Waterbury Democrat., 1901-07-12
LAST NIGHTS STORM.
Damage to the Streets Win be
 Very Slight.
Lightning Struck in Several Places
 About Town-Trees splintered and
 Barns Tumbled over-The Rain Fall Was About One and Half Inches.

| os AuouL One and Half Inches. | The rain storm of yesterday aftat-
 noon and last evening as measured bv
 N. J. Welton amounted to 1.54 + was
 attended by sharp lightning and loud
 peals or thunder which caused timid
 loiks considerable uneasiness and even
 stout hearts were more or less appre-
 nensiVe or the danger and in conse-
 quehce most people did not rest until
 It was over. The water rushed in ey
 cry direction, deluging the public
 streets and doing more or less damage | nere and there about town Consider
 Ing the severity of the storm the city | streets stood 1t well and the damage
 on the town roads did not amount to | anytnlng like what one would suppose l considerable sand made it's way into
 EAchange place, but Superintendent
 Kelley had a force of men clearing if 1 away this morning so that it disaD
 peafed almost as quickly as it came.
 ln answer to a question as to how
 much the damages would amount to
 MT Kelley said tliey gre very slight.
 a hole here and there and that's all.'' | The lightning made itself felt in
 more than one place, but probably at no point was it's power demonstrated
 to better advantage than at the house. NO IUo1 East Main street, owned by Jonn Phelan, the real estate man, and tenanted by George c. BeckWith and | famlly. Mrs BeckWith was preparing l the evening meal when she thought she felt something hit her on the jaw | and before she had time to look around | the, house was enVeloped in dust and | smoke, the fafters creaked and groan- l ed While pieces of plaster and paper | were Whirled about like feathers be- | fore a great wind storm The woman and her four children rushed to the doorway and jumped out into the pelt-
 ing rain and were mighty glad to get | from under the roof which they 1 thought they heard coming down at every step. When things calmed down
 and they saw the building still stand ing they ventured in again and after satisfying themselves that nothing very serious had happened they com menced to look around the place to see
 what damage the lightning had done Upon investigation it was found that
 the electricity had collided with the
 rear part of the building tearing off
 some of the clapboards, ripped one of
 the window castings from it's fasten- ing and shivered several lights of glass
 On the inside it ripped the plaster and
 paper off the walls and then darted
 under the stove and rolled the zinc up something in the same shape one gets
 roll of wall paper in the store, then
 passed on to the pantry. whipped a
 piece of tin that was nailed on the
 boards where the water pipe enters off
 and disappeared in a flash into the yard through broken light of glass. While all were badly scared, still no one was hurt. MT Beckwith had not returned from work at the time and it was well that he had not, for he usual ly sits on the line followed by the lightning and if he had been in his accustomed place at that time the
 chances are that he would not be alive to-day.
 Several trees were struck and in some instances the timbers were split into smithereens while others escaped
 with severe scorching. The large tree that stands at the corner of Drah- CT and Green streets which was full of life yesterday morning had it's hand some summer costume spoiled during the storm and another tree on River side street, opposite the Rafferty prop erty was hit by bolt which produced such shock that people sitting on yer andas nearby were stunned and for time it was thought that one or two persons were hurt, but fortunately such was not the case. though MT Mil Ter, who lives in that street and was on the porch at the time had to be as sisted into the house, but he quickly re- gained his normal condition
 Nervous people were very uneasy during the storm and some got so work ed up over the noise that it required considerable effort on the part of friends to restrain them This is . great mistake. It does no one any good and causes many quite good deal of trouble. It is much better to sit down and take things quietly than to disturb everybody in the house running from one place to another in the nope of get ting out of the way of the electricity, which if it strikes at all is just as likely to drop one place as another.
 The lightning entered the saloon at 692 East Main street, owned by Ed ward Cullen. It came down through the chimney and along the wires which run the electric fans It stopped the fans.
 A ball of fire hit the fagpole on the Parsons barn at Franklin square and split it into kindling wood. There was a weather sign surmounted by a bronze horse on top of the pole. This was knocked out of shape and to-day the s.E' is facing the north and the .sW' is pointing to the east, while the ''N'' and the "S'' are turned in the same direction. The horses heels are aimed skyward, and his head is droop- ing sorrowfully toward the charred shingles on the roof. The barn is oc- cupied by NJ. Coffin, the mail carrier, and his hostler, Henry Wheeler. was on the inside with a lantern in his hand when the bolt struck the build ing. After demolishing the fagpOle, weather sign and horse, it tore off half a hundred or more shingles, smashed several lights of glass in the skylight and then stepped on the inside and commenced to cut up all kinds of pranks among the carriages and sleighs 1t started off by extinguish- ing the lantern which MT Wheeler car- ried, and followed this up by ripping three or four beams from their moor i,,os va111xinor fhe hack ont of SleQh