The Hot Springs star. (Hot Spings [Hot Springs], Dakota [Dakota Territory, i.e. S.D.]) 1886-189?, 1888-08-17
A Frishsral rh.nderbolt.

The following is by way Of the
Boston Herald: H. d. Sprague of Scitu-
ate, II. l., during the storm of Wcdnes-
day night had . remarkable aud terrify-
ing experience. He and Mrs. Spraguc
retired a few minutes before midnight.
On the other side of the room was a desk,
on which a lighted lamp was left. The
couple had not been in bed five minutes
before o most terrific series of rafting
discharges burst all around them. &C.
companied by the crash Of splintered
wood and the fall of falling furniture. A
neighbor who saw tho discharge which
descended upon the house savs it came
from the heavens in the form of q glow
ing ball, and just before reaching the
earth it burst like q gigantic sky rocket,
with a deafening noise and a great blaze
of light. Mr.. Sprague's light was ex-
tinguishcd by the conclusion, but he had
an alarming light from another part of
the house, and reassuring his wife, as
they were both unhurt, they devotcdthe
energies to putting out a fire which the
electric fluid had started in the cotton bat
ting under the sittingroom carpet.
An inspection of the place by daylight
revealed an example of the l~ightning's
freaks, stopping short of fatal injury,
which is seldom seen. The discharge APP
peared to have first struck q locust tree,
which stood some distance southeast of
the house. 1t ran down its trunk. leaving
its track in nine distinctly marked veins.
Following a root a part of the discharge
al off to a well still farther away from
the house, where the well curb was shat
tered to fragments. The corner post of
the house nearest the locust tree was
struck and displaced, and a corner of an
iron sink inside was wrcnched away. AT.
ter tapping a stove in the same room tile
current appeared to have lodged under
the partition. through the floor into the
cellar. rcappcating in the bedroom in
which Mr.. and Mrs. Spragtic were. The
two footposts of the bed iii. which the
couple were lying were shivcred into
kindling. all the casters were thrown
from under the bed, the wire spring mat
tress on which they lay was burned across
the foot. and all the irons holding the side
pieces to the head and footboards were
thrown to different parts of the room.
The bed was completely wrecked and the
current must have passed within fonr or
five inches of Mrs. S%praguc's head. The
corner boards in this room were also
shattered.
Under the kitchen, the roum first entered
by the lightning, several large stones
were displaced from the cellar wall, and
several shovelsful of earth were thrown
up with SO much force that they adhered
to the jet, where the earth is now to be
seen. Crossing the rear hall under the
doors the current then played havoc in
the sitting room. The door into the rear
hall was torn from its fastcnings and
thrown into the middle of the room, and
that into the front hall was similarly
treated, n that it was left lying upon a
table in the sitting room. The tasks in
the carpet in this room, for about half the
distance along two sides, were taken cut
and the carpet rolled back toward the
center of the room, and the cotton bat
ting lining fired. The whole sides of the
house was thrown out here as if it was
hinged at the caves, and in this condition
it remains.