At the end of March 1893, Major Allan of Glasgow attracted audiences in High Blantyre by delivering a lecture title “My trip to India via the Suez Canal”.
The venue was Stonefield Parish Church and there was a fair audience that last Tuesday evening in March. Colonel J.Clark Forrrest of Udston presided. The lecture was beautifully illustrated by lime light views as the lighting in the church was dimmed. Votes of thanks were offered afterwards.
At the front of the church would have stood a wooden projection screen, and beside it, Major Allan would have prepared his extraordinary device—the lime light lantern.
This magical contraption, fuelled by a burning combination of oxygen and hydrogen against quicklime, produces a brilliant white light. As he cranked the handle and adjusted the lenses, the first slide appears—the far off places he had visited. Gasps of amazement would ripple through the audience.
In an age before cinema, television, or the internet, these type of popular lectures were “windows into the unknown”. They transported viewers to other places people knew they would never see otherwise. The lecturer’s voice, often rich with nostalgia and enthusiasm, brought the images to life, weaving stories that lingered long after the lantern was extinguished.
