Full Idea
What matters in mathematics is not the intrinsic nature of our terms, but the logical nature of their interrelations.
Gist of Idea
What matters is the logical interrelation of mathematical terms, not their intrinsic nature
Source
Bertrand Russell (Introduction to Mathematical Philosophy [1919], VI)
Book Reference
Russell,Bertrand: 'Introduction to Mathematical Philosophy' [George Allen and Unwin 1975], p.59
A Reaction
If they have an instrinsic nature, that would matter far more, because that would dictate the interrelations. Structuralism seems to require that they don't actually have any intrinsic nature.