﻿Notices respecting New Books. 147 



■winking, and carry out all instructions made by the author." 

 Again (p. 203), when defining the potential produced at any point 

 of space by a vector, he says, "We may use the same definition 

 when it is a vector that has to be potted, or potential ised. Thus, 

 if A is the potential of C, then A= pot C — 1 C/4:Trr" Again 

 (p. 352), when discussing the magnetic flux relations, he presents 

 us with the ethical maxim, " Different men have different opinions 

 — some like apples, some like inious '' ! We can easily imagine 

 the difficulty of some thoroughly zealous and painstaking German 

 translator of this work in his attempt to render this scientific 

 principle into good Grerman. In vain does he consult his English 

 dictionaries for the word " inions " ; until, perhaps, after a week's 

 labour, the happy solution occurs to him that " inions " is a mis- 

 print for " ions," which are, of course, preferred to apples by 

 those endowed with electrical tastes, — and then the truth of the 

 principle becomes at once obvious. 



It was pleasant to find in a previous work that Mr. Heaviside 

 attaches due importance to clearness of expression, and even to 

 grammatical accuracy. In a passage in which he severely criticises 

 the language of a well-known experimentalist, he very truly says 

 " The first step to the understanding of a writer is to find out 

 what he means." Now, if I am not mistaken, this passage affords 

 a key to Mr. Heaviside's peculiar style, and supplies, to a great 

 extent, a justification of it. So far as my own experience of 

 English writers is concerned, it is not a great exaggeration to say 

 that by far the greater portion of my time is occupied in the work 

 of ascertaining the meaning of the author and in overcoming the 

 difficulties of ambiguous language. The intrinsic difficulties of the 

 subject demand, in general, a comparatively short time. Thus, 

 the typical English writer in opening up a mathematical discussion 

 on (say) an electromagnetic field, in some portions of which there are 

 wires conveying electrical currents, there being in other portions 

 magnets, dielectrics, conductors, &c, will usually assume the 

 following shroud of vagueness : " Let v be the velocity, C the cur- 

 rent, E the electromotive force, K the specific inductive capacity, 

 V the potential, \h the permeability, B the induction, D the dis- 

 placement, H the magnetic force, L the inductance, T the kinetic 

 energy, &c, &c." After every one of which we exclaim " Of 

 what ? " But in vain, the typical author considers that he has 

 bargained to give us the whole bundle of facts and nothing more. 

 In the grave and stilted Scientific Treatise, or Solemn Homily, 

 there must be no touch of imagination to increase the interest of 

 the reader, nor any digression for the purpose of anticipating a 

 misunderstanding, however natural. 



It is this characteristic of some of our writers which renders a 

 treatise on the same subject, and with the same scope, by a French 

 author such a welcome relief. In the latter Ave almost invariably 

 find vagueness, ambiguity, and an illogical order of thought con- 

 spicuously absent ; and very possibly it is this consideration that 

 has induced Mr. Heaviside to throw over the orthodox style of 



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