PROCEEDINGS 



OF 



THE ROYAL IRISH ACADEMY. 



1838—1839. No. 14. 



November 12. 



SIR Wm. R. HAMILTON, President, in the Chair. 

 Rev. Matthew Horgan ; George Alexander Frazer, Esq. ; 

 Sir Joseph O'Halloran, K. C. B. ; and Halliday Bruce, 

 Esq., were elected Members. 



Miss Caroline Herschel was elected an Honorary Mem- 

 ber. 



Sir W. Betham read a paper in answer to certain objec- 

 tions made to the statements in his former papers on Etruscan 

 Mirrors, and on the fifth Eugubian Table. 



Professor Kane read a note on the Theory of the Ethers. 



In a late number of the Annalender Pharmacies Professor 

 Liebig asserted that Dr. Kane should relinquish his claim to 

 the discovery of the Ethyl Theory, in favour of Berzelius, on 

 two grounds, — first, that Dr. Kane's view was not originally 

 more definite than that of Dumas, and did not possess the 

 completeness in which it was brought forward by Berzelius ; 

 and second, that Dr. Kane had taken no part in the subse- 

 quent discussions about the theory, had on many occasions 

 shown indifference towards its establishment, and fluctuated 

 between the old and new views. In the notice submitted to 

 the Academy, Dr. Kane undertook to show the incorrect- 

 ness of Professor Liebig's observations. 



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