The evening times., 1899-05-27
Jersey LIGHTNING.
Its Peculiar Franks in . Somerset
County Farmhouse.

County Farmhouae.
New York. May 27.-Lightning played
some queer freaks at the farmhouse OF
Garret Baird. in Somerset county, N. j..
on Tuesday morning last. The house is in
Hillsborough Township, some two miles
east of Harlingen. the nearest railway
station. 1t is a substantial two-story
structure, and was occupied by Baird's
father before him. The exact time Of the
stroke was 1914 o'clock; the stopping of
the clock at that moment shows this. 1t
was a prankish bolt; for. while it did all
sorts of odd things with the house and its
fittings and furnishings. it harmed no per-
son.
Mrs. Baird was standing on a chair in
the dining-room whitewashing the wa at
the time. colored boy Of twelve was on
the covered porch in the rear Of the house.
while Baird and hired man were in the
barn. some two hundred feet away. The
lightning descended first on pine tIee
near the house, and several feet higher
than the peak of the roof. 1t left the tree
after travelling a short distance, leaped
over to the gutter OF the house and tore
out the corner post completely, leaving
the rooms on both floors exposed to view.
Thence il darted in various directions, Wis
iting every room in the place except that
on the ground floor used by Biards for a
sleeping apartment. Mortar was torn
from the ceilings everywhere and pictures
and ornaments were knocked down
Mrs. Baird was stunned by the expert
ence, but suffered no bodily injury. The
room was filed with flames and, SO 1t
seemed to her, with sulphurous fumes. Her
first idea was that her clothing was on fire.
but, feeling her dress, she found this was
not So She was SO frightened that she
screamed. Just then the darky boy rush
ed, crying:
.Oh. Mrs. Baird, are you killed? l am"
But he wasn't. He had been on the
porch cleaning a mahogany stand The
lightning had torn il from his grasp and
hurled it fifteen feet away. The top was
split but the boy, in spite of his statement
to the contrary, was not killed. He wasn't
even hurt. but he was the worst-scared
darky in the State.
After a gay journey through the cellar.
and feeling that il had all the fun 1t want
ed in the house, the bolt skipped over the
ground for a visit to the barn. The word
skip is accurately used, for several holes
were made in the line of fight. pet cat
was killed here. but lot OF turkeys near
by were not harmed. The lightning struck
eral rafterS.
When Baird heard his wife's screams he
rushed to her assistance. but found there
was nothing to be done for her. The house
was on fire in the upper part. however.
but after a little delay the flames were put
out In the diningroom window-sash
had been broken. and most of the pictures
were knocked down. framed motto had
escaped the pious bolt. This read, God
Bless Our Home" The ruin in the house
was picturesque. One leg had been wrench
ed from the sewing machine. The glass
panels of the front door and the iron graf
ing covering them had been knocked out
The lock of this door had been utterly
shattered. and bits OF it lay all over the
hall A hanging lamp was broken. In the
kitchen the pump was torn apart and the
iron sink cracked. The clock was stopped,
but, beyond its shattered glass, was ap-
parently not injured. In the cellar cans
of preserved vegetables and fruits were
strewn ON the floor. Emerging here, the
lightning tore away a brick from the win
dow.
Large crowds have been visiting the
Baird house. Pending the arrival Of the
insurance men, everything had been undis-
turbed, Just as the lightning left it