the Light of Bodies in a State of Comhiflion, 199 



other. The fluid in palling through the interval which fepa- 

 rates the wires is always luminous, if a force be ufed fufii- 

 ciently flrong. 1 fhould obferve, that the glafs tube, if not 

 very thick, always breaks when this experiment fucceeds. To 

 make the paflage of the fluid luminous in the acids, they muft 

 be placed in capillary tubes, and two wires introduced, as in 

 the preceding experiment, whofe points (hall be very near each. 

 other. It is a well known fa6t, that the difcharge of a fmall 

 Leyden phial in pafling over a flrip of gold, lilver, or Dutch 

 ^letal leaf, will appear very luminous. By conveying the con- 

 tents of ajar, mcafurlng two gallons, over a ftrip of gold leaf 

 one-eighth of an inch in diameter, and a yard long, I have 

 frequently given the whole a dazzling brightnefs. I cannot 

 fay, that a much greater length might not have been made 

 very fplendid, nor can I determine to what length the 

 force of a battery might be made luminous in this manner. 

 We may give this experiment a curious diverfity, by laying 

 the gold or filver leaf on a piece of glafs, and then placing the 

 glafs in water ; for the whole gold leaf will appear molf bril- 

 liantly luminous in the water by expofing it, thus circum- 

 flanced, to the explofion of a battery. 



2, The difficulty of making any quantity of the eledlrical 

 fluid luminous in any body increafes as the condudling power 

 of that body increafes. 



EXP. I. In order to make the contents of a jar luminous 

 in boiling water, a much higher charge is neceffary than would, 

 be fufficlent to make it luminous in coLd water, which is uni- 

 verfally allowed to be the worft conduftor. 



EXP. II. I have various reafons for believing the acids to 

 be very good conductors. If therefore into a tube, filled with 

 "Water, and circumftanced as I have already defcribed, a few 



drops 



