WAR WITHOUT AND PEACE WITHIN, PACE 366.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE 
 
 BEING THE STORY OF A GREAT FIGHT 
 BETWEEN MAN AND THE SEA. 
 
 BY R M. BALLANTYNE, 
 
 AUTHOR OF "POST HASTE;" "IN THE TRACK of THE TROOPS;" "THE SETTLER AKD 
 
 THE 8AVAGK ;" " UNDER THB WAVES ;" " RIVERS OF ICE ;" "BLACK IVORY j" 
 
 "THE PIRATE CITY;" " ERLINO THE BOLD ;" "THB NORSEMEN IN i BE 
 
 WEST ;" "THE FLOATING LIOHT ;" ' THB IRON HORSE ;" '' FIGHTIMO 
 
 THE FLAMES;" " SHIFTING WINDS ;" " DEEP DOWN ;" "THE 
 
 LIFEBOAT;" "GASCOYNE:" "THE OOI.DION 
 
 DKEAM," ETC ETC, 
 
 TWENTY-FOURTH THOUSAND. 
 
 LONDON: 
 JAMES NISBET & CO., 21 BERNERS STREET. 
 
 [Ml right* reserved.}
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 A GREAT FIQHT is worthy of being brought pro- 
 minently before the public. This book contains 
 the record of a great fight. I commend it, reader, 
 to your perusal, in the hope that, whether pugna- 
 ciously inclined or not, you may enjoy it 
 
 I take this opportunity of thanking the Board 
 of Commissioners of Northern Lighthouses for their 
 courtesy and kindness in permitting me to spend 
 a fortnight in the Bell Kock Lighthouse, and in 
 furnishing me with much of the information neces- 
 sary to the construction of my tale. 
 
 B.M. B,
 
 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 WAR WITHOUT AND PEACE WITHIN . . Frontispiece 
 BIG SWANKIE FINDS MORE THAN HE EXPECTED . P. 9 
 RUBY HEARS SOUNDS .THAT ANNOY HIM ... 18 
 
 A HEAVY SEA 125 
 
 THE BEACON-HOUSE ON THE BELL ROCK . . .260 
 RUBY SURPRISES HIS FRIENDS IN THE KITCHEN 
 
 OF THE BELL ROCK LIGHTHOUSE . . 358
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 PAOB 
 
 CHAP. I. THE ROCK, 1 
 
 II. THE LOVERS AND THE PRESS-GANG, , . . 14 
 
 III. OUR HERO OBLIGED TO GO TO SEA, . 4 . . 25 
 
 IV. THE BURGLARY, 33 
 
 V. THE BELL ROCK INVADED, . .... .43 
 
 VI. THE CAPTAIN CHANGES HIS QUARTERS, ... 50 
 
 VII. RUBY IN DIFFICULTIES, 62 
 
 VIII. THE SCENE CHANGES RUBY IS VULCANIZED, . . 72 
 
 IX. STORMS AND TROUBLES, 88 
 
 X. THE RISING OF THE TIDE A NARROW ESCAPE, . . 104 
 
 XI. A STORM, AND A DISMAL STATE OF THINGS ON BOARD 
 
 THE "PHAROS," 116 
 
 XH. BELL ROCK BILLOWS AN UNEXPECTED VISIT A DIS- 
 ASTER AND A RESCUE, 133 
 
 XIII. A SLEEPLESS BUT A PLEASANT NIGHT, . . . 150 
 
 XIV. SOMEWHAT STATISTICAL 156 
 
 XV. RUBY HAS A RISE IN LIFE, AND A FALL, . . . 167 
 XVI. NEW ARRANGEMENTS THE CAPTAIN'S PHILOSOPHY IN 
 
 REGARD TO PIPEOLOGY, 180 
 
 XVII. A MEETING WITH OLD FRIENDS, AND AN EXCURSION, . 188 
 
 XVHI. THE BATTLE OF ARBROATH, AND OTHER WARLIKE MAT- 
 TERS, . . .... 198
 
 VI11 CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 XIX. AN ADVENTURE SECRETS REVEALED, AND A PRIZE, . 217 
 
 XX. THE SMUGGLERS ARE " TREATED " TO GIN AND ASTONISH- 
 MENT, 228 
 
 XXI. THE BELL ROCK AGAIN A DREARY NIGHT IN A STRANGE 
 
 HABITATION, 238 
 
 XXII. LIFE IN THE BEACON STORY OF THE EDDYSTONE LIGHT- 
 HOUSE, 255 
 
 xxm. THE STORM, 272 
 
 XXIV. A CHAPTER OF ACCIDENTS, .281 
 
 XXV. THE BELL ROCK IN A FOG NARROW ESCAPE OF THE 
 
 "SMEATON," . 296 
 
 XXVI. A SUDDEN AND TREMENDOUS CHANGE IN RUBY'S FOR- 
 TUNES, 310 
 
 XXVII. OTHER THINGS BESIDES MURDER " WILL OUT," . . 319 
 
 XXVHI. THE LIGHTHOUSE COMPLETED BUSY'S ESCAPE FROM 
 
 TROUBLE BY A DESPERATE VENTURE, . . . 333 
 
 XXIX. THE WRECK, 348 
 
 XXX. OLD FRIENDS IN NEW CIRCUMSTANCES, .... 355 
 
 XXXI. MIDNIGHT CHAT IN A LANTERN, 367 
 
 XXXH. EVERYDAY LIFE ON THE BELL ROCK, AND OLD MEMORIES 
 
 RECALLED, 373 
 
 xxxm. CONCLUSION, - 395
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 THE BOCK. 
 
 EARLY on a summer morning, about the beginning 
 of the present century, two fishermen of Forfarshire 
 wended their way to the shore, launched their boat, 
 and put off to sea. 
 
 One of the men was tall and ill-favoured, the 
 other, short and well-favoured. Both were square- 
 built, powerful fellows, like most men of the class to 
 which they belonged. 
 
 It was about that calm hour of the morning which 
 precedes sunrise, when most living creatures are still 
 asleep, and inanimate nature wears, more than at 
 other times, the semblance of repose. The sea was 
 like a sheet of undulating glass. A breeze had 
 been expected, but, in defiance of expectation, it had 
 not come, so the boatmen were obliged to use their 
 oars. They used them well, however, insomuch that 
 
 A
 
 2 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 the land ere long appeared like a blue line on the 
 horizon, then became tremulous and indistinct, and 
 finally vanished in the mists of morning. 
 
 The men pulled " with a will," as seamen pithily 
 express it, and in silence. Only once during the 
 first hour did the big, ill-favoured man venture a 
 remark. Eeferring to the absence of wind, he said, 
 that " it would be a' the better for landin' on the 
 rock." 
 
 This was said in the broadest vernacular dialect, 
 as, indeed, was everything that dropped from the 
 fishermen's lips. We take the liberty of modifying 
 it a little, believing that strict fidelity here would 
 entail inevitable loss of sense to many of our readers. 
 
 The remark, such as it was, called forth a rejoinder 
 from the short comrade, who stated his belief that 
 " they would be likely to find somethin' there that 
 day." 
 
 They then relapsed into silence. 
 
 Under the regular stroke of the oars the boat 
 advanced steadily, straight out to sea. At first the 
 mirror over which they skimmed was grey, and the 
 foam at the cutwater leaden-coloured. By degrees 
 they rowed, as it were, into a brighter region. The 
 sea a-head lightened up, became pale yellow, then 
 warmed into saffron, and, when the sun rose, blazed 
 into liquid gold. 
 
 The words spoken by the boatmen, though few
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 3 
 
 were significant. The "rock" alluded to was the 
 celebrated and much dreaded Inch Cape more fami- 
 liarly known as the Bell Eock which being at that 
 time unmarked by lighthouse or beacon of any kind, 
 was the terror of mariners who were making for the 
 firths of Forth and Tay. The " something" that was 
 expected to be found there may be guessed at, when 
 we say that one of the fiercest storms that ever 
 swept our eastern shores had just exhausted itself 
 after strewing the coast with wrecks. The breast of 
 ocean, though calm on the surface, as has been said, 
 was still heaving with a mighty swell, from the 
 effects of the recent elemental conflict. 
 
 " D 'ye see the breakers noo, Davy ?" inquired the 
 ill-favoured man, who pulled the aft oar. 
 
 "Ay, and hear them, too," said Davy Spink, 
 ceasing to row, and looking over his shoulder to- 
 wards the seaward horizon. 
 
 " Yer een and lugs are better than mine, then," 
 returned the ill-favoured comrade, who answered, 
 when among his friends, to the name of Big Swankie, 
 otherwise, and more correctly, Jock Swankie. " Od ! 
 I believe ye 're right," he added, shading his heavy 
 red brows with his heavier and redder hand, " that 
 is the rock, but a man wad need the een o' an eagle 
 to see onything in the face o' sik a bleezin' sun. 
 Pull awa', Davy, we '11 hae time to catch a bit cod 
 or a haddy afore the rock 's bare."
 
 4 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 Influenced by these encouraging hopes, the stout 
 pair urged their boat in the direction of a thin line 
 of snow-white foam that lay apparently many miles 
 away, but which was in reality not very far distant. 
 
 By degrees the white line expanded in size and 
 became massive, as though a huge breaker were 
 rolling towards them ; ever and anon jets of foam 
 flew high into the air from various parts of the mass, 
 like smoke from a cannon's mouth. Presently, a 
 low continuous roar became audible above the noise 
 of the oars ; as the boat advanced, the swells from 
 the south-east could be seen towering upwards as 
 they neared the foaming spot, gradually changing 
 their broad-backed form, and coming on in majestic 
 walls of green water, which fell with indescribable 
 grandeur into the seething caldron. No rocks 
 were visible, there was no apparent cause for this 
 wild confusion in the midst of the otherwise calm 
 sea. But the fishermen knew that the Bell Bock 
 was underneath the foam, and that in less than an 
 hour its jagged peaks would be left uncovered by 
 the falling tide. 
 
 As the swell of the sea came in from the eastward, 
 there was a belt of smooth water on the west side 
 of the rock. Here the fishermen cast anchor, and, 
 baiting their hand-lines, began to fish. At first 
 they were unsuccessful, but before half an hour had 
 elapsed, the cod began to nibble, and Big Swankie
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 5 
 
 ere long hauled up a fish of goodly size. Davy Spink 
 followed suit, and in a few minutes a dozen fish lay 
 spluttering in the bottom of the boat. 
 
 " Time 's up noo," said Swankie, coiling away his 
 line. 
 
 " Stop, stop, here's a wallupper," cried Davy, who 
 was an excitable man ; " we better fish a while 
 langer bring the cleek, Swankie, he 's ower big to 
 noo, lad, cleek him ! that's it ! Oh-o-o-o !" 
 
 The prolonged groan with which Davy brought 
 his speech to a sudden termination was in conse- 
 quence of the line breaking and the fish escaping, 
 just as Swankie was about to strike the iron hook 
 into its side. 
 
 " Hech ! lad, that was a guid ane," said the dis- 
 appointed man with a sigh ; " but he 's awa'." 
 
 " Ay," observed Swankie, " and we must awa' too, 
 so up anchor, lad. The rock's lookin' oot o' the 
 sea, and time 's precious." 
 
 The anchor was speedily pulled up, and they 
 rowed towards the rock, the ragged edges of which 
 were now visible at intervals in the midst of the 
 foam which they created. 
 
 At low tide an irregular portion of the Bell Eock, 
 less than a hundred yards in length, and fifty yards 
 in breadth, is uncovered and left exposed for two 
 or three hours. It does not appear in the form of a 
 single mass or islet, but in a succession of serrated
 
 6 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 ledges of various heights, between and amongst 
 which the sea flows until the tide has fallen pretty 
 low. At full ebb the rock appears like a dark 
 islet, covered with seaweed, and studded with deep 
 pools of water, most of which are connected with 
 the sea by narrow channels running between the 
 ledges. The highest part of the rock does not rise 
 more than seven feet above the level of the sea at 
 the lowest tide. 
 
 To enter one of the pools by means of the chan- 
 nels above referred to is generally a matter of 
 difficulty, and often of extreme danger, as the swell 
 of the sea, even in calm weather, bursts over these 
 ledges with such violence as to render the channels 
 at times impassable. The utmost caution, therefore, 
 is necessary. 
 
 Our fishermen, however, were accustomed to land 
 there occasionally in search of the remains of wrecks, 
 and knew their work welL They approached the 
 rock on the lee side, which was, as has been said, to 
 the westward. To a spectator viewing them from 
 any point but from the boat itself, it would have 
 appeared that the reckless men were sailing into the 
 jaws of certain death, for the breakers burst around 
 them so confusedly in all directions that their in- 
 stant destruction seemed inevitable. But Davy 
 Spink, looking over his shoulder as he sat at the 
 bow-oar, saw a narrow lead of comparatively still
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 7 
 
 water in the midst of the foam, along which he 
 guided the boat with consummate skill, giving only 
 a word or two of direction to Swankie, who instantly 
 acted in accordance therewith. 
 
 " Pull, pull, lad," said Davy. 
 
 Swankie pulled, and the boat swept round with 
 its bow to the east just in time to meet a billow, 
 which, towering high above its fellows, burst com- 
 pletely over the rocks, and appeared to be about to 
 sweep away all before it. For a moment the boat 
 was as if embedded in snow, then it sank once more 
 into the lead among the floating tangle, and the men 
 pulled with might and main in order to escape the 
 next wave. They were just in time. It burst over 
 the same rocks with greater violence than its pre- 
 decessor, but the boat had gained the shelter of the 
 next ledge, and lay floating securely in the deep, 
 quiet pool within, while the men restedj-on their 
 oars, and watched the chaos of the water rush harm- 
 lessly by. 
 
 In another moment they had landed and secured 
 the boat to a projecting rock. 
 
 Few words of conversation passed between these 
 practical men. They had gone there on particular 
 business. Time and tide proverbially wait for no 
 man, but at the Bell Eock they wait a much briefer 
 period than elsewhere. Between low water and the 
 time when it would be impossible to quit the rock
 
 8 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 without being capsized, there was only a space of 
 two or three hours sometimes more, frequently 
 less so it behoved the men to economize time. 
 
 Rocks covered with wet seaweed and rugged in 
 form are not easy to walk over ; a fact which was 
 soon proved by Swankie staggering violently once 
 or twice, and by Spink falling flat on his back. 
 Neither paid attention to his comrade's misfortunes 
 in this way. Each scrambled about actively, search- 
 ing with care among the crevices of the rocks, and 
 from time to time picking up articles which they 
 thrust into their pockets or laid on their shoulders, 
 according as weight and dimensions required. 
 
 In a short time they returned to their boat pretty 
 well laden. 
 
 "Weel, lad, what luck?" inquired Spink as 
 Swankie and he met the former with a grappling 
 iron on his shoulder, the latter staggering under the 
 weight of a mass of metal 
 
 " Not much," replied Swankie ; " nothin' but 
 heavy metal this mornin', only a bit of a cookin' 
 stove an' a cannon shot that 's all." 
 
 " Never mind, try again. There must ha' bin two 
 or three wrecks on the rock this gale," said Davy, as 
 he and his friend threw their burdens into the boat, 
 and hastened to resume the search. 
 
 At first Spink was the more successful of the two. 
 He returned to the boat with various articles more
 
 BIG SWANKIE FINDS MORE THAN HE EXPECTED. PAGE 9.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 9 
 
 than once, while his comrade continued his rambles 
 unsuccessfully. At last, however, Big Swankie 
 came to a gully or inlet where a large mass of the 
 debris of a wreck was piled up in indescribable 
 confusion, in the midst of which lay the dead body 
 of an old man. Swankie's first impulse was to 
 shout to his companion, but he checked himself, and 
 proceeded to examine the pockets of the dead man. 
 
 Raising the corpse with some difficulty he placed 
 it on the ledge of rock. Observing a ring on the 
 little finger of the right hand, he removed it and 
 put it hastily in his pocket. Then he drew a red 
 morocco case from an inner breast pocket in the 
 dead man's coat. To his surprise and delight he 
 found that it contained a gold watch and several 
 gold rings and brooches, in some of which were 
 beautiful stones. Swankie was no judge of jewellery, 
 but he could not avoid the conviction that these 
 things must needs be valuable. He laid the case 
 down on the rock beside him, and eagerly searched 
 the other pockets. In one he found a large clasp- 
 knife and a pencil-case ; in another a leather purse 
 which felt heavy as he drew it out. His eyes 
 sparkled at the first glance he got of the contents, 
 for they were sovereigns ! Just as he made this 
 discovery, Davy Spink climbed over the ledge at his 
 back, and Swankie hastily thrust the purse under 
 nfcath the body of the dead man.
 
 1 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " Hallo ! lad, what have ye there ? Hey! watches 
 r.nd rings come, we 're in luck this mornin'." 
 
 " We !" exclaimed Swankie, somewhat sternly, 
 " you didn't find that case." 
 
 " Na, lad, but we Ve aye divided, an' I dinna see 
 what for we should change our plan noo." 
 
 " We Ve nae paction to that effec' the case o* 
 kickshaws is mine," retorted Swankie. 
 
 " Half o't," suggested Spink. 
 
 " Weel, weel," cried the other with affected care- 
 lessness, " I 'd 'scorn to be sae graspin'. For the 
 matter o' that ye may hae it all to yersel', but I '11 
 hae the next thing we git that 's worth muckle a' to 
 mysel'." 
 
 So saying Swankie stooped to continue his search 
 of the body, and in a moment or two drew out the 
 purse with an exclamation of surprise. 
 
 " See, I 'm in luck, Davy ! Virtue 's aye rewarded, 
 they say. This is mine, and I doot not there '11 be 
 some siller intilt." 
 
 " Goold !" cried Davy, with dilated eyes, as his 
 comrade emptied the contents into his large hand, 
 and counted over thirty sovereigns. 
 
 "Ay, lad, ye can keep the what-d'ye-ca' urns, and 
 I '11 keep the siller." 
 
 " I Ve seen that face before," observed Spink, look- 
 ing intently at the body. 
 
 " tike enough," said Swankie, with an air of in-
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 11 
 
 difference, as he put the gold into his pocket. " 1 
 think I 've seed it mysel'. It looks like auld Jamie 
 Brand, but I didna ken him weeL" 
 
 " It 's just him," said Spink, with a touch of sad- 
 ness. " Ay, ay, that'll fa' heavy on the auld woman. 
 But, come, it'll no' do to stand haverin' this way. 
 Let's see what else is on him." 
 
 They found nothing more of any value, but a 
 piece of paper was discovered, wrapped up in oilskin, 
 and carefully fastened with red tape, in the vest 
 pocket of the dead man. It contained writing, and 
 had been so securely wrapped up, that it was only a 
 little damped. Davy Spink, who found it, tried in 
 vain to read the writing ; Davy's education had beeo 
 neglected, so he was fain to confess that he could 
 not make it out. 
 
 " Let me see *t," said Swankie. " What hae we 
 here? 'The sloop is hard an an '" ("'fast,' 
 maybe," suggested Spink.) "Ay, so 'tis. I canna 
 make oot the next word, but here 's somethin' about 
 the jewel-case." 
 
 The man paused and gazed earnestly at the paper 
 for a few minutes, with a look of perplexity on his 
 rugged visage. 
 
 " Weel, man, what is't?" inquired Davy. 
 
 " Hoot ! I canna mak' it oot," said the other, 
 testily, as if annoyed at being unable to read it. 
 He refolded the paper, and thrust it into his bosom,
 
 12 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 saying, " Come, we' re wastin' time. Let 's get on 
 wi' our wark." 
 
 " Toss for the jewels and the siller," said Spink, 
 suggestively. 
 
 " Very weel," replied the other, producing a copper. 
 " Heeds, you win the siller ; tails, I win the box ; 
 heeds it is, so the kickshaws is mine. Weel, I 'm 
 content," he added, as he handed the bag of gold to 
 his comrade, and received the jewel-case in ex- 
 change. 
 
 In another hour the sea began to encroach on the 
 rock, and the fishermen, having collected as much as 
 time would permit of the wrecked materials, returned 
 to their boat. 
 
 They had secured altogether above two hundred- 
 weight of old metal, namely, a large piece of a 
 ship's caboose, a hinge, a lock of a door, a ship's 
 marking-iron, a soldier's bayonet, a cannon ball, a 
 shoebuckle, and a small anchor, besides part of the 
 cordage of the wreck, and the money and jewels 
 before mentioned. Placing the heavier of these 
 things in the bottom of the boat, they pushed off. 
 
 "We better take the corp ashore," said Spink, 
 suddenly. 
 
 "What for? They may ask what was in the 
 pockets," objected Swankie. 
 
 " Let them ask," rejoined the other, with a grin. 
 
 Swankie made no reply, but gave a stroke with
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 13 
 
 his oar which sent the boat close up to the rocks. 
 They both re-landed in silence, and, lifting the 
 dead body of the old man, laid it in the stern-sheets 
 of the boat. Once more they pushed off. 
 
 Too much delay had been already made. The 
 surf was breaking over the ledges in all directions, 
 and it was with the utmost difficulty that they suc- 
 ceeded in getting clear out into deep water. A breeze 
 which had sprung up from the east, tended to raise 
 the sea a little, but when they finally got away from 
 the dangerous reef, the breeze befriended them. 
 Hoisting the foresail, they quickly left the Bell 
 Rock far behind them, and, in the course of a couple 
 of hours, sailed into the harbour of Arbroath.
 
 CHAPTEE II. 
 
 THE LOVERS AND THE PRESS-GANG. 
 
 ABOUT a mile to the eastward of the ancient to\vii 
 of Arbroath the shore abruptly changes its character, 
 from a flat beach to a range of, perhaps, the wildest 
 and most picturesque cliffs on the east coast of 
 Scotland. Inland the country is rather flat, but 
 elevated several hundred feet above the level of the 
 sea, towards which it slopes gently until it reaches 
 the shore, where it terminates in abrupt, perpendicu- 
 lar precipices, varying from a hundred to two hundred 
 feet in height. In many places the cliffs overhang 
 the water, and all along the coast they have been 
 perforated and torn up by the waves, so as to present 
 singularly bold and picturesque outlines, with caverns, 
 inlets, and sequestered " coves " of every form and 
 size. 
 
 To the top of these cliffs, in the afternoon of the 
 day on which our tale opens, a young girl wended 
 her way, slowly, as if she had no other object in 
 view than a stroll, and sadly, as if her mind were
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 15 
 
 more engaged with the thoughts within than with 
 the magnificent prospect of land and sea without. 
 The girl was 
 
 " Fair, fair, with golden hair," 
 
 and apparently about twenty years of age. She 
 sought out a quiet nook among the rocks at the top 
 of the cliffs, near to a circular chasm, with the name 
 of which (at that time) we are not acquainted, but 
 which was destined ere long to acquire a new name 
 and celebrity from an incident which shall be related 
 in another part of this story. 
 
 Curiously enough, just about the same hour, a 
 young man was seen to wend his way to the same 
 cliffs, and, from no reason whatever with which we 
 happened to be acquainted, sought out the same nook! 
 We say " he was seen," advisedly, for the maid with 
 the golden hair saw him. Any ordinary observer 
 would have said that she had scarcely raised her eyes 
 from the ground since sitting down on a piece of 
 flower-studded turf near the edge of the cliff, and that 
 she certainly had not turned her head in the direction 
 of the town. Yet she saw him, however absurd the 
 statement may appear, we affirm it confidently, 
 and knew that he was coming. Other eyes there 
 were that also saw the youth eyes that would 
 have caused him some degree of annoyance had he 
 known they were upon him eyes that he would 
 have rejoiced to tinge with the colours black and
 
 16 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 blue ! There were thirteen pair of them, belonging 
 to twelve men and a lieutenant of the navy. 
 
 In those days the barbarous custom of impress- 
 ment into the Royal Navy was in full operation. 
 England was at war with Trance. Men were wanted 
 to fight our battles, and when there was any diffi- 
 culty in getting men, press-gangs were sent out to 
 force them into the service. The youth whom 
 we now introduce to the reader was a sailor, a 
 strapping, handsome one, too ; not, indeed, remark- 
 able for height, being only a little above the average 
 five feet, ten inches, or thereabouts but noted 
 for great depth of chest, breadth of shoulder, and 
 development of muscle ; conspicuous also for the 
 quantity of close, clustering, light-brown curls round 
 Ms head, and for the laughing glance of his dark 
 blue eyes. Not a hero of romance, by any means. 
 No, he was very matter of fact, and rather given to 
 meditation than to mischief. 
 
 The officer in charge of the press-gang had set his 
 heart on this youth (so had another individual, of 
 whom more anon !) but the youth, whose name was 
 Ruby Brand, happened to have an old mother who 
 was at that time in very bad health, and she had 
 also set her heart, poor body, on the youth, and en- 
 treated him to stay at home just for one half year. 
 Ruby willingly consented, and from that time forward 
 led the life of a dog in consequence of the press-gang.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE 1 7 
 
 
 
 Now, as we have said, he had been seen leaving 
 the town by the lieutenant, who summoned his men 
 and went after him cautiously, however, in order 
 to take him by surprise, for Euby, besides being 
 strong and active as a lion, was slippery as an eeL 
 
 Going straight as an arrow to the spot where she 
 of the golden hair was seated, the youth presented 
 himself suddenly to her, sat down beside her, and 
 exclaiming " Minnie," put his arm round her waist. 
 
 " Oh, Euby, don't," said Minnie, blushing. 
 
 Now, reader, the " don't" and the blush had no 
 reference to the arm round the waist, but to the 
 relative position of their noses, mouths, and chins, 
 a position which would have been highly improper 
 and altogether unjustifiable but for the fact that 
 Euby was Minnie's accepted lover. 
 
 "Don't, darling, why not?" said Euby in sur- 
 prise. 
 
 " You 're so rough," said Minnie, turning her head 
 away. 
 
 " True, dear, I forgot to shave this morning " 
 
 " I don 't mean that," interrupted the girl quickly, 
 " I mean rude and and is that a sea-gull ?" 
 
 "No, sweetest of your sex, it's a butterfly; but 
 it 's all the same, as my metaphysical Uncle Ogilvy 
 would undertake to prove to you, thus, a butterfly is 
 white and a gull is white, therefore, a gull is a 
 butterfly." 
 
 a
 
 18 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " Don't talk nonsense, Ruby." 
 
 " No more I will, darling, if you will listen to me 
 while I talk sense. 
 
 " What is it?" said the girl, looking earnestly ami 
 somewhat anxiously into her lover's face, for she 
 knew at once by his expression that he had some 
 unpleasant communication to make. "You're not 
 going away ?" 
 
 " Well, no not exactly ; you know I promised to 
 stay with mother; but the fact is that I'm so 
 pestered and hunted down by that rascally press- 
 gang, that I don 't know what to do. They 're sure 
 to nab me at last, too, and then I shall have to go 
 away whether I will or no, so I 've made up my mind 
 as a last resource, to " Euby paused. 
 
 "Well?" said Minnie. 
 
 " Well, in fact to do what will take me away for 
 a short time, but " Ruby stopped short, and, turn- 
 ing his head on one side, while a look of fierce 
 anger overspread his face, seemed to listen intently. 
 
 Minnie did not observe this action for a few 
 leconds, but, wondering why he paused, she looked 
 up, and in surprise exclaimed 
 
 " Ruby ! what do you " 
 
 " Hush ! Minnie, and don't look round," said he 
 in a low tone of intense anxiety, yet remaining im- 
 movably in the position which he had assumed on 
 first sitting down by the girl's side, although the
 
 RUBY HEARS SOUNDS THAT ANNOY HIM. PAGE 18.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 19 
 
 swelled veins of his neck and his flushed forehead 
 told of a fierce conflict of feeling within. " It 's the 
 press-gang after me again. I got a glance of one o* 
 them out of the tail of my eye, creeping round the 
 rocks. They think I haven't seen them. Darling 
 Minnie one kiss. Take care of mother if I don't 
 turn up soon." 
 
 " But how will you escape 
 
 " Hush, dearest girl ! I want to have as much of 
 you as I can before I go. Don't be afraid. They're 
 honest British tars after all, and won't hurt you, 
 Minnie." 
 
 Still seated at the girl's side, as if perfectly at his 
 ease, yet speaking in quick earnest tones, and draw- 
 ing her closely to him, Ruby waited until he heard 
 a stealthy tread behind him. Then he sprang up 
 with the speed of thought, uttered a laugh of defiance 
 as the sailors rushed towards him, and leaping 
 wildly off the cliff, fell a height of about fifty feet 
 into the sea. 
 
 Minnie uttered a scream of horror, and fell faint- 
 ing into the arms of the bewildered lieutenant. 
 
 " Down the cliffs quick ! he can't escape if you 
 look alive. Stay, one of you, and look after this 
 girl She '11 roll over the edge on recovering, per- 
 haps." 
 
 It was easy to order the men down the cliffs, but 
 not so easy for them to obey, for the rockfi were
 
 20 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 almost perpendicular at the place, and descended 
 sheer into the water. 
 
 " Surround the spot," shouted the lieutenant. 
 " Scatter yourselves away ! there 's no beach here." 
 
 The lieutenant was right. The men extended 
 themselves along the top of the cliffs so as to pre- 
 vent Buoy's escape, in the event of his trying to 
 ascend them, and two sailors stationed themselves 
 in ambush in the narrow pass at the spot where the 
 cliffs terminate in the direction of the town. 
 
 The leap taken by Euby was a bold one. Few 
 men could have ventured it ; indeed, the youth him- 
 self would have hesitated had he not been driven 
 almost to desperation. But he was a practised 
 swimmer and diver, and knew well the risk he ran. 
 He struck the water with tremendous force and sent 
 up a great mass of foam, but he had entered it per- 
 pendicularly, feet foremost, and in a few seconds 
 returned to the surface so close to the cliffs that 
 they overhung him, and thus effectually concealed 
 him from his pursuers. 
 
 Swimming cautiously along for a short distance 
 close to the rocks, he came to the entrance of a 
 cavern which was filled by the sea. The inner end 
 of this cave opened into a small hollow or hole 
 among the cliffs, up the sides of which Ruby knew 
 that he could climb, and thus reach the top unper- 
 ceived, but, after gaining the summit, there still lay
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 21 
 
 before him the difficulty of eluding those who 
 watched there. He felt, however, that nothing could 
 be gained by delay, so he struck at once into the 
 cave, swam to the inner end, and landed. Wringing 
 the water out of his clothes, he threw off his jacket 
 and vest in order to be as unencumbered as possible, 
 and then began to climb cautiously. 
 
 Just above the spot where Euby ascended there 
 chanced to be stationed a seaman named Balls. 
 This man had lain down flat on his breast, with his 
 head close to the edge of the cliff, so as to observe 
 narrowly all that went on below, but, being a stout, 
 lethargic man, he soon fell fast asleep ! It was just 
 at the spot where this man lay that Kuby reached the 
 summit. The ascent was very difficult. At each 
 step the hunted youth had to reach his hand as 
 high above his head as possible, and grasp the edge 
 of a rock or a mass of turf with great care before 
 venturing on another step. Had one of these points 
 of rock, or one of these tufts of grass, given way, he 
 would infallibly have fallen down the precipice 
 and been killed. Accustomed to this style of climb- 
 ing from infancy, however, he advanced without a 
 sensation of fear. 
 
 On reaching the top he peeped over, and, seeing 
 that no one was near, prepared for a rush. There 
 was a mass of brown turf on the bank above him. 
 He grasped it with all his force, and swung himself
 
 22 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 over the edge of the cliff. In doing so he nearly 
 scalped poor Dalls, whose hair was the " turf" which 
 he had seized, and who, uttering a hideous yell, 
 leaped upon Euby and tried to overthrow him. But 
 Dalls had met his match. He received a blow on 
 the nose that all but felled him, and instantly after a 
 blow on each eye, that raised a very constellation of 
 stars in his brain, and laid him prone upon the grass. 
 
 His yell, however, and the noise of the scuffle, 
 were heard by those of the press-gang who were 
 nearest to the scene of conflict. They rushed to the 
 rescue, and reached the spot just as Euby leaped 
 over his prostrate foe and fled towards Arbroath. 
 They followed with a cheer, which warned the two 
 men in ambush to be ready. Euby was lithe as a 
 greyhound. He left his pursuers far behind him, 
 and dashed down the gorge leading from the cliffs 
 to the low ground beyond. 
 
 Here he was met by the two sailors, and by the 
 lieutenant, who had joined them. Minnie was also 
 there, having been conducted thither by the said 
 lieutenant, who gallantly undertook to see her safe 
 into the town, in order to prevent any risk of her 
 being insulted by his men. On hearing the shout 
 of those who pursued Euby, Minnie hurried away, 
 intending to get free from the gang, not feeling that 
 the lieutenant's protection was either desirable 01 
 necessary.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 23 
 
 When Euby reached the middle of the gorge, 
 which we have dignified with the name of " pass," 
 and saw three men ready to dispute his passage, be 
 increased his speed. When he was almost up to 
 them he turned aside and sprang nimbly up the 
 almost perpendicular wall of earth on his right This 
 act disconcerted the men, who had prepared to receive 
 his charge and seize him, but Euby jumped down on 
 the shoulders of the one nearest, and crushed him 
 to the ground with his weight. His clenched fist 
 caught the lieutenant between the eyes and stretched 
 him on his back the third man wisely drew aside 
 to let this human thunderbolt pass by ! 
 
 He did pass, and, as the impetuous and quite 
 irresistible locomotive is brought to a sudden pause 
 when the appropriate breaks are applied, so was he 
 brought to a sudden halt by Minnie, a hundred yards 
 or so farther on. 
 
 " Oh ! don't stop," she cried eagerly, and hastily 
 thrusting him away. " They'll catch you !" 
 
 Panting though he was, vehemently, Euby could 
 not restrain a laugh. 
 
 "Catch me! no, darling; but don't be afraid or 
 them. They won't hurt you, Minnie, and they 
 can't hurt me except ill the way of cutting shoit 
 our interview. Ha ! here they come. Goodbye, 
 dearest ; I'll see you soon again." 
 
 At that moment five or six of the men came
 
 24 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 rushing down the pass with a wild cheer. Euby 
 made no haste to run. He stood in an easy attitude 
 beside Minnie ; leisurely kissed her little hand, and 
 gently smoothed down her golden hair. Just as the 
 foremost pursuer came within fifteen yards or so of 
 them, he said, " Farewell, my lassie, I leave you in 
 good hands;" and then, waving his cap in the air, 
 with a cheer of more than half-jocular defiance, he 
 turned and fled towards Arbroath as if one of the 
 nor'-east gales, in its wildest fury, were sweeping 
 him over the land.
 
 CHAPTEE III. 
 
 OUR HERO OBLIGED TO GO TO SEA. 
 
 WHEN Euby Brand reached the outskirts of 
 Arbroath, he checked his speed and walked into his 
 native town whistling gently, and with his hands 
 in his pockets, as though he had just returned from 
 an evening walk. He directed his steps to one of 
 the streets near the harbour, in which his mother's 
 cottage was situated. 
 
 Mrs. Brand was a delicate, little old woman so 
 little and so old that people sometimes wondered 
 how it was possible that she could be the mother of 
 such a stalwart son. She was one of those kind, 
 gentle, uncomplaining, and unselfish beings, who do 
 not socure much popularity or admiration in this 
 world, but who secure obedient children, also stead- 
 fast and loving frienda Her favourite book was 
 the Bible ; her favourite hope in regard to earthly 
 matters, that men should give up fighting and drink-
 
 26 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 ing, and live in peace ; her favourite theory that 
 the study of truth was the object for which man 
 was created, and her favourite meal tea. 
 
 Ruby was her only child. Minnie was the 
 daughter of a distant relation, and, having been 
 left an orphan, she was adopted by her. Mrs. 
 Brand's husband was a sailor. He commanded a 
 small coasting sloop, of which Euby had been the 
 mate for several years. As we have said, Euby had 
 been prevailed on to remain at home for some 
 months in order to please his mother, whose delicacy 
 of "health was such that his refusal would have 
 injured her seriously ; at least the doctor said so, 
 therefore Euby agreed to stay. 
 
 The sloop "Penguin," commanded by Eub/s 
 father, was on a voyage to Newcastle at that time, 
 and was expected in Arbroath every day. But it 
 was fated never more to cast anchor in that port. 
 The great storm, to which reference has been made 
 in a previous chapter, caused many wrecks on the 
 shores of Britain. The " Penguin" was one of the 
 many. 
 
 In those days telegraphs, railroads, and penny 
 papers did not exist. Murders were committed 
 then, as now, but little was said, and less was known 
 about them. Wrecks occurred then, as now, but 
 few, except the persons immediately concerned, 
 heard of them. " Destructive fires," " terrible acci-
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 27 
 
 dents," and the familiar round of " appalling catas- 
 trophes" occurred then, as now, but their influence 
 was limited, and their occurrence soon forgotten. 
 
 We would not be understood to mean that "now" 
 (as compared with " then,") all is right and well ; that 
 telegraphs and railways and daily papers are all- 
 potent and perfect. By no means. We have still 
 much to learn and to do in these improved times ; 
 and, especially, there is wanting to a large extent 
 among us a sympathetic telegraphy, so to speak, 
 between the interior of our land and the sea-coast, 
 which, if it existed in full and vigorous play, would 
 go far to improve our condition, and raise us in the 
 esteem of Christian nations. Nevertheless, as com- 
 pared with now, the state of things then was 
 lamentably imperfect. 
 
 The great storm came and went, having swept 
 thousands of souls into eternity and hundreds of 
 thousands of pounds into nonentity. Lifeboats had 
 not been invented. Harbours of refuge were almost 
 unknown, and although our coasts bristled with dan- 
 gerous reefs and headlands, lighthouses were few 
 and far between. The consequence was, that wrecks 
 were numerous ; and so also were wreckers, a class 
 of men who, in the absence of an efficient coast- 
 guard, subsisted to a large extent on what they picked 
 up from the wrecks that were cast in their way, and 
 who did not scruple, sometimes, to cause wrecks, by
 
 28 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 showing false lights in order to decoy vessels to de- 
 struction. 
 
 We do not say that all wreckers were guilty of 
 such crimes, but many of them were so, and their 
 style of life, at the best, had naturally a demoralizing 
 influence upon all of them. 
 
 The famous Bell Eock, lying twelve miles off the 
 coast of Forfarshire, was a prolific source of destruc- 
 tion to shipping. Not only did numbers of vessels 
 get upon it, but many others ran upon the neigh- 
 bouring coasts in attempting to avoid it. 
 
 Ruby's father knew the navigation well, but, in 
 the confusion and darkness of the furious storm, he 
 miscalculated his position and ran upon the rock, 
 where, as we have seen, his body was afterwards 
 found by the two fishermen. It was conveyed by 
 them to the cottage of Mrs. Brand, and when Euby 
 entered he found his mother on her knees by the bed- 
 side, pressing the cpld hand of his father to her breast, 
 and gazing with wild, tearless eyes into the dead face. 
 
 We will not dwell upon the sad scenes that fol- 
 lowed. 
 
 Ruby was now under the necessity of leaving home, 
 because his mother being deprived of her husband's 
 support naturally turned in distress to her son. But 
 Ruby had no employment, and work could not be 
 easily obtained at that time in the town, so there 
 was no other resource left him but to go to sea. This
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 29 
 
 lie did in a small coasting sloop belonging to an old 
 friend, who gave him part of his wages in advance to 
 enable him to leave his mother a small provision, at 
 least, for a short time. 
 
 This, however, was not all that the widow had to 
 depend on. Minnie Gray was expert with her needle, 
 and for some years past had contributed not a little 
 to the comforts of the household into which she had 
 been adopted. She now set herself to work with re- 
 doubled zeal and energy. Besides this, Mrs. Brand 
 had a brother, a retired skipper, who obtained the 
 complimentary title of Captain from his friends. He 
 was a poor man, it is true, as regarded money, having 
 barely sufficient for his own subsistence, but he was 
 rich in kindliness and dympathy, so that he managed 
 to make his small iiicome perform wonders. On hear- 
 ing of his brother-in-law's death, Captain Ogilvy 
 hastened to afford all the consolation in his power to 
 his sorrowing sister. 
 
 The captain was an eccentric old man, of rugged 
 aspect He thought that there was not a worse com- 
 forter on the face of the earth than himself, because, 
 when he saw others in distress, his heart invariably 
 got into his throat, and absolutely prevented him 
 from saying a single word. He tried to speak to his 
 sister, but all he could do was to take her hand and 
 weep. This did the poor widow more good than any 
 words could have done, no matter how eloquently 01
 
 30 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 fitly spoken. It unlocked the fountain of her OWE 
 heart, and the two wept together. 
 
 When Captain Ogilvy accompanied Euby on board 
 the sloop to see him off, and shook hands as he was 
 about to return to the shore, he said 
 
 " Cheer up, Ruby ; never say die so long as there's 
 a shot in the locker. That 's the advice of an old salt, 
 an' you'll find it sound, the more ye ponder of it. 
 Wen a young feller sails away on the sea . life, let 
 him always go by chart and compass, not forgettin" 
 to take soundin's w'en cruisin' off of a bad coast. 
 Keep a sharp look-out to wind'ard, an' mind yer 
 helm that's my advice to you, lad, as ye go 
 
 A-sailin' down life's troubled stream, 
 All as if it wor a dream." 
 
 The captain had a somewhat poetic fancy (at least 
 he was impressed with the belief that he had), and 
 was in the habit of enforcing his arguments by 
 quotations from memory. When memory failed he 
 supplemented with original composition. 
 
 " Goodbye, lad, an' Providence go with ye." 
 
 " Goodbye, uncle. I need not remind you to look 
 after mother when I 'm away." 
 
 " No, nephy, you needn't ; I '11 do it whether or 
 not." 
 
 " And Minnie, poor thing, she '11 need a word of 
 advice and comfort now and then, uncle." 
 
 " And she shall have it, lad," replied the captain
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 31 
 
 with a tremendous wink, which was unfortunately 
 lost on the nephew, in consequence of its being night 
 and unusually dark, " advice and comfort on de- 
 mand, gratis ; for 
 
 ' Woman, in her hours of ease, 
 Is most uncommon hard to please ; ' 
 
 but she mutt be looked arter, ye know, an' made of, 
 d' ye see? so Euby, boy, farewell." 
 
 Half an hour before midnight was the time chosen 
 for the sailing of the sloop " Termagant," in order 
 that she might get away quietly and escape the press- 
 gang. Euby and his uncle had taken the precaution 
 to go down to the harbour just a few minutes before 
 sailing, and they kept as carefully as possible to the 
 darkest and least- frequented streets while passing 
 through the town. 
 
 Captain Ogilvy returned by much the same route 
 to his sister's cottage, but did not attempt to conceal 
 his movements. On the contrary, knowing that the 
 sloop must have got clear of the harbour by that 
 time, he went along the streets whistling cheerfully. 
 He had been a noted, not to say noisy, whistler when 
 a boy, and the habit had not forsaken him in his old 
 age. On turning sharp round a corner, he ran against 
 two men, one of whom swore at him, but the other 
 cried 
 
 " Hallo ! messmate, yer musical the night Hey 
 Captain Ogilvy, surely I seed you an' Euby sliiikin
 
 32 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 down the dark side o' the market-gate half an 'oor 
 ago?" 
 
 " Mayhap ye did, an' mayhap ye didn't," retorted 
 the captain, as he walked on ; " but as it 's none o' 
 your business to know, I '11 not tell ye." 
 
 " Ay, ay ? but ye 're a cross auld chap. 
 Pleasant dreams t' ye." 
 
 This kindly remark, which was expressed by our 
 friend Davy Spink, was lost on the captain, in conse- 
 quence of his having resumed his musical recreation 
 with redoubled energy, as he went rolling back to the 
 cottage to console Mrs. Brand, and to afford " advice 
 and comfort gratis " to Minnie Gray.
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 THE BURGLARY. 
 
 ON the night in question, Big Swankie and a like- 
 minded companion, who went among his comrades by 
 the name of the Badger, had planned to commit a 
 burglary in the town, and it chanced that the former 
 was about that business when Captain Ogilvy unex- 
 pectedly ran against him and Davy Spink. 
 
 Spink, although a smuggler, and by no means 
 a particularly respectable man, had not yet sunk 
 so low in the scale of life as to be willing td 
 commit burglary. Swankie and the Badger sus- 
 pected this, and, although they required his assist- 
 ance much, they were afraid to ask him to join, lest 
 he should not only refuse, but turn against them. 
 In order to get over the difficulty, Swankie had 
 arranged to suggest to him the robbery of a store 
 containing gin, which belonged to a smuggler, and, 
 if he agreed to that, to proceed further and suggest 
 the more important matter in hand. But he found 
 Spink proof against the first attack. 
 
 c
 
 34 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " I tell 'ee, I '11 hae naething to do wi't," said he 
 when the proposal was made. 
 
 "But," urged Swankie, 'he's a smuggler, and a 
 cross-grained hound besides. It's no' like robbin' 
 an honest man." 
 
 " An' what are we but smugglers ?" retorted Spink ; 
 "an* as to bein' cross-grained, you've naethin' to 
 boast o' in that way. ISTa, na, Swankie, ye may do 't 
 yersel, I '11 hae nae hand in 't. I '11 no objec' to tak 
 a bit keg o' Auchmithie water* noo and then, or to 
 pick up what comes to me by the wund and sea, but 
 T '11 steal frae nae man." 
 
 " Ay, man, but ye Ve turned awfu' honest all of a 
 suddent," said the other with a sneer. " I wonder 
 the thretty sovereigns I gied ye the other day, when 
 we tossed for them and the case o' kickshaws, havena' 
 brunt yer pooches." 
 
 Davy Spink looked a little confused. 
 
 " Aweel," said he, " it 's o' nae use greetin' ower 
 spilt milk, the thing's done and past noo, and 1 
 canna help it. Sae guidnight to 'ee." 
 
 Swankie, seeing that it was useless to attempt to 
 gain over his comrade, and knowing that the Badger 
 was waiting impatiently for him near the appointed 
 house, hurried away without another word, and Davy 
 Spink strolled towards his home, which was an ex- 
 tremely dirty little hut, near the harbour. 
 
 * Smuggled spirits.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 35 
 
 At the time of which we write, the town of 
 Arbroath was neither so well lighted nor so well 
 guarded as it now is. The two burglars found 
 nothing to interfere with their deeds of darkness, 
 except a few bolts and bars, which did not stand 
 long before their expert hands. Nevertheless, they 
 met with a check from an unexpected quarter. 
 
 The house they had resolved to break into was 
 inhabited by a widow lady, who was said to be 
 wealthy, and who was known to possess a consider- 
 able quantity of plate and jewels. She lived alone, 
 having only one old servant and a little girl to attend 
 upon her. The house stood on a piece of ground 
 not far from the ruins of the stately abbey which 
 originated and gave celebrity to the ancient town 
 of Aberbrothoc. Mrs. Stewart's house was full of 
 Eastern curiosities, some of them of great value, 
 which had been sent to her by her son, then a major 
 in the East India Company's service. 
 
 Now, it chanced that Major Stewart had arrived 
 from India that very day, on leave of absence, all 
 unknown to the burglars, who, had they beeo aware 
 of the fact, would undoubtedly have postponed their 
 visit to a more convenient season. 
 
 As it was, supposing they had to deal only with 
 the old lady and her two servants, they began their 
 work between twelve and one that night, with con- 
 siderable confidence, and in great hopes of a rich booty
 
 36 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 A small garden surrounded the old house. It 
 was guarded by a wall about eight feet high, the top 
 of which bristled with bottle-glass. The old lady 
 and her domestics regarded this terrible-looking 
 defence with much satisfaction, believing in their 
 innocence that no human creature could succeed in 
 getting over it. Boys, however, were their only 
 dread, and fruit their only care, when they looked 
 complacently at the bottle-glass on the wall, and, so 
 far, they were right in their feeling of security, for 
 boys found the labour, risk, and danger to be greater 
 than the worth of the apples and pears. 
 
 But it was otherwise with men. Swankie and 
 the Badger threw a piece of thick matting on the 
 wall ; the former bent down, the latter stepped upon 
 his back, and thence upon the mat ; then he hauled 
 his comrade up, and both leaped into the garden. 
 
 Advancing stealthily to the door, they tried it 
 and found it locked. The windows were all care- 
 fully bolted, and the shutters barred. This they 
 expected, but thought it as well to try each possible 
 point of entrance, in the hope of finding an un- 
 guarded spot before having recourse to their tools. 
 Such a point was soon found, in the shape of a small 
 window, opening into a sort of scullery at the back 
 of the house. It had been left open by accident. 
 An entrance was easily effected by the Badger, who 
 was a small man, and who went through the house
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 37 
 
 with the silence of a cat, towards the front door. 
 There were two lobbies, an inner and an outer, 
 separated from each other by a glass door. Cautiously 
 opening both doors, the Badger admitted his comrade, 
 and then they set to work. 
 
 A lantern, which could be uncovered or concealed 
 in a moment, enabled them to see their way. 
 
 "That's the dinin'-room door," whispered the 
 Badger. 
 
 " Hist ! haud yer jaw," muttered Swankie ; " I ken 
 that as weel as you." 
 
 Opening the door, they entered and found the 
 plate-chest under the sideboard. 
 
 It was open, and a grin of triumph crossed the 
 sweet countenances of the friends as they exchanged 
 glances, and began to put silver forks and spoons by 
 the dozen into a bag which they had brought for 
 the purpose. 
 
 When they had emptied the plate-chest, they carried 
 the bag into the garden, and, climbing over the wall, 
 deposited it outside. Then they returned for more. 
 
 Now, old Mrs Stewart was an invalid, and was in 
 the habit of taking a little weak wine and water 
 before retiring to rest at night. It chanced that the 
 bottle containing the port wine had been left on the 
 sideboard, a fact which was soon discovered by 
 Swankie, who put the bottle to his mouth, and took 
 a long pull
 
 38 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " What is't?" inquired the Badger, in a low tone. 
 
 " Prime!" replied Swankie, handing over the bottle, 
 and wiping his mouth with the cuff of his coat. 
 
 The Badger put the bottle to his mouth, but un- 
 fortunately for him, part of the liquid went down 
 the " wrong throat." The result was that the poor 
 man coughed, once, rather loudly. Swankie, frowning 
 fiercely, and shaking his fist, looked at him in horror ; 
 and well he might, for the Badger became first red 
 and then purple in the face, and seemed a's if he 
 were about to burst with his efforts to keep down the 
 cough. It came, however, three times, in spite of 
 him, not violently, but with sufficient noise to 
 alarm them, and cause them to listen for five minutes 
 intently ere they ventured to go on with their work, 
 in the belief that no one had been disturbed. 
 
 But Major Stewart had been awakened by the 
 first cough. He was a soldier who had seen much 
 service, and who slept lightly. He raised himself in 
 his bed, and listened intently on hearing the first 
 cough. The second cough caused him to spring up 
 and pull on his trousers ; the third cough found 
 him half-way down stairs, with a boot-jack in his 
 hand, and when the burglars resumed work he was 
 peeping at them through the half-open door. 
 
 Both men were stooping over the plate- chest, the 
 Badger with his back to the door, Swankie with his 
 head towards it. The Major raised the boot-jack
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 39 
 
 and took aim. At the same moment the door 
 squeaked, Big Swankie looked up hastily, and, in 
 technical phraseology, " doused the glim." All was 
 dark in an instant, but the boot-jack sped on its 
 way notwithstanding. The burglars were accus- 
 tomed to fighting, however, and dipped their heads. 
 The boot-jack whizzed past, and smashed the pier- 
 glass on the mantel-piece to a thousand atoms. 
 Major Stewart being expert in all the devices of 
 warfare, knew what to expect, and drew aside. He 
 was not a moment too soon, for the dark lantern 
 flew through the doorway, hit the opposite wall, and 
 fell with a loud clatter on the stone floor of the 
 lobby. The Badger followed at once, and received 
 a random blow from the major that hurled him he"Ml 
 over heels after the lantern. 
 
 There was no mistaking the heavy tread and rush 
 of Big Swankie as he made for the door. Major 
 Stewart put out his foot, and the burglar naturally 
 tripped over it ; before he could rise the major had 
 him by the throat. There was a long, fierce struggle, 
 both being powerful men ; at last Swankie was hurled 
 completely through the glass door. In the fall he 
 disengaged himself from the major, and, leaping up, 
 made for the garden wall, over which he succeeded in 
 clambering before the latter could seize him. Thus 
 both burglars escaped, and Major Stewart returned 
 to the house half -naked, his shirt having been ton?
 
 40 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 off his back, and bleeding freely from cuts caused 
 by the glass door. 
 
 Just as he re-entered the house, the old cook, 
 under the impression that the cat had got into the 
 pantry and was smashing the crockery, entered the 
 lobby in her night-dress, shrieked " Mercy on us ! " 
 on beholding the major, and fainted dead away. 
 
 Major Stewart was too much annoyed at having 
 failed to capture the burglars to take any notice of 
 her. He relocked the door, and assuring his mother 
 that it was only robbers, and that they had been 
 beaten off, retired to his room, washed and dressed 
 his wounds, and went to bed. 
 
 Meanwhile Big Swankie and the Badger, laden 
 with silver, made for the shore, where they hid their 
 treasure in a hole. 
 
 " I '11 tell 'ee a dodge," said the Badgoa'. 
 
 " What may that be ? " inquired Swankie. 
 
