In Fuller's Church History it is stated that "scarcely a great abbey in England exists which once, at least, was not burned down by lightning from heaven." On the night of April, 1718, twenty-four steeples were struck along the coast of Brittany; and on the 11th of January, 1815, twelve steeples suffered a similar fate in the Rhenish provinces. On the 27th of July, 1759, lightning burnt all the woodwork of the great cathedral at Strasbourg; and on the 14th of August, 1833, it was struck three times within a quarter of an hour, and so much damaged that the repairs cost about $6,000,000. In 1835 lightning conductors were placed upon the building and steeple, and since then it has not been damaged whatever by lightning, although discharges have on several occasions occurred in line with the top of the steeple, which is 437 feet above the ground. On the 18th of August, 1769, the Tower of St. Nazaire, at Brescia, was struck, and the subterranean powder magazine, containing 2,076,000 lbs. of powder, belonging to the Republic of Venice, was exploded. One sixth of the whole town was laid in ruins and the rest very much injured, and about 3,000 persons killed. On the 26th of June, 1807, the powder magazine of Luxembourg, containing 28,000 lbs., was struck, and besides about 30 persons killed and 200 injured, the town was ruined. Explosions and large fires, involving a great loss, have become rather frequent in this country, owing to the iron tanks used for the storage of petroleum being struck by lightning. From March to August, in 1876, over 10,000,000 gallons, and on April 19, 1877, over 2,000,000 gallons of oil, and the village of Troutman, were destroyed in the oil regions of Pennsylvania.