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BOOK REVIEW
The Book of Presidents 1865–1965 This lovely little book is one of the best the London Mathematical Society has published. It is packed with interesting and well-organised information about the Society. Its substance is contained in the 100 pages devoted to the first 50 presidents. Traditionally the president has always been chosen from amongst the members who are Fellows of the Royal Society. They hold office for two years. Each president who served in the period 1865 to 1965 is described in two pages, a photograph and, facing it, a one-page biography supplemented with full reference to the contemporary obituaries published by the LMS and/or the Royal Society (or, rarely, other sources) on which it was based. They form a multiset of people since G. H. Hardy served twice. This gallery of presidents is supplemented with a wealth of useful introductory material and appendices. There is an unusually informative preface by Robert Curtis, followed by a list of sources of the pictures, a chronology of the LMS, and a general history of the LMS in the form of an Introduction by Adrian Rice. Following the 50 presidents 1865–1965 we find brief accounts of the 21 presidents 1965–2005, a list of the published versions of presidential addresses, a list of the De Morgan medallists with photographs and biographies of those who did not also serve as president, a list of honorary members of the Society, a glossary and an index. This is a book that can – and should – both be read from cover to cover and dipped into. Reading it through from first page to last one gains a clear view of the history of an important institution, albeit a view which is focused through a round-up of its presidents. Dipping into it randomly one sees some of the quirks and oddities that make an important institution human. The introduction by Adrian Rice, who, with Robin Wilson, is one of the main historians of the LMS, provides the correcting lens which helps clarify the reader’s understanding of the origins and development of the Society, setting the presidents into their context and giving the wider picture. Professor Rice describes the background to the founding of the Society by George De Morgan and Arthur Ranyard, famously supported and assisted by George’s father, Augustus De Morgan, the first president; he sets the new Society into its national and international context; he discusses the growth of the Society and of its publishing business; he discusses the evolution and changing character of the Society as applied mathematics gradually played less and less of a part in its meetings and its publications; he discusses the changes of fortune of the Society over the years; he discusses the contributions of some of the great but relatively unknown officers, as well as the contributions and the influence of much better known members such as G. H. Hardy. The first 50 presidents come over as an engaging lot. Most names are still familiar; some, but only a few, would be forgotten were it not for this book and the serial publication of their photographs by Jeremy Gray, Susan Oakes and Alan Pears in the LMS Newsletter from the late 1980s onwards (out of which this book has grown). One aspect of the collection is a stark reminder of a disturbing fact about mathematical society (both in the narrow and in the broader sense): only one president in the first 100 years was a woman, namely M. L. Cartwright 1961–63; moreover, our present president, F. C. Kirwan, is only the second woman to hold the office. Another is the picture it sketches of social and economic change. In the early days we see a businessman, a civil servant, an ex-solicitor amateur scientist, a judge, a schoolteacher, and a barrister serving as president, whereas from 1894 onwards all presidents have been academics of one kind or another. On a similar theme, the portraits alone illustrate changing fashion, or perhaps clear signs of the implementation of cutting-edge research: we see 13 of the first 17 presidents (1865–1900) wearing beards and 13 of the 18 presidents 1890–1926 wearing moustaches – whereas only 7 of the first 36 presidents were clean-shaven, only one of the last 13 male presidents 1935–1965 sported facial hair. Two of the most devoted and effective recent servants of the LMS are responsible for the majority of this book. We owe to Susan Oakes not only the smooth and efficient running of the Society for a very long time, but also the initiative to bring the valuable Tucker collection of photographs up to date. We owe to Alan Pears not only his long years of efficient and friendly service in various capacities, in particular in the important and demanding role of Meetings and Membership Secretary, but also his initiative in compiling the biographies that go with the pictures. They are to be congratulated on what they have created here. In his Preface Robert Curtis writes ‘It is hoped that in 2015, when the Society celebrates its sesquicentenary, the book will be updated with a double-page entry devoted to each of the first 75 presidents.’ He does not tell us who is doing the hoping. I can, however, prove the truth of his assertion: even if no-one else were, I am. A second hope (and expectation) should be added, however, namely that there will then be a considerable number of the more recent one-page biographies that will not have been compiled from obituaries. Another hope is expressed by Robert Curtis at the end of his Preface: ‘that this volume will make LMS members proud of their Society, and non-members aware of the significant role the Society has played in the development of British mathematics.’ I am confident that all members of the Society, and indeed, all readers of this remarkable book, will share these three hopes. Peter M Neumann Editors’ note: The book may be ordered on your annual subscription renewal form enclosed with this Newsletter.
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