Lightning Strokes.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume IX, Issue 3030, 16 October 1888, Page 2

Lightning Strokes.

A few weoks ago a Beading elergy. man described the experience of a man in Mr employ who received an electric shock during a rain storm, but which was not attended by thunder or visiblo lightning. Several other similar cases buvobeen sitico described. First, there is an account In the British Medical Journal by Drs. Cook and Boulting of tho injniios received by two sawyers on the Spaniards farm at Hopcstead. The man most injured, the oldor of tho two, was leaning against an oak tree. There was no rain or any sign of a thunderstorm. The other was sitting on a block of wood 3 feat away, and two sawa 6J feet long, worn leaning against tho fence about 2 feet from the trunk of the tree, The first man Baw nothing and felt nothing; he was struck boukoless instantaneously, Tho second heat d a deafening thunder clap and felt stunned for tome minutes, but had no sensation of p»in. Then he discovered that his clothes wore smoking and burning, although not ablaze. Hn then saw his companion lyinj? senseless on the ground, quite still as if dead, and his clothes partially torn from him. Having put out. tho fire in his clothes, ho crawled (ho could not walk) to the road near and shouted for assistance, which soon arrived, and both men were conveyed to the infirmary, whero, upon being roused, the elder man regained consciousness to a slight extent. Burns were found on tho" right side from tho shoulder to tho feet, .The legs of tie other man also had marks as oi burns; both woro iu a stato of collapse. After eleven days in tho ono case, and fourteen in the other, tho then rocovered, . The doctors remark that'it | should riofc.be forgotten danger*

ous reutrfi'ilisdmrnna tioni lh« enrth to tins atmosphere may take |>bce at R considerable distance from in storm.—Electric iieview,