Now, if you will suppose, with me, that this Air had been robb’d of its Fire, by its supporting and keeping alive such Things under-ground as its Business is to do every-where, and that Space was left full of stagnated Air, and therefore could not admit of fresh to enter, it became impossible for Fire, or any living Creature, to subsist there.
The Cure of this Evil is performed in Mines by a Horse-Mill, which works large Bellows, that drive fresh Air down a Shaft made for that Purpose.
I remember Dr. Halley told me, that he once try’d the Experiment of making a factitious Damp; which he did, by exhausting the Air out of the Receiver of an Air-Pump, and then luting to a Stop-cock a Gun-barrel; the other End of which he put into a Charcoal-Fire, and with the Air, which pass’d thro’ the Fire, he fill’d the Receiver again; he told me that it instantly kill’d a Mouse he put into it, and many other Animals, just as Damps did: Now how will you account for this, if you suppose not that its Fire was extinguish’d, and carried from it another Way?
Having thus far, I hope, prepared your Mind to understand what I apprehend the Element of Fire is, and what its Office seems to be, I will shew, if I can,
First, Why, in Electricity, Fire proceeds from an electrical Body, so as to light into a Flame many different Compositions.
Secondly, Why a Tube of Glass, when rubbed so as to be made electrical, will not only attract to it, but repel from it alternately, any light Body, as Leaf-Gold, Feathers, and the like: And also, why it will seem to send from it a Quantity of Wind, with a singing small Noise, if you hold it nigh to your Cheek and Ear.
Thirdly, Why, when any unelectrify’d Body touches any thing electrify’d, the Electricity breaks off with a smart Crack, and a Spark of Fire.
Fourthly, Why a Number of Men, who are joined together by holding any metallic Body betwixt them, if one of them touch a Piece of Iron electrify’d, the whole Company shall feel a violent Concussion, in proportion to the Largeness of the Body electrify’d.
First, I will endeavour to shew, Why an electrify’d Body will kindle an Alcohol, or rectify’d Spirit of Wine, and many other compounded Liquors, into a Flame.
After having attempted to prove to you, that the Cause of Electricity arises from the universal Fire scatter’d through all Nature, by its being rubb’d together in its Passage betwixt a glass Ball and a Piece of Leather, &c. I hope I shall make it appear, that it passes from thence, to the Body electrify’d, in a converging and diverging State; just as a Lens converges and diverges the Rays of Light which pass through it: And that all Bodies electrify’d are shut up in a Capsula or Covering of this electric Matter, or lambent Flame, which not only passes over it about half an Inch thick, but pervades also every Part and Particle of Matter which constitutes that Body; which it may as easily do, if it consisted of many Tons Weight, as soon, and from the same Necessity, as it would do to one of an Inch Diameter: And that the electrify’d Body is intirely seal’d up at each Extremity.
To shew this Fire in a converging State, you may observe, when a Gun-barrel, or any long Bar of Iron, is to be electrify’d, and it is in a State of Suspension on silk Cords, which are non-electricable, you may perceive the Fire issue from a Piece of iron Wire coming from the glass Ball, in a lambent Flame, which draws to a Point, and then diverges, and drives itself on, till the Gun-barrel, or Bar, is electrify’d.
Its being a Gun-barrel can be no other Reason for its Preference in that Shape than in another; but I believe the Occasion of its being used here is, because the greatest Effect which has been shewn from Electricity, was sent from abroad; and that was caused by suspending a great Gun in a non-electricable silk Cord. The Gun seems to have been made use of here as being the greatest Quantity of Iron, and in the best Shape, they could get it for Suspension. And were a Person so suspended, if he held in his Hand a naked Sword, you might see such a lambent Flame passing from it, in a converging and diverging State, as before describ’d.
I would further prove this converging Fire, from a late Experiment I have heard of, which is as follows: If you suspend an iron Ball by a large Piece of Wire, which descends from a Bar of Iron electrify’d, and then hold under it, in a Saucer, some small round Bubbles of Glass, near enough to be in Contact with the electrical Vortex, the glass Balls will follow each other round in the Saucer; and each of these Balls, if the Experiment be made in the dark, will appear to have a Spot of blue Flame at each End of them.
Now, as, by the Contrivance of Man, here is more of this Fire crouded together, than was intended by the Author of all Uniformity, seeing, by its natural Cohesion, and the infinite Celerity it is spirally driven on with, it is no Wonder, in this confined State, if that, which, as Water unconfin’d, would be gentle and beneficent, should, with all the Power that belongs to it, break out at the first Door which is opened for its Passage from this tortur’d State.
