The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-10-13


Can't Dodge the Lightning.
From the New York Sun.
washington, Oct. 5.-The striking of
,be Washington monument by lightning
during a recent thunder storm is not the
6rst time that that structure has suf-
tared from lightning stroke. The wonder
is that it has not more frequently attract
Cd atmospheric electricity on its passage
from cloud to earth, for, standing as it
does $50 feet high, in the center Of fiat,
well watered grounds, it constitutes
most dangerous exposure for lightning
flashes. The immense shaft is protected
bv an elaborate and seemingly effective
system of lightning conductors. This sys-
tenn was begun in January, 1880, and COM
Melted in January, 1885, the date of the
practical completion of the monument.
The conductors consist of the four hol-
low wrought iron Phoenix columns, sup
porting the elevator machinery. The bot
toms of these four columns rest upon, and
are bolted to cast-iron shoes. standing
upon the floor of the large drum pit, the
shoes being connected to %-inch soft cop
per rods led to the bottom of well in the
center of the foundation. This well is
thirty-two feet ten inches deep below the
bottom OF the drum pit, anu ulle6n rect
eight inches below the bottom OF the
masonry foundation, and the water stands
in it permanently two feet eight inches
above its bottom. After the copper RODS
were inserted the well was filed up with
clean, sharp sand for fifteen feet eight
inches, or up to the level of the bottom
of the old rubble-stone Ioundatlon OF me
monument These four columns, so ar
ranged at their bases, and always project
ing above the top of the START or monu-
ment, were heightened as the building of
ant
the lightning conductors OF the edlnce DUR
ing the five summers the masonry work
was in progress. In that period no dlsrup-
enced. When the marble pyramidion was
completed, December, 1884, these four col
umns were within the marble covering,
and from the extremity OF each column
a copper rod three-quarters of an inch In
diameter was run to the top stone, and
there united in a copper rod one and
half inches in thickness, which passed
vertically through the cap stone and was
screwed into the solid aluminium pyramid
This system was entirely completed and
connected on Jan. 90 1885 1t was, OF
course, believed that it would afford i'm
munity to the great shaft, then the high
est edifice in the world, from lightning
stroke. 1t was not long, however, before
those who were in charge of the structure
were rudely awakened from their fancied
security. on June 5, 1885, less than six
tenn Of lightning protection, during
heavy thunder storm the monument was
struck. DnOn examination q crack was
discovered in the stone on the north face
of the pyramidion just under the top
stone, extending through the block in a
line nearly parallel to the northeast cor
ner and about 81 inches from it. The
fragment was pressed outward about
three-fourths of an inch at it's bottom,
chipping a small piece off the lower cor
ner of the top stone into which It was
locked, and was easily forced back into
place and bolted to the solid stone from
which it had been torn.
n
who was in charge of the reconstruction
of the monument, requested Profs. Row
land, NeWcomb, and Mendenhan to eX-
anime the part struck and suggest what
precautions should be taken to insure the
safety of the monument. They recon-
mended that the interior conductors be
connected with a system of rods and
greater number Of points, to be located
upon the exterior of the pyramidion. Ac-
cordingly four half-inch copper rods We're
fastened by band to the aluminium
terminal and led down the corners to the
base of the pyramidion, and then through
the masonry to the columns OF the eleYa-
tor. These exterior rods are each over
sixty feet long, and are also connected at
two intermedite points of their length
with the iron columns by means of cop
per rods y and q inch in diameter, re-
spectively, furnishing sixteen rods in ALL
connecting the exterior system of conduc-
tors with the interior conducting columns
Where the exterior conducting rods upon
the corners cross the eleven highest horl-
zontal joints of the masonry of the pyra-
midion they are connected to each other
all around by other copper rods sunk into
these joints. All of these exterior rods
couplings, and fittings are gold-plated
and are studded at every tive feet OF their
length, gold plated and tipped with
platinum. There are 200 of these points
in all.
Apparently this elaborate system of pro-
lection saved the monument from INJURY
from the recent descriptive discharge OF
electricity, or "impulSiVe rush, as DIT.
Oliver Lodge, the latest and most ex-
haustiVe eXperimenter with lightning calls
II. Yet his experiments demonstrate that
the last word has not yet been spoken as
to lightning, and lightning rods as pro
tectors. While DR.. Lodge says that light
ming rods ARE essential to anything nike
security" he qualities it by saying that
almost any conductor is probably better
than none, but few or no conductors are
absolute and complete safeguards" Sir
William Thomson can say no more in their
favor than that there is very strong rea-
son to feel that there is a very comIorta-
bic degree of security, if not of absolute
safety, given to us by lightning conduc-
tors made according to the present and
orthodox rules" And Prof. Meade of the
weather bureau can only say that beyond
doubt, Franklin proved that lightning rods
ings."
The work of gathering statistics of the
toss OF llfe and property from lightning
nas never been done with the care and
SoInprehensiveness that seem to be de-
IMaedhueq. The weather bureau began In
19SU 10 Keep record of deaths from light
a A9re-
numbered 7S4, an average of 1856 year.
Lnor 10 this the only known record was
kSSpt by Mr.. H. f. Kretzer of St Louis,
MO, ms sources of information being 1872
newspapers, daily, weekly and monthly.
ne round that for the five years 1885, 81
mere We're 1,030 deaths caused by light
nlhg, an average of 206. So far as the
records show, and there are no returns
a. al from several states, there were in
!tne United States in, the eight years end
lns 1872, 3,5l6 fires caused by lightning,
anu ehtalllng loss of S12, 665 S35, or an ap
ILdgS OF more than 400 a year, with q
SeaIiy loss exceeding 81 800, co., or the
aDulidlngs struck there were 2S35 barns
oo4 dwellings and 104 churches
1,Accordlng to Prof. Meade, the risk Of
isHlnlns stroke is five times greater in
ne country than in the city, because or
uIHdfy dwelling houses in city blocks re-
eeSSlNe very considerable protection from,
oIe IN roofing, cornices, cutters. and so
On. The royal Prussian bureau of statis-
US says that the geological formation or
me ground has some influence upon the
frequency of lightning strokes. Thus
u / represents its frequency in a chalk
formations, viii represent in lnarl Z in
cay, in sand and p in loan.
Anotner curious thing about lightning
- mat with all its disposition to strike
orees It has in blind sort of way of its
oMh q preference between varieties. This
singular fact was observed more than s
n