24 THE LATE MR. WILLIAM STURGEON ON 



small, they were invariably positive; showing that the air, 

 in this instance, retained its normal electric character (its 

 electric state during severe weather), though much disturbed 

 by neighbouring clouds and distant lightning. With respect 

 to the disturbance from the latter cause, it was very marked 

 on the present occasion, and its effects, in some of the in- 

 stances I have to mention, although not often observed, are 

 such as are always to be dreaded from vicinal flashes of 

 lightning. 



During my experiments at the kite-string, I had the com- 

 pany of the Rev. W. W. Johnson, who assisted me in carrying 

 them on. After ascertaining the electric state of the air and 

 its vacillating intensity, my attention was drawn to the distant 

 lightning, which was now very fine; and its disturbing in- 

 fluence was soon discovered to extend to the place of observa- 

 tion. The wire connected with the ground was placed at a 

 certain distance from the conductor of the string, and the 

 frequency of the sparks observed. At times no sparks were 

 transmitted, at other times an abundance of them were dis- 

 charged through the interval within a few moments. On 

 comparing these fluctuations with the intervals between the 

 lightning flashes, we each took a separate part in the observa- 

 tions. I looked out for the lightning, and announced each 

 flash by the word "when;" whilst Mr. Johnson kept his eye 

 on the apparatus. Whilst I was silent, scarcely any sparks 

 appeared; but a shower of them were discharged from the 

 kite-string whenever I announced a flash of lightning : thus 

 showing by the concurrence of the events, that there existed 

 a rigid connection between the primitive and secondary dis- 

 charges. 



Phenomena of this class are by no means of recent dis- 

 covery, though not often shown in this manner; and have 

 generally been considered as primitive rather than secondary 

 events. The easiest way of ascertaining an electric disturb- 

 ance, by the influence of a distant flash of lightning, is by 