It is no Wonder, therefore, that all undisorder’d Nature should be equally electrify’d: For how is it possible to have it otherwise? since, if a Person stands on the Ground, and touches but the Capsula before he touches the Body, the electric Fire starts through him into the Ground, as swift as Lightning, and thence into the universal lambent Flame, from whence it was taken.
Lightning from hence may in some measure be accounted for; though I cannot so exactly tell what collects it together, as I can in this factitious Lightning here treated of, yet I can suppose, that the Cause of Lightning is produc’d from a great Quantity of this Fire before spoken of; which being driven together, and included in a limited State, or Covering of some Kind, when discharged from this Covering, it goes off in an Explosion, which is Thunder. The Lightning I need not describe, being intirely the same with Electricity; for it will kill without a Wound, and pass through every thing, as this seems to do.
I am to shew, first, the Cause of its kindling a Flame in certain compounded Liquors; which, if what I have supposed be true, that it is by the means spoken of that this Fire is collected and driven on, as I have said, it is plain to be seen, that at the Finger’s End of a Person electrify’d, or at the End of a Sword, held as before described, being in a dark Room, a Flame issues from them: It is no Wonder then, that an inflammable Spirit, as is shewn, should take Fire from it.
The second Thing I proposed to shew is, Why a Tube of Glass, rubb’d smartly in the Hand, so as to become electrical, repels Leaf-Gold, Feathers, and other small Bodies; and when they touch any less electrify’d Body, they shall return back again to the Tube, and so vice versa. Now, if what I have been saying be true, how can this Phænomenon be otherwise? For, if that Piece of Leaf-Gold, &c. be electrify’d by the Touch of the Tube, then it has as full Power given to it as the electrify’d Body had to give to it: And when the Gold, &c. touches any other Body, it imparts to it so much of its electrical Property as it had in itself: And then it may be consider’d in the same State it was in when first electrify’d: And so it will be repeatedly attracted to it, and be repell’d toties quoties.
But it may be asked, What causes these attractive and repulsive Faculties? I answer, The Attraction of fiery Particles one to another: For, if all Nature be agitated by this Fire, all Things have it in the common Proportion, as it was intended they should stand in Nature. And therefore, as I have endeavoured to shew, that Electricity is occasioned by crouding on any thing more of this Fire and Force than naturally belonged to it; and as the Flame of a Candle must of Necessity send out of it at its Point an Overplus (without which there could be no Succession or free Motion in its Flame); so, for the same Reason, the Redundancy of what is crouded on may be consider’d as spending itself at each Extremity, that it may thereby reach itself out to any thing, and invite it to it; as I have shewn the Flame descending down the Smoak of a Candle just blown out to kindle it again, will do.
As therefore there is a trite Proverb, passing universally, that where there is Smoak there must be some Fire, I will endeavour to prove, That no Heat, either from Animals, or from any other Cause, can be produced but from this supposed Fire I have been speaking of. For, now, suppose you see the Flame of a Candle circumscribed and limited in its Shape and Size, which it has according to its Snuff; this Thought may serve to illustrate what I mean by the Capsula, which I have supposed passing over the Surface of every Body when it is electrify’d, and seems to be a lambent Flame, being more or less thick, as from the Apparatus more or less Fire has been collected and rubbed together on it, either from the Friction of a glass Tube, or the Globe: Now, as what I am about to shew, is, why this attractive Faculty is found in this Experiment, I would offer to your Consideration, Whether, when common People see the Flame of a Candle circumscrib’d, they think of any Fire which may proceed further than in the Flame of that Candle? Yet every body, on Recollection, knows, that the Flame will heat Parts at a great Distance to such a Degree, as, at length, to kindle them into a Fire. And tho’, till you touch the Flame, your Finger is not immediately burn’d, yet there are shewn to be Emanations of Fire at a Distance from its burning Quality. So here I beg Leave to consider the same Property in this Fire occasion’d by Electricity. For, till you touch this Capsula of lambent Flame (which is commonly to be met with near a Quarter of to Half an Inch short of the Body to be electrify’d) no Effect is perceiv’d, because you have not enter’d into the Vortex of this Whirlpool of Fire: Yet you may suppose that it sends out an Emanation of its Fire beyond it, as other Flames do; which, when it has first, by its Heat, (which I take to be Part of it) prepared small Things to be electrify’d, then they are more easily lick’d into the whole Power, and so become electrify’d. The Reason therefore, why the Gold, and other light Materials, (which I have supposed to have some of this Fire in them) are attracted, is, the Invitation they receive from the curling Effluvia to a closer Contact: And when it has received as much as the former can give it, its Invitation ceases, till it has parted with what it had to its Neighbour; and then it is again invited as before.