Mr. R. Phillips on Electricity and Steam. 495 



ing a communication for a moment between the earth and the 

 plate, and then shutting off the steam. 



60. When the brass tube was on the end of the gun-barrel, 

 the leaf seldom returned to its starting-point when the current 

 of steam was stopped, and the instrument appeared to have ac- 

 quired a permanent charge, which was negative, and appeared 

 to go on increasing with the time that the steam was allowed 

 to escape. It was found, too, that as the inducleous plate was 

 removed in a direction perpendicular to the path of the steam, 

 the first-mentioned effect of induction rapidly diminished, but 

 that the power which appeared to give the permanent charge 

 scarcely underwent any alteration, even when the distance from 

 the path of the steam was increased to 9 inches, the greatest 

 distance the apparatus would allow. I have but little doubt 

 that this apparently permanent charge was principally pro- 

 duced by the inductric action of the steam-cloud. 



61. From the foregoing it is seen that the jet of steam im- 

 parts positive electricity to any substance that it touches, while 

 at the same time the steam, as a whole, may be more or less 

 negative. These facts will very well comport with the idea 

 that the particles of water are positive and the gaseous matter 

 negative; hence when the current passes through a tube or 

 touches a piece of wire-gauze, the particles of water become 

 more or less separated from the air and vapour, leaving them 

 negative. That the negative electricity of the gaseous matter 

 is not immediately transferred to the particles of water, is, I 

 suppose, due to the non-conducting power of gases. 



62. When these electric effects are being produced by the 

 jet of steam, a peculiar rough sound is heard, which is de- 

 pendent on the tlischarge of water with the steam; for when 

 the jet was screwed into the cock of the boiler, I never heard 

 any other sound than a smooth sibilation; and when water 

 was discharged with the steam, if its quantity was not qiute 

 sufficient, the smooth hiss only was obtained. At such times, 

 the steam, as it issued from the jet, on being examined, was 

 found to be, for the distance of -^-th of an inch from the end of 

 the jet, transparent, with the exception of a thread-like appear- 

 ance of cloud extending through the clear steam parallel to its 

 path. Presently, from a lowering of the pressure, or other 

 cause, this little cloud expanded all round the jet, and then 

 looked like a frustum of a little right cone of cloud stuck on 

 the end of the brass jet, the roar being at the same time per- 

 fectly developed. These effects were obtained without any 

 tube before the jet. 



63. With the arrangement described (51.) very instructive 

 results were occasionally obtained; the tube was connected 