 " You said ye saw Kuby Brand slinking down the 
 market-gate, and that he 's off to sea ? " 
 
 " Ay, and twa or three more folk saw him as weel 
 as me." 
 
 " Weel, let's tak' up a siller spoon, or somethin', an' 
 put it in the auld wife's garden, an' they '11 think it 
 was him that did it." 
 
 " No' that bad !" said Swankie, with a chuckle. 
 
 A silver fork and a pair of sugar-tongs bearing old 
 Mrs. Stewart's initials were accordingly selected for
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 41 
 
 this purpose, and placed in the little garden in the 
 front of Widow Brand's cottage. 
 
 Here they were found in the morning by Captain 
 Ogilvy, who examined them for at least half-an-hour 
 in a state of the utmost perplexity. While he was 
 thus engaged one of the detectives of the town 
 happened to pass, apparently in some haste. 
 
 " Hallo ! shipmate," shouted the captain. 
 
 " Well ? " responded the detective. 
 
 " Did ye ever see silver forks an' sugar- tongs growin' 
 in a garden before ? " 
 
 " Eh ? " exclaimed the other, entering the garden 
 hastily ; " let me see. Oho ! this may throw some 
 light on the matter. Did you find them here ? " 
 
 " Ay, on this very spot." 
 
 " Hum. Euby went away last night, I believe ? " 
 
 " He did" 
 
 " Some time after midnight ? " inquired the detec- 
 tive. 
 
 " Likely enough," said the captain, " but my 
 chronometer ain't quite so reg'lar since we left the 
 sea ; it might ha' bin more, mayhap less." 
 
 " Just so. You saw him off ? " 
 
 " Ay ; but you seem more than or'nar inquisitive 
 to-day " 
 
 " Did he carry a bundle ? " interrupted the detec- 
 tive. 
 
 " Ay, no doubt"
 
 42 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " Alaige one?" 
 
 " Ay, a goodisli big 'un. B 
 
 " Do you know what was in it ? * inquired the 
 detective, with a knowing look. 
 
 " I do, for I packed it," replied the captain ; " his 
 kit was in it." 
 
 "Nothing more?" 
 
 " Nothin' as I knows of" 
 
 " Well, I '11 take these with me just now," said 
 the officer, placing the fork and sugar-tongs in his 
 pocket. " I 'm afraid, old man, that your nephew 
 has been up to mischief before he went away. A 
 burglary was committed in the town last night, and 
 this is some of the plate. You '11 hear more about 
 it before long, I daresay. Good- day to ye." 
 
 So saying, the detective walked quickly away, and 
 left the captain in the centre of the garden staring 
 vacantly before him, in speechless amazement.
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 THE BLL BOCK INVADED. 
 
 A YEAR passed away. Nothing more was heard 
 of Buby Brand, and the burglary was believed to be 
 one of those mysteries which are destined never to 
 be solved. 
 
 About this time great attention was being given 
 by Government to the subject of lighthouses. The 
 terrible number of wrecks that had taken place had 
 made a deep impression on the public mind. The 
 position and dangerous character of the Bell Eock, 
 in particular, had been for a long time the subject 
 of much discussion, and various unsuccessful attempts 
 had been made to erect a beacon of some sort thereon. 
 
 There is a legend that in days of old one of the 
 abbots of the neighbouring monastery of Aberbrothoc 
 erected a bell on the Inchcape rock, which was tolled 
 in rough weather by the action of the waves on a 
 float attached to the tongue, and thus mariners were 
 warned at night and in foggy weather of their approach 
 to the rock, the great danger of which consists in ita
 
 44 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 being a sunken reef, lying twelve miles from the 
 nearest land, and exactly in the course of vessels 
 making for the firths of Forth and Tay. The legend 
 further tells how that a Danish pirate, named Ealph 
 the Eover, in a mischievous mood, cut the bell away, 
 and that, years afterwards, he obtained his appropriate 
 reward by being wrecked on the Bell Eock, when 
 returning from a long cruise laden with booty. 
 
 Whether this be true or not is an open question, 
 but certain it is that no beacon of any kind was 
 erected on this rock until the beginning of the present 
 century, when a great storm in 1799 stirred up the 
 public mind, and set springs in motion, which from 
 that time forward have never ceased to operate. 
 
 Many and disastrous were the shipwrecks that 
 occurred during the storm referred to, which con- 
 tinued, with 1/ttle intermission, for three days. 
 Great numbers of ships were driven from their 
 moorings in the Downs and Yarmouth Eoads ; and 
 these, together with all vessels navigating the Ger- 
 man Ocean at that time, were drifted upon the 
 east coast of Scotland. 
 
 It may not, perhaps, be generally known that 
 there are only three great inlets or estuaries to 
 which the mariner steers when overtaken by easterly 
 storms in the North Sea namely, the Humber, and 
 the firths of Forth and Moray. The mouth of the 
 Thames is too much encumbered by sandbanks to
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 45 
 
 be approached at night or during bad weather. The 
 Humber is also considerably obstructed in this way, 
 so that the Eoads of Leith, in the Firth of Forth, 
 and those of Cromarty, in the Moray Firth, are the 
 chief places of resort in easterly gales. But both 
 of these had their special risks. 
 
 On the one hand, there was the danger of mis- 
 taking the Dornoch Firth for the Moray, as it lies 
 only a short way to the north of the latter ; and, in 
 the case of the Firth of Forth, there was the terrible 
 Bell Rock. 
 
 Now, during the storm of which we write, the 
 fear of those two dangers was so strong upon sea- 
 men that many vessels were lost in trying to avoid 
 them, and much hardship was sustained by mariners 
 who preferred to seek shelter in higher latitudes. 
 It was estimated that no fewer than seventy vessels 
 were either stranded or lost during that single gale, 
 and many of the crews perished. 
 
 At one wild part of the coast, near Peterhead, 
 called the Bullers of Buchan, after the first night of 
 the storm, the wrecks of seven vessels were found in 
 one cove, without a single survivor of the crews to 
 give an account of the disaster. 
 
 The " dangers of the deep" are nothing compared 
 with the dangers of the shore. If the hard rocks 
 of our island could tell the tale of their experience, 
 and if we landsmen could properly appreciate it, we
 
 46 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 should understand more clearly why it is that sailors 
 love blue (in other words, deep) water during stormy 
 weather. 
 
 In order to render the Forth more accessible by 
 removing the danger of the Bell Eock, it was 
 resolved by the Commissioners of Northern Lights 
 to build a lighthouse upon it. This resolve was a 
 much bolder one than most? people suppose, for the 
 rock on which the lighthouse was to be erected was a 
 sunken reef, visible only at low tide during two or 
 three hours, and quite inaccessible in bad weather. 
 It was the nearest approach to building a house in 
 the sea that had yet been attempted ! The famous 
 Eddystone stands on a rock which is never quite 
 under water, although nearly so, for its crest rises a 
 very little above the highest tides, while the Bell 
 Rock is eight or ten feet under water at high tides. 
 
 It must be clear, therefore, to every one, that 
 difficulties, unusual in magnitude and peculiar in 
 kind, must have stood in the way of the daring 
 engineer who should undertake the erection of a 
 tower on a rock twelve miles out on the stormy sea, 
 and the foundation of which was covered with ten or 
 twelve feet of water every tide ; a tower which would 
 have to be built perfectly, yet hastily ; a tower which 
 should form a comfortable home, fit for human 
 beings to dwell in, and yet strong enough to with- 
 stand the utmost fury of the waves, not merely
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 47 
 
 whirling round it, as might be the case on some 
 exposed promontory, but rushing at it, straight and 
 fierce from the wild ocean, in great blue solid billows 
 that should burst in thunder on its sides, and rush 
 up in scarcely less solid spray to its lantern, a 
 hundred feet or more above its foundation. 
 
 An engineer able and willing to undertake this 
 great work was found in the person of the late 
 Robert Stevenson of Edinburgh, whose perseverance 
 and talent shall be commemorated by the grandest 
 and most useful monument ever raised by man, as 
 long as the Bell Rock lighthouse shall tower above 
 the sea. 
 
 It is not our purpose to go into the details of all 
 that was done in the construction of this lighthouse. 
 Our peculiar task shall be to relate those incidents 
 connected with this work which have relation to 
 the actors in our tale. 
 
 We will not, therefore, detain the reader by telling 
 him of all the preliminary difficulties that were en- 
 countered and overcome in this "Robinson Crusoe" 
 sort of work ; how that a temporary floating light- 
 ship, named the " Pharos," was prepared and 
 anchored in the vicinity of the rock in order to be 
 a sort of depot and rendezvous and guide to the 
 three smaller vessels employed in the work, as well 
 as a light to shipping generally ; and a building yard 
 was established at Arbroath, where every single
 
 48 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 stone of the lighthouse was cut and nicely fitted 
 before being conveyed to the rock. Neither shall 
 we tell of the difficulties that arose in the matter of 
 getting blocks of granite large enough for such 
 masonry, and lime of a nature strong enough to 
 withstand the action of the salt sea. All this, and 
 and a great deal more of a deeply interesting nature, 
 must remain untold, and be left entirely to the 
 reader's imagination.* 
 
 Suffice it to say that the work was fairly begun 
 in the month of August 1807 ; that a strong beacon 
 of timber was built, which was so well constructed 
 that it stood out all the storms that beat against it 
 during the whole time of the building operations ; 
 that close to this beacon the pit or foundation of the 
 lighthouse was cut down deep into the solid rock; that 
 the men employed could work only between two and 
 three hours at a time, and had to pump the water out 
 of this pit each tide before they could resume opera- 
 tions ; that the work could only be done in the sum- 
 mer months, and when engaged in it the men dwelt 
 either in the " Pharos" floating light, or in one of 
 the attending vessels, and were not allowed to go 
 ashore that is, to the mainland, about twelve miles 
 distant ; that the work was hard, but so novel and 
 exciting that the artificers at last became quite en- 
 
 It may be found, however, in minute detail, in the large and in- 
 teresting work entitled, " Stevenson's Bell Rock Lighthouse."
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 49 
 
 amoured of it, and that ere long operations were 
 going busily forward, and the work was in a pros- 
 perous and satisfactory state of advancement 
 
 Things were in this condition at the Bell Kock, 
 when, one fine summer evening, our friend and hero, 
 Euby Brand, returned, after a long absence, to his 
 native town.
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 THE CAPTAIN CHANGES HIS QUABTEKS. 
 
 IT was fortunate for Ruby that the skipper of the 
 vessel ordered him to remain in charge while he 
 went ashore, because he would certainly have been 
 recognised by numerous friends, and his arrival 
 would speedily have reached the ears of the officers 
 of justice, who seem to be a class of men specially 
 gifted with the faculty of never forgetting. It was 
 not until darkness had begun to settle down on the 
 town that the skipper returned on board, and gave 
 aim leave to go ashore. 
 
 Ruby did not return in the little coaster in which 
 he had left his native place. That vessel had been 
 wrecked not long after he joined her, but the crew 
 were saved, and Ruby succeeded in obtaining a 
 berth as second mate of a large ship trading between 
 Hull and the Baltic. Returning from one of his 
 voyages with a pretty good sum of money in his 
 pocket, he resolved to visit his mother and give it 
 to her. He therefore went aboard an Arbroath
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 51 
 
 schooner, and offered to work his passage as an 
 extra hand. Eemembering his former troubles in 
 connexion with the press-gang, he resolved to con- 
 ceal his name from the captain and crew, who 
 chanced to be all strangers to him. 
 
 It must not be supposed that Mrs. Brand had not 
 heard of Ruby since he left her. On the contrary, 
 both she and Minnie Gray got letters as frequently 
 as the postal arrangements of those days would 
 admit of; and from time to time they received 
 remittances of money, which enabled them to live in 
 comparative comfort. It happened, however, that 
 the last of these remittances had been lost, so that 
 Mrs. Brand had to depend for subsistence on 
 Minnie's exertions, and on her brother's liberality. 
 The brother's power was limited, however, and 
 Minnie had been ailing for some time past, in con- 
 sequence of her close application to work, so that 
 she could not earn as much as usual Hence it fell 
 out that at this particular time the widow found 
 herself in greater pecuniary difficulties than she had 
 ever been in before. 
 
 Ruby was somewhat of an original It is pro- 
 bable that every hero is. He resolved to surprise 
 his mother by pouring the money he had brought 
 into her lap, and for this purpose had, while in 
 Hull, converted all his savings into copper, silver, 
 and gold. Those precious metftls he stowed sepa-
 
 52 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 rately into the pockets of his huge pea-jacket, and, 
 thus heavily laden, went ashore about dark, as soon 
 as the skipper returned. 
 
 At this precise hour it happened that Mrs. Brand, 
 Minnie Gray, and Captain Ogilvy were seated at 
 their supper in the kitchen of the cottage. 
 
 Two days previously the captain had called, and 
 said to Mrs. Brand 
 
 " I tell 'ee what it is, sister, I'm tired of livin' a 
 solitary bachelor life, all by myself, so I'm goin' to 
 make a change, lass." 
 
 Mrs. Brand was for some moments speechless, and 
 Minnie, who was sewing near the window, dropped 
 her hands and work on her lap, and looked up with 
 inexpressible amazement beaming in her sweet blue 
 eyes. 
 
 " Brother," said Mrs. Brand earnestly, " you don't 
 mean to tell me that you 're going to marry at yaw 
 time of life ?" 
 
 "Eh! what? Marry?" 
 
 The captain looked, if possible, more amazed than 
 his sister for a second or two, then his red face 
 relaxed into a broad grin, and he sat down on a 
 chair and chuckled, wiping the perspiration (he 
 seemed always more or less in a state of perspira- 
 tion) from his bald head the while. 
 
 " Why, no, sister, I'm not going to marry ; did I 
 speak of marryin' ?"
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 53 
 
 ' No ; but you spoke of being tired of a bachelor 
 life, and wishing to change." 
 
 " Ah ! you women," said the captain, shaking his 
 head " always suspectin' that we poor men are 
 wantin' to marry you. Well, pr'aps you ain't far 
 wrong neither; but I'm not goin' to be spliced yet- 
 a- while, lass. Marry, indeed ! 
 
 ' Shall I, wastin' in despair, 
 Die, 'cause why ? a woman 's rare ? ' " 
 
 " Oh ! Captain Ogilvy, that's not rightly quoted," 
 cried Minnie, with a merry laugh. 
 
 " Ain't it?" said the captain, somewhat put out ; 
 for he did not like to have his powers of memory 
 doubted. 
 
 " No ; surely women are not rare" said Minnie. 
 
 " Good ones are," said the captain stoutly. 
 
 " Well ; but that 's not the right word." 
 
 " What is the right word, then T asked the captain 
 with affected sternness, for, although by nature dis- 
 inclined to admit that he could be wrong, he had no 
 objection to be put right by Minnie. 
 
 "Die because a woman's f ," said Minnie, 
 
 prompting him. 
 
 " F , ' funny ? ' " guessed the captain. 
 
 " No ; it's not ' funny,' " cried Minnie, laughing 
 heartily. 
 
 " Of course not," assented the captain, " it could 
 not be 'funny' nohow, because 'funny' don't rhyme
 
 54 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 with ' despair ;' besides, lots o' women ain't funny a 
 bit, an' if they was, that's no reason why a man 
 should die for 'em ; what is the word, lass ? " 
 
 "What am I?" asked Minnie, with an arch 
 smile, as she passed her fingers through the clus- 
 tering masses of her beautiful hair. 
 
 "An angel, beyond all doubt," said the gallant 
 captain, with a burst of sincerity which caused 
 Minnie to blush and then to laugh. 
 
 "You're incorrigible, captain, and you are so 
 stupid that it 's of no use trying to teach you." 
 
 Mrs. Brand who listened to this conversation 
 with an expression of deep anxiety on her meek 
 face, for she could not get rid of her first idea that 
 her brother was going to marry here broke in with 
 the question, 
 
 " When is it to be, brother ? " 
 
 " When is what to be, sister ? " 
 
 " The the marriage." 
 
 " I tell you I ain't a-goin' to marry," repeated the 
 captain ; " though why a stout young feller like me, 
 just turned sixty-four, shouldn't marry, is more than 
 I can see. You know the old proverbs, lass 
 ' It '& never too late to marry ; ' Never ventur', 
 never give in ; ' ' John Anderson my jo John, when 
 we was first first ' " 
 
 " Married," suggested Minnie. 
 
 " Just so," responded the captain, " and everybody
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 56 
 
 knows that he was an old man. But no, I 'm not 
 goin' to many ; I 'm only goin' to give up my house, 
 sell off the furniture, and come and live with 
 you" 
 
 " live with me ! " ejaculated Mrs. Brand. 
 
 " Ay, an' why not ? What's the use o' goin' to the 
 expense of two houses when one '11 do, an' when 
 we're both raither scrimp o' the ready? You'll 
 just let me have the parlour. It never was a 
 comf'rable room to sit in, so it don't matter much 
 your givin' it up ; it's a good enough sleepin' 
 and smokin' cabin, an' we'll all live together in 
 the kitchen. Ill throw the whole o' my tree- 
 mendous income into the general purse, always 
 exceptin' a few odd coppers, which 1 11 retain to 
 keep me a-goin' in baccy. We 11 sail under the 
 same flag, an' sit round the same fire, an' sup at 
 the same table, an' sleep in the same no, not 
 exactly that, but under the same roof -tree, which 11 
 be a more hoconomical way o' doin' business, you 
 know ; an' so, old girl, as the song says 
 
 ' Come an' let via be happy together, 
 
 For where there 's a will there 'a a way, 
 An" we won't care a rap for the weather 
 So long as there's nothin' to pay.' " 
 
 " Would it not be better to say, ' so long as there 's 
 something to pay ? ' " suggested Minnia 
 
 " No, lass, it lowldn't " retorted the captain
 
 56 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " You 're too fond of improvin' things. I 'm a 
 stanch old Tory, I am. 111 stick to the old flag 
 till all 'a blue. None o' your changes or improve- 
 ments for me." 
 
 This was a rather bold statement for a man to 
 make who improved upon almost every line he ever 
 quoted ; but the reader is no doubt acquainted with 
 parallel instances of inconsistency in good men even 
 in the present day. 
 
 " Now, sister," continued Captain Ogilvy, " what 
 d' ye think of my plan ? " 
 
 " I like it well, brother," replied Mrs. Brand with 
 a gentle smile. " Will you come soon ? " 
 
 "To-morrow, about eight bells," answered the 
 captain promptly. 
 
 This was all that was said on the subject. The 
 thing was, as the captain said, settled off-hand, and 
 accordingly next morning he conveyed such of his 
 worldly goods as he meant to retain possession of to 
 his sister's cottage " the new ship," as he styled it 
 He carried his traps on his own broad shoulders, and 
 the conveyance of them cost him three distinct trips. 
 
 They consisted of a huge sea-chest, an old tele- 
 scope more than a yard long, and cased in leather ; 
 a quadrant, a hammock, with the bedding rolled up 
 in it, a tobacco-box, the enormous old Family Bible, 
 in which the names of his father, mother, brothers, 
 and sisters were recorded ; and a brown teapot with
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 57 
 
 half a lid This latter had belonged to the captain's 
 mother, and, being fond of it, as it reminded him of 
 the " old ooman," he was wont to mi* his grog in 
 it, and drink the same out of a teacup, the handle 
 of which was gone, and the saucer of which was 
 among the things of the past 
 
 Notwithstanding his avowed adherence to Tory 
 principles, Captain Ogilvy proceeded to make mani- 
 fold radical changes and surprising improvements 
 in the little parlour, insomuch that when he had 
 completed the task, and led his sister carefully 
 (for she was very feeble) to look at what he had 
 done, she became quite incapable of expressing 
 herself in ordinary language ; positively refused to 
 believe her eyes, and never again entered that room, 
 but always spoke of what she had seen as a curious 
 dream ! 
 
 No one was ever able to discover whether there 
 was not a slight tinge of underlying jocularity in 
 this remark of Mrs. Brand, for she was a strange 
 and incomprehensible mixture of shrewdness and 
 innocence ; but no one took much trouble to find 
 out, for she was so loveable that people accepted 
 her just as she was, contented to let any small 
 amount of mystery that seemed to be in her to 
 remain unquestioned 
 
 " The parlour" was one of those well-known rooms 
 which are occasionally met with in country cottages,
 
 58 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 the inmates of which are not wealthy. It was 
 reserved exclusively for the purpose of receiving 
 visitors. The furniture, though old, threadbare, 
 and dilapidated, was kept scrupulously clean, and 
 arranged symmetrically. There were a few books 
 on the table, which were always placed with mathe- 
 matical exactitude, and a set of chairs, so placed as 
 to give one mysteriously the impression that they 
 were not meant to be sat upon. There was also a 
 grate, which never had a fire in it, and was never 
 without a paper ornament in it, the pink and white 
 aspect of which caused one involuntarily to shudder. 
 
 But the great point, which was meant to afford 
 the highest gratification to the beholder, was the 
 chimney-piece. This spot was crowded to excess 
 in every square inch of its area with ornaments, 
 chiefly of earthenware, miscalled china, and shells. 
 There were great white shells with pink interiors, 
 and small brown shells with spotted backs. Then 
 there were china cups and saucers, and china 
 shepherds and shepherdesses, represented in the 
 act of contemplating the heavens serenely, with 
 their arms round each other's waists. There were 
 also china dogs and cats, and a huge china cockatoo 
 as a centre-piece ; but there was not a single spot 
 the size of a sixpence on which the captain could 
 place his pipe or his tobacco-box 1 
 
 "Well get these things cleared away," said
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 Minnie, with a laugh, on observing the perplexed 
 look with which the captain surveyed the chimney- 
 piece, while the changes above referred to were 
 being made in the parlour ; " we have no place 
 ready to receive them just now, but I '11 have them 
 all put away to -morrow." 
 
 " Thank'ee, lass," said the captain, as he set down 
 the sea-chest and seated himself thereon ; " they 're 
 pretty enough to look at, d'ye see, but they're raither 
 in the way just now, as my second mate once said 
 of the rocks when we were cruising off the coast 
 of Norway in search of a pilot." 
 
 The ornaments were, however, removed sooner 
 than any one had anticipated The next trip that 
 the captain made was for his hammock (he always 
 slept in one), which was a long unwieldy bundle, 
 like a gigantic bolster. He carried it into the par- 
 lour on his shoulder, and Minnie followed him. 
 
 " Where shall I sling it, lass ?" 
 
 " Here, perhaps/' said Minnie. 
 
 The captain wheeled round as she spoke, and the 
 end of the hammock swept the mantelpiece of all 
 its ornaments, as completely as if the besom of 
 destruction had passed over it. 
 
 " Shiver my timbers !" gasped the captain, awe- 
 struck by the hideous crash that followed. 
 
 " You 've shivered the ornaments at anyrate," said 
 Minnie, half-laughing and half-crying.
 
 60 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " So I have, but no matter. Never say die so 
 long 's there a shot in the locker. There 's as good 
 fish in the sea as ever come out of it ; so bear a hand, 
 my girl, and help me to sling up the hammock" 
 
 The hammock was slung, the pipe of peace was 
 smoked, and thus Captain Ogilvy was fairly installed 
 in his sister's cottage. 
 
 It may, perhaps, be necessary to remind the reader 
 that all this is a long digression; that the events 
 just narrated occurred a few days before the return 
 of Euby, and that they have been recorded here in 
 order to explain clearly the reason of the captain's 
 appearance at the supper-table of his sister, and the 
 position which he occupied in the family. 
 
 When Euby reached the gate of the small garden, 
 Minnie had gone to the captain's room to see that 
 it was properly prepared for his reception, and the 
 captain himself was smoking his pipe close to the 
 chimney, so that the smoke should ascend it 
 
 The first glance through the window assured the 
 youth that his mother was, as letters had represented 
 her, much better in health than she used to be. 
 She looked so quiet and peaceful, and so fragile 
 withal, that Euby did not dare to "surprise her" 
 by a sudden entrance, as he had originally intended, 
 so he tapped gently at the window, and drew back. 
 
 The captain laid down his pipe and went to the 
 door.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 61 
 
 * What, Euby !" he exclaimed, in a hoarse whisper. 
 
 " Hush, uncle ! How is Minnie ; where is she ?" 
 
 " I think, lad," replied the captain in a tone of 
 reproof, "that you might have inquired for your 
 mother first" 
 
 " No need," said Euby, pointing to the window ; 
 "I see that she is there and well, thanks be to God 
 for that : but Minnie ?" 
 
 " She 's well too, boy, and in the house. But 
 come, get inside. 1 11 explain, after." 
 
 This promise to " explain" was given in conse- 
 quence of the great anxiety he, the captain, dis- 
 played to drag Kuby into the cottage. 
 
 The youth did not require much pressing, how- 
 ever. He no sooner heard that Minnie was well, 
 than he sprang in, and was quickly at his mother's 
 feet. Almost as quickly a fair vision appeared in 
 the doorway of the inner room, and was clasped in 
 the young sailor's arms with the most thorough dis- 
 regard of appearances, not to mention propriety. 
 
 While this scene was enacting, the worthy cap- 
 tain was engaged in active proceedings, which at 
 once amused and astonished his nephew, and the 
 nature and cause of which shall be revealed in the 
 next chapter
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 RUBY IN DIFFICULTIES. 
 
 HAVING thrust his nephew into the cottage, Cap- 
 tain Ogilvy's first proceeding was to close the outer 
 shutter of the window and fasten it securely on the 
 inside. Then he locked, bolted, barred, and chained 
 the outer door, after which he shut the kitchen 
 door, and, in default of any other mode of securing 
 it, placed against it a heavy table as a barri- 
 cade. 
 
 Having thus secured the premises in front, he 
 proceed to fortify the rear, and, when this was ac- 
 complished to his satisfaction, he returned to the 
 kitchen, sat down opposite the widow, and wiped 
 his shining pate. 
 
 " Why, uncle, are we going to stand out a siege, 
 that you take so much pains to lock up ?" 
 
 Ruby sat down on the floor at his mother's feet 
 as he spoke, and Minnie sat down on a low stool 
 beside him
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 63 
 
 " Mayhap we are, lad," replied the captain ; 
 " anyhow, it 'a always well to be ready 
 
 ' Ready, boys, ready, 
 We '11 fight and we '11 conquer again and again.' " 
 
 " Come, uncle, explain yourself." 
 
 " Explain myself, nephy ? I can neither explain 
 myself nor anybody else. D' ye know, Ruby, that 
 you 're a burglar ?" 
 
 " Am I, uncle ? Well, I confess that that 's 
 news." 
 
 "Ay, but it's true though, at least the law in 
 Arbroath says so, and if it catches you, it '11 hang 
 you as sure as a gun." 
 
 Here Captain Ogilvy explained to his nephew 
 the nature of the crime that was committed on the 
 night of his departure, the evidence of his guilt in 
 the finding part of the plate in the garden, coupled 
 with his sudden disappearance, and wound up by 
 saying that he regarded him, Ruby, as being in a 
 " reg'lar fix." 
 
 " But surely," said Ruby, whose face became 
 gradually graver as the case was unfolded to him, 
 " surely it must be easy to prove to the satisfaction 
 of every one that I had nothing whatever to do with 
 this affair?" 
 
 " Easy to prove it !" said the captain in an excited 
 tone ; " wasn't you seen, just about the hour of the 
 robbery, going stealthily down the street, by Big
 
 64 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 Swankie and Davy Spink, both of whom will swear 
 to it?" 
 
 " Yes, but you were with me, uncle." 
 
 " Ay, so I was, and hard enough work I had to 
 convince them I had nothin' to do with it myself, 
 but they saw that I couldn't jump a stone wall eight 
 foot high to save my life, much less break into a 
 house, and they got no further evidence to convict 
 me, so they let me off ; but it '11 go hard with you, 
 nephy, for Major Stewart described the men, and 
 one o' them was a big strong feller, the description 
 bein' as like you as two peas, only their faces was 
 blackened, and the lantern threw the light all one 
 way, so he didn't see them well Then, the things 
 found in our garden, and the villains will haul me 
 up as a witness against you, for, didn't I find them 
 myself?" 
 
 " Very perplexing ; what shall I do ? " said 
 Ruby. 
 
 " Clear out," cried the captain emphatically. 
 
 " What ! fly like a real criminal, just as I have 
 returned home ? Never ! Wh>t say you, Minnie ?" 
 
 " Stand your trial, Euby. They cannot they dare 
 not condemn the innocent." 
 
 " And you, mother ?" 
 
 " I'm sure I don't know what to say," replied Mrs. 
 Brand, with a look of deep anxiety, as she passed 
 her fingers through her son's hair, and kissed his
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 65 
 
 brow. " I have seen the innocent condemned and 
 the guilty go free more than once in my life." 
 
 " Nevertheless, mother, I will give myself up, and 
 take my chance. To fly would be to give thejui 
 reason to believe me guilty." 
 
 " Give yourself up !" exclaimed the captain, " you'll 
 do nothing of the sort. Come, lad, remember I'm 
 an old man, and an uncle. I 've got a plan in my 
 head, which I think will keep you out of harm's way 
 for a time. You see my old chronometer is but 
 a poor one, the worse of the wear, like its master, 
 and I Ve never been able to make out the exact 
 time that we went aboard the ' Termagant ' the 
 night you went away. Now, can you tell me what 
 o'clock it was ?" 
 
 " I can." 
 
 " 'Xactly ?" 
 
 " Yes, exactly, for it happened that I was a little 
 later than I promised, and the skipper pointed to 
 his watch, as I came up the side, and jocularly shook 
 his head at me. It was exactly eleven P.M." 
 
 " Sure and sartin o' that ?" inquired the captain, 
 earnestly. 
 
 " Quite, and his watch must have been right, 
 for the town-clock rung the hour at the same 
 time." 
 
 " Is that skipper alive ?" 
 
 -'Yes." 
 
 E
 
 66 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " Would he swear to that ?" 
 
 " I think he would." 
 
 " D' ye know where he is ? " 
 
 "I do. He's on a voyage to the West Indies, 
 and won't be home for two months, I believe." 
 
 " Humph !" said the captain, with a disappointed 
 look. " However, it can't be helped ; but I see my 
 way now to get you out o' this fix. You know, 1 
 suppose, that they're buildin' a lighthouse on the 
 Bell Eock just now ; well, the workmen go off to it 
 for a month at a time, I believe, if not longer, and 
 don't come ashore, and it 's such a dangerous place, 
 and troublesome to get to, that nobody almost ever 
 goes out to it from this place, except those who have 
 to do with it. Now, lad, you'll go down to the 
 workyard the first thing in the mornin', before day- 
 light, and engage to go off to work at the Bell Eock. 
 You '11 keep all snug and quiet, and nobody '11 be a 
 bit the wiser. You '11 be earnin' good wages, and in 
 the meantime I '11 set about gettin' things in trim to 
 put you all square." 
 
 " But I see many difficulties ahead," objected 
 Euby. 
 
 " Of course ye do," retorted the captain. " Did 
 ye ever hear or see anything on this earth that hadn't 
 rocks ahead o' some sort ? It 's our business to steer 
 past 'em, lad, not to 'bout ship and steer away. But 
 state yer difficulties."
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE, 67 
 
 " Well, in the first place, I'm not a stonemason 
 or a carpenter, and I suppose masons and carpenters 
 are the men most wanted there." 
 
 " Not at all, blacksmiths are wanted there," said 
 the captain, " and I know that you were trained to 
 that work as a boy." 
 
 " True, I can do somewhat with the hammer, but 
 mayhap they won't engage me." 
 
 " But they will engage you, lad, for they are hard 
 up for an assistant-blacksmith just now, and I 
 happen to be hand-and-glove with some o' the chief 
 men of the yard, who '11 be happy to take any one 
 recommended by me." 
 
 " Well, uncle, but suppose I do go off to the rock, 
 what chance have you of making things appear 
 better than they are at present?" 
 
 " I '11 explain that, lad. In the first place, Major 
 Stewart is a gentleman, out-and-out, and will listen 
 to the truth. He swears that the robbery took place 
 at one o'clock in the mornin', for he looked at his 
 watch and at the clock of the house, and heard it 
 ring in the town, just as the thieves cleared off over 
 the wall Now, if I can get your old skipper to take 
 a run here on his return from the West Indies, he '11 
 swear that you was sailin' out to the North Sea 
 before twelve, and that '11 prove that you couldn't have 
 had nothin' to do with it, d' ye see ?" 
 
 " It sounds well," said Ruby dubiously, " kut do
 
 68 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 yon think the lawyers will see things in the light 
 you do ?" 
 
 " Hang the lawyers ! d' ye think they will shut 
 their eyes to the truth ?" 
 
 " Perhaps they may, in which case they will hang 
 me, and so prevent my taking your advice to hang 
 tJwm," said Euby. 
 
 " Well, well, but you agree to my plan ?" asked 
 the captain. 
 
 " Shall I agree, Minnie ? it will separate me from 
 you again for some time." 
 
 " Yet it is necessary," answered Minnie, sadly ; 
 " yes, I think you should agree to go." 
 
 "Very well, then, that's settled," said Euby, 
 " and now let us drop the subject, because I have 
 other things to speak of; and if I must start before 
 daylight, my time with you will be short 
 
 " Come here a bit, nephy, I want to have a private 
 word with 'ee in my cabin," said the captain, inter- 
 rupting him, and going into his own room. Euby 
 rose and followed. 
 
 " You haven't any " 
 
 The captain stopped, stroked his bald head, and 
 looked perplexed. 
 
 " Well, uncle ?" 
 
 " Well, nephy, you haven't in short, have ye got 
 any money about you, lad?" 
 
 " Money ? yes, a little ; but why do you ask ?"
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 69 
 
 " Well, the fact is, that your poor mother is hard 
 up just now," said the captain earnestly, " an' I Ve 
 given her the last penny I have o' my own ; but 
 she 's quite " 
 
 Ruby interrupted his uncle at this point with a 
 boisterous laugh. At the same time he flung open 
 the door and dragged the old man with gentle 
 violence back to the kitchen. 
 
 " Come here, uncle." 
 
 " But, avast ! nephy, I haven't told ye all yet." 
 
 " Oh ! don't bother me with such trifles just now," 
 cried Ruby, thrusting his uncle into a chair and 
 resuming his own seat i,t his mother's side ; " we '11 
 speak of that at some other time ; meanwhile let 
 me talk to mother." 
 
 " Minnie, dear," he continued, " who keeps the 
 cash here ; you or mother ?" 
 
 " Well, we keep it between us," said Minnie, 
 smiling ; " your mother keeps it in her drawer and 
 gives me the key when I want any, and I keep an 
 account of it." 
 
 " Ah ! well, mother, I have a favour to ask of 
 you before I go." 
 
 "Well, Ruby?" 
 
 " It is that you will take care of my cash for me. 
 I have got a goodish lot of it, and find it rathei 
 heavy to carry in my pockets so, hold your apron 
 steady and I '11 give it to you."
 
 70 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 Saying this he began to empty handful after 
 handful of coppers into the old woman s apron; 
 then, remarking that " that was all the browns," he 
 began to place handful after handful of shillings and 
 sixpences on the top of the pile until the copper 
 was hid by silver. 
 
 The old lady, as usual when surprised, became 
 speechless ; the captain smiled and Minnie laughed, 
 but when Euby put his hand into another pocket 
 and began to draw forth golden sovereigns, and pour 
 them into his mother's lap, the captain became 
 supremely amazed, the old woman laughed, and, so 
 strangely contradictory and unaccountable is human 
 nature, Minnie began to cry. 
 
 Poor girl! the tax upon her strength had been 
 heavier than any one knew, heavier than she could 
 bear, and the sorrow of knowing, as she had come 
 to know, that it was all in vain, and that her 
 utmost efforts had failed to " keep the wolf from 
 the door," had almost broken her down. Little 
 wonder, then, that the sight of sudden and ample 
 relief upset her altogether. 
 
 But her tears, being tears of joy, were soon and 
 easily dried all the more easily that it was Euby 
 who undertook to dry them. 
 
 Mrs. Brand sat up late that night, for there was 
 much to tell and much to hear. After she had 
 retired to rest the other three continued to hold
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 71 
 
 converse together until gray dawn began to appear 
 through the Chinks in the window- shutters. Then 
 the two men rose and went out, while Minnie laid 
 her pretty little head on the pillow beside Mru. 
 Brand, and sought, and found,
 
 CHAPTEK VIII. 
 
 THE SCENE CHANGES BURY IS VULCANIZED. 
 
 As Captain Ogilvy had predicted, Euby was at 
 once engaged as an assistant-blacksmith on the 
 Bell Rock. In fact, they were only too glad to get 
 such a powerful, active young fellow into their 
 service ; and he was shipped off with all speed in 
 the sloop " Smeaton," with a few others who were 
 going to replace some men who had become ill and 
 were obliged to leave. 
 
 A light westerly breeze was blowing when they 
 cast off the moorings of the sloop. 
 
 "Goodbye, Ruby," said the captain, as he was 
 about to step on the pier. " Remember your pro- 
 mise, lad, to keep quiet, and don't try to get ashore, 
 or to hold communication with any one till you 
 hear from me." 
 
 " All right, uncle, I won't forget, and I '11 make 
 my mind easy, for I know that my case is left in 
 good hands." 
 
 Three hours elapsed ere the " Smeaton" drew
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 73 
 
 near to the Bell Rock. During this time, Euby 
 kept aloof from his fellow- workmen, feeling disposed 
 to indulge the sad thoughts which filled his mind. 
 He sat down on the bulwarks, close to the main 
 shrouds, and gazed back at the town as it became 
 gradually less and less visible in the faint light of 
 morning. Then he began to ponder his unfortu- 
 nate circumstances, and tried to imagine how his 
 uncle would set about clearing up his character and 
 establishing his innocence ; but, do what he would, 
 Ruby could not keep his mind fixed for any length 
 of time en any subject or line of thought, because of 
 a vision of sweetness which it is useless to attempt 
 to describe, and which was always accompanied by, 
 and surrounded with, a golden halo. 
 
 At last the youth gave up the attempt to fix his 
 thoughts, and allowed them to wander as they chose, 
 seeing that they were resolved to do so whether he 
 would or no. The moment these thoughts had the 
 reins flung on their necks, and were allowed to go 
 where they pleased, they refused, owing to some 
 unaccountable species of perversity, to wander at 
 all, but at once settled themselves comfortably down 
 beside the vision with golden hair, and remained there. 
 
 This agreeable state of things was rudely broken 
 in upon by the hoarse voice of the mate shouting 
 
 " Stand by to let go the anchor." 
 
 Then Ruby sprang on the deck and shook himself
 
 74 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 like a great mastiff, and resolved to devote himself 
 heart and soul, from that moment, to the work in 
 which he was about to engage. 
 
 The scene that presented itself to our hero when 
 he woke up from his dreams would have interested 
 and excited a much less enthusiastic temperament 
 than his. 
 
 The breeze had died away altogether, just as if, 
 having wafted the " Smeaton " to her anchorage, 
 there were no further occasion for its services. The 
 sea was therefore quite calm, and as there had only 
 been light westerly winds for some time past, there 
 was little or none of the swell that usually undulates 
 the sea. One result of this was, that, being high 
 water when the " Smeaton " arrived, there was no 
 sign whatever of the presence of the famous Bell 
 Bock. It lay sleeping nearly two fathoms below 
 the sea, like a grim giant in repose, and not a 
 ripple was there to tell of the presence of the 
 mariner's enemy. 
 
 The sun was rising, and its slanting beams fell 
 on the hulls of the vessels engaged in the service, 
 which lay at anchor a short distance from each 
 other. These vessels, as we have said, were four 
 in number, including the " Smeaton." The others 
 were the " Sir Joseph Banks," a small schooner- 
 rigged vessel ; the " Patriot," a little sloop ; and 
 the " Pharos " lightship, a large clumsy-looking
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 75 
 
 Dutch- built ship, fitted with three masts, at the 
 top of which were the lanterns. It was intended 
 that this vessel should do duty as a lightship until 
 the lighthouse should be completed. 
 
 Besides these there were two large boats, used for 
 landing stones and building materials on the rock. 
 
 These vessels lay floating almost motionless on 
 the calm sea, and at first there was scarcely any 
 noise aboard of them to indicate that they were 
 tenanted by human beings, but when the sound of 
 the " Smeaton's " cable was heard there was a bustle 
 aboard of each, and soon faces were seen looking 
 inquisitively over the sides of the ships. 
 
 The " Smeaton's " boat was lowered after the 
 anchor was let go, and the new hands were trans- 
 ferred to the "Pharos," which was destined to be 
 their home for some time to come. 
 
 Just as they reached her the bell rang for 
 breakfast, and when Euby stepped upon the deck 
 he found himself involved in all the bustle that 
 ensues when men break off from work and make 
 preparation for the morning meaL 
 
 There were upwards of thirty artificers on board 
 the lightship at this time. Some of these, as they 
 hurried to and fro, gave the new arrivals a hearty 
 greeting, and asked, " What news from the shore ? " 
 Others were apparently too much taken up witb 
 their own affairs to take notice of them.
 
 76 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 While Euby was observing the busy scene with 
 absorbing interest, and utterly forgetful of the fact 
 that he was in any way connected with it, an 
 elderly gentleman, whose kind countenance and 
 hearty manner gave indication of a genial spirit 
 within, came up and accosted him : 
 
 " You are our assistant-blacksmith, I believe ?" 
 
 " Yes, sir, I am," replied Euby, doffing his cap, as 
 if he felt instinctively that he was in the presence 
 of some one of note. 
 
 " You have had considerable practice, I suppose, 
 in your trade ?" 
 
 "A good deal, sir, but not much latterly, for I 
 have been at sea for some time." 
 
 " At sea ? "Well, that won't be against you here," 
 returned the gentleman, with a meaning smile. " It 
 would be well if some of my men were a little more 
 accustomed to the sea, for they suffer much from 
 sea-sickness. You can go below, my man, and get 
 breakfast. You '11 find your future messmate busy 
 at his, I doubt not. Here, steward," (turning to one 
 of the men who chanced to pass at the moment), 
 " take Euby Brand that is your name, I think ?" 
 
 " It is, sir." 
 
 " Take Brand below, and introduce him to James 
 Dove as his assistant." 
 
 The steward escorted Euby down the ladder that 
 conducted to those dark and littered depths of the
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 77 
 
 ship's hull that were assigned to the artificers as 
 their place of abode. But amidst a good deal of 
 unavoidable confusion, Ruby's practised eye discerned 
 order and arrangement everywhere. 
 
 "This is your messmate, Jamie Dove," said the 
 steward, pointing to a massive dark man, whose 
 outward appearance was in keeping with his posi- 
 tion as the Vulcan of such an undertaking as he 
 was then engaged in. " You '11 find him not a 
 bad feller if you only don't cross him." He added, 
 with a wink, " His only fault is that he 's given to 
 spoilin' good victuals, bein' raither floored by sea- 
 sickness if it comes on to blow ever so little." 
 
 " Hold your clapper, lad," said the smith, who 
 was at the moment busily engaged with a mess 
 of salt pork, and potatoes to match. " Who 's 
 your friend ? " 
 
 " No friend o' mine, though I hope he '11 be one 
 soon," answered the steward. " Mr. Stevenson told 
 me to introduce him to you as your assistant." 
 
 The smith looked up quickly, and scanned our 
 hero with some interest ; then, extending his great 
 hard hand across the table, he said, "Welcome, 
 messmate ; sit down, I' ve only just begun." 
 
 Ruby grasped the hand with his own, which, if not 
 so large, was quite as powerful, and shook the smith's 
 right arm in a way that called forth from that 
 rough-looking individual a smile of approbation.
 
 78 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " You've not had breakfast, lad ?" 
 
 " No, not yet," said Kuby, sitting down opposite 
 his comrade. 
 
 " An' the smell here don 't upset your stummick, 
 I hope?" 
 
 The smith said this rather anxiously. 
 
 " Not in the least," said Kuby with a laugh, and 
 beginning to eat in a way that proved the truth of 
 his words ; " for the matter o' that, there 's little 
 smell and no motion just now." 
 
 " Well, there isn 't much," replied the smith, " but, 
 woe's me ! you'll get enough of it before long. All 
 the new landsmen like you suffer horribly from sea- 
 sickness when they first come off." 
 
 " But I 'm not a landsman," said Euby. 
 
 '' Not a landsman !" echoed the other. " You 're 
 a blacksmith, aren 't you ?" 
 
 " Ay, but not a landsman. I learned the trade as 
 a boy and lad ; but I 've been at sea for some time 
 past." 
 
 " Then you won 't get sick when it blows ?" 
 
 " Certainly not ; will you ?" 
 
 The smith groaned and shook his head, by which 
 answer he evidently meant to assure his friend that 
 he would, most emphatically. 
 
 " But come, it's of no use groanin' over what can't 
 be helped. I get as sick as a dog every time the 
 wind rises, and the worst of it is I don 't never seem
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 79 
 
 to improve. Howsever, I'm all right when I get on 
 the Eock, and that 's the main thing." 
 
 Euby and his friend now entered upon a long and 
 earnest conversation as to their peculiar duties at 
 the Bell Rock, with which we will not trouble the 
 reader. 
 
 After breakfast they went on deck, and here Euby 
 had sufficient to occupy his attention and to amuse 
 him for some hours. 
 
 As the tide that day did not fall low enough to 
 admit of landing on the rock till noon, the men were 
 allowed to spend the time as they pleased. Some 
 therefore took to fishing, others to reading, while a 
 few employed themselves in drying their clothes, 
 which had got wet the previous day, and one or two 
 entertained themselves and their comrades with the 
 music of the violin and flute. All were busy with 
 one thing or another, until the rock began to show 
 its black crest above the smooth sea. Then a bell 
 was rung to summon the artificers to land. 
 
 This being the signal for Euby to commence 
 work, he joined his Mend Dove, and assisted him to 
 lower the bellows of the forge into the boat. The 
 men were soon in their places, with their various 
 tools, and the boats pushed off Mr. Stevenson, the 
 engineer of the building, steering one boat, and the 
 master of the " Pharos," who was also appointed to 
 the post of landing-master, steering the other.
 
 80 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 They landed with ease on this occasion on the 
 western side of the rock, and then each man addressed 
 himself to his special duty with energy. The time 
 during which they could work being short, they had 
 to make the most of it. 
 
 " Now, lad," said the smith, " bring along the 
 bellows and follow me. Mind yer footin', for it's 
 slippery walkin' on them tangle- covered rocks. 
 I Ve seen some ugly falls here already." 
 
 " Have any bones been broken yet ?" inquired 
 Ruby, as he shouldered the large pair of bellows, 
 and followed the smith cautiously over the rocks. 
 
 " Not yet ; but there 's been an awful lot o' pipes 
 smashed. If it goes on as it has been, we '11 have to 
 take to metal ones. Here we are, Euby, this is the 
 forge, and I '11 be bound you never worked at such a 
 queer one before. Hallo ! Bremner !" he shouted to 
 one of the men. 
 
 " That 's me," answered Bremner. 
 
 " Bring your irons as soon as you like ; I 'm about 
 ready for you." 
 
 " Ay, ay, here they are," said the man, advancing 
 with an armful of picks, chisels, and other tools, 
 which required sharpening. 
 
 He slipped and fell as he spoke, sending all the 
 tools into the bottom of a pool of water ; but, being 
 used to such mishaps, he arose, joined in the laugh 
 raised against him, and soon fished up the tools.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 81 
 
 "What's wrong?" asked Kuby, pausing in the 
 work of fixing the bellows, on observing that the 
 smith's face grew pale, and his general expression 
 became one of horror. " Not sea-sick, I hope ?" 
 
 " Sea-sick," gasped the smith, slapping all his 
 pockets hurriedly, " it 's worse than that ; I 've forgot 
 the matches !" 
 
 Euby looked perplexed, but had no consolation 
 to offer. 
 
 " That 's like you," cried Bremner, who, being one 
 of the principal masons, had to attend chiefly to the 
 digging out of the foundation-pit of the building, 
 and knew that his tools could not be sharpened 
 unless the forge fire could be lighted. 
 
 " Suppose you hammer a nail red-hot," suggested 
 one of the men, who was disposed to make game of 
 the smith. 
 
 " I '11 hammer your nose red-hot," replied Dove, 
 with a most undovoiike scowl, " I could swear that 
 I put them matches into my pocket before I 
 started." 
 
 ''No, you didn't," said George Forsyth, one of 
 the carpenters a tall, loose-jointed man, who was 
 chiefly noted for his dislike to getting into and 
 out of boats, and climbing up the sides of ships, 
 because of his lengthy and unwieldy figure "No, 
 you didn't, you turtle-dove, you forgot to take 
 them ; but I remembered to do it for you ; so there, 
 
 v
 
 82 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 get up your fire, and confess yourself indebted to 
 me for life." 
 
 " I 'm indebted to 'ee for fire," said the smith, 
 grasping the matches eagerly. " Thank'ee, lad, you're 
 a true Briton." 
 
 " A tall 'un, rather," suggested Bremner. 
 
 " Wot never, never, never will be a slave," sang 
 another of the men. 
 
 " Come, laddies, git up the fire. Time an' tide 
 waits for naebody," said John Watt, one of the 
 quarriers. " We '11 want thae tools before lang." 
 
 The men were proceeding with their work actively 
 while those remarks were passing, and ere long the 
 smoke of the forge fire arose in the still air, and the 
 clang of the anvil was added to the other noises 
 with which the busy spot resounded. 
 
 The foundation of the Bell Eock Lighthouse had 
 been carefully selected by Mr Stevenson ; the exact 
 spot being chosen not only with a view to elevation, 
 but to the serrated ridges of rock, that might afford 
 some protection to the building, by breaking the force 
 of the easterly seas before they should reach it ; but 
 as the space available for the purpose of building 
 was scarcely fifty yards in diameter, there was not 
 much choice in the matter. 
 
 The foundation-pit was forty-two feet in diameter, 
 Ind sunk five feet into the solid rock At the time 
 when Ruby landed, it was being hewn out by a large
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 83 
 
 party of the men. Others were boring holes in the 
 rock near to it, for the purpose of fixing the great 
 beams of a beacon, while others were cutting away 
 the sea-weed from the rock, and making preparations 
 for the laying down of temporary rails to facilitate 
 the conveying of the heavy stones from the boats to 
 their ultimate destination. All were busy as bees. 
 Each man appeared to work as if for a wager, or to 
 find out how much he could do within a given space 
 of time. 
 
 To the men on the rock itself the aspect of the 
 spot was sufficiently striking and peculiar, but to 
 those who viewed it from a boat at a short distance 
 off it was singularly interesting, for the whole scene 
 of operations appeared like a small black spot, 
 scarcely above the level of the waves, on which a 
 crowd of living creatures were moving about with 
 great and incessant activity, while all around and 
 beyond lay the mighty sea, sleeping in the grand 
 tranquillity of a calm summer day, with nothing to 
 bound it but the blue sky, save to the northward, 
 where the distant cliffs of Forfar rested like a faint 
 cloud on the horizon. 
 
 The sounds, too, which on the rock itself were 
 harsh and loud and varied, came over the water to 
 the distant observer in a united tone, which sounded 
 almost as sweet as soft music. 
 
 The smith's forge stood on a ledge of rock close to
 
 84 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 the foundation-pit, a little to the north of it. Here 
 Vulcan Dove had fixed a strong iron framework, 
 which formed the hearth. The four legs which 
 supported it were let into holes bored from six to 
 twelve inches into the rock, according to the in- 
 equalities of the site. These were wedged first with 
 wood and then with iron, for as this part of the 
 forge and the anvil was doomed to be drowned 
 every tide, or twice every day, besides being exposed 
 to the fury of all the storms that might chance to 
 blow, it behoved them to fix things down with un- 
 usual firmness. 
 
 The block of timber for supporting the anvil was 
 fixed in the same manner, but the anvil itself was 
 left to depend on its own" weight and the small stud 
 fitted into the bottom of it. 
 
 The bellows, however, were too delicate to be left 
 exposed to such forces as the stormy winds and 
 waves, they were therefore shipped and unshipped 
 every tide, and conveyed to and from the rock in 
 the boats with the men. 
 
 Dove and Euby wrought together like heroes. 
 They were both so powerful that the heavy imple- 
 ments they wielded seemed to possess no weight 
 when in their strong hands, and their bodies were 
 so lithe and active as to give the impression of 
 men rejoicing, revelling, in the enjoyment of theii 
 work.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 85 
 
 " That 's your sort ; hit him hard, he 's got no 
 friends," said Dove, turning a mass of red-hot metal 
 from side to side, while Ruby pounded it with a 
 mighty hammer, as if it were a piece of putty. 
 
 " Fire and steel for ever," observed Ruby, as he 
 made the sparks fly right and left. " Hallo ! the 
 tide 's rising." 
 
 " Ho ! so it is," cried the smith, finishing off the 
 piece of work with a small hammer, while Ruby 
 rested on the one he had used and wiped the per- 
 spiration from his brow. " It always serves me in 
 this way, lad," continued the smith, without pausing 
 for a moment in his work. " Blow away, Ruby, the 
 sea is my greatest enemy. Every day, a'most, it 
 washes me away from my work. In calm weather, 
 it creeps up my legs, and the legs o' the forge too, till 
 it gradually puts out the fire, and in rough weather 
 it sends up a wave sometimes that sweeps the whole 
 concern black out at one shot." 
 
 " It will creep you out to-day, evidently," said 
 Ruby, as the water began to come about his toes. 
 
 " Never mind, lad, we '11 have time to finish them 
 picks this tide, if we work fast." 
 
