ylccouvt of some Elect i teal Phcpnomcna. 69 



oscillates b e t ween 't lie two columns, striking at. each half oscilla- 

 tion two bells with which the columns arc surniormted. Tiiis 

 movement, which is not much different in point of rapidity from 

 the pendulum of a clock of the same length, has now existed lor 

 seven months : it is a trac pcrj^ctual motion arising from a phy- 

 sical impulse. The circulation ascends this pile dry, and no 

 chemical composition exhausts it. 



" There has been latelv fomul iu the calcareous stone of Chi- 

 maii, which is a blue bituminous shell-stone, a living toad of 

 supernatural size. Has this animal been surprised in the forma- 

 tion of the stone, or has the stone generated it ? It is conceiv- 

 able that, bv exclusion from the air, \itality might be only sus- 

 pended, but then the substance of the stone must have nourish- 

 ed it to make it grow." 



ACCOUNT OF SOMK KLKfTRiCAL ril.r.XORirXA 



Recenlly communkaied to the Royal Society of Edinhnrgh. 



In the year 1767, M. de Saussure, M, Pictet, and M.,Jalubeit 

 ascended to Mount Breven, which is situated nearly in the mid- 

 dle of the valley of Chamouni, and almost exactly ojtposite to 

 Mount Blanc. Their object was to take a general view of the 

 form and position of the glaciers which descend from Mount 

 Blanc, Vv'hen they reached tiie summit, M. Jalabert began to 

 take a drawing of the glaciers, M. Pictet was engaged in the 

 geographical part, and M. de Saussure was [)repariiig to make 

 his experiments on natural and artificial electricity. When M. 

 Pictet was laving down upon his plan some particular mountains 

 by means of a graphometer, he had (occasion to ask the nauics 

 of them from the guides, and was therefore obliged to point out- 

 the individual mountains with his finger. Every time tiiat he 

 raised his hand for that pur])ose, he felt at the extremity of iiia 

 linger a kind of tremulous and prickly sensation, similar to that 

 whicli is experienced upon presenting the fusger to a globe of 

 glass hlghlv electrified. M. Pictet soon perceived tlie origiii of 

 this phaenomcuon. He observed a storm v cloud in the middle re- 

 gion of Mount Blanc, directlv opposite to Mount Breven, and it 

 instantly occurred to him that he had been alfected with the 

 electricity of the cloud. He then requested MM. de SausMire and 

 Jalabert to make the same experiment ; and as soon as they ex- 

 tended their hands, they experienced the same sensation, which 

 they described as resembling a number of small electric sparks ; 

 but fearing that they might be seduced by their imagination, they 

 jnade their guides and their servants stretch out their hand, and 

 they felt the same sensation. The electricity of tlie atmospiicre 

 lm\'mg now bejjun to incrciise, the sens.atiou became stronger, 



E 3 and 



