Faraday to Peter Theophilus Riess   7 April 1855

Royal Institution | London | 7 April 1855

My dear Sir

It was a very great pleasure to me to receive your kind letter¹; - and written in such English as made me ashamed of my ignorance of the German language. I never cease to regret the latter circumstance; for I am aware of the great stores of knowledge in that language which would then be open to me in relation to my especial pursuits, and which some how or other the system of publication in our country almost entirely shuts out from me. I have several times within the last 15 years set about acquiring it, but a result over which I have no power, namely, a gradually failing memory, has on these occasions made the labour of head so great, that I have been obliged to refrain from such an endeavour, as also from many others. You gave me your book some time back². I looked at it eagerly; but both by its language & its mathematical developments (for the use of symbols requires memory) it was shut out from me; and so I placed it in our library, where I am very glad to find it is of great use to others[.]

Your observations upon Mr. Clarkes experiments (for M. Melloni) are very interesting to me & I cannot doubt that you are right. I can see no difference of an essential kind, between the current produced by a Leyden Jar & that of a Voltaic battery, and your experiments & conclusions appear to me to be fully applicable to the case and perfectly justified. I think Melloni could have been but little acquainted with the great body of facts belonging to electricity; Static & dynamic;- perhaps he had only begun to enter upon the subject, and was caught, as all men are, by first appearances. I had several letters from him³; & in relation to his conclusions on induction, I had written him a very long letter⁴ (in reply to a like long one from him⁵) against his views & statements. I heard from M. Flauti, the Secretary of the Academy at Naples, that it was received after his death, & had been read at the Academy⁶ (which was not however my intention). It was my hope that it would have led him to revise his conclusions before he published them. From what you tell me I conclude that he had already published them⁷; & I am sorry for it.

Your letter to me for which I thank you very much indeed, makes me think that you approve of the correction which I put into the Philosophical Magazine⁸, of Mellonis erroneous representation of Mr. L. Clarkes last results. As they were represented in the Italian journal⁹, the diagram could only confuse the mind & give conflicting ideas.

I am My dear Sir | With Very Great Respect | Your Obliged & faithful Servant | M Faraday

Professor Riess | &c &c &c

Address: Professor Riess | &c &c &c | Spandau Strasse | Berlin

Postmark: Hastings