3. On the Recent Vindication of the Priority of Cavendish as the Discoverer of the Composition of Water

Extract

The object of this communication was to direct attention to the recent recovery of two documents establishing the priority of Cavendish as the discoverer of the composition of water. Their importance was indicated by the late Mr Robert Brown, the botanist, and his literary executor, Mr J. J. Bennett of the British Museum, has brought them before the Royal Society of London. They are both, contrary to general expectation, published statements contained in well-known works.