92 Biographical Account of 



the higher the intensity of the electricity, the less difficulty 

 it has in passing through bad conductors ; that the con- 

 ducting power of metallic bodies, is lower in some inverse 

 ratio as the temperature is higher, and that the generation 

 of heat by electricity, in the case of metals, is nearly 

 inversely as their conducting powers. 



After the close of the session of the society in 1821, he 

 repaired to Ireland, to enjoy his favourite pastime, a country 

 which he never entered without feeling his spirits rise, 

 partly from the kindness of heart, which he always ex- 

 perienced there, and partly from the original and diverting 

 nature of the people. 



On his return to London, he occupied himself with 

 scientific research, the results of which were published 

 in the Transactions, under the title of " On the electrical 

 Phenomena exhibited in vacuo." His principal inferences 

 from his experiments are, that electricity and magnetism 

 can exist in the most complete vacuum, their attractions 

 and repulsions in vacuo, being exercised much in the, same 

 manner as in the atmosphere, while in reference to heat 

 and light his conclusion was, that they cannot exist in vacuo. 

 During the winter he visited Penzance, where he obtained 

 a hearty welcome, and was honoured by a public dinner at 

 which fifty gentlemen sat dowm. 



During 1822, he communicated to the society a paper 

 *' on the state of water and aeriform matter in cavities 

 found in certain crystals." He found the air in these 

 crystals to resemble azote, and the water to be nearly pure. 

 In the course of the summer, he re-visited Scotland, where 

 he spent some time in fishing and shooting amid the high- 

 land mountains. At Christmas he visited Wales, and inves- 

 tigated the nature of the effluvia emitted from the great 

 copper works in the neighbourhood of Swansea. 



In the spring of 1823, he read his paper to the society, 

 ** On a new Phenomenon of Electro Magnetism." The 

 phenomenon referred to those rotatory actions now so 

 familiar to all- who have paid any attention to the recent 

 progress of electrical science. He concludes the paper 

 by an act of justice to Dr. Wollaston, pointing out how 

 the discovery of the rotations of the electro magnet wire 



