en
presented a beautiful young lady, to whom each of the young men of the
party was introduced. In some mysterious manner she was insulated and
connected with the concealed electrical machine, so that as each gallant
touched her fingertips he received an electric shock that "made him
reel." Not content with this, the host invited the young men to kiss the
beautiful maid. But those who were bold enough to attempt it received an
electric shock that nearly "knocked their teeth out," as the professor
tells it.

LUDOLFF'S EXPERIMENT WITH THE ELECTRIC SPARK

But Bose was only one of several German scientists who were making
elaborate experiments. While Bose was constructing and experimenting
with his huge machine, another German, Christian Friedrich Ludolff,
demonstrated that electric sparks are actual fire--a fact long suspected
but hitherto unproved. Ludolff's discovery, as it chanced, was made
in the lecture-hall of the reorganized Academy of Sciences at Berlin,
before an audience of scientists and great personages, at the opening
lecture in 1744.

In the course of this lecture on electricity, during which some of the
well-known manifestations of electricity were being shown, it occurred
to Ludolff to attempt to ignite some inflammable fluid by projecting
an electric spark upon its surface with a glass rod. This idea was
suggested to him while performing the familiar experiment of producing
a spark on the surface of a bowl of water by touching it with a charged
glass rod. He announced to his audience the experiment he was about to
attempt, and having warmed a spoonful of sulphuric ether, he touched
its surface with the glass rod, causing it to burst into flame. This
experiment left no room for doubt that the electric spark was actual
fire.

As soon as this experiment of Ludolff's was made known to Bose, he
immediately claimed that he had previously made similar demonstrations
on various inflammable substances, both liquid and solid; and it seems
highly probable that he had done so, as he was constantly experimenting
with the sparks, and must almost certainly have set certain substances
ablaze by accident, if not by intent. At all events, he carried on
a series of experiments along this line to good purpose, finally
succeeding in exploding gun-powder, and so making the first forerunner
of the electric fuses now so universally used in blasting, firing
cannon, and other similar purposes. It was Bose also who, observing