On the Origin of the Jllom'ic Theory. 415 



tlcal form in which it originally appeared, except that of chan- 

 ging my diagrams into symbols, and leaving out the numbers in 

 my diagrams, the importance of which was already explained. 

 This omission was, no doulit, in order to disguise ; and the same 

 omission is still contiimed for the same purpose. It is nmch to 

 be lamented that this beautiful doctrine should be mutilated of 

 its best feature, in order to conceal the marks by wliich its right- 

 ful possessor might have laid claim to his property. During 

 my investigations in niy Comparative Vieiv, I could accomplish 

 nothing of anv consequence without a knowledge of these relative 

 forces. In short, they must be restored to the science, in spite of 

 all interested attempts at their suppression. 



Dr. Thomsnn steps forward as the advocate of Mr. Dalton, 

 while he himself stands trembling and silent at the bar of justice. 

 I'nfortunatclv for the Doctor, he embarked in a very unjust cause 

 which will never afford him credit, but draw on him the disap- 

 probation of every friend to justice and liberality. 



\^'hat prevented Mr. Dalton himself from coming forward in 

 his own defence, when Sir H. Davy, very honourably, first an- 

 nounced to the chemical world that I was the original author of 

 the Atomic Theory, or when I published my Atomic Theory in 

 IS 14, which claimed that doctrine; or when Dr.Crean, of Boston 

 in England, took notice of it in the Philosophical Magazine, 

 some time i)cfore the above work was written ? 



The Doctor in defence of his friend, in his Annals of Philoso- 

 phy, asserts many things which he could not substantiate ; and 

 when he found that Dalton nmst renounce his pretensions to 

 the Atoujic Theory, or that of definite proportions, he endea- 

 vours to tear it in pieces, and to divide it between»Bergman, 

 Black, Cullen, Fordyce, and the Encyclopedie Mclhodique. 



It was incumbent on the Doctor to produce extracts from 

 those authors, in order to prove his positions. This no doubt 

 he would have done very rcidilv were it in his power. 



But in the above distribution he takes care to reserve a rem- 

 nant for his friend Dalton ; that is, the weighing of atoms and 

 molecules which I cut out for him, with the due proportions of 

 their respective elements. 



The Doctor takes great pains, vol. iv. p. .54, of his Annals of 

 Philosophy, to show that my Comparative View was very little 

 known or read. The following are his observations, in his own 

 words: " As far as I have had an op|)ortimity of judging, Mr. 

 lliggins's Coniparutive Fitiv was very little known to chemists 

 in general, till Sir 11. Davy published his note, claiming for it 

 the discovery of the Atomic Theory. I myself met with a copy 

 of it by accident in \l^'f<. I never met with a single person in 

 E(linb<irgli who had read it: nor were any of the London che- 

 mists. 



