Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1852-01-31
SIR SNOW HARRIs's LIGHTNING CONDUCTOR
TO THE EDITORS.

3
and of the Chiefs Of Nary Bureaus, to the follow
ing very lucid and conclusive illustration (rom the
Morning Herald" of December 26tA) of Sir Snow
Harris's LIGHTNING CONDUCTOR. / shall not at
tempt to add any thing to the slip from the Herald,
because to 90 beyond it, attempt to set forth in
its true light the nestimable value of this conduc-
tor in its design and efficacy to and protect the
public property in the shape of armed ships leaving
out of view the important consideration Of ht-
manity, III the saving of life, would be to claim
more of your paper than these times will admit Of
All | ask is that those who have the authority to
apply to the ships Of our Nary this protecting
power which has, by Of its own merit, worked
its way into every shpof the English Navy and which
gained for its inventor the first medal Of the Great
Exhibition, y ~wa1ded BY the Boafn on Naval Nst-
ters Of which the well-known and scientific Baron
Dupin was President, will read and act up TO the
conclusive merits of this greatest of modern nven-
tons, this and certain protection of Govern
ment vessels, against the insnuating and destructive
force of lightning OaT conductors are very good
things to attract this fluid but not good in giving
it harmless passage. The efficacy of Sir Snow
Harriss conductor is clearly demonstrated fact
is the transmission of inelgenc by the Electric
Telegraph.
FROM THE LONDON MORNING HERALD OF DECEMBER 26.
Her Mojesy's Ship Cal1iope-Preseruatioa from,
Lighning
The Admiralty is in possession Of dispatches from her
Maestys ship Caope at Sydney up the 2lst of July
last. The ship her passage from Hobart Town. was
assaed the evening of the 10Th, six p NJ by most
fearful stroke of lightning lat 20 ST. long 152 E. 1t had
blown strong in heavy squalls from west all the day but
towards evening, moderated with heavy black clouds and
vivid lightning in the SW Capt Sir EvERARD HOME, who
commands the ship states in his letter that being below
he was suddenly startled by what appeared to him
of fire in the forepar of the cabin and explosion
loud as if the nearest gun the cabin door had been fired
The whole instantaneous. The electric discharge had
mainmas and passed by the conductors through
both sides of the ship 1t does not appear that any light
ming touched the fore mizzenmasts completely had
the fluid been conducted into the water that although the
captain went Immediately into the midshpmens BERTH
through which of the sdebranches of the conductor
passed. yet not the least evidence of what had taken place
apparent except that portion of the copper outside
the ship covering the bolhead by which the electric fluid
conducted and which the branch of the conductor
passing through the berth terminated found raised off
the side The copper spindle at the truck slightly
fused and such the terrible force of the lightning
that the conducting plates bore here and there strong
marks of violence the plates being places forced
the umbers the caps thrown backwards In the midst
of all this the and ship with all on board remained
unnjured strong smell of fire in the air was per-
ceptbe upon the quarterback under the hood spread
keep off the rain.
The following extract from letter written by the chap
lain of the Caliope board the ship three days after
this occurrence cannot be read by any connected with
maritime affairs without interest The letter is dated
. CGLSope, al sea, about yffy miles from Sydney,
July 19 1851.
"Whst sitting in the gun-room we were startled by
blaze of light and then most terrific explosion as loud
as the report of 64pounder We had been struck by
lghtnng fortunately, the mainmast conductor had
ceyed the shock and the electric fluid passed clean through
the ship. Had not had the conductor the Caiope
must have been shattered into thousand pieces even
after the explosion fears did subsde there
strong smell Of burning sulphur all around The pumps
were rgged and strict search made but the conductor
had done its work efectually and here
safe and thankful for our escape not of
experienced so fearful a crash"
As usual in all cases in which large quantities of cleo
trcity in operation by explosion through the air the
Of the atmosphere in with the surface of the
earth and effected electrically so that indepen-
IDENTIFY Of the electrical discharge several luminous phe
nomena presented themselves 1t is not uncommon in
thunder storms on shore to see the whole pavement Of
street luminous In the Of the Scya saved by
from lightning, in S43 in the West Indies electr
cal sparks were observed various parts of the deck In
TINS case OF the Canope many OF the seamen forward
thought they saw lightning pass out the chancabe
The peculiar smell attendant violent electrical dis
charges usually causing alarm of fire. bears ample
testimony to the force Of the shock to which the Caope
was exposed.
On review Of these phenomena we cannot but be
struck with the complete security afforded by the new
lightning conductors with which, in common with every
ship in the navy, the Caliope is fitted and which we owe
to the unweared abors Of Sir Snow Harris whose several
works this branch Of science are well known to the
public 1t is difficult to estimate at the real value these
conductors to the navy and the country practically
sdered. We reeoec in 1928 during the wars between
the several South American States two Of fleet sent
that station for the protection of trade being
pletey disabled by ghtnngthe Thetis frigae and the
Heron corvette Both lost their foremass and remained
long under re-f that conveys could not be afforded
The Thcts, being large rgate, could not obtain fore
most for tme and then only great cost To
in detail TO the loss to the country past times in men,
money, and ships, would be to write volume Of
affecting narrative In the of the Sultan seventy
four struck by lightning in l808 struck dead
the spars whilst furng sail another seventy four
the Repuse whilst in pursuit of the French squadron
under Gantheaume in 1870 had eight killed outright
and ten dangerously hurt that several of them died
after the ship therefore lost the services of no less
than eighteen other and besides crippled in her
spars that sail could be carried her manmas The
ship suffered more appears by her log than If she had
been in general action The British squadron in this case
lost the services Of its fastest ships The
Of the Trident in the East Indies in l803 is somewhat
similar The ship obliged to be taken in tow
for two days by the Tremendous, seventyour The last
remarkable Of this kind which find occurring in
the Royal navy that Of the Rodney, ninety guns
struck by lightning off Syracuse, December, 1888
The unlearned bgotry and prejudices Of few inAuen
tal persons that time busy in reardng the pro-
ess Of every thing like science in the Queens naval
vice. Mr. Harriss proposals for systematic capacious