i88 3 .] 
535 
Origin of Lightning Rods. 
action that have occurred in various parts of the world 
during the last two hundred years) not even the principal 
manifestation of that agency ; and this makes the appella- 
tion still more absurd. In this connection it may be men- 
tioned that the Americans — the successors, so to speak, of 
the great Philadelphian — invariably use his own term, 
lightning rod. 
Again, both the French and the Americans employ on 
their buildings the original cheap metal that Franklin used 
and recommended for rods, viz., iron ; whereas in England 
the use of that most expensive metal, copper, is altogether 
the rule, and the employment of iron the exception. In 
this respect England is almost, if not entirely, alone among 
the nations of the world ; and probably in no other country 
is the line of demarcation between electrical experts and 
tradesmen interested in the manufacture of expensive elec- 
trical apparatus so misty and vague. There are few 
lightning-rod manufacturers who do not consider themselves 
“ electricians ” as well, and do not utilise the status they 
assume as such to promote the sale of their copper wares. 
Lastly, the French philosophers still generally adopt 
Franklin’s theory of the dominant importance of points, 
and, in explaining the functions of rods, they give the pre- 
ventive power of points the first place, and the supposed 
conducting action of the rod only the second. If, however, 
the English mention the preventive power at all, it is always 
given the second rank, and the conducting idea is awarded 
the place of honour. The lately departed and justly cele- 
brated philosopher, James Clerk Maxwell, was, however, a 
unique and conspicuous exception to this prevailing English 
practice, for he unmistakably manifested his conviction that 
an ordinary lighting rod was simply a dangerous species of 
electric tap. 
It is not within the scope of the present paper to enlarge 
on the theory of the action of lightning rods, or of the 
nature of terrestrial electricity, — nor to submit how, if the 
preventive action of a rod’s point be admitted to be the sole 
advantage and raison d'etre of the rod, the apparatus may 
be greatly simplified and cheapened. The writer’s object is 
mainly to draw particular attention to the original ideas of 
his illustrious countryman, Benjamin Franklin, on the sub- 
ject of his magnificent discovery ; for we must remember 
(Transatlantic cousins please note) that Franklin was an 
Englishman when he pursued his remarkable physical career 
and introduced his beneficent invention. Let us English- 
men, then, honour our compatriot more in future in the 
