"I have done so."
"Lastly, I ask her to turn it over quickly, with her little hand placed against its lower side in order to prevent the water from falling upon the floor."
Miss Miette did as she was commanded. The water fell in the tube, dividing itself into drops of more or less size. It was like rain in miniature.
"The water, as you have just seen," said Monsieur Roger, "has fallen in Miss Miette's tube, dividing itself against the resistance of the air. In the tube which I hold, and in which there is no longer any air, you will see how water falls."
Monsieur Roger turned the tube over, but the water this time encountered no resistance from the air. It fell in one mass, and struck the bottom of the tube with a dry and metallic sound.
"It made a noise almost like the noise of a hammer," said Paul Solange.
"Exactly," answered Monsieur Roger. "Scientists have given this apparatus the name of the water-hammer." And looking at Miette, who in her astonishment was examining the tube without saying anything, Monsieur Roger added, smiling, "And this hammer has struck Miss Miette with surprise."
