80 THE REASON WHY. 



"Who hath woe? who hath sorrow ? who hath contentions ? who hath babbling? 



who hath words without cause? who hath redness of the eyes ? 



They that tarry long at the wine." Piiov. xxm. 



which heat is evolved. Hay, taking fire under these circumstances, 

 would exhibit spontaneous combustion. 



317. What substances are liable to produce spontaneous 

 combustion ? 



All substances which contain sugar, starch, and other compo- 

 nents liable to fermentation. All bodies that evolve, under low 

 degrees of temperature, inflammable gases. And all organic bodies 

 undergoing decay. 



Grain, cotton, hemp, flax, coals, oily and greasy substances. 



318. Wliat ~is the Ignis Fatuus (sometimes called " Will- 

 o'-the-wisp," " Corpse Candles," and " JacTc-0 1 - Lantern") ? 



It is a flame produced by spontaneous combustion, caused by the 

 decay of animal or vegetable bodies, which evolve phosphoretted 

 hydrogen gas, under circumstances attended by a low degree of 

 heat, sufficient to ignite the gases. It is mostly seen over marshy 

 places, and burial-grounds. 



Many a " Ghost Story" has owed its origin to these singular but hannlesi 

 appearances. People, ignorant of the cause, have been terrified at the effect. 

 To the fancy of an affrighted mortal, the simple flame of the Ignis Fatuus 

 has assumed the form of a departed friend, and even found a supernatural 

 voice. If, excited by a momentary daring, the beholder moved towards the 

 light upon which he gazed, it fled from him. If he turned from it and walked 

 away, it followed him, step by step. The darkness of a lonely road, or the sacred 

 solitude of a burial-place, have been sufficient accessories to authenticate the 

 appearance of a spirit. And yet how simple the phenomenon ? Matters so 

 volatile as those which produce the Ignis Fatuus would naturally be driven 

 back by the motion in the air caused by an advancing body ; and, on the other 

 hand, a body moving from them would create a current in which the Ignis 

 Fatuus would follow. Poisonous gases, escaping from decaying bodies, pass 

 into the air and take fire. They are thereby converted into harmless com- 

 pounds. Thus we see that the " ghost" which terrifies the mind of the ignorant, 

 becomes a "guardian angel" to the educated. 



319. Has spontaneous combustion ever occurred in living 

 lodies ? 



It has occurred in numerous instances to persons habituated to 

 the excessive use of spirits. 



320. Why should spontaneous combustion occur in the casa 

 of the drunkard f 