 Thus they toiled and moiled, with their heads and 
 shoulders in smoke and fire, and their feet in water. 
 
 Gradually the tide rose. 
 
 " Pump away, Ruby ! Keep the pot bilin', my 
 boy," said the smith.
 
 86 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " The wind blowin', you mean. I say, Dove, do 
 the other men like the work here ?" 
 
 " Like it, ay, they like it well At first we were 
 somewhat afraid o' the landin' in rough weather, but 
 we Ve got used to that now. The only bad thing 
 about it is the rollin' o' that horrible ' Pharos. 
 She 's so bad in a gale that I sometimes think she 'L 
 roll right over like a cask. Most of us get sick 
 then, but I don't think any of 'em are as bad as me. 
 They seem to be gettin' used to that too. I wish ] 
 could. Another blow, Euby." 
 
 " Time 's up," shouted one of the men. 
 
 " Hold on just for a minute or two," pleaded the 
 smith, who, with his assistant, was by this time 
 standing nearly knee-deep in water. 
 
 The sea had filled the pit some time before, and 
 driven the men out of it. These busied themselves 
 in collecting the tools and seeing that nothing was 
 left lying about, while the men who were engaged 
 on those parts oi the rock that were a few inches 
 higher, continued their labours until the water crept 
 up to them. Then they collected their tools, and 
 went to the boats, which lay awaiting them at the 
 western landing-place. 
 
 " Now, Dove," cried the landing-master, " come 
 along ; the crabs will be attacking your toes if you 
 don't."
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 87 
 
 " It 's a shame to gi'e Kuby the chance o' a sail 
 throat the very first day," cried John Watt. 
 
 "Just half-a-minute more," said the smith, ex- 
 amining a pick-axe, which he was getting up to 
 that delicate point of heat which is requisite to 
 give it proper temper. 
 
 While he gazed earnestly into the glowing coals 
 a gentle hissing sound was heard below the frame 
 of the forge, then a gurgle, and the fire became 
 suddenly dark and went out ! 
 
 " I knowed it ! always the way !" cried Dove, 
 with a look of disappointment. " Come, lad, up 
 with the bellows now, and don't forget the tongs." 
 
 In a few minutes more the boats pushed off and 
 returned to the " Pharos," three and a half hours of 
 good work having been accomplished before the tide 
 drove them away. 
 
 Soon afterwards the sea overflowed the whole of 
 the rock, and obliterated the scene of those busy 
 operations as completely as though it had nevei 
 been !
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 STORMS AND TROUBLES. 
 
 A WEEK of fine weather caused Ruby Brand to 
 fall as deeply in love with the work at the Bell 
 Rock as his comrades had done. 
 
 There was an amount of vigour and excitement 
 about it, with a dash of romance, which quite 
 harmonized with his character. At first he had 
 imagined it would be monotonous and dull, but 
 in experience he found it to be quite the reverse. 
 
 Although there was uniformity in the general 
 character of the work, there was constant variety 
 in many of the details ; and the spot on which it 
 was carried on was so circumscribed, and so utterly 
 cut off from all the world, that the minds of those 
 employed became concentrated on it in a way that 
 aroused strong interest in every trifling object. 
 
 There was not a ledge or a point of rock that rose 
 ever so little above the general level, that was not 
 named after, and intimately associated with, some 
 event or individual. Every mass of sea- weed became
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 83 
 
 a familiar object. The various little pools and inlets, 
 many of them not larger than a dining-room table ; 
 received high-sounding and dignified names such 
 as Port Stevenson, Port Erskine, Taylor's Track, 
 NeilFs Pool, etc. Of course the fish that frequented 
 the pools, and the shell-fish that covered the rock, 
 became subjects of much attention, and, in some 
 cases, of earnest study. 
 
 Robinson Crusoe himself did not pry into the 
 secrets of his island-home with half the amount of 
 assiduity that was displayed at this time by many 
 of the men who built the Bell Rock Lighthouse. 
 The very fact that their time was limited acted 
 as a spur, so that on landing each tide they rushed 
 hastily to the work, and the amateur studies in 
 natural history to which we have referred were 
 prosecuted hurriedly during brief intervals of rest. 
 Afterwards, whea the beacon-house was erected, 
 and the men dwelt upon the rock, these studies 
 (if we may not call them amusements) were con- 
 tinued more leisurely, but with unabated ardour, 
 and furnished no small amount of comparatively 
 thrilling incident at times. 
 
 One fine morning, just after the men had landed, 
 and before they had commenced work, " Long For- 
 syth," as his comrades styled him, went to a pool to 
 gather a little dulse, of which there was a great deal 
 on the rock, and which was found to be exceedingly
 
 90 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 grateful to the palates of those who were afflicted 
 with sea-sickness. 
 
 He stooped over the pool to pluck a morsel, but 
 paused on observing a beautiful fish, about a foot 
 long, swimming in the clear water, as quietly as 
 if it knew the man to be a friend, and were not 
 in the least degree afraid of him. 
 
 Forsyth was an excitable man, and also studious 
 in his character. He at once became agitated and 
 desirous of possessing that fish, for it was extremely 
 brilliant and variegated in colour. He looked round 
 for something to throw at it, but there was nothing 
 within reach. He sighed for a hook and line, but 
 as sighs never yet produced hooks or lines he did 
 not get one. 
 
 Just then the fish swam slowly to the side of the 
 pool on which the man kneeled, as if it actually 
 desired more intimate acquaintance. Forsyth lay 
 flat down and reached out his hand toward it ; but 
 it appeared to think this rather too familiar, for it 
 swam slowly beyond his reach, and the man drew 
 back. Again it came to the side, much nearer. 
 Once more Forsyth lay down, reaching over the 
 pool as far as he could, and insinuating his hand 
 into the water. But the fish moved off a little. 
 
 Thus they coquetted with each other for some 
 time, until the man's comrades began to observe 
 that he was " after something."
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 91 
 
 " Wot's he a-doin' of?" said one. 
 
 " Reachin' over the pool, I think," replied another. 
 
 " Ye don't mean he 's sick ?" cried a third, 
 
 The smile with which this was received was 
 changed into a roar of laughter as poor Forsyth's 
 long legs were seen to tip up into the air, and the 
 whole man to disappear beneath the water. He 
 had overbalanced himself in his frantic efforts to 
 reach the fish, and was now making its acquaint- 
 ance in its native element ! 
 
 The pool, although small in extent, was so deep 
 that Forsyth, long though he was, did not find 
 bottom. Moreover, he could not swim, so that 
 when he reached the surface he came up with his 
 hands first and his ten fingers spread out help- 
 lessly ; next appeared his shaggy head, with the 
 eyes wide open, and the mouth tight shut. The 
 moment the latter was uncovered, however, he 
 uttered a tremendous yell, which was choked in 
 the bud with a gurgle as he sank again. 
 
 The men rushed to the rescue at once, and the 
 next time Forsyth rose he was seized by the hair 
 of the head and dragged out of the pool. 
 
 It has not been recorded what became of the fish 
 that caused such an alarming accident, but we may 
 reasonably conclude that it sought refuge in the 
 ocean cavelets at the bottom of that miniature sea, 
 for Long Forsyth was so very large, and created such
 
 92 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 a terrible disturbance therein, that no fish exposed 
 to the full violence of the storm could have sur- 
 vived it ! 
 
 " Wot a hobject !" exclaimed Joe Dumsby, a short, 
 thickset, little Englishman, who, having been born 
 and partly bred in London, was rather addicted to 
 what is styled chaffing. " Was you arter a mermaid, 
 shipmate?" 
 
 " AV coorse he was," observed Ned O'Connor, an 
 Irishman, who was afflicted with the belief that he 
 was a rather witty fellow, " av' coorse he was, an' a 
 merry-maid she must have bin to see a human 
 spider like him kickin' up such a dust in the say." 
 
 "He's like a drooned rotten," observed John 
 Watt ; " tak aff yer claes, man, an' wring them dry." 
 
 " Let the poor fellow be, and get along with you," 
 cried Peter Logan, the foreman of the works, who 
 came up at that moment 
 
 With a few parting remarks and cautions, such as, 
 " You 'd better bring a dry suit to the rock next 
 time, lad," " Take care the crabs don't make off with 
 you, boy," " and don't be gettin' too fond o' the girls 
 in the sea," etc., the men scattered themselves over 
 the rock and began their work in earnest, while 
 Forsyth, who took the chaffing in good part, stripped 
 himself and wrung the water out of his gar- 
 ments. 
 
 Episodes of this kind were not unfrequent, and
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 93 
 
 they usually furnished food for conversation at the 
 time, and for frequent allusion afterwards. 
 
 But it was not all sunshine and play, by any 
 means. 
 
 Not long after Euby joined, the fine weather 
 broke up, and a succession of stiff breezes, with 
 occasional storms, more or less violent, set in. 
 Landing on the rock became a matter of extreme 
 difficulty, and the short period of work was often 
 curtailed to little more than an hour each tide. 
 
 The rolling of the " Pharos" lightship, too, be- 
 came so great that sea-sickness prevailed to a large 
 extent among the landsmen. One good arose out 
 of this evil, however. Landing on the Bell Eock 
 invariably cured the sickness for a time, and the 
 sea-sick men had such an intense longing to eat of 
 the dulse that grew there, that they were always 
 ready and anxious to get into the boats when there 
 was the slightest possibility of landing. 
 
 Getting into the boats, by the way, in a heavy sea, 
 when the lightship was rolling violently, was no 
 easy matter. When the fine weather first broke up, 
 it happened about midnight, and the change com- 
 menced with a stiff breeze from the eastward. The 
 sea rose at once, and, long before daybreak, the 
 " Pharos" was rolling heavily in the swell, and 
 straining violently at the strong cable which held 
 her to her moorings.
 
 94 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 About dawn Mr Stevenson came on deck. He 
 could not sleep, because he felt that on his shoulders 
 rested not only the responsibility of carrying this 
 gigantic work to a satisfactory conclusion, but also, 
 to a large extent, the responsibility of watching over 
 and guarding the lives of the people employed in 
 the service. 
 
 " Shall we be able to land to-day, Mr Wilson ?" he 
 said, accosting the master of the " Pharos,"* who has 
 been already introduced as the landing-master. 
 
 " I think so ; the barometer has not fallen much ; 
 and even although the wind should increase a little, 
 we can effect a landing by the Fair Way, at Hope's 
 Wharf." 
 
 " Very well, I leave it entirely in your hands ; 
 you understand the weather better than I do, but 
 remember that I do not wish my men to run un- 
 necessary or foolish risk." 
 
 It may be as well to mention here that a small 
 but exceedingly strong tramway of iron-grating had 
 been fixed to the Bell Kock, at an elevation varying 
 from two to four feet above it, and encircling the 
 site of the building. This tramway or railroad 
 was narrow, not quite three feet in width ; and 
 small trucks were fitted to it, so that the heavy 
 stones of the building might be easily run to the 
 exact spot they were to occupy. From this circular 
 rail several branch lines extended to the different
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 95 
 
 creeks where the boats deposited the stones. These 
 lines, although only a few yards in length, w"ere 
 dignified with names as, Kennedy's Reach, Logan's 
 Reach, Watt's Reach, and Slight's Reach. The ends 
 of them, where they dipped into the sea, were named 
 Hope's Wharf, Duff's Wharf, Rae's Wharf, etc. ; and 
 these wharves had been fixed on different sides of 
 the rock, so that, whatever wind should blow, there 
 would always be one of them on the lee-side avail- 
 able for the carrying on of the work. 
 
 Hope's Wharf was connected with Port Erskine, a 
 pool about twenty yards long by three or four wide, 
 and communicated with the side of the lighthouse 
 by Watt's Reach, a distance of about thirty yards. 
 
 About eight o'clock that morning the bell rang 
 for breakfast. Such of the men as were not already 
 up began to get out of their berths and hammocks. 
 
 To Euby the scene that followed was very amusing. 
 Hitherto all had been calm and sunshine. The 
 work, although severe while they were engaged, had 
 been of short duration, and the greater part of each 
 day had been afterwards spent in light work, or in 
 amusement. The summons to meals had always 
 been a joyful one, and the appetites of the men were 
 keenly set. 
 
 Now, all this was changed. The ruddy faces of 
 the men were become green, blue, yellow, and purple, 
 accoi'ding to temperament, but few were flesh-
 
 96 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 coloured or red. When the bell rang there was a 
 universal groan below, and half-a-dozen ghostlike 
 individuals raised themselves on their elbows and 
 looked up with expressions of the deepest woe at 
 the dim skylight. Most of them speedily fell back 
 again, however, partly owing to a heavy lurch of the 
 vessel, and partly owing to indescribable sensations 
 within. 
 
 " Bio win' !" groaned one, as if that single word 
 comprehended the essence of all the miseries that 
 seafaring man is heir to. 
 
 "O dear!" sighed another, "why did I ever 
 come here ?" 
 
 " Och ! murder, I 'm dyin', send for the praist 
 an' me mother !" cried O'Connor, as he fell flat down 
 on his back and pressed both hands tightly over his 
 mouth. 
 
 The poor blacksmith lost control over himself at 
 this point and found partial relief ! 
 
 The act tended to relieve others. Most of the men 
 were much too miserable to make any remark at all, 
 a few of them had not heart even to groan; but 
 five or six sat up on the edge of their beds, with a 
 weak intention of turning out. They sat there 
 swaying about with the motions of the ship in help- 
 less indecision, until a tremendous roll sent them 
 flying, with unexpected violence, against the star- 
 board bulkheads.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 97 
 
 " Come, lads,' cried Ruby, leaping out of his ham- 
 mock, " there '& nothing like a vigorous jump to put 
 sea-sickness to flight." 
 
 " Humbug !" ejaculated Bremner, who owned a 
 little black dog, which lay at that time on the pillow 
 gazing into his master's green face, with wondering 
 sympathy. 
 
 "Ah, Ruby," groaned the smith, "it's all very 
 well for a sea-dog like you that's used to it, but 
 
 James Dove stopped short abruptly. It is not 
 necessary to explain the cause of his abrupt silence. 
 Suffice it to say that he did not thereafter attempt 
 to finish that sentence. 
 
 "Steward !" roared Joe Dumsby. 
 
 " Ay, ay, shipmate, what's up T cried the steward, 
 who chanced to pass the door of the men's sleeping- 
 place, with a large dish of boiled salt pork, at the 
 moment. 
 
 " Wot's up ?" echoed Dumsby. " Everythink that 
 ever went into me since I was a hinfant must be 
 ' up ' by this time. I say, is there any chance of 
 gettin' on the rock to-day ?" 
 
 " yes. 1 heard the cap'n say it would be 
 quite easy, and they seem to be makin' ready now, 
 so if any of 'ee want breakfast you'd better turn 
 out." 
 
 This speech acted like a shock of electricity on 
 the wretched men. In a moment every bed was 
 G
 
 98 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 empty, and the place was in a bustle of confusion as 
 they hurriedly threw on their clothes. 
 
 Some of them even began to think of the possi- 
 bility of venturing on a hard biscuit and a cup of 
 tea, but a gust of wind sent the fumes of the salt 
 pork into the cabin at the moment, and the mere 
 idea of food filled them with unutterable loathing. 
 
 Presently the bell rang again. This was the signal 
 for the men to muster, the boats being ready along- 
 side. The whole crew at once rushed on deck, some 
 of them thrusting biscuits into their pockets as they 
 passed the steward's quarters. Not a man was 
 absent on the roll being called. Even the smith 
 crawled on deck, and had spirit enough left to ad- 
 vise Euby not to forget the bellows ; to which Euby 
 replied by recommending his comrade not to forget 
 the matches. 
 
 Then the operation of embarking began. 
 
 The sea at the time was running pretty high, with 
 little white flecks of foam tipping the crests of the 
 deep blue waves. The eastern sky was dark and 
 threatening. The black ridges of the Bell Eock 
 were visible only at times in the midst of the sea of 
 foam that surrounded them. Any one ignorant of 
 their nature would have deemed a landing absolutely 
 impossible. 
 
 The " Pharos," as we have said, was rolling violently 
 from side to side, insomuch that those who were in
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 99 
 
 j;he boats had the greatest difficulty in preventing 
 them from being stove in; and getting into these 
 boats had much the appearance of an exceedingly 
 difficult and dangerous feat, which active and reck- 
 less men might undertake for a wager. 
 
 But custom reconciles one to almost anything. 
 Most of the men had had sufficient experience 
 by that time to embark with comparative ease. 
 Nevertheless, there were a few whose physical con- 
 formation was such that they could do nothing 
 neatly. 
 
 Poor Forsyth was one of these. Each man had 
 to stand on the edge of the lightship, outside the 
 bulwarks, holding on to a rope, ready to let go and 
 drop into the boat when it rose up and met the 
 vessel's roll. In order to facilitate the operation a 
 boat went to either side of the ship, so that two men 
 were always in the act of watching for an opportunity 
 to spring. The active men usually got in at the first 
 or second attempt, but others missed frequently, and 
 were of course " chaffed " by their more fortunate 
 comrades. 
 
 The embarking of " Long Forsyth" was always a 
 scene in rough weather, and many a narrow escape 
 had he of a ducking. On the present occasion, being 
 very sick, he was more awkward than usual 
 
 " Now, Longlegs," cried the men who held the 
 boat on the starboard side, as Forsyth got over the
 
 100 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 side and stood ready to spring, " let 's see how good 
 you '11 be to-day." 
 
 He was observed by Joe Dumsby, who had just 
 succeeded in getting into the boat on the port side 
 of the ship, and who always took a lively interest in 
 his tall comrade's proceedings. . 
 
 " Hallo ! is that the spider ?" he cried, as the ship 
 rolled towards him, and the said spider appeared 
 towering high on the opposite bulwark, sharply de- 
 picted against the grey sky. 
 
 It was unfortunate for Joe that he chanced to be 
 on the opposite side from his friend, for at each roll 
 the vessel necessarily intervened and hid him for a 
 few seconds from view. 
 
 Next roll, Forsyth did not dare to leap, although 
 the gunwale of the boat came within a foot of him. 
 He hesitated, the moment was lost, the boat sank 
 into the hollow of the sea, and the man was swung 
 high into the air, where he was again caught sight 
 of by Dumsby. 
 
 " What ! are you there yet ?" he cried. " You must 
 be fond of a swing 
 
 Before he could say more the ship rolled over to 
 the other side, and Forsyth was hid from view. 
 
 " Now, lad, now ! now I" shouted the boat's crew, 
 as the unhappy man once more neared the gunwale. 
 
 Forsyth hesitated. Suddenly he became desperate 
 and sprang, but the hesitation gave him a much
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 101 
 
 higher fall than he would otherwise have had; it 
 caused him also to leap wildly in a sprawling man- 
 ner, so that he came down on the shoulders of his com- 
 rades " all of a lump." Fortunately they were prepared 
 for something of the sort, so that no damage was done. 
 
 When the boats were at last filled they pushed 
 off and rowed towards the rock. On approaching it 
 the men were cautioned to pull steadily by Mr. 
 Stevenson, who steered the leading boat 
 
 It was a standing- order in the landing department 
 that every man should use his greatest exertions in 
 giving to the boats sufficient velocity to preserve their 
 steerage-way in entering the respective creeks at 
 the rock, that the contending seas might not over- 
 power them at places where the free use of the oars 
 could not be had on account of the surrounding 
 rocks or the masses of sea- weed with which the water 
 was everywhere encumbered at low tide. This order 
 had been thoroughly impressed upon the men, as 
 carelessness or inattention to it might have proved 
 fatal to all on board. 
 
 As the leading boat entered the fair-way, its 
 steersman saw that more than ordinary caution 
 would be necessary; for the great green billows 
 that thundered to windward of the rock came 
 sweeping down on either side of it, and met on the 
 lee side, where they swept onward with considerable, 
 though much abated force.
 
 102 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " Mind your oars, lads ; pull steady," said Mr. 
 Stevenson, as they began to get amongst the sea- 
 weed. 
 
 The caution was unnecessary as far as the old 
 hands were concerned ; but two of the men hap- 
 pened to be new hands, who had come off with 
 Euby, and did not fully appreciate the necessity of 
 strict obedience. One of these, sitting at the bow 
 oar, looked over his shoulder, and saw a heavy sea 
 rolling towards the boat, and inadv rtently expressed 
 some fear. The other man, on hea. ing this, glanced 
 round, and in doing so missed a stroke of his oar. 
 Such a preponderance was thus given to the rowers 
 on the opposite side, that when the wave struck the 
 boat, it caught her on the side instead of the bow, 
 and hurled her upon a ledge of shelving rocks, where 
 the water left her. Having been kanted to sea- 
 ward, the next billow completely filled her, and, of 
 course, drenched the crew. 
 
 Instantly Euby Brand and one or two of the 
 most active men leaped out, and, putting forth all 
 their strength, turned the boat round so as to meet 
 the succeeding sea with its bow first. Then, after 
 making considerable efforts, they pushed her off 
 into deep water, and finally made the landing- 
 place. The other boat could render no assistance ; 
 but, indeed, the whole thing was the work of a few 
 minutes.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 103 
 
 ' As the boats could not conveniently leave the 
 /ock till flood-tide, all hands set to work with un- 
 wonted energy in order to keep themselves warm, not 
 however, before they ate heartily of their favourite 
 dulse the blacksmith being conspicuous for the 
 voracious manner in which he devoured it. 
 
 Soon the bellows were set up ; the fire was 
 kindled, and the ring of the anvil heard ; but poor 
 Dove and Euby had little pleasure in their work 
 that day ; for the wind blew the smoke and sparks 
 about their faces, and occasionally a higher wave 
 than ordinary sent the spray flying round them, to 
 the detriment of their fire. Nevertheless they plied 
 the hammer and bellows unceasingly. 
 
 The other men went about their work with similar 
 disregard of the fury of the elements and the wet 
 condition of their garments.
 
 CHAPTEE X. 
 
 THE RISING OP THE TIDE A NARROW EBCAVi. 
 
 THE portion of the work that Mr. Stevenson was 
 now most anxious to get advanced was the beacon. 
 
 The necessity of having an erection of this kind 
 was very obvious, for, in the event of anything hap- 
 pening to the boats, there would be no refuge for 
 the men to fly to; and the tide would probably 
 sweep them all away before their danger could be 
 known, or assistance sent from the attendant vessels. 
 Every man felt that his personal safety might depend 
 on the beacon during some period of the work. The 
 energies of all, therefore, were turned to the pre- 
 liminary arrangements for its erection. 
 
 As the beacon would require to withstand the 
 utmost fury of the elements during all seasons of 
 the year, it was necessary that it should be possessed 
 of immense strength. 
 
 In order to this, six cuttings were made in the 
 rock for the reception of the ends of the six great 
 beams of the beacon. Each beam was to be fixed
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 105 
 
 to the solid rock by two strong and massive bats, 
 or stanchions, of iron. These bats, for the fixing of 
 the principal and diagonal beams and bracing-chains, 
 required fifty-four holes, each measuring a foot and 
 a half deep, and two inches wide. The operation of 
 boring such holes into the solid rock, was not an 
 easy or a quick one, but by admirable arrangements 
 on the part of the engineer, and steady perseverance 
 on the part of the men, they progressed faster than 
 had been anticipated. 
 
 Three men were attached to each juniper, or 
 boring chisel ; one placed himself in a sitting pos- 
 ture, to guide the instrument, and give it a turn at 
 each blow of the hammer; he also sponged and 
 cleaned out the hole, and supplied it occasionally 
 with a little water, while the other two, with ham- 
 mers of sixteen pounds' weight, struck the jumper 
 alternately, generally bringing the hammer with a 
 swing round the shoulder, after the manner of 
 blacksmith work. 
 
 Euby, we may remark in passing, occupied him- 
 self at this work as often as he could get away from 
 his duties at the forge, being particularly fond of it, 
 as it enabled him to get rid of some of his super- 
 abundant energy, and afforded him a suitable exer- 
 cise for his gigantic strength. It also tended to 
 relieve his feelings when he happened to think of 
 Minnie being so near, and he so utterly and
 
 106 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 hopelessly cut off from all communication with 
 her. 
 
 But to return to the bat-holes. The three men 
 relieved each other in the operations of wielding the 
 hammers and guiding the jumpers, so that the work 
 never flagged for a moment, and it was found that 
 when the tools were of a very good temper, these 
 holes could be sunk at the rate of one inch per 
 minute, including stoppages. But the tools were 
 not always of good temper ; and severely was poor 
 Dove's temper tried by the frequency of the scolds 
 which he received from the men, some of whom were 
 clumsy enough, Dove said, to spoil the best tem- 
 pered tool in the world. 
 
 But the most tedious part of the operation did 
 not lie in the boring of these holes. In order that 
 they should be of the required shape, two holes had 
 to be bored, a few inches apart from each other, and 
 the rock cut away from between them. It was this 
 latter part of the work that took up most time. 
 
 Those of the men who were not employed about 
 the beacon were working at the foundation-pit. 
 
 While the party were thus busily occupied on the 
 Bell Eock, an event occurred which rendered the 
 importance of the beacon, if possible, more obvious 
 than ever, and which wellnigh put an end to the 
 career of all those who were engaged on the rock 
 f..t that time.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 107 
 
 The " Pharos " floating-light lay at a distance of 
 above two miles from the Bell Eock ; but one of the 
 smaller vessels, the sloop " Smeaton," lay much 
 closer to it, and some of the artificers were berthed 
 aboard of her, instead of the floating-light. 
 
 Some time after the landing of the two boats 
 from the " Pharos," the " Smeaton's " boat put off 
 and landed eight men on the rock ; soon after which 
 the crew of the boat pushed off and returned to the 
 " Smeaton " to examine her riding-ropes, and see 
 that they were in good order, for the wind was 
 beginning to increase, and the sea to rise. 
 
 The boat had no sooner reached the vessel than 
 the latter began to drift, carrying the boat along 
 with her. Instantly those on board endeavoured 
 to hoist the mainsail of the " Smeaton," with the 
 view of working her up to the buoy from which she 
 had parted ; but it blew so hard, that by the time 
 she was got round to make a tack towards the rock, 
 she had drifted at least three miles to leeward. 
 
 The circumstance of the " Smeaton " and her boat 
 having drifted was observed first by Mr. Stevenson, 
 who prudently refrained from drawing attention to 
 the fact, and walked slowly to the farther point of 
 the rock to watch her. He was quickly followed 
 by the landing-master, who touched him on the 
 shoulder, and in perfect silence, but with a look 
 of intense anxiety, pointed to the vessel.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " I see it, Wilson. God help us if she fails to 
 make the rock within a very short time," said Mr. 
 Stevenson. 
 
 " She will never reach us in time," said Wilson, in 
 a tone that convinced his companion he entertained 
 no hope. 
 
 " Perhaps she may," he said hurriedly ; " she is 
 a good sailer." 
 
 " Good sailing," replied the other, " cannot avail 
 against wind and tide together. No human power 
 can bring that vessel to our aid until long after the 
 tide has covered the Bell Eock." 
 
 Both remained silent for some time, watching with 
 intense anxiety the ineffectual efforts of the little 
 vessel to beat up to windward. 
 
 In a few minutes the engineer turned to his com- 
 panion and said, " They cannot save us, Wilson. 
 The two boats that are left can they hold us all ?" 
 
 The landing-master shook his head. "The two 
 boats," said he, " will be completely filled by their 
 own crews. For ordinary rough weather they would 
 be quite full enough. In a sea like that," he said, 
 pointing to the angry waves, that were being gra- 
 dually lashed into foam by the increasing wind, 
 " they will be overloaded." 
 
 " Come, I don't know that, Wilson ; we may de- 
 vise something," said Mr Stevenson, with a forced 
 air of confidence, as he moved slowly towards the
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 109 
 
 place where the men were still working, busy as 
 bees and all unconscious of the perilous circum- 
 stances in which they were placed. 
 
 As the engineer pondered the prospect of deliver- 
 ance, his thoughts led him rather to despair than to 
 hope. There were thirty-two persons in all upon 
 the rock that day, with only two boats, which, even 
 in good weather, could not unitedly accommodate 
 more than twenty-four sitters. But to row to the 
 floating- light with so much wind and in so heavy a 
 sea, a complement of eight men for each boat was 
 as much as could with propriety be attempted, so 
 that about half of their number was thus unprovided 
 for. Under these circumstances he felt that to 
 despatch one of the boats in expectation of either 
 working the " Smeaton" sooner up to the rock, or 
 in hopes of getting her boat brought to their assist- 
 ance, would, besides being useless, at once alarm 
 the workmen, each of whom would probably insist 
 upon taking to his own boat, and leaving the eight 
 men of the " Smeaton " to their chance. A scuffle 
 might ensue, and he knew well that when men are 
 contending for life the results may be very dis- 
 astrous. 
 
 For a considerable time the men remained in 
 ignorance of the terrible conflict that was going 
 on in their commander's breast. As they wrought 
 chiefly in sitting or kneeling postures, excavating
 
 110 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 the rock or boring with jumpers, their attention 
 was naturally diverted from everything else around 
 them. The dense volumes of smoke, too, that rose 
 from the forge-fire, so enveloped them as to render 
 distant objects dim or altogether invisible. 
 
 While this lasted, while the numerous hammers 
 were going and the anvil continued to sound, the 
 situation of things did not appear so awful to the 
 only two who were aware of what had occurred. 
 But ere long the tide began to rise upon those who 
 were at work on the lower parts of the beacon and 
 lighthouse. From the run of the sea upon the rock, 
 the forge-fire was extinguished sooner than usual ; 
 the volumes of smoke cleared away, and objects be- 
 came visible in all directions. 
 
 After having had about three hours' work, the 
 men began pretty generally to make towards their 
 respective boats for their jackets and socks. 
 
 Then it was that they made the discovery that 
 one boat was absent. 
 
 Only a few exclamations were uttered. .A glance 
 at the two boats and a hurried gaze to seaward were 
 sufficient to acquaint them with their awful posi- 
 tion. Not a word was spoken by any one. All 
 appeared to be silently calculating their numbers, 
 and looking at each other with evident marks of 
 perplexity depicted in their countenances. The 
 landing-master, conceiving that blame might attach
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. Ill 
 
 tp him for having allowed the boat to leave the 
 rock, kept a little apart from the men. 
 
 All eyes were turned, as if by instinct, to Mr. 
 Stevenson. The men seemed to feel that the issue 
 lay with him. 
 
 The engineer was standing on an elevated part of 
 the rock named Smith's Ledge, gazing in deep 
 anxiety at the distant " Smeaton," in the hope that 
 he might observe some effort being made, at least 
 to pull the boat to their rescue. 
 
 Slowly but surely the tide rose, overwhelming 
 the lower parts of the rock ; sending each successive 
 wave nearer and nearer to the feet of those who 
 were now crowded on the last ledge that could afford 
 them standing-room. 
 
 The deep silence that prevailed was awful ! It 
 proved that each mind saw clearly the impossibility 
 of anything being devised, and that a deadly struggle 
 for precedence was inevitable. 
 
 Mr. Stevenson had all along been rapidly turning 
 over in his mind various schemes which might be 
 put in practice for the general safety, provided the 
 men could be kept under command. He accordingly 
 turned to address them on the perilous nature of 
 their circumstances; intending to propose that all 
 hands should strip off their upper clothing when the 
 higher parts of the rock should be laid under water ; 
 Ihat the seamen should remove every unnecessary
 
 112 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 weight and encumbrance from the boats; that a 
 specified number of men should go into each boat ; 
 and that the remainder should hang by the gun- 
 wales, while the boats were to be rowed gently 
 towards the " Smeaton," as the course to the floating- 
 light lay rather to windward of the rock. 
 
 But when he attempted to give utterance to his 
 thoughts the words refused to come. So powerful 
 an effect had the awful nature of their position upon 
 him, that his parched tongue could not articulate. 
 He learned, from terrible experience, that saliva is 
 as necessary to speech as the tongue itself. 
 
 Stooping hastily, he dipped his hand into a pool 
 of salt water and moistened his mouth. This pro- 
 duced immediate relief and he was about to speak, 
 when Euby Brand, who had stood at his elbow all 
 the time with compressed lips and a stern frown on 
 his brow, suddenly took off his cap, and, waving it 
 above his head, shouted "A boat! a boat!" with 
 all the power of his lungs. 
 
 All eyes were at once turned in the direction to 
 which he pointed, and there, sure enough, a large 
 boat was seen through the haze, making towards the 
 rock. 
 
 Doubtless many a heart there swelled with grati- 
 tude to God, who had thus opportunely and most 
 unexpectedly sent them relief at the eleventh hour ; 
 but the only sound that escaped them was a cheer,
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 113 
 
 9*ich as men seldom give or hear save in cases oa 
 deliverance in times of dire extremity. 
 
 The boat belonged to James Spink, the Bell Eock 
 pilot, who chanced to have come off express from 
 Arbroath that day with letters. 
 
 We have said that Spink came off by chance;' 
 but, when we consider all the circumstances of the 
 case, and the fact that boats seldom visited the Bell 
 Rock at any time, and never during bad weather, we 
 are constrained to feel that God does in His mercy 
 interfere sometimes in a peculiar and special manner 
 in human affairs, and that there was something more 
 and higher than mere chance in the deliverance of 
 Stevenson and his men upon this occasion. 
 
 The pilot-boat, having taken on board as many 
 as it could hold, set sail for the floating-light ; the 
 other boats then put off from the rock with the rest 
 of the men, but they did not reach the " Pharos" 
 until after a long and weary pull of three hours, 
 during which the waves broke over the boats so fre- 
 quently as to necessitate constant baling. 
 
 When the floating-light was at last reached, a 
 new difficulty met them, for the vessel rolled so 
 much, and the men were so exhausted, that it proved 
 to be a work of no little toil and dangwr to get them 
 all on board. 
 
 Long Forsyth, in particular, cost them all an 
 infinite amount of labour, for he was so sick, poor 
 N
 
 114 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 fellow, that he could scarcely move. Indeed, he did 
 at one time beg them earnestly to drop him into the 
 sea and be done with him altogether, a request with 
 which they- of course refused to comply. However, 
 he was got up somehow, and the whole of them were 
 comforted by a glass of rum and thereafter a cup of 
 hot coffee. 
 
 Buby had the good fortune to obtain the additional 
 comfort of a letter from Minnie, which, although it 
 did not throw much light on the proceedings of Cap- 
 tain Ogilvy (for that sapient seaman's proceedings 
 were usually involved in a species of obscurity 
 which light could not penetrate), nevertheless as- 
 sured him that something was being done in his 
 behalf, and that, if he only kept quiet for a time, all 
 would be well 
 
 The letter also assured him of the unalterable 
 affection of the writer, an assurance which caused 
 him to rejoice to such an extent that he became for 
 a time perfectly regardless of all other sublunary 
 things, and even came to look upon the Bell Rock 
 as a species of paradise, watched over by the eye of 
 an angel with golden hair, in which he could indulge 
 his pleasant dreams to the utmost 
 
 That he had to indulge those dreams in the midst 
 of storm and rain and smoke, surrounded by sea and 
 sea-weed, workmen and hammers, and forges and 
 picks, and jumpers and seals, while his strong
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 115 
 
 ^muscles and endurance were frequently tried to the 
 uttermost, "was a matter of no moment to Ruby 
 Brand. 
 
 All experience goes to prove that great joy will 
 utterly overbear the adverse influence of physical 
 troubles, especially if those troubles are without, 
 and do not touch the seats of life within. Minnie's 
 love, expressed as it was in her own innocent, truth- 
 ful, and straightforward way, rendered his body, big 
 though it was, almost incapable of containing his 
 soul He pulled the oar, hammered the jumper, 
 battered the anvil, tore at the bellows, and hewed 
 the solid Bell Rock with a vehemence that aroused 
 the admiration of his comrades, and induced Jamie 
 Dove to pronounce him to be the best fellow the 
 world ever produced.
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 A STORM, AND A DISMAL STATE OF THINGS ON BOARD THE " FIUR08." 
 
 FROM what has been said at the close of the last 
 chapter, it will not surprise the reader to be told 
 that the storm which blew during that night had no 
 further effect on Ruby Brand than to toss his hair 
 about, and cause a ruddier glow than usual to deepen 
 the tone of his bronzed countenance. 
 
 It was otherwise with many of his hapless com- 
 rades, a few of whom had also received letters that 
 day, but whose pleasure was marred to some extent 
 by the qualms within. 
 
 Being Saturday, a glass of rum was served out in 
 the evening, according to custom, and the men pro- 
 ceeded to hold what is known by the name of 
 " Saturday night at sea." 
 
 This being a night that was usually much enjoyed 
 on board, owing to the home memories that vrere 
 recalled, and the familiar songs that were sung; 
 owing, also, to the limited supply of grog, which 
 mi^ht indeed cheer, but could not by any possibility
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 117 
 
 inebriate, the men endeavoured to shake off their 
 fatigue, and to forget, if possible, the rolling of the 
 vessel 
 
 The first effort was not difficult, but the second 
 was not easy. At first, however, the gale was not 
 severe, so they fought against circumstances bravely 
 for a time. 
 
 " Come, lads," cried the smith, in a species of serio- 
 comic desperation, when they had all assembled 
 below, " let 's drink to sweethearts and wives." 
 
 " Hear, hear ! Bless their hearts ! Sweethearts 
 and wives !" responded the men. " Hip, hip !" 
 
 The cheer that followed was a genuine one. 
 
 " Now for a song, boys," cried one of the men, 
 "and I think the last arrivals are bound to sing 
 first." 
 
 " Hear, hear ! Euby lad, you 're in for it," said 
 the smith, who sat near his assistant. 
 
 " What shall I sing ?" inquired Euby. 
 
 " Oh ! let me see," said Joe Dumsby, assuming 
 the air of one who endeavoured to recall something. 
 " Could you come Beet'oven's symphony on B flat ?" 
 
 " Ah ! howld yer tongue, Joe," cried O'Connor, 
 " sure the young man can only sing on the sharp 
 kays ; ain't he always sharpin' the tools, not to speak 
 of his appetite?" 
 
 " You've a blunt way of speaking yourself, friend," 
 said Dumsby, in a tone of reproof.
 
 118 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " Hallo ! stop your jokes," cried the smith ; " if you 
 treat us to any more o' that sort o' thing we 11 have 
 ye dipped over the side, and hung up to dry at the 
 end o' the main-yard. Fire away, Ruby, my tulip !" 
 
 "Ay, that's hit," said John Watt " Gie us the 
 girl ye left behind ye." 
 
 Euby flushed suddenly, and turned towards the 
 speaker with a look of surprise. 
 
 " What 's wrang, freend ? Hae ye never heard o' 
 that sang ?" inquired Watt. 
 
 " yes, I forgot," said Ruby, recovering himself 
 in some confusion. " I know the song I I was 
 thinking of something of " 
 
 " The girl ye left behind ye, av coorse," put in 
 O'Connor, with a wink. 
 
 " Come, strike up !" cried the men. 
 
 Ruby at once obeyed, and sang the desired song 
 with a sweet, full voice, that had the effect of moisten- 
 ing some of the eyes present. 
 
 The song was received enthusiastically. 
 
 " Your health and song, lad," said Robert Selkirk, 
 the principal builder, who came down the ladder 
 and joined them at that moment. 
 
 " Thank you, now it 's my call," said Ruby. " I 
 call upon Ned O'Connor for a song." 
 
 " Or a speech," cried Forsyth. 
 
 " A spaitch is it ?" said O'Connor, with a look of 
 deep modesty. " Sure, I never made a spaitch in rae
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 119 
 
 life, except when I axed Mrs. O'Connor to marry 
 me, an' I never finished that spaitch, for I only got 
 the length of ' Och ! darlint,' when she cut me short 
 in the middle with ' Sure, you may have me, Ned, 
 and welcome!'" 
 
 " Shame, shame !" said Dove, " to say that of your 
 wife." 
 
 " Shame to yersilf," cried O'Connor indignantly. 
 " Ain't I payin* the good woman a compliment, 
 when I say that she had pity on me bashfulness, 
 and came to me help when I was in difficulty ?" 
 
 " Quite right, 0' Connor ; but let 's have a song if 
 you won't speak." 
 
 " Would ye thank a cracked tay- kittle for a song ?" 
 said Ned. 
 
 " Certainly not," replied Peter Logan, who was 
 apt to take things too literally. 
 
 " Then don't ax me for wan," said the Irishman, 
 " but I '11 do this for ye, messmates : 1 11 read ye 
 the last letter I got from the mistress, just to show 
 ye that her price is beyond all calkerlation." 
 
 A round of applause followed this offer, as Ned 
 drew forth a much-soiled letter from the breast- 
 pocket of his coat, and carefully unfolding it, spread 
 it on his knee. 
 
 " It begins," said O'Connor, in a slightly hesitat- 
 ing tone, "with some expressions of a a raither en- 
 dearin' character, that perhaps I may as well pass."
 
 120 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " No, no," shouted the men, " let 's have them all. 
 Out with them, Paddy !" 
 
 " Well, well, av ye will have them, here they be." 
 
 " ' GALWAY. 
 
 " ' My own purty darlin' as has bin my most luved 
 sin' the day we wos man-it, you '11 be grieved to larn 
 that the pig 's gone to its long home.' " 
 
 Here O'Connor paused to make some parenthetical 
 remarks, with which, indeed, ho interlarded the 
 whole letter. 
 
 " The pig, you must know, lads, was an old sow 
 as belonged to me wife's gran'-mother, an' besides 
 bein' a sort o' pet o' the family, was an uncommon 
 profitable crature. But to purceed. She goes on to 
 say, 
 
 " ' We waked her' (that 's the pig, boys) ' yisterday, 
 and buried her this mornin'. Big Eory, the baist, 
 wos for aitin' her, but I wouldn't hear of it ; so she's 
 at rest, an' so is old Molly Mallone. She wint 
 away just two minutes be the clock before the pig, 
 and wos burried the day afther. There 's no more 
 news as I knows of in the parish, except that your 
 old flame Mary got married to Teddy O'Eook, an' 
 they Ve been fightin' tooth an' nail ever since, as I 
 towld ye they would long ago. No man could live 
 wid that woman. But the schoolmaster, good man, 
 has let me off the cow. Ye see, darlin', T towld him
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 121 
 
 ye wos buildin' a palace in the say, to put ships in 
 afther they wos wrecked on the coast of Ameriky, so 
 ye couldn't be expected to send home much money 
 at prisint. An' he just said, ' Well, well, Kathleen, 
 you may just kaip the cow, and pay me whin ye 
 can.' So put that off yer mind, my swait Ned. 
 
 " ' I 'm sorry to hear the Faries rowls so bad, 
 though what the Faries mains is more nor I can 
 tell' (I spelled the word quite krect, lads, but my 
 poor mistress hain't got the best of eyesight.) ' Let 
 me know in yer nixt, an' be sure to tell me if Long 
 Forsyth has got the bitter o' say-sickness. I'm 
 koorius about this, bekaise I've got a receipt for 
 that same that 's infallerable, as his Eiverence says. 
 Tell him, with my luv, to mix a spoonful o' pepper, 
 an' two o' salt, an' wan o' mustard, an' a glass o' 
 whisky in a taycup, with a sprinklin' o' ginger ; fill 
 it up with goat's milk, or ass's, av ye can't git 
 goat's ; hait it in a pan, an' drink it as hot as he 
 can hotter, if possible. I niver tried it meself, but 
 they say it 's a suverin' remidy ; and if it don't do 
 no good, it 's not likely to do much harm, bein' but 
 a waik mixture. Me own belaif is, that the milk 's 
 a mistake, but I suppose the doctors know best. 
 
 " ' Now, swaitest of men, I must stop, for Neddy 's 
 just come in howlin' like a born Turk for his tay ; 
 &o no more at present from, yours till deth, 
 
 " ' KATHLEEN O'CONNOR.' *
 
 122 THE LIGHTHOUSK. 
 
 " Has she any sisters ? " inquired Joe Dumsby 
 eagerly, as Ned folded the letter and replaced it 
 in his pocket. 
 
 " Six of 'em," replied Ned ; " every one purtier 
 and better nor another." 
 
 " Is it a long way to Galway ? " continued Joe. 
 
 " Not long ; but it 's a coorious thing that English- 
 men never come back from them parts whin they 
 wance ventur' into them." 
 
 Joe was about to retort when the men called for 
 another song. 
 
 " Come, Jamie Dove, let 's have ' Eule, Bri- 
 tannia.' " 
 
 Dove was by this time quite yellow in the face, 
 and felt more inclined to go to bed than to sing ; 
 but he braced himself up, resolved to struggle man - 
 fully against the demon that oppressed him. 
 
 It was in vain ! Poor Dove had just reached that 
 point in the chorus where Britons stoutly affirm that 
 they " never, never, never shall be slaves," when a 
 tremendous roll of the vessel caused him to spring 
 from the locker, on which he sat, and rush to his 
 berth. 
 
 There were several of the others whose sell'- re- 
 straint was demolished by this example ; these' 
 likewise fled, amid the laughter of their companions, 
 who broke up the meeting and went on deck. 
 
 The prospect of things there proved, beyond all
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 123 
 
 doubt, that Britons never did, and never will, rule 
 the waves. 
 
 The storm, which had been brewing for some time 
 past, was gathering fresh strength every moment, 
 and it became abundantly evident that the floating- 
 light would have her anchors and cables tested 
 pretty severely before the gale was over. 
 
 About eight o'clock in the evening the wind 
 shifted to east-south-east ; and at ten it became 
 what seamen term a hard gale, rendering it neces- 
 sary to veer out about fifty additional fathoms of 
 the hempen cable. The gale still increasing, the 
 ship rolled and laboured excessively, and at mid- 
 night eighty fathoms more were veered out, while 
 the sea continued to strike the vessel with a degree 
 of force that no one had before experienced. 
 
 That night there was little rest on board the 
 " Pharos." Every one who has been " at sea " 
 knows what it is to lie in one's berth on a stormy 
 night, with the planks of the deck only a few 
 inches from one's nose, and the water swashing 
 past the little port that always leaks ; the seas 
 striking against the ship ; the heavy sprays falling 
 on the decks ; and the constant rattle and row of 
 blocks, spars, and cordage overhead. But all this 
 was as nothing compared with the state of things 
 on board the floating-light, for that vessel could 
 not rise to the seas with the comparatively free
 
 124 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 motions of a ship, sailing either with or against 
 the gale. She tugged and strained at her cable, 
 as if with the fixed determination of breaking it, 
 and she offered all the opposition of a fixed body 
 to the seas. 
 
 Daylight, though ardently longed for, brought no 
 relief. The gale continued with unabated violence. 
 The sea struck so hard upon the vessel's bows that 
 it rose in great quantities, or, as Ruby expressed it, 
 in " green seas," which completely swept the deck 
 as far aft as the quarter-deck, and not unfrequently 
 went completely over the stern of the ship. 
 
 Those " green seas" fell at last so heavily on the 
 skylights that all the glass was driven in, and the 
 water poured down into the cabins, producing dire 
 consternation in the minds of those below, who 
 thought that the vessel was sinking. 
 
 " I 'm drowned intirely," roared poor Ned O'Con- 
 nor, as the- first of those seas burst in and poured 
 straight down on his hammock, which happened to 
 be just beneath the skylight. 
 
 Ned sprang out on the deck, missed his footing, 
 and was hurled with the next roll of the ship into 
 the arms of the steward, who was passing through 
 the place at the time. 
 
 Before any comments could be made the dead- 
 lights were put on, and the cabins were involved 
 in almost absolute darkness.
 
 A HEAVY SEA. PAGE 125.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 125 
 
 " Och ! let me in beside ye," pleaded Ned with 
 the occupant of the nearest berth. 
 
 " Awa' wi' ye ! Na, na," cried John Watt, push- 
 ing the unfortunate man away. " Cheinge yer wat 
 claes first, an' I '11 maybe let ye in, if ye can find me 
 again i' the dark." 
 
 While the Irishman was groping about in search 
 of his chest, one of the officers of the ship passed 
 him on his way to the companion-ladder, intending 
 to go on deck. Euby Brand, feeling uncomfortable 
 below, leaped out of his hammock and followed him. 
 They had both got about half-way up the ladder 
 when a tremendous sea struck the ship, causing it to 
 tremble from stem to stern. At the same moment 
 some one above opened the hatch, and putting his 
 head down, shouted for the officer, who happened to 
 be just ascending. 
 
 " Ay, ay," replied the individual in question. 
 
 Just as he spoke, another heavy sea fell on the 
 deck, and, rushing aft like a river that has burst its 
 banks, hurled the seamen into, the arms of the officer, 
 who fell back upon Euby, and all three came down 
 with tons of water into the cabin. 
 
 The scene that followed would have been ludi- 
 crous, had it not been serious. The still rising sea 
 caused the vessel to roll with excessive violence, 
 and the large quantity of water that had burst in 
 swept the men, who had jumped out of their beds,
 
 126 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 and all movable things, from side to side in inde- 
 scribable confusion. As the water dashed up into 
 the lower tier of beds, it was found necessary to lift 
 one of the scuttles in the floor, and let it flow into 
 the limbers of the ship. 
 
 Fortunately no one was hurt, and Euby succeeded 
 in gaining the deck before the hatch was reclosed 
 and fastened down upon the scene of discomfort and 
 misery below. 
 
 This state of things continued the whole day. 
 The seas followed in rapid succession, and each, as 
 it struck the vessel, caused her to shake all o\er. 
 At each blow from a wave the rolling and pitching 
 ceased for a few seconds, giving the impression that 
 the ship had broken adrift, and was running with 
 the wind, or in the act of sinking ; but when another 
 sea came, she ranged up against it with great force. 
 This latter effect at last became the regular intima- 
 tion to the anxious men below that they were still 
 riding safely at anchor. 
 
 No fires could be lighted, therefore nothing could 
 be cooked, so that the men were fain to eat hard 
 biscuits those of them at least who were able to 
 eat at all and lie in their wet blankets all day. 
 
 At ten in the morning the wind had shifted to 
 north-east, and blew, if possible, harder than before, 
 accompanied by a much heavier swell of the sea ; 
 it was therefore judged advisable to pay out more
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 127 
 
 cable, in order to lessen the danger of its giving 
 way. 
 
 During the course of the gale nearly the whole 
 length of the hempen cable, of 120 fathoms, was 
 veered out, besides the chain- moorings, and, for its 
 preservation, the cable was carefully "served," or 
 wattled, with pieces of canvas round the windlass, 
 and with leather well greased in the hause-hole, 
 where the chafing was most violent. 
 
 As may readily be imagined, the gentleman on 
 whom rested nearly all the responsibility connected 
 with the work at the Bell Rock, passed an anxious 
 and sleepless time in his darkened berth. During 
 the morning he had made an attempt to reach the 
 deck, but had been checked by the same sea that 
 produced the disasters above described. 
 
 About two o'clock in the afternoon great alarm 
 was felt in consequence of a heavy sea that struck 
 the ship, almost filling the waist, and pouring down 
 into the berths below, through every chink and 
 crevice of the hatches and skylights. From the 
 motion being suddenly checked or deadened, and 
 from the flowing in of the water above, every indi- 
 vidual on board thought that the ship was foundering 
 at least all the landsmen were fully impressed 
 with that idea. 
 
 Mr. Stevenson could not remain below any longer. 
 As soon as the ship again began to range up to the
 
 128 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 sea, he made another effort to get on deck. Before 
 going, however, he went through the various apart- 
 ments, in order to ascertain the state of things 
 below. 
 
 Groping his way in darkness from his own cabin, 
 he came to that of the officers of the ship. Here 
 all was quiet, as well as dark. He next entered the 
 galley and other compartments occupied by the arti- 
 ficers ; here also all was dark, but not quiet, for 
 several of the men were engaged in prayer, or 
 repeating psalms in a full tone of voice, while others 
 were protesting that if they should be fortunate 
 enough to get once more ashore, no one should ever 
 see them afloat again ; but so loud was the creaking 
 of the bulk-heads, the dashing of water, and the 
 whistling noise of the wind, that it was hardly pos- 
 sible to distinguish words or voices. 
 
 The master of the vessel accompanied Mr. Steven- 
 son, and, in one or two instances, anxious and re- 
 peated inquiries were made by the workmen as to 
 the state of things on deck, to all of which he 
 returned one characteristic answer " It can't blow 
 long in this way, lads ; we must have better weather 
 soon." 
 
 The next compartment in succession, moving 
 forward, was that allotted to the seamen of the ship. 
 Here there was a characteristic difference in the 
 Bcena Having reached the middle of the darksome
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 129 
 
 tierth without the inmates being aware of the intru- 
 sion, the anxious engineer was somewhat reassured 
 and comforted to find that, although they talked of 
 bad weather and cross accidents of the sea, yet the 
 conversation was carried on in that tone and manner 
 which bespoke ease and composure of mind. 
 
 " Well, lads," said Mr. Stevenson, accosting the 
 men, " what think you of this state of things ? Will 
 the good ship weather it ?" 
 
 " Nae fear o' her, sir," replied one confidently, 
 " she '& light and new ; it 11 tak' a heavy sea to sink 
 her." 
 
 " Ay," observed another, " and she 's got little hold 
 o' the water, good ground-tackle, and no top-hamper ; 
 she'll weather anything, sir." 
 
 Having satisfied himself that all was right below, 
 Mr. Stevenson returned aft and went on deck, where 
 a sublime and awful sight awaited him. The waves 
 appeared to be what we hear sometimes termed 
 "mountains high." In reality they were perhaps 
 about thirty feet of unbroken water in height, their 
 foaming crests being swept and torn by the furious 
 gale. All beyond the immediate neighbourhood of 
 the ship was black and chaotic. 
 
