or the pretended Phenomenon of Incombustibility . .49 



whole extent of his arm and leg - . With another red-hot 

 iron he struck his heel and the point of the foot repeatedly : 

 in this experiment the contact of the fire was longer than in 

 any of the preceding. From the sole of his foot so much 

 vapour was disengaged, that being very near the experi- 

 menter, my eyes and nose were sensibly affected. He also 

 put between his teeth a heated iron, which, although not 

 red-hot, was still capable of burning. 



It was announced that he had drunk half a glass of boiling 

 oil ; but, in fact, I found that he had never drunk such a dose, 

 and that he had performed this twice by introducing a little 

 into his mouth, not more than the third part of a spoonful, 

 at a time. It was likewise said that he had washed his hands 

 and face in boiiing lead; but he now pradised such an ex- 

 periment onlv in rapidly bath. ng the extremities of his fingers 

 in liquid lead, and also carrying a very small portion of it 

 on his tongue. He afterwards passed a piece of red-hot iron 

 over his tongue, without showing the least painful sensation. 

 His tongue, which I was able distinctly to observe in this 

 often-repeated experiment, was covered with a crust similar 

 to what is seen on the tongues of persons in fevers ; that is 

 to say, it was covered with a kind of paste of a dirty gray 

 -colour. He exposed his foot again to the flame of burning' 

 oil, but kept it at a certain distance. In short, he threw 

 sulphuric, nitric and muriatic acids on inflamed charcoal, 

 and immediately exposed his face over the vapours which 

 arose from those acids, keeping a small part of it in that 

 situation. 



The experiment with which Sefior Lionetto is accustomed 

 to terminate his exhibition, is that of passing through the 

 skin of his arm a thick gold pin, which he does without 

 feeling the least pain. In this proof of his insensibility , I 

 observed that the pin entered his skin with diincult), re- 

 quiring such a force as if it had. to perforate dressed leather. 

 Now although at first view this fact seemed to have no rela- 

 tion with the others practised by means of fire, yet it ap- 

 peared to me to throw some light on the examination of the 

 phaenomena relating to the pretended incombustibility. From 

 these experiments, which I have seen so often repeated, I fan- 



Voh 32. No. 125. Oct. 1S08. D eied 



