Page:Philosophical magazine 21 series 4.djvu/368

344 Prof. Maxwell on the Theory of Molecular Vortices motion relative to it. It is evident that, from this figure, we can trace the variations of form of an element of the fluid, as the form of the element depends, not on the absolute motion of the whole system, but on the relative motion of its parts.

In front of the wire, that is, on its east side, it will be seen that as the wire approaches each portion of the medium, that portion is more and more compressed in the direction from east to west, and extended in the direction from north to south; and since the axes of the vortices lie in the north and south direction, their velocity will continually tend to increase by Prop. X., unless prevented or checked by electromotive forces acting on the circumference of each vortex.

We shall consider an electromotive force as positive when the vortices tend to move the interjacent particles upwards perpendicularly to the plane of the paper.

The vortices appear to revolve as the hands of a watch when we look at them from south to north; so that each vortex moves upwards on its west side, and downwards on its east side. In front of the wire, therefore, where each vortex is striving to increase its velocity, the electromotive force upwards must be greater on its west than on its east side. There will therefore be a continual increase of upward electromotive force from the remote east, where it is zero, to the front of the moving wire, where the upward force will be strongest.

Behind the wire a different action takes place. As the wire moves away from each successive portion of the medium, that portion is extended from east to west, and compressed from north to south, so as to tend to diminish the velocity of the vortices, and therefore to make the upward electromotive force greater on the east than on the west side of each vortex. The upward electromotive force will therefore increase continually from the remote west, where it is zero, to the back of the moving wire, where it will be strongest.

It appears, therefore, that a vertical wire moving eastwards will experience an electromotive force tending to produce in it an upward current. If there is no conducting circuit in connexion with the ends of the wire, no current will be formed, and the magnetic forces will not be altered; but if such a circuit exists, there will be a current, and the lines of magnetic force and the velocity of the vortices will be altered from their state previous to the motion of the wire. The change in the lines of force is shown in fig. 5. The vortices in front of the wire, instead of merely producing pressures, actually increase in velocity, while those behind have their velocity diminished, and those at the sides of the wire have the direction of their axes altered; so that the final effect is to produce a force acting on the wire as a resistance