CAPJLLAR Y A TTRA CTION. (A PP. B.} 6 1 



gravitation, or any other law than the Newtonian. 

 To prove this, let two homogeneous cubes be 

 placed with one side of each in perfect contact 

 with one side of the other ; and let one-third of 

 the matter of each cube be condensed into a 

 very great number, z, of square bars perpen- 

 dicular to the common face of the two ; and let 

 the other two-thirds of the matter be removed 

 for the present The mass of each bar will be 

 i/3*' of the whole mass originally given in each 

 cube. 



Let us farther suppose that the two groups of 

 bars are placed so that each bar of one group 

 has an end in complete contact with an end of 

 a bar of the other. The attraction between each 

 two such conterminous bars, however small their 

 masses are, may be increased without limit, by 

 diminishing the area of its section, and keeping 

 its mass constant. But the whole mutual attrac- 

 tion between the two groups exceeds i times the 

 attraction between each of the conterminous pairs, 

 and may therefore be made to have any value, 

 however great, merely by condensing each bar 

 in its transverse section, and keeping their number 

 and the mass of each constant. 



We may now suppose another third of the 

 whole mass to be condensed into bars parallel to 

 another side of the cube, and the remaining third 

 into bars parallel to the remaining side. If, then, 

 either of these cubes be placed with any side in 



