*93 
the Weight ascribed to Heat. 
given temperature, (that of freezing,) would heat it 140 de- 
grees, or would raise it to the temperature of (32 0 + 140) 
162° of Fahrenheit’s thermometer, which is only 6o° short of 
that of boiling water; consequently, any given quantity of 
water, at the temperature of freezing, upon being actually 
frozen, loses almost as much heat as, added to it, would be 
sufficient to make it boil. 
It is clear, therefore, that the difference in the quantities of 
heat contained by the water in its fluid state, and heated to the 
temperature of 61° F, and by the ice, in the experiments before 
mentioned, was at least nearly equal to that between water in 
a state of boiling, and the same at the temperature of freezing. 
But this quantity of heat will appear much more considerable, 
when we consider the great capacity of water to contain heat, 
and the great apparent effect which the heat that water loses 
upon being frozen would produce, were it to be imbibed by, 
or communicated to, any body whose power of receiving and 
retaining heat is much less. 
The capacity of water to receive and retain heat, — or what 
has been called its specific quantity of latent heat, — has 
been found to be to that of gold as 1000 to 50, — or as 20 to 
1 ; consequently, the heat which any given quantity of water 
loses upon being frozen, — were it to be communicated to an 
equal weight of gold, at the temperature of freezing, the gold, 
instead of being heated 162 degrees, would be heated 140 x 20 
= 2800 degrees, or, would be raised to a bright red heat. 
It appears therefore to be clearly proved, by my experiments, 
that a quantity of heat equal to that which 4214 grains (or 
about oz. ) of gold would require to heat it from the tem- 
perature of freezing water to be red hot y has no sensible effect 
