Mr. Faraday presents his compliments to Mr. Meldola & acknowledges the receipt of his letter & drawing[.] He regrets that his age & health is such as to prevent his seeing Mr. Meldola or enteroring [sic] into the consideration of the lamp described[.]
But the lamp can only be tested by construction & experiment and that must be done by the Inventor himself:- it is only so that he can satisfy himself. There will arise very many difficulties: The ball will become very hot – the glass will be broken – the enclosed state of the lamp will present difficulties to the adjustment of the carbons – if the glass of the of tube does not break it will melt & become deformed. The drawing conveys no notion of the difficulties that will arise in practice[.] The only test is trial – the only mode of instruction an attempt to realize the idea in practice.
Mr. Meldola’s leap from the Palmer’s2 candlestick3 to the Electric lamp is very great & in its result may disappoint him; but he must make it for himself & Mr. Faraday is sure that whilst making it he will learn much about the Electric lamp that he is unacquainted with at present.
Royal Institution | 28 May 1864.
Please cite as “Faraday4460,” in Ɛpsilon: The Michael Faraday Collection accessed on 28 April 2024, https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/faraday/letters/Faraday4460