An Account of the Effects of Lightning at Southmolton in Devonshire, by Joseph Palmer,EsquireAuthor(s): Joseph PalmerSource: Philosophical Transactions (1683-1775), Vol. 47 (1751 - 1752), pp. 330-333Published by: The Royal SocietyStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/105065 .

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LII. iMn M?CzZ of the EffiefAs of Ligheiling at Southmolton xn Devoswthire, (y Jofeph Pala<zer, vire.

Read Jan, 9, N ThurSday thF 6th day of Jurne l 7&z. < 0 I 7 5 I, about 3 o clock in the af-

ternoonJ (that dayX and fome others before) having been estretnely hot and fultry, and the- wind pretty ltrong in the fouth-eaft) a flath of lightning attended with awn uncommor; tlil: nder-clap, which imtne- cliately followed or rather accompanied itX fell upon the windows Dand walls of the churchand fl:eeple of South-Moulton in Devon) greatly damaging tllem.

The lightning feemed to dis7ide itSelf nto three parts, on¢ of which firuck on the eaR angle of the iouth->ll buttrefsv o£- the chancel near the ground,. and made a large opening ill the fame: it likewife vxy much rmt and {hatter'd a lar tiorxt juR above thc afi)£id opting} as if done by the force of gu> posvder; it fplit anotlaer large Iine adjoining, and IhiverSd the wall near the iandatsu) in a very odd ulanner.

Antther part ofthe lightnlll;took offa {licea about: 3 lnches thte}ey of a vtery large angular Rone on the. vtIt iide of thc famo baxttrefs fbrced inurards a IargeR fresStone window ofthe church, and greatly Shat- teryd it (tho' it brole ssery little of the glali) info much thfl it is thought it md be taken d-owll and rebuilt: it then paflRed croSs the church and damaged the north flde, enterd a pafige lbefore the vicarws houSe, which was in a direEt line of its courfey and beat a Ilone of the floor- to piecesv

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[ 3 3I 3 A perfon Ilanding loy the foutSh window within the

church, at the time when the lightning happen'&, felt a blow crofs his foot, as if it had beerl taken off with an ax; axld others near him had firokes in dif ferent parts of their bodies, the fire-ball, as tlacy callFd it, pafl lng betweexl them

Befide this ball of fire, they obrerved likewife an- other ball, to appearance, wlwich (after damagtllg 3 or more large Ilorse window-frames, andmakiIg breaches in divers places of thofe fione frames an(l fouth wawll) roll'd towards the weR end of the churcAl, where it enter'd the belfry: it thele broke a rery large Rone of the floor near the well door into feve- ral pieces, and threw a great part of the Rone from its place, atld Ropp'd the church clock, which was near it: from thellve aScending the fieeple, it divided the great iron rod or fpindle of about 50 feet long (compofed of iieveral joints fixed into fquare fockzts, and convey'd from the clock for turning the hand of a dial, plac'd in the fouth front of the lleeple) out of their refpeEtive focketsX which were much forced and rent: broke and twiIled the iron wire of the chimes and clock from the belfry to tlle bell- chamber (being about eighty feet higl) in amoll extraordillary manrler; fome ofthe wire being much burnt, and in fundry places, melted into little grains. It then enter'd the bell-chamber, threw a large bell off the braSs it hung upon ; forced the faid brafs out of the beam, broke off part af the gudgeon, and, Ihatter'd the faid beam and £rame of the bell: made Several breaches in the eaR and weQ, but mo{lly fouth walls and quoins, fplit the arch of the fouth window, which was over the faid bell and drove

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[ 332 ] out fiome large flone$ near it. It then pafl*ed- out of the keeple about t}at place, and ltruck off part of the arch va th-e outfiue, together with a-large piece of tlle llone elindonv-Same adjoining ;-then aScendedl about four feet higher (vrhich was near the tw of the Ileeple) and beat off a large piece of an old carved (oehic Rone head, without injuring the leaden pipe, which came out oi- its mouth.

