308 



LETTERS ON NATURAL MAGIC. 



in the presence of a committee of the Academy 

 of Sciences, two parallel rows of straw and 

 brushwood, supported by iron wires, were formed 

 at the distance of three feet from each other, and 

 extended thirty feet in length. When this com- 

 bustible mass was set on fire, it was necessary to 

 stand at the distance of eight or ten yards to 

 Fig. 77. 



avoid the heat. The flames from both the rows 

 seemed to fill up the whole space between them, 

 and rose to the height of nine or ten feet. At 

 this moment six firemen, clothed in the incom- 

 bustible dresses, and marching at a slow pace 

 behind each other, repeatedly passed through the 

 whole length between the two rows of flame, 

 which were constantly fed with additional com- 



