8 BEPORT — 1841. 



distinct allegation of a relevant deviation from propriety on my part, and 

 certainly without an attempt on his part to try the validity of any justification, 

 taken extreme measures against me, and then, in fact, arbitrarily passed and 

 executed sentence upon me before trial, or even a relevant or distinct 

 charge. Such a line of conduct in my opinion savours of persecution, and 

 is certainly at direct variance with British ideas of justice, and I am confi- 

 dent that the British Association for the Advancement and Encouragement of 

 Science will never sanction for an instant such a total subversion of the fun- 

 damental bond of union of the Association. 



" I am. Gentlemen, your obedient servant, 



(Signed) " Alexander Nasmyth." 



In September the volume of the Transactions was published, containing 

 in its sectional notices, the title of Mr. Nasmyth's papers read at the Bir- 

 mingham Meeting, but, as in the case of many other papers in that volume, 

 and in others, without any abstract being given of their contents. 



On the 15th of September, being the earliest day on which the Council 

 could be assembled, they met at Glasgow, having before them the letters 

 above noticed, and a statement from Mr. Phillips that he had never seen either 

 of the two papers read by Mr. Nasmyth to the Medical Section. Whereupon 

 the following Resolutions were adopted : — 



1. That the Council approve of the decision of Mr. Phillips to suspend the 

 publication of Mr. Nasmyth's paper, pending an appeal to the Council 

 from Professor Owen, relative to the correctness of Mr. Nasmyth's report 

 of that paper. 



2. That it be referred to the President and other officers of the Medical Sec- 

 lion at Birmingham, to decide whether the report of Mr. Nasmyth's paper, 

 as published in the Literary Gazette and Athenaeum, or in either of those 

 periodicals, or the report of that paper sent by Mr. Nasmyth to Mr. Phil- 

 lips for publication in the ' Report of the Ninth Meeting of the Associa- 

 tion held at Birmingham,' is more correct in regard to the points under 

 discussion between Professor Owen and Mr. Nasmyth, and that the Presi- 

 dent of the Medical Section be requested to communicate the result to the 

 Council at his earliest convenience. 



3. That these Resolutions be communicated to Professor Owen and Mr. 

 Nasmyth. 



On the 1 9th of November the Report of the Referees was received by the 

 Council : it was as follows : — 



Reference having been made to us by a Council of the British Association 

 for our opinion whether the report of Mr. Nasmyth's paper, as published in 

 the Literary Gazette and Athenaeum, or in either of those two periodicals, 

 or the report of that paper sent by Mr. Nasmyth to Mr. Phillips for publica- 

 tion in the Report of the Ninth Meeting of the Association, held at Birming- 

 ham, is more correct with regard to the points under discussion between 

 Professor Owen and Mr. Nasmyth, we have carefully examined these seve- 

 ral documents, and it appears to us that the main point under discussion 

 between these two gentlemen is, whether the account of the process of den- 

 tition, contained in Mr. Nasmyth's paper, did or did not comprise the theory 

 that the ivory of the teeth is formed by the ossification of the pulp. We 

 find, with reference to this question, that in the accounts of Mr. Nasmyth's 

 paper, given in the Literary Gazette and Athenaeum, his opinions on that 

 subject are involved in considerable ambiguity ; for, while some passages in 

 them would imply that he considered the proper substance of the teeth as 



