216 ENGLISH MEN OF SCIENCE. [CHAT.
sides of the Tweed, there would have been 5 times as many expressions of gratitude to English teachers as to Scotch. But the facts show that no less than 8 out of the 13 cases refer to teachers in Scotland, 1 to a Scotch teacher settled in England, and only 4 to English professors. It would have been (8 x 5 =) 40 and not 4, if the English education had been as profitable to science as the Scotch. I willingly admit that the smallness of the numbers, namely, only 13 cases, renders precise figures open to question ; however, the superiority of the Scotch system is supported by other evidence which I shall speak of in the chapter on education.
Physics and Mathematics.-(7) I believe
the origin was when I attended the natural philosophy classes at . . . . (10) Tastes confirmed by lectures, and especially by the encouragement of [certain professors]. (20) Interest in mathematics due to the encouragement of and influence of [professors at a university].
