14 Marsh — Note on Globular Lightning. 



« 

 "When it struck the deck, about forty feet from where I was 

 standing, there was a loud explosion, and it was some minutes 

 before it could be ascertained what damage had resulted. The 

 mate, who was near the mainmast, about twenty-five feet 

 from where I stood, was knocked down, but soon recovered. 

 The same bolt, or part of it, also passed in front of the fore- 

 mast, down a windsail ventilator, into the galley, where it 

 knocked a large tin pan from the hands of a cook, and upset 

 things generally in the culinary department, but injured no 

 one seriously. Of the crew, some were on deck and some 

 below, but none were really harmed, although a few were 

 badly demoralized. A strong ozone-like odor was observed 

 immediately after the explosion, and this remained perceptible 

 for some time. 



The officer in command of the yacht, Captain Matthews, 

 who was forward at the time, and escaped without injury, 

 stated that just after the stroke, he saw "streaks of lightning 

 running around on deck like snakes." I was myself only 

 dazed for a moment by the explosion, and saw distinctly that 

 the deck forward was illuminated with a bright confused 

 light. The owner of the yacht, George Peabody Russell, and 

 his other guests, had gone below when the storm began, and 

 suffered no harm, except possibly from fright, as they were 

 still further away from the stroke. 



As soon as the storm had passed, I made careful notes of the 

 whole occurrence, with drawings and measurements, as I was 

 much interested in the subject, and it was the first instance of 

 the kind I had seen at close quarters. An inspection showed 

 that the vessel itself had sustained no material damage, and 

 not even permanent marks were left on the deck where 

 the ball of fire exploded. A number of other yachts were at 

 anchor quite near our vessel at the time, among them the 

 white "Sunbeam" just home from her well-known voyage, 

 but we saw no indications that any of these had been struck. 

 I had no time to inquire, as immediately after the storm we 

 sailed on a cruise to the eastward.* 



Tale University, New Haven, Conn., December 4, 1895. 



* Those interested in the rarer forms of lightning will find many observations 

 recorded in "Nature," especially during the last fifteen years. 



