40 Ok air produced by the 



had been drawn up on the principle of the capillary tube. 

 When this was not the cafe, the interftices of the ice 

 towards the centre were filled with thin laminse of mer- 

 cury, which alfo exhibited a curious appearance. 



t>ometimes, when there was no mercury between the 

 glafs and the ice, an interftice was made between them 

 when they were placed within the influence of the fire. 

 In thefe circumftances I have feen the mercury drawn 

 up to the height of feveral inches. As this fpace was 

 enlarged by the increafe of the heat, the laminse of mer- 

 cury were contradled, till coming into the form of balls, 

 too heavy to be fupported, they fell down to the mafs of 

 mercury in the bafon. 



The moft natural inference from thefe experiments is 

 that "xater^ when reduced by any means to the ftate of 

 I'apou?-, is in part converted into phlogirticated air ; and 

 that this is one of the methods provided by nature for 

 keeping up the equilibrium of this conftituent part of the 

 atmofphere ; as the influence of light on groin'iiig vege- 

 tables is the means of recruiting that other part of it ; 

 and both of them are fubjeft to abforption and diminu- 

 tion in feveral natural procefles. Inflammable air I have 

 alfo fliewn to be convertible into phlogifticated air ; and 

 this is another means of fupplying the atmofphere with 

 this ingredient in its compofition. 



That water contains phlogillon I have fliewn to be 

 probable from feveral confiderations, efpecially that of its 

 refcmbling metals in their property of being condud:ors 

 of eledrlcity, for thefe fubftances certainly contain phlo- 

 giflion, if there be any fuch thing. Mercury alfo be- 

 comes fuper-phlogifticated by agitation in water, and 

 this without limit, and without changing either the 

 water or the mercury ; and the remaining water contains 

 no more oxygen than before, for the air expelled from 



it 



