The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1895-03-18
THE FATHER OF ELECTRICITY.

He Was Queen Elizabeth's Surgeon and
Wrote ON "Eiectrics."
The nineteenth century, especial
ly in the latter half of it. has been
most fittingly entitled the electrical
age. Philadelphians take particular
pride in honoring Benjamin Frank
lin as its Inauguration, and The Rec
ord of that city can boast that it
stands today upon the spot where
that old Pennsylvania worthy flew
his historic kite and first called down
the lightning from the sky. Curl
ously enough, an alleged ancient
medal, described and engraved by
Pellrein, exhibits the thunder god
Jupiter in cloud, with the light
ming in his hand, and below a man
guiding kite. The authenticity of
this medal is, however, strongly
suspected. Despite the extravagant
theories of Professor Schweigger,
who believes that the poles OF the
Roman temple of Juno were anodes
and cathodes, and that the vestal fire
was electric, and the picturesque de-
scription of the ark of the covenant
and the Jewish temple as electrical
ly constructed, there is no credible
reason for deeming that the ancients
understood the secret of this mys-
tcrious power.
The Greeks to be sure, were aware
Of certain electrical phenomena.
They entertained a superstitous rev.
erence for amber--the tears OF the
ever signing poplars-which they
linked, through the myth of Phae-
ton, with the sun god. Thales even
declared that amber and adamant,
or magnet. SO called from Magnesia
in Lydia, possessed living souls.
Plato described their attractive pow
or. The Chinese claim to have known
of the,magnet during the reign OF
Ho-ang-ti, b. G. 2634. Dinocrates,
the builder of Alexandria, suggested
to one of the Ptolemies the idea of
constructing the entire roof of the
temple of Arsinoe of magnetic ma
terial, so that the statue of the
princess might float unsuspended
within. The Roman myth of Castor
and Pollux undoubtedly symbolized
a familiar phrase of atmospheric
electricity.
But to the ancient world the prin-
ciple of polarity was unknown, fam
tastic theories to the contrary not
withstanding. but, {" states a writ
or in The New Scionce Review, lin
tho year 1900 A. D.. >, DR.. William
Gilbert, surgeon to Queen Elizabeth,
and the most distinguished scientist
in England, found this little seed of
human knowledge in the archives.
where it had been buried for 1900
years. He straightway planted it in
rich loan when he published his fa-
nous book. The Magnetic, in which
he made known that the attractive
property of amber, when rubbed,
was not inherent in that substance
alone, but that it also existed in
some 20 other bodies, in which are
included the precious stones, glass,
sulphur, sealing wax and rosin. In
asmuch as all of these substances
acted like amber, Gilbert called them
electrics and the phenomenon itself
observation-disclosures which he derived
from elcctron The publication of
DR. Gilbert's work marks the true
commencement of electrical science,
its immediate effect everywhere hav-
ing melted philosophers to efforts to
extend his list of electrics. DIR. Will
liam Gilbert's name should be i'm
mortaliled as that of the father of
the science &C electricity. '-Boston
Heralu.