Subject: How do I make my homemade electroscope work?

I followed the directions in a book to make a simple electroscope out of 
electrical wire and aluminum foil in a jar.  I passed the wire through a 
cork and into a jar and hung a thin strip of foil on the wire.  The other 
end of the wire poked out of the cork, and I put a tight ball of foil 
around it.  If I put a charged object near the foil ball, the leaves of 
foil inside the jar are supposed to flare apart.  But they don't.  I can 
hear some crackling around the foil ball, but nothing happens inside the 
jar.  What am I doing wrong?  

Re: How do I make my homemade electroscope work?