from  Lightning  at  Pnrfleet.  309 
the  Hate  of  the  air  in  the  place  where  the  experiment  is 
made. 
I ■ ""  '* 
When  I fufpended  the  1 600  yards  of  wire  in  the  Pan- 
theon, the  feveral  lengths  thereof  were  purpofely  hung 
(as  hath  been  obferved  before)  at  five  or  fix  feet  diftance 
from  each  other,  entirely  upon  this  idea ; left  the  refpec- 
tive  atmofpheres  might  interfere  with  each  other,  or 
with  the  charge  contained  in  the  wire,  and  by  that  means 
difturb  the  experiment. 
It  is  now  time  to  put  an  end  to  this  inquiry ; in  which, 
however  defective  I may  have  been  in  ability,  neither 
attention  nor  impartiality  have  been  wanting;  and  al- 
though it  may  be  true  that,  even  before  thefe  experi- 
ments were  tried,  I was  inclined  more  to  one  fide  of  the 
queftion  than  the  other,  it  was  becaufe  I many  years  ago 
grounded  my  perfuafions  upon  the  philofophy  of  Sir 
isaac  newton.  Without  thofe  perfuafions,  and  the 
advantage  of  that  moft  gracious  encouragement  which  is 
never  wanting  to  honeft  and  candid  endeavours  in  the 
purfuit  of  philofophical  truth,  I iliould  hardly  have  felt 
fufficient  zeal  to  engage  in  fo  confiderable  an  under- 
taking: nor  indeed,  without  powerful  affiftance,  could 
the  great  obje£t  of  this  inquiry  have  been  in  any  degree 
attained.  For  my  own  part,  I can  boaft  of  very  little 
more  in  this  inveftigation  than  patience  and  induftry. 
R r 2 I fhall 
