The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1897-05-31
A CELESTIAL ROCKET.
Two Bolts of Lightning Play Severe
Franks in Portland.

But Little Damage Reported However
Three Churches Receive Attention
Telephones Burned Out.
AS windup to week of rain and
leaden skies, there came Saturday fore
noon a flash of lightning and clap of
land people from the drowsiness due to
dull weather. All over town wires
snapped, the fire alarm bells pealed and
windows ratified with the shock. Then
the people on the streets caught glimpses
of runaway horses. Ladies fled into
nearby stores and some of them also
went into Mysteries. The first bolt came
without any warning. There were no
rumblings of thunder or distant light
ming flashes. The bolt did not come from
a clear sky, for clear sky had not been
seen for days, but it came as surprise
just the same.
The storm center seemed to be in the
vicinity of Congress Square. A number
of ladies who were in the square at the
time rushed into Williamson's drug store
terribly frightened. Several were almost
overcome with hysteria, and screamed
and cried, and it was with some difficult
ty that their alarm was dispelled. Horses
were frightened almost to death and
plunged about in mad confusion, One,
attached to wagon, and standing in
front of Reynolds's trunk store, made a
plunge and cleared himself from the
harness. leaving the wagon a few feet
from the store while he rushed down the
street Somebody caught him before he
had gone very far. Another horse, be-
longing to Mr.. G. E. Snow, the mason,
ran off at full speed and turned into
Pleasant street, throwing three boys out
of the wagon, but they all escaped with
severe bruises. Two horses, attached to
other wagons, ran and smashed up the
wagons, but no one was injured.
Mr.. Sabine of the firm of George c.
Shaw & Co., was sitting in his office in
the rear of the store, when great ball of
fire apparently fell in the passageway
between the office and the main store
and sailed through the store. The win
dow panes in the office were cracked, and
the shock to Mr.. Sabine was such. that
his side tingled for some time after
wards. The young lady, who is cashier,
in the front of the store, said that she Was
similarly affected by the shock.
In Cornish's tailor store, under the
Congress Square hotel, the seamstresses
were at work in the workroom when that
or another ball Of fire put in an appearance
and passed out of the front door, One of
the two young women was serious ly
affected for some time.
In the office of the Congress Square
hotel, Mr.. Chaplin was the clerk in
ball of fire and that his arm was quite
lame from the shock.
To show that the air in that vicinity
was full of electricity at the time, it may
be said that a bolt struck the steeple of
Congress Square church and knocked off
quite piece as can be plainly seen from
the street.
The narrowest escape from death that
we have heard of was that of Mr. F. L.
Albee, the well-known carpenter Mr..
Albee was at work on building near
the foot of High street when the bolt de-
scended. Mr.. Albee was sitting on the
railing of the house and the shock de-
prived him of consciousness. It was
thought that he had been struck and
DIR. Cousins was called. He did not find
any marks of the fluid upon Mr. Albee
and he came to the conclusion that he
was simply Frustrated by the shock. Mr..
Albee rallied with the application of rem
edies, and after time he was consid-
erably restored and doing we'll. Mr.. AL
bee lives at No. Avon place.
During the shower the firemen at the
Central fire station, located nearly oppo-
site the Second Parish church, saw bolt
strike the steeple and instantly thereafter
a cloud of what looked like smoke, issued
from the belfry. Mr.. G. E. Leach, who
is connected with the church, took the
key, unlocked the door, and proceeded to
make thorough investigation. Evident
1y no damage was done except in the
toilet room in the basement, where the
lightning following the pipe had evident
" thrown the water in the basin of the
water closet all over the room and against
the ceiling.
A chimney was struck on a house on
Danforth street and the bricks thrown in
every direction.
The lightning also struck the steeple of
the Church of the Messiah, but did no
harm beyond giving strong shock to
people who were in that vicinity at the
time.
While Mayor Randall was sitting writ
ing at his desk in the City building, he
heard sharp crack just behind him, i'm
mediately following the first crash of
thunder, and saw one of the windows
cracked way across. For a moment the
Mayor was concerned for his safety, as
it seemed as though the fluid was coming
right into the building. But it passed
off, and no further damage was done to
the City building.
The fluid entered Melvin G. Hutchin-
sons plumber shop on Brackett street
and quickly passed through the thin