Evening star., 1897-05-13
lIGHTNING'S FRANKS
1t Generally Has Things Its Own
Way.
PAYS BUT LITTLE ATTENTION TO RODS
Obstacles That Beset the Path of
the Investigator.
TALL BUILDINGS ARE SAFE
PAYS BUT LITTLE ATTENTION TO RODS
TALL BUILDINGS ARE SAFE

The fear of lightning seems to be a thor
oughly ingrained human instinct, like the
hatred of reptiles. The gathering OF the
| spring thunder clouds, which put in their
| first appearance about this time of year.
! always sends lot of timid persons scurry-
| ing to the shelter OF the nearest feather
bed. The feather bed theory of protec-
tion from lightning has the advantage of
long tradition TO recommend ii. and is not
| likely to be untnroned by a single article.
| Still, there are always some readers amen
able to reason, ana for the benefit of those
| few this story Is printed, TO correct the
| widespread misinformation on the subject
| of the etiquette observed by lightning in its
| irregular visits TO the earth.
| Every year, for some seasons past, the
| United States government has issued a
little pamphlet, complied by Mr.. McAdle
of the United States geoIetic survey, Civ
ing statistical information on the subject
| of lightning. This pamphlet shows that
while the number of deaths from lightning
has increased each year for some time
past, the Increase has not been more rapid
than the growth of population. Last year
| Ii was about 800 for the whole country. and
1t may console the tirfffd person to reflect
that his or her chance of injury from this
cause is something like ore In 10000
which, as a philosopher has remarked in
| another connection, is very consoling If
you can be certain that you are not the
| one
The true philosophy on this subject
| seems to be a cheerful fatalism. You can't
| dccge q lightning stroke, says Mr.. Nc
Adie, and you can't turn 1t aside except by
very elaborate means While IL would un-
| doubte6ly be foolhardy to climb to the top
| of lofty tree during a thunder storm. or
| to sit with your back against a lightning
| rod, you might be more safs there than
J hidden away inside feather bed.
| The greatest scientific authority on the
| subject of lightning is DIR. Oliver J. Lodge
az sha r-rtx- Enli I s,sAr Tt,
| this country il is probable that there is no
| man who has greater fund of practical
| Information as to the nature and charac-
teristtcs OF lightning than Mr.. William A.
| EDDY of Bayonne, n. J., who is follower
| and close student of DIR. Lodge.
| The general fear of lightning is not en-
| tirely without reason" said Mr.. Eddy. in
discussing the subject. for 1t is capable of
| great devastation. Experimental scientists
| have been very chary of tackling this sub
| ject, and this is probably the reason why
| the scientific knowledge of lightning has
/ not kept pace with progress in other lines
4 of investigation The study of lightning
| has been greatly retarded by terrible ac
| cident which happened more than 100 years
ago
| Scientific Tragedy.
| Franklin may justly be given the honor
of being the pioneer in the practical study
| of lightning. After his remarkable feat a
| score of Investigators in different parts of
4 the world began to make a study of light
ming Most Of these experiments were
brought to a sudden termination by an in
cident sufficiently tragic to shake the
| nerves of even cool-blooded man OF
| science. An experimenter named Rich
mond, in ST. Petersburg. had built labor
| atory. which contained among other
| things, the lower end of a lightning rod
| 100 feet high. which he had erected. and
| from which he had succeeded in drawing
| off electrical charges of considerable force
One day, while Richmond was working in
1 h,,, dor lf,as
| Lightning struck the lofty rod, flashed
| down IL and killed the scholar at his work,
| badly burning and mangling his body.
| That put an end to experiments with light
| ming for the time being. Toward the end
| of the century there were one or two ia
| talities in France, which acted as further
| detrinlent, and caused Voltaire to remark.
| in a quotation which L get through DIR.
| Lodge. There are some kings whom one
| must not approach too closely, and light
ming is one Of these Lodge, therefore,
| found an almost unworked field before him
| when he began his experiments.
| The essential characteristic of lightning.
| and the one that accounts for most of its
| vagaries according 10 DIR. Lodge, is its
'.impulsve rush" In unscientific language
| this means that when a charge Of lightning
| breaks through cloud and starts for the
! earth 1t moves with a rush so vehement
| that no ordinary conductor will turn 1t
| from the path it elects to follow
| There are many cases to illustrate this,
| says DR.. Lodge. Here is a striking one:
In May. 1889. lightning struck and nearly
demolished a brick wall in a small English
| town. Directly opposite the wall at the
| point " here II was struck, and not six feet
away, stood gas lamp Gas is one of the
| best conductors of electricity, and the
| lamp was some feet higher than the wall.
| On the old theory of attraction the light
| ming ought to have gone for the lamp, but,
as matter of fact, 1T was not injured"
Lightning Rods No Protection.
| There have been repeated instances
where lightning has struck a roof al
| though II had rod to protect 1t, and in
| some cases the roof has been struck only a
| few feet from the rod itself.
| On this theory. lightning rods are of lit
| tie value. AS DIR. Lodge has abundantly
| proved lightning may travel down a rod
| to the earth without doing any damage in
| case the rod happens to be in its path, but
| the stroke will seldom turn aside 10 follow
| the rod.
1t must not be supposed from this that
| II is impossible TO secure immunity from
| injury by lightning. Some buildings are
protected by the very character of their
/ construction.
May Kill Without Striking.
Another peculiar thing about lightning.
| according to experts, is that person may
be killed or an object yet on fire by light
| ming without being actually struck by the
| current which descends from the clouds.
This Is due, SC says MT. Lodge, 10 me
.'sureing current" which is another char
acteristic of the lightning stroke. II is a
| little difficult for the unframed mind to un-
| derstand what is meant by the "surging
crrrent," but the theory of Mr.. Lodge that
when a lightning stroke descends to the
earth at any place a part of the current
may fly off at a tangent and injure objects
at considerable distances. and Mr.. Lodge
has within his knowledge several instances
| In which this has occurred.
The buildings which are most carefully
| guarded against injury by lightning are
| probably some of the big powder maga-
| zines. Some of these are almost covered
| with a network of connecting rods and
wires. These run down to the earth on all
! sides Of the building, are Joined below
ground and lead away to a considerable
| distance. where the rod terminates In moist
! earth. For many years the Hotel de Vile
| at Brussels was looked upon as the most
| carefully protected building in the world.
| the subject being q hobby with the pro-
prietor of the hotel. The roof Of the great
building looked like an ancient barbican
with its dozenc OF minar ct points jutting up.
| These rods were all connected and ground
| ed In the most scientific manner. but IL Is
| a fact that the hotel was struck by light
ming at least once In spite OF its elaborate
protection.