The Illuminated Water
Connect one end of a chain with the outside of a charged phial, and
let the other end lie on the table. Place the end of another piece of
chain at the distance of about a quarter of an inch from the former;
and set a glass decanter of water on these separated ends. On making
the discharge, the water will appear perfectly luminous.
The electric spark may be rendered visible in water, in the following
manne
:--Take a glass tube of about half an inch in diameter, and six
inches long; fill it with water, and to each extremity of the tube
adapt a cork, which may confine the water; through each cork insert a
blunt wire, so that the extremities of the wires within the tube may
be very near one another; then, on connecting one of these wires with
the coating of a small charged phial, and touching the other wire with
the knob of it, the shock will pass through the wires, and cause a
vivid spark to appear within their extremities within the tube. The
charge in this experiment must be very weak, or there will be danger
of bursting the tube.