The Butte inter mountain., 1903-07-02
HUMAN WIRES FOR
|NCANDESCENTLA
CURRENT OF 100000 VOLTS is
PASSED THROUGH BODY
OF STUDENTS.

Chicago, July s.-Thc University OF
Michigan students stood in darkened
laboratory last week holding an electric
light bulb between them. like a water pail.
college professor pulled a lever.
The electric bulb suddenly lighted the
room, showing an audience who gazed in
amazement at a human electric wire-thc
arms OF the two students through whom
the current ran.
The students grinned sheepishly at the
startled looks OF the audience
Then the professor, benjamin i. Bailey,
stepped forward, and by the light OF his
human wire demonstrated how a 500. .ooo,-
volt current OF electricity may he made as
harmless and agreeable as a June breeze.
Not Painful.
Indeed, the two students nodded when he
stated, as his FIRST remark, that the only
sensation which the boys experienced was
warm tingling of the palms of the hands.
The scientist explained the apparatus
through which so strong a current Of cleo
tricity was made harmless. II was a
step up" transformer. Roughly de-
scribed. this transformer was a box two
feet long. one foot high and one foot wide,
filled with oil.
Immersed in the oil were two coils of
heavy wire, one of four turns and one of
200. The voltage OF the current in the
small coil was increased thousands of
'ltN9 bh IaHhlIlH lHibhkH lHt ldiVtT coil.
Inc electric current used came directly
from the university dynamo, with IS am
peres and 40 volts strength 1t passed
through two step up" transformers, the
first one rising 1t TO 5000 volts, a current
destructive to human life.
Harmless at 100000.
Then il was run directly into the odd
transformer described Just what influence
the oil cxerted over the electric fluid was
not explained. The effect, however, was
tremendous. The fatal current had $40
alterations. The current had been trans
formed from 5000 10 100000 volts and
was now harmless.
The power OF this current was apparent
in the dark room, even through the dead
copper wires. About the wires there was
a hlmy haze OF light, green tinted some
times then blue, but mostly violet
a few preliminarics preceded the cleo
trio light experiment. Prof. Bailey showed
the current leapng across n space Of ~
10 II inches, between two metal knobs
II was small streak OF chain lightning
perhaps as thick as lead pencil, and Il
cracked like pistol shot.
Medical Value.
The students who were called from the
audience, grasped in their hands a short
naked wire, at the center OF which the in
candescent lamp was suspended. Then
nhn 'HN' i'N' HhHio lh' DoJs RIIpptu tnt
broken ends OF the 100000 volt wire and
the current which lighted the lamp com.
pletcd its circuit through their arms.
There are two theories in explanation Of
the harmlessness Of this current. Accord
ing to one, IL alternates with such extreme
rapidity that the electricity has no time 10
act on the muscles nor TO communicate
its impulses TO the nerves. The other
theory holds that the current does not
enter the body at all, but passes over the
outside.
The medical value Of the strong current
has been tested at the University Of Mich
igan hospital by DR.. W. J. Herdman. 1t
has been found TO induce sleep, under
proper conditions, and to benefit rheu-
matism.