Faraday as a Discoverer | Page 7

added chivalry to affection.
Footnotes to

Chapter 1
[1] Here is Davy's recommendation of Faraday, presented to the
managers of the Royal Institution, at a meeting on the 18th of March,
1813, Charles Hatchett, Esq., in the chair:--
'Sir Humphry Davy has the honour to inform the managers that he has

found a person who is desirous to occupy the situation in the Institution
lately filled by William Payne. His name is Michael Faraday. He is a
youth of twenty-two years of age. As far as Sir H. Davy has been able
to observe or ascertain, he appears well fitted for the situation. His
habits seem good; his disposition active and cheerful, and his manner
intelligent. He is willing to engage himself on the same terms as given
to Mr. Payne at the time of quitting the Institution.
'Resolved,--That Michael Faraday be engaged to fill the situation lately
occupied by Mr. Payne, on the same terms.'
[2] Faraday loved this word and employed it to the last; he had an
intense dislike to the modern term physicist.
[3] To whom I am indebted for a copy of the original letter.

Chapter 2
.
Early researches: magnetic rotations: liquefaction of gases: heavy glass:
Charles Anderson: contributions to physics.
Oersted, in 1820, discovered the action of a voltaic current on a
magnetic needle; and immediately afterwards the splendid intellect of
Ampere succeeded in showing that every magnetic phenomenon then
known might be reduced to the mutual action of electric currents. The
subject occupied all men's thoughts: and in this country Dr. Wollaston
sought to convert the deflection of the needle by the current into a
permanent rotation of the needle round the current. He also hoped to
produce the reciprocal effect of causing a current to rotate round a
magnet. In the early part of 1821, Wollaston attempted to realise this
idea in the presence of Sir Humphry Davy in the laboratory of the
Royal Institution.[1] This was well calculated to attract Faraday's
attention to the subject. He read much about it; and in the months of
July, August, and September he wrote a 'history of the progress of
electro-magnetism,' which he published in Thomson's 'Annals of
Philosophy.' Soon afterwards he took up the subject of 'Magnetic

Rotations,' and on the morning of Christmas-day, 1821, he called his
wife to witness, for the first time, the revolution of a magnetic needle
round an electric current. Incidental to the 'historic sketch,' he repeated
almost all the experiments there referred to; and these, added to his own
subsequent work, made him practical master of all that was then known
regarding the voltaic current. In 1821, he also touched upon a subject
which subsequently received his closer attention--the vaporization of
mercury at common temperatures; and immediately afterwards
conducted, in company with Mr. Stodart, experiments on the alloys of
steel. He was accustomed in after years to present to his friends razors
formed from one of the alloys then discovered.
During Faraday's hours of liberty from other duties, he took up subjects
of inquiry for himself; and in the spring of 1823, thus self-prompted, he
began the examination of a substance which had long been regarded as
the chemical element chlorine, in a solid form, but which Sir Humphry
Davy, in 1810, had proved to be a hydrate of chlorine, that is, a
compound of chlorine and water. Faraday first analysed this hydrate,
and wrote out an account of its composition. This account was looked
over by Davy, who suggested the heating of the hydrate under pressure
in a sealed glass tube. This was done. The hydrate fused at a blood-heat,
the tube became filled with a yellow atmosphere, and was afterwards
found to contain two liquid substances. Dr. Paris happened to enter the
laboratory while Faraday was at work. Seeing the oily liquid in his tube,
he rallied the young chemist for his carelessness in employing soiled
vessels. On filing off the end of the tube, its contents exploded and the
oily matter vanished. Early next morning, Dr. Paris received the
following note:--
'Dear Sir,--The oil you noticed yesterday turns out to be liquid chlorine.
'Yours faithfully, 'M. Faraday.'[2]
The gas had been liquefied by its own pressure. Faraday then tried
compression with a syringe, and succeeded thus in liquefying the gas.
To the published account of this experiment Davy added the following
note:--'In desiring Mr. Faraday to expose the hydrate of chlorine in a
closed glass tube, it occurred to me that one of three things would
happen: that decomposition of water would occur;... or that the chlorine
would separate in a fluid state.' Davy, moreover, immediately applied
the method of self-compressing atmosphere to the liquefaction of

muriatic gas. Faraday continued the experiments, and succeeded in
reducing a number of gases till then deemed permanent