Mufcular  Contraction  by  Electricity.  99 
prefcribed  to  her  by  the  faculty,  lire  was  fenlible  of  little 
variation  lince,  and  that  rather  on  the  unfavourable  fide. 
I urged  her  to  make  a trial  of  Electricity.  She  was 
willing  while  fhe  was  in  London  to  try  the  experiment ; 
and,  though  the  weather  was  remarkably  tempefluous, 
fire  came  to  me  the  firft  tolerable  day,  and  was  electrified 
the  firft  time  February  r 8,  1777. 
I fat  her  in  an  infulated  chair,  and,  connecting  it  by  a 
chain  to  the  prime  conductor  of  a large  eleCtrical  ma- 
chine, I drew  ftrong  fparks  from  the  parts  affeCted  for 
about  four  minutes,  which  brought  on  a very  profufe  per- 
fpiration  (a  circumftance  fire  had  been  unaccuftonred  to) 
which  feemed  to  relax  the  majloideus  mufcle  to  a confi- 
derable  degree ; but,  as  the  fparks  gave  her  a good  deal 
of  pain,  I defifted  from  drawing  them,  and  only  fubjeCted 
her  a few  minutes  longer  to  the  admiflion  of  the  fluid, 
which  paired  off  without  interruption  from  the  pores  of 
her  fkin  and  adjacent  parts.  The  next  time  fire  came  to 
me  was  the  24th  of  the  fame  month : as  fire  had  been  in 
the  afternoon  of  the  firft  day’s  experiment  a good  deal 
difordered,  I changed  the  mode  of  conducting,  and  fat 
her  in  a common  dining-chair,  while  I dropped,  for  five 
minutes,  by  the  means  of  a large  difcharging  rod  with  a 
glafs  handle,  very  ftrong  fparks  upon  the  majloideus 
mufcle,  from  its  double  origin  at  the  Jlernum  and  clavi- 
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