Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1898-06-21
A Great SearchIight as a Coast
b Defender.

Now the Mt. Lowe searchlight
goes to San Francisco to protect the
harbor against any foreign battle
ship which might try to steal in
there at night. Thus will Pasa-
dena'S light not be hid under a
bushel, but, like bread, will be cast
upon the waters, and in hope that
it will be returned after many days.
| That searchlight is great attrac-
tion.-[ Pasadena News.
The above clipping calls to mind
the time saw the Mount Lowe
searchlight. 1t was something after
7 O'Clock on quiet evening of last
August. My uncle, whose home |
was visiting, called me out of the
house, and, pointing toward the dis
tant mountain, asked me what |
thought of that" And for a
moment didn't know what to
think, for the scene was a remark
able one. We were in a valley
large enough to contain half dozen
small towns, among them the town
of Santa Ana, where | was visiting,
and Pasadena, the home of Prof.
Lowe, the owner of the great search
light. The night was coming, though
as yet it was light enough to see the
outlines of the mountains. A few
stars were visible in the heavens
and one had fallen among the hills
Gould it be possible' And looked
at my uncle for an explanation.
"The Mount Lowe searchlight, !" he
said, and we watched it for perhaps
five minuteS-and it was gone.
What had looked like star was the
last ray of the sun reflected on this
great glass.
During the evening we watched
the slender but powerful rays light
ing up different parts of the valley
and the mountains. Some times
creeping upon small village like
stealthy cat slowly getting little
nearer the unsuspecting victim, and
then suddenly springing upon the
surprised and sleepy little town, its
long, slender ray looking like a
white ribbon the night had stolen
from the monday sun.
And now the searchlight is to be
taken to San Francisco, and foolish
indeed will be the ship that at
tempts to run into that harbor
without being seen, for it is said that
when all conditions are favorable a
ray from this searchlight is clearly
visible at distance of over two
hundred miles. But it will not be
the first time this great far-reaching
eye of light has visited San
Francisco, for it spent several
months there during the Midwinter
Fair in 1894. 1t made its "debut "
at the Worlds Columbian EXpoSi-
ton in 1892, after experiencing con-
siderable difficulty in obtaining a
fitting location. 1t seems that all
the concessions for the use of search
lights at the Exposition had been
granted to Germans, who, up to
that time, had made the greatest
advance in the manufacture of these
marvellous lights. But after the
Exposition opened the General Elec-
trio Company, which has plants in
several parts of the country, deter
mined to build searchlight that
would be superior in size, power and
brilliancy to anything the world
has ever known. Accordingly, at
Schenectady, N. y, the monster
100000 candle-power light was
made, with a reflector five feet in
diameter, almost half as large again
as any Searchlight reflector ever
made.
The General Electric Company
wished to exhibit it on the Manufac-
turers' Building during the EXPOSE
ton, but the Germans objected, and