Deep in the veiled fastness of forgotten time lies buried the beginning of man's knowledge of electricity and of its companion, magnetism. No one can say who first "discovered" the effects of these phenomena, for some of their results must have been observed from the earliest ages of human understanding. The lofty splendor of the northern lights, the terrifying violence of lightning, the intimate and seemingly magical sparks which resulted when the family cat was stroked on a wintry day must have awed and mystified our prehistoric forebears, perhaps instilling in their minds and heritage the qualities which made them wonder, which led them to the concept of powers greater than the club and spear> which caused them to ask the burning question, "Why?"