Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1907-10-02
Do Lightning Rods Insure?

A~S~0
county by the Fiery f1uid," the
question is pertinent: Is the light
ming rod protection? Many a
Tribune reader has perhaps asked
the question this summer. an
swer at the outset that science says
it is.
l doubt very much that any of
the barns struck by lightning in
and about Kandiyohi county this
summer had such protection. 1t
would be interesting to know if
any of them had a rod. The light
ming rod which decade or so ago
adorned almost every dwellinghouse
or building of any size has of late
years been more and more conspi-
cuous by it's absence. People have
become prejudiced against or lost
confidence in its effectiveness, be-
cause so many swindling agents
have sold them. But of course if
an agent charges an extortionate
price for good article, that does
not make the article per Sc bad.
But was the lightning rod ever a
good thing? That is the question.
Let US see.
Even if we cannot perfectly I'M
derstand what electricity is-the
scientist defines it as an "ether
stress its nature is more or less
known to us all. No farmer but
knows a little something about his
telephone. He knows his battery
contains pent up energy, a current
which would discharge itself to the
earth if it could. Therefore must
every telephone have good ground
connection. When farmer speaks
to his neighbor, therefore, he lets
some of this current to the ground
connection of his neighbours, but
the current is a small, vibrating
one, regulated by the strength of
his voice. This vibrating current
is made to reproduce in the neigh
boris receiver in passing the ident-
ical sound because the vibrators
are identical. But this is the OBJ
servation we should make: the cur
rent willingly followed the wire
a long distance to find its ground
connection. In other words: metal
wire is a good conductor. An cleo
trio current follows it easily.
Wood is conductor but a poor
one. A green tree is not so bad.
Dry, cured wood very bad. A
grove Of trees will often serve a
good protection. Yet if the stress
above is too great the current from
the clouds will discharge itself with
violent crash SCATTERING your tree,
If your barn is without the gooC
conducting metal rod or even ad.
jacent trees perhaps, and a great
stress is accommodating above, woe
unto your barn. In passing thru
the poorly conducting wood there
is great resistance with resulting
heat and fire. But why need the
current take the barn at all, even il
there is no trees adjoining or rod
Because, tho poor, the wood of the
barn is better conductor than air
Air is so poor a conductor as to be
practically non-conductor, bu
glass and rubber is more absolutely
non-conducting.
OF the metals copper is the bes
conductor. Therefore for goo(
lightning protection, get a more
or less copper alleged rod will
good, deep, ground connection
Let the top Of the rod be pointed
and bright. The large, snowy bull
is superfuous. lnsulate from tn
wood of the barn with glass. You
barn with all it's contents is in
sured for your lifetime.
Do not wait for the lightnin.
rod agent. Let your dealer orde
it, or send for the material you
self.
| One more fact might be me
toned. A farmer after PROTECTING
| his buildings by means of lightnin
rods thinks sometimes with disal
pointment Of that he has gone to thi
expense. "Why," he says, 9TH
lightning has never struck near tn
place and the rods have had n
; chance to show their effectiveness.
This is mistaken notion. Tn
fact that lightning has neve
struck" is the proof that the roc
have been effective. During a
electrical storm the rods are cor
tinually conducting currents to tn
ground, removing the stress befor
there is need of a crash. That tn
, is the case can be proved by sin
pie experiment. At joint of on
of your rods effect a space of say
, fourth of an inch. At the neg
| thunderstorm, especially if ic (
dark, observe how the current sparl
across the gap. In this manne
any person can become convince
that the silent rod, often ridiculec
5 but after all the prairie farmer
friend, is doing good WORK at ever
thunderstorm that passes.
In conclusion let me explain tn;
l am not interested in any ligh
ming rod manufacturing concern
nor do l know of any friend {