The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1896-04-24

resins had this same power VIII n
similarly excited and that glass
when dry and warm, would gener.
ate an attractive power under
friction which seemed directly
opposed to the attractive power in
amber and resinous substances.
The name electror was gradually
merged into electricity and was
applied to the general effect pro-
duced by friction upon these sub
stances. The two forms were at
first called resinous and vitreous
electricity, but now they are
called positive and negative.
Generation of electricity bv
batteries arc Sc from an observation
of Luigi Galvani physician of
Bologan, Italy. One day he saw a
pair of frogs legs suspended from
Il copper hook in front of a fish
merchants stall. The legs swayed
In the breeze and occasionally
brushed against strip of zinc that
was nailed to the post containing
the hook. AT every contact the
legs would give spasmodic twitch.
1t was q small thing to take
notice of but it made Galvani's
name immortal. lie took the
frogs legs home with him and
tried them on other STRIPS of zinc
and made them kick some more.
He founI that when the zinc and
copper were placed in solution
of acid or strong salt the effect on
the frogs legs was greatly in
creased and his xpeiiments led to
the creation of the galvanic
battery. This was greatly impro-
we'd by Volta, another Italian in
vestigator, and the Lattery is
sometimes known as the voltaic
pair. This discovery was made
but II little more than 100 years ago
so 1t may be seen that for period
OF 2,4OO years from its known dis.
covery the electrical business did
not have much of a boom.
Various frictional machines were
invented for the generation of elec-
tricity and these consi sted in re-
volving plate of glass in contract
with rubbing cl' this of silk. The
energy thus produced was collect
ed and the discharge was in the
form of u brilliant spark which
made the receiver tingle. Then
came the invention of the we'll
known Leyden jar in which con-
siderable charge of the electricity
generated by the frictional ma
chimes could be stored.
DIR. Benjamin Franklin express
ed the opinion that electricity was
nothing more or less than lightning
such as flashes from the clouds
during a thunder storm. This
something OF laugh, but
DR.. Franklin sent up Il kite armed
with metallic point at the tip,
Turing mild thunder storm and
electricity came down The
wet string To give the old doctor
some hard shocks and he charged
! Leyden Jar with II to prove his
It's not u good experiment TO
,ry, for nearly every other person
who has tried to pursus investiga-
lion IN that line has been terribly
Injured or killed. Three scientists
were killed In Russia by bolt
hat came down a wire they had
attached to n mammoth kite.
DIR. Franklin Unidentified the my
'terous energy but no man has yet
seen anything more than the effect
,f electricity. For many years II
was called an Invisible fluid but
here Is no more reason for claim
ing that il is fluid than there Is for
,alling IL a solid. A battery of
Leyden jars weighs no
more than the same battery un-
'harged. There is not so much AS
|-lO0 part of grain difference.
open The Jar and there is nothing
inside but the metallic coating of
in foil. Icthere was either solid
n nuid there, one might shake
mem about and hear sound but
hey are silent and empty. A bat
cry of 100 of them coupled togeth-
r VIII discharge with II report like
mall rifle ann the brilliant spark
5 deadly enough to kill an OK.
investigation has made marvel
'us strides In the last twenty years
ma now In the United States alone
'ver 100000, ,OOOin capital Is In
'esied In electrical power plants.
sun there Il no definition beyond
very iudctinite aud unsatlsfaet-