CLIMArE of RUSSIA. _ 2- 



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toilet, on a chair placed on the bare floor, or on walking in the 

 Great Duke's apartment, without any fpecies of apparatus to 

 cut off his communication with the naked boards ; but he was 

 in fadl infulated in both fituations, as the inlaid floors were 

 become as completely ideo-ele(f\ric as glafs or rofin, from the 

 high dried (late to which they were reduced by an exficcating 

 quality of the almofphere, (to be explained in the fequel) and 

 conflant waxing. Now, as I obferve. Sir, that in your paper 

 on our climate, you enter into fome reafoning on thefe pheno- 

 mena, I prefume my opinion on them will not be difagreeable 

 to you. 



The great difpofition, then, of air, and other bodies, to be- 

 come eleftric, during great degrees of cold continued for a cer- 

 tain time, always appeared to me to be fo eafily explained,* that 

 I looked up&n it as a fimple corollary of the bed known of the 

 laws of eletlric force, and as fuch, that it did not require 

 to be deduced from it in a formal manner. However, that 

 you may know on what I, founded that fuppofition, I fliall ob- 

 ferve, That, firjf, nothing indicates air, and other bodies, to 

 contain, during fevere froft, an atom of more elecflric matter 

 than 'their natural quantity ; and they are certainly not in a 

 ftate of fpontaneous eleflricity, becaufe, to render them elec- 

 tric, fridtion muft be employed, as at all other times ; fo that 

 all the uncommon appearances above mentioned are reduced to 

 this, That, by means of fridlion, bodies, in the above flate of 

 the atmofphere, become more eafily, and more ftrongly, eletflric, 

 than at any other time, which does not indicate a larger 

 quantity of electric matter, but a greater difpofition to re- 

 eeive it. 



2dly, There is no neceflity, then, to enquire, why air, filk, 

 wool, hair, wood, 'is^c. contain a greater quantity of elecflric 

 matter in this than in another feafon, fince the fad does not 

 obtain ; fo that the queftion left for inveftigation is only, Why 

 they poflfefs, during fevere cold, a greater aptitude or difpofition 



to 



