The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1899-02-20

A prominent architect. a great part OF
whose practice lies i'm "A mineral district,
says that one OF the first things he looks
TO In selecting the site for a new bulid-
Ing is 10 search around for signs OF
lightning stroke. and to otherwise as
certain whether the spot is likely TO at
tract atmospheric electricity
If confirmation Of the wisdom OF this
precaution were needed. II could be
found I'm the singular record which has
been published of a deserted and ruined
house i'm Devonshire, England. says the
81. Louis Globe Democrat. The house
was built about forty years ago by Il
wealthy landowner, who proposed TO
make II his country residence. Before
Il was finished a heavy thunder storm
broke over the district and flash Of
lightning, which struck II, dismantled
the roof. When the building was COM
pleted the owner took up his residence
there. Very soon after a violent storm
struck the house and destroyed the
chimney stack, doing, besides, cOnsid
cradle damage. The inmates became so
alarmed that the house was forthwith
vacated. Their fears were not ground
less. for I'm nearly every thunder storm
that has passed over that part OF the
country the house has been selected as
target of the lightning fash, and a
fresh portion OF IL destroyed. Alto
gether il mas been struck over 200 times.
1t is noted as "A strange fact that
lightning will often take an entirely
different course from that which would
seem the natural one under the cir
umstances. Alex. j. Nurts gives an In
stance OF this which he noted in the
catskill mountains. He was residing
temporarily at "A hotel. which was 800
feet long. four stories high, and LIBERAL
ly provided with lightning rods, having
forty upper terminals. Besides these
there were several lower terminals.
some which were grounded in the SOIL
while others were grounded in Al lake
200 feet away.
During the night there was thun-
der storm. and a flash of lightning, dis
carding the splendid system of light
ming rods, struck cone pine tree about
200 feet from the hotel. completely shat
tering the upper portion of the trunk
and hurting pieces of il forty yards
away Entering at the top branches,
the current had passed down the trunk
as far as an insulator pin which sup
ported the telephone wire OF the hotel
The wire which held the telephone wirc
to the glass insulator was on the in
side. that H.. toward the tree from the
insulator. Jumping TO this tie wire. the
lightning burned il in two. and then,
following the telephone wire, entered
the hotel. Continuing, il reached the
telephone booth where ii encountered
the ordinary bell wire OF light gauge.
Apparently, this was not able To carry
the discharge without becoming heated
sufficiently To ignite the insulation,
which, being soaked with parafine,
blazed out and set fire To the booth.
The fire was extinguished before much
damage had been done. From this
point the erratic bolt leaped across "A
three-inch space to gas pipe which
was exposed inside the booth, and so
passed TO earth and ended its destruc-
tive career.
The strange feature OF the case is,
first. that il should strike the tree
rather than a lightning rod. and then
instead of going to ground by short
cut through the bottom part of tho
trunk. it should leave the tree about
onc-third the distance from the top,
strike across two inches OF air space,
follow several hundred feet of horizon
tai wire. which is supposed To offer con-
siderable inductive resistance To dis
charges of this nature, and then jump
across three inches of air space TO pass
to earth. which could have been
reached by "A much straighter path had
IL decided 10 follow any one OF the no.
tel lightning rods.