 Upon deck everything movable was out of sight, 
 having either been stowed away below previous 
 to the gale, or washed overboard. Some parts of 
 the quarter bulwarks were damaged by the breach
 
 130 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 of the sea, and one of the boats was broken, and half 
 full of water. 
 
 There was only one solitary individual on deck, 
 placed there to watch and give the alarm if the 
 cable should give way, and this man was Euby 
 Brand, who, having become tired of having nothing 
 to do, had gone on deck, as we have seen, and 
 volunteered his services as watchman. 
 
 Euby had no great-coat on, no over-all of any kind, 
 but was simply dressed in his ordinary jacket and 
 trousers. He had thrust his cap into his pocket in 
 order to prevent it being blown away, and his brown 
 locks were streaming in the wind. He stood just 
 aft the foremast, to which he had lashed himself 
 with a gasket or small rope round his waist, to pre- 
 vent his falling on the deck or being washed over- 
 board. He was as thoroughly wet as if he had been 
 drawn through the sea, and this was one reason why 
 he was so lightly clad, that he might wet as few 
 clothes as possible, and have a dry change when he 
 went below. 
 
 There appeared to be a smile on his lips as he 
 faced the angry gale and gazed steadily out upon 
 the wild ocean. He seemed to be enjoying the sight 
 of the grand elemental strife that was going on 
 around him. Perchance he was thinking of some 
 one not very far away with golden hair ! 
 
 Mr. Stevenson, coupling this smile on Euby's face
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 131 
 
 with the remarks of the other seamen, felt that 
 things were not so bad as they appeared to unaccus- 
 tomed eyes, nevertheless he deemed it right to ad- 
 vise with the master and officers as to the probable 
 result, in the event of the ship drifting from her 
 moorings. 
 
 " It is my opinion," said the master, on his being 
 questioned as to this, " that we have every chance 
 of riding out the gale, which cannot continue many 
 hours longer with the same fury ; and even if she 
 should part from her anchor, the storm-sails have 
 been laid ready to hand, and can be bent in a very 
 short time. The direction of the wind being nor'- 
 east, we could sail up the Forth to Leith Koads; 
 but if this should appear doubtful, after passing the 
 May we can steer for Tyningham Sands, on the 
 western side of Dunbar, and there run the ship ashore. 
 From the flatness of her bottom and the strength of 
 her build, I should think there would be no danger 
 in beaching her even in a very heavy sea." 
 
 This was so far satisfactory, and for some time 
 things continued in pretty much the state we have 
 just described, but soon after there was a sudden 
 cessation of the straining motion of the ship which 
 surprised every one. In another moment Ruby 
 shouted " All hands a-hoy ! ship's adrift !" 
 
 The consternation that followed may be conceived 
 but not described. The windlass was instantly
 
 132 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 manned, and the men soon gave out that there was 
 no strain on the cable. The mizzen-sail, which was 
 occasionally bent for the purpose of making the 
 ship ride easily, was at once set; the other sails 
 were hoisted as quickly as possible, and they bore 
 away about a mile to the south-westward, where, at 
 a spot that was deemed suitable, the best-bower 
 anchor was let go in twenty fathoms water. 
 
 Happily the storm had begun to abate before this 
 accident happened. Had it occurred during the 
 height of the gale, the result might have been most 
 disastrous to the undertaking at the Bell Bock. 
 
 Having made all fast, an attempt was made to 
 kindle the galley-fire and cook some food. 
 
 "Wot are we to 'ave, steward?" inquired Joe 
 Dumsby, in a feeble voice. 
 
 "Plumduff, my boy, so cheer up," replied the 
 steward, who was busy with the charming ingredients 
 of a suet-pudding, which was the only dish to be 
 attempted, owing to the ease with which it could be 
 both cooked and served up. 
 
 Accordingly, the suet-pudding was made; the 
 men began to eat ; the gale began to " take off," as 
 seamen express it ; and, although things were still 
 very far removed from a state of comfort, they began 
 to be more endurable ; health began to return to the 
 sick, and hope to those who had previously given 
 way to despair.
 
 CHAPTEK XII. 
 
 BELL BOOK BILLOWS AN UNEXPECTED VISIT A DISASTER 
 AND A RESCUE. 
 
 IT is pleasant, it is profoundly enjoyable, to sit on 
 the margin of the sea during the dead calm that not 
 unfrequently succeeds a wild storm, and watch the 
 gentle undulations of the glasslike surface, which the 
 very gulls seem to be disinclined to ruffle with their 
 wings as they descend to hover above their own 
 reflected images. 
 
 It is pleasant to watch this from the shore, 
 where the waves fall in low murmuring ripples, or 
 from the ship's deck, far out upon the sea, where 
 there is no sound of water save the laving of the 
 vessel's bow as she rises and sinks in the broad- 
 backed swell; but there is something more than 
 pleasant, there is something deeply and peculiarly 
 interesting, in the same scene when viewed from such 
 a position as the Bell Rock ; for there, owing to the 
 position of the rock and the depth of water around 
 it, the observer beholds, at the same moment, the 
 presence, as it were, of storm and calm.
 
 ) 34 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 The largest waves there are seen immediately 
 after a storm has passed away, not during its con- 
 tinuance, no matter how furious the gale may have 
 been, for the rushing wind has a tendency to blow 
 down the waves, so to speak, and prevent their 
 rising to their utmost height. It is when the storm 
 is over that the swell rises ; but as this swell appears 
 only like large undulations, it does not impress the 
 beholder with its magnitude until it draws near to 
 the rock and begins to feel the checking influence of 
 the bottom of the sea. The upper part of the swell, 
 having then greater velocity than the lower part, 
 assumes more and more the form of a billow. As it 
 comes on it towers up like a great green wall of 
 glittering glass, moving with a grand, solemn motion, 
 which does not at first give the idea of much force 
 or impetus. As it nears the rock, however, its 
 height (probably fifteen or twenty feet) becomes 
 apparent ; its velocity increases ; the top, with what 
 may be termed gentle rapidity, rushes in advance of 
 the base ; its dark green side becomes concave ; the 
 upper edge lips over, then curls majestically down- 
 wards, as if bowing to a superior power, and a gleam 
 of light flashes for a moment on the curling top. 
 As yet there is no sound ; all has occurred in the 
 profound silence of the calm, but another instant 
 and there is a mighty crash a deafening roar ; the 
 great wall of water has fallen, and a very sea of
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 135 
 
 churning foam comes leaping, bursting, spouting over 
 rocks and ledges, carrying all before it with a tre- 
 mendous sweep that seems to be absolutely irresis- 
 tible until it meets the higher ledges of rock, when 
 it is hurled back, and retires with a watery hiss that 
 suggests the idea of baffled rage. 
 
 But it is not conquered. With the calm majesty 
 of unalterable determination, wave after wave comes 
 on, in slow, regular succession, like the inexhaus- 
 tible battalions of an unconquerable foe, to meet 
 with a similar repulse again and again. 
 
 There is*, however, this peculiar difference between 
 the waves on the ordinary seashore and the billows 
 on the Bell Eock, that the latter, unlike the former, 
 are not always defeated. The spectator on shore 
 plants his foot confidently at the very edge of the 
 mighty sea, knowing that " thus far it may come, 
 but no further." On the Bell Eock the rising tide 
 makes the conflict, for a time, more equaL Now, 
 the rock stands proudly above the sea : anon the 
 sea sweeps furiously over the rock with a roar of 
 "Victory!" 
 
 Thus the war goes on, and thus the tide of battle 
 daily and nightly ebbs and flows all the year 
 round. 
 
 But when the cunning hand of man began to 
 interfere, the aspect of things was changed, the sea 
 was forced to succumb, and the rock, once a dreaded
 
 136 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 enemy, became a servant of the human race. True 
 the former rages in rebellion still, and the latter, 
 although compelled to uphold the light that warns 
 against itself, continues its perpetual warfare with 
 the sea ; but both are effectually conquered by means 
 of the wonderful intelligence that God has given to 
 man, and the sea for more than half a century has 
 vainly beat against the massive tower whose founda- 
 tion is on the Bell Rock. 
 
 But all this savours somewhat of anticipation. 
 Let us return to Ruby Brand, in whose interest we 
 have gone into this long digression ; for" he it was 
 who gazed intently at the mingled scene of storm 
 and calm which we have attempted to describe, and 
 it was he who thought out most of the ideas which 
 we have endeavoured to convey. 
 
 Ruby had lent a hand to work the pump at the 
 foundation-pit that morning. After a good spell at 
 it he took his turn of rest, and, in order to enjoy it 
 fully, went as far out as he could upon the seaward 
 ledges, and sat down on a piece of rock to watch the 
 waves. 
 
 While seated there, Robert Selkirk came and sat 
 down beside him. Selkirk was the principal builder, 
 and ultimately laid every stone of the lighthouse 
 with his own hand. He was a sedate, quiet man, 
 but full of energy and perseverance. When the 
 stones were landed faster than they could be built
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 137 
 
 into their places, he and Bremner, as well as some 
 of the other builders, used to work on until the 
 rising tide reached their waists. 
 
 " It 's a grand sight, Ruby," said Selkirk, as a larger 
 wave than usual fell, and caine rushing in torrents 
 of foam up to their feet, sending a little of the spray 
 over their heads. 
 
 " It is indeed a glorious sight," said Ruby. " If I 
 had nothing to do, I believe I could sit here all day 
 just looking at the waves and thinking." 
 
 " Thinkin' !" repeated Selkirk, in a musing tone 
 of voice. " Can ye tell, lad, what ye think about 
 when you 're lookin' at the waves ?" 
 
 Ruby smiled at the oddness of the question. 
 
 " Well," said he, " I don't think I ever thought of 
 that before." 
 
 " Ah, but I have !" said the other, " an' I've come 
 to the conclusion that for the most part we don't 
 think, properly speakin', at all ; that our thoughts, 
 so to speak, think for us ; that they just take the bit 
 in their teeth and go rumblin' and tumblin' about 
 anyhow or nohow !" 
 
 Ruby knitted his brows and pondered. He was 
 one of those men who, when they don't understand 
 a thing, hold their tongues and think. 
 
 " And," continued Selkirk, " it's curious to observe 
 what a lot o' nonsense one thinks too when one is 
 lookin' at the waves. Many a time I have pulled
 
 138 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 myself up, thinkin' the most astonishin' stuff ye 
 could imagine." 
 
 "I would hardly have expected this of such a 
 grave kind o' man as you," said Ruby. 
 
 " Mayhap not. It is not always the gravest look- 
 ing that have the gravest thoughts." 
 
 " But you don't mean to say that you never think 
 sense," continued Ruby, "when you sit looking at 
 the waves ?" 
 
 " By no means," returned his companion ; " I 'm 
 only talking of the way in which one's thoughts 
 will wander. Sometimes 1 think seriously enough. 
 Sometimes I think it strange that men can look at 
 such a scene as that, and scarcely bestow a thought 
 upon Him who made it." 
 
 " Speak for yourself, friend," said Ruby, somewhat 
 quickly ; " how know you that other men don't think 
 about their Creator when they look at His works?" 
 
 "Because," returned Selkirk, "I find that I so 
 seldom do so myself, even although I wish to and 
 often try to ; and I hold that every man, no matter 
 what he is or feels, is one of a class who think and 
 feel as he does ; also, because many people, especially 
 Christians, have told me that they have had the 
 same experience to a large extent ; also, and chiefly, 
 because, as far as unbelieving man is concerned, the 
 Bible tells me that ' God is not in all his thoughts.' 
 But, Ruby, I did not make the remark as a slur upon
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 139 
 
 fnen in general, I merely spoke of a fact, an unfor- 
 tunate fact, that it is not natural to us, ancl not 
 easy, to rise from nature to nature's God, and I 
 thought you would agree with me." 
 
 " I believe you are right," said Ruby, half-ashamed 
 of the petulance of his reply ; " at any rate, I confess 
 you are right as far as I am concerned" 
 
 As Selkirk and Euby were both fond of discus- 
 sion, they continued this subject some time longer, 
 and there is no saying how far they would have gone 
 down into the abstruse depths of theology, had not 
 their converse been interrupted by the appearance 
 of a boat rowing towards the rock 
 
 " Is yonder craft a fishing-boat, think you ?" said 
 Euby, rising and pointing to it. 
 
 " Like enough, lad. Mayhap it's the pilot's, only 
 it's too soon for him to be off again with letters. 
 Maybe it 's visitors to the rock, for I see something 
 like a woman's bonnet." 
 
 As there was only one woman in the world at 
 that time as far as Ruby was concerned, (of course 
 putting his mother out of the question !) it will not 
 surprise the reader to be told that the youth started, 
 that his cheek reddened a little, and his heart beat 
 somewhat faster than usuaL He immediately smiled, 
 however, at the absurdity of supposing it possible 
 that the woman in the boat could be Minnie, and as 
 the blacksmith shouted to him at that moment, he
 
 140 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 turned on his heel and leaped from ledge to ledge 
 of rock until he gained his wonted place at the 
 forge. 
 
 Soon he was busy wielding the fore-hammer, 
 causing the sparks to fly about himself and his 
 comrade in showers, while the anvil rang out its 
 merry peaL 
 
 Meanwhile the boat drew near. It turned out 
 to be a party of visitors, who had come off from 
 Arbroath to see the operations at the Bell Eock. 
 They had been brought off by Spink the pilot, and 
 numbered only three namely, a tall soldier-like 
 man, a stout sailor-like man, and a young woman 
 with yes, with golden hair ! 
 
 Poor Euby almost leaped over the forge when he 
 raised his eyes from his work and caught sight of 
 Minnie's sweet face. Minnie had recognised her 
 lover before the boat reached the rock, for he stood 
 on an elevated ledge, and the work in which he 
 was engaged, swinging the large hammer round his 
 shoulder, rendered him very conspicuous. She had 
 studiously concealed her face from him until quite 
 close, when, looking him straight in the eyes with- 
 out the least sign of recognition, she turned away. 
 
 We have said that the first glance Euby obtained 
 caused him to leap nearly over the forge ; the second 
 created such a revulsion of feeling that he let the 
 fore- hammer fall.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 141 
 
 " Hallo ! Got a spark in yer eye ? " inquired 
 Dove, looking up anxiously. 
 
 It flashed across Ruby at that instant that the 
 look given him by Minnie was meant to warn Vn'm 
 not to take any notice of her, so he answered the 
 smith's query with " No, no ; I Ve only let the 
 hammer fall, don't you see ? Get on, old boy, an' 
 don't let the metal cooL" 
 
 The smith continued his work without further re- 
 mark, and Euby assisted, resolving in his own mind 
 to be a little more guarded as to the expression of 
 his feelings. 
 
 Meanwhile Mr. Stevenson received the visitors, 
 and showed them over the works, pointing out the 
 peculiarities thereof, and the difficulties that stood 
 in the way. 
 
 Presently he came towards the forge, and said, 
 " Brand, the stout gentleman there wishes to speak 
 to you. He says he knew you in Arbroath. You can 
 spare him for a few minutes, I suppose, Mr. Dove ?" 
 
 " Well, yes, but not for long," replied the smith. 
 " The tide will soon be up, and I 've enough to do to 
 get through with all these." 
 
 Euby flung down his hammer at the first word, 
 and hastened to the ledge of rock where the visitors 
 were standing, as far apart from the workmen as the 
 space of the rock would admit of. 
 
 The stout gentleman was no other than his uncle,
 
 142 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 Captain Ogilvy, who put his finger to his lips as his 
 nephew approached, and gave him a look of mystery 
 that was quite sufficient to put the latter on his 
 guard. He therefore went forward, pulled off his 
 cap, and bowed respectfully to Minnie, who replied 
 with a stiff curtsey, a slight smile, and a decided 
 blush. 
 
 Although Euby now felt convinced that they 
 were all acting a part, he could scarcely bear this 
 cold reception. His impulse was to seize Minnie 
 in his arms ; but he did not even get the comfort 
 of a cold shake of the hand. 
 
 " Nephy," said the captain in a hoarse whisper, 
 putting his face close to that of Ruby, " mum 's the 
 word ! Silence, mystery, an' all that sort o' thing. 
 Don't appear to be an old Mend, lad ; and as to 
 Minnie here 
 
 ' no, we never mention her, 
 Her name it's never heard.' 
 
 Allow me to introduce you to Major Stewart, whose 
 house you broke into, you know, Euby, when 
 
 ' All in the Downs the fleet was moored,' 
 
 at least when the ' Termagant ' was waitin' for you 
 to go aboard." 
 
 Here the captain winked, and gave Ruby a 
 facetious poke in the ribs, which was not quite in 
 harmony with the ignorance of each other he was 
 endeavouring to inculcate.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 143 
 
 ' " Young man," said the major quietly, " we have 
 come off to tell you that everything is in a prosperous 
 state as regards the investigation into your inno- 
 cence the private investigation I mean, for the 
 authorities happily know nothing of your being 
 here. Captain Ogilvy has made me his confidant 
 in this matter, and from what he tells me I am 
 convinced that you had nothing to do with this 
 robbery. Excuse me if I now add that the sight 
 of your face deepens this conviction." 
 
 Ruby bowed to the compliment. 
 
 " We were anxious to write at once to the captain 
 of the vessel in which you sailed," continued the 
 major, " but you omitted to leave his full name and 
 address when you left We were afraid to write 
 to you, lest your name on the letter might attract 
 attention, and induce a premature arrest. Hence 
 our visit to the rock to-day. Please to write the 
 address in this pocket-book." 
 
 The major handed Euby a small green pocket- 
 book as he spoke, in which the latter wrote the full 
 name and address of his late skipper. 
 
 " Now, nephy," said the captain, " we must, I 'm 
 sorry to say, bid ye good-day, and ask you to return 
 to your work, for it won't do to rouse suspicion, lad 
 Only keep quiet here, and do yer dooty ' England ex- 
 pects every man to do his dooty ' and as sure as your 
 name's Ruby all will be ship- shape in a few weeks."
 
 144 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " I thank you sincerely," said Ruby, addressing 
 the major, but looking at Minnie. 
 
 Captain Ogilvy observing this, and fearing some 
 display of feeling that would be recognised by the 
 workmen, who were becoming surprised at the 
 length of the interview, placed himself between 
 Minnie and her lover. 
 
 " No, no, Ruby," said he, solemnly. " I 'm sorry 
 for ye, lad, but it won't do. Patience is a virtue, 
 which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune." 
 
 " My mother ? " said Ruby, wishing to prolong 
 the interview. 
 
 " Is well," said the captain. " Now, goodbye, lad, 
 and be off." 
 
 " Goodbye, Minnie," cried Ruby, stepping forward 
 suddenly and seizing the girl's hand ; then, wheeling 
 quickly round, he sprang over the rocks, and returned 
 to his post 
 
 " Ha ! it 's time," cried the smith. " I thought 
 you would never be done makin' love to that there 
 girl Come, blaze away !" 
 
 Ruby felt so nettled by the necessity that was 
 laid upon him of taking no notice of Minnie, that he 
 seized the handle of the bellows passionately, and at 
 the first puff blew nearly all the fire away. 
 
 " Hallo ! messmate," cried the smith, clearing the 
 dust from his eyes; "what on airth ails ye ? You've 
 bio wed the whole consarn out !"
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 145 
 
 . Kuby made no reply, but, scraping together the 
 embers, heaped them up and blew more gently. 
 
 In a short time the visitors re- entered their boat, 
 and rowed out of the creek in which it had been 
 
 lying. 
 
 Ruby became so exasperated at not being able 
 even to watch the boat going away, that he showered 
 terrific blows on the mass of metal the smith was 
 turning rapidly on the anvil 
 
 " Not so fast, lad; not so fast," cried Dove hurriedly. 
 
 Ruby's chafing spirit blew up just at that point ; 
 he hit the iron a crack that knocked it as flat as a 
 pancake, and then threw down the hammer and de- 
 liberately gazed in the direction of the boat. 
 
 The sight that met his eyes appalled him. The 
 boat had been lying in the inlet named Port Steven- 
 son. It had to pass out to the open sea through 
 Wilson's Track, and past a small outlying rock 
 named Gray's Rock known more familiarly among 
 the men as Johnny Gray. The boat was nearing 
 this point, when the sea, which had been rising for 
 some time, burst completely over the seaward ledges, 
 and swept the boat high against the rocks on the 
 left. The men had scarcely got her again into the 
 track when another tremendous billow, such as we 
 have already described, swept over the rocks again 
 and swamped the boat, which, being heavily ballasted, 
 sank at once to the bottom of the pool.
 
 146 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 It was this sight that met the horrified eyes of 
 Ruby when he looked up. 
 
 He vaulted over the bellows like an antelope, and, 
 rushing over Smith's Ledge and Trinity Ledge, sprang 
 across Port Boyle, and dived head foremost into 
 NeilTs Pool before any of the other men, who made 
 a general rush, could reach the spot. 
 
 A few powerful strokes brought Ruby to the place 
 where the major and the captain, neither of whom 
 could swim, were struggling in the water. He dived 
 at once below these unfortunates, and almost in a 
 second, reappeared with Minnie in his arms. 
 
 A few seconds sufficed to bring him to the edge of 
 Smith's Ledge, where several of his comrades hauled 
 him and his burden beyond the reach of the next 
 wave, and where, a moment or two later, the major 
 and captain with the crew of the boat were landed 
 in safety. 
 
 To bear the light form of Minnie in his strong 
 arms to the highest and driest part of the rock was 
 the work of a few moments to Ruby. Brief though 
 those moments were, however, they were precious 
 to the youth beyond all human powers of calculation, 
 for Minnie recovered partial consciousness, and fancy- 
 ing, doubtless, that she was still in danger, flung her 
 arms round his neck, and grasped him convulsively. 
 Reader, we tell you in confidence that if Ruby had 
 at that moment been laid on the rack and torn limb
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 147 
 
 from limb, he would have cheered out his life 
 triumphantly. It was not only that he knew she 
 loved him that he knew before, but he had saved 
 the life of the girl he loved, and a higher terrestrial 
 happiness can scarcely be attained by man. 
 
 Laying her down as gently as a mother would her 
 first-born, Euby placed a coat under her head, and 
 bade his comrades stand back and give her air. It 
 was fortunate for him that one of the foremen, who 
 understood what to do, came up at this moment, 
 and ordered him to leave off chafing the girl's hand 
 with his wet fists, and go get some water boiled at 
 the forge if he wanted to do her good. 
 
 Second words were not needed. The bellows were 
 soon blowing, and the fire glowed in a way that it 
 had not done since the works at the Bell Eock began. 
 Before the water quite boiled some tea was put in, 
 and, with a degree of speed that would have roused 
 the jealousy of any living waiter, a cup of tea was 
 presented to Minnie, who had recovered almost at 
 the moment Kuby left her. 
 
 She drank a little, and then closing her eyes, 
 moved her lips silently for a few seconds. 
 
 Captain Ogilvy, who had attended her with the 
 utmost assiduity and tenderness as soon as he had 
 wrung the water out of his own garments, here took 
 an opportunity of hastily pouring something into 
 the cup out of a small flask. When Minnie looked
 
 148 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 up again and smiled, he presented her with the cup. 
 She thanked him, and drank a mouthful or two 
 before perceiving that it had been tampered with. 
 
 " There 's something in it," she said hurriedly. 
 
 " So there is, my pet," said the captain, with a 
 benignant smile, " a little nectar, that will do you 
 more good than all the tea. Come now, don't shake 
 your head, but down with it all, like a good child." 
 
 But Minnie was proof against persuasion, and re- 
 fused to taste any more. 
 
 " Who was it that saved me, uncle ?" (She had 
 got into the way of calling the captain ' uncle.') 
 
 "Euby Brand did it, my darlin'," said the old 
 man with a look of pride. " Ah ! you 're better now; 
 stay, don't attempt to rise." 
 
 " Yes, yes, uncle," she said, getting up and looking 
 round, " it is time that we should go now ; we have 
 a long way to go, you know. Where is the boat ?" 
 
 " The boat, my precious, is at the bottom of the 
 sea." 
 
 As he said this, he pointed to the mast, half of 
 which was seen rising out of the pool where the 
 boat had gone down. 
 
 "But you don't need to mind," continued the 
 captain, " for they 're goin' to send us in one o' their 
 own boats aboord the floatin' lightship, where we '11 
 get a change o' clothes an' somethin' to eat." 
 
 As he spoke, one of the sailors came forward and
 
 THE LIGHTHOCSE. 149 
 
 .announced that the boat was ready, so the captain 
 and the major assisted Minnie into the boat, which 
 soon pushed off with part of the workmen from the 
 rock It was to be sent back for the remainder of 
 the crew, by which time the tide would render it 
 necessary that all should leave. 
 
 Euby purposely kept away from the group while 
 they were embarking, and after they were gone pro- 
 ceeded to resume work. 
 
 " You took a smart dive that time, lad," observed 
 Joe Dumsby as they went along. 
 
 " Not more than any one would do for a girl," 
 said Euby. 
 
 " An' such a purty wan, too,", said O'Connor. 
 " Ah ! av she 's not Irish, she should ha' bin." 
 
 " Ye 're a lucky chap to hae sic a chance," observed 
 John Watt. 
 
 " Make up to her, lad," said Forsyth ; " I think 
 she couldn't refuse ye after doin' her such service." 
 
 " Time enough to chaff after work is over," cried 
 Euby with a laugh, as he turned up his sleeves, and, 
 seizing the hammer, began, as his friend Dove said, 
 " to work himself dry." 
 
 In a few minutes, work was resumed, and for 
 another hour all continued busy as bees, cutting and 
 pounding at the flinty surface of the Bell Eock.
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 A SLEEPLESS BUT A PLEASANT NIGHT. 
 
 THE evening which followed the day that has just 
 been described was bright, calm, and beautiful, with 
 the starry host unclouded and distinctly visible to 
 the profoundest depths of space. 
 
 As it was intended to send the " Smeaton" to 
 Arbroath next morning for a cargo of stones from 
 the building-yard, the wrecked party were prevailed 
 on to remain all night on board the " Pharos," in- 
 stead of going ashore in one of the ship's boats, 
 which could not well be spared at the time. 
 
 This arrangement, we need hardly say, gave inex- 
 pressible pleasure to Euby, and was not altogether 
 distasteful to Minnie, although she felt anxious 
 about Mrs. Brand, who would naturally be much 
 alarmed at the prolonged absence of herself and the 
 captain. However, " there was no help for it ;" and 
 it was wonderful the resignation which she displayed 
 in the circumstances. 
 
 It was not Ruby's duty to watch on deck that
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 151 
 
 night, yet, strange to say, Kuby kept watch the 
 whole night long ! 
 
 There was no occasion whatever for Minnie to go 
 on deck after it was dark, yet, strange to say, 
 Minnie kept coming on deck at intervals nearly the 
 whole night long ! Sometimes to " look at the 
 stars/' sometimes to " get a mouthful of fresh air," 
 frequently to find out what "that strange noise 
 could be that had alarmed her," and at last- 
 especially towards the early hours of morning for 
 no reason whatever, except that " she could not 
 sleep below." 
 
 It was very natural that when Minnie paced the 
 quarter-deck between the stern and the main-mast, 
 and Euby paced the fore-part of the deck between 
 the bows and the main-mast, the two should occa- 
 sionally meet at the main-mast. It was also very 
 natural that when they did meet, the girl who had 
 been rescued should stop and address a few words 
 of gratitude to the man who had saved her. But it 
 was by no means natural, nay, it was altogether 
 unnatural and unaccountable, that, when it became 
 dark, the said man and the said girl should get into 
 a close and confidential conversation, which lasted 
 for hours, to the amusement of Captain Ogilvy and 
 the major, who quite understood it, and to the 
 amazement of many of the ship's crew, who couldn't 
 understand it at all
 
 152 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 At last Minnie bade Ruby a final good-night and 
 went below, and Ruby, who could not persuade him- 
 self that it was final, continued to walk the deck 
 until his eyes began to shut and open involuntarily 
 like those of a sick owl. Then he also went below, 
 and, before he fell quite asleep (according to his own 
 impression), was awakened by the bell that called 
 the men to land on the rock and commence work. 
 
 It was not only Ruby who found it difficult to 
 rouse himself that morning. The landing-bell was 
 rung at four o'clock, as the tide suited at that early 
 hour, but the men were so fatigued that they would 
 gladly have slept some hours longer. This, however, 
 the nature of the service would not admit of. The 
 building of the Bell Rock Lighthouse was a peculiar 
 service. It may be said to have resembled duty in 
 the trenches in military warfare. At times the work 
 was light enough, but for the most part it was severe 
 and irregular, as the men had to work in all kinds 
 of weather, as long as possible, in the face of unusual 
 difficulties and dangers, and were liable to be called 
 out at all unseasonable hours. But they knew and 
 expected this, and faced the work like men. 
 
 After a growl or two, and a few heavy sighs, they 
 all tumbled out of their berths, and, in a very short 
 time, were mustered on deck, where a glass of rum 
 and a biscuit were -served to each, being the regular 
 allowance when they had to begin work before
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 153 
 
 'breakfast. Then they got into the boats and rowed 
 away. 
 
 Ruby's troubles were peculiar on this occasion. 
 He could not bear the thought of leaving the 
 "Pharos" without saying goodbye to Minnie; but 
 as Minnie knew nothing of such early rising, there 
 was no reasonable hope that she would be awake. 
 Then he wished to put a few questions to his uncle 
 which he had forgotten the day before, but his uncle 
 was at that moment buried in profound repose, with 
 his mouth wide open, and a trombone solo proceeding 
 from his nose, which sadly troubled the unfortunates 
 who lay near him. 
 
 As there was no way of escape from these diffi- 
 culties, Ruby, like a wise man, made up his mind to 
 cast them aside, so, after swallowing his allowance, 
 he shouldered his big bellows, heaved a deep sigh, 
 and took his place in one of the boats alongside. 
 
 The lassitude which strong men feel when ob- 
 liged to rise before they have had enough of rest 
 soon wears off. The two boats had not left the 
 " Pharos" twenty yards astern, when Joe Dumsby 
 cried, " Ho ! boys, let 's have a race." 
 
 " Hooray !" shouted O'Connor, whose elastic spirits 
 were always equal to anything, " an* sure Ruby will 
 sing us ' The girl we Ve left behind us.' Och ! an' 
 there she is, av I 'in not draymin'." 
 
 At that moment a little hand was waved from
 
 154 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 one of the ports of the floating-light Ruby at once 
 waved his in reply, but as the attention of the men 
 had been directed to the vessel by Ned's remark, 
 each saw the salutation, and, claiming it as a com- 
 pliment to himself, uttered a loud cheer, which ter- 
 minated in a burst of laughter, caused by the sight 
 of Ruby's half-angry, half-ashamed expression of 
 face. 
 
 As the other boat had shot ahead, however, at th.3 
 first mention of the word " race," the men forgot thij 
 incident in their anxiety to overtake their comrades. 
 In a few seconds both boats were going at full speed, 
 and they kept it up all the way to the rock. 
 
 While this was going on, the " Smeaton's " boat 
 was getting ready to take the strangers on board the 
 sloop, and just as the workmen landed on the rock, 
 the " Smeaton " cast loose her sails, and proceeded to 
 Arbroath. 
 
 There were a few seals basking on the Bell Rock 
 this morning when the men landed. These at once 
 made off, and were not again seen during the day. 
 
 At first, seals were numerous on the rock. Fre 
 quently from fifty to sixty of them were counted at 
 one time, and they seemed for a good while unwilling 
 to forsake their old quarters, but when the forge was 
 set up they could stand it no longer. Some of the 
 boldest ventured to sun themselves there occasion- 
 ally, but when the clatter of the anvil and the
 
 TTIE LTOHTHOUSE. 155 
 
 wreaths of smoke became matters of daily occur- 
 rence, they forsook the rock finally, and sought the 
 peace and quiet which man denied them there in 
 other regions of the deep. 
 
 The building of the lighthouse was attended with 
 difficulties at every step. As a short notice of some 
 of these, and an account of the mode in which the 
 great work was carried on, cannot fail to be interest- 
 ing to all who admire those engineering works which 
 exhibit prominently the triumph of mind over matter, 
 we shall turn aside for a brief space to consider this 
 subject.
 
 CHAPTEE XIV. 
 
 SOMEWHAT STATISTICAL. 
 
 IT has been already said that the Bell Eock risea 
 only a few feet out of the sea at low tide. The 
 foundation of the tower, sunk into the solid rock, 
 was just three feet three inches above low water of 
 the lowest spring-tides, so that the lighthouse may be 
 said with propriety to be founded beneath the waves. 
 
 One great point that had to be determined at the 
 commencement of the operations was the best method 
 of landing the stones of the building, this being a 
 delicate and difficult process, in consequence of the 
 weight of the stones and their brittle nature, espe- 
 cially in those parts which were worked to a delicate 
 edge or formed into angular points. As the loss of 
 a single stone, too, would stop the progress of the 
 work until another should be prepared at the work- 
 yard in Arbroath and sent off to the rock, it may 
 easily be imagined that this matter of the landing 
 was of the utmost importance, and that much con- 
 sultation was held in regard to it.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 157 
 
 It would seem that engineers, as well as doctors, 
 ire apt to differ. Some suggested that each parti- 
 cular stone should be floated to the rock, with a cork 
 buoy attached to it ; while others proposed an air- 
 tank, instead of the cork buoy. Others, again, 
 proposed to sail over the rock at high water in a 
 flat-bottomed vessel, and drop the stones one after 
 another when over the spot they were intended to 
 occupy. A few, still more eccentric and daring in 
 their views, suggested that a huge coffer-dam or 
 vessel should be built on shore, and as much of 
 the lighthouse built in this as would suffice to raise 
 the building above the level of the highest tides ; 
 that then it should be floated off to its station on 
 the rock, which should be previously prepared for 
 its reception ; that the coffer-dam should be scuttled, 
 and the ponderous mass of masonry, weighing per- 
 haps 1000 tons, allowed to sink at once into its 
 place ! 
 
 All these plans, however, were rejected by Mr. 
 Stevenson, who resolved to carry the stones to the 
 rock in boats constructed for the purpose. These 
 were named praam-boats. The stones were there- 
 fore cut in conformity with exactly measured moulds 
 in the workyard at Arbroath, and conveyed thence 
 in the sloops already mentioned to the rock, where 
 the vessels were anchored at a distance sufficient 
 to enable them to clear it in case of drifting. The
 
 158 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 cargoes were then unloaded at the moorings, and 
 laid on the decks of the praam-boats, which con- 
 veyed them to the rock, where they were laid on 
 small trucks, run along the temporary rails to their 
 positions, and built in at once. 
 
 Each stone of this building was treated with as 
 much care and solicitude as if it were a living 
 creature. After being carefully cut and curiously 
 formed, and conveyed to the neighbourhood of the 
 rock, it was hoisted out of the hold and laid on 
 the vessel's deck, when it was handed over to the 
 landing-master, whose duty it became to transfer it, 
 by means of a combination of ropes and blocks, to 
 the deck of the praam-boat, and then deliver it at 
 the rock. 
 
 As the sea was seldom calm during the building 
 operations, and frequently in a state of great agitation, 
 lowering the stones on the decks of the praam-boats 
 was a difficult matter. 
 
 In the act of working the apparatus, one man was 
 placed at each of the guy-tackles. This man assisted 
 also at the purchase-tackles for raising the stones ; 
 and one of the ablest and most active of the crew 
 was appointed to hold on the end of the fall-tackle, 
 which often required all his strength and his utmost 
 agility in letting go, for the purpose of lowering the 
 stone at the instant the word "lower" was given. 
 In a rolling sea, much depended on the promptitude
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 1S9 
 
 with which this part of the operation was performed. 
 For the purpose ol securing this, the man who held 
 the tackle placed himself before the mast in a sitting, 
 more frequently in a lying posture, with his feet 
 stretched under the winch and abutting against the 
 mast, as by this means he was enabled to exert his 
 greatest strength. 
 
 The signal being given in the hold that the tackle 
 was hooked to the stone and all ready, every man 
 took his post, the stone was carefully, we might 
 almost say tenderly raised, and gradually got into 
 position over the praam-boat ; the right moment 
 was intently watched, and the word " lower " given 
 sternly and sharply. The order was obeyed with 
 exact promptitude, and the stone rested on the deck 
 of the praam-boat. Six blocks of granite having 
 been thus placed on the boat's deck, she was rowed 
 to a buoy, and moored near the rock until the proper 
 time of the tide for taking her into one of the land- 
 ing creeks. 
 
 We are thus particular in describing the details 
 of this part of the work, in order that the reader 
 may be enabled to form a correct estimate of what 
 may be termed the minor difficulties of the under- 
 taking. 
 
 The same care was bestowed upon the landing of 
 every stone of the building ; and it is worthy of 
 record, that notwithstanding the difficulty of this
 
 160 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 process in such peculiar circumstances, not a single 
 stone was lost, or even seriously damaged, during 
 the whole course of the erection of the tower, which 
 occupied four years in building, or rather, we should 
 say, four seasons, for no work was or could be done 
 during winter. 
 
 A description of the first entire course of the lower 
 part of the tower, which was built solid, will be 
 sufficient to give an idea of the general nature of 
 the whole work. 
 
 This course or layer consisted of 123 blocks of 
 stone, those in the interior being sandstone, while 
 the outer casing was of granite. Each stone was 
 fastened to its neighbour above, below, and around 
 by means of dovetails, joggles, oaken trenails, and 
 mortar. Each course was thus built from its centre 
 to its circumference, and as all the courses from the 
 foundation to a height of thirty feet were built in 
 this way, the tower, up to that height, became a 
 mass of solid stone, as strong and immovable as the 
 Bell Eock itself. Above this, or thirty feet from 
 the foundation, the entrance door was placed, and 
 the hollow part of the tower began. 
 
 Thus much, then, as to the tower itself, the upper 
 part of which will be found described in a future 
 chapter. In regard to the subsidiary works, the 
 erection of the beacon-house was in itself a work of 
 considerable difficulty, requiring no common effort
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 161 
 
 of engineering skilL The principal beams of this 
 having been towed to the rock by the " Smeaton," all 
 the stanchions and other material for setting them 
 up were landed, and the workmen set about erecting 
 them as quickly as possible, for if a single day of bad 
 weather should occur before the necessary fixtures 
 could be made, the whole apparatus would be in- 
 fallibly swept away. 
 
 The operation being, perhaps, the most important 
 of the season, and one requiring to be done with the 
 utmost expedition, all hands were, on the day in 
 which its erection was begun, gathered on the rock, 
 besides ten additional men engaged for the purpose, 
 and as many of the seamen from the " Pharos" and 
 other vessels as could be spared They amounted 
 altogether to fifty-two in number. 
 
 About half-past eight o'clock in the morning a 
 derrick, or mast, thirty feet high was erected, and 
 properly supported with guy-ropes for suspending 
 the block for raising the first principal beam of the 
 beacon, and a winch-machine was bolted down to 
 the rock for working the purchase-tackle. The 
 necessary blocks and tackle were likewise laid to 
 hand and properly arranged. The men were seve- 
 rally allotted in squads to different stations ; some 
 were to bring the principal beams to hand, others 
 were to work the tackles, while a third set had the 
 charge of the iron stanchions, bolts, and wedges, so 
 
 L
 
 162 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 that the whole operation of raising the beams and 
 fixing them to the rock might go forward in such a 
 manner that some provision might be made, in any 
 stage of the work, for securing what had been ac- 
 complished, in case of an adverse change of weather. 
 
 The raising of the derrick was the signal for three 
 hearty cheers, for this was a new era in the opera- 
 tions. Even that single spar, could it be preserved, 
 would have been sufficient to have saved the work- 
 men on that day when the " Smeaton" broke adrift 
 and left them in such peril 
 
 This was all, however, that could be accomplished 
 that tide. Next day, the great beams, each fifty feet 
 long, and about sixteen inches square, were towed 
 to the rock about seven in the morning, and the 
 work immediately commenced, although they had 
 gone there so much too early in the tide that the 
 men had to work a considerable time up to their 
 middle in water. Each beam was raised by the 
 tackle affixed to the derrick, until the end of it could 
 be placed or " stepped" into the hole which had been 
 previously prepared for its reception ; then two of 
 the great iron stanchions or supports were set into 
 their respective holes on each side of the beam, and 
 a rope passed round them to keep it from slipping, 
 until it could be more permanently fixed. 
 
 This having been accomplished, the first beam 
 became the means of raising the second, and when
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 163 
 
 the first and second were fastened at the top, they 
 formed a pair of shears by which the rest were more 
 easily raised to their places. The heads of the beams 
 were then fitted together and secured with ropes in 
 a temporary manner, until the falling of the tide 
 would permit the operations to be resumed. 
 
 Thus the work went .on) each man labouring with 
 all his might, until this important erection was 
 completed. 
 
 The raising of the first beams took place on a 
 Sunday. Indeed, during the progress of the works 
 at the Bell Eock, the men were accustomed to work 
 regularly on Sundays when possible ; but it is right 
 to say that it was not done in defiance of, or disregard 
 fco, God's command to cease from labour on the 
 Sabbath-day, but because of the urgent need of a 
 lighthouse on a rock which, unlighted, would be 
 certain to wreck numerous vessels and destroy many 
 lives in time to come, as it had done in time past. 
 Delay in this matter might cause death and disaster, 
 therefore it was deemed right to carry on the work 
 on Sundays.* 
 
 It was always arranged, however, to have public worship on 
 Sundays when practicable. And this arrangement was held to during 
 the continuance of the work. Indeed, the manner in which Mr. 
 Stevenson writes in regard to the conclusion of the day's work at the 
 beacon, which we have described, shows clearly that he felt himself 
 to be acting in this matter in accordance with the spirit of our Saviour, 
 who wrought many of His works of mercy on the Sabbath-day. Mr. 
 Stevenson writes thus : 
 
 "All hands having retxirned to their respective ships, they got a
 
 164 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 An accident happened during the raising of the 
 last large beam of the beacon, which, although 
 alarming, fortunately caused no damage. Con- 
 sidering the nature of the work, it is amazing, and 
 greatly to the credit of all engaged, that so few 
 accidents occurred during the building of the light- 
 house. 
 
 When they were in the act of hoisting the sixth 
 and last log, and just about to kant it into its place, 
 the iron hook of the principal purchase-block gave 
 way, and the great beam, measuring fifty feet in 
 length, fell upon the rock with a terrible crash ; but 
 although there were fifty-two men around the beacon 
 at the time, not one was touched, and the beam 
 itself received no damage worth mentioning. 
 
 Soon after the beacon had been set up, and par- 
 tially secured to the rock, a severe gale sprang up, 
 as if Ocean were impatient to test the handiwork of 
 human engineers. Gales set in from the eastward, 
 compelling the attending sloops to slip from their 
 moorings, and run for the shelter of Arbroath and 
 
 shift of dry clothes, and some refreshment. Being Sunday, they 
 were afterwards convened by signal on board of the lighthouse yacht, 
 when prayers were read, for every heart upon this occasion felt glad- 
 ness, and every mind was disposed to be thankful for the happy and 
 successful termination of the operations of this day." 
 
 It is right' to add that the men, although requested were no t con- 
 strained to work on Sundays. They were at liberty to decline if they 
 chose. A few conscientiously refused at first, but were afterwardi 
 convinced of the necessity of working on all opportunities that offered, 
 knd agreed to do so.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 166 
 
 St. Andrews, and raising a sea on the Bell Eock 
 which was described as terrific, the spray rising 
 more than thirty feet in the air above it. 
 
 In the midst of all this turmoil the beacon stood 
 securely, and after the weather moderated, per- 
 mitting the workmen once more to land, it was 
 found that no damage had been done by the tremen- 
 dous breaches of the sea over the rock. 
 
 That the power of the waves had indeed been 
 very great, was evident from the effects observed 
 on the rock itself, and on materials left there. 
 Masses of rock upwards of a ton in weight had been 
 cast up by the sea, and then, in their passage over 
 the Bell Eock, had made deep and indelible ruts. 
 An anchor of a ton weight, which had been lost on 
 one side of the rock, was found to have been washed 
 up and over it to the other side. Several large 
 blocks of granite that had been landed and left on 
 a ledge, were found to have been swept away like 
 pebbles, and hurled into a hole at some distance, 
 and the heavy hearth of the smith's forge, with the 
 ponderous anvil, had been washed from their places 
 of supposed security. 
 
 From the time of the setting up of the beacon a 
 new era in the work began. Some of the men were 
 now enabled to remain on the rock all day, working 
 at the lighthouse when the tide was low, and betaking 
 themselves to the beacon when it rose, and leaving
 
 166 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 it at night; for there was much to do before this 
 beacon could be made the habitable abode which it 
 finally became ; but it required the strictest attention 
 to the state of the weather, in case of their being 
 overtaken with a gale, which might prevent the 
 possibility of their being taken off the rock. 
 
 At last the beacon was so far advanced and seem ed 
 that it was deemed capable of withstanding any 
 gale that might blow. As yet it was a great un- 
 gainly pile of logs, iron stanchions, and bracing- 
 chains, without anything that could afford shelter to 
 man from winds or waves, but with a platform laid 
 from its cross-beams at a considerable height above 
 high-water mark. 
 
 The works on the rock were in this state, when 
 two memorable circumstances occurred in the Bell 
 Bock annals, to which we shall devote a separate 
 chapter.
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 
 RUBY HAS A RISK IN LIFE, AND A FALL. 
 
 JAMES DOVE, the blacksmith, had, for some time 
 past, been watching the advancing of the beacon- 
 works with some interest, and a good deal of impa- 
 tience. He was tired of working so constantly up 
 to the knees in water, and aspired to a drier and 
 more elevated workshop. 
 
 One morning he was told by the foreman that 
 orders had been given for him to remove his forge 
 to the beacon, and this removal, this " flitting," as 
 he called it, was the first of the memorable events 
 referred to in the last chapter. 
 
 " Hallo ! Ruby, my boy," cried the elated son ol 
 Vulcan, as he descended the companion-ladder, 
 " we 're goin' to flit, lad. We 're about to rise in the 
 world, so get up your bellows. It's the last time 
 we shall have to be bothered with them in the boat, 
 I hope." 
 
 "That's well," said Ruby, shouldering the un- 
 wieldy bellows ; " they have worn my shoulders
 
 1 6b THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 threadbare, and tried my patience almost beyond 
 endurance." 
 
 "Well, it's all over now, lad," rejoined the smith. 
 " In future you shall have to blow up in the beacon 
 yonder ; so come along." 
 
 " Come, Euby, that ought to comfort the cockles 
 o' yer heart," said O'Connor, who passed up the 
 ladder as he spoke ; " the smith won't need to blow 
 you up any more, av* you 're to blow yourself up in 
 the beacon in futur'. Arrah ! there 's the bell again. 
 Sorrow wan o' me iver gits to slape, but I 'm turned 
 up immadiately to go an' poke away at that rock 
 faix, it 's well named the Bell Eock, for it makes me 
 like to bellow me lungs out wid vexation." 
 
 " That pun is below contempt," said Joe Dumsby, 
 who came up at the moment. 
 
 "That's yer sort, laddies; ye 're guid at ringing 
 the changes on that head onyway," cried Watt. 
 
 "I say, we're gittin' a belly -full of it," observed 
 Forsyth, with a rueful look "I hope nobody's 
 goin' to give us another !" 
 
 " It '11 create a lobellion," said Bremner, " if ye go 
 on like that." 
 
 " It '11 bring my bellows down on the head o' the 
 next man that speaks !" cried Ruby, with indigna- 
 tion. 
 
 " Don't you hear the bell, there ?" cried the fore- 
 man down the hatchway.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 169 
 
 There was a burst of laughter at this unconscious 
 continuation of the joke, and the men sprang up the 
 ladder, down the side, and into the boats, which 
 were soon racing towards the rock. 
 
 The day, though not sunny, was calm and agree- 
 able, nevertheless the landing at the rock was not 
 easily accomplished, owing to the swell caused by a 
 recent gale. After one or two narrow escapes of a 
 ducking, however, thp crews landed, and the bellows, 
 instead of being conveyed to their usual place at the 
 forge, were laid at the foot of the beacon. 
 
 The carriage of these bellows to and fro almost 
 daily had been a subject of great annoyance to the 
 men, owing to their being so much in the way, and 
 so unmanageably bulky, yet so essential to the pro- 
 gress of the works, that they did not dare to leave 
 them on the rock, lest they should be washed away, 
 and they had to handle them tenderly, lest they 
 should get damaged. 
 
 " Now, boys, lend a hand with the forge," cried 
 the smith, hurrying towards his anvil 
 
 Those who were not busy eating dulse responded 
 to the call, and in a short time the ponderous 
 materiel of the smithy was conveyed to the beacon, 
 where, in process of time, it was hoisted by means 
 of tackle to its place on the platform to which 
 reference has already been made. 
 
 When it was safely set up and the bellows placed
 
 170 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 in position, Ruby went to the edge of the platform, 
 and, looking down on his comrades below, took off 
 his cap and shouted in the tone of a Stentor, " Now, 
 lads, three cheers for the Dovecot !" 
 
 This was received with a roar of laughter and 
 three tremendous cheers. 
 
 " Howld on, boys," cried O'Connor, stretching out 
 his hand as if to command silence ; " you 11 scare 
 the dove from his cot altogether av ye roar like 
 that !" 
 
 " Surely they 're sendin' us a fire to warm us," 
 observed one of the men, pointing to a boat which 
 had put off from the " Smeaton," and was approach- 
 ing the rock by way of Macurich's Track. 
 
 " What can 'd be, I wonder ?" said Watt ; " I think 
 I can smell somethin'." 
 
 " I halways thought you 'ad somethink of an old 
 dog in you," said Dumsby. 
 
 " Ay, man !" said the Scot with a leer, " I ken o' 
 war beasts than auld dowgs." 
 
 " Do you ? come let 's 'ear wat they are," said the 
 Englishman. 
 
 " Young puppies," answered the other. 
 
 " Hurrah ! dinner, as I 'm a Dutchman," cried 
 Forsyth. 
 
 This was indeed the case. Dinner had been 
 cooked on board the " Smeaton" and sent hot to 
 the men ; and this, the first dinner ever eaten on
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 171 
 
 ,the Bell Rock, was the second of the memorable 
 events before referred to. 
 
 The boat soon ran into the creek and landed the 
 baskets containing the food on Hope's Wharf. 
 
 The men at once made a rush at the viands and 
 bore them off exultingly to the flattest part of the 
 rock they could find. 
 
 " A regular pic-nic," cried Dumsby in high glee, 
 for unusual events, of even a trifling kind, had the 
 effect of elating those men more than one might 
 have expected. 
 
 " Here 's the murphies," cried O'Connor, stagger- 
 ing over the slippery weed with a large smoking tin 
 dish. 
 
 " Mind you don't let 'em fall," cried one. 
 
 " Have a care," shouted the smith ; " if you drop 
 them I '11 beat you red-hot, and hammer ye so flat 
 that the biggest flatterer as ever walked won't be 
 able to spread ye out another half-inch." 
 
 " Mutton ! oh !" exclaimed Forsyth, who had been 
 some time trying to wrench the cover off the basket 
 containing a roast leg, and at last succeeded. 
 
 " Here, spread them all out on this rock You 
 han't forgot the grog, I hope, steward ?" 
 
 "No fear of him: he's a good feller is the 
 steward, when he 's asleep partiklerly. The grog 's 
 here all right." 
 
 "Dinna let Dumsby git haud o't, then," cried
 
 172 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 Watt. " What ! hae ye begood a'ready ? Patience, 
 man, patience. Is there ony saut?" 
 
 " Lots of it, darlin', in the say. Sure this shape 
 must have lost his tail somehow. Och, murther! 
 if there isn't Bobby Selkirk gone an' tumbled into 
 Port Hamilton wid the cabbage, av it's not the 
 carrots !" 
 
 "There now, don't talk so much, boys," cried 
 Peter Logan. " Let 's drink success to the Bell Eock 
 Lighthouse." 
 
 It need scarcely be said that this toast was drunk 
 with enthusiasm, and that it was followed up with 
 " three times three." 
 
 " Now for a song. Come, Joe Dumsby, strike up," 
 cried one of the men. 
 
 O'Connor, who was one of the most reckless of 
 men in regard to duty and propriety, here shook his 
 head gravely, and took upon himself to read his 
 comrade a lesson. 
 
 "Ye shouldn't talk o' sitch things in workin' 
 hours," said he. " Av we wos all foolish, waake- 
 hidded cratures like you, how d' ye think we 'd iver 
 git the lighthouse sot up ? Ate yer dinner, lad, and 
 howld yer tongue." 
 
 " Ned, I didn't think your jealousy would 
 show out so strong," retorted his comrade. " Now, 
 then, Dumsby, fire away, if it was only to aggravate 
 him."
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 173 
 
 Thus pressed, Joe Dumsby took a deep draught of 
 the small-beer with which the men were supplied, 
 and began a song of his own composition. 
 
 When the song was finished the meal was also 
 concluded, and the men returned to their labours on 
 the rock ; some to continue their work with the 
 picks at the hard stone of the foundation-pit, others 
 to perform miscellaneous jobs about the rock, such 
 as mixing the mortar and removing debris, while 
 James Dove and his fast friend Euby Brand mounted 
 to their airy " cot" on the beacon, from which in a 
 short time began to proceed the volumes of smoke 
 and the clanging sounds that had formerly arisen 
 from " Smith's Ledge." 
 
