1§0 EXPERIMENTS ON THE ELECTRIC FILE. 



rior to the more by moiftening the pafleboards with fulphuric, nitric,' and 



powerful acids. muriatic acids, both in a concentrated ftate, and more or lei's 



diluted. The particulars are not given, but the refults are 



faid not to have favoured the fuppofition, on a companion of 



the intenfities, (hocks, or fparks ; all of which were flronger 



when muriate of ammonia was employed, than when nitric 



acid was ufed., either concentrated or diluted, by which the 



two metals was very fpeedily oxidated. As nothing is faid 



here on the fujion of wire, this does not appear to have been 



tried. 



Ammonia alone Ammonia alone being ufed to moiften the pafteboards, the 



not equal to the e fif e a s produced were all lefs than with its muriate. 



muriate. _ . ... , ,.„ 



Effects of the Experiments were hkewile made in vacuo, and in different 



pile in the air, a j rs# y| ie apparatus employed very readily produces a 

 bonated hidrogen vacuum in which the barometer fails to below one line ; but in 

 gas, and in azote this inftance the vapor produced by the water of the pile 

 gas, eq . kept the quickfilver at the height of five lines. Between the 

 effects produced in the open air, in this vacuum, in car- 

 bonated hidrogen gas, and in azote gas, no difference could 

 but In pure oxi- be difcovered. On the introduction of pure oxigen gas, 

 gen gas much however, the fparks were much larger, more brilliant, and 

 eafier to be obtained : but on making a vacuum after this, the 

 fhocks were feebler, and the fparks frnaller, than they had- 

 been in any of the former in fiances. Oxigen gas being in- 

 troduced a fecond time, its effects were as powerful as before ; 

 the cylinder being emptied again, the effects of the pile were 

 reduced as much as before : and on letting in atmofpheric 

 air they were -reflored to the fame degree nearly as in the 

 former experiments. 

 A pile with pot- An experiment of the Doctor was directed toafcertain the 

 am was very prefence of oxidation in the ufe of a very concentrated folu- 

 Aewed no oxi- tion of potafh in a pile of twelve pairs of five inches fquare, 

 dation. which produced much more effect than another iimilar pile 



with water only. But on feparaling the pile neither the cop- 

 per nor the zinc had fuffered any injury in their polith. The 

 Doctor does does not fay how long the pile flood together. 

 Very large pile Laftly, The galvanic apparatus was increafed to 200 pair9 

 of five inches f z ; nc an( j CO pper in fix connected piles of five inches fquare 

 each. With this he i'ufed an iron wire, No. 16, of twenty- 

 three inches entirely into globules, and ignited the whole of 

 another piece of thirty-three inches. 

 • V The 



