Oct. 3, 1889] 



NATURE 



543 



here, at the close of a brief t:)ur in the Yellowstone National 

 Park, may be of interest : — 



Three years ago, Messrs. Wittich Bros., of this city, found 

 some puma cubs in the valley of the Yellowstone River, twenty- 

 five miles from this city. As cubi they showed those spots on 

 the skin to which Mr. Muybridge called our attention at the 

 Royal Society soiree, last May, as seen in his photographs of the 

 adult animal, though not in that case visible to the eye. One 

 of these cubs soon died, but the other is now three years old, 

 and is perfectly under the control of Mr. W. F. Wittich, who 

 devoted eighteen months to training her. I saw many proofs of 

 this in his store this evening. The beast not having been fed 

 for twenty-four hours, he trailed pieces of raw meat over her 

 nose and mouth, which the puma never attempted to eat until 

 the word was given, as to a dog. Occasional attempts were made, 

 but a twist of the ear by Mr. Wittich was sufficient to control 

 her. When meat was placed a few yards off, the puma fetched 

 it by word of command, and permitted the meat to be taken 

 from her mouth by Mr. Witiich, who fondled it as he would a 

 cat. A very fine dog, a cross between a pure setter and a pure 

 St. Bernard, five years old, named "Bruce," is on intimate, 

 and even affectionate, terms with the puma, who allowed him 

 to remove meat placed upon her jaws, and to eat it. On one 

 occasion, the puma (who is often allowed to range the house), 

 the dog, and Mr. Wittich, slept together in the same bed, and 

 Mr. Wittich was aroused by the puma attacking some one who 

 roused him in the early morning. When the puma is tied up, 

 the dog always goes to sleep alongside her, and kisses her, the 

 puma responding with a short sharp bark of greeting. The puma 

 follows Mr. Wittich through the streets of this Western city, 

 but has torn to pieces several strange dogs, when unaccompanied 

 by her friend " Bruce." I inclose you a photograph of the dog 

 in the act of removing meat from in front of the puma's jaws ; 

 her paws are done justice to, but not the length of her tail. 

 Prior to the exhibition, Mr. Wittich requested the spectators 

 (about ten in number) to remain perfectly still, as the beast 

 (which was loose) noticed, and was angered by, any movement 

 on their part. 



Mr. Wittich believes that this is the only puma known to be 

 in captivity, and comparatively tame. In training her he has 

 chiefly used the whip, which she only feels on the nose, ear, and 

 under the tail ; he assures me he has made his own teeth meet 

 through her skin in several other parts of her body without her 

 showing any signs of sensation. Her memory is short, and 

 three weeks' intermission of the performance necessitates much 

 extra training and trouble. 



I may perhaps add that Mr. W. R. Goodall, an English 

 gentleman who has been living nearly three years ten miles 

 from here on a ranche, assures me that perfect reliance can 

 be placed on Mr. Wittich's statements. What my fellow- 

 travellers and I saw ourselves was sufficiently marvellous, and 

 I am not ashamed to add that we felt somewhat relieved when 

 the animal, which had circulated freely among u^, was chained 

 up again ! Wm. Lant Carpenter. 



Livingston, Montana, U.S.A., August 30. 



On some Effects of Lightning. 



The terrific storm which passed over Essex on the night of 

 Monday, the and inst., should give many interesting examples of 

 the effects of lightning. I was at Upminster, 2| miles from 

 Romford, on the morning following, and had the opportunity of 

 examining a windmill for corn-grinding which had been struck. 

 Perhaps the details may prove of some interest. 



The ov\ ner, Mr. J. Abraham, and a friend witnessed the flash, 

 which occurred at about i a.m., from a window not far from the 

 mill. They describe it as a mass or network of flame, which 

 threw off thousands of sparks like fireworks. After the fla^h a 

 light appeared on the sail for a few seconds, and they feared the 

 mill would catch fire, but it went out, extinguished, as they sup- 

 pose, by the heavy rain (I recorded 4'03 inches in seven hours in 

 a field a mile away). I consider it remarkable that the mill was 

 not fired. The splintered wood and cracked boards do not, 

 however, at any attainable point show signs of charring. 



