280 Voyages and Travels. 



some kind of neutral salt — as was actually the case on trying 

 the experiment. The salt could not have been contained 

 in the water before I made the experiment, because I used 

 every precaution to have it free from impurities. I even 

 took the trouble to repeat the experiment, though a tedious 

 one, and I again obtained the same result. 



*' Should you think the above worthy of being laid be- 

 fore the public, I shall send you some more experiments 

 which I am now trying on galvanism, together with some 

 remarks on this ; and which, I hope, will throw some 

 light upon the subject. In the mean time I remain 

 " Yours, &c. &c. 



« W. Peel/' 



*' P. S. A friend of mine just informs me that he has 

 tried my experiment^ and has succeeded in procuring the 



VOYAGES AND TRAVELS. 



Thomas Jefferson, Esq. President of the United States 

 of America, writes to M. Faujas-Saint-Fond as fnllows : 



" A journey undertaken for the purpose of making dis- 

 coveries in this country, will probably procure us some new 

 information in regard to the megalonix and other animals, 

 either lost or now existing. The immediate object of it is 

 to explore the river Missouri as far as its source ; then to 

 visit the nearest river situated to the west, and to descend 

 thence to the Pacific Ocean ; to give at the same time an 

 exact geography of that interesting channel of communica- 

 tion across our continent. The labours and dangers of this 

 journey ; the strength of body and mind it requires ; the 

 knowledge of the manners of the savages, and the address 

 to manage them, which are necessary, exclude from this 

 enterprise men who have not applied to the sciences, and 

 whose habits are not suited to a kind of life so active and 



"^ We shall be glad to receive from Mr. Peel the communications 

 which he has encouraged us to hope fur. His interesting experiments 

 may, perhaps, lead to some knowledge of the composition of soda, and 

 the base of muriatic acid, discoveries which could not fail to prove 

 h'g'ily useful. We would sujjt^est to Mr Peel, that he may perhaps 

 add to the interest of his mvestigation if he wo'j.d take the trouble also 

 to comp"se froni iti elements, hydrogen and oxygen, the water to be 

 made use of in one of his experiments. In this case, from the difficulty 

 of hitting exactly the due proportion of the two gases, it is probalile the 

 water so obtained would pro'.e acidulous (we have never seen it other- 

 wise ill this experiment) : if so, it might be advisable to neutralise, 

 with great care, the free acid, employing fir this purpose some other 

 alkali than soda, or some simple earth ; after which the water should be 

 distilled from die neutral salt.— Edit. 



perilous. 