 While they were all thus busily engaged, Euby 
 observed a boat advancing towards the rock from 
 the floating- light. He was blowing the bellows at 
 the time, after a spell at the fore-hammer. 
 
 "We seem to be favoured with unusual events 
 to-day, Jamie," said he, wiping his forehead with 
 the corner of his apron with one hand, while he 
 worked the handle of the bellows with the other, 
 " yonder comes another boat ; what can it be, think 
 you?" 
 
 " Surely it can't be tea !" said the smith with a 
 smile, as he turned the end of a pick-axe in the fire, 
 " it 's too soon after dinner for that." 
 
 " It looks like the boat of our friends the fisher-
 
 174 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 men, Big Swankie and Davy Spink," said Euby, 
 shading his eyes with his hand, and gazing earnestly 
 at the boat as it advanced towards them. 
 
 " Friends !" repeated the smith, " rascally smug- 
 glers, both of them ; they 're no friends of mine." 
 
 " Well, I didn't mean bosom friends," replied Euby, 
 " but after all, Davy Spink is not such a bad fellow, 
 though I can't say that I 'm fond of his comrade." 
 
 The two men resumed their hammers at this point 
 in the conversation, and became silent as long as the 
 anvil sounded. 
 
 The boat had reached the rock when they ceased, 
 and its occupants were seen to be in earnest conver- 
 sation with Peter Logan. 
 
 There were only two men in the boat besides its 
 owners Swankie and Spink. 
 
 " What can they want ?" said Dove, looking down 
 on them as he turned to thrust the iron on which 
 he was engaged into the fire. 
 
 As he spoke the foreman looked up. 
 
 " Ho ! Euby Brand," he shouted, " come down 
 here j you 're wanted." 
 
 " Hallo! Euby," exclaimed the smith, "more friends 
 o' yours ! Your acquaintance is extensive, lad, but 
 there 's no girl in the case this time." 
 
 Euby made no reply, for an indefinable feeling of 
 anxiety filled his breast as he threw down the fore- 
 hammer and prepared to descend.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 175 
 
 On reaching the rock he advanced towards the 
 strangers, both of whom were stout, thickset men, 
 with grave, stern countenances. One of them stepped 
 forward and said, " Your name is 
 
 " Kuby Brand," said the youth promptly, at the 
 same time somewhat proudly, for he knew that he 
 was in the hands of the Philistines. 
 
 The man who first spoke hereupon drew a small 
 instrument from his pocket, and tapping Euby on the 
 shoulder, said 
 
 " I arrest you, Euby Brand, in the name of the 
 King." 
 
 The other man immediately stepped forward and 
 produced a pair of handcuffs. 
 
 At sight of these Euby sprang backward, and the 
 blood rushed violently to his forehead, while his 
 blue eyes glared with the ferocity of those of a 
 tiger. 
 
 " Come, lad, it 's of no use, you know," said the 
 man, pausing ; " if you won't come quietly we must 
 find ways and means to compel you." 
 
 " Compel me !" cried Euby, drawing himself up 
 with a look of defiance and a laugh of contempt, 
 that caused the two men to shrink back in spite of 
 themselves. 
 
 " Euby," said the foreman, gently,, stepping for- 
 ward and laying his hand on the youth's shoulder, 
 * you h*d better go quietly, for there 's no chance of
 
 176 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 escape from these fellows. I have no doubt it 's a 
 mistake, and that you '11 come off with flyin' colours, 
 but it 's best to go quietly whatever turns up." 
 
 While Logan was speaking, Ruby dropped his 
 head on his breast, the officer with the handcuffs 
 advanced, and the youth held out his hands, while 
 the flush of anger deepened into the crimson blush 
 of shame. 
 
 It was at this point that Jamie Dove, wondering 
 at the prolonged absence of his friend and assistant, 
 looked down from the platform of the beacon, and 
 beheld what was taking place. 
 
 The stentorian roar of amazement and rage that 
 suddenly burst from him, attracted the attention of 
 all the men on the rock, who dropped their tools and 
 looked up in consternation, expecting, no doubt, to 
 behold something terrible. 
 
 Their eyes at once followed those of the smith, 
 and no sooner did they see Ruby being led in irons 
 to the boat, which lay in Port Hamilton, close to 
 Sir Ralph the Rover's Ledge, than they uttered a yell 
 of execration, and rushed with one accord to the 
 rescue. 
 
 The officers, who were just about to make their 
 prisoner step into the boat, turned to face the foe, 
 one, who seemed to be the more courageous of the 
 two, a little in advance of the other. 
 
 Ned O'Connor, with that, enthusiasm which seems
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 177 
 
 to be inherent in Irish blood, rushed with such irre- 
 sistible force against this man that he drove him 
 violently back against his comrade, and sent them 
 both head over heels into Port Hamilton. Nay, 
 with such momentum was this act performed, that 
 Ned could not help but follow them, falling on them 
 both as they came to the surface and sinking them 
 a second time, amid screams and yells of laughter. 
 
 O'Connor was at once pulled out by his friends. 
 The officers also were quickly landed. 
 
 " I ax yer parding, gintlemen," said the former, 
 with an expression of deep regret on his face, " but 
 the say-weed is so slippy on them rocks we 're a'most 
 for iver doin' that sort o' thing be the merest accident. 
 But av yer as fond o' cowld wather as meself ye 
 won't objec' to it, although it do come raither on- 
 expected." 
 
 The officers made no reply, but, collaring Euby, 
 pushed him into the boat. 
 
 Again the men made a rush, but Peter Logan 
 stood between them and the boat 
 
 " Lads, 1 ' said he, holding up his hand, "it's of no 
 use resistin' the law. These are King's officers, and 
 they are only doin' their duty. Sure am I that 
 Ruby Brand is guilty of no crime, so they 've only 
 to inquire into it and set him free." 
 
 The men hesitated, but did not seem quite dis- 
 posed to submit without another struggle. 
 
 If
 
 178 THE LIGHTHO USE. 
 
 " It 's a shame to let them take him," cried the 
 smith. 
 
 " So it is. I vote for a rescue," cried JOG 
 Dumsby. 
 
 " Hooray ! so does I," cried O'Connor, stripping 
 off his waistcoat, and for once in his life agreeing 
 with Joe. 
 
 " Na, na, lads," cried John Watt, rolling up his 
 sleeves, and baring his brawny arms as if about to 
 engage in a fight, " it '11 niver do to interfere wi' the 
 law ; but what d' ye say to gie them anither dook ?" 
 
 Seeing that the men were about to act upon 
 Watt's suggestion, Ruby started up in the boat, and, 
 turning to his comrades, said, 
 
 " Boys, it 's very kind of you to be so anxious to 
 save me, but you can't ' 
 
 " Faix but we can, darlin'/' interrupted O'Connor. 
 
 " No, you can't," repeated Euby firmly, " because 
 I won't let you. I don't think I need say to you 
 that I am innocent," he added, with a look in which 
 truth evidently shone forth like a sunbeam, "but 
 now that they have put these irons on me I will 
 not consent that they shall be taken off except by 
 the law which put them on." 
 
 While he was speaking the boat had been pushed 
 off, and in a few seconds it was beyond the reach of 
 the men. 
 
 " Depend upon it, comrades." cried Ruby, as they
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 1 79 
 
 pulled away, " that I shall be back again to help you 
 to finish the work on the Bell Rock." 
 
 " So you will, lad, so you will," cried the foreman. 
 
 " My blessin' on ye," shouted O'Connor. " Ach ! 
 ye dirty villains, ye low-minded spalpeens," he 
 added, shaking his fist at the officers of justice. 
 
 " Don't be long away, Euby," cried one. 
 
 " Never say die," shouted another, earnestly. 
 
 " Three cheers for Ruby Brand," exclaimed Forsyth, 
 " hip ! hip ! hip ! " 
 
 The cheer was given with the most vociferous 
 energy, and then the men stood in melancholy 
 silence on Ralph the Rover's Ledge watching the 
 boat that bore their comrade to the shore.
 
 CHAPTEE XVI. 
 
 NEW ARRANGEMENTS THE CAPTAIN'S PHILOSOPHY IN REGARD TO 
 PIPEOLOOT. 
 
 THAT night our hero was lodged in the common 
 jail of Arbroath. Soon after, he was tried, and, as 
 Captain Ogilvy had prophesied, was acquitted. 
 Thereafter he went to reside for the winter with his 
 mother, occupying the same room as his worthy 
 uncle, as there was not another spare one in the 
 cottage, and sleeping in a hammock, slung parallel 
 with and close to that of the captain. 
 
 On the night following his release from prison, 
 Euby lay on his back in his hammock meditating 
 intently on the future, and gazing at the ceiling, or 
 rather at the place where he knew the ceiling to be, 
 for it was a dark night, and there was no light in 
 the room, the candle having just been extinguished. 
 
 We are not strictly correct however, in saying that 
 there was no light in the room, for there was a deep 
 red glowing spot of fire near to Captain Ogilvy's 
 head, which flashed and grew dim at each alternate 
 second of time. It was, in fact, the captain's pipe,
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 181 
 
 a luxury in which that worthy man indulged morn- 
 ing, noon, and night. He usually rested the bowl 
 of the pipe on and a little over the edge of his ham- 
 mock, and, lying on his back, passed the mouth- 
 piece over the blankets into the corner of his mouth, 
 where four of his teeth seemed to have agreed to 
 form an exactly round hole suited to receive it. At 
 each draw the fire in the bowl glowed so that the 
 captain's nose was faintly illuminated; in the in- 
 tervals the nose disappeared. 
 
 The breaking or letting fall of this pipe was a 
 common incident in the captain's nocturnal history, 
 but he had got used to it, from long habit, and 
 regarded the event each time it occurred with the 
 philosophic composure of one who sees and makes 
 up his mind to endure an inevitable and unavoid- 
 able evil. 
 
 "Euby," said the captain, after the candle was 
 extinguished. 
 
 " Well, uncle ?" 
 
 " I 've bin thinkin', lad," 
 
 Here the captain drew a few whiffs to prevent the 
 pipe from going out, in which operation he evidently 
 forgot himself and went on thinking, for he said no- 
 thing more. 
 
 " Well, uncle, what have you been thinking ?" 
 
 " Eh ! ah, yes, I 've bin thinkin', lad (puff), that 
 you '11 have to (puff) there 's somethin' wrong with
 
 182 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 the pipe to-night, it don't draw well (puff) you'll 
 have to do somethin' or other in the town, for it 
 won't do to leave the old woman, lad, in her delicate 
 state o' health. Had she turned in when you left 
 the kitchen?" 
 
 " yes, an hour or more." 
 
 " An' Blue Eyes, 
 
 ' The tender bit flower that waves in the breeze, 
 And scatters its fragrance all over the seas ' 
 
 has she turned in too ?" 
 
 " She was just going to when I left," replied Euby ; 
 " but what has that to do with the question." 
 
 " I didn't say as it had anything to do with it, lad. 
 Moreover, there ain't no question between us as I 
 knows on (puff) ; but what have you to say to stop- 
 pin' here all winter ?" 
 
 " Impossible," said Euby, with a sigh. 
 
 " Not so, lad ; what 's to hinder ? Ah ! there she 
 goes." 
 
 The pipe fell with a crash to the floor, and burst 
 with a bright shower of sparks, like a little bomb- 
 shell 
 
 "That's the third, Ruby, since I turned in," said 
 the captain, getting slowly over the side of his 
 hammock, and alighting on the floor heavily. "I 
 won't git up again if it goes another time." 
 
 After knocking off the chimney-piece five or six 
 articles which appeared to be made of tin from the
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 183 
 
 noise they made in falling, the captain succeeded in 
 getting hold of another pipe and the tinder-hox, for 
 in those days flint and steel were the implements 
 generally used in procuring a light. With much 
 trouble he re -lit the pipe. 
 
 " Now, Euby, lad, hold it till I tumble in." 
 
 " But I can't see the stem, uncle." 
 
 " What a speech for a seaman to make ! Don't 
 you see the fire in the bowl ?" 
 
 " Yes, of course." 
 
 " Well, just make a grab two inches astarn of the 
 bowl and you '11 hook the stem." 
 
 The captain was looking earnestly into the bowl 
 while he spoke, stuffing down the burning tobacco 
 with the end of his little finger. Euby, acting in 
 rather too prompt obedience to the instructions, 
 made a " grab" as directed, and caught his uncle by 
 the nose. 
 
 A yell and an apology followed of course, in the 
 midst of which the fourth pipe was demolished. 
 
 " Oh ! uncle, what a pity I" 
 
 " Ah ! Ruby, that comes o' inconsiderate youth, 
 which philosophers tell us is the nat'ral consequence 
 of unavoidable necessity, for you can't put a young 
 head on old shoulders, d' ye see ?" 
 
 From the tone in which this was said Ruby knew 
 that the captain was shaking his head gravely, and 
 from the noise of articles being kicked about and
 
 184 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 falling, he became aware that the unconquerable 
 man was filling a fifth pipe. 
 
 This one was more successfully managed, and the 
 captain once more got into his hammock, and began 
 to enjoy himself. 
 
 " Well, Ruby, where was I ? ay ; what 's to 
 hinder you goin' and gettin' employed in the Bell 
 Rock workyard? There's plenty to do, and good 
 wages there." 
 
 It may be as well to inform the reader here, that 
 although the operations at the Bell Rock had come 
 to an end for the season about the beginning of 
 October, the work of hewing the stones for the 
 lighthouse was carried on briskly during the winter 
 at the workyard on shore ; and as the tools, etc., 
 required constant sharpening and mending, a black- 
 smith could not be dispensed with. 
 
 " Do you think I can get in again?" inquired Ruby. 
 
 " No doubt of it, lad. But the question is, are ye 
 willin' to go if they '11 tae you ?" 
 
 " Quite willing, uncle." 
 
 " Good ' then that 's all square, an' I knows how 
 to lay my course up anchor to-morrow mornin', 
 crowd all sail, bear down on the workyard, bring-to 
 off the countin'-room, and open fire on the superin- 
 tendent." 
 
 The captain paused at this point, and opened fire 
 with his pipe for some minutes.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 185 
 
 " Now," he continued, " there 's another thing I 
 want to ax you. I'm goin' to-morrow afternoon 
 to take a cruise along the cliffs to the east'ard in 
 the preventive boat, just to keep up my sea-legs. 
 They 've got scent o' some smugglin' business that 's 
 goin' on, an' my friend Leftenant Lindsay has asked 
 me to go. Now, Euby, if you want a short cruise of 
 an hour or so you may come with me." 
 
 Kuby smiled at the manner in which this offer 
 was made, and replied 
 
 " With pleasure, uncle." 
 
 " So, then, that 's settled too. Goodnight, nephy." 
 
 The captain turned on his side, and dropped the 
 pipe on the floor, where it was shivered to atoms. 
 
 It must not be supposed that this was accidental 
 It was done on purpose. Captain Ogilvy had found 
 from experience that it was not possible to stretch 
 out his arm to its full extent and lay the pipe on the 
 chimney-piece, without waking himself up just at 
 that critical moment when sleep was consenting to 
 be wooed. He also found that on the average he 
 broke one in every four pipes that he thus attempted 
 to deposit. Being a philosophical and practical man, 
 he came to the conclusion that it would be worth 
 while to pay something for the comfort of being 
 undisturbed at the minute of time that lay between 
 the conclusion of smoking and the commencement of 
 repose. He therefore got a sheet of foolscap and a
 
 186 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 pencil, and spent a whole forenoon in abstruse cal- 
 culations. He ascertained the exact value of three 
 hundred and sixty-five clay pipes. From this he 
 deducted a fourth for breakages that would have 
 certainly occurred in the old system of laying the 
 pipes down every night, and which, therefore, he 
 felt, in a confused sort of way, ought not to he 
 charged in the estimates of a new system. Then 
 he added a small sum to the result for probable 
 extra breakages, such as had occurred that night, 
 and found that the total was not too high a price 
 for a man in his circumstances to pay for the bless- 
 ing he wished to obtain. 
 
 From that night forward he deliberately dropped 
 his pipe every night over the side of his hammock 
 before going to sleep. 
 
 The captain, in commenting on this subject, was 
 wont to observe that everything in life, no matter 
 how small, afforded matter of thought to philoso- 
 phical men. He had himself found a pleasing sub- 
 ject of study each morning in the fact that some of 
 the pipes survived the fall of the previous night. 
 This led him to consider the nature of clay pipes in 
 general, and to test them in various ways. It is 
 true he did not say that anything of importance 
 resulted from his peculiar studies, but he argued 
 that a true philosopher looks for facts, and leaves 
 results alone. One discovery he undoubtedly did
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 187 
 
 make, which was, that the pipes obtained from a 
 certain maker in the town invariably broke, while 
 those obtained from another maker broke only occa- 
 sionally. Hence he came to the conclusion that one 
 maker was an honest man, the other a doubtful 
 character, and wisely bestowed his custom in accord- 
 ance with that opinion, 
 
 About one minute after the falling of the pipe 
 Euby Brand fell asleep, and about two minutes after 
 that Captain Ogilvy began to snore, both of which 
 conditions were maintained respectively and unin- 
 terruptedly until the birds began to whistle and the 
 sun be<mn to shine.
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 A MEETING WITH OLD FRIENDS, AND AN EXCURSION. 
 
 NEXT morning the captain and his nephew " bore 
 down," as the former expressed it, on the workyard, 
 and Ruby was readily accepted, his good qualities 
 having already been well tested at the Bell Rock. 
 
 " Now, boy, we 11 go and see about the little pre- 
 ventive craft," said the captain on quitting the office. 
 
 " But first," said Ruby, " let me go and tell my old 
 comrade Dove that I am to be with him again." 
 
 There was no need to inquire the way to the forge, 
 the sound of the anvil being distinctly heard above 
 all the other sounds of that busy spot. 
 
 The workyard at Arbroath, where the stones for 
 the lighthouse were collected and hewn into shape 
 before being sent off to the rock, was an enclosed 
 piece of ground, extending to about three-quarters 
 of an acre, conveniently situated on the northern 
 side of the Lady Lane, or Street, leading from the 
 western side of the harbour. 
 
 Here were built a row of barracks for the work-
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 189 
 
 men, and several apartments connected with the 
 engineer's office, mouldmakers' department, stores, 
 workshops for smiths and joiners, stables, etc., ex- 
 tending 150 feet along the north side of the yard. 
 All of these were fully occupied, there being upwards 
 of forty men employed permanently. 
 
 Sheds of timber were also constructed to protect 
 the workmen in wet weather ; and a kiln was built 
 for burning lime. In the centre of the yard stood a 
 circular platform of masonry on which the stones 
 were placed when dressed, so that each stone was 
 tested and marked, and each " course" or layer of 
 the lighthouse fitted up and tried, before being 
 shipped to the rock. 
 
 The platform measured 44 feet in diameter. It 
 was founded with large broad stones at a depth of 
 about 2 feet 6 inches, and built to within 10 inches 
 of the surface with rubble work, on which a course of 
 neatly dressed and well-jointed masonry was laid, 
 of the red sandstone from the quarries to the east- 
 ward of Arbroath, which brought the platform on 
 a level with the surface of the ground. Here the 
 dressed part of the first entire course, or layer, of 
 the lighthouse was lying, and the platform was so 
 substantially built as to be capable of supporting 
 any number of courses which it might be found 
 convenient to lay upon it in the further progress 
 of the work.
 
 190 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 Passing this platform, the captain and Ruby 
 threaded their way through a mass of workyard 
 debris until they came to the building from which 
 the sounds of the anvil proceeded. For a few 
 minutes they stood looking at our old friend Jamie 
 Dove, who, with bared arms, was causing the sparks 
 to fly, and the glowing metal to yield, as vigorously 
 as of old. Presently he ceased hammering, and 
 turning to the fire thrust the metal into it. Then 
 he wiped his brow, and glanced towards the door. 
 
 "What! eh! Euby Brand?" he shouted in sur- 
 prise. 
 
 " Och ! or his ghost !" cried Ned O'Connor, who 
 had been appointed to Ruby's vacant situation. 
 
 " A pretty solid ghost you '11 find me," said Ruby 
 with a laugh, as he stepped forward and seized the 
 smith by the hand. 
 
 " Musha ! but it 's thrue," cried O'Connor, quitting 
 the bellows, and seizing Ruby's disengaged hand, 
 which he shook almost as vehemently as the smith 
 did the other. 
 
 " Now, then, don't dislocate him altogether," cried 
 the captain, who was much delighted with this 
 warm reception; "he's goin' to jine you, boys, so 
 have mercy on his old timbers." 
 
 " Jine us !" cried the smith. 
 
 " Ay, been appointed to the old berth," said 
 Ruby, " so T '11 have to unship you, Ned."
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 191 
 
 " The sooner the better ; faix, I niver had much 
 notion o' this fiery style o' life; it's only fit for 
 sallymanders and bottle-imps. But when d' ye be- 
 gin work, lad?" 
 
 " To-morrow, f believe. At least, I was told to 
 c&ll at the office to-morrow. To-day I have an en- 
 gagement." 
 
 " Ay, an' it 's time we was under weigh," said 
 Captain Ogilvy, taking his nephew by the arm. 
 " Come along, lad, an' don't keep them waiting." 
 
 So saying they bade the smith goodbye, and, 
 leaving the forge, walked smartly towards that part 
 of the harbour where the boats lay. 
 
 "Ruby," said the captain, as they went along, 
 " it's lucky it's such a fine day, for Minnie is going 
 with us." 
 
 Ruby said nothing, but the deep flush of pleasure 
 that overspread his countenance proved that he was 
 not indifferent to the news. 
 
 " You see she 's bin out of sorts," continued the 
 captain, " for some time back ; and no wonder, 
 poor thing, seein' that your mother has been so 
 anxious about you, and required more than usual 
 care, so I Ve prevailed on the leftenant to let her 
 go. She'll get good by our afternoon's sail, and 
 we won't be the worse of her company. What 
 say ye to that, nephy ?" 
 
 Ruby said that he was glad to hear it ; but he
 
 192 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 thought a great deal more than he said, and among 
 other things he thought that the lieutenant might 
 perhaps be rather in the way ; but as his presence 
 was unavoidable, he made up his mind to try to 
 believe that he, the lieutenant, would in all pro- 
 bability be an engaged man already. As to the 
 possibility of his seeing Minnie and being indifferent 
 to her (in the event of his being a free man), he felt 
 that such an idea was preposterous ! Suddenly a 
 thought flashed across him and induced a question 
 
 "Is the lieutenant married, uncle ?" 
 
 " Not as I know of, lad ; why d' ye ask ?" 
 
 'Because because married men are so much 
 pleasanter than " 
 
 Ruby stopped short, for he just then remembered 
 that his uncle was a bachelor. 
 
 " Ton my word, youngster ! go on, why d' ye stop 
 in your purlite remark ?" 
 
 " Because," said Ruby, laughing, " I meant to say 
 that young married men were so much more agree - 
 able than young bachelors." 
 
 " Humph !" ejaculated the captain, who did not 
 see much force in the observation, " and how d' ye 
 know the leftenant 's a young man ? I didn't say 
 he was young ; mayhap he 's old. But here he is, 
 so you 11 judge for yourself." 
 
 At the moment a tall, deeply-bronzed man of 
 about thirty years of age walked up and greeted
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 193 
 
 Captain Ogilvy familiarly as his " buck," inquiring, 
 at the same time, how his " old timbers" were, and 
 where the " bit of baggage" was. 
 
 " She *s to be at the end o' the pier in five minutes," 
 said the captain, drawing out and consulting a watch 
 that was large enough to have been mistaken for a 
 small eight-day clock. " This is my nephy, Euby. 
 Euby Brand Leftenant Lindsay. True blues, both 
 of ye 
 
 ' When shall we three meet again ? 
 Where the stormy winds do blow, do blow, do blow, 
 
 And the thunder, lightening and the rain, 
 Riots up above, and also down below, below, below." 
 
 Ah ! here comes the pretty little craft." 
 
 Minnie appeared as he spoke, and walked towards 
 them with a modest, yet decided air that was posi- 
 tively bewitching. 
 
 She was dressed in homely garments, but that 
 served to enhance the beauty of her figure, and she 
 had on the plainest of little bonnets, but that only 
 tended to make her face more lovely. Euby thought 
 it was perfection. He glanced at Lieutenant Lind- 
 say, and perceiving that he thought so too, (as how 
 could he think otherwise ?) a pang of jealousy shot 
 into his breast. But it passed away when the 
 lieutenant, after politely assisting Minnie into the 
 boat, sat down beside the captain and began to talk 
 earnestly to him, leaving Minnie entirely to her 
 lover. We may remark here, that the title of " lef- 
 
 N
 
 194 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 tenant," bestowed on Lindsay by the captain, was 
 entirely complimentary. 
 
 The crew of the boat rowed out of the harbour, 
 and the lieutenant steered eastward, towards the 
 cliffs that have been mentioned in an earlier part of 
 our talf 
 
 The aay turned out to be one of those magnificent 
 and exceptional days which appear to have been 
 cut out of summer and interpolated into autumn. It 
 was bright, warm, and calm, so calm that the boat's 
 sail was useless, and the crew had to row ; but this 
 was, in Minnie's estimation, no disadvantage, for it 
 gave her time to see the caves and picturesque 
 inlets which abound all along that rocky coast. It 
 also gave her time to but no matter. 
 
 " how very much I should like to have a little 
 boat," said Minnie, with enthusiasm, " and spend a 
 long day rowing in and out among these wild rocks, 
 and exploring the caves ! wouldn't it be delightful, 
 Ruby?" 
 
 Euby admitted that it would, and added, " You 
 shall have such a day, Minnie, if we live long." 
 
 " Have you ever been in the Forbidden Cave ?" 
 inquired Minnie. 
 
 " I '11 warrant you he has," cried the captain, who 
 overheard the question ; " you may be sure that 
 wherever Euby is forbidden to go, there he'll be 
 sure to go !"
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 195 
 
 " Ay, is he so self-willed ?" asked the lieutenant, 
 with a smile, and a glance at Minnie. 
 
 " A mule ; a positive mule," said the captain. 
 
 " Come, uncle, you know that I don't deserve such 
 a character, and it 's too bad to give it to me to-day. 
 Did I not agree to come on this excursion at once, 
 when you asked me ?" 
 
 "Ay, but you wouldn't if I had ordered you," 
 returned the captain. 
 
 " I rather think he would," observed the lieu- 
 tenant, with another smile, and another glance at 
 Minnie. 
 
 Both smiles and glances were observed and noted 
 by Euby, whose heart felt another pang shoot 
 through it ; but this, like the former, subsided when 
 the lieutenant again addressed the captain, and de- 
 voted himself to him so exclusively, that Euby 
 began to feel a touch of indignation at his want of 
 appreciation of such a girl as Minnie. 
 
 " He 's a stupid ass," thought Euby to himself, 
 and then, turning to Minnie, directed her attention 
 to a curious natural arch on the cliffs, and sought to 
 forget all the rest of the world. 
 
 In this effort he was successful, and had gradually 
 worked himself into the firm belief that the world 
 was paradise, and that he and Minnie were its sole 
 occupants a second edition, as it were, of Adam 
 and Eve when the lieutenant rudely dispelled the
 
 196 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 sweet dream by saying sharply to the man at the 
 bow- oar 
 
 " Is that the boat, Baker ? You ought to know it 
 pretty well" 
 
 " I think it is, sir," answered the man, resting on 
 his oar a moment, and glancing over his shoulder ; 
 " but I can't be sure at this distance." 
 
 " Well, pull easy," said the lieutenant ; " you see, 
 it won't do to scare them, Captain Ogilvy, and 
 they '11 think we 're a pleasure party when they see 
 a woman in the boat." 
 
 Euby thought they would not be far wrong in 
 supposing them a pleasure party. He objected, men- 
 tally, however, to Minnie being styled a " woman" 
 not that he would have had her called a man, but he 
 thought that girl would have been more suitable 
 angel, perhaps, the most appropriate term of all. 
 
 " Come, captain, I think I will join you in a pipe," 
 said the lieutenant, pulling out a tin case, in which 
 he kept the blackest of little cutty pipes. " In days 
 of old our ancestors loved to fight now we degen- 
 erate souls love to smoke the pipe of peace." 
 
 " I did not know that your ancestors were ene- 
 mies," said Minnie to the captain. 
 
 " Enemies, lass ! ay, that they were. What ! 
 have ye never heard tell o' the great fight between 
 the Ogilvys and Lindsays ?" 
 
 " Never," said Minnie.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 197 
 
 " Then, my girl, your education has been neglected, 
 but I '11 do what I can to remedy that defect" 
 
 Here the captain rekindled his pipe (which was 
 in the habit of going out, and requiring to be re- 
 lighted), and, clearing his throat with the emphasis 
 of one who is about to communicate something of 
 importance held forth as follows.
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 JTHE BATTLB OF ARBROATH, AND OTHER WARLIKE MATTERS. 
 
 " IT was in the year 1445 that's not far short o' 
 four hundred years ago ah ! tempus fugit, which is 
 a Latin quotation, my girl, from Horace Walpole, I 
 believe, an' signifies time an' tide waits for no man ; 
 that's what they calls a free translation, you must 
 know; well, it was in the winter o' 1445 that a 
 certain Alexander Ogilvy of Inverquharity was 
 chosen to act as Chief Justiciar in these parts I 
 suppose that means a kind of upper bailiff, a sort o' 
 bo's'n's mate, to compare great things with small 
 He was set up in place of one o' the Lindsay family, 
 who, it seems, was rather extravagant, though 
 whether his extravagance lay in wearin' a beard (for 
 he was called Earl Beardie), or in spendin' too much 
 cash, I can't take upon me for to say. Anyhow, 
 Beardie refused to haul down his colours, so the 
 Ogilvys mustered their men and friends, and the 
 Lindsays did the same, and they went at it, hammer 
 and tongs, and fowt what ye may call the Battle of
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 199 
 
 Arbroath, for it was close to the old town where 
 they fell to. 
 
 " It was a most bloody affair. The two families 
 were connected with many o' the richest and greatest 
 people in the land, and these went to lend a hand 
 when they beat to quarters, and there was no end 
 o' barbed horses, as they call them which means 
 critters with steel spikes in their noses, I 'm told 
 and lots of embroidered banners and flags, though I 
 never heard that any one hoisted the Union Jack ; 
 but, however that may be, they fowt like blue- 
 jackets, for five hundred men were left dead on the 
 field, an' among them a lot o' the great folk. 
 
 "But I'm sorry to say that the Ogilvys were 
 licked, though I say it that shouldn't," continued 
 the captain, with a sigh, as he relighted his pipe. 
 - Howsever, 
 
 ' Never ventur", never win, 
 Blaze away an' don't give in, 
 
 as Milton remarks in his preface to the Pilgrim's 
 Progress." 
 
 "True, captain," said the lieutenant, "and you 
 know that ' he who fights and runs away, shall live 
 to fight another day.' " 
 
 "Leftenant," said the captain gravely, "your 
 quotation, besides bein' a kind o' desecration, is not 
 applicable ; 'cause the Ogilvys did not run away. 
 They fowt on that occasion like born imps, an' they
 
 200 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 would ha' certainly won the day, if they hadn't 
 been, every man-jack of 'em, cut to pieces before 
 the battle was finished." 
 
 " Well said, uncle," exclaimed Ruby, with a laugh. 
 " No doubt the Ogilvys would lick the Lindsays 
 now if they had a chance." 
 
 " I believe they would," said the lieutenant, " for 
 they have become a race of heroes since the great 
 day of the Battle of Arbroath. No doubt, Miss 
 Gray," continued the lieutenant, turning to Minnie 
 with an arch smile, " no doubt you have heard of 
 that more recent event, the threatened attack on 
 Arbroath by the French fire-eater, Captain Fall, and 
 the heroic part played on that occasion by an 
 Ogilvy an uncle, I am told, of my good friend 
 here ?" 
 
 " I have heard of Captain Fall, of course," replied 
 Minnie, " for it was not many years before I was 
 born that his visit took place, and Mrs. Brand has 
 often told me of the consternation into which the 
 town was thrown by his doings ; but I never heard 
 of the deeds of the Ogilvy to whom you refer." 
 
 " No ? Now, that is surprising ! How comes it, 
 captain, that you have kept so silent on this subject ?" 
 
 " 'Cause it ain't true," replied the captain stoutly, 
 yet with a peculiar curl about the corners of his 
 mouth, that implied something in the mind beyond 
 what he expressed with the lips.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 201 
 
 " Ah I I see modesty," said Lindsay. " Your 
 uncle is innately modest, Miss Gray, and never 
 speaks of anything that bears the slightest resem- 
 blance to boasting. See, the grave solemnity with 
 which he smokes while I say this proves the truth 
 of my assertion. Well, since he has never told you, 
 I will tell you myself. You have no objection, 
 captain ?" 
 
 The captain sent a volume of smoke from his lips, 
 and followed it up with 
 
 " Fire away, shipmet." 
 
 The lieutenant, having drawn a few whiffs in ordei 
 to insure the continued combustion of his pipe, related 
 the following anecdote, which is now matter of his- 
 tory, as any one may find by consulting the archives 
 of Arbroath. 
 
 " In the year 1781, on a fine evening of the month 
 of May, the seamen of Arbroath who chanced to be 
 loitering about the harbour observed a strange vessel 
 manoeuvring in the offing. They watched and com- 
 mented on the motions of the stranger with consider- 
 able interest, for the wary skill displayed by her 
 commander proved that he was unacquainted with 
 the navigation of the coast, and from the cut of her 
 jib they knew that the craft was a foreigner. After 
 a time she took up a position, and cast anchor in the 
 bay, directly opposite the town. 
 
 " At that time we were, as we still are, and as it
 
 202 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 really appears likely to me we ever shall be, at war 
 with France ; but as the scene of the war was far 
 removed from Arbroath, it never occurred to the 
 good people that the smell of powder could reach 
 their peaceful town. That idea was somewhat rudely 
 forced upon them when the French flag was run up 
 to the mizzen-top, and a white puff of smoke burst 
 from the vessel, which was followed by a shot, that 
 went hissing over their heads, and plumped right 
 into the middle of the town ! 
 
 " That shot knocked over fifteen chimney-pots and 
 two weathercocks in Marketgate, went slap through 
 a house in the suburbs, and finally stuck in the 
 carcase of an old horse belonging to the Provost of 
 the town, which didn't survive the shock the horse, 
 I mean, not the Provost. 
 
 " It is said that there was an old gentleman lying 
 in bed in a room of the house that the shot went 
 through. He was a sort of ' hipped' character, and 
 believed that he could not walk, if he were to try 
 ever so much. He was looking quietly at the face 
 of a great Dutch clock when the shot entered and 
 knocked the clock inside out, sending its contents 
 in a shower over the old gentleman, who jumped up 
 and rushed out of the house like a maniac ! He was 
 cured completely from that hour. At least so it 's 
 said, but I don't vouch for the truth of the story. 
 
 " However, certain it is that the shot was fired,
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 203 
 
 and was followed up by two or three more ; after 
 which the Frenchman ceased firing, and a boat was 
 seen to quit the side of the craft, bearing a flag of 
 truce. 
 
 " The consternation into which the town was 
 thrown is said to have been tremendous." 
 
 " That 's false," interrupted the captain, removing 
 his pipe while he spoke. " The word ain't appro- 
 priate. The men of Arbroath doesn't know nothin 
 about no such word as ' consternation.' They was 
 surprised, if ye choose, an' powerfully enraged may- 
 hap, but they wasn't consternated by no means." 
 
 " Well, I don't insist on the point," said the 
 lieutenant, " but chroniclers write so " 
 
 " Chroniclers write lies sometimes," interrupted 
 the captain curtly. 
 
 " Perhaps they do ; but you will admit, I daresay, 
 that the women and children were thrown into a 
 great state of alarm." 
 
 " I 'm not so sure of that," interposed Euby. " In 
 a town where the men were so bold, the women and 
 children would be apt to feel very much at their ease. 
 At all events, I am acquainted with some women who 
 are not easily frightened." 
 
 " Really I think it is not fair to interrupt the story 
 in this way," said Minnie, with a laugh. 
 
 " Right, lass, right," said the captain. " Come, 
 leftenant, spin away at yer yarn, an' don't ventur
 
 204 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 too much commentary thereon, 'cause it 's apt to lead 
 to error, an' ye know, as the poet says 
 
 ' Errors in the heart breed errors in the brain, 
 An' these are apt to twist ye wrong again.' 
 
 I 'm not 'xactly sure o' the precise words in this case, 
 out that 's the sentiment, and everybody knows that 
 sentiment is everything in poetry, whether ye under- 
 stand it or not. Fire away, leftenant, an' don't be 
 long-winded if ye can help it." 
 
 " Well, to return to the point," resumed Lindsay. 
 " The town was certainly thrown into a tremendous 
 state of some sort, for the people had no arms of any 
 kind wherewith to defend themselves. There were 
 no regular soldiers, no militia, and no volunteers. 
 Everybody ran wildly about in every direction, not 
 knowing what to do. There was no leader, and, in 
 short, the town was very like a shoal of small fish 
 in a pool when a boy wades in and makes a dash 
 amongst them. 
 
 " At last a little order was restored by the Provost, 
 who was a sensible old man, and an old soldier to 
 boot, but too infirm to take as active a part in such 
 an emergency as he would have done had he been a 
 dozen years younger. He, with several of the prin- 
 cipal men of the town, went down to the beach to 
 receive the bearers of the flag of truce. 
 
 " The boat was manned by a crew of five or six 
 seamen, armed with cutlasses and arquebusses. As
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 205 
 
 soon as its keel grated on the sand a smart little 
 officer leaped ashore, and presented to the Provost 
 a letter from Captain Fall, which ran somewhat in 
 this fashion : 
 
 1 ' ' AT SEA, May twenty-third. 
 
 " ' GENTLEMEN, I send these two words to inform 
 you, that I will have you to bring-to the French 
 colour in less than a quarter of an hour, or I set the 
 town on fire directly. Such is the order of my 
 m ster, the King of France, I am sent by. Send 
 directly the Mair and chiefs of the town to make 
 some agreement with me, or I'll make my duty. 
 It is the will of yours. G. FALL. 
 
 " ' To MONSIEUR MAIR of the town 
 called Arbrought, or in his ab- 
 sence to the chief man after him 
 in Scotland.' 
 
 " On reading this the Provost bowed respectfully 
 to , the officer, and begged of him to wait a few 
 minutes while he should consult with his chief men. 
 This was agreed to, and the Provost said to his 
 friends, as he walked to a neighbouring house 
 
 " ' Ye see, freens, this whipper-snapper o' a tade- 
 eater has gotten the whup hand o' us ; but we '11 be 
 upsides wi' him. The main thing is to get delay, so 
 cut away, Tarn Cargill, and tak horse to Montrose 
 for the sodgers. Spare na the spur, lad, an' gar 
 them to understan' that the case is urgent'
 
 206 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " While Tarn Cargill started away on his mission, 
 the provost, whose chief aim was to gain time and 
 cause delay, penned an epistle to the Frenchman, in 
 which he stated that he had neglected to name the 
 terms on which he would consent to spare the town, 
 and that he would consider it extremely obliging if 
 he would, as speedily as possible, return an answer, 
 stating them, in order that they might be laid before 
 the chief men of the place. 
 
 " When the Provost, who was a grave, dignified 
 old man, with a strong dash of humour in him, 
 handed this note to the French officer, he did so 
 with a humble obeisance that appeared to afford 
 much gratification to the little man. As the latter 
 jumped into the boat and ordered the men to push 
 off, the Provost turned slowly to his brother magi- 
 strates with a wink and a quiet smile that con- 
 vulsed them with suppressed laughter, and did more 
 to encourage any of the wavering or timid inhabi- 
 tants than if he had harangued them heroically for 
 an hour. 
 
 " Some time after the boat returned with a reply, 
 which ran thus : 
 
 " ' AT SEA, eight o'clock in the Afternoon. 
 
 " ' GENTLEMEN, I received just now your answer, 
 by which you say I ask no terms. I thought it was 
 useless, since I asked you to come aboard for agree- 
 ment. But here are my terms : I will have
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 207 
 
 30,000 sterling at least, and six of the chiefs men 
 of the town for otage. Be speedy, or I shot your 
 town away directly, and I set fire to it. I am, 
 gentleman, your servant, G. FALL. 
 
 " ' I sent some of my crew to you, but if some 
 harm happens to them, you '11 be sure we 11 hang up 
 the main-yard all the prisoners we have aboard. 
 
 "'To Monsieurs the chiefs men of 
 Arbrought in Scotland. ' 
 
 " I 'm not quite certain," continued the lieutenant, 
 " what were the exact words of the Provost's reply 
 to this letter, but they conveyed a distinct and con- 
 temptuous refusal to accede to any terms, and, I 
 believe, invited Fall to come ashore, where, if he 
 did not get precisely what he had asked, he would be 
 certain to receive a great deal more than he wanted. 
 
 "The enraged and disappointed Frenchman at 
 once began a heavy fire upon the town, and con- 
 tinued it for a long time, but fortunately it did 
 little or no harm, as the town lay in a somewhat 
 low position, and Fall's guns being too much elevated, 
 the shot passed over it. 
 
 " Next day another letter was sent to the Provost 
 by some fishermen, who were captured while fishing 
 off the Bell Rock This letter was as tremendous 
 as the two former. I can give it to you, word for 
 word, from memory.
 
 208 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " AT SEA, May 24th. 
 
 " ' GENTLEMEN, See whether you will come to 
 some terms with me, or I come in presently with 
 my cutter into the arbour, and I will cast down the 
 town all over. Make haste, because I have no time 
 to spare. I give you a quarter of an hour to your 
 decision, and after I '11 make my duty. I think it 
 would be better for you, gentlemen, to come some of 
 you aboard presently, to settle the affairs of your town. 
 You '11 sure no to be hurt. I give you my parole of 
 honour. I am your, G. FALL.' 
 
 " When the Provost .received this he looked round 
 and said, 'Now, gentlemen all, we'll hae to fight. 
 Send me Ogilvy.' 
 
 " ' Here I am, Provost,' cried a stout, active young 
 fellow ; something like what the captain must have 
 been when he was young, I should think !" 
 
 " Ahem !" coughed the captain. 
 
 " Well," continued Lindsay, " the Provost said, 
 ' Now, Ogilvy, you 're a smart cheel, an' ken aboot 
 war and strategy and the like : I charge ye to 
 organize the men o' the toon without delay, and tak 
 what steps ye think adveesable. Meanwhile, I'll 
 away and ripe oot a' the airms and guns I can find. 
 Haste ye, lad, an' mak as muckle noise aboot it as 
 ye can.' 
 
 " ' Trust me,' said Ogilvy, who appeared to have
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 209 
 
 been one of those men who regard a fight as a piece 
 of good fun. 
 
 "Turning to the multitude, who had heard the 
 commission given, and were ready for anything, he 
 shouted, ' Now, boys, ye heard the Provost. I need 
 not ask if you are all ready to fight ' 
 
 " A deafening cheer interrupted the speaker, who, 
 when it ceased, proceeded 
 
 " ' Well, then, I Ve but one piece of advice to give 
 ye : Obey orders at once. When I tell ye to halt, 
 stop dead like lamp-posts ; when I say, " Charge I" 
 go at them like wild cats, and drive the Frenchmen 
 into the sea !' ' Hurrah !' yelled the crowd, for they 
 were wild with excitement and rage, and only 
 wanted a leader to organize them and make them 
 formidable. When the cheer ceased, Ogilvy cried, 
 ' Now, then, every man who knows how to beat a 
 kettle-drum and blow a trumpet come here.' 
 
 "About twenty men answered to the summons, 
 and to these Ogilvy said aloud, in order that all 
 might hear, ' Go, get you all the trumpets, drums, 
 horns, bugles, and trombones in the town ; beat the 
 drums till they split, and blow the bugles till they 
 burst, and don't give in till ye can't go on. The 
 rest of you,' he added, turning to the crowd, 'go, 
 get arms, guns, swords, pistols, scythes, pitchforks, 
 pokers, anything, everything, and meet me at the 
 
 head of Marketgate away I' 

 
 210 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " No king of necromancers ever dispersed his 
 legions more rapidly than did Ogilvy on that occa- 
 sion. They gave one final cheer, and scattered like 
 chaff before the wind, leaving their commander alone, 
 with a select few, whom he kept by him as a sort of 
 staff to consult with and despatch with orders. 
 
 " The noise that instantly ensued in the town was 
 something pandemoniacal. Only three drums were 
 found, but tin kettles and pans were not wanting, 
 and these, superintended by Hugh Barr, the town 
 drummer, did great execution. Three key-bugles, 
 an old French horn, and a tin trumpet of a mail- 
 coach guard, were sounded at intervals in every 
 quarter of the town, while the men were marshalled, 
 and made to march hither and thither in detached 
 bodies, as if all were busily engaged in making pre- 
 parations for a formidable defence. 
 
 " In one somewhat elevated position a number of 
 men were set to work with spades, picks, and shovels, 
 to throw up an earthwork When it had assumed 
 sufficiently large dimensions to attract the attention 
 of the French, a body of men, with blue jackets, and 
 caps with bits of red flannel hanging down the sides, 
 were marched up behind it at the double, and posted 
 there. 
 
 " Meanwhile Ogilvy had prepared a dummy field- 
 piece, by dismounting a cart from its wheels and 
 fixing on the axle a great old wooden pump, not
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 211 
 
 unlike a big gun in shape ; another cart was attached 
 to this to represent a limber ; four horses were har- 
 nessed to the affair ; two men mounted these, and, 
 amid a tremendous flourish of trumpets and beating 
 of drums, the artillery went crashing along the streets 
 and up the eminence crowned by the earthwork, 
 where they wheeled the gun into position. 
 
 " The artillerymen sprang at the old pump like 
 true Britons, and began to sponge it out as if they 
 had been bred to gunnery from childhood, while the 
 limber was detached and galloped to the rear. In 
 this operation the cart was smashed to pieces, and 
 the two hindmost horses were thrown ; but this 
 mattered little, as they had got round a corner, and 
 the French did not see it. 
 
 " Fall and his brave men seem to have been upset 
 altogether by these warlike demonstrations, for the 
 moment the big gun made its appearance the sails 
 were shaken loose, and the French privateer sheered 
 off, capturing as he left the bay, however, several 
 small vessels, which he carried off as prizes to 
 France. And so," concluded the lieutenant, " Cap- 
 tain Fall sailed away, and never was heard of 
 more." 
 
 " Well told ; well told, leftenant," cried the captain, 
 whose eyes sparkled at the concluding account of 
 the defensive operations, " and true every word of it." 
 
 " That 'B good testimony to my truthfulness, then,"
 
 212 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 said Lindsay, laughing, " for you were there your- 
 self!" 
 
 " There yourself, uncle ?" repeated Minnie, with a 
 glance of surprise that quickly changed into a look 
 of intelligence, as she exclaimed, with a merry laugh, 
 " Ah ! I see. It was you, uncle, who did it all ; who 
 commanded on that occasion " 
 
 " My child," said the captain, resuming his pipe 
 with an expression of mild reproof on his counte- 
 nance, " don't go for to pry too deep into things o' 
 the past. I may have been a fire-eater once I may 
 have been a gay young feller as could ; but no 
 matter. Avast musin' ! As Lord Bacon says 
 
 ' The light of other days is faded, 
 
 An' all their glory 'a past ; 
 My boots no longer look as they-did, 
 But, like my coat, are goin' fast ' 
 
 But I say, leftenant, how long do you mean to keep 
 pullin' about here, without an enemy, or, as far as 
 I can see, an object in view ? Don't you think we 
 might land, and let Minnie see some of the caves ?" 
 
 " With all my heart, captain, and here is a con- 
 venient bay to run the boat ashore." 
 
 As he spoke the boat shot past one of those bold 
 promontories of red sandstone which project along 
 that coast in wild picturesque forms, terminating in 
 some instances in detached headlands, elsewhere in 
 natural arches. The cliffs were so close to the boat 
 that they could have been touched by the oars, while
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 213 
 
 the rocks, rising to a considerable height, almost over- 
 hung them. Just beyond this a beautiful bay opened 
 up to view, with a narrow strip of yellow shingle 
 round the base of the cliffs, which here lost for a 
 short distance their rugged character, though not 
 their height, and were covered with herbage. A 
 zigzag path led to the top, and the whole neigh- 
 bourhood was full of ocean- worn caves and gullies, 
 some of them dry, and many filled with water, while 
 others were filled at high tide, and left empty when 
 the tides fell 
 
 " how beautiful ! and what a place for smug- 
 glers !" was Minnie's enthusiastic exclamation on 
 first catching sight of the bay. 
 
 " The smugglers and you would appear to be of 
 one mind," said Ruby, " for they are particularly 
 fond of this place." 
 
 " So fond of it," said the lieutenant, " that I mean 
 to wait for them here in anticipation of a moonlight 
 visit this night, if my fair passenger will consent to 
 wander in such wild places at such late hours, guarded 
 from the night-air by my boat-cloak, and assured of 
 the protection of my stout boatmen in case of any 
 danger, although there is little prospect of our meet- 
 ing with any greater danger than a breeze or a shower 
 of rain." 
 
 Minnie said that she would like nothing better ; 
 that she did not mind the night-air ; and, as to
 
 214 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 danger from men, she felt that she should be well 
 cared for in present circumstances. 
 
 As she uttered the last words she naturally glanced 
 at Ruby, for Minnie was of a dependent and trusting 
 nature ; but as Ruby happened to be regarding her 
 intently, though quite accidentally, at the moment, 
 she dropped her eyes and blushed. 
 
 It is wonderful the power of a little glance at 
 times. The glance referred to made Ruby perfectly 
 happy. It conveyed to him the assurance that 
 Minnie regarded the protection of the entire boat's 
 crew, including the lieutenant, as quite unnecessary, 
 and that she deemed his single arm all that she 
 required or wanted. 
 
 The sun was just dipping behind the tall cliffs, and 
 his parting rays were kissing the top of Minnie's head 
 as if they positively could not help it, and had reck- 
 lessly made up their mind to do it, come what might! 
 
 Ruby looked at the golden light kissing the golden 
 hair, and he felt 
 
 Oh ! you know, reader ; if you have ever been in 
 similar circumstances, you understand what he felt ; 
 if you have not, no words from me, or from any other 
 man, can ever convey to you the most distant idea 
 of what Ruby felt on that occasion ! 
 
 On reaching the shore they all went up to the 
 green banks at the foot of the cliffs, and turned 
 round to watch the men as they pulled the boat to a
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 215 
 
 convenient point for re-embarking at a moment's 
 notice. 
 
 " You see," said the lieutenant, pursuing a con- 
 versation which he had been holding with the cap- 
 tain, " I have been told that Big Swankie, and his 
 mate Davy Spink (who, it seems, is not over-friendly 
 with him just now), mean to visit one of the lugger? 
 which is expected to come in to-night, before the 
 moon rises, and bring off some kegs of Auchmithie 
 water, which, no doubt, they will try to hide in 
 Dickmont's Den. I shall lie snugly here on the 
 watch, and hope to nab them before they reach that 
 celebrated old smuggler's abode." 
 
 " Well, I '11 stay about here," said the captain, " and 
 show Minnie the caves. I would like to have taken 
 her to see the Gaylet Pot, which is one o' the queer- 
 est hereabouts ; but I 'm too old for such rough work 
 now." 
 
 " But / am not too old for it," interposed Euby, 
 " so if Minnie would like to go " 
 
 " But I won't desert you, uncle," said Minnie 
 hastily. 
 
 " Nay, lass, call it not desertion. I can smoke 
 my pipe here, an' contemplate. I 'm fond of con- 
 templation 
 
 ' By the starry light of the summer night, 
 On the banks of the blue Moselle ; ' 
 
 though, for the matter o' that, moonlight '11 do, if
 
 216 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 there's no stars. I think it's good for the mind, 
 Minnie, and keeps all taut. Contemplation is just 
 like takin' an extra pull on the lee braces. So you 
 may go with Euby, lass." 
 
 Thus advised, and being further urged by Euby 
 himself, and being moreover exceedingly anxious to 
 see this cave, Minnie consented ; so the two set off 
 together, and, climbing to the summit of the cliffs, 
 followed the narrow foot-path that runs close to their 
 giddy edge all along the coast. 
 
 In less than half-an-hour they reached the Giel 
 or Gaylet Pot.
 
 CHAPTEE XIX. 
 
 AN ADVENTURE SECRETS REVEALED, AND A PRIZE. 
 
 THE Giel or Gaylet Pot, down into which Kuby, 
 with great care and circumspection, led Minnie, is 
 one of the most curious of Nature's freaks among 
 the cliffs of Arbroath. 
 
 In some places there is a small scrap of pebbly 
 beach at the base of those perpendicular cliffs ; in 
 most places there is none the cliffs presenting to 
 the sea almost a dead wall, where neither ship nor 
 boat could find refuge from the storm. 
 
 The country inland, however, does not partake of 
 the rugged nature of the cliffs. It slopes gradually 
 towards them so gradually that it may be termed 
 flat, and if a stranger were to walk towards the sea 
 over the fields in a dark night, the first intimation 
 he would receive of his dangerous position would be 
 when his foot descended into the terrible abyss that 
 would receive his shattered frame a hundred feet 
 below. 
 
