230 EXPERIMENTS WITH THE ELECTRIC PIIE. 



It is in faftmoftdepreffion. If the wet hands be kept a few minutes in con- 

 difficult, (a^ yvith the poles of the pile, the pulfe of the hand in con- 

 and Ritter has ^ . , , /. . , , J- ^i i o it., 

 brought on him- tact With the politive pole becomes lenfibly Itronger, and that 



lelf long and of the hand which touches the negative pole weaker. Mr. 

 onflnTfs by his Ri'ter has given us many particulars on this fubjefl, and is em- 

 experiments, ployed in making additions to them ; but we fliall content our- 

 foim a good'^'' felves with obferving, that the expanfion is followed by a fen- 

 condii<ftor, muft fation of heaf, the contraction by a fenfation of cold. 

 be wetted 5 -pj^^ adion of the pile on the organs of fenfe is modified by 



and this to aeon- r & y 



fiderabie extent, the particular nature of each ; but it is remarkable, that the 

 ^fffy^f^ M ^*^" poles of the pile produce in fome fort the two extremes 

 If the ficin be of each fj^ecies of fenfalion. I have already obferved, in the 



wetted and armed abftrad I gave of Mr. Ritter's difcoveries on light fome time 

 with metal in 1 i -i 1 1 i /- 1 , 1 1 

 two places, and ^go> ^hat the pile produces m the eyes thole red and blue co- 

 touched with lours, which are nearly the extremes of thofe of the prifm ; 

 the pile the ^""^ '^ '^ were not fo difficult to diftinguifli the violet from the 

 fenfation on the blue, undoubtedly we (hould have nothing to wifh in this re— 

 irmlft^erce"- ^P^^* ^" ^'^^^^ experiments, the eye in the pofitive ftate, 

 tible, and often while it fees every objed of a red colour, fees them at the 



pamful: fa.me time larger and more diftinflly : in the negative ftate, on 



hence we can ° 1 /- 1 



command the the contrary, it fees them at once blue, fmaller, and lefs dif- 



magnitude of ^\^Q_ tj^an they ufually appear. 



theefteftwe ^ ^ ^ ^^ ., .. . , . 



would produce Thus the expanfive power ot the pofitive pole, and the con- 

 on the body. trading power of the negative, feem to exert their adion here 

 The difference ,., •? 

 between the J'kewife. 



/hock from the The tongue is equally affeded by the pile : the acid lafte 



from^thejar^*^ produced by the pofitive condudor, and the alkaline by the 



arifes from the negative are fufficiently known. 



ftateinwhichwe yj^^ ^^^^ ^^: t[^g negative condudor on the nofe is an am- 



are when we . ? . . 



touch them. If moniacal fmell ; that of the pofitive is a deprefllon of the fen- 



•we touch a large fibility of the organ, fimilar to what is produced by the oxi- 



pile with drv , . . . , ' •' 



hands, were- genated munatic acid. 



ceive a fmarc xhe ears, touched by the pofitive condudor, hear a grave 



fhoclc; but if r j j •<! »i *• r 1 



with hands wet- 'Oii"d, and With the negative, a found more acute. 

 ted and armed Thefc experiments require much care : to repeat them pro- 

 u.uchTjai-'dT! P^^b '^ ^^ necelTary to read the defcriptions at large, which the 

 charged previ- author has given in different trads, where the particulars are 

 oMfiybydry minutely detailed. 



hands, wc tecl ■' 



the fam fenfa- 

 tion as fiom the pile. Ritter reduces all the effeft of the pile on the body to expanfion and 

 contraftion ; the pofuivt conductor expanding, the negative contrafting the part. The pulfe 

 is made ftronsjev by the pofitive condudloi ; weaker by the negative. The expanfion is fol- 

 lowed hy a fenfation of heat, and -vice verfa. The adtion of the pile on the organs of fenfe 

 depends on the nature of the organ ; but the two poles produce the extremes of the fenfation. 

 The esc in t!ic pofitive ftate fet-s obji;^; red, large, and diftinft; in the negative, blue, fmall, 

 and mo c obfcure. On the tongue the pofitive pole prod-ices an acid t.iflej the negative, an 

 alfcaline. In the nofc the negative produces an alkaline fmell; the pofitive, that of oxigenated 

 muriatic acid. In the ears the pofitive produces a grave found j tiie negative, an acute. 



I 



