Clausius stumbled into the controversy quite accidentally when Tyndall had asked him to send him all von Mayer's papers. However Clausius then published an article in 1868 stating that not only did von Mayer have priority but so did the German nation.
Clausius stumbled sa alitan lubos sinasadyang kapag Tyndall may nagtanong sa kanya upang ipadala sa kanya lahat ng von Mayer ng mga papeles. Subalit Clausius pagkatapos ay nai-publish ng isang article sa 1868 na nagpapahiwatig na hindi lamang did von Mayer magkaroon ng prayoridad ngunit ito ay ang Aleman bansa.