 In one of the fields there is a hole about a hundred
 
 218 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 yards across, and as deep as the cliffs in that part 
 are high. It is about fifty or eighty yards from the 
 edge of the cliffs, and resembles an old quarry ; but 
 it is cut so sharply out of the flat field that it shows 
 no sign of its existence until the traveller is close 
 upon it. The rocky sides, too, are so steep, that at 
 first sight it seems as if no man could descend into it. 
 But the most peculiar point about this hole is, that at 
 the foot of it there is the opening of a cavern, through 
 which the sea rolls into the hole, and breaks in 
 wavelets on a miniature shore. The sea has forced 
 its way inland and underground until it has burst 
 into the bottom of this hole, which is not inaptly 
 compared to a pot with water boiling at the bottom 
 of it. When a spectator looks into the cave, standing 
 at the bottom of the "Pot," he sees the seaward 
 opening at the other end a bright spot of light in 
 the dark interior. 
 
 "You won't get nervous, Minnie?" said Euby, 
 pausing when about half-way down the steep de- 
 clivity, where the track, or rather the place of descent, 
 became still more steep and difficult ; " a slip here 
 would be dangerous." 
 
 " I have no fear, Euby, as long as you keep by me." 
 
 In a few minutes they reached the bottom, and, 
 
 looking up, the sky appeared above them like a blue 
 
 circular ceiling, with the edges of the Gaylet Pot 
 
 sharply defined against it
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 219 
 
 Proceeding over a mass of fallen rock, they reached 
 the pebbly strand at the cave's inner mouth. 
 
 " I can see the interior now, as my eyes become 
 accustomed to the dim light," said Minnie, gazing up 
 wistfully into the vaulted roof, where the edges of 
 projecting rocks seemed to peer out of darkness. 
 " Surely this must be a place for smugglers to come 
 to!" 
 
 " They don't often come here, Minnie. The place 
 is not so suitable as many of the other caves are." 
 
 From the low, subdued tones in which they both 
 spoke, it was evident that the place inspired them 
 with feelings of awe. 
 
 " Come, Minnie," said Euby at length, in a more 
 cheerful tone, " let us go into this cave and explore 
 it." 
 
 " But the water may be deep," objected Minnie ; 
 " besides, I do not like to wade, even though it be 
 shallow." 
 
 " Nay, sweet one; do you think I would ask you to 
 wet your pretty feet ? There is very little wading re- 
 quired. See, I have only to raise you in my arms and 
 take two steps into the water, and a third step to the 
 left round that projecting rock, where I can set you 
 down on another beach inside the cave. Your eyes 
 will soon get used to the subdued light, and then 
 you will see things much more clearly than you 
 would think it possible viewed from this point."
 
 220 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 Minnie did not require much pressing. She had 
 perfect confidence in her lover, and was naturally 
 fearless in disposition, so she was soon placed on the 
 subterranean beach of the Gaylet Cave, and for some 
 time wandered about in the dimly-lighted place, 
 leaning on Euby's arm. 
 
 Gradually their eyes became accustomed to the 
 place, and then its mysterious beauty and wildness 
 began to have full effect on their minds, inducing 
 them to remain for a long time silent, as they sat 
 side by side on a piece of fallen rock. 
 
 They sat looking in the direction of the seaward 
 entrance to the cavern, where the light glowed 
 brightly on the rocks, gradually losing its brilliancy 
 as it penetrated the cave, until it became quite 
 dim in the centre. No part of the main cave 
 was quite dark, but the offshoot, in which the 
 lovers sat, was almost dark To any one viewing 
 it from the outer cave it would have appeared com- 
 pletely so. 
 
 " Is that a sea-gull at the outlet ?" inquired 
 Minnie, after a long pause. 
 
 Euby looked intently for a moment in the direc- 
 tion indicated. 
 
 " Minnie," he said quickly, and in a tone of sur- 
 prise, " that is a large gull, if it be one at all, and uses 
 oars instead of wings. Who can it be ? Smugglers 
 never come htsre that I am aware of, and Lindsay is
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 221 
 
 not a likely man to waste his time in pulling about 
 when he has other work to do." 
 
 " Perhaps it may be some fishermen from Auch- 
 mithie," suggested Minnie, " who are fond of explor- 
 ing, like you and me." 
 
 " Mayhap it is, but we shall soon see, for here they 
 come. We must keep out of sight, my girL" 
 
 Ruby rose and led Minnie into the recesses of 
 the cavern, where they were speedily shrouded in 
 profound darkness, and could not be seen by any 
 one, although they themselves could observe all 
 that occurred in the space in front of them. 
 
 The boat, which had entered the cavern by its sea- 
 ward mouth, was a small one, manned by two fisher- 
 men, who were silent as they rowed under the arched 
 roof ; but it was evident that their silence did not 
 proceed from caution, for they made no effort to 
 prevent or check the noise of the oars. 
 
 In a few seconds the keel grated on the pebbles, 
 and one of the men leaped out 
 
 "Noo, Davy," he said, in a voice that sounded 
 deep and hollow under that vaulted roof, " oot wi 1 
 the kegs. Haste ye, man." 
 
 " "Tis Big Swankie," whispered Ruby. 
 
 " There 's nae hurry," objected the other fisherman, 
 who, we need scarcely inform the reader, was om 
 friend Davy Spink. 
 
 " Nae hurry !" repeated his comrade angrily. " Th at 's
 
 222 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 aye yer cry. Half o' oor ventures hae failed because 
 ye object to hurry." 
 
 " Hoot, man ! that 's enough o 't," said Spink, in 
 the nettled tone of a man who has been a good deal 
 worried. Indeed, the tones of both showed that 
 these few sentences were but the continuation of a 
 quarrel which had begun elsewhere. 
 
 " It 's plain to me that we must pairt, freen'," said 
 Swankie in a dogged manner, as he lifted a keg out 
 of the boat and placed it on the ground. 
 
 " Ay," exclaimed Spink, with something of a sneer, 
 " an' d' ye think I '11 pairt without a diveesion o' the 
 siller tea-pats and things that ye daurna sell for feai 
 o'bein'fund out?" 
 
 " I wonder ye dinna N claim half o' the jewels and 
 things as weel," retorted Swankie ; " ye hae mair 
 right to them, seein' ye had a hand in findin' them." 
 
 "Me a hand in findin' them," exclaimed Spink, 
 with sudden indignation. " Was it me that fand the 
 deed body o' the auld man on the Bell Eock ? Na, 
 na, freend. I hae naething to do wi' deed men's 
 jewels." 
 
 " Have ye no ?" retorted the other. " It 's strange, 
 then, that ye should entertain such sma' objections 
 to deed men's siller." 
 
 " Weel-a-weel, Swankie, the less we say on thae 
 matters the better. Here, tak haud o' the tither keg." 
 
 The conversation ceased at this stage abruptly.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 223 
 
 Evidently each had touched on the other's weak 
 point, so both tacitly agreed to drop the subject. 
 
 Presently Big Swankie took out a flint and steel, and 
 proceeded to strike a light. It was some time before 
 the tinder would catch. At each stroke of the steel 
 a shower of brilliant sparks lit up his countenance 
 for an instant, and this momentary glance showed 
 that its expression was not prepossessing by any 
 means. 
 
 Euby drew Minnie further into the recess which 
 concealed them, and awaited the result with some 
 anxiety, for he felt that the amount of knowledge 
 with which he had become possessed thus uninten- 
 tionally, small though it was, was sufficient to justify 
 the smugglers in regarding him as a dangerous 
 enemy. 
 
 He had scarcely drawn himself quite within the 
 shadow of the recess, when Swankie succeeded in 
 kindling a torch, which filled the cavern with a lurid 
 light, and revealed its various forms, rendering it, if 
 possible, more mysterious and unearthly than ever. 
 
 " Here, Spink," cried Swankie, who was gradually 
 getting into better humour, " haud the light, and gie 
 me the spade." 
 
 " Ye better put them behind the rock, far in," 
 suggested Spink. 
 
 The other seemed to entertain this idea for a 
 moment, for he raised the torch above his head, and,
 
 224 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 advancing into the cave, carefully examined the 
 rocks at the inner end. 
 
 Step by step he drew near to the place where 
 Ruby and Minnie were concealed, muttering to him- 
 self, as he looked at each spot that might possibly 
 suit his purpose, " Na, na, the waves wad wash the 
 kegs oot o' that if it cam' on to blaw." 
 
 He made another step forward, and the light fell 
 almost on the head of Ruby, who felt Minnie's arm 
 tremble. He clenched his hands with that feeling 
 of resolve that comes over a man when he has made 
 up his mind to fight. 
 
 Just then an exclamation of surprise escaped from 
 his comrade. 
 
 " Losh ! man, what have we here ?" he cried, pick- 
 ing up a small object that glittered in the light. 
 
 Minnie's heart sank, for she could see that the 
 thing was a small brooch which she was in the 
 habit of wearing in her neckerchief, and which 
 must have been detached when Euby carried her 
 into the cave. 
 
 She felt assured that this would lead to their dis- 
 covery ; but it had quite the opposite effect, for it 
 caused Swankie to turn round and examine the 
 trinket with much curiosity. 
 
 A long discussion as to how it could have come 
 there immediately ensued between the smugglers, 
 in the midst of which a wavelet washed against
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 225 
 
 Swankie's feet, reminding him that the tide was 
 rising, and that he had no time to lose. 
 
 " There 's nae place behint the rocks," said he 
 quickly, putting the brooch in his pocket, " so we 11 
 just hide the kegs amang the stanes. Lucky for us 
 that we got the rest o' the cargo run ashore at Auch- 
 mithie. This '11 lie snugly here, and we '11 pull past 
 the leftenant, who thinks we havena seen him, with 
 oor heeds up and oor tongues in oor cheeks." 
 
 They both chuckled heartily at the idea of dis- 
 appointing the preventive officer, and while one held 
 the torch the other dug a hole in the beach deep 
 enough to contain the two kegs. 
 
 "In ye go, my beauties," said Swankie, covering 
 them up. " Mony 's the time I Ve buried ye." 
 
 " Ay, an' mony 's the time ye 've helped at their 
 reesurrection," added Spink, with a laugh. 
 
 " Noo, we '11 away an' have a look at the kegs in 
 the Forbidden Cave," said Swankie, " see that they 're 
 a' richt, an' then have our game wi' the land-sharks." 
 
 Next moment the torch was dashed against the 
 stones and extinguished, and the two men, leaping 
 into their boat, rowed away. As they passed through 
 the outer cavern, Ruby heard them arrange to go 
 back to Auchmithie. Their voices were too indis- 
 tinct to enable him to ascertain their object in doing 
 so, but he knew enough of the smugglers to enable 
 him to guess that it was for the purpose of warning 
 
 P
 
 226 THE LWJHTHOUSE. 
 
 some of their friends of the presence of the preven 
 tive boat, which their words proved that they had 
 seen. 
 
 " Now, Minnie," said he, starting up as soon as the 
 boat had disappeared, " this is what I call good luck, 
 for not only shall we be able to return with some- 
 thing to the boat, but we shall be able to intercept 
 Big Swankie and his comrade, and offer them a glass 
 of their own gin !" 
 
 " Yes, and I shall be able to boast of having had 
 quite a little adventure," said Minnie, who, now that 
 her anxiety was over, began to feel elated. 
 
 They did not waste time in conversation, however, 
 for the digging up of two kegs from a gravelly beach 
 with fingers instead of a spade was not a quick or 
 easy thing to do ; so Euby found as he went down on 
 his knees in that dark place and began the work. 
 
 " Can I help you ?" asked his fair companion after 
 a time. 
 
 " Help me ! What ? Chafe and tear your little 
 hands with work that all but skins mine ? Nay, 
 truly. But here comes one, and the other will soon 
 follow. Yo, heave, HO !" 
 
 With the well-known nautical shout Euby put 
 forth an herculean effort, and tore the kegs out of the 
 earth. After a short pause, he carried Minnie out 
 of the cavern, and led her to the field above by the 
 same path by which they had descended.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 227 
 
 Then he returned for the kegs of gin. They were 
 very heavy, but not too heavy for the strength of 
 the young giant, who was soon hastening with rapid 
 strides towards the bay, where they had left theii 
 friends. He bore a keg under each arm, and Minnie 
 tripped lightly by his side, and laughingly too, for 
 she enjoyed the thought of the discomfiture that was 
 in store for the smugglers.
 
 CHAPTEE XX. 
 
 THE SMUGGLERS ARE " "HEATED " TO GIN AND ASTONISHMENT. 
 
 THEY found the lieutenant and Captain Ogilvy 
 stretched on the grass, smoking their pipes together. 
 The daylight had almost deepened into night, and a 
 few stars were beginning to twinkle in the sky. 
 
 " Hey! what have we here smugglers ?" cried the 
 captain, springing up rather quickly, as Euby came 
 unexpectedly on them. 
 
 " Just so, uncle," said Minnie, with a laugh. " We 
 have here some gin, smuggled all the way from Hol- 
 land, and have come to ask your opinion of it." 
 
 " Why, Euby, how came you by this ?" inquired 
 Lindsay in amazement, as he examined the kegs 
 with critical care. 
 
 "Suppose I should say that I have been taken 
 into confidence by the smugglers, and then betrayed 
 them ?" 
 
 " I should reply that the one idea was improbable, 
 the other impossible," returned the lieutenant.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 229 
 
 " Well, I have at all events found out their secrets, 
 and now I reveal them." 
 
 In a few words Euby acquainted his friends with 
 all that has just been narrated. 
 
 The moment he had finished, the lieutenant ordered 
 his men to launch the boat. The kegs were put into 
 the stern-sheets, the party embarked, and, pushing 
 off, they rowed gently out of the bay, and crept 
 slowly along shore, under the deep shadow of the 
 cliffs. 
 
 " How dark it is getting ! " said Minnie, after they 
 had rowed for some time in silence. 
 
 " The moon will soon be up," said the lieutenant. 
 " Meanwhile 1 11 cast a little light on the subject by 
 having a pipe. Will you join me, captain ?" 
 
 This was a temptation which the captain never 
 resisted ; indeed, he did not regard it as a tempta- 
 tion at all, and would have smiled at the idea of re- 
 sistance. 
 
 " Minnie, lass," said he, as he complacently filled 
 the blackened bowl, and calmly stuffed down the 
 glowing tobacco with the end of that marvellously 
 callous little finger, " it 's a wonderful thing that 
 baccy. I don't know what man would do with- 
 out it." 
 
 " Quite as well as woman does, I should think," 
 replied Minnie. 
 
 " I 'm not so sure of that, lass ; it 's more nat'ral
 
 230 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 for man to smoke than for woman. Ye see, woman, 
 lovely woman, should be ' all my fancy painted her, 
 both lovely and divine.' It would never do to have 
 baccy perfumes hangin' about her rosy lips." 
 
 " But, uncle, why should man have the disagree- 
 able perfumes you speak of hanging about his lips ?" 
 
 " I don't know, lass. It 's all a matter o' feeling. 
 ' 'Twere vain to tell thee all I feel, how much my 
 heart would wish to say;' but of this I'm certain 
 sure, that I 'd never git along without my pipe. It 's 
 like compass, helm, and ballast all in one. Is that 
 the moon, leftenant ?" 
 
 The captain pointed to a faint gleam of light on 
 the horizon, which he knew well enough to be the 
 moon ; but he wished to change the subject. 
 
 " Ay is it, and there comes a boat. Steady, men ! 
 lay on your oars a bit." 
 
 This was said earnestly. In one instant all were 
 silent, and the boat lay as motionless as the shadows 
 of the cliffs among which it was involved. 
 
 Presently the sound of oars was heard. Almost 
 at the same moment, the upper edge of the moon 
 rose above the horizon, and covered the sea with 
 rippling silver. Ere long a boat shot into this 
 stream of light, and rowed swiftly in the direction 
 of Arbroath. 
 
 " There are only two men in it," whispered the 
 lieutenant.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 231 
 
 " Ay, these are my good friends Swankie and 
 Spink, who know a deal more about other improper 
 callings besides smuggling, if I did not greatly mis- 
 take their words," said Euby. 
 
 " Give way, lads !" cried the lieutenant. 
 
 The boat sprang at the word from her position 
 under the cliffs, and was soon out upon the sea in 
 full chase of the smugglers, who bent to their oars 
 more lustily, evidently intending to trust to their 
 speed. 
 
 " Strange," 'said the lieutenant, as the distance 
 between the two began sensibly to decrease, "if 
 these be smugglers, with an empty boat, as you lead 
 me to suppose they are, they would only be too glad 
 to stop and let us see that they had nothing aboard 
 that we could touch. It leads me to think that you 
 are mistaken, Ruby Brand, and that these are not 
 your friends." 
 
 " Nay, the same fact convinces me that they are 
 the very men we seek ; for they said they meant to 
 have some game with you, and what more amusing 
 than to give you a long hard chase for nothing ?" 
 
 "True; you are right. Well, we will turn the 
 tables on them. Take the helm for a minute, while 
 I tap one of the kegs." 
 
 The tapping was soon accomplished, and a quan- 
 tity of the spirit was drawn off into the captain's 
 pocket-flask.
 
 232 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " Taste it, captain, and let 's have your opinion." 
 
 Captain Ogilvy complied. He put the flask to 
 his lips, anJ, on removing it, Gmacked them, and 
 looked at the party with that extremely grave, 
 almost solemn expression, which is usually assumed 
 by a man when strong liquid is being put to the 
 delicate test of his palate. 
 
 " Oh !" exclaimed the captain, opening his eyes 
 vory wide indeed. 
 
 What " oh" meant, was rather doubtful at first ; 
 but when the captain put the flask again to his lips, 
 and took another pull, a good deal longer than the 
 first, much, if not all of the doubt was removed. 
 
 " Prime ! nectar !" he murmured, in a species of 
 subdued ecstasy, at the end of the second draught. 
 
 " Evidently the right stuff," said Lindsay, laughing 
 
 " Liquid streams celestial nectar, 
 Darted through the ambient sky," 
 
 said the captain ; " liquid, ay, liquid is the word." 
 He was about to test the liquid again : 
 " Stop ! stop ! fair play, captain ; it 's my turn 
 now," cried the lieutenant, snatching the flask from 
 his friend's grasp, and applying it to his own 
 lips. 
 
 Both the lieutenant and Euby pronounced the gin 
 perfect, and as Minnie positively refused either to 
 taste or to pronounce judgment, the flask was re- 
 turned to its owner's pocket.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 233 
 
 They were now close on the smugglers, whom they 
 hailed, and commanded to lay on their oars. 
 
 The order was at once obeyed, and the boats were 
 speedily rubbing sides together. 
 
 " I should like to examine your boat, friends," said 
 the lieutenant, as he stepped across the gunwales. 
 
 " Oh ! sir, I 'm thankfu' to find you 're not smug- 
 glers," said Swankie, with an assumed air of mingled 
 respect and alarm. " If we 'd only know'd ye was 
 preventives we 'd ha' backed oars at once. There 's 
 nothin' here ; ye may seek as long 's ye please." 
 
 The hypocritical rascal winked slily to his com- 
 rade as he said this. Meanwhile Lindsay and one 
 of the men examined the contents of the boat, and, 
 finding nothing contraband, the former said 
 
 " So, you're honest men, I find. Fishermen, 
 doubtless ?" 
 
 " Ay, some o' yer crew ken us brawly," said Davy 
 Spink with a grin. 
 
 "Well, I won't detain you," rejoined the lieu- 
 tenant ; " it 's quite a pleasure to chase honest men 
 on the high seas in these times of war and smug- 
 gling. But it 's too bad to have given you such a 
 fright, lads, for nothing. What say you to a glass 
 of gin?" 
 
 Big Swankie and his comrade glanced at each 
 other in surprise. They evidently thought this an 
 unaccountably polite Government officer, and were
 
 234 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 puzzled. However, they could do no less than accept 
 such a generous offer. 
 
 " Thank'ee, sir," said Big Swankie, spitting out his 
 quid and significantly wiping his mouth, " I hae nae 
 objection. Doubtless it'll be the best that the like 
 o' you carries in yer bottle." 
 
 "The best, certainly," said the lieutenant, as he 
 poured out a bumper, and handed it to the smuggler. 
 " It was smuggled, of course, and you see His 
 Majesty is kind enough to give his servants a little 
 of what they rescue from the rascals, to drink his 
 health." 
 
 " Weel, I drink to the King," said Swankie, " an' 
 confusion to all his enemies, 'specially to smugglers." 
 
 He tossed off the gin with infinite gusto, and 
 handed back the cup with a smack of the lips and a 
 look that plainly said " More, if you please !" 
 
 But the hint was not taken. Another bumper 
 was filled and handed to Davy Spink, who had been 
 eyeing the crew of the boat with great suspicion. 
 He accepted the cup, nodded curtly, and said 
 
 " Here 's t' ye, gentlemen, no forgettin' the fair 
 leddy in the stern-sheets." 
 
 "While he was drinking the gin the lieutenant 
 turned to his men 
 
 " Get out the keg, lads, from which that came, and 
 refill the flask. Hold it well up in the moonlight, 
 and see that ye don't spill a single drop, as you value
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 235 
 
 your lives. Hey ! my man, what ails you ? Does 
 the gin disagree with your stomach, or have you 
 never seen a smuggled keg of spirits before, that 
 you stare at it as if it were a keg of ghosts ?" 
 
 The latter part of this speech was addressed to 
 Swankie, who no sooner beheld the keg than his 
 eyes opened up until they resembled two great 
 oysters. His mouth slowly followed suit. Davy 
 Spinks' attention having been attracted, he became 
 subject to similar alterations of visage. 
 
 " Hallo !" cried the captain, while the whole crew 
 burst into a laugh, " you must have given them poison. 
 Have you a stomach-pump, doctor ?" he said, turning 
 hastily to Euby. 
 
 " No, nothing but a penknife and a tobacco-stopper. 
 If they 're of any use to you " 
 
 He was interrupted by a loud laugh from Big 
 Swankie, who quickly recovered his presence of 
 mind, and declared that he had never tasted such 
 capital stuff in his life. 
 
 " Have ye much o' t, sir ?" 
 
 " yes, a good deal I have two kegs of it " (the 
 lieutenant grinned very hard at this point), " and we 
 expect to get a little more to-night" 
 
 "Ha!" exclaimed Davy Spink, "there's no doot 
 plenty o' t in the coves hereaway, for they 're an 
 awfu' smugglin' set. Whan did ye find the twa 
 kegs, noo, if I may ask ? "
 
 236 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 '* Oh, certainly. I got them not more than an 
 hour ago." 
 
 The smugglers glanced at each other and were 
 struck dumb ; but they were now too much on theii 
 guard to let any farther evidence of surprise escape 
 them. 
 
 "Weel, I wush ye success, sirs," said Swankie, 
 sitting down to his oar. " It 's likely ye '11 come 
 across mair if ye try Dickmont's Den, There 'a 
 usually somethin' hidden thereaboots." 
 
 " Thank you, friend, for the hint," said the lieute- 
 nant, as he took his place at the tiller-ropes, " but I 
 shall have a look at the Gaylet Cove, I think, this 
 evening." 
 
 " What ! the Gaylet Cove ? " cried Spink " Ye 
 might as weel look for kegs at the bottom o' the 
 deep sea." 
 
 " Perhaps so ; nevertheless I have taken a fancy 
 to go there. If I find nothing, I will take a look 
 into the Forbidden Caw,? 
 
 " The Forbidden Cave !" almost howled Swankie. 
 " Wha iver heard o' smugglers hidin' onything there? 
 The air in : i wad pushen a rotten." 
 
 " Perhaps it would, yet I mean to try." 
 
 " Weel-a-weel, ye may try, but ye might as weel 
 seek for kegs o' gin on the Bell Eock." 
 
 " Ha ! it 's not the first time that strange things 
 have been found on the Bell Eock," said Euby
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 237 
 
 suddenly. " I have heard of jewels, even, being dis- 
 covered there." 
 
 " Give way, men ; shove off," cried the lieutenant. 
 " A pleasant pull to you, lads. Goodnight." 
 
 The two boats parted, and while the lieutenant 
 and his friends made for the shore, the smugglers 
 rowed towards Arbroath in a state of mingled amaze- 
 ment and despair at what they had heard and seen. 
 
 " It was Euby Brand that spoke last, Davy." 
 
 " Ay; he was i' the shadow o' Captain Ogilvy and 
 I couldna see his face, but I thought it like his voice 
 when he first spoke." 
 
 " Hoo can he hae come to ken aboot the jewels ?" 
 
 " That's mair than I can tell" 
 
 "111 bury them," said Swankie, "an' then it'll 
 puzzle onybody to tell whaur they are." 
 
 " Ye '11 please yoursell," said Spink. 
 
 Swankie was too angry to make any reply, or to 
 enter into further conversation with his comrade 
 about the kegs of gin, so they continued their way 
 in silence. 
 
 Meanwhile, as Lieutenant Lindsay and his men 
 had a night of work before them, the captain sug- 
 gested that Minnie, Ruby, and himself fVould be 
 landed within a mile of the town, and left to find 
 their way thither on foot. This was agreed to ; and 
 while the one party walked home bv the romantic 
 pathway at tne top of the cliffs, the other rowed away 
 to expl ore the dark recesses of the Forbidden Cave
 
 CHAPTEE XXI. 
 
 THfl BELL ROCK AGAIN A DREARY NIGHT IN A STRANGE HABITATION. 
 
 DURING that winter Ruby Brand wrought diligently 
 in the workyard at the lighthouse materials, and, by 
 living economically, began to save a small sum of 
 money, which he laid carefully by with a view to 
 his marriage with Minnie Gray. 
 
 Being an impulsive man, Ruby would have married 
 Minnie, then and there, without looking too earnestly 
 to the future. But his mother had advised him to 
 wait till he should have laid by a little for a " rainy 
 day." The captain had recommended patience, 
 tobacco, and philosophy, and had enforced his re- 
 commendations with sundry apt quotations from 
 dead and living novelists, dramatists, and poets. 
 Minnie herself, poor girl, felt that she ought not 
 to run counter to the wishes of her best and dearest 
 friends, so she too advised delay for a " little time ;" 
 and Ruby was fain to content himself with bewail- 
 ing his hard lot internally, and knocking Jamie 
 Dove's bellows, anvils, and sledge-hammers about
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 239 
 
 in a way that induced that son of Vulcan to believe 
 his assistant had gone mad ! 
 
 As for Big Swankie, he hid his ill-gotten gains 
 under the floor of his tumble- down cottage, and 
 went about his evil courses as usual in company 
 with liis comrade Davy Spink, who continued to 
 fight and make it up with him as of yore. 
 
 It must not be supposed that Ruby forgot the 
 conversation he had overheard in the Gaylet Cove. 
 He and Minnie and his uncle had frequent discus- 
 sions in regard to it, but to little purpose; for 
 although Swankie and Spink had discovered old Mr. 
 Brand's body on the Bell Kock, it did not follow 
 that any jewels or money they had found there were 
 necessarily his. Still Ruby could not divest his 
 mind of the feeling that there was some connexion 
 between the two, and he was convinced, from what 
 had fallen from Davy Spink about "silver teapots 
 and things," that Swankie was the man of whose 
 bad deeds he himself had been suspected. 
 
 As there seemed no possibility of bringing the 
 matter home to him, however, he resolved to dismiss 
 the whole affair from his mind in the meantime. 
 
 Things were very much in this state when, in the 
 spring, the operations at the Bell Rock were resumed. 
 
 Jamie Dove, Ruby, Robert Selkirk, and several of 
 the principal workmen, accompanied the engineers 
 on their first visit to the rock, and they sailed towards
 
 240 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 the $cene of their former labours with deep and 
 peculiar interest, such as one might feel on renewing 
 acquaintance with an old friend who had passed 
 through many hard and trying struggles since the 
 last time of meeting. 
 
 The storms of winter had raged round the BeH 
 Eock as usual, as they had done, in fact, since the 
 world began ; but that winter the handiwork of man 
 had also been exposed to the fury of the elements 
 there. It was known that the beacon had sur- 
 vived the storms, for it could be seen by telescope 
 from the shore in clear weather, like a little speck 
 on the seaward horizon. Now they were about to 
 revisit the old haunt, and have a close inspection of 
 the damage that it was supposed must certainly 
 have been dona 
 
 To the credit of the able engineer who planned 
 and carried out the whole works, the beacon was 
 found to have resisted winds and waves success- 
 fully. 
 
 It was on a bitterly cold morning about the end 
 of March that the first visit of the season was paid 
 to the Bell Eock. Mr. Stevenson and his party of 
 engineers and artificers sailed in the lighthouse 
 yacht ; and, on coming within a proper distance of 
 the rock, two boats were lowered and pushed off. 
 The sea ran with such force upon the rock that it 
 seemed doubtful whether a landing could be effected.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 241 
 
 About half-past eight, when the rock was fairly 
 above water, several attempts were made to laud, 
 but the breach of the sea was still so great that 
 they were driven back. 
 
 On the eastern side the sea separated into two 
 distinct waves, which came with a sweep round the 
 western side, where they met, and rose in a burst of 
 spray to a considerable height. Watching, however, 
 for what the sailors termed a smooth, and catching 
 a favourable opportunity, they rowed between the 
 two seas dexterously, and made a successful landing 
 at the western creek. 
 
 The sturdy beacon was then closely examined. 
 It had been painted white at the end of the previous 
 season, but the lower parts of the posts were found 
 to have become green the sea having clothed them 
 with a soft garment of weed. The sea-birds had 
 evidently imagined that it was put up expressly for 
 their benefit ; for a number of cormorants and large 
 herring-gulls had taken up their quarters on it, 
 finding it, no doubt, conveniently near to their 
 fishing-grounds. 
 
 A critical inspection of all its parts showed that 
 everything about it was in a most satisfactory state. 
 There was not the slightest indication of working or 
 shifting in the great iron stanchions with which the 
 beams were fixed, nor of any of the joints or places 
 of connexion ; and, excepting some of the bracing- 
 
 Q
 
 242 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 chains which had been loosened, everything was 
 found in the same entire state in which it had been 
 left the previous season. 
 
 Only those who know what that beacon had been 
 subjected to can form a correct estimate of the im - 
 portance of this discovery, and the amount of satis- 
 faction it afforded to those most interested in the 
 works at the Bell Eock. To say that the party 
 congratulated themselves would be far short of the 
 reality. They hailed the event with cheers, and 
 their looks seemed to indicate that some piece of 
 immense and unexpected good fortune had befallen 
 each individual 
 
 From that moment Mr. Stevenson saw the practi- 
 cability and propriety of fitting up the beacon, not 
 only as a place of refuge in case of accidents to the 
 boats in landing, but as a residence for the men 
 during the working months. 
 
 From that moment, too, poor Jamie Dove began to 
 see the dawn of happier days ; for when the beacon 
 should be fitted up as a residence he would bid 
 farewell to the hated floating-light, and take up his 
 abode, as he expressed it, " on land." 
 
 " On land !" It is probable that this Jamie Dove 
 was the first man, since the world began, who had 
 entertained the till then absurdly preposterous no- 
 tion that the fatal Bell Eock was " land," or that it 
 could be made a place of even temporary residence
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 243 
 
 A hundred years ago men would have laughed 
 at the bare idea. Fifty years ago that idea was 
 realized ; for more than half a century that sunken 
 reef has been, and still is, the safe and comfortable 
 home of man ! 
 
 Forgive, reader, our tendency to anticipate. Let 
 us proceed with our inspection. 
 
 Having ascertained that the foundations of the 
 beacon were all right, the engineers next ascended 
 to the upper parts, where they found the cross- 
 beams and their fixtures in an equally satisfactory 
 condition. 
 
 On the top a strong chest had been fixed the pre- 
 ceding season, in which had been placed a quantity 
 of sea-biscuits and several bottles of water, in case 
 of accident to the boats, or in the event of shipwreck 
 occurring on the rock. The biscuit, having been 
 carefully placed in tin canisters, was found in good 
 condition, but several of the water-bottles had 
 burst, in consequence, it was supposed, of frost 
 during the winter. Twelve of the bottles, however, 
 remained entire, so that the Bell Kock may be said 
 to have been transformed, even at that date, from a 
 point of destruction into a place of comparative safety. 
 
 While the party were thus employed, the landing- 
 master reminded them that the sea was running 
 high, and that it would be necessary to set off while 
 the rock afforded anything like shelter to the boata
 
 244 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 which by that time had been made fast to the 
 beacon and rode with much agitation, each requir- 
 ing two men with boat-hooks to keep them from 
 striking each other, or ranging up against the beacon. 
 But under these circumstances the greatest con- 
 fidence was felt by every one, from the security 
 afforded by that temporary erection ; for, supposing 
 that the wind had suddenly increased to a gale, and 
 that it had been found inadvisable to go into the 
 boats; or supposing they had drifted or sprung a 
 leak from striking upon the rocks, in any of these 
 possible, and not at all improbable cases, they had 
 now something to lay hold of, and, though occupying 
 the dreary habitation of the gull and the cormorant, 
 affording only bread and water, yet life would be 
 preserved, and, under the circumstances, they would 
 have been supported by the hope of being ultimately 
 relieved. 
 
 Soon after this the works at the Bell Eock were 
 resumed, with, if possible, greater vigour than before, 
 and ere long the " house " was fixed to the top of 
 the beacon, and the engineer and his men took up 
 their abode there. 
 
 Think of this, reader. Six great wooden beams 
 were fastened to a rock, over which the waves roared 
 twice every day, and on the top of these a pleasant 
 little marine residence was nailed, as one might nail 
 a dove-cot on the top of a pole !
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 245 
 
 This residence was ultimately fitted up in such a 
 way as to become a comparatively comfortable and 
 commodious abode. It contained four storeys. The 
 first was the mortar gallery, where the mortar for 
 the lighthouse was mixed as required ; it also sup- 
 ported the forge. The second was the cook-room. 
 The third the apartment of the engineer and his 
 assistants ; and the fourth was the artificer's barrack- 
 room. This house was of course built of wood, but 
 it was firmly put together, for it had to pass through 
 many a terrific ordeal. 
 
 In order to give some idea of the interior, we shall 
 describe the cabin of Mr. Stevenson. It measured 
 four feet three inches in breadth on the floor, and 
 though, from the oblique direction of the beams of 
 the beacon, it widened towards the top, yet it did not 
 admit of the full extension of the occupant's arms 
 when he stood on the floor. Its length was little 
 more than sufficient to admit of a cot-bed being 
 suspended during the night. This cot was arranged 
 so as to be triced up to the roof during the day, thus 
 leaving free room for occasional visitors, and for 
 comparatively free motion. A folding table was 
 attached with hinges immediately under the small 
 window of the apartment. The remainder of the 
 space was fitted up with books, barometer, thermo- 
 meter, portmanteau, and two or three camp-stools. 
 
 The walls were covered with green cloth, formed
 
 246 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 into panels with red tape, a substance which, by the 
 way, might have had an accidental connexion with 
 the Bell Rock Lighthouse, but which could not, by 
 any possibility, have influenced it as a principle, 
 otherwise that building would probably never have 
 been built, or, if built, would certainly not have 
 stood until the present day ! The bed was festooned 
 with yellow cotton stuff, and the diet being plain, 
 the paraphernalia of the table was proportionally 
 simple. 
 
 It would have been interesting to know the indi- 
 vidual books required and used by the celebrated 
 engineer in this singular abode, but his record leaves 
 no detailed account of these. It does, however, 
 contain a sentence in regard to one volume, which 
 we deem it just to his character to quote. He 
 writes thus : 
 
 " If, in speculating upon the abstract wants of man 
 in such a state of exclusion, one were reduced to a 
 single book, the Sacred Volume, whether considered 
 for the striking diversity of its story, the morality of 
 its doctrine, or the important truths of its gospel, 
 would have proved by far the greatest treasure." 
 
 It may be easily imagined that in a place where 
 the accommodation of the principal engineer was so 
 limited, that of the men was not extensive. Accord- 
 ingly, we find that the barrack-room contained beds 
 for twentv one men.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 247 
 
 But the completion of the beacon-house, as we 
 
 . have described it, was not accomplished in one 
 
 season. At first it was only used as a smith's 
 
 workshop, and then as a temporary residence in fine 
 
 weather. 
 
 One of the first men who remained all night upon 
 it was our friend Bremner. He became so tired of 
 the floating- light that he earnestly solicited, and 
 obtained permission to remain on the beacon. 
 
 At the time it was only in a partially sheltered 
 state. The joiners had just completed the covering 
 of the roof with a quantity of tarpaulin, which the 
 seamen had laid over with successive coats of hot 
 tar, and the sides of the erection had been painted 
 with three coats of white-lead. Between the timber 
 framing of the habitable part, the interstices were 
 stuffed with moss, but the green baize cloth with 
 which it was afterwards lined had not been put on 
 when Bremner took possession. 
 
 It was a splendid summer evening when the bold 
 man made his request, and obtained permission to 
 remain. None of the others would join him. When 
 the boats pushed off and left him the solitary occu- 
 pant of the rock, he felt a sensation of uneasiness, 
 but, having formed his resolution, he stuck by it, and 
 bade his comrades good-night cheerfully. 
 
 " Good-night, and good-fa/e," cried Forsyth, as he 
 took his seat at the oar.
 
 248 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " Farewell, dear," cried O'Connor, wiping his eyes 
 with a very ragged pocket-handkerchief. 
 
 " You won't forget me ?" retorted Bremner. 
 
 " Never," replied Dumsby, with fervour. 
 
 " Av the beacon should be carried away, darlin'," 
 cried O'Connor, " howld tight to the provision-chest, 
 p'raps ye '11 be washed ashore." 
 
 " 1 11 drink your health in water, Paddy," replied 
 Bremner. 
 
 " Faix, I hope it won't be salt wather," retorted 
 Ned. 
 
 They continued to shout good wishes, warnings, 
 and advice to their comrade until out of hearing, and 
 then waved adieu to him until he was lost to view. 
 
 We have said that Bremner was alone, yet he was 
 not entirely so ; he had a comrade with him, in the 
 shape of his little black dog, to which reference has 
 already been made. This creature was of that very 
 thin and tight-skinned description of dog, that 
 trembles at all times as if afflicted with chronic 
 cold, summer and winter. Its thin tail was always 
 between its extremely thin legs, as though it lived 
 in a perpetual condition of wrong-doing, and were in 
 constant dread of deserved punishment. Yet no dog 
 ever belied its looks more than did this one, for it was 
 a good dog, and a warm-hearted dog, and never did a 
 wicked thing, and never was punished, so that its 
 xcessive humility and apparent fear and trembling
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 249 
 
 were quite unaccountable. Like all dogs of its class 
 it was passionately affectionate, and intensely grate- 
 ful for the smallest favour. In fact, it seemed to be 
 rather thankful than otherwise for a kick when it 
 chanced to receive one, and a pat on the head, or a 
 kind word made it all but jump out of its black 
 skin for very joy. 
 
 Bremner called it " Pup." It had no other name, 
 and didn't seem to wish for one. On the present 
 occasion it was evidently much perplexed, and very 
 unhappy, for it looked at the boat, and then wist- 
 fully into its master's face, as if to say, "This is 
 awful ; have you resolved that we shall perish to- 
 gether?" 
 
 " Now, Pup," said Bremner, when the boat dis- 
 appeared in the shades of evening, " you and I are 
 left alone on the Bell Eock !" 
 
 There was a touch of sad uncertainty in the wag 
 of the tail with which Pup received this remark. 
 
 " But cheer up, Pup," cried Bremuer with a sudden 
 burst of animation that induced the creature tc 
 wriggle and dance on its hind legs for at least a 
 minute, " you and I shall have a jolly night together 
 on the beacon ; so come along." 
 
 Like many a night that begins well, that particular 
 night ended ill. Even while the man spoke, a swell 
 began to rise, and, as the tide had by that time risen 
 a few feet, an occasional billow swept over the rocks
 
 250 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 and almost washed the feet of Bremner as he made 
 his way over the ledges. In five minutes the sea 
 was rolling all round the foot of the beacon, and 
 Bremner and his friend were safely ensconced on the 
 mortar-gallery. 
 
 There was no storm that night, nevertheless there 
 was one of those heavy ground- swells that are of 
 common occurrence in the German Ocean. 
 
 It is supposed that this swell is caused by distant 
 westerly gales in the Atlantic, which force an undue 
 quantity of water into the North Sea, and thus pro- 
 duce the apparent paradox of great rolling breakers 
 in calm weather. 
 
 On this night there was no wind at all, but therfe 
 was a higher swell than usual, so that each great 
 billow passed over the rock with a roar that was 
 rendered more than usually terrible, in consequence 
 of the utter absence of all other sounds. 
 
 At first Bremner watched the rising tide, and as 
 he sat up there in the dark he felt himself dread- 
 fully forsaken and desolate, and began to com- 
 ment on things in general to his dog, by way 
 of inducing a more sociable and cheery state of 
 mind. 
 
 " Pup, this is a lugubrious state o' things. Wot 
 d' ye think o't ?" 
 
 Pup did not say, but he expressed such violent 
 joy at being noticed, that he nearlv fell off the plat-
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 251 
 
 form of the mortar-gallery in one of his extravagant 
 gyrations. 
 
 " That won't do, Pup," said Bremner, shaking his 
 head at the creature, whose countenance expressed 
 deep contrition. " Don't go on like that, else you'll 
 fall into the sea and be drownded, and then I shall 
 be left alone. What a dark night it is, to be sure ! 
 I doubt if it was wise of me to stop here. Suppose 
 the beacon were to be washed away?" 
 
 Bremner paused, and Pup wagged his tail inter- 
 rogatively, as though to say, " "What then ?" 
 
 " Ah ! it 's of no use supposing" continued the 
 man slowly. " The beacon has stood it out all 
 winter, and it ain't likely it's goin' to be washed 
 away to-night. But suppose I was to be took 
 bad?" 
 
 Again the dog seemed to demand, " What then ?" 
 
 " Well, that 's not very likely either, for I never 
 was took bad in my life since I took the measles, 
 and that's more than twenty years ago. Come, 
 Pup, don't let us look at the black side o' things, let 
 us try to be cheerful, my dog. Hallo !" 
 
 The exclamation was caused by the appearance of 
 a green billow, which in the uncertain light seemed 
 to advance in a threatening attitude towards the 
 beacon as if to overwhelm it, but it fell at some 
 distance, and only rolled in a churning sea of milky 
 foam among the posts, and sprang up and licked the
 
 252 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 beams, as a serpent might do before swallowing 
 them. 
 
 " Come, it was the light deceived me. If I go for 
 to start at every wave like that I'll have a poor 
 night of it, for the tide has a long way to rise yet. 
 Let 's go and have a bit supper, lad." 
 
 Bremner rose from the anvil, on which he had 
 seated himself, and went up the ladder into the cook- 
 house above. Here all was pitch dark, owing to the 
 place being enclosed all round, which the mortar- 
 gallery was not, but a light, was soon struck, a lamp 
 trimmed, and the fire in the stove kindled. 
 
 Bremner now busied himself in silently preparing 
 a cup of tea, which, with a quantity of sea-biscuit, 
 a little cold salt pork, and a hunch of stale bread, 
 constituted his supper. Pup watched his every 
 movement with an expression of earnest solicitude, 
 combined with good-will, in his sharp intelligent 
 eyes. 
 
 When supper was ready Pup had his share, then, 
 feeling that the duties of the day were now satis- 
 factorily accomplished, he coiled himself up at his 
 master's feet, and went to sleep. His master rolled 
 himself up in a rug, and, lying down before the fire, 
 also tried to sleep, but without success for a long 
 time. 
 
 As he lay there counting the number of seconds 
 of awful silence that elapsed between the fall of each
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 253 
 
 successive billow, and listening to the crash and the 
 roar as wave after wave rushed underneath him, and 
 caused his habitation to tremble, he could not avoid 
 feeling alarmed in some degree. Do what he would, 
 the thought of the wrecks that had taken place there, 
 the shrieks that must have often rung above these 
 rocks, and the dead and mangled bodies that must 
 have lain among them, would obtrude upon him 
 and banish sleep from his eyes. 
 
 At last he became somewhat accustomed to the 
 rush of waters and the tremulous motion of the 
 beacon. His frame too, exhausted by a day of hard 
 toil, refused to support itself, and he sank into 
 slumber. But it was not unbroken. A falling 
 cinder from the sinking fire would awaken him 
 with a start ; a larger wave than usual would cause 
 him to spring up and look round in alarm; or a 
 shrieking sea-bird, as it swooped past, would induce 
 a dream, in which the cries of drowning men arose, 
 causing him to awake with a cry that set Pup 
 barking furiously. 
 
 Frequently during that night, after some such 
 dream, Bremner would get up and descend to the 
 mortar-galley to see that all was right there. He 
 found the waves always hissing below, but the starry 
 sky was calm and peaceful above, so he returned to 
 his couch comforted a little, and fell again into a 
 troubled sleep, to be again awakened by frightful
 
 254: THE LIGHTUOUSE. 
 
 dreams of dreadful sights, and scenes of death and 
 danger on the sea. 
 
 Thus the hours wore slowly away. As the tide 
 fell the noise of waves retired a little from the 
 beacon, and the wearied man and dog sank gradually 
 at last into deep, untroubled slumber. 
 
 So deep was it, that they did not hear the increas- 
 ing noise of the gulls as they wheeled round the 
 beacon after having breakfasted near it; so deep, 
 that they did not feel the sun as it streamed through 
 an opening in the woodwork and glared on theii 
 respective faces ; so deep, that they were ignorant of 
 the arrival of the boats with the workmen, and were 
 dead to the shouts of their companions, until one of 
 them, Jamie Dove, put his head up the hatchway 
 and uttered one of his loudest roars, close to their 
 ears. 
 
 Then indeed Bremner rose up and looked be- 
 wildered, and Pup, starting up, barked as furiously as 
 if its own little black body had miraculously become 
 the concentrated essence of all the other noisy dogs 
 in the wide world rolled into one !
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 IN THE BEACON 8TOUY OP TEE EDDYSTONE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 SOME time after this a number of the men took up 
 their permanent abode in the beacon -house, and the 
 work was carried on by night as well as by day, 
 when the state of the tide and the weather per- 
 mitted. 
 
 Immense numbers of fish called poddlies were 
 discovered to be swimming about at high water. So 
 numerous were they, that the rock was sometimes 
 hidden by the shoals of them. Fishing for these 
 thenceforth became a pastime among the men, who 
 not only supplied their own table with fresh fish, 
 but at times sent presents of them to their friends 
 in the vessels. 
 
 All the men who dwelt on the beacon were vo- 
 lunteers, for Mr. Stevenson felt that it would be 
 cruel to compel men to live at such a post of danger. 
 Those who chose, therefore, remained in the light- 
 ship or the tender, and those who preferred it went 
 lo the beacon. It is scarcely necessary to add, that
 
 256 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 among the latter were found all the " sea-sick 
 men !" 
 
 These bold artificers were not long of having their 
 courage tested. Soon after their removal to the 
 beacon they experienced some very rough weather, 
 which shook the posts violently, and caused them 
 to twist in a most unpleasant way. 
 
 But it was not until some time after that a storm 
 arose, which caused the stoutest-hearted of them all 
 to quail more than once. 
 
 It began on the night of as fine a day as they had 
 had the whole season. 
 
 In order that the reader may form a just con- 
 ception of what we are about to describe, it may 
 not be amiss to note the state of things at the rock, 
 and the employment of the men at the time. 
 
 A second forge had been put up on the higher 
 platform of the beacon, but the night before that of 
 which we write, the lower platform had been burst 
 up by a wave, and the mortar and forge thereon, 
 with all the implements, were cast down. The 
 damaged forge was therefore set up for the time on 
 its old site, near the foundation-pit of the lighthouse, 
 while the carpenters were busy repairing the mortar- 
 gallery. 
 
 The smiths were as usual busy sharpening picks 
 and irons, and making bats and stanchions, and 
 other iron work connected with the building opera-
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 257 
 
 tions. The landing-master's crew were occupied in 
 assisting the millwrights to lay the railways to 
 hand, and joiners were kept almost constantly em- 
 ployed in fitting picks to their handles, which latter 
 were very frequently broken. 
 
 Nearly all the miscellaneous work was done by 
 seamen. There was no such character on the Bell 
 Kock as the common labourer. The sailors cheer- 
 fully undertook the work usually performed by such 
 men, and they did it admirably. 
 
 In consequence of the men being able to remain 
 on the beacon, the work went on literally "by 
 double tides;" and at night the rock was often 
 ablaze with torches, while the artificers wrought 
 until the waves drove them away. 
 
 On the night in question there was a low spring- 
 tide, so that a night-tide's work of five hours was 
 secured. This was one of the longest spells they 
 had had since the beginning of the operations. 
 
 The stars shone brightly in a very dark sky. Not 
 a breath of air was felt. Even the smoke of the 
 forge-fire rose perpendicularly a short way, until an 
 imperceptible zephyr wafted it gently to the west. 
 Yet there was a heavy swell rolling in from the 
 eastward, which caused enormous waves to thunder 
 on Ealph the Eover's Ledge, as if they would drive 
 down the solid rock. 
 
 Mingled with this solemn, intermittent roar of the 
 
 K
 
 258 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 sea was the continuous clink of picks, chisels, and 
 hammers, and the loud clang of the two forges; 
 that on the beacon being distinctly different from 
 the other, owing to the wooden erection on which 
 it stood rendering it deep and thunderous. Torches 
 and forge-fires cast a glare over all, rendering the 
 foam pale green and the rocks deep red. Some of 
 the active figures at work stood out black and sharp 
 against the light, while others shone in its blaze like 
 red-hot fiends. Above all sounded an occasional 
 cry from the sea-gulls, as they swooped down into 
 the magic circle of light, and then soared away 
 shrieking into darkness. 
 
 "Hard work's not easy," observed James Dove, 
 pausing in the midst of his labours to wipe his 
 brow. 
 
 " True for ye ; but as we Ve got to arn our brid 
 be the sweat of our brows, we 're in the fair way to 
 fortin," said Ned O'Connor, blowing away energeti- 
 cally with the big bellows. 
 
 Ned had been re-appointed to this duty since the 
 erection of the second forge, which was in Euby's 
 charge. It was our hero's hammer that created such 
 a din up in the beacon, while Dove wrought down 
 on the rock. 
 
 " We '11 have a gale to-night," said the smith ; " I 
 know that by the feelin' of the air." 
 
 " Well, I can't boast o' much knowledge o' feelin',"
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 259 
 
 said O'Connor; "but I believe you're right, for the 
 fish towld me the news this mornin'." 
 
 This remark of Ned had reference to a well-ascer- 
 tained fact, that, when a storm was coming, the fish 
 invariably left the neighbourhood of the rock ; doubt- 
 less in order to seek the security of depths which 
 are not affected by winds or waves. 
 
 While Dove and his comrade commented on this 
 subject, two of the other men had retired to the 
 south-eastern end of the rock to take a look at the 
 weather. These were Peter Logan, the foreman, 
 whose position required him to have a care for the 
 safety of the men as well as for the progress of the 
 work, and our friend Bremner, who had just de- 
 scended from the cooking-room, where he had been 
 superintending the preparation of supper. 
 
 " It will be a stiff breeze, I fear, to-night," said 
 Logan. 
 
 " D' ye think so ?" said Bremner ; " it seems to me 
 so calm that I would think a storm a'most impos- 
 sible. But the fish never tell lies." 
 
 " True. You got no fish to-day, I believe ?" said 
 Logan. 
 
 " Not a nibble," replied the other. 
 
 As he spoke, he was obliged to rise from a rock 
 on which he had seated himself, because of a large 
 wave, which, breaking on the outer reefs, sent the 
 foam a little closer to his toes than was agreeabla
 
 260 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " That was a big one, but yonder is a bigger," cried 
 Logan. 
 
 The wave to which he referred was indeed a 
 majestic wall of water. It came on with such an 
 awful appearance of power, that some of the men 
 who perceived it could not repress a cry of astonish- 
 ment. 
 
 In another moment it fell, and, bursting over the 
 rocks with a terrific roar, extinguished the forge-fire, 
 and compelled the men to take refuge in the beacon. 
 
 Jamie Dove saved his bellows with difficulty. 
 The other men, catching up their things as they 
 best might, crowded up the ladder in a more or less 
 draggled condition. 
 
 The beacon-house was gained by means of one of 
 the main beams, which had been converted into a 
 stair, by the simple process of nailing small battens 
 thereon, about a foot apart from each other. The 
 men could go up only one at a time, but as they 
 were active and accustomed to the work, they were 
 all speedily within their place of refuge. Soon after- 
 wards the sea covered the rock, and the place where 
 they had been at work was a mass of seething foam. 
 
 Still there was no wind; but dark clouds had 
 begun to rise on the seaward horizon. 
 
 The sudden change in the appearance of the 
 rock after the last torches were extinguished was 
 very striking. For a few seconds there seemed to
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 261 
 
 be no light at all. The darkness of a coal-mine 
 appeared to have settled down on the scene. But 
 this soon passed away, as the men's eyes became 
 accustomed to the change, and then the dark loom 
 of the advancing billows, the pale light of the flash- 
 ing foam, and occasional gleams of phosphorescence, 
 and glimpses of black rocks in the midst of all, took 
 the place of the warm, busy scene which the spot 
 had presented a few minutes before. 
 
 " Supper, boys !" shouted Bremner. 
 
