482 Transactions. — Miscellaneous. 



and consequently the soil was not the best adapted for this 

 experiment. 



Experiment No. 5 : A glass vessel was taken, about the 

 size of an ordinary tumbler; it was filled with earth to a 

 depth of 2|in. ; fin. of equal parts of guano and earth was 

 laid on top of the loam. On the top of this layer the mustard- 

 seeds, selected on account of their rapid growth, were put. 

 They were previously soaked in water for forty-eight hours. 

 A layer of guano and loam, in equal parts, was spread over 

 them, and in twenty-eight hours two seeds appeared above 

 the ground. Two silver plates were then placed in the earth, 

 one on each side of one of the seeds. To these plates wires 

 were connected, which conducted an intense current from a 

 battery of fourteen cells arranged in series. When the wires 

 were joined and the circuit complete, the galvanometer-needle 

 was deflected 20°. When the inch of earth was included the 

 needle was deflected 5°. In forty-eight hours more the seed 

 between the plates had grown l^in. — nearly double the growth 

 of the unelectrified one, which was fin. From this stage 

 the growth of the seed between the plates, round whose roots 

 the electricity circulated, seemed to be checked. The current 

 of electricity was then reversed, and sent through the earth in 

 the contrary direction. On the fourth day the unelectrified 

 seed caught up to and just outstripped the electrified one. 

 On the fifth day the length of the unelectrified seed was 

 3fin., and the other 2iin. high. A third seed had appeared 

 shortly after these two, and it maintained its relative posi- 

 tion with the unelectrified seed, being 2fin. in length after 

 five days. On taking out the plates each was seen to be 

 eaten away — for both were anodes in turn — and about the 

 weight of a threepenny-bit in silver was incorporated with the 

 soil in which the plant was growing. Probably the plant be- 

 came aware that it was existing on rather hard fare, and so it 

 concluded to stop trying to push ahead. Had there been a 

 vegetable substance as an anode, in place of a silver plate, it 

 is very probable the plant would have increased its first sub- 

 stantial lead. On the whole, favourable results have been 

 obtained, and, if a decomposable vegetable substance can be 

 substituted for the metal plates hitherto used, there seems 

 reason to believe more favourable results will be obtained. 



