The theory of determinants in the historical order of development, by Sir Thomas Muir.

DETERMINANTS IN GENERAL (MANSION, 1878)

MANSION, P.. (1878): SERSAWY, V. (1878):
ZAHRADNIK, K. (1878): MOLLAME, V. (1878).
[ELEMENTE DER THEORIE PDER DETERMINANTEN. Mit vielen
Uebungsaufgaben. iv+50 pp. Leipzig.]
[DIE FUNDAMENTE DER DETERMINANTEN-THEORIE. Zum Gebrauche fiir das erste Studium. vi+42 pp. Wien.]
[0 DETERMINANTIH drugoga i trecega stupnja. Za porabu visih
srednjih ucilista. viii+39 pp. Zagreb.]
[I DETERMINANTI, e loro applicazioni all' algebra ed alla geometria
analitica. Nuova esposizione elementare. xii+-125 pp. Napoli.]
Of these class-books the one which most invites attention is
Mollame's. Notwithstanding its bulk it does not go deeply into
the theory, seventy-two pages being given over to algebraical and
geometrical applications; but the remaining fifty-one pages give
a very clear and attractive exposition well suited as an introduction.
for university students.
Sersawy, who apparently writes for the same class of readers,
gives much less matter and is less concerned with explanation and
illustration: his work shows no advance.
The German edition of Mansion's Elements is an improvement
on what we have already seen to be good.
Zahradnik's little introduction confines itself in the main to
determinants of the second and third order.
GARBIERI, G. (1878).
[Intorno al trattato sui determinanti del Prof. Sigismondo Giinther.
Bull. di Bibliogr. e di Storia delle Sci. mat. e fis., xi. pp. 257-318.]
In the sixty-two pages of this 'rivista bibliographica' exactly
thirty-one are devoted to an account of Gunther's first chapter,
which, it will be recalled, deals with the history of the subject and
which itself contains only thirty-one pages in the original. Garbieri's role is almost that of a mere reporter, his main additions
being due to the editor's practice of pedantically giving the full
title-page of every writing referred to. He also makes several
corrections.