Miscellaneous Notices on Galvanic Results. 33 
wire was placed within a cup of mercury, and the positive brought 
to within the striking distance, a most brilliant combustion of the 
metal took place. When the positive was placed in the mercury, 
and the negative brought to the striking distance, the brilliancy of 
the combustion was so increased that it was painful to behold it.” 
“The length of flame obtained from the charcoal points was 
three fourths of an inch. The end of a steel file was melted 
by the flame; so also was glass, Zinc turnings were speedily 
deflagrated, and their oxide was seen floating about the room. 
The physiological effects were exceedingly powerful: it required 
the strongest nerves to volunteer the experiment. The deflagra- 
tion of metals, and those other phenomena which ate attractive 
to the eye, were of the most brilliant description. 
“Tt was half past 10, P. M. before we had arrived at this por- 
tion of the experiments, the battery having been in active ope- 
ration upwards of 7 hours, and after 5 hours of excitation its 
power was scarcely impaired. It had been, towards the close, 
fed, by dropping a few crystals of sulphate of copper into the 
solutions; but these latter were by no means exhausted; for, on 
disarranging the battery, the solution remaining in the cells was 
found fit to use on an ensuing evening, when many members of 
this Society had an opportunity of witnessing some of those ef- 
fects, which attach so much value to this simple form of the bat- 
tery. 
‘‘On applying a powerful magnet, the flame from the charcoal 
points obeyed the known laws of electro-magnetism, being at- 
tracted or repelled as the case might be ; or following the motion 
of the magnet, if the latter were revolved.” 
_“When the ends of the main wires were placed across each 
other, (at about one or two inches from their extremities, ) not 
touching, but with an intervening stratum of . striking 
distance, through which the electricity 
passed, producing a brilliant light, that 
wire connected with the positive end of 
the battery became red hot, from the point 
of crossing to its extremity. The corre- 
sponding portion of the other wire remain- N 
ed comparatively cold. This experiment was carefully Saeed 
and varied. ‘The wires: were removed from the battery ; that 
which had been the positive was _ the negative, and the 
Vol. xxx1x, No. 1.—April-June, 1840. 
