James  Smithson. 
Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
April,  1904. 
ate  and  silicate  of  zinc  were  confounded  as  one  species  under  the 
name  '  calamine ; '  but  his  researches  distinguish  between  the  two 
minerals,  which  are  now  known  as  Smithsonite  and  calamine,  respect- 
ively. To  theory,  Smithson  contributed  little,  if  anything  ;  but,  from 
a  theoretical  point  of  view,  the  tone  of  the  writings  is  singularly 
modern.  His  work  was  mostly  done  before  Dalton  had  announced 
the  atomic  theory ;  and  yet  Smithson  saw  clearly  that  a  law  of 
definite  proportions  must  exist,  although  he  did  not  attempt  to 
account  for  it.  His  ability  as  a  reasoner  is  best  shown  in  his  paper 
upon  the  Kirkdale  bone  cave,  which  Penn  had  sought  to  interpret  by 
reference  to  the  Noachian  deluge.  A  clearer  and  more  complete 
demolition  of  Penn's  views  could  hardly  be  written  to-day.  Smith- 
son  was  gentle  with  his  adversary,  but  none  the  less  thorough  for 
all  his  moderation.  He  is  not  to  be  classed  among  the  leaders  of 
scientific  thought;  but  his  ability  and  the  usefulness  of  his  contribu- 
tions to  knowledge  cannot  be  doubted." 
His  published  papers  were  as  follows: 
Smithsonian  Institution. 
