rofessor Draper, discussing Mr. Kissam's (or is it Mr. Quizzem's?)
pretensions to the discovery, in so serious a tone.

But to return to the 'Diary' of Sir Humphrey Davy. This pamphlet was not
designed for the public eye, even upon the decease of the writer, as any
person at all conversant with authorship may satisfy himself at once by
the slightest inspection of the style. At page 13, for example, near the
middle, we read, in reference to his researches about the protoxide
of azote: 'In less than half a minute the respiration being continued,
diminished gradually and were succeeded by analogous to gentle pressure
on all the muscles.' That the respiration was not 'diminished,' is not
only clear by the subsequent context, but by the use of the plural,
'were.' The sentence, no doubt, was thus intended: 'In less than half
a minute, the respiration [being continued, these feelings] diminished
gradually, and were succeeded by [a sensation] analogous to gentle
pressure on all the muscles.' A hundred similar instances go to show
that the MS. so inconsiderately published, was merely a rough note-book,
meant only for the writer's own eye, but an inspection of the pamphlet
will convince almost any thinking person of the truth of my suggestion.
The fact is, Sir Humphrey Davy was about the last man in the world
to commit himself on scientific topics. Not only had he a more than
ordinary dislike to quackery, but he was morbidly afraid of appearing
empirical; so that, however fully he might have been convinced that he
was on the right track in the matter now in question, he would never
have spoken out, until he had every thing ready for the most practical
demonstration. I verily believe that his last moments would have been
rendered wretched, could he have suspected that his wishes in regard
to burning this 'Diary' (full of crude speculations) would have been
unattended to; as, it seems, they were. I say 'his wishes,' for that he
meant to include this note-book among the miscellaneous papers directed
'to be burnt,' I think there can be no manner of doubt. Whether it
escaped the flames by good fortune or by bad, yet remains to be seen.
That the passages quoted above, with the other similar ones referred to,
gave Von Kempelen the hint, I do not in the slightest degree question;
but I repeat, it yet remains to be seen whether this momentous discovery
itself (momentous under any circumstances) will be of service or
disservice to mankind a