S26 
Amongotherthings, itappears, that he was 
@ warm friend and admirer of the celebrated, 
theugh unfortunate, Dr. Brown. It ap- 
pears aifo, that he was curator of the ex- 
perim<ntal committee, and member of the 
Hibrary committee of the Royal Medical 
Society; and one of a committee with 
Beddoes, now of Cli‘ton, and Mackintofh, 
of Lincoln’s Inn, of the rights and privi- 
Teges of ftudents refiding in the city. 
He took the degree of Doétor of Phyfic 
$n 1786, on which eccafion he defended a 
differtation on ‘*‘ Generation;” a piece in 
which he adopted dialler’s doétrine of the 
evolution of germs. This being done, he 
made a tour to the eaftern paris cf Scot- 
Jand, and to the Highiands, and returned, 
after vifting Glafgew, and many other 
places, to London, travelling deliberately 
through the country all the while. During 
thefe cxcurfions, the lakes in Dunbarton- 
fhire and in Weftmorland did net efcape 
his notice. From London be made a num- 
ber of excurfons; and, ameng others, 
walked, in company with his friend Mr. 
Dunlap, now manager of the theatre at 
New York, to Oxford, Woodfieck, &c. 
and back again. He afterwards went to 
Bath; and proceeded, in 1787, by the way 
f Falmouth, to New York. 
The fame year, he publifhed fome expe- 
yimenis on evaporation, intended as a con- 
tinuation of thefe made by the Bifhop of 
Landaff; and his difcovery of mufcular 
fibres in the abforbent vefiels of certain 
teftaceous animals and cther vermes. 
Soon after this, he determined to apply 
~himfelf ro the fiudy of the law, and remov- 
ed-for that purpofe to Albany. In this 
he was greatly affifted by the friendfhip of 
Mr. Chief Juftice Yates. In 1788, we 
find-him buficd among the commiffioners 
holding a treaty with the Endians of the Six 
Wations at Fort Stanwix; at which the 
unconfii uticnal fales cf land made by the 
natives to an afiociation, calling them. 
feives the Geneflee Company, were invall- 
dated; andthe right of foil, except certain 
fpecificd relervations, purchaled for the 
_government of the ftate of New York. 
During his refidenceat Albany, he made 
var‘ous excurfions; end, among ethers, 
"one to Lake Ontario, and another to Que- 
bec, in both which his companion was 
Mr. Stephen Van Renpallaer, now Lieute- 
nant Governor of ihe State. Thefe tours 
are eminently interefting to every perfon 
who withes to view the fcenes of the 
great a€tions and events on the frontiers 
during the wars, when the fates of Ame- 
rica were Britith colonies, and Canada be- 
longed to the monarchy of France. The 
leg flature of the ftate being in fefiion at 
At 
fe Account of Dr. WMitchill, 
bers of aflembly for Queen’s County. 
Jan a, 
Albany about this time, he was permitted 
by Mr. Clinton, then governor of the itate, 
to gain infight into public affairs by keep- 
ing the minutes of the council for reviling 
the biils about to be pafied into laws. 
About this time, his experiments on the 
Saratoga Mineral Waters were made, the 
more ftriking and popular of which have 
been printed over and over in the pericdi 
cal publications. : 
In 1789, the death of his father deter. 
mined him to refide at Plandeme, the place 
of his birth ; and in 1790, at the general 
election, he was returned cne of the mem- 
In 
1791, he attended the ‘eifions as a member 
at the City of New York; and,.as ap- 
pears by the Journal of the Affembly, was, 
among other empleyments, one of the 
committee for reporting on expiring fta- 
tutes, and of the committee for making 
the new apportionment of additional re- 
prefentatives, according to the cenius as 
direG&ied in the State-conftiiution. Mr. 
Watts was then {peaker of the houfe. 
Having, during his refidence on Longe 
Ifland (forQveen’sCounty is on that ifland)- 
applied himilelf to pradtical agriculture, we 
find him engaged next with Mr..R. R. 
Livingfton, the Chancellor, and Mr. S. de 
Witt, the Surveyor-General of the State, 
and a number of members of the legiflacute, 
in-eftablifhine a feciety fer the promeoticn 
of agriculture, uleful arts, and -manufac- 
tures. Before this fociety he delivered 
the firft public addrefs, which has been 
fince publ:fhed in the firit volume of their 
Tranfadiions. The fociery was afterwards 
incorporated, and its meetings connected 
with the meetings of the legiilature. The 
fenators and eflembly-mén for the time 
being are deelared to be honcraty mem- 
bers of this fociety. ‘“Two-other volumes 
of Tranfattions have Since appeared. 
Daring this. year, Mr. Mitehill was 
eleéted-a Member of the American Philo- 
{ephical Society, held at Philadelphia; 
and likewife appointed a captain of light 
infantry in the militia then organizing in 
the part of the county where he refided. 
Abeut this time alfo, he received a certif- 
cate of enrollment amoag the Members of 
the Reyal Society of Arts.and Sciences: at 
Cape Francois, an inftitution at that time 
enterprifing and refpectable, but now par- 
taking of the ruins of all regular eftablifh. 
ments in that ‘difiraGed colony. 
In 1792, the trufiees of Columbia Col- 
lege, defirous of enlarging the plan of in- 
firuGtion in that feminary, eftabiifhed.an 
additional proftflorfhip of natural hiftory, 
chemiftry, and agriculiure,and appointed 
Mr. Mitchill to the chair. Dhis appoint- 
ment 
