The researches of Dr. Martinus van Marum (1750-1837) on the influence of electricity on animals and plants.

INRODUCTION MARTINUS VAN MARUM was born in Delft, Holland, and graduated in medicine and botany in Groningen in 1773. He moved to Haarlem, where in 1777 he was appointed Director of the 'Cabinet of Natural Curiosities' of the Hollandsche Maatschappij der Wetenschappen,2 and in 1794 he became the second secretary of this society. In 1784 he also became the Librarian of the Teyler Stichting, and the Director of its Museum. Van Marum worked in many fields, including chemistry, geology, palaeontology and botany. He is well known for his introduction of Lavoisier's new chemical system into The Netherlands, and for his experiments with Teyler's large triboelectric generator, at that time the largest in Europe." In 1798 he was elected a fellow of the Royal Society, and many other foreign societies also honoured him in this way. Van Marum conducted most of his electrical experiments during the years 1780 to 1790, and, like many others, he investigated the influence of electricity on the body, as by this time a considerable amount of material existed concerning the use of electricity in medicine. This work can be directly linked to Van Marum's research on the influence of electricity on plants. Most of his results were inconsistent with those reached by his Dutch contemporaries.