Evening star., 1911-05-25
Other Heroines, Also.

There are several other heroines keep
| ing lighthouses on the coast of California.
Most of them have been in the service
| a long time. Several of them are widows
of officers of the United States Navy.
| Miss Laura J. P. Hecox has kept the
| light station at Santa Cruz for twenty
| eight years. Her salary is the same as
| that of Mrs. Morse, $50 per annum. The
| lighthouse is located on Point Santa
Cruz on the westerly side of the entrance
| to that harbor
Mrs. Emily A. Fish has kept the light
| house at Point Pinos, on the southerly
side of the entrance to Monterey bay. for
| eighteen years. at a salary of $500 per
annum. Point Pnos Is one of the show
stations on the Pacific coast, being easily
accessible, and surrounded by extensive
| and attractive grounds. 1t is visited by
! large numbers of tourists from Monterey.
Mrs. Juliet e. Nichols, widow Of
Henry E. Nichols, U. S. N, inspec-
tor Of lighthouses at the time of his
station for nine years. The lighthouse is
located the southwesterly extremity
Of Angel Island. in the direct path Of the
greatest amount of navigation in San
| tern, she has charge of a fog signal
| which consists of bell struck a double
blow by machinery every fifteen seconds.
A few years ago Mrs. Nichols showed
nation in desperate emergency which
| entitle her to high place In the list
| of American heroines She told the story
herself in an official report modestly
| as to obscure the deed and the daring,
| but the lighthouse officials understood 1t
and her name has gone on the records
| with those of other heroes and heroines
| in that service. She stood for twenty and
| a half hours upon the outside platform
! of the lighthouse during a gale and fog
without rest or food or refreshment. and
| struck the bell with her hands until
| lieved, and the second night after did the
| same duty again. We do not know and
| nobody can tell, how many vessels were
| warned off those rocks by hearing that
| signal, but 1t is in the midst Of a thor
| oughfare, and Mrs. Nichols realized that
many deserters Her matter-of-fact mar
rative of the incident is as follows:
Il have the honor to report that the
machinery of the fog signal Gamewell
No ? was disabled July ., 1906, at $40
am. Te'egrams were sent Immediately to
the lighthouse inspector and the light
house engineer for assistance. Mr.. Burt
came July 3 at 10 am. and made slight
repairs. Meanwhile ! had struck the bell
by hand for twenty t20) hours and thirty
five 1850 minutes, until the fog lifted.
'On the night Of July 3. 1903. the ma
chinery worked badly. striking Irregular
ly On the 4th of July the machinery
went to pieces, the great tension bar
broke in two and l could not disconnect
the hammer to strike by hand. / stood all
night on the platform outside and struck
the bell with a nail hammer with all my
might. The fog was dense, with heavy
mist. almost rain.
1.-The machinist from the Office of the
lighthouse engineer has just replaced the
| tension bar. Respectfully.
JULIET E. NICHOLS. Keeper"
Keeper for Thirty Years.
| Mrs. Kate c. McDougal has been keeper
OF the Mare Island light station. Califor
MIA. for thirty years. The station is located
| on the southerly end Of Mare Island at the
| northerly side OF the entrance from Gan
Pablo bay to Carquinez strait in the Bay
| of San Francisco. She has charge Of a
| fourth-order lantern and fog signal,
which consists Of q bell struck by ma
| chinery every ten seconds. Mrs. Nc
Dougal is the widow Of Commander
Charles J. McDougal. U. s. N, for
mer lighthouse inspector, who was
| drowned March 2S. 1881.
| Commander McDougal, who was then
| in charge of the San Francisco lighthouse
district. which embraced the state of
California, was on an inspection and pay
| trip among the lighthouses of his district
when he was drowned. On the morning
| of March IS he left the lighthouse tender
| Manzanita. then anchored off the light
| station at Cape Mendocino, In a surf boat,
purpose Of inspecting the station and
| paying off the keepers. On nearing the
| landing a signal was displayed on the
beach to show where the best landing
place was. and the boat was headed for
/ the signal.
| It passed over the first two breakers all
| right. When q third came the men at the
| oars became demoralized and almost stop
ped pulling. The breaker struck the boat
| and overturned 1t. Commander McDougal
| and five of the men chung to the boat for