JF Ptak Science Books  Quick Post

I’ve posted a couple of other bits about the wonderful book by Roswell Smith (Practical and Mental Arithmetic on a New Plan...which was published in Hartford in 1836) here and there, as this elementary text is really chock full of interesting insights into early 19th century life in the U.S. as well as some good, logical approaches to arithmetic. It is a small book, about five inches high, and mine is particularly worn from use–its paper cover with the title page imprinted on it is half gone and mostly illegible, and is smooth to the touch from (I guess) constant handling.  I particularly like this breakdown of components of a dollar, divided into nine sections instead of four–the dollar buying quite a bit in 1836, including the purchasing power of five copies of the Smith book.  

 And this fine chart, nineteen pages into the work, addressing about the most basic bits of arithmetic, being numbers: