The Conservative. (M'connelsville, Ohio) 1866-1871, 1869-07-16
SINGULAR EFFECTS OF LIGHTNING
An upward" Stroke.
From the Lexington WI Gazette.

AAA'NA ut L'AAHhAbA WI haeNAAfsl
About two o'clock on the LIST Of June a
heavy cloud passed over Lexington, from
which a sudden and violent peal of thun-
der startled the whole town, succeeding the
fash Of lightning so quickly as TO impress
every one with the belief that the "stroke"
was near at hand. This was soon found
to be true for the mysterious AGENT had
visited, in q very unceremonious way,
the residence of Mr.. Francis links, who
lives on the northwest border of the town.
The features Of the phenomenon were
IN some respects very remarkable. /. IL
seems TO have been what the %electri-
clans call San upward stroke, that is,
according TO DR.. Franklin's theory Of
electricity, the cloud was in a negative
condition, and by its attractive force had
accumulated a heavy charge of the ''elec-
trio fluid" Of it be a fluid) in that part Of
the earth below. In its efforts to reach
the cloud the electricity would of
course pass of at the point where it
found the least resistance 10 its upward
flow, which, in this casa seems TO have
been Mr.. Jink's lightning rod. 2. A Second
popularity was the effects upon the ground
in the vicinity of the house. The soil near
the surface was furrowed in four zigzag
lines nearly at right angles to each other,
and all c%onverging toward the lightning
rod, which stands at the western end ofthe
house. These burrows were upheayed very
much as If a large mole had plowed his
tortuous path beneath the soil, coming
near enough 10 the surface in some parts 10
throw the clay entirely ont on both sides
Of its open track. Two of the furrowsseem
10 have commenced at least twenty feet
from the base of the rod in opposite sides,
and TO have run in lines nearly parallel
with the end of the house, while a third
one net them, coming n distance of fifteen
feet Mld varying u little from n perpendic-
nlar 10 the general line of the first two.
These three seem TO have taken their harm
less flight through the rod. The fourth.
however, which had its origin on
the opposite end of the house aud
more than thirty-feet from the rod,
behaved in q much more singular
manner-in fact, it appears to have
acted as a sort of Independent stroke. Iu-
stead Of passing on to the rod il took a
shorter route into the atmosphere (or
wherever 1t VENT by running into a heavy
locust post on which a corner Of the baci,
porch rested, and at the point of the build
ing most remote from the lightning rod
The post was utterly demolished, its frap-
meuts being thrown off in every direction,
~ NHoNAAub AAt lltuhh on the YARD
fence, and others flying away to the dis.
lance of q hundred yards. From the 10,
custpost the electricity passed up a wooden
pillar which supported the porch roof tear.
ing 1t into q thousand splinters. When the
charge reached the roof it tore up a few
shingles near the corner, but after that Il
seems 10 have lost its power; for, although
the house is a story higher than the porch,
ana mteryenes between the stricken corner
and the lightning rod, not a trace of cleo.
trio action could be found beyond the cor.
ner of the porch roof. Mr.. and Mrs. links,
who were Mt the time in their basement
dining room, were both severely shocked
but received no permanent injury. The
place was carefully examined after tbe
storm was over by Professor Campbell. o.
Washington College, who expresses The
opinion that the lightning rod saved boil
the house and its occupants. He think
that the violence of the discharge was du,
IN part to the insufficient size of the roo
at being a slender iron rodl, and in part Il
the want of perfect conducting communi
cation between the rod and the earth
These suggest important points to be at
tended TO in the construction OF lightning
rods.