The weekly messenger. [volume] (St. Martinsville [i.e. St. Martinville] La.) 1886-1948, 1891-03-28
TRUCK BY LIGHTNING.
Happened to a Battalion at
West Point.

west Point.
IS once struck by lightning, and
d alive to tell the tale, says Captain
in the Philadelphia Press. 1t was
b May, 1865, a warm, beautiful,
Inv afternoon. and when the drum
Tor battalion drill. in front of the
tay barracks at West Point. The
hanks of gray uniforms, with their
hing brasses, the white cross belts,
IGe FURNISHED steel of the rifle bar
hat we used in those days, stood
bless as statues, while our soldierly
ant, Harry Hall, of Ohio, marched
Eith a quick, nervous step, then
but the command that brought us
simultaneous clash of steel to the
INT" to our commander.
pun was peeplng under the visor
1khako. remember, as We faced
ard the first time, but the next
knew, as we were moving brisk
|ut from one position to another,
ing front on the flank company,
IL into close column, forming
or column against cavalry" as
lies of the old war days provided,
kmed to be suddenly growing
sun was still shining, but dense,
clouds ere gathering overhead,
r up the gorge of the Hudson to-
FtwburG the rain seemed pouring
rents. We couldn't see what was
on overhead, because, being in
it was our business to keep our
raight to the front, but / couldn't
noting that once or twice our
II glanced inquiringly aloft az
estimating whether a sudden
was about to fall or not. Some
visitors evidently thought one
nd began to seek shelter, but We
Fight on.
now, to explain what follows. let
Re you leaf from the tactics. Two
ing companies constitute division
talion drill, and the most compact
ion in which a regiment can be
on given ground is "close column
ision." Then the four or five di-
are placed one exactly behind the
and so close together that the
on each flank are but slx yards
this was how we were standing
bout j o'clock on this warm, moi 8
fternoon. We had Just formed
columns by division. Each
Captain, after aligning his divi.
ad ordered Support arms" and
tood the battalion of cadets with
el-tlpped glistening tubes resting
ir left forearms, and in as compact
las you could get them, pointing
bit up into a dense black thunder
right overhead.
as too much for Jupiter Tonans.
re was a crash like 100 twelve
ers going off at once, a binding,
pig CLEAN of intense blue light. in
DIST of which l saw the ColonePs
black horse fall to his knees. l felt
Zen jar along my arm. The whole
on seemed to quiver and shake.
adets Tell fiat on their faces, half Q
staggered on: of ranks, dropping
ifes and grabbing their left arms
here the hammer hld rested, and
ting their faces with odd expires
bf shock and pain.
Bill Butler, of kentucky, our col
er, reeled to and fro an instant,
ken coiors and silver-tipped lance
be- downward, but he rallied. raised
Pluckily aloft, and, in another in
cxcep: the three or four, too badly
ID to pick up their guns, and the
ho had been knocked fiat, every
IS ready in his place; every rifle
Support except the guides every
the front, and, true to its splendid
line, there stood the battalion of
1t had been struck by lightning
ever hinchcd.
any one, or any two, or three, or
put there at that time, would have
be full force of the belt and been
ed dead, but the electric fluid had
distributed over some 900 points,
be, and thus weakened. Many a
had sore left arm for q day OF
md all of rs, l fancy, looked lit
White around the gills' for mo-
and it took considerable cOaxing
ling to" the fellows who were fiat
out, but in five minutes the drill
ping on as though at West Point it
everyday occurrence to lie struck