The honours which were thus crowding upon him from every quarter, were completed by his election to the pre sidency of the Royal Society, on the death of James West, Esq. The satisfaction which he gave in this dignified ca pacity, has been so much spoken of, and excited so much interest, that we shall lay before our readers the account of his presidency, which has been drawn up the late Dr. Charles Hutton.
" He happily also struck out a new way to distinction and usefulness, by the discourses which were delivered by him, on the annual assignment of Sir Godfrey Copley's medal. This gentleman had originally bequeathed five guineas, to be given at each anniversary meeting of the Royal Society, by the determination of the president and council, to the person who should be the author of the best paper of experimental observations for the year. In process of time, this pecuniary reward, which could never be an important consideration to a man of an enlarged and philosophical mind, however narrow his circumstan ces might be, was changed into the more liberal form of a gold medal ; in which form it is become a truly honourable mark of distinction, and a just and laudable object of ambition. No doubt it was always usual for the president, on the delivery of the medal, to pay some compliment to the gentleman on whom it was bestowed; but the custom of making a set speech on the occasion, and of entering into the history of that part of philoso phy to which the experiments, or the subject of the pa per related, was first introduced by Martin Folkes, Esq. The discourses, however, which he and his successors delivered, were very short, and were only inserted in the minute books of the Society. None of them had ever been printed before Sir John Pringle was raised to the chair. The first speech that was made by him being much more elaborate and extended than usual, the publication of it was desired ; and with this request, it is said, he was the more ready to comply, as an absurd account of what he had delivered had appeared in a newspaper. Sir John was very happy in the subject of his first discourse. The disco veries in magnetism and electricity had been succeeded by the inquiries into the various species of air. In these in quiries, Dr. Priestley, who had already greatly distinguish ed himself by his electrical experiments, and his other phi losophical pursuits and labours, took the principal lead.
A paper of his, entitled, Observations on different Kinds of Air, having been read before the Society in March, 1772, was adjudged to be deserving of the gold medal ; and Sir John Pringle embraced with pleasure the occasion of cele brating the important communications of his friend, and of relating with accuracy and fidelity what had previously been discovered upon the subject.
" It was not intended, we believe, when Sir John's first speech was printed, that the example should be followed; but the second discourse was so well received by the So ciety, that the publication of it was unanimously requested. Both the discourse itself, and the subject on which it was delivered, merited such a distinction. The composition of the second speech is evidently superior to that of the former one ; Sir John having probably been animated by the favourable reception of his first effort. His account of the Torpedo, and of Mr. Walsh's ingenious and ad mirable experiments relative to the electrical properties of that extraordinary fish, is singularly curious. The whole discourse abounds with ancient and modern learning, and exhibits the worthy president's knowledge in natural his tory, as well as in medicine, to great advantage.
" The third time that he was called upon to display his abilities at the delivery of the annual medal, was on a very very beautiful and important occasion. This was no less than Mr. (now Dr.) Al askelyne's successful attempt com pletely to establish Newton's system. of the universe, by his Observations made on the Mountain Schehallien, for finding its Attraction. Sir John laid hold of this oppor tunity to give a perspicuous and accurate relation of the several hypotheses of the ancients, with regard to the re volutions of the heavenly bodies, and of the noble dis coveries with which Copernicus enriched the astronomical world. He then traces the progress of the grand principle of gravitation down to Sir Isaac's illustrious confirmation of it ; to which he adds a concise account of Messrs. Bou guer's and Condamine's experiment at Chimboraco, and of Mr. Maskelyne's at Schehailicn. If any doubts still re mined with respect to the truth of the Newtonian system, they were now completely removed.