Connecticut western news., 1884-08-13
LIGHTNING AT PLAY.
EXTRAORDINARY FREAKS ON THE WIRE CLOTHEs-LINEs IN HIATA- MORAS, PA.
Peculiar Experience of Lady Whose
 House Was Struck by the Fluid.

A letter from Matamoras, Pa., says: While Seymour Caykendall and his fam fly were sitting quietly at dinner, on Tuesday, during a terrible thunder storm, three excited neighbors burst into the house and wan ted to know if any of the family were hurt or killed. That was the first the Caykendalls knew that lightning had struck their house, and that the fluid had been playing all over and about it. The bolt had struck the roof near the chimney, tearing a hole through it as big as tub It did not enter the house, but dividing in three parts, coursed in different direc- tions over it. One portion of the cur rent flashed along the roof to the south end of the house, another travelled north, and the third took an eastward course along the ridgepole of an exten- sion. The current that went south slid down veranda post, which it scattered in slivers about the yard, and entered Ethe ground. The division of the current which took the opposite direction also started for the ground on a veranda post, but, when half way down, met the end of wire clothesline which was fastened to the post. Switching off on to this line the fluid was conducted to tall post at the other end of the wire. This post it made short work of, and then leaped to the ground at the side of coal house in an adjoining yard twelve feet away.
 Flowing a channel for itself i'll under this coal house from one side to the other, the fluid turned upward and struck a chicken coop at a spot where another wire clothesline was fastened. Tearing away a portion of the siding on the hen house, the current followed the wire to its terminus on an outhouse, which it scattered about the garden and then buried itself in the ground. Still another wire ran parallel with the one on which this portion of the original bolt made its last journey and five feet distant. A linen handkerchief was hang ing on this line, and as the current passed it on the other wire the handker- chief parted in zigzag tear ascending from the bottom to the top. That por- tion of the fluid which had passed along the ridgepole of the extension left the roof at one corner, and in passing down also came in contact with a wire clothes line, followed it to another yard, where it tore an outhouse to pieces and disap- peared in the ground.
 The electrical display at Caykendall's house was hardly over when lightning struck a tall pole in Charles Leppert's yard, on the same street. There the partiality of Matamoras people for wire clotheslines came in good play again for the lightning. One was attached to the pole, whence it extended to the corner of the house, and then to hen house at the lower end of the garden. Next to the hen house was a hop vine, next to that fourishing grape vine, and near the two a gay-colored bed of flowers. The fluid ran along the wire to the cor ner of the house, and tore off a portion of the siding. It then passed along to the hen house, where it did but little damage, playing simultaneously about the hop vine, grape vine, and flower bed, and then disappeared. The vines and plants leaves, stalks, flowers and all-were here changed to a coal black in the twinkHng of an eye. At the mo- ment the lightning struck the corner of the dwelling Mrs. Leppert was in room in the second story. She felt severe blow on the right side of her head, which stunned her for an instant. Then peculiar numbness passed over her left side and leg. This soon passed away, and was followed by burning sensation in two spots on the hip. Mrs. Leppert found two black and blue spots the size of dime where she had felt the burning.
 The play of electricity about the vil- lage during the storm was almost un- broken for twenty minutes, but no other damage was done.