i 6 An Inquiry concerning 



nearly equal to that between water in a state of boiling, 

 and the same at the temperature of freezing. 



But this quantity of heat will appear much more con- 

 siderable when we consider the great capacity of water 

 to contain heat, and the great apparent effect which the 

 heat that water loses upon being frozen would produce 

 were it to be imbibed by, or communicated to, any 

 body whose power of receiving and retaining heat is 

 much less. 



The capacity of water to receive and retain heat 

 or what has been called its specific quantity of latent 

 heat has been found to be to that of gold as 1000 

 to 50, or as 20 to i ; consequently, the heat which any 

 given quantity of water loses upon being frozen, were 

 it to be communicated to an equal weight of gold at 

 the temperature of freezing, the gold, instead of being 

 heated 162 degrees, would be heated 140 X 20 = 2800 

 degrees, or, would be raised to a bright red heat. 



It appears, therefore, to be clearly proved by my ex- 

 periments, that a quantity of heat equal to that which 

 4214 grains (or about 9! oz.) of gold would require to 

 heat it from the temperature of freezing water to be red 

 hot, has no sensible effect upon a balance capable of indi- 

 cating so small a variation of weight as that of -j-g-oijFO- 

 part of the body in question ; and, if the weight of 

 gold is neither augmented nor lessened by one millionth 

 part, upon being heated from the point of freezing water 

 to that of a bright red heat, I think we may very safely 

 conclude, that ALL ATTEMPTS TO DISCOVER ANY EFFECT 



OF HEAT UPON THE APPARENT WEIGHTS OF BODIES WILL 

 BE FRUITLESS. 