The mill is octagonal, and of wood, standing on about 8 feet 

 of brickwork. Ttie joints of the weather boards at the angles are 

 protected by thin sheet lead in strips about 6x3 inches, bent over 

 the edge of each board to the next and nailed. At the base of 



the wooden pait is a platforoi 10 feet wide, and the angle which 

 this makes with the body is also protected with sheet lead. The 

 strips up the angles are connected with this ring round the ba-e, 

 and from the ring again many strips are nailed radially to the 

 edge of the platform. A chain was hanging from top to bottom 

 of the mill, nearly touching the weather boards at the top, and 

 hanging within 2 inches of the boarded ground floor at a distance 

 of about 4 feet from the circumference in the south radius. The 

 upper cap of the mil! is revolvable. The sails faced southeast, 

 and were set diagonally. 



All the effects of the flash seem to me to indicate that it passed 

 from earth to clour". One branch of it passed through the iron 

 chain, fusing the links at the points of contact, sufficiently to 

 make them hold together when first disturbed. The flash burst 

 through the weather boarding at the top, breaking the boards 

 away outwards, and then reached one of the iron levers used for 

 opening and closing the shutters of the sails. I was surprised to 

 find no traces of the flash on the boards at I he ground. The 

 bottom link of the chain was fused, and there all trace ceased. 



A second branch joined the first at the iron lever, coming in the 

 direction described in what follows. Against the north-north- 

 west angle of the platform runs a leaden valley gutter between 

 two outbuildings. The flash seems to have sprung, from some 

 old iron, lying on the ground, to this gutter, and run along it. 

 A small portion went along under the edge of the platform to 

 the westnorth-west angle, and then along one of the radial strips. 

 The larger portion entered at once at the north-north-west angle 

 along a radial strip, tearing up the end of it and bending it over 

 on to the platform. On reaching the ring of lead at the base it 

 went round it in both directions, tearing up the lead at every 

 junction, and bending it in the direction of the current. It then 

 ascended by the south-south-east and east-scmth-east angles only, 

 tearing up each lead strip and curling the end over upv\ ards. 



The portion ascending by the south-south-east angle joined 

 that from the inside chain at the place where the boards were 

 burst off. That ascending by the east-south-east angle made a 

 path of its own to the sail lever by perforating a board of the 

 weathering apron which depends from the revolving top of the 

 mill. This perforation, seen from the nearest point I could 

 attain, was evidently from within outwards. The board is cracked 

 froin the free edge to the point of perforation, but not badly nor 

 further. 



On reaching the ironwork of the sails the whole charge 

 passed along the lever of the north east sail, and on reaching the 

 end of the metal entered the wood. The framework of this was 

 shattered, the shutters smashed and thrown about, bolts broken, 

 and the main shaft splintered. Large pieces were thrown 50 yards 

 and more into an adjoining field. 



The charge appears to have left the sail before reaching the 

 extreme end, but as the miller was awaiting the arrival of the 

 Insurance Company's inspector he did not wish to have the sail 

 lowered, and I could not inspect it. 



In a few places the lead was partly melted. At some holes 

 where nails were put in, little circles half an inch in diameter 

 were melted cleanly out, and in one place I found the head of a 

 nail partly fused. 



I was surprised to find so little damage done to the mill, and 

 think it is a very good illustration of Mr. Tomlinson's remarks 

 in Nature of August 15 (p. 366), where he suggests that a 

 building to be well protected should have a network of conduct- 

 ing material attached to it. Arthur E. Brown. 



31 Vanbrugh Park, Blackheath, September 10. 



With regard to the two lightning-struck trees near St. Albans, 

 the twisting mentioned by Mr. Pickering is probably not in any 

 way due to the fact that the stroke was dealt by lightning. It is 

 easily accounted for on mechanical principles, even assuming 

 that the toughness of the timber was exactly equal in every part. 

 If the centre of gravity of the dislocated top of the tree lay out- 

 side of a certain plane passing through the point of explosion 

 (the position of this plane depending on the tenacity of the stem 

 at that level), such twisting would be inevitable ; much as in an 

 earthquake dislocated columns must always be twisted unless the 

 friction of the dislocated surface is equivalent on each side of a 

 certain line running parallel to the direction of motion. 



If Mr. Pickering has an opportunity, he might perhaps be 

 able to ascertain whether or no the "core" of each tree is 

 "not exactly in the middle of each stem, but rather to the side 



