and the Absolute Scale of Electric Potential. 19 



Suppose, on the other hand, all the electricity in the uni- 

 verse to be distributed throughout space with a perfectly 

 uniform distribution. By virtue of the law of self-repulsion, 

 varying with the inverse square of the distance, such a dis- 

 tribution will be in the most stable equilibrium of all possible 

 distributions, since its potential energy is a minimum. In 

 any other distribution, by which electricity should be aggre- 

 gated so as to produce more at one point and less at another, 

 the potential energy of the system would be greater. 



Suppose, further, that both matter and energy being uni- 

 formly distributed throughout space, they should become 

 associated together by each particle of matter receiving a 

 definite portion of electricity as a charge. The potential 

 energy of the self-attracting matter is a maximum ; that of 

 the self-repelling electricity a minimum. Now suppose ag- 

 gregation to take place toward a nucleus or nuclei, each 

 particle of matter carrying its charge of electricity with it. 

 The potential energy of the matter will diminish, its kinetic 

 energy increase. The potential energy of the electricity will, 

 on the other hand, be increasing, and will be increasing at 

 the expense of that of the matter. If the rate of increase in 

 that of the electricity at any moment becomes equal to or 

 exceeds the rate of decrease in that of the matter, the ten- 

 dency to aggregation will be arrested. Whether such a state 

 of things can occur depends, in the first place, upon whether 

 such a supposed association between matter and electricity 

 can take place or continue, and upon the relative total amounts 

 of electricity and of matter in the universe — in other words, 

 upon the absolute charge of matter, supposing both matter 

 and electricity be initially distributed uniformly and homo- 

 geneously throughout space. 



7. Electric Theory of Radiation. — According to Clerk Max- 

 well's theory, " light is an electro-magnetic disturbance pro- 

 pagated in the same medium (the aether) through which other 

 electro-magnetic actions are transmitted." Now, as shown 

 above, electricity tends to a uniform distribution through 

 space ; it does not possess mass, while at the same time it 

 possesses a quality corresponding to elasticity, and can become 

 the recipient of energy of both kinetic and potential forms. 

 Hence it can answer the functions usually postulated of the 

 so-called " aether of space," the existence of which is assumed 

 on the one hand by Young and Fresnel for the purpose of 

 explaining the phenomena of physical optics, and on the 

 other hand by Clerk Maxwell for the purpose of explaining 

 the phenomena of electric and magnetic actions at a distance. 

 Further, the existence of such a medium consisting of self- 

 repellent extra-mundane corpuscles was assumed by Lesage 



C2 



