Mr. C. Tomlinson on some Effects of Lightning . 117 



In communicating this case to the ' Times ' newspaper of 

 June 2nd last, I agreed that this theory does not apply to the 

 above case, and referred to the numerous recorded cases of 

 animals being struck while human beings have escaped. 

 M. d'Abbadie mentions a case which occurred in Ethiopia, in 

 which 2000 sheep were killed by a single flash of lightning. 

 In Sacco, in the kingdom of Naples, on August 17, 1858, out 

 of a flock of 140 sheep the lightning killed 120. The shep- 

 herd was not touched and the shepherd boy escaped, but a 

 kid which he had in his arms was killed. In June last three 

 bullocks were killed by lightning in Betchworth Park, near 

 Dorking ; and in the same month, at Frensham, several cattle 

 were killed by lightning ; some boys left to tend them were 

 struck, but not seriously injured. In short, innumerable 

 cases are recorded in which the shepherd, the farmer, and the 

 huntsmen have been spared, while the sheep and cattle, the 

 dogs and the horses, have been killed. 



When Snow Harris was planning his system of lightning- 

 conductors for the Houses of Parliament, he explained to me 

 the necessity for strongly protecting the ventilating-shaft of 

 the House of Commons. As a coke fire is usually kept 

 burning in this shaft during the session for the purpose of 

 maintaining a ventilating force, a column of hot rarefied air 

 ascends from this shaft to a considerable height, and would 

 probably act as a line of least resistance, and so determine the 

 course of a stroke of lightning. Indeed a case of this kind 

 occurred in August 1887 at Birmingham, where a chimney- 

 shaft 140 feet high was discharging a hot current into the air. 

 During a storm two men sought refuge in a hut at the base 

 of the shaft, which was not furnished with a conductor : the 

 lightning struck the chimney, passed through the hut, and 

 killed the men. The local paper which recorded the accident 

 states that a mark like the impression of a tree was found on 

 the chest of each man, and signs of scorching in other parts. 



When a flock of sheep or other animals are huddled together 

 during a storm a similar column of warm rarefied air is pro- 

 duced. In the case described by Mr. Dudgeon, the horses 

 just taken from the plough were very warm, and sent up a 

 steamy rarefied air which acted as a line of least resistance to 

 the disruptive discharge. The man probably did not share in 

 this rarefied air, and so escaped from the lightning only to be 

 injured by the fall of the horse. This view is confirmed by 

 Mr. Dudgeon, who, having read my explanation in the 

 1 Times,' states that such a view seems to be quite reason- 

 able : — " The day was particularly hot and oppressive (ther- 

 mometer 79° in the.shade), so the horses must have been very 



