exclude this element from all share in the great proce's of exhalation, which, in all probability, it infpirits for the uses of vegetation and animal life, especially as Mr. Eeles has found by experiments, that all fumes arifing from fire, whether blazing or otherwise, and all steams rifing from boiling or warm waters, and from all other fluids, and the breath of man, and of all other animals, and all the effluvia thrown off by perspiration, are strongly electrified. He fuppofes that vapour and exhalation are detached from their masses by the vibrations of the electrical fluid rendered more active by the folar or cu linary fire. He fays, they are emitted in exceeding minute diftinct particles, and that thefe particles muft pafs through that electrical fluid, which furrounds the furface of the mafs; and that, by that means, they must be equally electrified • with the mass; that is, they must be covered with the electri'cal fluid to as great a diftance from their fuperficies as the • mass is covered; which must always be in proportion to the ' state of activity of the electrical fluid. In which state, when they have passed the surrounding fluid, they must be repelled by it; and alfo repel each other; and if each particle of vapour, and its furrounding fluid, occupy a greater space than ' the fame weight of air, they must be fitted to ascend till they ' come in æquilibrium with the upper and rarer part of the at'mosphere; where they must float, until their specific gravity is altered. As it is very difficult to affign the magnitude of each particle of vapour and exhalation, and that of the fur'rounding fluid; and to fhew, that both, taken together, occupy a greater portion of space than the fame weight of air ; < we can only apply to experiment, to fhew, that it is poffible that it may be fo; and that will shew, that in all probability it is fo; fince it is evident, that every particle must be en'dued with a portion of this electrical fire or fluid, and that there is not any other fufficient caufe affigned for their • afcending.

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It is evident, that, upon electrifying any light matter, 'fuch as down, or the downy parts of feathers, their specific ' gravity is much leffened; and that, by holding another elec'trified body under them, they may be driven upwards at pleafure. It is alfo evident, from experiment, that the more you • divide

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divide the parts of fuch bodies, the more of their specific gravity they will lofe by being electrified; and by dividing them into very minute parts, I have found, that they afcended to a confiderable height after they were electrified. From ⚫ whence I think it highly probable, that the exceeding fmall ⚫ particles of vapour and exhalation may be, and are, fufficiently electrified to render them fpecifically lighter than the lower air; and that they do afcend by that means. And that they will afcend proportionally higher, as the surrounding fluid is proportionally greater than the particle, which is carried up.'.

Then he proceeds to fhew, that the afcent and defcent of this vapour and exhalation, are the principal cause of all our winds, and may account for the general phænomena of the weather and barometer.' From this fyftem, he pretends to fhew, firft, why it generally rains in winter, while the wind is fouth, fouth-weft, and wefterly. Secondly, why northweft winds are generally attended by fhowers in the beginning, and become more dry, as they are of longer continuance. Thirdly, why north and north-eaft winds are generally dry. Fourthly, why the east wind continues dry and • dark for a confiderable time together. Fifthly, why fqualls • precede heavy and diftinct showers; and why a calm enfues for fome little time after they are pafs'd. Sixthly, why storms • and high winds feldom happen in a ferene fky without clouds. Seventhly, why the vapours, in warm feafons, coalefce to • form those distinct dense clouds, which produce thunder and heavy fhowers. Eighthly, why the barometer falls lowest in long continued rains, attended by winds; and why it rifes highest in long continued fair weather; and why the intermediate changes happen. Ninthly, of land-breezes and feabreezes, and water-fpouts.'

The theory is very ingenious, though liable to fome objections, upon which the nature of our plan will not permit us to expatiate. We fhall only obferve, that he feems to be miftaken in his notion of water-fpouts, which he fuppofes to be no other than heavy showers descending from denfe clouds ; whereas, other philofophers have described them as great columns of water fucked up from the fea by the clouds. Unless he admits

the

the poffibility of fuch a fuction, we should be glad to know how he will account for the defcent of herrings, pilchards, and other smaller fishes, whole lafts of which have come down in one shower, in the northern feas and maritime places, according to the testimony of numbers of credible people, and among the reft, of that accurate hiftorian and judicious philofopher, the right reverend Erich Pantoppidan bishop of Bergen in Norway. That the fame suction is performed at land appears from great numbers of fmall frogs which have often defcended in plump fhowers after violent explosions of thunder; a phænomenon which hath been fifty times obferved in England by perfons of undoubted veracity: nor is it fo difficult of folution, as at first it may appear to be. Let us suppose a cloud charged with electrical fire, gravitating upon the furface of water, either in the ocean or within the land. This fire exploded above, fo as not to deftroy the texture of the cloud, may leave in the middle a momentary vacuum, into which the preffure of the atmosphere will forcibly impel a column of water with the fishes or frogs that swim in it, and these being scattered in the air by a subsequent explosion, must neceffarily defcend by their specific gravity.