 Peter Bremner, we may remark in passing, was 
 a particularly useful member of society. Besides 
 being small and corpulent, he was a capital cook. 
 He had acted during his busy life both as a groom 
 and a house-servant ; he had been a soldier, a sutler, 
 a writer's clerk, and an apothecary in which latter 
 profession he had acquired the art of writing and 
 suggesting recipes, and a taste for making collections 
 in natural history. He was very partial to the use 
 of the lancet, and quite a terrible adept at tooth- 
 
 
 
 drawing. In short, Peter was the factotum of the 
 beacon-house, where, in addition to his other offices, 
 he filled those of barber and steward to the admira- 
 tion of all. 
 
 But Bremner came out in quite a new and valu- 
 able light after he went to reside in the beacon 
 namely, as a story-teller. During the long periods 
 of inaction that ensued, when the men were impri-
 
 262 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 soned there by storms, he lightened many an hour 
 that would have otherwise hung heavily on their 
 hands, and he cheered the more timid among them 
 by speaking lightly of the danger of their position. 
 
 On the signal for supper being given, there was 
 a general rush down the ladders into the kitchen, 
 where as comfortable a meal as one could wish for 
 was smoking in pot and pan and platter. 
 
 As there were twenty-three to partake, it was 
 impossible, of course, for all to sit down to table. 
 They were obliged to stow themselves away on such 
 articles of furniture as came most readily to hand, 
 and eat as they best could. Hungry men find no 
 difficulty in doing this. For some time the conver- 
 sation was restricted to a word or two. Soon, how- 
 ever, as appetite began to be appeased, tongues began 
 to loosen. The silence was first broken by a groan. 
 
 " Ochone !" exclaimed O'Connor, as well as a 
 mouthful of pork and potatoes would allow him ; 
 " was it you that groaned like a dyin' pig ?" 
 
 The question was put to Forsyth, who was hold- 
 ing his head between his hands, and swaying his 
 body to and fro in agony. 
 
 " Hae ye the colic, freen' ?" inquired John Watt, 
 in a tone of sympathy. 
 
 "No n o," groaned Forsyth, "it's a a to 
 tooth 1" 
 
 "Och! is that all?"
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 263 
 
 " Have it out, man, at once." 
 
 " Earn a red-hot skewer into it." 
 
 " No, no ; let it alone, and it '11 go away." 
 
 Such was the advice tendered, and much more of 
 a similar nature, to the suffering man. 
 
 " There 's nothink like 'ot water an' cold," said 
 Joe Dumsby in the tones of an oracle. " Just fill 
 your mouth with bilin' 'ot water, an' dip your face 
 in a basin o' cold, and it 's sartain to cure." 
 
 " Or kill," suggested Jamie Dove. 
 
 " It 's better now," said Forsyth, with a sigh of re- 
 lief. " I scrunched a bit o' bone into it ; that was all." 
 
 " There 's nothing like the string and the red-hot 
 poker," suggested Euby Brand. " Tie the one end 
 o' the string to a post and t' other end to the tooth, 
 an' stick a red-hot poker to your nose. Away it 
 comes at once." 
 
 " Hoot ! nonsense," said Watt. " Ye might as weel 
 tie a string to his lug an' dip him into the sea. Tak' 
 my word for 't, there 's naethin' like pooin'." 
 
 " D'you mean pooh pooin' ?" inquired Dumsby. 
 
 Watt's reply was interrupted by a loud gust of 
 wind, which burst upon the beacon-house at that 
 moment and shook it violently. 
 
 Every one started up, and all clustered round the 
 door and windows to observe the appearance of things 
 without. Every object was shrouded in thick dark- 
 ness, but a flash of lightning revealed the approach
 
 264 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 of the storm which had been predicted, and which 
 had already commenced to blow. 
 
 All tendency to jest instantly vanished, and for a 
 time some of the men stood watching the scene 
 outside, while others sat smoking their pipes by 
 the fire in silence. 
 
 "What think ye of things?" inquired one of the men, 
 as Euby came up from the mortar-gallery, to which 
 he had descended at the first gust of the storm. 
 
 "I don't know what to think," said he gravely, 
 " It 's clear enough that we shall have a stiffish gale. 
 I think little of that with a tight craft below me 
 and plenty of sea-room ; but I don't know what to 
 think of a beacon in a gale." 
 
 As he spoke another furious burst of wind shook 
 the place, and a flash of vivid lightning was speedily 
 followed by a crash of thunder, that caused some 
 hearts there to beat faster and harder than usual. 
 
 " Pooh !" cried Bremner, as he proceeded coolly to 
 wash up his dishes, " that 's nothing, boys. Has not 
 this old timber house weathered all the gales o' last 
 winter, and d' ye think it 's goin' to come down be- 
 fore a summer breeze ? Why, there 's a lighthouse 
 in France, called the Tour de Cordouan, which rises 
 right out o' the sea, an' I 'm told it had some fearful 
 gales to try its metal when it was buildin'. So don't 
 go an' git narvous." 
 
 "Who's gittin' narvous ?" exclaimed George For
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 265 
 
 syth, at whom Bremner had looked when he made 
 , the last remark. 
 
 " Sure ye misjudge him," cried O'Connor. " It 's 
 only another twist o' the toothick. But it 's all very 
 well in you to spake lightly o' gales in that fashion. 
 Wasn't the Eddystone Lighthouse cleared away wan 
 stormy night, with the engineer and all the men, an' 
 was niver more heard on ?" 
 
 " That 's true," said Euby. " Come, Bremner, I 
 have heard you say that you had read all about that 
 business. Let 's hear the story ; it will help to while 
 away the time, for there 's no chance of any one get- 
 tin' to sleep with such a row outside." 
 
 " I wish it may be no worse than a row outside," 
 said Forsyth in a doleful tone, as he shook his head 
 and looked round on the party anxiously. 
 
 " Wot ! another fit o' the toothick ? " inquired 
 O'Connor ironically. 
 
 " Don't try to put us in the dismals," said Jamie 
 Dove, knocking the ashes out of his pipe, and refill- 
 ing that solace of his leisure hours. " Let us hear 
 about the Eddystone, Bremner ; it '11 cheer up our 
 spirits a bit." 
 
 " Will it though ?" said Bremner, with a look that 
 John Watt described as " awesoma" " Well, we 
 shall see." 
 
 " You must know, boys 
 
 " 'Ere, light your pipe, my 'eartv," said Dumsby
 
 266 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " Hold yer tongue, an' don't interrupt him," cried 
 one of the men, flattening Dumsby's cap over his eyes. 
 
 " And don't drop yer Pitches," observed another, 
 " 'cause if ye do they '11 fall into the sea an' be 
 drownded, an' then ye '11 have none left to put into 
 their wrong places when ye wants 'em." 
 
 " Come, Bremner, go on." 
 
 "Well, then, boys," began Bremner, "you must 
 know that it is more than a hundred years since the 
 Eddystone Lighthouse was begun in the year 1696, 
 if I remember rightly that would be just a hundred 
 and thirteen years to this date. Up to that time 
 these rocks were as great a terror to sailors as the 
 Bell Rock is now, or rather as it was last year, for 
 now that this here comfortable beacon has been put 
 up, it 's no longer a terror to nobody 
 
 " Except Geordie Forsyth," interposed O'Connor. 
 
 " Silence," cried the men. 
 
 " Well," resumed Bremner, " as you all know, the 
 Eddystone Rocks lie in the British Channel, fourteen 
 miles from Plymouth and ten from the Ram Head, 
 an' open to a most tremendious sea from the Bay o' 
 Biscay and the Atlantic, as I knows well, for I Ve 
 passed the place in a gale, close enough a'most to 
 throw a biscuit on the rocks. 
 
 " They are named the Eddystone Rocks because 
 of the whirls and eddies that the tides make among 
 them ; but for the matter of that, the Bell Rock
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 267 
 
 might be so named on the same ground. Howsever, 
 it's six o' one an' half-a-dozen o' t'other. Only 
 there 's this difference, that the highest point o' the 
 Eddystone is barely covered at high water, while 
 here the rock is twelve or fifteen feet below water 
 at high tide. 
 
 " Well, it was settled by the Trinity Board in 1696 
 that a lighthouse should be put up, and a Mr. Win- 
 stanley was engaged to do it. He was an uncommon 
 clever an' ingenious man. He used to exhibit won- 
 derful water- works in London ; and in his house, 
 down in Essex, he used to astonish his friends, and 
 frighten them sometimes, with his queer contrivances. 
 He had invented an easy-chair which laid hold of 
 any one that sat down in it, and held him prisoner 
 until Mr. Winstanley set him free. He made a 
 slipper, also, and laid it on his bed-room floor, and 
 when any one put his foot into it he touched a 
 spring that caused a ghost to rise from the hearth. 
 He made a summer-house, too, at the foot of his 
 garden, on the edge of a canal, and if any one entered 
 into it and sat down, he very soon found himself 
 adrift on the canal 
 
 " Such a man was thought to be the best for such 
 a difficult work as the building of a lighthouse on 
 the Eddystone, so he was asked to undertake it, and 
 agreed, and began it well He finished it, too, in 
 four years, his chief difficulty being the distance of
 
 268 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 the rock from land, and the danger of goin' back- 
 wards and forwards. The light was first shown on 
 the 14th November 1698. Before this the engineei 
 had resolved to pass a night in the building, which 
 he did with a party of men ; but he was compelled 
 to pass more than a night, for it came on to blow 
 furiously, and they were kept prisoners for eleven 
 days, drenched with spray all the time, and hard 
 up for provisions. 
 
 " It was said that the sprays rose a hundred feet 
 above the lantern of this first Eddystone Lighthouse. 
 Well, it stood till the year 1703, when repairs be- 
 came necessary, and Mr. Winstanley went down to 
 Plymouth to superintend. It had been prophesied 
 that this lighthouse would certainly be carried 
 away. But dismal prophecies are always made 
 about unusual things. If men were to mind pro- 
 phecies there would be precious little done in this 
 world. Howsever, the prophecies unfortunately 
 came true. Winstanley's friends advised him not 
 to go to stay in it, but he was so confident of the 
 strength of his work that he said he only wished 
 to have the chance o' bein' there in the greatest 
 storm that ever blew, that he might see what effect 
 it would have on the buildin'. Poor man ! he had 
 his wish. On the night of the 26th November a 
 terrible storm arose, the worst that had been for 
 many years, and swept the lighthouse entirely away.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 269 
 
 Not a vestige of it or the people on it was ever seen 
 afterwards. Only a few bits of the iron fastenings 
 were left fixed in the rocks." 
 
 " That was terrible/' said Forsyth, whose uneasi- 
 ness was evidently increasing with the rising storm. 
 
 " Ay, but the worst of it was," continued Bremner, 
 " that, owing to the absence of the light, a large East- 
 Indiaman went on the rocks immediately after, and 
 oecame a total wreck. This, however, set the Trinity 
 House on putting up another, which was begun in 
 1706, and the light shown in 1708. This tower was 
 ninety-two feet high, built partly of wood and partly 
 of stone. It was a strong building, and stood for 
 forty -nine years. Mayhap it would have been 
 standin' to this day but for an accident, which you 
 shall hear of before I have done. While this light- 
 house was building, a French privateer carried off 
 all the workmen prisoners to France, but they were 
 set at liberty by the King, because their work was 
 of such great use to all nations. 
 
 " The lighthouse, when finished, was put in charge 
 of two keepers, with instructions to hoist a flag when 
 anything was wanted from the shore. One of these 
 men became suddenly ill, and died. Of course his 
 comrade hoisted the signal, but the weather was so 
 bad that it was found impossible to send a boat off 
 for four weeks. The poor keeper was so afraid that 
 people might suppose he had murdered his com-
 
 270 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 panion that he kept the corpse beside him all that 
 time. What his feelin's could have been I don't 
 know, but they must have been awful ; for, besides 
 the horror of such a position in such a lonesome 
 place, the body decayed to an extent " 
 
 " That 11 do, lad ; don't be too partickler," said 
 Tamie Dove. 
 
 The others gave a sigh of relief at the interrup- 
 tion, and Bremner continued 
 
 " There were always three keepers in the Eddy- 
 stone after that. Well, it was in the year 1755, on 
 the 2d December, that one o' the keepers went to 
 snuff the candles, for they only burned candles in 
 lighthouses at that time, and before that time great 
 open grates with coal fires were the most common ; 
 but there were not many lights either of one kind 
 or another in those days. On gettin' up to the 
 lantern he found it was on fire. All the efforts 
 they made failed to put it out, and it was soon 
 burned down. Boats put off to them, but they 
 only succeeded in saving the keepers ; and of them, 
 one went mad on reaching the shore, and ran off, 
 and never was heard of again ; and another, an 
 old man, died from the effects of melted lead which 
 had run down his throat from the roof of the burn- 
 ing lighthouse. They did not believe him when he 
 said he had swallowed lead, but after he died it 
 found to be a fact.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 271 
 
 " The tower became red-hot, and burned for five 
 days before it was utterly destroyed. This was the 
 end o' the second Eddystone. Its builder was a 
 Mr. John Rudyerd, a silk- mercer of London. 
 
 " The third Eddystone, which has now stood for 
 half-a-century as firm as the rock itself, and which 
 bids fair to stand till the end of time, was begun 
 in 1756 and completed in 1759. It was lighted by 
 means of twenty- four candles. Of Mr. Smeaton, the 
 engineer who built it, those who knew him best said 
 that ' he had never undertaken anything without 
 completing it to the satisfaction of his employers/ 
 
 " D' ye know, lads," continued Bremner in a half- 
 musing tone, " I Ve sometimes been led to couple 
 this character of Smeaton with the text that he put 
 round the top of the first room of the lighthouse 
 'Except the Lord build the house, they labour in 
 vain that build it ; ' and also the words, ' Praise 
 God,' which he cut in Latin on the last stone, the 
 lintel of the lantern door. I think these words had 
 sornethin' to do with the success of the last Eddy- 
 stone Lighthouse." 
 
 " I agree with you," said Robert Selkirk, with a 
 nod of hearty approval ; " and, moreover, I think the 
 Bell Rock Lighthouse stands a good chance of equal 
 success, for whether he means to carve texts on the 
 stones or not I don't know, but I feel assured that 
 our engineer is animated by the same spirit."
 
 272 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 When Bremner's account of the Eddystone came 
 to a close, most of the men had finished their third 
 or fourth pipes, yet no one proposed going to rest. 
 
 The storm without raged so furiously that they 
 felt a strong disinclination to separate. At last, 
 however, Peter Logan rose, and said he would turn 
 in for a little. Two or three of the others also rose, 
 and were about to ascend to their barrack, when a 
 heavy sea struck the building, causing it to quiver 
 to its foundation.
 
 CHAPTER XXIIL 
 
 THE STORM. 
 
 " 'Tis a fearful night," said Logan, pausing with 
 his foot on the first step of the ladder. " Perhaps 
 we had better sit up." 
 
 " "What 's the use ?" said O'Connor, who was by 
 nature reckless. " Av the beacon howlds on, we 
 may as well slape as not ; an' if it don't howld on, 
 why, we '11 be none the worse o' slapin' anyhow." 
 
 " 7 mean to sit up," said Forsyth, whose alarm 
 was aggravated by another fit of violent toothache. 
 
 " So do I," exclaimed several of the men, as another 
 wave dashed against the beacon, and a quantity of 
 spray came pouring down from the rooms above. 
 
 This latter incident put an end to further conver- 
 sation. While some sprang up the ladder to see 
 where the leak had occurred, Ptuby opened the door, 
 which was on the lee side of the building, and de- 
 scended to the mortar- gallery to look after his tools, 
 which lay there. 
 
 Here he was exposed to the full violence of the 
 B
 
 274 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 gale; for, as we have said, this first floor of the 
 beacon was not protected by sides. There was 
 sufficient light to enable him to see all round for a 
 considerable distance. The sight was not calculated 
 to comfort him. 
 
 The wind was whistling with what may be termed 
 a vicious sound among the beams, to one of which 
 Euby was obliged to cling to prevent his being car- 
 ried away. The sea was bursting, leaping, and 
 curling wildly over the rocks, which were now quite 
 covered, and as he looked down through the chinks 
 in the boards of the floor, ha could see the foam 
 whirling round the beams of his trembling abode, 
 and leaping up as if to seize him. As the tide rose 
 higher and higher, the waves roared straight through 
 below the floor, their curling backs rising terribly 
 near to where he stood, and the sprays drenching 
 him and the whole edifice completely. 
 
 As he gazed into the dark distance, where the 
 turmoil of waters seemed to glimmer with ghostly 
 light against a sky of the deepest black, he missed 
 the light of the " Smeaton," which, up to that time, 
 had been moored as near to the lee of the rock as 
 was consistent with safety. He fancied she must 
 have gone down, and it was not till next day that 
 the people on the beacon knew that she had parted 
 her cables, and had been obliged to make for the 
 VLrth of Forth for shelter from the storm.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 275 
 
 While he stood looking anxiously in the direction 
 of the tender, a wave came so near to the platform 
 that he almost involuntarily leaped up the ladder for 
 safety. It broke before reaching the beacon, and 
 the spray dashed right over it, carrying away several 
 of the smith's tools. 
 
 " Ho, boys ! lend a hand here, some of you," 
 shouted Ruby, as he leaped down on the mortar- 
 gallery again. 
 
 Jamie Dove, Bremner, O'Connor, and several 
 others were at his side in a moment, and, in the 
 midst of tremendous sprays, they toiled to secure the 
 movable articles that lay there. These were passed 
 up to the sheltered parts of the house; but not 
 without great danger to all who stood on the exposed 
 gallery below. 
 
 Presently two of the planks were torn up by a 
 sea, and several bags of coal, a barrel of small beer, 
 and a few casks containing lime and sand, were all 
 swept away. The men would certainly have shared 
 the fate of these, had they not clung to the beams 
 until the sea Lad passed. 
 
 As nothing remained after that which could be 
 removed to the room above, they left the mortar- 
 gallery to its fate, and returned to the kitchen, where 
 they were met by the anxious glances and questions 
 of their comrades. 
 
 The fire, meanwhile, could scarcely be got to bum.
 
 276 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 and the whole place was full of smoke, besides being 
 wet with the sprays that burst over the roof, and found 
 out all the crevices that had not been sufficiently 
 stopped up. Attending to these leaks occupied most 
 of the men at intervals during the night. Euby and 
 his friend the smith spent much of the time in the 
 doorway, contemplating the gradual destruction of 
 their workshop. 
 
 For some time the gale remained steady, and the 
 anxiety of the men began to subside a little, as they 
 became accustomed to the ugly twisting of the great 
 beams, and found that no evil consequences followed. 
 
 In the midst of this confusion, poor Forsyth's 
 anxiety of mind became as nothing compared with 
 the agony of his toothache ! 
 
 Bremner had already made several attempts to 
 persuade the miserable man to have it drawn, but 
 without success. 
 
 " I could do it quite easy," said he ; " only let me 
 get a hold of it, an' before you could wink I 'd have 
 it out." 
 
 " Well, you may try," cried Forsyth in desperation, 
 with a face of ashy paleness. 
 
 It was an awful situation truly. In danger of 
 his life ; suffering the agonies of toothache, and with 
 the prospect of torments unbearable from an inex- 
 pert hand ; for Forsyth did not believe in Bremner'a 
 boiisted powers.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 277 
 
 " What '11 you do it with ?" he inquired meekly. 
 
 "Jamie Dove's small pincers. Here they are," 
 said Bremner, moving about actively in his prepara- 
 tions, as if he enjoyed such work uncommonly. 
 
 By this time the men had assembled round the 
 pair, and almost forgot the storm in the interest of 
 the moment. 
 
 " Hold him, two of you," said Bremner, when hia 
 victim was seated submissively on a cask. 
 
 " You don't need to hold me," said Forsyth, in a 
 gentle tone. 
 
 " Don't we !" said Bremner. " Here, Dove, Ned 
 grip his arms, and some of you stand by to catch 
 his legs ; but you needn't touch them unless he 
 kicks. Ruby, you're a strong fellow; hold his 
 head." 
 
 The men obeyed. At that moment Forsyth would 
 have parted with his dearest hopes in life to have 
 escaped, and the toothache, strange to say, left him 
 entirely ; but he was a plucky fellow at bottom ; 
 having agreed to have it done, he would not draw 
 back. 
 
 Bremner introduced the pincers slowly, being 
 anxious to get a good hold of the tooth. Forsyth 
 uttered a groan in anticipation ! Alarmed lest he 
 should struggle too soon, Bremner made a sudden 
 grasp and caught the tooth. A wrench followed ; a 
 yell was &** result, and the pincers slipped !
 
 278 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 This was fortunate, for he had caught the wrong 
 tooth. 
 
 " Now be aisy, boy," said Ned O'Connor, whose 
 sympathies were easily roused. 
 
 " Once more," said Bremner, as the unhappy man 
 opened his mouth. " Be still, and it will be all the 
 sooner over." 
 
 Again Bremner inserted the instrument, and for 
 tunately caught the right tooth. He gave a terrible 
 tug, that produced its corresponding howl ; but the 
 tooth held on. Again ! again ! again ! and the 
 beacon -house resounded with the deadly yells 01 
 the unhappy man, who struggled violently, despite 
 the strength of those who held him. 
 
 " Och ! poor sowl !" ejaculated O'Connor. 
 
 Bremner threw all his strength into a final wrench, 
 which tore away the pincers and left the tooth as 
 firm as ever ! 
 
 Forsyth leaped up and dashed his comrades right 
 and left. 
 
 " That '11 do," he roared, and darted up the ladder 
 into the apartment above, through which he ascended 
 to the barrack-room, and flung himself on his bed. 
 At the same time a wave burst on the beacon with 
 such force that every man there, except Forsyth, 
 thought it would be carried away. The wave not 
 only sprang up against the house, but the spray, 
 scarcely less solid than the wave, went quite over
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 279 
 
 it, and sent down showers *of water on the men 
 below. 
 
 Little cared Forsyth for that. He lay almost 
 stunned on his couch, quite regardless of the storm. 
 To his surprise, however, the toothache did not 
 return. Nay, to make a long story short, it never 
 again returned to that tooth till the end of his days ! 
 
 The storm now blew its fiercest, and the men sat 
 m silence in the kitchen listening to the turmoil, 
 and to the thundering blows given by the sea to their 
 wooden house. Suddenly the beacon received a 
 shock so awful, and so thoroughly different from any 
 that it had previously received, that the men sprang 
 to their feet in consternation. 
 
 Ruby and the smith were looking out at the door- 
 way at the time, and both instinctively grasped the 
 woodwork near them, expecting every instant that 
 the whole structure would be carried away ; but it 
 stood fast. They speculated a good deal on the force 
 of the blow they had received, but no one hit on the 
 true cause; and it was not until some days later 
 that they discovered that a huge rock of fully a ton 
 weight had been washed against the beams that night 
 
 "While they were gazing at the wild storm, a wave 
 broke up the mortar-gallery altogether and sent its 
 remaining contents into the sea. All disappeared in 
 a moment ; nothing was left save the powerful beams 
 to which the platform had been nailed.
 
 280 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 There was a small boat attached to the beacon. 
 It hung from two davits, on a level with the kitchen, 
 about thirty feet above the rock. This had got 
 filled by the sprays, and the weight of water proving 
 too much for the tackling, it gave way at the bow 
 shortly after the destruction of the mortar- gallery, 
 and the boat hung suspended by the stern-tackle. 
 Here it swung for a few minutes, and then was 
 carried away by a sea. The same sea sent an eddy 
 of foam round towards the door and drenched the 
 kitchen, so that the door had to be shut, and as the 
 fire had gone out, the men had to sit and await 
 their fate by the light of a litile oil-lamp. 
 
 They sat in silence, for the noise was now so great 
 that it was difficult to hear voices, unless when they 
 were raised to a high pitch. 
 
 Thus passed that terrible night ; and the looks of 
 the men, the solemn glances, the closed eyes, the 
 silently moving lips, showed that their thoughts 
 were busy reviewing bygone days and deeds ; per- 
 chance in making good resolutions for the future 
 " if spared!" 
 
 Morning brought a change. The rush of the sea 
 was indeed still tremendous, but the force of the 
 gale was broken and the danger was past.
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 A CHAPTEB OP ACCIDENTS. 
 
 TIME rolled on, and the lighthouse at length be- 
 gan to grow. 
 
 It did not rise slowly, as does an ordinary building. 
 The courses of masonry having been formed and 
 fitted on shore during the winter, had only to be 
 removed from the workyard at Arbroath to the 
 rock, where they were laid, mortared, wedged, and 
 trenailed, as fast as they could be landed. 
 
 Thus, foot by foot it grew, and soon began to 
 tower above its foundation. 
 
 From the foundation upwards for thirty feet it 
 was built solid. From this point rose the spiral 
 staircase leading to the rooms above. We cannot 
 afford space to trace its erection step by step, 
 neither is it desirable that we should do so. But it 
 is proper to mention, that there were, as might be 
 supposed, leading points in the process, eras, as it 
 were, in the building operations. 
 
 The first of these, of course, was the laying of the
 
 282 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 foundation-stone, which was done ceremoniously, 
 with all the honours. The next point was the 
 occasion when the tower showed itself for the first 
 time above water at full tide. This was a great 
 event. It was proof positive that the sea had been 
 conquered ; for many a time before that event hap- 
 pened had the sea done its best to level the whole 
 erection with the rock. 
 
 Three cheers announced and celebrated the fact, 
 and a " glass" all round stamped it on the memories 
 of the men. 
 
 Another noteworthy point was the connexion 
 the marriage, if the simile may be allowed of the 
 tower and the beacon. This occurred when the 
 former rose to a few feet above high-water mark, 
 and was effected by means of a rope-bridge, which 
 was dignified by the sailors with the name of 
 " Jacob's ladder." 
 
 Heretofore the beacon and lighthouse had stood 
 in close relation to each other. They were thence- 
 forward united by a stronger tie ; and it is worthy 
 of record that their attachment lasted until the 
 destruction of the beacon after the work was done. 
 Jacob's ladder was fastened a little below the door- 
 way of the beacon. Its other end rested on, and 
 rose with, the wall of the tower. At first it sloped 
 downward from beacon to tower; gradually it be- 
 came horizontal ; then it sloped upward. When this
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 283 
 
 happened it was removed, and replaced by a regular 
 .wooden bridge, which extended from the doorway 
 of the one structure to that of the other. 
 
 Along this way the men could pass to and fro at 
 all tides, and during any time of the day or night. 
 
 This was a matter of great importance, as the men 
 were no longer so dependent on tides as they had 
 been, and could often work as long as their strength 
 held out. 
 
 Although the work was regular, and, as some might 
 imagine, rather monotonous, there were not wanting 
 accidents and incidents to enliven the routine of daily 
 duty. The landing of the boats in rough weather 
 with stones, etc., was a never- failing source of anxiety, 
 alarm, and occasionally amusement. Strangers some- 
 times visited the rock too, but these visits were few 
 and far between. 
 
 Accidents were much less frequent, however, than 
 might have been expected in a work of the kind. It 
 was quite an event, something to talk about for days 
 afterwards, when poor John Bonnyman, one of the 
 masons, lost a finger. The balance-crane was the 
 cause of this accident. We may remark in passing, 
 that this balance-crane was a very peculiar and 
 clever contrivance, which deserves a little notica 
 
 It may not have occurred to readers who are un- 
 acquainted with mechanics that the raising of pon- 
 derous stones to a great height is not an easy matter.
 
 284 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 As long a*j the lighthouse was low, cranes were easily 
 raised on the rock, but when it became too high for 
 the cranes to reach their heads up to the top of the 
 tower, what was to be done ? Block-tackles could 
 not be fastened to the skies ! Scaffolding in such 
 a situation would not have survived a moderate 
 gale. 
 
 In these circumstances Mr. Stevenson constructed 
 a balance- crane, which was fixed in the centre of 
 the tower, and so arranged that it could be raised 
 along with the rising works. This crane resembled 
 a cross in form. At one arm was hung a movable 
 weight, which could be run out to its extremity, 
 or fixed at any part of it. The other arm was the 
 one by means of which the stones were hoisted. 
 When a stone had to be raised, its weight was ascer- 
 tained, and the movable weight was so fixed as 
 exactly to counterbalance it. By this simple contriv- 
 ance all the cumbrous and troublesome machinery 
 of long guys and bracing-chains extending from the 
 crane to the rock below were avoided. 
 
 Well, Bonnyman was attending to the working of 
 the crane, and directing the lowering of a stone into 
 its place, when he inadvertently laid his left hand 
 on a part of the machinery where it was brought 
 into contact with the chain, which passed over his 
 fore-finger, and cut it so nearly off that it was left 
 hanging by a mere shred of skin. The poor man
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 285 
 
 was at once sent off in a fast rowing boat to Arbroath, 
 .where the finger was removed and properly dressed.* 
 
 A much more serious accident occurred at another 
 time, however, which resulted in the death of one 
 of the seamen belonging to the " Smeaton." 
 
 It happened thus. The " Smeaton " had been 
 sent from Arbroath with a cargo of stones one 
 morning, and reached the rock about half-past six 
 o'clock A.M. The mate and one of the men, James 
 Scott, a youth of eighteen years of age, got into 
 the sloop's boat to make fast the hawser to the 
 floating-buoy of her moorings. 
 
 The tides at the time were very strong, and the 
 mooring- chain when sweeping the ground had caught 
 hold of a rock or piece of wreck, by which the chain 
 was so shortened, that when the tide flowed the buoy 
 got almost under water, and little more than the 
 ring appeared at the surface. When the mate and 
 Scott were in the act of making the hawser fast to 
 the ring, the chain got suddenly disentangled at the 
 bottom, and the large buoy, measuring about seven 
 feet in length by three in diameter in the middle, 
 vaulted upwards with such force that it upset the 
 boat, which instantly filled with water. The mate 
 with great difficulty succeeded in getting hold of the 
 
 * It is right to state that this man afterwards obtained a light- 
 Keeper's situation from the Board of Commissioners of Northern 
 Lights, who seem to have taken a kindly interest in all their servants, 
 especially those of them who had suffered in the service.
 
 286 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 gunwale, but Scott seemed to have been stunned 
 by the buoy, for he lay motionless for a few 
 minutes on the water, apparently unable to make 
 any exertion to save himself, for he did not attempt 
 to lay hold of the oars or thwarts which floated 
 near him. 
 
 A boat was at once sent to the rescue, and the 
 mate was picked up, but Scott sank before it reached 
 the spot. 
 
 This poor lad was a great favourite in the service, 
 and for a time his melancholy end cast a gloom over 
 the little community at the Bell Eock. The circum- 
 stances of the case were also peculiarly distressing 
 in reference to the boy's mother, for her husband 
 had been for three years past confined in a French 
 prison, and her son had been the chief support of 
 the family. In order in some measure to make up 
 to the poor woman for the loss of the monthly ali- 
 ment regularly allowed her by her lost son, it was 
 suggested that a younger brother of the deceased 
 might be taken into the service. This appeared to 
 be a rather delicate proposition, but it was left to 
 the landing-master to arrange according to circum- 
 stances. Such was the resignation, and at the same 
 time the spirit of the poor woman, that she readily 
 accepted the proposal, and in a few days the younger 
 Scott was actually afloat in the place of his brother. 
 On this distressing case being represented to the
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 287 
 
 Board, the Commissioners granted an annuity of 5 
 to the lad's mother. 
 
 The painter who represents only the sunny side 
 of nature portrays a one-sided, and therefore a false 
 view of tilings, for, as every one knows, nature is not 
 all sunshine. So, if an author makes his pen-and- 
 ink pictures represent only the amusing and pic- 
 turesque view of things, he does injustice to his 
 subject. 
 
 We have no pleasure, good reader, in saddening 
 you by accounts of " fatal accidents," but we have 
 sought to convey to you a correct impression of 
 things, and scenes, and incidents at the building of 
 the Bell Eock Lighthouse, as they actually were, and 
 looked, and occurred. Although there was much, 
 very much, of risk, exposure, danger, and trial con- 
 nected with the erection of that building, there was, 
 in the good providence of God, very little of severe 
 accident or death. Yet that little must be told, at 
 least touched upon, else will our picture remain 
 incomplete as well as untrue. 
 
 Now, do not imagine, with a shudder, that these 
 remarks are the prelude to something that will 
 harrow up your feelings. Not so. They are merely 
 the apology, if apology be needed, for the introduc- 
 tion of another " accident." 
 
 Well, then. One morning the artificers landed 
 on the rock at a quarter-past six, and as all hands
 
 288 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 were required for a piece of special work that day, 
 they breakfasted on the beacon, instead of returning 
 to the tender, and spent the day on the rock. 
 
 The special work referred to was the raising of 
 the crane from the eighth to the ninth course an 
 operation which required all the strength that could 
 be mustered for working the guy-tackles. This, be 
 it remarked, was before the balance-crane, already 
 described, had been set up ; and as the top of the 
 crane stood at the time about thirty-five feet above 
 the rock, it became much more unmanageable than 
 heretofore. 
 
 At the proper hour all hands were called, and 
 detailed to their several posts on the tower and 
 about the rock. In order to give additional pur- 
 chase or power in tightening the tackle, one of the 
 blocks of stone was suspended at the end of the 
 movable beam of the crane, which, by adding 
 greatly to the weight, tended to slacken the guys 
 or supporting-ropes in the direction to which the 
 beam with the stone was pointed, and thereby 
 enabled the men more easily to brace them one 
 after another. 
 
 While the beam was thus loaded, and in the act 
 of swinging round from one guy to another, a great 
 strain was suddenly brought upon the opposite 
 tackle, with the end of which the men had very 
 improperly neglected to take a turn round some
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSL. 289 
 
 stationary object, which would have given them 
 the complete command of the tackle. 
 
 Owing to this simple omission, the crane, with the 
 large stone at the end of the beam, got a preponder- 
 ancy to one side, and, the tackle alluded to having 
 rent, it fell upon the building with a terrible 
 crash. 
 
 The men fled right and left to get out of its 
 way ; but one of them, Michael Wishart, a mason, 
 stumbled over an uncut trenail and rolled on his 
 back, and the ponderous crane fell upon him. For- 
 tunately it fell so that his body lay between the 
 great shaft and the movable beam, and thus he 
 escaped with his life, but his feet were entangled 
 with the wheeiwork, and severely injured. 
 
 Wishart was a robust and spirited young fellow, 
 and bore his sufferings with wonderful firmness 
 while he was being removed. He was laid upon 
 one of the narrow frame-beds of the beacon, and 
 despatched in a boat to the tender. On seeing the 
 boat approach with the poor man stretched on a 
 bed covered with blankets, and his face over- 
 spread with that deadly pallor which is the usual 
 consequence of excessive bleeding, the seamen's 
 looks betrayed the presence of those well-known 
 but indescribable sensations which one experi- 
 ences when brought suddenly into contact with 
 something horrible. Relief was' at once expe- 
 
 T
 
 290 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 rienced, however, when Wishart's voice was heard 
 feebly accosting those who first stepped into the 
 boat. 
 
 He was immediately sent on shore, where the 
 best surgical advice was obtained, and he began 
 to recover steadily, though slowly. Meanwhile, 
 having been one of the principal masons, Robert 
 Selkirk was appointed to his vacant post. 
 
 And now let us wind up this chapter of accidents 
 with an account of the manner in which a party of 
 strangers, to use a slang but expressive phiuse, came 
 to grief during a visit to the Bell Eock. 
 
 One morning, a trim little vessel was seen by the 
 workmen making for the rock at low tide. From 
 its build and size, Ruby at once judged it to be a 
 pleasure-yacht. Perchance some delicate shades in 
 the seamanship, displayed in managing the little 
 vessel, had influenced the sailor in forming his 
 opinion. Be this as it may, the vessel brought 
 up under the lee of the rock and cast anchor. 
 
 It turned out to be a party of gentlemen from 
 Leith, who had run down the firth to see the works. 
 The weather was fine, and the sea calm, but these 
 yachters had yet to learn that fine weather and a 
 calm sea do not necessarily imply easy or safe 
 landing at the Bell Rock ! They did not know 
 that the swell which had succeeded a recent gale 
 was heavier than it appeared to be at a distance ;
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 291 
 
 *nd, worst of all, they did not know, or they did 
 hot care to remember, that "there is a time for 
 all things," and that the time for landing at the 
 Bell Rock is limited. 
 
 Seeing that the place was covered with workmen, 
 the strangers lowered their little boat and rowed 
 towards them. 
 
 " They 're mad," said Logan, who, with a group 
 of the men, watched the motions of their would-be 
 visitors. 
 
 " No," observed Joe Dumsby ; " they are brave, 
 but hignorant." 
 
 " Faix, they won't be ignorant long !" cried Ned 
 O'Connor, as the little boat approached the rock, 
 propelled by two active young rowers in Guernsey 
 shirts, white trousers, and straw hats. " You 're 
 stout lads both of ye, an' purty good hands at the 
 oar, for gintlemen ; but av ye wos as strong as 
 Samson it would puzzle ye to stem these breakers, 
 so ye better go back." 
 
 The yachters did not hear the advice, and they 
 would not have taken it if they had heard it. They 
 rowed straight up towards the landing-place, and, 
 so far, showed themselves expert selectors of the 
 right channel ; but they soon came within the in- 
 fluence of the seas, which burst on the rock and 
 sent up jets of spray to leeward. 
 
 These jets had seemed very pretty and harmless
 
 292 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 when viewed from the deck of the yacht, but they 
 were found on a nearer approach to be quite able, 
 and, we might almost add, not unwilling, to toss 
 up the boat like a ball, and throw it and its occu- 
 pants head over heels into the air. 
 
 But the rowers, like most men of their class, were 
 not easily cowed. They watched their opportunity 
 allowed the waves to meet and rush on, and then 
 pulled into the midst of the foam, in the hope of 
 crossing to the shelter of the rock before the ap- 
 proach of the next wave. 
 
 Heedless of a warning cry from Ned O'Connor, 
 whose anxiety began to make him very uneasy, 
 the amateur sailors strained every nerve to pull 
 through, while their companion who sat at the 
 helm in the stern of the boat seemed to urge them 
 on to redoubled exertions. Of course their efforts 
 were in vain. The next billow caught the boat 
 on its foaming crest, and raised it high in the air. 
 For one moment the wave rose between the boat 
 and the men on the rock, and hid her from view, 
 causing Ned to exclaim, with a genuine groan, 
 " Arrah ! they 's gone !" 
 
 But they were not ; the boat's head had been 
 carefully kept to the sea, and, although she had been 
 swept back a considerable way, and nearly half filled 
 with water, she was still afloat. 
 
 The chief-engineer now hailed the gentlemen, and
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 293 
 
 advised them to return and remain on board their 
 .vessel until the state of the tide would permit him 
 to send a proper boat for them. 
 
 In the meantime, however, a large boat from the 
 floating-light, pretty deeply laden with lime, cement, 
 and sand, approached, when the strangers, with a 
 view to avoid giving trouble, took their passage in 
 her to the rock. The accession of three passengers 
 to a boat, already in a lumbered state, put her com- 
 pletely out of trim, and, as it unluckily happened, 
 the man who steered her on this occasion was no* 
 in the habit of attending the rock, and was not 
 sufficiently aware of the run of the sea at the 
 entrance of the eastern creek. 
 
 Instead, therefore, of keeping close to the small 
 rock called Johnny Gray, he gave it, as Euby ex- 
 pressed it, "a wide berth." A heavy sea struck 
 the boat, drove her to leeward, and, the oars getting 
 entangled among the rocks and seaweed, she became 
 unmanageable. The next sea threw her on a ledge, 
 and, instantly leaving her, she canted seaward upon 
 her gunwale, throwing her crew and part of her 
 cargo into the water. 
 
 All this was the work of a few seconds. The 
 men had scarce time to realize their danger ere they 
 found themselves down under the water ; and when 
 they rose gasping to the surface, it was to behold 
 the next wave towering over them, ready to fall on
 
 294 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 their heads. When it fell it scattered crew, cargo, 
 and boat in all directions. 
 
 Some clung to the gunwale of the boat, others to 
 the seaweed, and some to the thwarts a^id oars which 
 doated about, and which quickly carried them out 
 of the creek to a considerable distance from the spot 
 where the accident happened. 
 
 The instant the boat was overturned, Euby darted 
 towards one of the Eock boats which lay near to the. 
 spot where the party of workmen who manned it 
 had landed that morning. Wilson, the landing- 
 master, was at his side in a moment. 
 
 " Shove off, lad, and jump in," cried Wilson. 
 
 There was no need to shout for the crew of the 
 boat. The men were already springing into her as 
 she floated off. In a few minutes all the men in 
 the water were rescued, with the exception of one of 
 the strangers, named Strachan. 
 
 This gentleman had been swept out to a small 
 insulated rock, where he clung to the seaweed with 
 great resolution, although each returning sea laid 
 him completely under water, and hid him for a 
 second or two from the spectators on the rock. 
 In this situation he remained for ten or twelve 
 minutes ; and those who know anything of the 
 force of large waves will understand how severely 
 his strength and courage must have been tried 
 during that time.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 295 
 
 When the boat reached the rock the most difficult 
 part was still to perform, as it required the greatest 
 nicety of management to guide her in a rolling sea, 
 so as to prevent her from being carried forcibly 
 against the man whom they sought to save. 
 
 " Take the steering-oar, Ruby ; you are the best 
 hand at this," said Wilson. 
 
 Euby seized the oar, and, notwithstanding the 
 breach of the seas and the narrowness of the passage, 
 steered the boat close to the rock at the proper 
 moment. 
 
 " Starboard, noo, stiddy !" shouted John Watt, who 
 leant suddenly over the bow of the boat and seized 
 poor Strachan by the hair. In another moment he 
 was pulled inboard with the aid of Selkirk's stout 
 arms, and the boat was backed out of danger. 
 
 " Now, a cheer, boys !" cried Euby. 
 
 The men did not require urging to this. It burst 
 from them with tremendous energy, and was echoed 
 back by their comrades on the rock, in the midst of 
 whose wild hurrah, Ned O'Connor's voice was dis- 
 tinctly heard to swell from a cheer into a yell of 
 triumph ! 
 
 The little rock on which this incident occurred 
 was called Strachan's Ledge, and it is known by that 
 name at the present day.
 
 CHAPTEK XXV. 
 
 THE BELL ROCK IN A FOG NARROW ESCAPE OF THE " 8MEATON." 
 
 CHANGE of scene is necessary to the healthful 
 working of the human mind ; at least, so it is said. 
 Acting upon the assumption that the saying is true, 
 we will do our best in this chapter for the human 
 minds that condescend to peruse these pages, by 
 leaping over a space of time, and by changing at 
 least the character of the scene, if not the locality. 
 
 We present the Bell Eock under a new aspect, 
 that of a dense fog and a dead calm. 
 
 This is by no means an unusual aspect of things 
 at the Bell Eock, but as we have hitherto dwelt 
 chiefly on storms, it may be regarded as new to the 
 reader. 
 
 It was a June morning. There had been few 
 breezes and no storms for some- weeks past, so that 
 the usual swell of the ocean had gone down, and 
 there were actually no breakers on the rock at low 
 water, and no ruffling of the surface at all at high 
 tide. The tide had about two hours before overflowed
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 297 
 
 the rock, and driven the men into the beacon-house, 
 .where, having breakfasted, they were at the time 
 enjoying themselves with pipes and small talk. 
 
 The lighthouse had grown considerably by this 
 time. Its unfinished top was more than eighty 
 feet above the foundation ; but the fog was so dense 
 that only the lower part of the column could be 
 seen from the beacon, the summit being lost, as it 
 were, in the clouds. 
 
 Nevertheless that summit, high though it was, 
 did not yet project beyond the reach of the sea 
 A proof of this had been given in a very striking 
 manner, some weeks before the period about which 
 we now write, to our friend George Forsyth. 
 
 George was a studious man, and fond of reading 
 the Bible critically. He was proof against laughter 
 and ridicule, and was wont sometimes to urge the 
 men into discussions. One of his favourite argu- 
 ments was somewhat as follows 
 
 " Boys," he was wont to say, " you laugh at me 
 for readin' the Bible carefully. You would not laugh 
 at a schoolboy for reading his books carefully, would 
 you ? Yet the learnin' of the way of salvation is of 
 far more consequence to me than book learnin' is to 
 a schoolboy. An astronomer is never laughed at for 
 readin' his books o' geometry an' such like day an* 
 night even to the injury of his health, but what 
 is an astronomer's business to him compared with the
 
 298 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 concerns of my soul to me ? Ministers tell me there 
 are certain things I must know and believe if I would 
 be saved such as the death and resurrection of our 
 Saviour Jesus Christ ; and they also point out that 
 the Bible speaks of certain Christians, who did well 
 in refusin' to receive the gospel at the hands of the 
 apostles, without first inquirin' into these things, to 
 see if they were true. Now, lads, if these tilings 
 that so many millions believe in, and that you all 
 profess to believe in, are lies, then you may well 
 laugh at me for inquirin' into them ; but if they be 
 true, why, I think the devils themselves must be 
 laughing at you for not inquirin' into them !" 
 
 Of course, Forsyth found among such a number of 
 intelligent men, some who could argue with him, as 
 well as some who could laugh at him. He also 
 found one or two who sympathized openly, while 
 there were a few who agreed in their nearts, although 
 they did not speak. 
 
 Well, it was this tendency to study on the part of 
 Forsyth, that led him to cross the wooden bridge 
 between the beacon and the lighthouse during his 
 leisure hours, and sit reading at the top of the spiral 
 stair, near one of the windows of the lowest room. 
 
 Forsyth was sitting at his usual window one 
 afternoon at the end of a storm. It was a comfort- 
 less place, for neither sashes nor glass had at that 
 time been put in, and the wind howled up and down
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 299 
 
 the shaft dreadfully. The man was robust, howevei, 
 and did not mind that. 
 
 The height of the building was at that time fully 
 eighty feet high. While he was reading there a 
 tremendous breaker struck the lighthouse with such 
 force that it trembled distinctly. Forsyth started 
 up, for he had never felt this before, and fancied the 
 structure was about to fall For a moment or two 
 he remained paralysed, for he heard the most terrible 
 and inexplicable sounds going on overhead. In 
 fact, the wave that shook the building had sent a 
 huge volume of spray right over the top, part of 
 which fell into the lighthouse, and what poor Forsyth 
 heard was about a ton of water coming down through 
 storey after storey, carrying lime, mortar, buckets, 
 trowels, and a host of other things, violently along 
 with it. 
 
 To plunge down the spiral stair, almost head- 
 foremost, was the work of a few seconds. Forsyth 
 accompanied the descent with a yell of terror, which 
 reached the ears of his comrades in the beacon, and 
 brought them to the door, just in time to see their 
 comrade's long legs carry him across the bridge in 
 two bounds. Almost at the same instant the water 
 and rubbish burst out of the doorway of the light- 
 house, and flooded the bridge ! 
 
 But let us return from this digression, or rather, 
 this series of digressions, to the point where we
 
 300 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 branched off : the aspect of the beacon in the fog ; 
 and the calm of that still morning in June. 
 
 Some of the men inside were playing draughts, 
 others were finishing their breakfast ; one was play- 
 ing " Auld Lang Syne," with many extempore flour- 
 ishes and trills, on a flute, which was very much out 
 of tune. A few were smoking, of course, (where 
 exists the band of Britons who can get on without 
 that ?) and several were sitting astride on the cross- 
 beams below, bobbing not exactly for whales, but 
 for any monster of the deep that chose to turn up. 
 
 The men fishing, and the beacon itself, loomed 
 large and mysterious in the half-luminous fog. 
 Perhaps this was the reason that the sea-gulls flew 
 so near them, and gave forth an occasional and very 
 melancholy cry, as if of complaint at the changed 
 appearance of things. 
 
 " There 's naethin' to be got the day," said John 
 Watt, rather peevishly, as he pulled up his line and 
 found the bait gone. 
 
 Baits are always found gone when lines are pulled 
 up ! This would seem to be an angling law of 
 nature. At all events, it would seem to have been 
 a very aggravating law of nature on the present 
 occasion* for John Watt frowned and growled to 
 himself as he put on another bait. 
 
 " There's a bite !" exclaimed Joe Dumsby, with a 
 look of doubt, at the same time feeling his line.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 301 
 
 n Poo 'd in then/' said Watt ironically. 
 
 " No, 'e 's hoff," observed Joe. 
 
 " Hm ! he never was on," muttered Watt. 
 
 " What are you two growling at ?" said Euby, who 
 sat on one of the beams at the other side. 
 
 " At our luck, Euby," said Joe. " Ha ! was that a 
 nibble ?" (" Naethin' o' the kind," from Watt.) " It 
 was ! as I live it 's large ; an 'addock, I think." 
 
 " A naddock !" sneered Watt ; " mair like a bit o' 
 tangle than eh ! losh me ! it is a fish 
 
 " Well done, Joe !" cried Bremner, from the door- 
 way above, as a large rock-cod was drawn to the 
 surface of the water. 
 
 " Stay, it 's too large to pull up with the line. I '11 
 run down and gaff it," cried Euby, fastening his own 
 line to the beam, and descending to the water by the 
 usual ladder, on one of the main beams. "Now, 
 draw him this way gently, not too roughly take 
 time. Ah ! that was a miss he's off ; no ! Again ; 
 now then ' 
 
 Another moment, and a goodly cod of about ten 
 pounds' weight was wriggling on the iron hook which 
 Euby handed up to Dumsby, who mounted with his 
 prize in triumph to the kitchen. 
 
 From that moment the fish began to " take." 
 
 While the men were thus busily engaged, a boat 
 was rowing about in the fog, vainly endeavouring to 
 find the rock.
 
 302 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 It was the boat of those two fast friends, Jock 
 Swankie and Davy Spink. 
 
 These worthies were in a rather exhausted con- 
 dition, having been rowing almost incessantly from 
 daybreak. 
 
 v I tell 'ee what it is/' said Swankie ; " I '11 be 
 hanged if I poo another stroke." 
 
 He threw his oar into the boat, and looked sulky. 
 
 " It 's my belief," said his companion, " that we 
 ought to be near aboot Denmark be this time." 
 
 "Denmark or Eooshia, it's a' ane to me," rejoined 
 Swankie ; " I '11 hae a smoke." 
 
 So saying, he pulled out his pipe and tobacco- 
 box, and began to cut the tobacco. Davy did the 
 same. 
 
 Suddenly both men paused, for they heard a sound. 
 Each looked inquiringly at the other, and then both 
 gazed into the thick fog. 
 
 " Is that a ship ?" said Davy Spink. 
 
 They seized their oars hastily. 
 
 " The beacon, as I 'm a leevin' sinner," exclaimed 
 Swankie. 
 
 If Spink had not backed his oar at that moment, 
 there is some probability that Swankie would have 
 been a dead, instead of a living sinner in a few 
 minutes, for they had almost run upon the north- 
 east end of the Bell Eock, and distinctly heard the 
 sound of voices on the beacon. A shout settled the
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 303 
 
 question at once, for it was replied to by a loud 
 "holloa from Ruby. 
 
 In a short time the boat was close to the beacon, 
 and the water was so very calm that day, that they 
 were able to venture to hand the packet of letters 
 with which they had come off into the beacon, even 
 although the tide was full. 
 
 " Letters," said Swankie, as he reached out his 
 hand with the packet. 
 
 " Hurrah !" cried the men, who were all assembled 
 on the mortar-gallery, looking down at the fishermen, 
 excepting Ruby, Watt, and Dumsby, who were still 
 on the cross-beams below. 
 
 : ' Mind the boat ; keep her aff," said Swankie 
 stretching out his hand with the packet to the ut- 
 most, while Dumsby descended the ladder and held 
 out his hand to receive it. 
 
 " Take care," cried the men in chorus, for news 
 from shore was always a very exciting episode in 
 their career, and the idea of the packet being lost 
 filled them with sudden alarm. 
 
 The shout and the -anxiety together caused the 
 very result that was dreaded. The packet fell into 
 the sea and sank, amid a volley of yells. 
 
 Tt went down slowly. Before it had descended a 
 fathom, Ruby's head cleft the water, and in a moment 
 he returned to the surface with the packet in hia 
 hand amid a wild cheer of joy ; but this was turned
 
 304 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 into a cry of alarm, as Kuby was carried away by 
 the tide, despite his utmost efforts to regain the 
 beacon. 
 
 The boat was at once pushed off, but so strong 
 was the current there, that Kuby was carried past 
 the rock, and a hundred yards away to sea, before the 
 boat overtook him. 
 
 The moment he was pulled into her he shook 
 himself, and then tore off the outer covering of the 
 packet in order to save the letters from being wetted. 
 He had the great satisfaction of finding them almost 
 uninjured. He had the greater satisfaction, there- 
 after, of feeling that he had done a deed which in- 
 duced every man in the beacon that night to thank 
 him half-a-dozen times over; and he had the 
 greatest possible satisfaction in finding that among 
 the rest he had saved two letters addressed to him- 
 self, one from Minnie Gray, and the other from his 
 uncle. 
 
 The scene in the beacon when the contents of the 
 packet were delivered was interesting. Those who 
 had letters devoured them, and in many cases read 
 them (unwittingly) half aloud. Those who had none 
 read the newspapers, and those who had neither 
 papers nor letters listened. 
 
 Ruby's letter ran as follows (we say his letter, 
 because the other letter was regarded, comparatively, 
 as nothing) :
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 305 
 
 " AEBROATH, ETC. 
 
