Dr. Morton, surgeon dentist of Boston, in America, administered sulphuric ether, by inhalation, to a man in his office, on the 30th of September, 1846, and extracted a tooth without causing any pain. He applied the ether in several cases of a similar kind during the next few days. Having obtained the permission of Dr. J. C. Warren, he administered it to a patient in the Massachusetts General Hospital, on whom that surgeon performed an operation on the neck. On the following day, Dr. Morton exhibited ether to a woman in the same hospital, whilst Dr. Hayward removed a large fatty tumour from the arm, and after this date it was frequently administered. Dr. Morton was well acquainted with Mr. Horace Wells, before alluded to, and had been in partnership with him. Before administering the ether to his patient in September 30th, Dr. Morton had a conversation with Dr. Charles J. Jackson, Professor of Chemistry, respecting the safety and propriety of the application, and the names of these gentlemen were associated in a patent which they took out for the discovery. Dr. Jackson asserts that Dr. Morton knew nothing of the effects of the vapour of ether till he gave him the information; whilst the latter says it was his intention to use the ether before he went into Dr. Jackson’s laboratory. It seems impossible to arrive at the exact truth on this point, but it is admitted on all hands, that Morton was the first who administered ether to prevent the pain of an operation. Dr. Jackson[32] has indeed claimed the whole merit of the discovery, on the ground of the alleged information he gave to Dr. Morton; but, if every word Dr. Jackson says be admitted, it only appears that he suggested the use of ether to Dr. Morton, just as Sir Humphrey Davy had suggested the use of nitrous oxide to all the world in the year 1800. Dr. Jackson had inhaled ether as hundreds of others had done, and being aware of Davy’s suggestion of nitrous oxide for preventing the pain of operations, he concluded that ether might also have that effect. It will be shown further on that Mr. Waldie, of Liverpool, had a greater share in the introduction of chloroform than Dr. Jackson had in the introduction of ether—even supposing that Dr. Morton was previously quite ignorant of that medicine; for when he informed Dr. Simpson of the existence and nature of chloroform, he was able to give him, not merely an opinion, but an almost certain knowledge of its effects; yet Dr. Simpson is justly considered to be the person who discovered and introduced the use of undiluted chloroform as a substitute for ether.