A

Great many have wrote upon this Subject, and moft have met with deferved Success; but how far this may merit the fame, Time alone must determine. I only wish it may meet with impartial, Judges, who will undoubtedly give it a Character equal to its Deferts, and then I have Reason to believe it will answer the End defigned; that is, to be a Guide to them that want to attain a Knowledge of thofe ufeful and entertaining Studies, and an agreeable Companion for fuch as have made fome Progress in them. The fundamental Rules of Arithmetic are laid down fo plain, that the meaneft Capacity, with a little Application, may understand them; and when I come to the Rule of Three, I make ufe of a few Characters which the Reader may foon be Master of; and then may proceed with Pleafure. What Rules are omitted, have their Dependance on the Rules of Proportion, which are fully explained; and as most Questions in Practice are done with much Eafe and Certainty, by the Multiplication bere made ufe of; I hope the Want of them will be no Defect. I have very plainly and intelligibly delivered the Algebraical Part, and exemplified the Rules with a Collection of Questions, anfwered in a plain and familiar Manner. I have not notified in the Margin when you are to make Use of a Step, or an abfolute Number; but the Step following will determine which it is.

I have taken Care to keep this Treatife as free as poffible from the Errors of the Prefs; but if there should be any, I hope the Reader will correct and excufe them. The Questions are mostly answered numerically, being the most eafy Way to initiate the Ufe of Algebra to Learners, which when understood, they may use the literal Way with Pleafure.

5

NUMERATION

T

Eaches to place, or give the juft Value, to any Number demanded; to do which, obferve the following Table.

In the Table above you see how each Place exceeds the former ten times, increasing towards the left Hand. The firft is the Place of Units, the fe cond of Tens, the third of Hundreds, &c.

ADDITION

Is the gathering feveral Numbers into one, which is then called the Sum or the Aggregate; as 6 and 8 are 14.

Addition begins at the right Hand, and adds the particular Sums of the feveral Rows underneath every one in its own Place.

In the first Example, the Sum of the first Row is 26; I place down the 6 under itself, and carry 2, being the Number of the Tens to the next Row, and find the Sum of it to be twenty, then I place down a Cypher, and carry two to the next Row, and find the Sum to be 31. I place down the 1, and carry 3 to the last Row, and the Sum is 30, which I place down, and it is done. And fo of the reft.

Addition