VOL. XLIV.] PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. ' IQl 



vour to be gone, than its mouth is gagged quite open, and it is presently 

 drowned. 



On the Effects of a Stick of black Sealing-wax, and a Stick of Brimstone, in 

 Electrical Experiments. By the Rev. Henry Miles of Tooting, D. D., 

 F.R.S. N"'478, p. 27. 



Dr. M. procured a stick of the best black sealing-wax, of about an inch in 

 thickness, and of a convenient length ; and exciting it with white-brown paper, or 

 clean dry flannel, both equally good, he made the following trials. 



He kindled common lamp-spirits, both by attraction and repulsion, the electri- 

 fied person standing on a cake of bees-wax. He made trial, at the same time, 

 with a glass tube, which kindled the spirits more easily : perhaps from some cir- 

 cumstances hereafter to be mentioned. 



He then repeated that experiment of the late ingenious and industrious Dr. 

 Desaguliers, and others; by which it appears, that when any light body is put 

 into a state of repulsion by vitreous electricity, it is in a state of attraction, in re- 

 spect of resinous electricity, and so e contra. This he found constantly to hold 

 good. He made this trial with a down-feather, and also with a small piece of 

 writing paper, of about the same dimensions as the feather. The feather retained 

 the effluvia, whether of the glass or wax, about 5 or 6 minutes longer than the 

 paper would ; that is, the feather remained so much longer in a state of repulsion. 

 The time in which the paper was in a state of repulsion, after many trials, he 

 found to be about 20 minutes. 



He made another trial with the wax and tube in a dark room ; being led to it 

 from a suspicion, that the effluvia from the wax were grosser, and more in quan- 

 tity, than those from the glass tube; and on exciting both very quickly, he found 

 the luminous effluvia, when he brought his forefinger near the wax, to proceed 

 in a much greater quantity to the wax from the tip of the finger, than they did 

 on the same trial with the glass tube. And he several times observed a small 

 globular spot of fire to appear first on the finger, from which issued regular 

 streams in form of a comet's tail. 



When he used the glass tube, as the quantity was less, so the sparks were 

 finer, less in thickness and in length, but much more active; nor did they pro- 

 ceed so regularly towards the tube, nor make so regular an appearance; frequently 

 breaking in pieces, as if by collision, or not altogether unlike the sparks from a 

 brand in a wood fire, which has lain long without being stirred. The resinous 

 effluvia were also more deeply coloured than the vitreous. 



