Page:Scientific Memoirs, Vol. 2 (1841).djvu/200

 188 in reference to the earth. We may hope, that from the general attention now directed to these phænomena, much light may shortly be thrown upon their causes. But it should not be forgotten that these changes are comparatively very small, and that there must therefore exist a much more powerful and constantly acting principal force, of which we assume the seat to be in the earth itself. A consequence which follows from this consideration is, that the facts which are to serve as the foundation on which the study of the principal force must be based, ought properly themselves to be first freed from the effects of the anomalous changes. This can only be done by mean values, drawn from numerous and continued observations; and until we shall possess such purified results, from a great number of stations distributed over the whole surface of the globe, the utmost that can be looked for is an approximation, in which there must still remain differences of the order of these anomalies.

2.

The foundation of our researches is the assumption, that the terrestrial magnetic force is the collective action of all the magnetized particles of the earth's mass. We represent to ourselves magnetization as a separation of the magnetic fluids. Admitting this representation, the mode of action of the fluids (repulsion of similar and attraction of dissimilar particles inversely as the square of the distance) belongs to the number of established physical truths. No alteration in the results would be caused by changing this mode of representation for that of Ampère, whereby, instead of magnetic fluids, magnetism is held to consist in constant galvanic currents in the minutest particles of bodies. Nor would it occasion a difference if the terrestrial magnetism were ascribed to a mixed origin, as proceeding partly from the separation of the magnetic fluids in the earth, and partly from galvanic currents in the same; inasmuch as it is known, that for each galvanic current, may be substituted such a given distribution of the magnetic fluids in a surface bounded by the current, as would exercise in each point of external space precisely the same magnetic action as would be produced by the galvanic current itself.

3.

For the measurement of the magnetic fluids we take, as in