408 TTransactions.— Miscellaneous. 
these substances are less dense in the solid than in the liquid state at the 
melting temperature. And D. Forbes stated that glass floats on melted 
glass, and, similarly, Bessemer steel on melted steel.’ ” 
These facts indicated, I thought, that the intensely agitated ether had 
made the heated mass heavier: I therefore made a more careful experiment. 
A mass of iron was heated white-hot and weighed, the weight being over 
twenty pounds. After cooling for more than half-an-hour it was weighed 
again; and after being made cold in water it was weighed a third time, but 
there was found to be no distinct difference in the weight; if there was any 
difference, I think it must have been less than a quarter of an ounce. Bot 
limes, however, the iron was weighed when cooling, while the reverse of 
this would have been more likely to show a difference in the weight. 
Second Experiment, Mechanical.—The ether is so marvellous that I should 
not have thought of trying to make any mechanical experiment if I had not 
read an account of the wonderful action of a saw called ** Reese's Saw.” 
This saw was described as a dise made to revolve with an enormous velocity 
—at a velocity, as far as I can remember, of from one to two thousand 
revolutions per second. It was said to cut bars of steel without touching them. 
Mr. Reese himself ascribed this to the action of the disc upon the ether— 
the ether entering near the axis and being thrown out at the circumference, 
it was supposed. If any action of the ether produced gravitation I con- 
sidered that this rapidly revolving dise should have very little weight. I 
thought by making the disc a very thick one that a moderate velocity would 
show some difference of weight. The disc that I had made was about 
seventy pounds, and could be driven so as to make about thirty revolutions 
per second. The oscillations were, however, so great that it could only be 
weighed when making three or four revolutions per second. Various 
modifications were made but with scarcely any improvement; no appreciable 
difference in weight could be detected. Experiments would have to be 
made with nicely fitting mechanism of a comprehensive character to enable 
a high velocity to be obtained, but a comparatively moderate velocity might 
produce an appreciable difference in the weight. 
Third Experiment, Magnetic.—Light, heat, magnetism, and electricity are 
believed to be manifestations of one agent—the ether. Now, if some action 
of the ether also produces gravitation, I thought it very probable that when 
a strong magnetic pull was exerted horizontally it would weaken that verti- 
cal action of the ether which I supposed might produce gravitation. I tried 
the experiment with a permanent magnet but with no definite result. I do 
not profess to be well acquainted with electrical facts, though I have read 
most of the best standard works on electricity and a good deal more besides, 
so an important experiment made by Faraday was unknown to me till the 
