All the particles of air gravitate towards the earth, which gravitation compresses them, and shortens the sides of the triangles, otherwise their mutual repellency would force them to greater distances from each other.
Water being dissolved in, and adhering to air, that air will not readily take up oil, because of the mutualrepellency between water and oil.
It then approaches D, and, to move it out of the way, must act on it with a force sufficient to overcome its repellency with the two next lower particles, by which it is kept in its present situation.
For by so doing you take away their atmospheres, composed of the electric matter driven out of the substance of the prime conductor, as aforesaid, by the repellency of the atmosphere of the glass tube.
Accordingly we find, that if the prime conductor be electrified, and the cork balls in a state of repellency before the bottle is discharged, they continue so afterwards.
Its pores are filled with it as full as the mutual repellency of the particles will admit; and what is already in, refuses, or strongly repels, any additional quantity.
The light of the sun thrown strongly on both cork and shot by a looking-glass for a long time together, does not impair the repellency in the least.
The repellencybetween the cork-ball and the shot is likewise destroyed.
The repellencybetween the cork-ball and the shot is likewise destroy'd; 1.
When in this state, if you present to the shot the point of a long slender sharp bodkin, at six or eight inches distance, the repellency is instantly destroy'd, and the cork flies to the shot.
Accordingly we find, that if the prime conductor be electrified, and the cork balls in a state ofrepellency before the bottle is charged, they continue so afterwards.
The light of the sun thrown strongly upon both cork and shot by a looking-glass, for a long time together, does not impair the repellency in the least.
Franklin also noted the fact that, unlike fire-light, sunlight, when thrown on both cork and shot, did not impair the repellency between them in the least.
