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lity of metallic conductors to buildings, fhips, &c. ? 
The fame obfervation hath been repeatedly made, 
upon the efjeCts of the natural eleCtricity. And a 
remarkable inftance hath lately happened, at the 
church of St. John, Weftminfter ; a very exaCt 
account of which hath been taken, by Dr. wat- 
son, f. r. s. and j. banks, esq., f.r s. who, I hope, 
will at a convenient opportunity, favour the curious 
in thefe matters with their ingenious and intereft- 
ing remarks on it. The tower of this church, I am 
informed, hath no po'mted metallic termination. 
EXPERIMENT IV. 
Having prepared a phial, in the manner directed 
by Mr. lane, for making his curious experi- 
ment; by paffing a wire through the bottom, and 
another through the cork, fo as to bring the ends 
of the two, within half an inch of each other, 
about the middle of the bottle (which was filled 
with water) I found, as that gentleman obferved, 
that a flight (hock of electricity difcharged through 
it, would break the bottle. But having put a very 
fmall wire from the top, to the bottom of it, 
through the water ; 1 difcharged through it, three 
large jars, containing fixteen fquare feet of coated 
furface, when the whole of the fmall wire was 
exploded; but the bottle remained unhurt. If 
therefore a metallic conductor (being too fmall) 
fhould happen to be deftroyed by a ftroke of light- 
ning, yet the building, &c. to which it is affixed, 
will probably efcape uninjured. 
EXPERIMENT V. 
When I ftrongly eleCtrify a large prime-con- 
ductor, three feet long, and twelve inches in dia- 
meter; if a perfon hold in his hand a brafs rod 
terminated by a ball, two inches in diameter, at the 
Vol. LXIV. Ggg diilance 
