Letter to Sir David Brewster : on his unfounded assignment of Mr. Fearn's moral, in his correspondence with Professor Stewart, on his exterminating general implications of the whole of Mr. Fearn's philosophical labors, in every department, the tendency of which cannot be doubtful, and on his allegation before the British Association, met at Oxford in June 1832 : along with which is given, a refutation of Sir David Brewster's optical attack on the treatise of cerebral vision : the whole comprising a third supplement to that treatise / by John Fearn.

  • Fearn, John, 1768-1837.
Date:
[1832]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Letter to Sir David Brewster : on his unfounded assignment of Mr. Fearn's moral, in his correspondence with Professor Stewart, on his exterminating general implications of the whole of Mr. Fearn's philosophical labors, in every department, the tendency of which cannot be doubtful, and on his allegation before the British Association, met at Oxford in June 1832 : along with which is given, a refutation of Sir David Brewster's optical attack on the treatise of cerebral vision : the whole comprising a third supplement to that treatise / by John Fearn. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

    51/53 (page 47)
    Upon this, therefore, I appeal to the honor, the dignity, and the justice, of the British Association. And here, first, repeating your allegation in their presence in June, 1832, that, “ so far as you know, the production of light hy pressure on the eye-ball has never been carefully examined;'’ I now most earnestly call upon their justice, that they will adjudge this case.^ In the instance of a certain investigation before a great Assembly, within memory, an individual of rank, in deli- vering his evidence, by some confusion of thought on the spur of the moment, expressed himself in terms which surprised all who heard him. What, then, did that As- sembly deem it due to justice, and to their own honor, to order upon the occasion ?—But that individual was not speaking as a member of the Assembly ; he was only giv- ing his evidence as a stranger: Whereas, you have ex- pressed yourself, in the manner and extent above quoted, as a member of the British Association, in its presence and enjoying its confidence that none of its members, un- der that sanction, would approach an overstepping of a well-weighed and accurate allegation.—It is plain that no honorable member present could entertain a suspicion, that any labors existed which could cast the slightest cloud over the disk of your averment. * In that allegation, you have concealed from your hearers your hostility to me, by concealing my labors and name. But, in your “ Natural Magic,” (page 48,) you have again given way to another hurst, in avowal of it. — Speaking of “ impressions on the retina;”—^you add—“ Here we reach the gulf which human intelli- “ gence cannot pass, and if the presumptuous mind of man shall “ dare to extend its speculations farther, it will do it only to evince “ its incapacity, and mortify its pride.”—From this startling pitch of language, so foreign to the general tone of your amusing style, it is shewn that you can change, from the tone of friendly advice, to that of disrecognition ; and again to the stern expression of re- sentment, as suits the occasion : And also shewn, that the spirit of ruin to my credit will not cease of its own accord.