“If that be the case,” I replied, “suppose we go? I will believe your word.” “No, no; I am bound to show you this curious phenomenon. But, by the way,” the learned doctor added, “let me see your hands.” He took them in his. “Hang it,” he went on, “they are very dry for our experiment.” “You think so?” “Certainly.” “Then it is dangerous?” “It might be so.” “In that case, we will go,” I said, turning to the door. “That would be a pity,” my companion replied, holding me back; “stay, dip your hands in this bucket of water, dry them well, and they will be sufficiently damp.” I must mention that to insure the success of this marvellous experiment no other condition is requisite than to have the hands slightly damp. I regret I can offer no explanations as to the principle of the phenomenon, for this would require many a long chapter; hence I will refer my readers to M. Boutigny’s work. It will be enough to state that the metal, when in a state of fusion, is kept at a distance from the skin by a repulsive force, which opposes an insurmountable barrier. I had scarce finished wiping my hands when the furnace was opened, and a jet of molten metal, about the thickness of my arm, burst forth. Sparks flew in every direction, as if it were a firework performance. “Wait a few minutes,” M. Boutigny said, “till the metal is cleansed, for it would be dangerous to try our experiment at this moment.” Five minutes later the stream of liquid fire left off bubbling and emitting scoriæ; it became, indeed, so limpid and brilliant, that it scorched our eyes at a few yards off. All at once my companion walked up to the furnace, and calmly began washing his hands in the metal as if it had been lukewarm water. I make no pretence to bravery; I confess at this moment my heart beat as if it would burst, and yet, when M. Boutigny ended his strange ablutions, I walked forward in my turn with a determination that proved a certain strength of will. I imitated my professor’s movements, I literally dabbled in the burning liquid, and, in my joy, inspired by this marvellous operation, I took a handful of the metal and threw it in the air, and it fell back in a fire-shower on the ground. The impression I felt in touching this molten iron can only be compared to what I should have experienced in handling liquid velvet, if I may express myself so. I now ask what are the red-hot bars of the Aïssaoua, in comparison to the enormous temperature to which my hands had been exposed? The old and new miracles of the incombustibles are, therefore, explained by the experiments of a skillful naturalist, who, while making no pretence to trickery, only appreciates such phenomena in their relation to the immutable laws by virtue of which they are accomplished. INDEX. A. Academician’s, predictions, 370. Accident at the Odéon, 315. Accomplice, a kind, 135. Acrobatic canaries, 39. Africa, life in, 373. Aïssaoua, miracles of the sect of, 396. Alarum, a novel, 37.