4-21-35. Thomas Craig to H. Poincaré

March 12/92

American Journal of Mathematics

Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, Md.

My dear M. Poincaré,

The paper on Fonctions à espaces lacunaires has arrived and is now in the hands of the printer.11endnote: 1 Poincaré (1892). I thank you for it very much. I hope you will soon be able to send me the one on functions of two variables. I have made several attempts to read it in its present form and have had very little success, so I look forward with interest to your enlargement of it.22endnote: 2 Craig is most likely referring to Poincaré (1883). Do you think of taking up non-uniform functions again? I think your memoir on those functions is also rather too condensed for the ordinary reader. I have had much pleasure in giving to my class an exposition of your memoir on the residues of double integrals.33endnote: 3 Poincaré (1887). I will finish it in very next lecture.

I have just received the letter which I enclose: I do not understand it. It is the first I have heard of “Permanent Commission” or that I had anything to do with it. Something has evidently gone astray in the mails.

Am I to understand that I am foreign member of that Permanent Commission for the United States? If such is the case I will gladly undertake the work, but I should not care very much to do it unless I am a regular member of the Commission. I hardly think that you can imagine the difficulties that will be in my way here, things are not so organized as in France or in Europe generally. Please let me know my status in the matter and also inform me of one or two other matters.

1° Am I to devote myself to the United States only or are other parts of this hemisphere included.

2° How shall I divide the work up among the men I choose as collaborators, by subjects, by Journals etc.

3° Are all the little elementary textbooks that have appeared to be recorded, their name is legion, and their value for the most part zero.44endnote: 4 Craig humorously refers to the Biblical episode of the Gadarene swine (Mark 5:9). Please inform me on these points as soon as possible. I have several men in my mind who I shall ask to assist me.

As ever my dear M. Poincaré,

Yours most sincerely,

T. Craig

ALS 4p. Collection particulière, Paris 75017.

Time-stamp: "28.01.2021 13:47"

Notes

  • 1 Poincaré (1892).
  • 2 Craig is most likely referring to Poincaré (1883).
  • 3 Poincaré (1887).
  • 4 Craig humorously refers to the Biblical episode of the Gadarene swine (Mark 5:9).

References

  • H. Poincaré (1883) Sur les fonctions de deux variables. Acta mathematica 2, pp. 97–113. link1 Cited by: endnote 2.
  • H. Poincaré (1887) Sur les résidus des intégrales doubles. Acta mathematica 9, pp. 321–380. link1 Cited by: endnote 3.
  • H. Poincaré (1892) Sur les fonctions à espaces lacunaires. American Journal of Mathematics 14, pp. 201–221. link1 Cited by: endnote 1.