. Since this was in fair agreement with Townsend’s original mean, the authors concluded that only a small fraction—about 9 per cent—of the positive ions formed by X-rays are doubles, or other multiples, and the rest singles. In their experiments on the ionization produced by
-rays,
-rays, and
-rays, they found no evidence for the existence of doubly charged ions.
In summarizing, then, the work of these observers it could only be said that, although both Townsend and Franck and Westphal drew the conclusion that doubly charged ions exist in gases ionized by X-rays, there were such contradictions and uncertainties in their work as to leave the question unsettled. In gases ionized by other agencies than X-rays no one had yet found any evidence for the existence of ions carrying more than a single charge, except in the case of spark discharges from condensers. The spectra of these sparks revealed certain lines called enhanced lines which were thought to be due to doubly ionized atoms. Whether, however, these multiple charges were produced by a single ionizing act or by successive acts was completely unknown.
II. OIL-DROP EXPERIMENTS ON VALENCY IN GASEOUS IONIZATION
The oil-drop method is capable of furnishing a direct and unmistakable answer to the question as to whether the act of ionization of a gas by X-rays or other agencies consists in the detachment of one, of several, or of many electrons from a single neutral molecule. For it makes it possible to catch the residue of such a molecule practically at the instant at which it is ionized and to count directly the number of charges carried by that residue. The initial evidence obtained from this method seemed to favor the view that the act of ionization may consist in the detachment of quite a number of electrons from a single molecule, for it was not infrequently observed that a balanced oil drop would remain for several seconds unchanged in charge while X-rays were passing between the plates, and would then suddenly assume a speed which corresponded to a change of quite a number of electrons in its charge.