“ From Oxford he made his way to Venice, where he occupied himself as a professor of mathematics. In 1717 appeared his Lineae tertii ordinis Newtonianae, sive . . . (8vo, Oxford) . While in Venice, also, he communicated, through Sir Isaac Newton, to the Royal Society a paper entitled “Methodus differentials Newtoniana illustrata” (Phil. Trans., 1718) . Fearing assassination on account of having discovered a trade secret of the glass-makers of Venice, he returned with Newton's help to London about the year 1725. ”

“ His name is also connected with another practical undertaking, since grown to vast dimensions. The accounts of the city of Glasgow for 1752 show that the very first instalment of ten millions sterling spent in making Glasgow a seaport, viz. ”