thing worth communicating, further than one thing (which 

 I know his friendship to me will make him pleased with) that I have 

 very fortunately and without any solicitation of mine got the Deanery 

 of Armagh, the best preferment in our Church under a Bishoprick and 

 equal in value to some of them." (Letter, Ap. 30, 1768.) 



The worthy Dean views his good fortune under a sufficiently 

 worldly aspect : and a fair share of worldly tact is shown in 

 the following extract from another of his letters (Nov. 23, 



1772):— 



" It is proper to observe to you that the Euclid to which my cita- 

 tions refer is Whiston's latin edition of Tacquet's Euclid. And I think 

 it will be proper to apprize the reader of this at the end of the Trans- 

 lator's Preface, for I am of your opinion that such a preface will be 

 absolutely necessary, since you cannot avoid saying in the Titlepage, 

 Translated from the Latin. I think you or any one that is acquainted 

 with the work might very easily write such a preface ; as nothing 

 more would be necessary than to say that the following Treatise 

 written in Latin was published at such a time and has since been 

 so well received by the learned that the Professors in the several uni- 

 versities in England and Ireland have used and recommended it in 

 preference to all others on the same Subject, and therefore the 

 Translator thought that an English Edition would be an acceptable 

 Present to the Public in a Country where so many had distinguished 

 themselves by their great proficiency in mathematical studies tho 

 they had not much cultivated the learned languages. He might 

 then (to show he had read other works of this kind) mention some of 

 the Particulars in which he thought this work had the advantage of 

 others. He might say some thing in general of the Method or plan 

 upon which the Author proceeds, and his manner of executing it, 

 and then for a further account of the method refer the Reader to the 

 Author's Preface which follows. 



" I have only mentioned these hints to show what a Preface of 

 this sort usually contains and that there can be no great difficulty in 

 drawing it up. And I dare say if you were to write to Mr. Wil- 

 liamson or any other Teacher who has read the Book and communi- 



