Mathematical Treasure: Daniel Fenning's British Youth's Instructor

Author(s):

Frank J. Swetz (The Pennsylvania State University)

The schoolmaster and textbook author, Daniel Fenning (1715–1767), whose 1751 Young Algebraist’s Companion also appears in Convergence, prepared The British Youth’s Instructor; or Practical Arithmetic. The book went through many editions; the fifth edition of 1765 is shown here. David Fisher, perhaps of Dedham, MA, cites himself as an early owner.

Title page of Daniel Fenning's The British Youth's Instructor. Owner's signature in Daniel Fenning's The British Youth's Instructor.

It was a practice, at this time, to have a textbook reviewed by relevant professionals and to secure their approving testimony. On this list are “Philom[s]”, philomaths, or “lovers of mathematics.”

Testimonial page of Daniel Fenning's The British Youth's Instructor.

The early pages discuss numeration.

Page 3 of Daniel Fenning's The British Youth's Instructor.

Page 6 of Daniel Fenning's The British Youth's Instructor.

These pages show operations and the “Rule of Three.”

Page 30 of Daniel Fenning's The British Youth's Instructor.

Page 97 of Daniel Fenning's The British Youth's Instructor.

Page 123 of Daniel Fenning's The British Youth's Instructor.

Page 195 of Daniel Fenning's The British Youth's Instructor.

Page 196 of Daniel Fenning's The British Youth's Instructor.

The full text is available to be viewed and read in the HathiTrust Archive.

Index to Mathematical Treasures

Frank J. Swetz (The Pennsylvania State University), "Mathematical Treasure: Daniel Fenning's British Youth's Instructor," Convergence (December 2020)

Convergence

Tags:

History of Mathematics