Morning journal and courier., 1890-06-24

rods, then galvanized iren is better than the common iron, by reason of the coating, which protects 1t from rust.
 As to the matter of insulation. Any known insulator, be it glass or wood, or any of the common forms of insulation, are entirely in. adequate during heavy electric discharge from the clouds. To indicate the enormous electro-metive force of the ordinary electric storm, 1t might be well to oompare the arti. foial lightning produced by human beings. The ordinary induction coil, with . voltage beyond measurement at the present stage of the art, only creates a spark varying in length from ons-half inch to three inches. Such a spark is difficult to insulate, as it will pierce glass to the thickness of ones eight of an inch, and wood or paper two or three times as thick. Now let us compare such diminutive spark with discharge of lightning, which has been known to reach one mile in length. If fhe spark of tho in- duotion coil, measuring two or three inches in length, pierces glass or wood as above, what must be the insulation required to con trol a spark half mile to enc mile in length, with ell the batteries of the sky, and with an electro-motive force millions of times beyond the computation of mans
 .It is apparent that the usual insulators used on buildings must be entirely inade- quate for such Q purpose. In many electric storms, where the discharge follows tho wire, it provides in many instances, part of the discharge following the wire, and part of the discharge, regardless of any insulator csm- monly used, entering the house at one or more points; and, for all practical purposes, the building stands in a worse position than though it's owner had not attempted to pro- teot it with the ordinary lightning rod.
 In the ordinary electric storm Q house would usually fare better without the pro- tection of the iRhtning-rsds, because the electric clouds at their discharge would nat urally strike tree, high rock, or some oth- CT elevated object in proximity to the house, and would not be attracted to the house by the iron or copper rod. In other words, If the lightning rod will do what is claimed by the manufacturer, it becomes at once dan Rerous fixture, simply because if 1t does st- tract the electricity 1t affords no adequate means of taking care of 1t; and 1t would DC far better to let the cloud discharge ct some other point than the house, rather than to take the riak of it's discharge down the con- ing up and entering the house, irrespective of any insulation known to the arts.
 Lightning always takes the shortest oon- duetor to the earth, and undoubtedly tall trees in the vicinity of 8 house are an etfi" cient safeguard. It has been suggested by experts in electricity that @ very efficient safeguard would be to run large iron or copper conductor into tree, and then 1t the lightning was attracted to the tree or the the the earth, no damage would be done te nearby buildings. .. One thing may be safely said, that if Q discharge of lightning from cloud Is point ed directly toward house, there is no hu- man means of diverting it from its course, or preventing it's passage in the direction which it has taken, and all the feather beds and lightning conductors that might be pre- vided would scarcely protect person WhG stood in the way of the current. It ts vel known fact among observers that the pres epce of lightning rods upon houses has ofteI l failed of providing the expected protection and there are millions of houses unprotected 1 by lightning rods that have never been strucl by lightning.
 rent to be dealt with and the tremeHdou' electro motive force of such a current, 1t Ii plain te be seen that no human method caI
 be devised for safely taking such eurren | out of harms way; and the man who sits 1,
 his house during a thunder storm protected by iron lightning rods the size of his littl
 finger, and insulated with little pieces o glass, which are no more protection than tis
 sue paper, has not the safety which tn lightning rod man promised, and his none, were better invested in some otker purpose
 about his buildings.
 As a matter of comparison in insulation
 is generally known that telegraph wires ar insulated by glass insulators, fully an inch |
 non conducting surface, with,gaess sides frs Llg-aaa.snaztas of san inch in thickness. An yet all this precaution in insulation is take
 with a current not exceeding four hundre
 volts of electro motive force. Leakage is troublesome factor even then. What shal
 we say when the lightning rod man place similar glass insulators on your house t protect your little iron rods from discharginl
 into your buildings the lightning of th
 heavens, whose electro motive force canno
 be measured even by billions of volts. It 1
 like comparing the pop gun with the thou
 sand pound Columbiad.
 In the progress of an electric storm ther
 is no special attraction in an ordinary dwell
 ing house why the discharge should selec
 that medium for reaching the ground
 Trees, rocks, moist earth, soil with minerals
 are equal, if not better, conductors than o1
 dinary houses and barns. If the electrisit
 in storm cloud has reached sufficient ten
 sion to overcome the resistance offered to 1t
 passage to the earth, it will discharge at tha
 point and at that time, and no human effol
 or oontrivance can change its course.