The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1912-01-25
TIE 0 r

ueer Of Chicago. who spent q number
years in Australia experimenting Il
building OF steel bridges for andpodea
railroads
Il DIDN'T have the fear Of lightning
any exaggerated form, and did not ofte
allow II to be known that held u
fear at all. But the flashes Of prankis
lightning and peals OF rhuDder quickly ~.
lowing that deno.ed The near presence c
the electrical disturbance wrought upo
my nerves and often put me out or lori
for a day or 50 after, That this fear Q
lightning IS a thing that IS inherited ! cal
well believe from my own case, as well q
from the verifying statements Of man,
other persons with whom ] have con
versed on the subject and compared notes
To put ii n the plainsst terms as to M
OVID case, my mother was severe!
stunned by l. stroke Of lightning ssvera
months before / came into the world. ant
| from my earliest childhood lightning wa:
the chief OF all my breads. fought Tx
feeling Us I came 20 manhood, and arrived
4. the point where could contain my
self and not exhibit my fear OF the flashes
when IN q mixed company buI untI the
thing l am gong 10 tel you about oC-
CURED had never been able 70 master the
strongest kind OF an inclination, when an
electrical storm began, 70 set 10 the cover
OF the darkes; kind Of 4 room. 50 THAI The
AsGSt.-S HGA-G 20 smut NLS tLLa 4ts vision
and to stun my ears with cotton in order
that I might not have 70 hear the ensuing
peals OF thunder.
II came up to Saa Francisco n the fall
of lS92, from Melbourne. Australia, on the
steamer W~ariGoo. Among the passengers
was = brilliant French woman. who looked
TO De about s. years OF age, with q pallid
skin, 4 mop OF bronze hair. 4 stnuous. al
most girlish figure. and an amazing flow
~ clever. q NJ N-f-F,- N>0Iz-S- -tas rP4=r l=pr
all of rhnsa fortunate enough - come !c,c
contact with her on the steamer IN 8 state
OF constant enthusiasm over her,
W touched at Ap:a- Samoa, 70 coal 4
10 take On some additional cargo, and q
few hours after We left Apia I noticed
when I went upon the bridge FOR a a
with the captain, that he looked preo-ccu-
pied and worried ard that he kept his
gaze glued pretty steadily upon the bar
ouletar. I mad known this skppe, for a
long time, having made several voyages
with hin, so that I felt privileged 70 ask
him what seeued 10 be the trouble.
Well, he replied, after some hesita-
ion, YOU neein't say anything about II
below. BUT I hin we're going 10 run into
q typhoon presently, and. as You know,
there are more entertaining things than
typh5ons iE these waters
I knew il fun wc,i. having been through
typE5on. aud having prayed at that
time taac IL never have 10 go through an
other 7
= went below, not particularly caring
70 De Oh the bridge when the typhoon
came along, and found a knot Of the pas
around the French woman in the
music room listening to her splendid piano
There was no need for my say
ing anything about the skipper's typhoon
prediction, though. even had I been dis
oosed 10 mention It, I hard hardly settled
in . seat tc listen 10 the French
Toman's music before the sun was sud-
ienly o~bscured. though there had seemed
a cloud IN the sky only a few
before. and the heavy boom Of the
initial peal Of thunder brought all Of the
in tie music room, including the per-
orn1er, TO their feet. They all ran on deck
0 note which direction the orm-mo of |
lem regarded it as probably a mere
coming from, and the major
= OF the woman, when they saw the roll
black clouds coming out of the west
r-velf every minute by flashes of zen
-fa-i1ish forked lightning. ran 10 their cab
IS 70 screen themselves as much as pos
.bie from the approaching tumult of
ound.
NOT SO the French woman, however.
re raced up the ladder for the bridge and
Grst upon the skipper in the wheelnouse.
ON, Monsieur lie Capitaine," she ex-
aimed Enthusiastically, we are to hat
: gr-r-ande sconder storm, not?'
" Worse than that, madam-far worse,
'ankly replied the skipper. We're going
have a jolly fine typhoon, and l wish
e were well out Of it,
=" ~'Typho2n!' rapturous!y exclaimed the
rench woman, clasping her hands to-
timer Iii what seemed a veritable ecstacy !
delight. 'Gr-r-r-rande! Loafy! Sub
ne! All my life hat / longed for re ty-
loon, and now hat one-gioriousr {
The skipper gazed at the French wom-
IN a puzzled sort of way. BY this time !
G lightning was literally reI.ding the
les Immediately above the ship, and the :
OF hunde Were all but continuous !
ID tremendously terrifying.
Madam said the skipper, you are !
Your nerves are going back :
you. will have to ask you to go 5
low to your cabin. The typnoon win :
eak immediately after this electrical :
sturoance, and no part of the deck win :
any place for q wJman when that hap- I
MS I.
The ench woman. with the greatest !
q most convincing calmness. told the /
upper that he was wholly wrong about {
: nerves-that she had never possessed 6
Eeminine nerve in her life that she knew i
and that she was really In earnest /
out her mate love for storms. And {
E added that she had been longing all Y
life TO see what a typhoon in the south /
rs could be like, and now that her op- /
rtunity to see one had come along she {
gged to be allowed to remain on the 6
/
NOW. l ought TO say that I had fellow l
the French woman to the bridge. prob {
~ with the idea of picking some talk /
t of the skipper as to how long he I
ought the typhoon might endure. And /,
iont hesitate to add that her excIama- |
MS of passionate admiration over the
ribly beautiful pictures che fancfful I
htning was painting in the black sky {
AIMED me. l didn't think of averting {
eyes from the spectacle when / saw !
she was straining her gaze to catch 9
ary arabesque picture iimned by the
1t was up to me to profit by
: example n forget once and forever
|. fear of lightning that had followed me !,
life. :
i've minutes later the typhoon struck !.
ship b~roadside from the west. and the /
arimoo reeled and staggered under the S
,ck. Then the skipper got her nose \
to the terrific seas that seemed @
pile UP all in a minute, and the French o
man stood TRANSPORTED with delight 0
sr the sDectacie. The sktn,,ar ,a.~.. G