Though many people happenXd to be in diStent parts of the churcha yet providentially no one re- ceived any llurt.

The belfry was fo full of ftnoke, attended with a firong fulphureous iSmell} that theyX who went th- ther immediately after the accident, were almoR fuf- fiocated; and they apprthended, that -fome -part of the thurch or lleeple was on fire, aIld a zwatch was kept al} night in the church for fear of what might happen.

N. B. The lime and Ilone were iIl many plates fo far affeEted with the lightning, as to be eafily reduced into a powder,- by the bare preflire of the finger.

About the fame time of the d;ay, two horned cat rle sn a wood, near two- miles fouth-weI} of the town of Moulton, were ilruck dead under a large oak) and the tree itSelf appeared much fcorch'd.

And in another parifh, about the fame diIkance to the fouth-eaS of Aloulton, and likewife at the fame tirneX three Iheep which were- Iying together in a held were likewife kill'd; the ground under them having two holes made about 2 fieet- deep each, orxe of them alt:noR perpendlculAr, and the othert at about a foot diilan¢e, more oblique

About

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- [ 333 3 Abouts 5 or 6 pKes farther fiom the place where

the ffieep were lying, towards the northweR the grollud was much trn -up as if- plough?d and an oblique hol-e made of about three fkt deep.

The breadths of the diffierent- holes were fxm fix to three inches

LIII X Letter frotn Mr. Ja-mes Dodbn ta Mr. John Robertin, F. R. & corcertzxag an lonprovem@nt of tbe Bills of ̂ hIortality.

. .

.

- S I R, - Jantary I3} I752.

2SiJan I6^ /t S the- has latly been- a fcheme

1752 propofed for amendipg the form of

the-bills of mortality of LondonX in a pamp 1 et called Oblervations on the paJt groweS v7td pufet flax of LondoF by Mr Cotbyr! MorrIs the mgenx ons author of which has enumerated many ex- cellent purpofes, to which it may be applied, but has omitted to mention that of giving a greater degree of certainty to the calculations oa the values of annuities on lives; a benefit too confiderable to be paIted by fi1lently : And as your knowlege o£* that fuhjedc will enable you to judge of what- is fit to be done, in order to obtain b defirable an- advantage; I beg le to trouble you -with my thoi0t$ concernw sng a firther -regu-lationl d thie billsJ Rwhich I pre- fumesv may be conducive theret«

The preSent poiirs g intaited tRates ag -in commm law, jvly-called tenants forZlife; Mar-

- rlage

- [ 333 3 Abouts 5 or 6 pKes farther fiom the place where

the ffieep were lying, towards the northweR the grollud was much trn -up as if- plough?d and an oblique hol-e made of about three fkt deep.

The breadths of the diffierent- holes were fxm fix to three inches

LIII X Letter frotn Mr. Ja-mes Dodbn ta Mr. John Robertin, F. R. & corcertzxag an lonprovem@nt of tbe Bills of ̂ hIortality.

. .

.

- S I R, - Jantary I3} I752.

2SiJan I6^ /t S the- has latly been- a fcheme

1752 propofed for amendipg the form of

the-bills of mortality of LondonX in a pamp 1 et called Oblervations on the paJt groweS v7td pufet flax of LondoF by Mr Cotbyr! MorrIs the mgenx ons author of which has enumerated many ex- cellent purpofes, to which it may be applied, but has omitted to mention that of giving a greater degree of certainty to the calculations oa the values of annuities on lives; a benefit too confiderable to be paIted by fi1lently : And as your knowlege o£* that fuhjedc will enable you to judge of what- is fit to be done, in order to obtain b defirable an- advantage; I beg le to trouble you -with my thoi0t$ concernw sng a firther -regu-lationl d thie billsJ Rwhich I pre- fumesv may be conducive theret«

The preSent poiirs g intaited tRates ag -in commm law, jvly-called tenants forZlife; Mar-

- rlage

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