The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1865-08-08
EIECrR1CAL PHENOMENA.


~~~~~-~~->~>~~~~~~>~>~~~ 4
Experiments Upo. che Asre- |
raj Current Z
From the Boston journal, August g.,
IN the month Of August, 1859, the bear -
sS,ss sss ssed .as; nd p.a
Of the display and It's ehec' cn rom ING grefdsur
the eleS.ror 'h, % %
coil Of WIRE "a tbe circuit Of . Telegraph line
o,0so :. ,. WV several telegraph Ines worked,
'rsnS aed SC. without the aid Of ARTIFICIAL
az I've ~. aurora borealis assuming the entireduty
psr'' med well il might have been done with
al battery power, without the aid or nterereice OF
tho aurorai current yet 4 was great satisacttn 70
many wonder stricken teegaphers who had never seen
the like before.
Many OF the effects Of the phenomenon and accounts
OF experiments made upon telegraph lines were iaced
record In the various newspapers at that time, some
OF which also published in works on electricity and
ThSssay August 1861 Spoa the electro magnetic
needle and Geographic Instruments differed considerably
from that OF August, 1882 we wish to place on rtcer
for comparison with the previous experiments a for
future reference the result of comparatively rude bser
vatons, made with instruments, on wire runnngfrom
Boston to Springfield, Mass.
Although the auroral current undoubtedly sspow
erl that OF August 1859, 1t was observed thai our
wires greatly disturbed by uctuaonslwith
ness of currents though the batteries were not pro-
per working condition, while the effect in August 1852
was to alternately and continually augment and decrease
battery currents in consequence of the continual
reversing Of the polarity Of the aurora current thus
adjusted for the currents and rendering for Whit our
lines almost useless.
removing the batteries, quite powerful and aeady
current each wave of which appeared OF much pnger
more gradual than was observed in August 1862 But
the most remarkable effect shown recent expert
mens with the galvanometer was the almost entire alb
of the changes OF polarity which very marked
in the experiments Of 1859, each wave having been
almost invariably succeeded by of opposite
polarity.
In the experiments Of the Sd instant the positive
polarity Of the auroral current was almost invariably
west during the observations which is the reverse Of the
usual battery currents the western wires thus ac-
counting for the weakness OF currents observed previous
to the experimentsas the two currents being generally
opposed, were partially ncutrazed
The following observations OF the needle will roughly
show the power constancy and polarity Of the auroal
ments:-
The batteries having been removed and the galvanome-
ter placed in the circnt Of the wire extending from Bos
ton to Springfield, Mass, at twelve hours ffty-one
minutes /. M detection OF deg east was observed,
be remarked thas detection in the needle east In this
instance simply shows the polarity of the auroral
current to have been the reverse Of our usual bat
terry current After comparatively steady upward
movement of three minutes DURATION with occasional
check or slight downward movement (Which character
stic observable throughout the experiments) the
needle remain stationary at "A deg DETECTION but for
only few seconds having descended rapidly 70
the ng thirty seconds After remaining quietly at
minute another ascent commenced cast,
stopping at % deg at twelve hours minutes
thirty seconds the duration Of that ascent having been
scendcd 10 zero in minute thirty seconds mme-
diacly commenced another ascent In the direction
reaching 60 deg at hour three minutes this ascent
occupying three minutes The needle remained steady at
60 deg for three minutes, when, during the succeeding
minute 1t assembled to 20 deg. and returned 81 deg
where 1t remained two minutes. During the next
ceeding minute it assembled TO ~ deg descended TO
IS deg, and again assembled to IS deg.
Remaining at rs deg two minutes, II commenced
descent occupying minute and remaining stationary
at 80 deg. for thirty seconds, when il rapidly de-
scended to zero as If the current had been suddenly
moved Remaining at thirty seconds, another
ascent was commenced east, aching so deg hour
and sixteen minutes. During the succeeding minute the
needle descended to zero, assembled three deg west
and returned to Zero After remaining at one min
ute, an ascent west was commenced at one hour and
eighteen minutes, reaching "a deg In thirty seconds.
Rcma ming at "a deg one innute !. rapidly descended
though the entire current had been suddenly removed
The needle then remained stationary until
hour and twentysx minutes, when assembled five deg
east and remained between that and until
and thirty three minutes, when IL stood perfectly quiet at
zero until hour and forty minutes at which time the
observations discontinued.
In order to give idea OF the comparative value of the
aurora current during the above experiments would
state that with the same galvanometer, battery Of
thirtyfour cells in New York. with resistance OF No
galvanized wire from New York to Boston, produces
dpfa on NJ daU