ELECTRICITY. 



489 



of all these philosophers, was undoubtedly M. de Ro- 

 mas, who had not only the merit of having first * in- 

 vented and used the electrical kite, but obtained with 

 menu of lt a s^ 63 f results, far surpassing, in magnificence and 

 M. De Ho- grandeur, those which had been obtained by Dr Frank- 

 mas, lin, or by any other philosopher. 



Having observed, on the 1 2th of July 1 752, that in- 

 sulated rods gave stronger sparks, in proportion to their 

 height in the atmosphere, M. Romas resolved to ele- 

 vate a kite to the height of more than 600 feet, and he 

 stated this plan in a letter to the Academy of Bour- 

 deaux, on the 13th July 1752 ; and also mentioned it 

 distinctly to M. le Chevalier Vivens, and several other 

 individuals. This kite was seven feet five inches high, 

 and three feet in its greatest width, with a surface of 18 

 square feet. The string of the kite was of cord, wrap- 

 pet! round with copper wire. On the 14th of May 

 1753, he raised it in the atmosphere without obtaining 

 any indication of electricity, but on the 7th of June 

 1753, he was more successful. Atone o'clock it thun- 

 mentsufthe dered a little in the east, and at half past two, M. Romas 

 7th June had elevated his kite with a cord 780 feet long, and 

 inclined at an angle of 45 nearly, so that the elevation 

 of the kite v.-as about 550 feet. To the extremity of the 

 string he fixed a silken cord 3i feet long, which was 

 placed under the cover of a pent house, and had sus- 

 pended to it a large stone, for the purpose of governing 

 the motion of the kite. Near the junction of the string 

 and the silk cord, was placed a tube of white iron, about 

 a foot long and an inch in diameter from which the 

 sparks were to be drawn as soon as the kite and the 

 string were electrified. M. Romas also prepared a 

 discharging rod, tormedof a tube of glass 12 inches long 

 and 3 lines in diameter, having at its end a tube of white 

 iron, to which was fixed a chain of brass wire suffi- 

 ciently long to touch the ground, when sparks were 

 drawn from the fir-t white-iron tube. By means of 

 the discharging rod, he at first obtained sparks " aa 

 large as those produced by means of a good globe," 

 and several of his assistants drew sparks with a key 

 and with the naked finger. These electrical phenome- 

 na were observed during about 22 minutes, and then 

 disappeared. In the space of seven minutes the elec- 

 tricity re-appeared, and again decreased, but only to 

 manifest itself with additional force. New sparks were 

 drawn by the fingers, the keys, the swords, and the 

 canes of the spectators ; and M. de Romas having pre- 

 sented the middle knuckle of his right hand, received a 

 terrible shock, which struck him in the elbows, shoul- 

 ders, breast, knees, and the joints of his feet Seven 

 or eight of the bystanders, though they saw, from the 

 convulsive motions of M. Romas, that he had received a 

 very violent blow, did not hesitate to join hands, and 

 received the sparks, which struck the feet even of the 

 fifth person. The storm now increased not a drop of 

 rain had fallen ; but in the zenith of the kite, and alx.ut 

 GO 3 round it, there were black cloudg, which indicated 

 a great increase of efectricity. Romas had therefore the 

 prudence to receive sparks only by the discharger. At 

 the distance of four inches, a spark, more than an inch 

 long and two lines broad, was drawn in this manner, and, 

 at the distance of six inches. Roman obtained several 

 Sharks two inches long. After this the electricity be- 

 came so powerful, that instead of sparks, flashes of fire, 

 about a foot long, three inches wide, and three lines in 

 diameter, were repeatedly received, and the accom- 

 panying noie was heard at the distance of more than 





500 feet. At this time, when he was more than three Dweriptivt 

 feet from the cord, Romas felt a sensation as if a spider's 

 web had been upon his face. He advised his assistants ^ 

 to keep at a greater distance, and when he himself was 5 nle nts of 

 feet from the string, he experienced the same sensation. M. De " 

 He then retired still farther, and watched the pheno- mas. 

 mena which took place. There was no lightning, almost 

 no sound of thunder, and no rain. The wind, which 

 was in the east, blew strong, and supported the kite 

 at an altitude of about 650 feet. Upon casting his eyes 

 to the white-iron tube, at the junction of the string 

 and the silk cord, which was about three feet distant 

 from the ground, he was surprised to observe three 

 straws standing erect, and dancing up and down be- 

 low the white-iron tube. One of the straws was a ibot 

 long, another 5 inches, and the third 4 inches. Tins 

 dance of the straws, which gave great delight to the 

 spectators, lasted about a quarter of an hour, when a few- 

 drops of rain fell, and Romas again felt the former sen- 

 sation upon his face, which indicated a new increase 

 of electricity, and prevented him from drawing sparks 

 even with the discharging rod. Having advised every 

 person to keep at a greater distance, he perceived the 

 lonirest straw attracted by the white-iron tube, and im- 

 mediately heard three loud noises, which some com- 

 pared to the crack of a postilion's whip, and others to 

 the sound of a large pot of earthen ware dashed in pieces 

 on the pavement. This crash was heard even in the 

 centre of the town, (the experiment was made out of 

 tile town,) in spite of the great noise which prevailed. 

 The flash, which accompanied this explosion, had the 

 shape of a spindle 8 inches long, and 4 or 5 lines in 

 diameter. The straw which occasioned this noise, fol- 

 lowed the string of the kite, and was seen even at the 

 distance of 45 and 50 toises, going with great rapidity, 

 being sometimes attracted, and sometimes repelled, and 

 every attraction being accompanied with long plates of 

 fire, attended with continual explosions. After the 

 fir>t spontaneous explosion, till the end of the experi- 

 ment, there was no lightning, and almost no thunder. 

 A phosphoric odour, peculiar to the electric matter, was 

 distinctly smelt. Around the string there appeared a 

 cylinder of permanent light, about three or four inches 

 in diameter ; and when the experiment was finished, they 

 perceived in the ground, in a perpendicular direction, 

 below the tube, a hole about an inch deep, and half an 

 inch wide, which had probably been made by the large 

 flashes of fire which accompanied the explosion. The 

 wind having turned to the east, there was a heavy 

 shower of rain, which was succeeded by hail, and it was 

 no longer possible to keep the kite in the air. When 

 the kite fell, the string touched the roof of a house, and 

 about 80 fathoms of the string being drawn in, the per- 

 son who held it made the kite rise again, and immedi- 

 ately received such a violent shock in his arm, and 

 throughout his whole body, that he was obliged to 

 let it go. The string then fell ujxn the feet of one 

 of the assistants, who also received a very violent 

 shock. 



On the 16'th of August 1757, M. Romas was still Experi- 

 more successful in hi> experiments. Although the storm menu of the 

 was not great, there being almost no thunder, and very ^ Au fr 

 little rain, yet he obtained beams of fire nine or ten feet 

 long, and about an inch thick, which were accompanied 

 with a noise equal to that of a pistol. In less than an 

 hour he obtained no fewer than 30 beams of this size, 



without reckoning a thousand others that were below 

 After a full investigation of the hintory of the electrical kite, the AcaJ my of sciences at Paris declared, on the 4th February 1T6<- 

 tfcu M. Ue Roma^had conceived the idea of an electric kite, moie than a yeai before it was employed by Dr FrankUn. 



3 



VOL. VIII. PART II. 



