348 WRITINGS OF JOSEPH HENRY. [1855- 



of the whole subject, we have been obliged to reject them 

 all as insufficient, and compelled in the present state of 

 science to adopt the only conclusion which appears to offer 

 a logical explanation of all the phenomena, namely that of 

 Peltier, which refers them not to the excitement of the air, 

 but to the inductive action of the earth primarily electrified- 



The author of this theory we are sorry to say did not re- 

 ceive that attention which his merits demanded, nor his 

 theory that consideration to which so logical and so fruitful 

 a generalization was justly entitled. Arago, in his great 

 work on the phenomena of atmospheric electricity, does not 

 allude to the labors of Peltier; the reason of which may 

 be that his work was not intended as a scientific exposition 

 of the principles of the phenomena, but merely a collection 

 and classification of observed facts. 



Peltier commenced the cultivation of science late in life 

 and since the untutored mind of the individual, like that 

 of the race, passes through a series of obscure and complex 

 imaginings before it arrives at clear and definite conceptions 

 of truth, it is not surprising that his first publications were 

 of a character to command little attention, or rather to 

 excite prejudice on account of their apparently indefinite 

 character and their want of conformity with established prin- 

 ciples. His theory of atmospheric electricity requires to be 

 translated into the ordinary language of science before it can 

 be readil}' comprehended even by those best acquainted with 

 the subject, and hence his want of appreciation may be at- 

 tributed more to the peculiarities of the individual than to 

 the fault of the directors of science in France. 



According to the theory of Peltier, the electrical phenom- 

 ena of the atmosphere are entirely due to the induction of 

 the earth, which is constantly negative or what in the theory 

 of Du Fay is called resinous. He offers no explanation (so 

 far as we know) of this condition of the earth, which at first 

 sight would appear startling, but on a little reflection is not 

 found wanting in analogy to support it. The earth is a 

 great magnet, and possesses magnetic polarity in some 

 respects similar to that which is exhibited in the case of 



