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4eaf ; but the leaf was burft, and torn to pieces, and 
the explofion, paffing over my hand, gave it a violent 
jar, the efFedl of which remained, in a kind of ting- 
ling, for fome time. 
Laftly, in order to judge the mofl: perfectly of this 
force, I laid a chain communicating with the outfide 
of the battery upon my bare arm, above the wrid, and 
bringing the difcharging rod near the fledi, within 
about two inches and a half of the chain, I made the 
explofion pafs over that quantity of the furface of the 
Ikin. Had I taken a greater diftance, 1 was aware 
that the explofion would have entered the flefli ; 
which, I was fenfible, would have given a painful 
convulfion to the mufcles through which it pafied. 
In this cafe the fenfible effedt was very different from 
that, being the fame external concuffion as before j 
and I have fometimes thought, that the fenfation is 
not difagreeable. However, the hairs upon the Ikin 
were finged, and curled up along the whole path of 
the explofion, and for the fpace of about half an inch 
on each fide of it : alfo the papiUce pyramidales of the 
Ikin were raifed, as when a perfon is fliivering with 
cold. This was alfo the cafe in every part of the arm 
which the chain touched, and even that part of it 
which was not in the circuit. Both the path of the 
explofion, and the place on which the chain had lain, 
had a rednefs which remained till the next day. 
Sometimes the flefli has contradfed a blacknefs by this 
experiment, which has remained for a few hours. 
X. Various 
