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Entered according to Act of Congress, in June, 1870, by J. W. Burke & Cos., in the Clerk’s Office of the District Court of the United States for the So. District of Georgia Vol. IV—No. 4. THUNDER AND LIGHTNING. i W" - than an elongated electrical *' spark, which passes between two electrified clouds, when brought near together. For instance, when two clouds unequally charged with electri city approach each other, the excess of electrical fluid rushes frwm the one overcharged into the one undercharged, until both clouds contain the same quantity. This produces a flash of lightning. Sometimes, the electricity from a cloud is discharged by some object on the earth —a tree, or a moun tain, or a church steeple—this is called a thitnder-boU. Thunder is the sound which follows a flash of lightning, and is due to the vi brations caused by the passage of the electrical spark through the air. Thun der is rarely heard until an appreciable time after the flash is perceived ; for this reason, that “light travels with immense velocity, reaching the eye in stantaneously, whilst sound travels more slowly, and reaches the ear only after a sensible intermission of time. The dis tance of a clap of thunder may be ascer tained by counting the number of se conds between the flash and the report, and allowing five seconds to a mile.” When an electrical cloud overcharged with positive electricity passes near the earth (which, yqu know, contains posi tive and negative electricity in equili brium) it acts upon the earth by induc tion ; that is, it drives from itself the positive, and attracts to itself the nega tife electricity. As soon as the attrac tion between these two electricities — that in the earth and that in the cloud, becomes greater than the resistance of the intervening air, a spark or flash passes, and the thunder-bolt is said to fall, or the lightning to strike. The flash generally passes from the cloud to the earth, but sometimes it passes from the earth to the cloud. The attraction between the two elec tricities increases as they get nearer together. For this reason, elevated ob- MACON, GEORGIA, JULY 23, 1870. jects are most likely to be struck, such as church steeples, high trees, lofty buildings, mountain tops, etc. Good conductors of electricity, such as metals, moist bodies, and the like, are more likely to be struck than bad conductors. Hence, the danger of standing under a tree during a thunder-storm. A lightning-rod is a metallic rod pla ced upon buildings to preserve them from the effects of lightning, such as is shown in the picture. It should be of sufficient size—a copper rod of a half inch in diameter, or an iron one of three-quarters of an inch, being large enough to protect any building. If made of several pieces, the different parts should be welded or screwed together with the greatest care. It should be a sufficient distance above the top of the building, and terminate with a single platinum point. Platinum is best, as it prevents the point from rusting, and is less likely to be fused by the lightning. The rod should be car ried down into the earth until it meets with a layer of wet or moist earth ; and if this cannot be had, a pit should be dug, and nearly filled with some good conductor—coke, for instance — and the end of the lightning-rod carried to the bottom. The lightning-rod was invented by Franklin, who thought that it acted by drawing off the from the cloud, and conducting it to the earth. We have seen that it acts just the re verse of this. The cloud, acting by induction, repels or drives off one kind of electricity in the earth, and attracts the other sort to itself. Now, by the use of the lightning-rod with its metalic point communicating with the earth, we permit a flow of electricity from the earth to the cloud. This flow not only prevents the accumulation of electricity in the earth, but tends gradually to neutralize the electricity of the cloud itself; and the rod acts in a double way to prevent the building from being struck. HOW TO CATCH MONKEYS. — ) 'Cv HAVE heard of a company of 'ulp% Winters who caught a number of monkeys in the forests of ( ' g Brazil in the following amus ing way: They had a lot of little boots made, just large enough to be drawn easily over a monkey’s foot, and filled the bottoms with pitch. With these they set out for the woods, and soon found themselves under the trees, where the monkeys went rattling on over their heads, but never for a mo- Whole No. 160. ment removing their eyes from them. Then they placed the little boots where they could be seen, and then commen ced taking off their own boots. Having done this they let them stand a while near the little boots. All this the mon keys very carefully noticed. The hun ters were too wise to attempt to catch them by climbling the trees ; they might as well have expected to snatch the moon as to lay hands upon one of these little fellows. They had an easier way than this, and one much more effec tual ; they simply sat down under the trees while the little chatter-boxes were rattling on over their heads, but never for a moment removing their eyes from them. The hunters now taking up, their own boots, haying carefully looked over them, drew them slowly one after the other upon their feet. Not a motion escaped the observation of the monkeys. Having replaced their boots they hurried away into the thicket of undergrowth not far off, where they were hidden from the sight of the monkeys, but where they could see everything that happened under the trees. They left the small boots all standing in a row. The monkeys soon descended from the trees, and imitating the motions of the hunters, thrust their feet into the boots set as a trap for them, chattering and gesticulating all the time, in great glee. As soon as they were fairly in the boots, out sprang the hunters from their hid ing places and rushed among them. The monkeys affrighted, at once started for the trees, but only to find that they had destroyed their power of climbing by putting on the boots. So they fell an easy prey to their cunning enemies. This is the way the monkeys were Caught, and how many young persons are caught in the same way. In their desire to do what they see other persons doing, they fall into serious troubles, and often bring upon themselves ruin ous habits that follow them to the grave. Laziness is a good deal like money; the more a man has of it the more he wants. .