Item 24b - James David Forbes to William Whewell

Edinburgh - JDF did his best to look after Professor Plücker [Julius Plücker] of Bonn: 'He seemed pleased with my optical apparatus which is now pretty complete and in the Airy [George Airy] fashion'. Thanks WW for reading his memorandum for the Philosophical Magazine [on heat]. Professor Powell [Baden Powell] 'much to my gratification, disclaims in toto the colour which the reporter has given to his account of my experiments in the Phil. Mag....I don't know what Murphy [Robert Murphy] says. It is only lately that I have grown jealous of any little credit my polarizing might bring me'. JDF is sorry he has not acted sooner on WW's suggestions for tides but will endeavour to get it established. George Airy has asked JDF for advice on taking magnetic observations, can WW make sure he received JDF's reply. He spent a day with Mr Harcourt [Vernon Harcourt] and urged him to work hard in securing a good attendance at Bristol for the forthcoming BAAS meeting: 'I think the place ill chosen, but yet that it may be one of the best in point of science'. What does WW think of Lord Brougham's book?: 'it is certainly remarkable'. WW should not enlarge his mechanics which JDF still expects it to sell well in Edinburgh. JDF still hopes to publish on the Pyrenean hot waters. He has been examining his thermometer in Bessel's [Friedrich Bessel] way 'which does not do much credit to Troughton [Edward Troughton] and Simms [William Simms] 'standard''.