The third letter of Mr. Eeles contains a recapitulation of the experiments by which he found all afcending vapours and exhalations were electrified.

I extended a fine ftring of filk eight feet horizontally, and 'from the middle fufpended two pieces of fuch down as grows upon our turf-bogs, by two pieces of fine filk, about twelve ' inches each in length; and then, by rubbing a piece of fealing-wax on my wafte-coat, over my fide, I electrified the 'pieces of down: and then brought fundry burning things under them, fo as to let the fmoke pass in great plenty through ' and about them, to try whether the electric fluid would run off with the smoke; but I had the pleafure to fee that the down was but a little affected by the paffage of the fmoke,

' and still remained electrified. I then brought fundry steams 'from the spout of a boiling tea-kettle, and otherwise, in the 'fame manner, and ftill found, that the down remained electri'fied. I then breathed on them in great plenty, but found that the down ftill remained electrified. I then joinded the • palms

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palms of my hands together, with the fingers extended per❝pendicularly under the down, which still remained electrified; • although the subtile effluvia, thrown off by perspiration, passed in great plenty through the down; as may appear by holding • one or both the hands in the fame manner under any light matter floating in the air, which will be driven upwards thereby, with as great velocity as an electrified feather is by any electrified body held under it. In fhort, I tried all the and exhalations I could think of, in the fame manvapours ner, and with the fame fuccess.

• I then warmed a wine glass, and with the skirt of my coat held infide and outfide the glafs between my fingers and thumb: I rubbed the glafs brifkly about, and electrified the down, and found all experiments anfwer in the fame manner • as they did with the wax. I mention this particular, because • fome writers on electricity have faid, that there were two • kinds of electrical fire, the one refinous, and the other vitreous; because light bodies electrified by glafs are attracted by • electrified wax, &c. and those electrified by refins are attracted by glass. But I think thefe different effects must arise from fome different qualities in the refin and glass, which have power to actuate this fire differently. For if there were really two diftinct fpecies of this fire, oppofite in their nature; the afore-mentioned experiments would have a • very different confequence from what appears. For if the vapours were impregnated by the vitreous fire, they must ab• forb, or fome way difturb, the refinous fire, which electrifies the down, and fo vice verfa: but we find, that the fame vapour, with its electric fire, paffes through the electrified ‹ down in the fame manner, whether it be electrified by glass ⚫ or refin. But I will not detain you on this fubject.

The electricity remaining in the electrified down after thefe experiments made it appear, that the smoke and steams must be either electrics, or non-electrics electrified. It was • easy to suppose them non-electrics, as they arise from nonelectric bodies; and the more, because the highest electrics, • by a discontinuity and comminution of their parts (long before they come to be as minute as the particles of afcending vapour), become non-electrics, or conductors of electricity.

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• For

For glass, refin, wax, &c, all become non-electric, even in fufion. But to try whether the fteams, &c. were non-electrics, I only bedew'd the wax and glafs with my breath, fteams, &c. from my hand to the end of the wax and glass; and then touching the electrified down with the end of the wax or glass, I found, that the electrical fire immediately 'paffed from the down into my hand, through the fteams, &c. • which rested upon the wax and glass. Which, I think, suf'ficiently proves the fteams, &c. to be non-electric; and I • think, that it as plainly appears, that they are all electrified while afcending, because the electrical fire in the down does ⚫ not join with them in their passage through it; which other⚫ wife it would do with them, or any non-electric not electrified.'

In the next article, the learned doctor Parfons prefents us with a petrefaction which he dignifies with the name of Echinometra digitata fecunda rotunda vel cidaris Mauri of Rumphius. The proper claffing of these productions, is a matter of greater confequence than the world generally imagines.-Were it not for the affiftance of Rumphius, and other fuch philofophers, doctor Parfons might have stumbled over a ftone, without knowing whether it was a pebble or a purbec, and be apt to confound a petrified crab with a common cockle-shell. We are afraid, however, that this great natural, with all his knowledge, has ftumbled over an expression which hath dislocated the fenfe and meaning of the period. Flints and

agates (fays he) are nothing less than crystal debased by earth.-'Now we should be glad to know whether he thinks there is any difference between nothing lefs, and nothing more?

What follows is a letter to the reverend Stephen Hales, D. D. F. R. S. from the abbé Mazeus, F. R. S. who mentions fome experiments, by which it appears, that the juice of the Toxicodendron Carolinianum foliis pinnatis, fioribus minimis herbaceis, ftrikes a fine black colour into cloth, and this colour adheres to it with more force than any other known preparation. He fays, he tried the juices of two other species of the toxicodendron, growing in the garden of the Duke D'Ayen at St. Germain, and that they ftained his ruffles of a finer black, and in much lefs time, than did the uice of the first mentioned. This effect the abbé feems to arrogate as a

discovery