New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1858-08-27
Eyerybo who has read "Vestiges of Creation

Every body who has read "Nestlges OF Creati0n
as who has not lis aware of the importance
acribed by the author of that work to the expert.
ments Of Andrew Crosse, by which animal life
seemed TO be produced as the result of electrical
sction. Mr. Crosse, after life spent in electric al
experiments, died JAY 6, 1866, at the age Of II,
and bis Memorials, Scientific ard Literary" lately
publiihed in London, contain rome curious details
as to his experiments above referred to, aud the
way in which they were received BY the public.
Beirg engaged at the time in experiments for the
production of mineral crystals by the agency of the
vOtac current, in which he had remarkable su:-
cess, he contrived little apparatus for the deposit
ton of Crystals of silica on lump Of stone, through
the agency Ct voltaic trough. Alter this expert
ment had been going on for fortnight, hs observed
a few small whitsh specks on the surface Of the
electrified stons. By the eighteenth day, these
,pecks bad expanded, and seven or eight 6laments
embryo min eras exhibited similar phenomena in the
proce,s of capitalization, there was nothing so far
to excite any surprise. Before long, however,
theee growing specks assumed the appearance
of insects standing erect on THO I.i-.ls. which
formed their tas and by the twenty ghth day they
were distinctly .een TO move their legs. By this
time the eIperimenter was greatly astonished.
Instead Of mineral for which he had looked the
reaut Of bis experiment, he had found an animal,
alive and kicking 1t was plain they were no
n ere appearances, fer in few days they detached
themselves from the .tone and began to move about
They were, to be sure, not creatures Of very in
vi.irg AID attractive character, for they belonged
apparently 10 the genus acarus which includes some
Of the most disgusting parasites with which the
animal body is annoyed. But they continued TO in
or. ase and in the course Of few weeks at least
lurdred made their appearance. Whencs did they
come, and what was their origin To these ques.
tiers, Mr.. Crosse, with all his faith 10 the power of
electricity, did not then venture aud has not since
yentured decided answer. Many years after, for
the experiment was first tried in 1907, he proe.sed
bim.elf still unable TO form an opinion. He ex-
preues himself thus Tie simplest solution
q of the problem which occurred b me was that
q" they rose from ovs deposited by insects floating
"in The atmosphere and Matched BY electric action.
"Still could not imagine that an ovum could shoot
"eut flaments, or that those flaments could be-
come bristles; and moreover, / could not detect,
sen the closest examination tie remains Of shell.
"Agsin, we have 70 right to assume that electric
faction is necessary to vitality until uca fact shall
shave been most distinctly proved. next iu-
"asnsd, as others have done, that they might have
"orjginated from the water, aud consequently
",lade clcie examination of numbers Of vessels
filled with the same fluid. In none of these
"eouM I perceive trace of an insect, nor could
",ee any in any other Part of the room-"
The experiments were repeated in various ways,
and with every precaution that could be thought Of
yet the insects still appeared, and that too, under
circumstances apparently highly adverse TO the DE-
velopnent Of animal life. They made their ap-
pesrance under the surface Of liquids in which they
could not sfterward live, even in fluids that were
causkc or absolutely poisonous. Though the solid
materials employed had been subjected to heat
srsstsr than that Of molten iron, and the solutions