This paper was presented, by one of the great scientists of his time, Lord Rayleigh, at a meeting of the Royal Society. If correct, it is in actual fact a very important paper indeed - and it might just be describing an LENR event. Keen observers will note the (moderate) similarities to a more recent patent I mentioned in here :- US 20130276771 A1. Filed by Aleksander Groszek in 2010. This describes a method of generating thermal energy, by contacting the surface of a metal with hydrogen gas, forming a surface having hydrogen absorbed thereon. The hydrogenated surface is then exposed to an oxygen atmosphere, when the oxygen component reacts with the absorbed hydrogen to produce thermal energy. In between these two steps, the metal surface is activated with an atmosphere comprising water. Thermal energy given off during this process is reported to be considerably higher than can be accounted for by chemistry alone.
The strange thing about the Rayleigh patent, is that I can find no sign that it was commented on or replicated by anyone, in fact it might well have been met with an embarrassed silence....that's LENR for you!