An Essay to Shew the Cause of Electricity; and Why Some Things are Non-Electricable. In Which Is Also Consider'd Its Influence in the Blasts on Human Bodies, in the Blights on Trees, in the Damps in Mines; And as It May Affect the Sensitive Plant, &c.

"An Essay to Shew the Cause of Electricity; and Why Some Things are Non-Electricable" by John Freke is a scientific exploration into the mysteries of electricity during the 1700s. Freke puts forward ideas about what causes electricity, how it impacts living things and the world around us, and why some materials either carry or block electric currents. Rather than seeing laboratory equipment as the sole source of electricity, Freke suggests it comes from a sort of "universal Fire" present throughout the air. He touches how certain substances become electric, and why others like silk and wax do not. Going further, the essay links electricity to the health of both living things and the environment. Through experiments and observations, Freke aims to explain this relatively unknown force and its consequences in the natural world.