502 PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. [aNNO I67O. 



the oval glass, that the gauge remaining in the neck was not in danger of being 

 broken by the motions of the mouse in the oval part : The upper part of the 

 long neck of the glass was, notwithstanding the wideness of it, hermetically 

 sealed by the help of a lamp and a pair of bellows, that we might be sure that 

 the imprisoned animal should breathe no other air than that which filled the re- 

 ceiver at the time when it was nipped up. This done, the mouse was watched 

 from time to time, and though, by reason of the largeness of the vessel in com- 

 parison of so small an animal, he seemed to me rather drooping than very near 

 death at the end of the second hour; yet coming to look upon him about half 

 an hour after, he was judged by the spectators quite dead, notwithstanding our 

 shaking of the vessel to rouse him up. This made me cast my eyes upon the 

 gauge, wherein I could not perceive any sensible change of the mercury's station. 

 But being unwilling to give over the mouse without trying what fresh air would 

 do to recover him, I caused the sealed part of the glass to be broken off, and, 

 notwithstanding that his continuing to appear dead increased the confidence of 

 those that thought him so, I obtained after a while some faint tokens of life ; 

 though I am not sure that they would have continued in a vessel where the air 

 was so clogged and infected, if it had not been that fresh air was frequently 

 blown in by a pair of bellows, whose nose was inserted into the neck of the 

 glass. This fresh air seemed evidently, though but slowly, to revive the gasping 

 animal, whom I would not, nor could not conveniently take out of the glass, 

 till he had gained strength enough to make use of his legs ; after which, with- 

 out breaking of the glass, (which I was loath to lose, having then no other of 

 the kind) we took him out, and found him quickly able to go up and down. 

 After which service, and another trial we had made with him, which belongs 

 not to this place, we set him at liberty to shift for himself. 



Exp, II. — Such an experiment as the former we made with like success upon 

 a small bird, included with a gauge in a receiver holding about a quart of water. 

 The bird in about half an hour appeared to be sick and drooping, and the faint- 

 ness and difficulty of breathing increased for about two hours and a half after 

 that, at which time the animal died, the gauge being not sensibly altered, unless 

 perhaps the mercury appeared to be impelled up a little higher than it was when 

 put in; which yet might proceed from some accidental cause. 



Exp. III. — To satisfy some curious persons, that it is not want of coldness, 

 but something else in the included air, that makes it destroy the birds that are 

 pent up in it, and by the hot exhalations that steam from their bodies may be 

 supposed to overwarm it, we made the following experiment. 



In a glass phial, capacious enough to hold about three quarts of water, we not 

 only included, but for greater accuracy hermetically sealed up, a small bird, and 



