Miscellaneous Notices on Galvanic Results. 31 



any thing more about them in this place. They were carried 

 on with great exactness in the following manner. The gradua- 

 ted glass tube of the electro-gasometer being filled with acidula- 

 ted water and inverted over the platinum terminals of the instru- 

 ment, one of the polar wires of the battery was connected with 

 it, and the other kept in the hand of the experimenter ready to 

 plunge into the other mercurial cup of the instrument the moment 

 the word "time" was given, and taken out again when a cubic 

 inch of the gases was collected. Mr. Gassiot marked the time 

 by a stop-watch, Mr. Mason and myself were in turns the experi- 

 menters, and Mr. Walker recorded the facts as they were reported 

 to him. 



*' With regard to the experiment in which I discovered the 

 great difference produced in the two polar wires, it was undertaken 

 from the views which I had long entertained concerning the non- 

 identity of the electric and calorific matter, as you will see I have 

 hinted at, at the close of section 1, of my first memoir to the 

 London Electrical Society, It was late in the evening before I 

 had any opportunity of making the experiment. The rest of the 

 party were engaged in something else at the time, and the battery 

 was in series of one hundred and sixty pairs. I brought the tip 

 ends of the polar wires (copper Fig. l. 



wire one tenth of an inch diam- _ n P 



eter) into contact, end to end, 

 thus, (Fig. 1,) then withdrew them gently and very gradually 

 from each other, keeping the flame in full play between them till 

 they were separated about one Fig. 2. 



fourth of an inch, thus, (Fig. 2.) 

 In a few minutes the positive 

 wire at P got red hot for about half an inch, but the negative 

 wire never became red. I repeated this several times, in order 

 to be convinced of the fact. I next laid the wires across one an- 

 other, and brought them into contact about an inch from the ex- 

 tremities, thus, (Fig. 3,) and separated ^ Fig- 3. 

 them as before. In a short time the 

 whole of that part from the point of 

 crossing to the extremity P, became P y \n 

 very red hot, but the N end never got even to a dull redness. It 

 was certainly very hot, but never higher than a black heat. I 

 next increased the length of the ends of the wires exterior to the 



