Dr. Merryweather’s Tempest Prognosticator

[eub]

http://www.victorianweb.org/technology/packer/merryweather.html

With his thoughts directed to the workings of animal instinct, our Museum Curator had observed the peculiar sensitiveness of the medicinal leech to electrical conditions in the atmosphere; and this observation resulted in the invention of an apparatus which he described as "An Atmospheric Electromagnetic Telegraph, conducted by Animal Instinct," but which he decided to call the "Tempest Prognosticator"..

The "Tempest Prognosticator" consisted of twelve pint bottles of white glass, round the base of a circular stand, at the top of which was a bell surrounded by twelve hammers. Each bottle was connected with one of the hammers through a metal tube in its neck, containing a piece of whalebone and a wire, to which was attached a small gilt chain. Here is the inventor’s description of how the Prognosticator works:

After having arranged this mouse trap contrivance, into each bottle was poured rain water, to the height of an inch and a half; and a leech placed in every bottle, which was to be its future residence; and when influenced by the electromagnetic state of the atmosphere a number of leeches ascended into the tubes; in doing which they dislodged the whalebone and caused the bell to ring.

(Found in the new Crowley.)

Comments

[hattifattener]

Well, did it work?!?

While we're at it, here's Kelvin's water drop generator (and more here) which I mentioned the other day.

[eub.livejournal.com]

http://www.magma.ca/~jdreid/leech.htm

In order to test the efficiency and accuracy of the apparatus, the inventor has for the last twelve months forwarded, beforehand, to the President of the Philosophical Society, an intimation of the approach of any storm that was likely to take place. The committee of management at Lloyd’s have also given publicity to a number of the experiments, which were found to be perfectly accurate.

Perfectly accurate, a number of them.

Water-drop electrostatics: cool. Thanks!
(And where was I just hearing about the wind-farm version?)