■^04 Nature of the Guz txincattd from Water !>y Electricity. 



•which remains in water, notw'ithftanding thcfe means of extricating It have been cm- 

 ployed. 



The quantity of this air varies in the fame, and in diflercnt waters, according to circum- 

 Aances. New-River water from the ciftern yielded one-fifth of its bulk of air, when 

 placed by Mr. Cuthbertfon under the receiver of his mod powerful air pnmp ; but in the 

 fame fituation, Ncw-Rivcr water taken irom a tub expofcd to the atmofphcre for feme 

 time yielded its own bulk of air. Hence the gaz procured by the firll one, two, or even 

 three hundred explofions in water containing its natural quantity of air, is diminilhed very 

 little by an elcftric fpark. 



The gaz thus feparable from water, like atmofpherical air, confifts of oxygen and nitrogen, 

 or azotic gaz ; which may be in cxaftly the fame proportions as in atmofpherical air j for 

 the water mav retain one kind of gaz more tenacioufly than the other ; and on this account 

 the air feparated may be better or worfe than atmofpherical air at diflcrcnt periods of the 

 procefs for extricating it. 



With regard to the gaz which inflantly difappears on paffing through it an eleflric fpavk, 

 •ts nature is (hewn by fa) this very property of thus diminifliing ; and by the following 

 properties : 



fl>J A certain quantity of nitrous gaz indantly difappeared, apparently compofing ni- 

 trous acid, on being added to the gaz (a J p. 303, Exp. IV. 



Oxytjcn gaz being added to the refidue after faturation with nitrous gaz, and an ele£lric 

 fpark being applied to the mixture of gazes, well dried, a confiderable diminution imme- 

 diately took place, and water was produced. 



(c) Combuftion from hydrogen and oxygen gaz took place when the tube was about three- 

 fourths full of gaz, p. 301, Exp. I. -, which was confirmed by patTmg an ele£lric difcharge, un- 

 der the fame circumftances, through a mixture of hydrogen and oxygen gaz, p. 302, Exp. II, 



(dj Combuflion from hydrogen and oxygen gaz took place when the points of the com- 

 pafles v.-ere accidentally applied to the part of the tube containing gaz, p. 302 ; which was 

 confirmed by pafPing a difcharge, under the fame circumftances, through a mixture of hy- 

 drogen and oxygen gaz, while the points of the compalTes were applied to tlie tube. 



(e) The obfervations made of the kindling of gnz, in fmall quantities, from time to time, 

 during the procefs of obtaining it, particularly while it was afcending in chains of bubbles, 

 or was adhering to the funnel of the tube, p. 302, Exp. III. confirm the evidence in favour 

 of this gaz being hydrogen and oxygen gaz. 



The evidence contained under the above heads (ii) — (e) confidered fingly and conjunc- 

 tively, I apprehend, muft be admitted by the mol> rigorous reafoner, or fevered logician, to 

 be demonftrative that hydrogen and o.\ygcn gaz were produced by paffing eledric dif- 

 charges through water. 



With regard to the origin and mode of production of thefe two gazes, our prefent ob- 

 fervations and experiments do not aflord complete demonftrative evidence ; but although 

 fomc hypothefes muft be admitted, I conceive that the body of evidence we poflefs can af- 

 ford a fatisfaclory interpretation of the phenomena. 



It is demonftrablc that the ele(!^ric difcharge and fpark contain fire ; and very probably 

 they arc merely a date of fire. Fire may be confidered as confiding of caloric and light ; 

 but it is at lead as coufidcnt with tlie phenomena, and it is more philofophical, becaufe it is 



more 



