Address of M. Hoene Wronski to the British Board of Longitude, upon the
actual state of the mathematics, their reform, {250} and upon the new
celestial mechanics, giving the definitive solution of the problem of
longitude.[570] London, 1820, 8vo.
M. Wronski[571] was the author of seven quartos on mathematics, showing
very great power of generalization. He was also deep in the transcendental
philosophy,[572] and had the Absolute at his fingers' ends. All this
knowledge was rendered useless by a persuasion that he had greatly advanced
beyond the whole world, with many hints that the Absolute would not be
forthcoming, unless prepaid. He was a man of the widest extremes. At one
time he desired people to see all possible mathematics in
F_x_ = A_{0}[Omega]_{0} + A_{1}[Omega]_{1} + A_{2}[Omega]_{2} +
A_{3}[Omega]_{3} + &c.
which he did not explain, though there is meaning to it in the quartos. At
another time he was proposing the general solution of the[573] fifth degree
by help of 625 independent equations of one form and 125 of another. The
first separate memoir from any Transactions that I ever possessed was given
to me when at Cambridge; the refutation (1819) of this asserted solution,
presented to the Academy of Lisbon by Evangelista Torriano. I cannot say I
read it. The tract above is an attack on modern mathematicians in general,
and on the Board of Longitude, and Dr. Young.[574]
{251}