Autograph letter signed to George M. Folsom

Autograph letter signed to George M. Folsom, with Jackson's wax seal in the lower left corner. 1 page plus integral blank. Boston, 23 January 1852. 244 x 187 mm. Creased where previously folded, but fine otherwise. From Charles T. Jackson, discoverer of ether anesthesia and noted American geologist, to George M. Folsom, probably George McKean Folsom (1837-82), a Unitarian minister in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Writing shortly after returning from New York, "where I have been giving a few lectures on the Science of Geology," Jackson "offer[s] . . . a specimen of my very poor chirography, feeling highly complimented by the wish, you have kindly expressed, that I should do so." Jackson also sent Folsom "a copy of my anniversary address delivered before the American Institute, at the Tabernacle in the City of New York," containing "some suggestions . . . that I hope may prove useful to our Country & to the cause of Science." Jackson's address, delivered on 16 October 1851, was published on pages 228-246 of the Annual Report of the American Institute of the City of New York (1852); interestingly, it included a recommendation that the United States establish a national academy of sciences. .…