366 Notices respecting New Books. 



trate the theorem. On the whole, this is a very elegant paper on 

 Acoustic Curves ; it is needless to add that it is the work of an 

 accomplished mathematician. 



American Journal of Mathematics, Pure and Applied. Editor in 

 chief, J. J. Sylvesteb, LL.D.,F.R.S., Corr. Mem. Inst, of France. 

 Associate Editor in charge, William E. Stout, Ph.D. (Leipsic). 

 With the Cooperation of Benjamin Pieece, LL.D., F.B.S., in Me- 

 chanics, Simon Newcomb, LL.D., F.B.S., Corr. Mem. Inst, of 

 France, in Astronomy, and H. A. Eowland, C.E., in Physics. 

 Yol. I. Baltimore : John Murphy and Co. (4to, pp. 388.) 

 The Editors of this Journal have laid down very distinctly the 

 object they have in view in its publication, and the kind of articles 

 which it is intended to contain. It is designed in the first instance 

 "as a medium of communication between American mathemati- 

 cians," though "its pages will always be open to contributions from 

 abroad." Its primary object is the publication of original investi- 

 gations ; but in addition concise abstracts will be inserted of sub- 

 jects to which special interest may attach, as w T ell as critical and 

 bibliographical notices and reviews of the most important recent 

 mathematical publications. 



The contents of the first Volume correspond very closely to the 

 intention of the Editors. There will be found in it many very able 

 original articles by American, and a considerable number by Euro- 

 pean mathematicians ; a few brief historical notes and extracts ; 

 while the bibliographical notices and reviews are represented by an 

 elaborate paper on the " Bibliography of Hyper-Space and Non- 

 Euclidean Geometry," and an excellent review, by Prof. Pierce, of An- 

 nibale Eerrero's exposition of the method of least squares. It would 

 take us far beyond our limits to notice even the leading articles of 

 the volume ; and there is the less need for us to do so, as some of 

 them attracted considerable attention when the numbers contain- 

 ing them were published — such as Prof. Sylvester's " Application 

 of the New Atomic Theory to the Graphical Bepresentation of the 

 Invariants and Covariants of Binary Quantics;" and others are 

 sure to be studied by those who devote special attention to the 

 subjects to which they relate — such as Mr. Hill's "Besearches in 

 the Luuar Theory," and Mr. Eddy's articles on "The Theorem of 

 Three Moments,'" " The Elastic Arch," and " The Two General 

 Methods in Graphical Statics." 



The form of the work is in every way worthy of its contents : 

 it is printed on good paper, in a clear type, and, which is a capital 

 point, is in quarto. This last circumstance will greatly increase 

 the expense of the publication; and as a large number of subscri- 

 bers cannot, perhaps, be expected, it is gratifying to learn that a 

 considerable part of the pecuniary risk attendant on it has been 

 guaranteed by the Trustees of the Johns Hopkins University. "We 

 hope that the Editors will find it possible to keep the succeeding 

 volumes up to the very high level they have reached in the first. 



