530 History of Luminescence 



animals executed by M. Lesueur, will I trust empower me to remove 

 all rational doubt of this important truth. 



The active phosphorescence inherent in animals, different in every re- 

 spect from the weak light, which in certain instances emanated from 

 putrid decomposition, is so completely dependent on the organization 

 and life of these animals, that it increases with their growth, diminishes 

 with their decay, becomes extinct with their life, and after death is 

 incapable of reproduction. 



Luminous animals of the sea were also described by Bory de Saint 

 Vincent (1804) , and in the pamphlet of Domenico Viviani (1805) , 

 Phosphorescentia Maris. 



CHRISTOPH BERNOULLI AND THE PRIZE ESSAYS 



Another excellent discussion was contained in Christoph Ber- 

 noulli's Ueber das Leuchten des Meeres (Gottingen, 1803) , in which 

 the light of larger marine animals was explained as a slow burning 

 (oxidation) of a material w^iich appeared to be actually phosphorus. 

 His essay considered sea light under four headings: 



(1) Sea light as a result of absorption of sunlight in which J. 

 Mayer's ideas were expressed. (2) Sea light of possible electrical 

 origin, based largely on Forster's views that the light along the sides 

 of a ship came from electricity generated by the rubbing of water 

 on the hull. (3) Sea light from living creatures, for which view 

 Bernoulli presented many observations. (4) Sea light from decom- 

 position of animal substances, in which Bernoulli said the entire 

 body was filled with a luminous material which streamed out regu- 

 larly in life but irregularly in death. He regarded it as especially 

 remarkable that during the chemical changes [AiXfidsung) of living 

 organic material, no light should be emitted, but rather that light, 

 which probably comes from phosphorus, should accompany dead 

 decomposing material. 



In general Bernoulli appeared to favor the animal origin of sea 

 light. However, despite his rather rational ideas on the lumines- 

 cence of marine animals, the diffuse light of the sea appeared to 

 confuse him. Sodium chloride, a combination of acid and alkali, 

 was looked upon as playing an important role in the general process 

 of organic decomposition and Bernoulli, perhaps influenced by 

 Martin (1761) and Canton (1769), believed that the sodium chlo- 

 ride of the sea together with oxygen, resulted in maintaining an 

 endless succession of organisms (Organizationen) , whose decomposi- 

 tion after death was responsible for the diffuse phosphorescence. 

 Thus, the light was regarded as organic in origin, probably from 



