The Sun.
London, England, 1837-08-30 00:00:00

LONDON, WEDNESDAY EVENING, AUGUST 30, 1837.

LONDON and GREENWICH RAILWAY
COMPANY.
Notice is hereby given, that an ADJOURNED MEETING
of the PROPRIETORS in this Company will be held at the Cit,.
of London Tavern, Bishopsgate-street, on Fan)Av next, the 1s
of September, at Twelve o'clock precisely.
GEORGE MONEY, Cha'rman.
26, Cor.,hill, 30th Aug. 1837.

T.ONDON and BIRMINGHAM RAILWAY
4 The Public are informed that the follewing, until fertile'
notice, will be the TIMES for the DEPARTURE of the
TRAINS every day except Sundays :
Front London First Train
Second
Third Five o'clock Afternoon.
From Box Meor...First Train . ......
(On Mondays half-past Seven o'clock Morning. )
Second ... .......
Third
ON SUNDAYS.

From London First Trails ... Nine e'cloek Morning.
Second
Third
I', ern Box Moor... First Train ...... Nine o'clock Morning.
Sewani
Third ... Sevea o'clock Afternoon.
By order,
R. CREED, Seeretary.
Offitte, 83, Cornhill, August 9, 1,37.

THUNDER STORM-MIRACULOUS

PRESERVATION OF LIFE.

On Sunday morning, the 20th instant, we were visited
by a very severe thunder storm, which lasted for an bole
,nd a half. The lightning was very alarming, but fortu-
dately did no damage in the city. At Buxburn, a little
village about two miles west of this, one of the houses was
:truck by the electric fluid, and perhaps the preservation of
the inmates is the most singular instance of the kind upon
record. To enable our readers to form a proper estimate
of the damage done, and the danger to which the family
were exposed, we shall just describe the horse and its situa-
tion. The toll road to Banff passes through Buxburn, in a line
with the Inverury canal, and separated therefiom by a row
if houses, one story high, with attic rooms. The distance
between these houses and the canal is eight feet, four of
which are occupied with pig sties. The house on the
north-east end of the row contains four apartments on the
ground floor, eight feet by twelve. The upper apart-
ments arc not subdivided, and have only one window in
'itch of the 'rooms ; there is a fire-place and window in
either side. A father, his wife, and their children were
in the east lower room on Sunday at eleven o'clock.
The father was sitting on a chair, placed in the corner be-
tween the fire-place and the window ; the mother was
sweeping the floor, and the children were toddling about the
room amusing themselves with a hen, which seemed more
anxious to profit by the meeliks of bread which fell from
their hands, than willing to obey the counsels of the guid-
wife to retire. The storm had raged for nearly half an
hour previous, but it never occurred to the family that
their little cot was the only one that would be visited by its
dire effects. A little before eleven o'clock, the lightning
struck the east gable, and scattered the stones in various
directions. It then entered the front room, first rent the
gable in its passage down the chimney, then dislodged a
pot from the crook, and placed it safely on the fire : next
laid the occupant of the chair flat on his face on the floor,
frightened the mother and the children, and killed poor
chucky. It now made its escape through the window,
smashing the one-half of the sash, and carrying every pane
of glass before it. So tremendous was the force of the ex-
plosion, that the sound resembled a discharge of artil-
lery, and the glass was scattered all over the road to a dis-
tance of fifty-four feet, and as small as if it had been ground
to powder. A portion of the fluid which entered the
back room was more destructive, but there being no per-
son in it, the only damage done was to the walls and the
window. It- would appear that a small part only of the
lightning bad escaped by the back window, as several of the
panes of glass were left whole ; but so powerful had been
the force against the north-east corner, that it tore up the
ground, went down underneath the foundation, and bursting
the wall in two different places, cut a passage through the
canal bank, and disappeared in the canal. In its way
thither, it had paid a visit to one of the pigsties, where
it paralyzed the two hind legs of one sow, stunned ano-
ther, and terrified a litter of pigs. The sow that was pa-
ralyzed has not yet recovered, nor is it likely that she will
ever recover the use of her limbs. Another portion which
entered by the attic vent, like the others rent the wall in its
progress downwards, and then exercised its fury against the
room-door, by shivering it to atoms, and dashing the frag-
ments against the door of the opposite room with such force
as to send it right forward to the fire-side, to the no small
astonishment of an old man who was sitting there at his
book. It then fell out with the window, and, by bursting
the glass, effected its escape. It. is remai kable that, with
the exception of the crockery-ware in the back room, none
of the forniture was injured, nor a single article displaced
on the floor. The plaster is torn off the walls in all the
rooms ; hut this seems to be the effect of the shaking and
rending, rather than owit.g, to the immediate effect of the
lightning. The family were thrown into such a state of
fright, that they can give ne perfect description of the ap-
pearance which the fluid had, farther than stating that it
was in large round balls ; but the guidman of the house im-
mediately opposite, says, the glare of the lightning was such,
that his roams were all filled with the reflection, and the
thunder. was so instantaneous and loud, that he thought al
nature was at an end. We have heard of other accidents
of a trifling nature having occurred in the neighbourhood,
but we have not received any definitive reports regarding
them, and therefore cannot give them publicity. The
statements in regard to Buxburn may be depended on, for
they are authenticated by an eye-witness.—Aberdeen
Herald.