 " DARLING RUBY, I have just time to tell you that 
 *ee have made a discovery which will surprise you. 
 Let me detail it to you circumstantially. Uncle 
 Ogilvy and I were walking on the pier a few days 
 ago, when we overheard a conversation between two 
 sailors, who did not see that we were approaching. 
 We would not have stopped to listen, but the words 
 we heard arrested our attention, so what a pity ! 
 there Big Swankie has come for our letters. la 
 it not strange that lie should be the man to take 
 them off? I meant to have given you such an account 
 of it, especially a description of the case. They won't 
 wait. Come ashore as soon as you can, dearest Ruby." 
 
 The letter broke off here abruptly. It was evident 
 that the writer had been obliged to close it abruptly, 
 for she had forgotten to sign her name. 
 
 " ' A description of the case ;' what case ?" muttered 
 Ruby in vexation. " Minnie, Minnie, in your 
 anxiety to go into details you have omitted to give 
 me the barest outline. Well, well, darling, I '11 just 
 take the will for the deed, but I wish you had " 
 
 Here Ruby ceased to mutter, for Captain Ogilvy's 
 letter suddenly occurred to his mind. Opening it 
 hastily, he read as follows : 
 
 " DEAR NEFFY, I never was much of a hand at 
 spellin', an' I 'm not rightly "ure o' that word, how- 
 
 u
 
 306 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 sever, it reads all square, so ittle do. If I had been 
 the inventer o' writin' I 'd have had signs for a lot o' 
 words. Just think how much better it would ha' 
 bin to have put a regular D like that instead o 1 
 writin' s-q-u-a-r-e. Then round would have bin far 
 better O, like that. An' crooked thus, ~^^ ; see 
 how significant an' suggestive, if I may say so ; no 
 humbug, all fair an' above board, as the pirate said, 
 when he ran up the black flag to the peak. 
 
 " But avast speckillatin' (shiver my timbers ! but 
 that last was a pen-splitter), that 's not what I sat 
 down to write about. My object in takin' up the 
 pen, neffy, is two-fold, 
 
 ' Double, double, toil an' trouble, 
 
 as Macbeath said, if it wasn't Hamlet. 
 
 " "We want you to come home for a day or two, if 
 you can git leave, lad, about this strange affair. 
 Minnie said she was goin' to give you a full, true, 
 an' partikler account of it, so it's of no use my 
 goin' over the same course. There 's that blackguard 
 Swankie come for the letters. Ha ! it makes me 
 chuckle. No time for more 
 
 This letter also concluded abruptly, and without a 
 signature. 
 
 " There 's a pretty kettle o' fish," exclaimed" Ruby 
 aloud. 
 
 " So 'tis, lad ; so 'tis," said Bremner, who at that
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 307 
 
 moment had placed a superb pot of codlings on the 
 fire ; " though why ye should say it so positively 
 when nobody 's denyin' it, is more nor T can tell" 
 
 Euby laughed, and retired to the mortar-gallery 
 to work at the forge and ponder. He always found 
 that he pondered best while employed in hammer- 
 ing, especially if his feelings were ruffled. 
 
 Seizing a mass of metal, he laid it on the anvil, 
 and gave it five or six heavy blows to straighten 
 it a little, before thrusting it into the fire. 
 
 Strange to say, these few blows of the hammer 
 were the means, in all probability, of saving the 
 sloop " Smeaton " from being wrecked on the Bell 
 Rock! 
 
 That vessel had been away with Mr. Stevenson 
 at Leith, and was returning, when she was over- 
 taken by the calm and the fog. At the moment 
 that Euby began to hammer, the " Smeaton " was 
 within a stone's cast of the beacon, running gently 
 before a light air which had sprung up. 
 
 No one on board had the least idea that the tide 
 had swept them so near the rock, and the ringing 
 of the anvil was the first warning they got of their 
 danger. 
 
 The look-out on board instantly sang out, " Star- 
 board har-r-r-d ! beacon ahead !" and Euby looked 
 up in surprise, just as the " Smeaton " emerged like 
 a phantom-ship out of the fog. Her sails fluttered
 
 308 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 as she carne up to the wind, and the crew were seen 
 hurrying to and fro in much alarm. 
 
 Mr. Stevenson himself stood on the quarter-deck 
 of the little vessel, and waved his hand to assure 
 those on the beacon that they had sheered off in 
 time, and were safe. 
 
 This incident tended to strengthen the engineer 
 in his opinion that the two large bells which were 
 being cast for the lighthouse, to be rung by the 
 machinery of the revolving light, would be of great 
 utility in foggy weather. 
 
 While the " Smeaton " was turning away, as if 
 with a graceful bow to the men on the rock, Euby 
 shouted 
 
 " There are letters here for you, sir." 
 
 The mate of the vessel called out at once, " Send 
 them off in the shore-boat ; we '11 lay-to." 
 
 No time was to be lost, for if the " Smeaton " 
 should get involved in the fog it might be very 
 difficult to find her ; so Euby at once ran for the 
 letters, and, hailing the shore-boat which lay quite 
 close at hand, jumped into it and pushed off. 
 
 They boarded the " Smeaton " without difficulty 
 and delivered the letters. 
 
 Instead of returning to the beacon, however, Euby 
 was ordered to hold himself in readiness to go to 
 Arbroath in the shore-boat with a letter from Mr 
 Stevenson to the superintendent of the workyard.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 300 
 
 " You can go up and see your friends in the town, 
 if you choose," said the engineer, " but be sure to 
 return by to-morrow's forenoon tide. We cannot 
 dispense with your services longer than a few hours, 
 my lad, so I shall expect you to make no unneces- 
 sary delay." 
 
 "You may depend upon me, sir," said Ruby, 
 touching his cap, as he turned away and leaped 
 into the boat. 
 
 A light breeze was now blowing, so that the sails 
 could be used. In less than a quarter of an hour 
 sloop and beacon were lost in the fog, and Euby 
 steered for the harbour of Arbroath, overjoyed at 
 this unexpected and happy turn of events, which 
 gave him an opportunity of solving the mystery 
 of the letters, and of once more seeing the sweet 
 face of Minnie Gray. 
 
 But an incident occurred which delayed these 
 desirable ends, and utterly changed the current 
 of Ruby's fortunes for a time.
 
 CHAPTEE XXVI. 
 
 A SUDDEN AND TREMENDOUS CHANGE IN RUBY'S FORTUNES. 
 
 WHAT a variety of appropriate aphorisms there 
 are to express the great truths of human expe- 
 rience ! " There is many a slip 'twixt the cup 
 and the lip" is one of them. Undoubtedly there 
 is. So is there "many a miss of a sweet little 
 kiss." " The course of true love," also, " never did 
 run smooth." Certainly not. Why should it ? If 
 it did we should doubt whether the love were true. 
 Our own private belief is that the course of true 
 love is always uncommonly rough, but collective 
 human wisdom has seen fit to put the idea in the 
 negative form. So let it stand. 
 
 Ruby had occasion to reflect on these things that 
 day, but the reflection afforded him no comfort 
 whatever. 
 
 The cause of his inconsolable state of mind is 
 easily explained. 
 
 The boat had proceeded about half-way to Ar- 
 broath when they heard the sound of oars, and in
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 311 
 
 a few seconds a ship's gig rowed out of the fog 
 , towards them. Instead of passing them the gig 
 was steered straight for the boat, and Kuby saw 
 that it was full of men-of-war's men. 
 
 He sprang up at once and seized an oar. 
 
 " Out oars !" he cried. " Boys, if ever you pulled 
 hard in your lives, do so now. It's the press- 
 gang ! " 
 
 Before those few words were uttered the two 
 men had seized the oars, for they knew well what 
 the press-gang meant, and all three pulled with 
 such vigour that the boat shot over the smooth 
 sea with double speed. But they had no chance 
 in a heavy fishing-boat against the picked crew 
 of the light gig. If the wind had been a little 
 stronger they might have escaped, but the wind 
 had decreased, and the small boat overhauled them 
 yard by yard. 
 
 Seeing that they had no chance, Euby said, be- 
 tween his set teeth 
 
 "Will ye fight, boys?" 
 
 " / will," cried Davy Spink sternly, for Davy had 
 a wife and little daughter on shore, who depended 
 entirely on his exertions for their livelihood, so 
 he had a strong objection to go and fight in the 
 wars of his country. 
 
 "What's the use?" muttered Big Swankie, with 
 a savage scowl He too had a strong disinclination
 
 312 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 to serve in the Eoyal Navy, being a lazy man, and 
 not overburdened with courage. " They Ve got eight 
 men of a crew, wi' pistols an' cutlashes." 
 
 " Well, it 's all up with us," cried Ruby, in a tone 
 of sulky anger, as he tossed his oar overboard, and, 
 folding his arms on his breast, sat sternly eyeing the 
 gig as it approached. 
 
 Suddenly a beam of hope shot into his heart. A 
 few words will explain the cause thereof. 
 
 About the time the works at the Bell Eock were 
 in progress, the war with France and the Northern 
 Powers was at its height, and the demand for men 
 was so great that orders were issued for the estab- 
 lishment of an impress service at Dundee, Arbroath, 
 and Aberdeen. It became therefore necessary to 
 have some protection for the men engaged in the 
 works. As the impress officers were extremely rigid 
 in the execution of their duty, it was resolved to 
 have the seamen carefully identified, and, therefore, 
 besides being described in the usual manner in the 
 protection -bills granted by the Admiralty, each man 
 had a ticket given to him descriptive of his person, 
 to which was attached a silver medal emblematical 
 of the lighthouse service. 
 
 That very week Ruby had received one of the 
 protection-medals and tickets of the Bell Rock, a 
 circumstance which he had forgotten at the moment 
 Tt was now in his pocket, and might perhaps save him
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 315 
 
 When the boat ranged up alongside, Ruby recog- 
 nised in the officer at the helm the youth who 
 had already given him so much annoyance. The 
 officer also recognised Ruby, and, with a glance of 
 surprise and pleasure, exclaimed 
 
 " What ! have I bagged you at last, my slippery 
 young lion ? " 
 
 Euby smiled as he replied, " Not quite yet, my 
 persevering young jackal!" (He was sorely tempted 
 to transpose the word into jackass, but he wisely re- 
 strained himself.) " I 'm not so easily caught as you 
 think." 
 
 " Eh ! how ? what mean you ? " exclaimed the 
 officer, with an expression of surprise, for he knew 
 that. Ruby was now in his power. " I have you 
 safe, my lad, unless you have provided yourself 
 with a pair of wings. Of course I shall leave one 
 of you to take your boat into harbour, but you 
 may be sure that I '11 not devolve that pleasant 
 duty upon you" 
 
 " I have not provided myself with wings ex- 
 actly," returned Ruby, pulling out his medal and 
 ticket ; " but here is something that will do quite 
 as well." 
 
 The officer's countenance fell, for he knew at once 
 what it was. He inspected it, however, closely. 
 
 " Let me see," said he, reading the description or 
 the ticket, which ran thus :
 
 314 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " BELL ROCK WORKYARD, ARBROATH, 
 2Qth June 1810. 
 
 "Ruby Brand, seaman and blacksmith, in the 
 service of the Honourable the Commissioners of the 
 Northern Lighthouses, aged 25 years, 5 feet 10 inches 
 high, very powerfully made, fair complexion, straight 
 nose, dark-Hue eyes, and curling auburn hair" 
 
 This description was signed by the engineer of 
 the works ; and on the obverse was written, " The 
 bearer, Ruby Brand, is serving as a blacksmith in 
 the erection of the Bell Rock Lighthouse." 
 
 " This is all very well, my fine fellow," said the 
 officer, " but I have been deceived more than once 
 with these medals and tickets. How am I to know 
 that you have not stolen it from some one ? " 
 
 " By seeing whether the description agrees," re- 
 plied Euby. 
 
 " Of course, I know that as well as you, and I 
 don't find the description quite perfect. I would 
 say that your hair is light-brown, now, not auburn, 
 and your nose is a little Eoman, if anything ; and 
 there 's no mention of whiskers, or that delicate 
 moustache. Why, look here," he added, turning 
 abruptly to Big Swankie, "this might be the de- 
 scription of your comrade as well as, if not better 
 than, yours. What 's your name ? " 
 
 " Swankie, sir," said that individual ruefully, yet 
 with a gleam of hope that the advantages of the
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 315 
 
 Bell Eock medal might possibly, in . some unac- 
 countable way, accrue to himself, for he was sharp 
 enough to see that the officer would be only too 
 glad to find any excuse for securing Euby. 
 
 " Well, Swankie, stand up, and let 's have a look 
 at you," said the officer, glancing from the paper to 
 the person of the fisherman, and commenting there- 
 on. " Here we have ' very powerfully made ' no 
 mistake about that strong as Samson ; ' fair com- 
 plexion' that's it exactly; 'auburn hair' so it 
 is. Auburn is a very undecided colour ; there 's a 
 great deal of red in it, and no one can deny that 
 Swankie has a good deal of red in his hair." 
 
 There was indeed no denying this, for it was 
 altogether red, of an intense carroty hue. 
 
 " You see, friend," continued the officer, turning to 
 Euby, " that the description suits Swankie very well." 
 
 " True, as far as you have gone," said Euby, with 
 a quiet smile ; " but Swankie is six feet two in his 
 stockings, and his nose is turned up, and his hair 
 don't curl, and his eyes are light-green, and his 
 complexion is sallow, if I may not say yellow " 
 
 " Fair, lad ; fair," said the officer, laughing in 
 spite of himself. " Ah ! Euby Brand, you are 
 jealous of him! Well, I see that I'm fated not 
 to capture you, so I '11 bid you good-day. Mean- 
 while your companions will be so good as to step 
 into my gig."
 
 316 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 The two men rose to obey. Big Swankie stepped 
 over the gunwale, with the fling of a sulky, reckless 
 man, who curses his fate and submits to it. Davy 
 Spink had a very crest-fallen, subdued look. He 
 was about to follow, when a thought seemed to 
 strike him. He turned hastily round, and Kuby 
 was surprised to see that his eyes were suffused 
 with tears, and that his features worked with the 
 convulsive twitching of one who struggles power- 
 fully to restrain his feelings. 
 
 "Kuby Brand," said he, in a deep husky voice, 
 which trembled at first, but became strong as he 
 went on ; " Euby Brand, I deserve nae good at 
 your hands, yet I '11 ask a favour o' ye. Ye 've 
 seen the wife and the bairn, the wee ane wi' the 
 fair curly pow. Ye ken the auld hoose. It'll be 
 mony a lang day afore I see them again, if iver I 
 come back ava. There's naebody left to care for 
 them. They'll be starvin' soon, lad. Wull ye 
 wull ye look doon ?" 
 
 Poor Davy Spink stopped here, and covered his 
 face with his big sunburnt hands. 
 
 A sudden gush of sympathy filled Euby's heart. 
 He started forward, and drawing from his pocket 
 the letter with which he was charged, thrust it 
 into Spink's hand, and said hurriedly 
 
 " Don't fail to deliver it the first thing you do on 
 landing. And hark'ee, Spink, go to Mrs. Brand's
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 317 
 
 cottage, and tell them there why I went away. Bo 
 ' sure you see them all, and explain why it was. Tell 
 Minnie Gray that I will be certain to return, if God 
 spares me." 
 
 "Without waiting for a reply he sprang into the 
 gig, and gave the other boat a shove, that sent it 
 several yards off. 
 
 " Give way, lads," cried the officer, who was de- 
 lighted at this unexpected change in affairs, though 
 he had only heard enough of the conversation to 
 confuse him as to the cause of it. 
 
 " Stop ! stop ! " shouted Spink, tossing up his 
 arms. 
 
 " I 'd rather not," returned the officer. 
 
 Davy seized the oars, and, turning his boat in 
 the direction of the gig, endeavoured to overtake 
 it. As well might the turkey -buzzard attempt to 
 catch the swallow. He was left far behind, and 
 when last seen faintly through the fog, he was 
 standing up in the stern of the boat wringing his 
 hands. 
 
 Euby had seated himself in the bow of the gig, 
 with his face turned steadily towards the sea, so 
 that no one could see it This position he main- 
 tained in silence until the boat ranged up to what 
 appeared like the side of a great mountain, looming 
 through the mist 
 
 Then he turned round, and, whatever might have
 
 318 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 been the struggle within his breast, all traces of it 
 had left his countenance, which presented ite wonted 
 appearance of good-humoured frankness. 
 
 We need scarcely say that the mountain turned 
 out to be a British man-of-war. Buby was quickly 
 introduced to his future messmates, and warmly 
 received by them. Then he was left to his own free 
 will during the remainder of that day, for the com- 
 mander of the vessel was a kind man, and did not 
 like to add to the grief of the impressed men by 
 setting them to work at once. 
 
 Thus did our hero enter the Eoyal Navy; and 
 many a long and weary day and month passed by 
 before he again set foot in his native town.
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 OTHEU THINGS BESIDES MDRDEB "WILL OUT." 
 
 MEANWHILE Davy Spink, with Ms heart full, re- 
 turned slowly to the shore. 
 
 He was long of reaching it, the boat being very 
 heavy for one man to pulL On landing he hurried 
 up to his poor little cottage, which was in a very low 
 part of the town, and in a rather out of the way 
 corner of that part. 
 
 " Janet," said he, flinging himself into a rickety 
 old arm-chair that stood by the fireplace, " the press- 
 gang has catched us at last, and they Ve took Big 
 Swankie away, and, worse than that 
 
 " Oh !" cried Janet, unable to wait for more, 
 " that 's the best news I Ve heard for mony a day. 
 Ye 're sure they have him safe ?" 
 
 " Ay, sure enough," said Spink drily ; " but ye 
 needna be sae glad aboot it, for Swankie was aye 
 good to you" 
 
 " Ay, Davy," cried Janet, putting her arm round 
 her husband's neck, and kissing him, " but he wasna
 
 320 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 good to you. He led ye into evil ways mony a time 
 when ye would rather hae keepit out o' them. Na, 
 na, Davy, ye needna shake yer heed ; I ken'd fine." 
 
 " Weel, weel, hae'd yer ain way, lass, but Swankie's 
 awa' to the wars, and so 's Euby Brand, for they Ve 
 gotten him as wee!" 
 
 " Ruby Brand !" exclaimed the woman. 
 
 " Ay, Euby Brand ; and this is the way they did 
 it." 
 
 Here Spink detailed to his helpmate, who sat 
 with folded hands and staring eyes opposite to her 
 husband, all that had happened. When he had con- 
 cluded, they discussed the subject together. Pre- 
 sently the little girl came bouncing into the room, 
 with rosy cheeks, sparkling eyes, a dirty face, and 
 fair ringlets very much dishevelled, and with a 
 pitcher of hot soup in her hands. 
 
 Davy caught her up, and kissing her, said ab- 
 ruptly, " Maggie, Big Swankie 's awa' to the wars." 
 
 The child looked inquiringly in her father's face, 
 and he had to repeat his words twice before she 
 quite realized the import of them. 
 
 " Are ye jokin', daddy ?" 
 
 "No, Maggie; it's true. The press-gang got 
 him and took him awa', an' I doot we '11 niver see 
 him again." 
 
 The little girl's expression changed while he spoke, 
 then her lip trembled, and she burst into tears.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 321 
 
 " See there, Janet," said Spink, pointing tc 
 < Maggie, and looking earnestly at his wife. 
 
 " Weel-a-weel," replied Janet, somewhat softened, 
 yet with much firmness, " 1 11 no deny that the 
 man was fond o' the bairn, and it liked him wee] 
 enough ; but, my certes ! he wad hae made a bad 
 man o' you if he could. But I 'm real sorry for 
 Ruby Brand ; and what '11 the puir lassie Gray do 1 
 Ye '11 hae to gang up an' gie them the message." 
 
 " So I will ; but that 's like somethin' to eat, I 
 think?" 
 
 Spink pointed to the soup. 
 
 " Ay, it 's a' we 've got, so let 's fa' to ; and haste 
 ye, lad. It 's a sair heart she '11 hae this night 
 wae 's me !" 
 
 "While Spink and his wife were thus employed, 
 Widow Brand, Minnie Gray, and Captain Ogilvy 
 were seated at tea, round the little table in the snug 
 kitchen of the widow's cottage. 
 
 It might have been observed that there were two 
 teapots on the table, a large one and a small,, and 
 that the captain helped himself out of the small one, 
 and did not take either milk or sugar. But the 
 captain's teapot did not necessarily imply tea. In 
 fact, since the death of the captain's mother, that 
 small teapot had been accustomed to strong drink 
 only. It never tasted tea, 
 
 " I wonder if Kuby will get leave of absence." 
 x
 
 322 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 said the captain, throwing himself back in his arm- 
 chair, in order to be able to admire, with greater 
 ease, the smoke, as it curled towards the ceiling 
 from his mouth and pipe. 
 
 " I do hope so," said Mrs.. Brand, looking up froiu 
 her knitting, with a little sigh. Mrs. Brand usually 
 followed up all her remarks with a little sigh. 
 Sometimes the sigh was very little. It depended a 
 good deal on the nature of her remark whether the 
 sigh was of the little, less, or least description ; but 
 it never failed, in one or other degree, to close her 
 every observation. 
 
 " I think he will," said Minnie, as she poured out 
 a second cup of tea for the widow. 
 
 "Ay, that's right, lass," observed the captain; 
 " there 's nothin' like hope 
 
 ' The pleasures of nope to..& a flatterin tale 
 Regardin* the fleet when Lord Nelson set sail.' 
 
 Fill me out another cup of tea, Hebe." 
 
 It was a pleasant little fiction with the captain to 
 call his beverage " tea." Minnie filled out a small 
 cupful of the contents of the little teapot, which did, 
 indeed, resemble tea, but which smelt marvellously 
 like hot rum and water. 
 
 "Enough, enough. Come on Macduff! Ah! 
 Minnie, this is prime Jamaica ; it 's got such a but 
 I forgot ; you don't understand nothin' about neotar 
 of this sort."
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 323 
 
 The captain smoked in silence for a few minutes, 
 and then said, with a sudden chuckle 
 
 " Wasn't it odd, sister, that we should have found 
 it all out in such an easy sort o' way ? If criminals 
 would always tell on themselves as plainly as Big 
 Swankie did, there would be no use for lawyers." 
 
 " Swankie would not have spoken so freely," said 
 Minnie, with a laugh, "if he had known that we 
 were listening." 
 
 " That 's true, girl," said the captain, with sudden 
 gravity ; " and I don't feel quite easy in my mind 
 about that same eavesdropping. It 's a dirty thing 
 to do especially for an old sailor, who likes every- 
 thing to be fair and aboveboard ; but then, you see, 
 the natur' o' the words we couldn't help hearin' 
 justified us in waitin' to hear more. Yes, it was 
 quite right, as it turned out. A little more tea, 
 Minnie. Thank'ee, lass. Now go, get the case, and 
 let us look over it again." 
 
 The girl rose, and, going to a drawer, quickly 
 returned with a small red leather case in her hand. 
 It was the identical jewel-case that Swankie had 
 found on the dead body at the Bell Eock ! 
 
 " Ah ! that 's it ; now, let us see ; let us see." He 
 laid aside his pipe, and for some time felt all his 
 pockets, and looked/ round the room, as if in search 
 of something. 
 
 " What are you looking for, uncle ?"
 
 324 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " The specs, lass ; these specs '11 be the death o' 
 me." 
 
 Minnie laughed. " They 're on your brow, uncle !" 
 
 " So they are ! Well, well " 
 
 The captain smiled deprecatingly, and, drawing 
 his chair close to the table, began to examine the 
 box. 
 
 Its contents were a strange mixture, and it was 
 evident that the case had not been made to hold 
 them. 
 
 There was a lady's gold watch, of very small size, 
 and beautifully formed ; a set of ornaments, con- 
 sisting of necklace, bracelets, ring, and ear-rings of 
 turquoise and pearls set in gold, of the most delicate 
 and exquisite chasing ; also, an antique diamond 
 cross of great beauty, besides a number of rings and 
 bracelets of considerable value. 
 
 As the captain took these out one by one, and 
 commented on them, he made use of Minnie's pretty 
 hand and arm to try the effect of each, and truly 
 the ornaments could not have found a more appro- 
 priate resting-place among the fairest ladies of the 
 land. 
 
 Minnie submitted to be made use of in this way 
 with a pleased and amused expression; for, while 
 she greatly admired the costly gems, she could not 
 help smiling at the awkwardness of the captain ic 
 putting them on.
 
 T1IE LIGHTHOUSE. 325 
 
 " Head the paper again," said Minnie, after the 
 contents of the box had been examined. 
 
 The captain took up a small parcel covered with 
 oiled cloth, which contained a letter. Opening it, he 
 began to read, but was interrupted by Mrs. Brand, 
 who had paid little attention to the jewels. 
 
 " Head it out loud, brother," said she, " I don't hear 
 you well Eead it out ; I love to hear of my darling's 
 gallant deeds." 
 
 The captain cleared his throat, raised his voice, 
 and read slowly : 
 
 " ' LISBON, IQth March 1808. 
 
 " ' DEAR CAPTAIN BRAND, I am about to quit 
 this place for the East in a few days, and shall pro- 
 bably never see you again. Pray accept the accom- 
 panying case of jewels as a small token of the love 
 and esteem in which you are held by a heart-broken 
 father. I feel assured that if it had been in the 
 power of man to have saved my drowning child your 
 gallant efforts would have been successful It was 
 ordained otherwise ; and I now pray that I may be 
 enabled to say ' God's will be done.' But I cannot 
 bear the sight of these ornaments. I have no rela- 
 tives none at least who deserve them half so well 
 as yourself. Do not pain me by rei using them. 
 They may be of use to you if you are ever in want 
 of money, being worth, I believe, between three and 
 four hundred pounds. Of course, you cannot mis-
 
 326 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 understand my motive in mentioning this. No 
 amount of money could in any measure represent 
 the gratitude I owe to the man who risked his life 
 to save my child. May God bless you, sir.' " 
 
 The letter ended thus, without signature ; and the 
 captain ceased to read aloud. But there was an 
 addition to the letter written in pencil, in the hand 
 of the late Captain Brand, which neither he nor 
 Minnie had yet found courage to read to the poor 
 widow. It ran thus : 
 
 " Our doom is sealed. My schooner is on the 
 Bell Rock. It is blowing a gale from N.E., and she 
 is going to pieces fast. We are all standing under 
 the lee of a ledge of rock six of us. In half-an- 
 hour the tide will be roaring over the spot. God in 
 Christ help us. It is an awful end. If this letter 
 and box is ever found, I ask the finder to send it. 
 with my blessing, to Mrs. Brand, my beloved wife, 
 in Arbroath." 
 
 The writing was tremulous, and the paper bore 
 the marks of having been soiled with sea-weed. It 
 was unsigned. The writer had evidently been 
 obliged to close it hastily. 
 
 After reading this in silence the captain refolded 
 the letter. 
 
 " No wonder, Minnie, that Swankie did not dare 
 to offer such things for sale. He would certainly
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 327 
 
 have been found out Wasn't it lucky that we 
 heard him tell Spink the spot under his floor where 
 he had hidden them ?" 
 
 At that moment there came a low knock to the 
 door. Minnie opened it, and admitted Davy Spink, 
 who stood in the middle of the room twitching his 
 cap nervously, and glancing uneasily from one to 
 another of the party. 
 
 " Hallo, Spink !" cried the captain, pushing his 
 spectacles up on his forehead, and gazing at the 
 fisherman in surprise, " you don't seem to be quite 
 easy in your mind. Hope your fortunes have not 
 sprung a leak ?" 
 
 " Weel, Captain Ogilvy, they just have ; gone to 
 the bottom, I might a'most say. I Ve come to tell 
 ye that the fact is, that the press-gang have 
 catched us at last, and ta'en awa' my mate, Jock 
 Swankie, better kenn'd as Big Swankie." 
 
 " Hem well, my lad, in so far as that does damage 
 to you, I 'm sorry for it ; but as regards society at 
 large, I rather think that Swankie havin' tripped his 
 anchor is a decided advantage. If you lose by this 
 in one way, you gain much in another; for your 
 mate's companionship did ye no good. Birds of a 
 feather should flock together. You 're better apart, 
 for I believe you to be an honest man, Spink." 
 
 Davy looked at the captain in unfeigned astonish- 
 ment.
 
 328 THE. LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " Weel, ye 're the first man that iver said that, an 1 
 E thank 'ee, sir, but you 're wrang, though I wush 
 ye was right. But that 's no' what I cam to tell ye." 
 
 Here the fisherman's indecision of manner returned 
 
 " Come, make a clean breast of it, lad There are 
 none here but friends." 
 
 " Weel, sir, Euby Brand" 
 
 He paused, and Minnie turned deadly pale, for 
 she jumped at once to the right conclusion. The 
 widow, on the other hand, listened for more with 
 deep anxiety, but did not guess the truth. 
 
 " The fact is, Euby's catched too, an' he's awa' to 
 the wars, and he sent me to ech, sirs ! the auld 
 wuman 's fentit." 
 
 Poor Widow Brand had indeed fallen back in her 
 chair in a state bordering on insensibility. Minnie 
 was able to restrain her feelings so as to attend to 
 her. She and the captain raised her gently, and led 
 her into her own room, from whence the captain re- 
 turned, and shut the door behind him. 
 
 " Now, Spink," said he, " tell me all about it, an' 
 be partic'lar." 
 
 Davy at once complied, and related all that the 
 reader already knows, in a deep, serious tone of voice, 
 for he felt that in the captain he had a sympathetic 
 listener. 
 
 When he had concluded, Captain Ogilvy heaved 
 a sigh so deep that it might have been almost con-
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 329 
 
 sidered a groan, then he sat down on his arm-chair, 
 and, pointing to the chair from which the widow 
 had recently risen, said, " Sit down, lad.'' 
 
 As he advanced to comply, Spink's eyes foi the 
 first time fell on the case of jewels. He started, 
 paused, and looked with a troubled air at the 
 captain. 
 
 ' Ha I" exclaimed the latter with a grin ; " you 
 seem to know these things ; old acquaintances, eh?" 
 
 "It wasna me that stole them," said Spink 
 hastily. 
 
 " I did not say that any one stole them." 
 
 " Weel, I mean that that " 
 
 He stopped abruptly, for he felt that in whatever 
 way he might attempt to clear himself, he would 
 unavoidably criminate, by implication, his absent 
 mate. 
 
 " I know what you mean, my lad ; sit down." 
 
 Spink sat down on the edge of the chair, and 
 looked at the other uneasily. 
 
 " Have a cup of tea ?" said the captain abruptly, 
 seizing the small pot and pouring out a cupful 
 
 "Thank 'ee I I niver tak' tea." 
 
 " Take it to-night, then. It will do you good." 
 
 Spink put the cup to his lips, and a look of deep 
 surprise overspread his rugged countenance; as he 
 sipped the contents. The captain nodded. Spink's 
 look of surprise changed into a confidential smile ;
 
 330 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 he also nodded, winked, and drained the cup to the 
 bottom. 
 
 " Yes," resumed the captain ; " you mean that you 
 did not take the case of jewels from old Brand's 
 pocket on that day when you found his body on the 
 Bell Rock, though you were present, and saw your 
 comrade pocket the booty. You see I know all 
 about it, Davy, an' your only fault lay in con- 
 cealing the matter, and in keepin' company with 
 that scoundrel" ' 
 
 The gaze of surprise with which Spink listened 
 to the first part of this speech changed to a look of 
 sadness towards the end of it. 
 
 " Captain Ogilvy," said he, in a tone of solemnity 
 that was a strong contrast to his usual easy, careless 
 manner of speaking, " you ca'd me an honest man, 
 an' ye think I 'm clear o' guilt in this matter, but 
 ye 're mista'en. Hoo ye cam' to find oot a' this I 
 canna divine, but I can tell ye somethin' mair than 
 ye ken. D' ye see that bag ?" 
 
 He pulled a small leather purse out of his coat 
 pocket, and laid it with a little bang on the table. 
 
 The captain nodded. 
 
 " Weel, sir, that was my share o' the plunder, 
 thretty goolden sovereigns. We tossed which o' us 
 was to hae them, an' the siller fell to me. But I 've 
 niver spent a boddle o't. Mony a time have I been 
 tempit, an' mony a time wad I hae gf en in to the
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 331 
 
 temptation, but for a certain lass ca'd Janet, that 's 
 been an angel, it 's my belief, sent doon frae heeven 
 to keep me frae gawin to the deevil a'thegither. 
 But be that as it may, I've brought the siller to 
 them that owns it by right, an' so my conscience is 
 clear o't at lang last." 
 
 The sigh of relief with which Davy Spink pushed 
 the bag of gold towards his companion, showed that 
 the poor man's mind was in truth released from a 
 heavy load that had crushed it for years. 
 
 The captain, who had lit his pipe, stared at the 
 fisherman through the smoke for some time in 
 silence ; then he began to untie the purse, and said 
 slowly, " Spink, I said you were an honest man, an' 
 I see no cause to alter my opinion." 
 
 He counted out the thirty gold pieces, put them 
 back into the bag, and the bag into his pocket. 
 Then he continued, " Spink, if this gold was mine 
 I would but no matter, it's not mine, it belongs to 
 Widow Brand, to whom I shall deliver it up. 
 Meantime, 1 11 bid you good-night. All these things 
 require reflection. Call back here to-morrow, my 
 fine fellow, and 1 11 have something to say to you. 
 Another cup of tea ?" 
 
 " Weel, 1 11 no objec'." 
 
 Davy Spink rose, swallowed the beverage, and 
 left the cottage. The captain returned, and stood 
 for some time irresolute w ith his hand on the handle
 
 332 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 of the door of his sister's room. As he listened, he 
 heard a sob, and the tones of Minnie's voice as if in 
 prayer. Changing his mind, he walked softly across 
 the kitchen into his own room, where, having trimmed 
 the candle, re-filled and lit his pipe, he sat down at 
 the table, and, resting his arms thereon, began tc 
 meditate.
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 fHI! LIGHTHOUSE COMPLETED RUBY'S ESCAPE FROM TROUBI3 
 BY A DESPERATE VENTURE. 
 
 THERE came a time at last when the great work 
 of building the Bell Eock Lighthouse drew to a 
 close. Four years after its commencement it was 
 completed, and on the night of the 1st of February 
 1811, its bright beams were shed for the first time 
 far and wide over the sea. 
 
 It must not be supposed, however, that this light- 
 house required four years to build it On the con- 
 trary, the seasons in which work could be done were 
 very short. During the whole of the first season of 
 1807, the aggregate time of low- water work, caught 
 by snatches of an hour or two at a tide, did not 
 amount to fourteen days of ten hours ! while in 1808 
 it fell short of four weeks. 
 
 A great event is worthy of very special notice. 
 We should fail in our duty to our readers if we were 
 to make only passing reference to this important 
 event in the history of our country. 
 
 That 1st of February 1811 was the birthday of a
 
 334 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 new era, for the influence of the Bell Rock Light on 
 the shipping interests of the kingdom (not merely 
 of Scotland, by any means), was far greater than 
 people generally suppose. 
 
 Here is a fad that may well be weighed with 
 attention; that might be not inappropriately inscribed 
 in diamond letters over the lintel of the lighthouse 
 door. Up to the period of the building of the light- 
 house, the known history of the Bell Rock was a 
 black record of wreck, ruin, and death. Its unknown 
 history, in remote ages, who shall conceive, much 
 less tell ? Up to that period, seamen dreaded the 
 rock and shunned it ay, so earnestly as to meet 
 destruction too often in their anxious efforts to avoid 
 it. From that period the Bell Rock has been a 
 friendly point, a guiding star hailed as such by 
 storm-tossed mariners marked as such on the charts 
 of all nations. From that date not a single night 
 for more than half a century has passed, without its 
 wakeful eye beaming on the waters, or its fog -bells 
 sounding on the air ; and, best of all, not a single 
 wreck has occurred on that rock from that period down 
 to the present day ! 
 
 Say not, good reader, that much the same may be 
 said of all lighthouses. In the first place, the history 
 of many lighthouses is by no means so happy as that 
 of this one. In the second place, all lighthouses are 
 not of equal importance. Few stand on an equal
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 335 
 
 footing with the Bell Eock, either in regard to its 
 national importance or its actual pedestal In the 
 last place, it is our subject of consideration at pre- 
 sent, and we object to odious comparisons while we 
 sing its praises ! 
 
 Whatever may be said of the other lights that 
 guard our shores, special gratitude is due to the Bell 
 Eock, to those who projected it, to the engineer 
 who planned and built it, to God, who inspired the 
 will to dare, and bestowed the skill to accomplish, a 
 work so difficult, so noble, so prolific of good to man ! 
 * * * * * 
 
 The nature of our story requires that we should 
 occasionally annihilate time and space. 
 
 Let us then leap over both, and return to our 
 hero, Euby Brand. 
 
 His period of service in the navy was compara- 
 tively brief, much more so than either he or his 
 friends anticipated. Nevertheless, he spent a con- 
 siderable time in his new profession, and, having 
 been sent to foreign stations, he saw a good deal of 
 what is called " service," in which he distinguished 
 himself, as might have been expected, for coolness 
 and courage. 
 
 But we must omit all mention of his warlike deeds, 
 and resume the record of his history at that point 
 which bears more immediately on the subject of our 
 tale.
 
 136 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 It was a wild, stormy night in November. Ruby's 
 ship had captured a French privateer in the German 
 Ocean, and, a prize crew having been put aboard 
 she was sent away to the nearest port, which: hap- 
 pened to be the harbour of Leith, in 'the Firth of 
 Forth. Euby had not been appointed one of the 
 prize crew ; but he resolved not to miss the chance 
 of again seeing his native town, if it should only be 
 a distant view through a telescope. Being a favourite 
 with his commander, his plea was received favour- 
 ably, and he was sent on board the Frenchman. 
 
 Those who know what it is to meet with an unex- 
 pected piece of great good fortune, can imagine the 
 delight with which Ruby stood at the helm on the 
 night in question, and steered for home ! He was 
 known by all on board to be the man who under- 
 stood best the navigation of the Forth, so that im- 
 plicit trust was placed in him by the young officer 
 who had charge of the prize. 
 
 The man-of-war happened to be short-handed at 
 the time the privateer was captured, owing to her 
 boats having been sent in chase of a suspicious craft 
 during a calm. Some of the French crew were there - 
 fore left on board to assist in navigating the vessel 
 
 This was unfortunate, for the officer sent in charge 
 turned out to be a careless man, and treated the 
 Frenchmen with contempt. He did not keep strict 
 wa^ch over them, and the result was, that, shortly
 
 THE LIGIITHOUSK. 337 
 
 after the storm began, they took the English crew 
 by surprise, and overpowered them. 
 
 Euby was the first to fall. As he stood at the 
 wheel indulging in pleasant dreams, a Frenchman 
 stole up behind him, and felled him with a hand- 
 spike. When he recovered he found that he was 
 firmly bound, along with his comrades, and that the 
 vessel was lying -to. One of the Frenchmen came 
 forward at that moment, and addressed the prisoners 
 in broken English. 
 
 " Now, me boys," said he, " you was see we have 
 konker you again. You behold the sea ? " pointing 
 over the side ; " well, that bees your bed to-night if 
 you no behave. Now, I wants to know, who is best 
 man of you as onderstand dis cost ? Speak de trut', 
 else you die." 
 
 The English lieutenant at once turned to Euby. 
 
 " Well, cast him loose ; de rest of you go blow 
 good day, ver* moch indeed." 
 
 Here the Frenchman made a low bow to the 
 English, who were led below, with the exception of 
 Ruby. 
 
 " Now, my goot mans, you onderstand dis cost ?" 
 
 " Yes. I know it well" 
 
 " It is dangereoux ?" 
 
 " It is very ; but not so much so as it used to be 
 before the Bell Rock Light was shown." 
 
 " Have you see dat light ?" 
 Y
 
 338 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " No ; never. It was first lighted when I was at 
 sea ; but I have seen a description of it in the news- 
 papers, and should know it welL" 
 
 " Ver goot ; you will try to come to dat light, 
 an' den you will steer out from dis place to de open 
 sea. Afterwards we will show you to France. If 
 you try mischief voila !" 
 
 The Frenchman pointed to two of his comrades 
 who stood, one on each side of the wheel, with 
 pistols in their hands, ready to keep Euby in order. 
 
 " Now, cut him free. Go, sare ; do your dooty." 
 
 Euby stepped to the wheel at once, and, glancing 
 at the compass, directed the vessel's head in the 
 direction of the Bell Eock. 
 
 The gale was rapidly increasing, and the manage- 
 ment of the helm required his undivided attention ; 
 nevertheless his mind was busy with anxious 
 thoughts and plans of escape. He thought with 
 horror of a French prison, for there were old ship- 
 mates of his who had been captured years before, 
 and who were pining in exile stiLL The bare idea 
 of being separated indefinitely, perhaps for ever, 
 from Minnie, was so terrible, that for a moment he 
 meditated an attack, single-handed, on the crew; 
 but the muzzle of a pistol on each side of him in- 
 duced him to pause and reflect ! Eeflection, how- 
 ever, only brought him again to the verge of despair 
 Then he thought of running up to Leith, and so take
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 339 
 
 the Frenchmen prisoners ; but this idea was at once 
 discarded, for it was impossible to pass up to Leith 
 Eoads without seeing the Bell Rock light, and the 
 Frenchmen kept a sharp look-out. Then he resolved 
 to run the vessel ashore and wreck her, but the 
 thought of his comrades down below induced him to 
 give that plan up. 
 
 Under the influence of these thoughts he became 
 inattentive, and steered rather wildly once or twice. 
 
 " Stiddy. Ha ! you tink of how you escape ?" 
 
 " Yes, I do," said Ruby, doggedly. 
 
 " Good, and have you see how ?" 
 
 " No," replied Ruby ; " I tell you candidly that I 
 can see no way of escape." 
 
 " Ver good, sare ; mind your helm." 
 
 At that moment a bright star of the flrst magn) 
 tude rose on the horizon, right ahead of them. 
 
 " Ha ! dat is a star," said the Frenchman, after a 
 lew moments' observation of it. 
 
 " Stars don't go out," replied Ruby, as the light 
 in question disappeared. 
 
 " It is de light'ouse den ?" 
 
 " I don't know," said Ruby, " but we shall soon 
 see." 
 
 Just then a thought flashed into Ruby's mind 
 His heart beat quick, his eye dilated, and his lip 
 was tightly compressed as it came and went 
 Almost at the same moment another star rose right
 
 340 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 ahead of them. It was of a deep red colour ; and 
 Kuby's heart beat high again, for he was now certain 
 that it was the revolving light of the Bell Eock, 
 which shows a white and red light alternately every 
 two minutes. 
 
 " Voild, ! that must be him now," exclaimed the 
 Frenchman, pointing to the light, and looking in- 
 quiringly at Euby. 
 
 " I have told you," said the latter, " that I never 
 saw the light before. I believe it to be the Bell 
 Rock Light ; but it would be as well to run close 
 and see. I think I could tell the very stones of the 
 tower, even in a dark night. Anyhow, I know the 
 rock itself too well to mistake it." 
 
 " Be there plenty watter ?" 
 
 " Ay ; on the east side, close to the rock, there is 
 enough water to float the biggest ship in your navy." 
 
 " Good ; we shall go closa" 
 
 There was a slight lull in the gale at this time, 
 and the clouds broke a little, allowing occasional 
 glimpses of moonlight to break through and tinge the 
 foaming crests of the waves. At last the light, that 
 had at first looked like a bright star, soon increased, 
 and appeared like a glorious sun in the stormy 
 sky. For a few seconds it shone intensely white and 
 strong, then it slowly died away and disappeared ; 
 but almost before one could have time to wonder 
 vhat had become of it, it returned in the form of a
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 341 
 
 brilliant red sun, which also shone for a few seconds, 
 steadily, and then, like the former, slowly died out. 
 Thus, alternating, the red and white suns went 
 round. 
 
 In a few minutes the tall and graceful column 
 itself became visible, looking pale and spectral 
 against the black sky. At the same time the roar 
 of the surf broke familiarly on Kuby's ear. He 
 steered close past the north end of the rock, so close 
 that he could see the rocks, and knew that it was 
 low water. A gleam of moonlight broke out at the 
 time, as if to encourage him. 
 
 " Now," said Ruby, " you had better go about, 
 for if we carry on at this rate, in the course we are 
 going, in about an hour you will either be a dead 
 man on the rocks of Forfar, or enjoying yourself in 
 a Scotch prison !" 
 
 " Ha ! ha!" laughed the Frenchman, who imme- 
 diately gave the order to put the vessel about; 
 " good, ver good ; bot I was not wish to see the 
 Scottish prison, though I am told the mountains be 
 ver superb." 
 
 While he was speaking, the little vessel lay over 
 on her new course, and Euby steered again past the 
 north side of the rock. He shaved it so close that 
 the Frenchman shouted, " Prenez garde," and put a 
 pistol to Kuby's ear. 
 
 " Do you think I wish to die ?" asked Ruby, with
 
 342 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 a quiet smile. " Now, captain, I want to point out 
 the course, so as to make you sure of it. Bid one 
 of your men take the wheel, and step up on the 
 bulwarks with me, and I will show you." 
 
 This was such a natural remark in the circum- 
 stances, and moreover so naturally expressed, that 
 the Frenchman at once agreed. He ordered a sea- 
 man to take the wheel, and then stepped with Euby 
 upon the bulwarks at the stern of the vessel. 
 
 " Now, you see the position of the lighthouse," 
 said Euby ; " well, you must keep your course due 
 east after passing it. If you steer to the nor'ard o' 
 that, you '11 run on the Scotch coast ; if you bear 
 away to the southward of it, you'll run a chance, in 
 this state o' the tide, of getting wrecked among the 
 Fame Islands ; so keep her head due east" 
 
 Euby said this very impressively ; so much so, 
 that the Frenchman looked at him in surprise. 
 
 " Why you so parbiculare ? " he inquired, with a 
 look of suspicion. 
 
 " Because I am going to leave you," said Euby, 
 pointing to the Bell Eock, which at that moment was 
 not much more than a hundred yards to leeward. 
 Indeed, it was scarcely so much, for the outlying 
 rock at the northern end, named Johnny Gray, lay 
 close under their lee as the vessel passed. Just 
 then a great wave burst upon it, and, roaring in wild 
 foam over the ledges, poured into the channels and
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 343 
 
 pools oil the other side. For one instant Ruby's 
 courage wavered, as he gazed at the flood of boiling 
 foam. 
 
 " What you say ?" exclaimed the Frenchman, lay- 
 ing his hand on the collar of Ruby's jacket. 
 
 The young sailor started, struck the Frenchman a 
 back-handed blow on the chest, which hurled him 
 violently against the man at the wheel, and, bending 
 down, sprang with a wild shout into the sea. 
 
 So close had he steered to the rock, in order to 
 lessen the danger of his reckless venture, that the 
 privateer just weathered it. There was not, of 
 course, the smallest chance of re-capturing Ruby. 
 No ordinary boat could have lived in the sea that 
 was running at the time, even in open water, much 
 less among the breakers of the Bell Rock. Indeed, 
 the crew felt certain that the English sailor had 
 allowed despair to overcome his judgment, and that 
 he must infallibly be dashed to pieces on the rocks, 
 so they did not check their onward course, being too 
 glad to escape from the immediate neighbourhood o* 
 such a dangerous spot. 
 
 Meanwhile Ruby buffeted the billows manfully. 
 He was fully alive to the extreme danger of the 
 attempt, but he knew exactly what he meant to do. 
 He trusted to his intimate knowledge of every ledge 
 and channel and current, and had calculated his 
 motions to a nicety.
 
 344 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 He knew that at the particular state of the tide at 
 the time, and with the wind blowing as it then did, 
 there was a slight eddy at the point of Cunningham's 
 Ledge. His life, he felt, depended on his gaining that 
 eddy. If he should miss it, he would be dashed 
 against Johnny Gray's rock, or be carried beyond it 
 and cast upon Strachan's Ledge or Scoresby's Point, 
 and no man, however powerful he might be, could have 
 survived the shock of being launched on any of these 
 rocks. On the other hand, if, in order to avoid these 
 dangers, he should swim too much to windward, 
 there was the danger of his being carried on the 
 crest of a billow and hurled upon the weather side 
 of Cunningham's Ledge, instead of getting into the 
 eddy under its lee. 
 
 All this Euby had seen and calculated when he 
 passed the north end of the rock the first time, and 
 he had fixed the exact spot where he should take 
 the plunge on repassing it. He acted so promptly 
 that a few minutes sufficed to carry him towards 
 the eddy, the tide being in his favour. But when 
 he was about to swim into it, a wave burst com- 
 pletely over the ledge, and, pouring down on his 
 head, thrust him back. He was almost stunned by 
 the shock, but retained sufficient presence of mind 
 to struggle on. For a few seconds he managed to 
 bear up against wind and tide, for he put forth his 
 giant strength with the energy of a desuerate man
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 345 
 
 but gradually he was carried away from the rock 
 and for the first time his heart sank within him. 
 
 Just then one of those rushes or swirls of water, 
 which are common among rocks in such a position, 
 swept him again forward, right into the eddy which 
 he had struggled in vain to reach, and thrust him 
 \riolently against the rock. This back-current was 
 the precursor of a tremendous billow, which came 
 towering on like a black moving wall Ruby saw 
 it, and, twining his arm amongst the sea- weed, held 
 his breath. 
 
 The billow fell ! Only those who have seen the 
 Bell Eock in a storm can properly estimate the roar 
 that followed. None but Ruby himself could tell 
 what it was to feel that world of water rushing over- 
 head. Had it fallen directly upon him, it would 
 have torn him from his grasp and killed him, but 
 its full force had been previously spent on Cunning- 
 ham's Ledge. In another moment it passed, and 
 Ruby, quitting his hold, struck out wildly througli 
 the foam. A few strokes carried him through 
 Sinclair's and Wilson's tracks into the little pool 
 formerly mentioned as Port Stevenson* 
 
 Here he was in comparative safety. True, the 
 sprays burst over the ledge called The Last Hope in 
 
 * The author has himself bathed in Port Stevenson, so that the 
 reader may rely on the fidelity of this description of it and the sur- 
 rounding ledges.
 
 346 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 heavy masses, but these could do him no serious 
 harm, and it would take a quarter of an hour at 
 least for the tide to sweep into the pool Euby 
 therefore swam quietly to Trinity Ledge, where he 
 landed, and, stepping over it, sat down to rest, with 
 a thankful heart, on Smith's Ledge, the old familiar 
 spot where he and Jamie Dove had wrought so often 
 and so hard at the forge in former days. 
 
 He was now under the shadow of the Bell Eock 
 Lighthouse, which towered high above his head ; and 
 the impression of immovable solidity which its cold, 
 grey, stately column conveyed to his mind, contrasted 
 powerfully with the howling wind and the raging 
 sea around. It seemed to him, as he sat there within 
 three yards of its granite base, like the impersonation 
 of repose in the midst of turmoil ; of peace sur- 
 rounded by war ; of calm and solid self-possession 
 in the midst of fretful and raging instability. 
 
 No one was there to welcome Euby. The light- 
 keepers, high up in the apartments of their wild 
 home, knew nothing and heard nothing of all that 
 had passed so near them. The darkness of the night 
 and the roaring of the storm was all they saw or 
 heard of the world without, as they sat in their watch- 
 tower reading or trimming their lamps. 
 
 But Euby was not sorry for this ; he felt glad to 
 be alone for a few moments with God, to thank Him 
 for his recent deliverance.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 347 
 
 Exhausting though the struggle had been, its dura- 
 tion was short, so that he soon recovered his 
 wonted strength. Then, rising, he got upon the iron 
 railway, or " rails " as the men used to call it, and 
 a few steps brought him to the foot of the metal 
 ladder conducting to the entrance-door. 
 
 Climbing up, he stood at last in a place of safety, 
 and disappeared within the d(v>way of the light- 
 house.
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 THE WHECK. 
 
 MEANTIME the French privateer sped onward to 
 her doom. 
 
 The force with which the French commander fell 
 when Kuby cast him off, had stunned him so severely 
 that it was a considerable time before he recovered. 
 The rest of the crew were therefore in absolute 
 ignorance of how to steer. 
 
 In this dilemma they lay-to for a short time, after 
 getting away to a sufficient distance from the danger- 
 ous rock, and consulted what was to be done. Some 
 advised one course, and some another, but it was 
 finally suggested that one of the English prisoners 
 should be brought up and commanded to steer out 
 to sea. 
 
 This advice was acted on, and the sailor who was 
 brought up chanced to be one who had a partial 
 knowledge of the surrounding coasts. One of the 
 Frenchmen, who could speak a few words of English, 
 did his best to convey his wishes to the sailor, and
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 349 
 
 wound up by producing a pistol, which he cocked 
 significantly. 
 
 " All right," said the sailor, " I knows the coast, 
 and can run ye straight out to sea. That's the Bell 
 Rock light on the weather-bow, I s'pose." 
 
 " Oui, dat is de BeU Eoke." 
 
 " Wery good ; our course is due nor'west." 
 
 So saying, the man took the wheel and laid the 
 ship's course accordingly. 
 
 Now, he knew quite well that this course would 
 carry the vessel towards the harbour of Arbroath, 
 into which he resolved to run at all hazards, trusting 
 to the harbour-lights to guide him when he should 
 draw near. He knew that he ran the strongest pos- 
 sible risk of getting himself shot when the French- 
 men should find out his faithlessness, but he hoped 
 to prevail on them to believe the harbour-lights were 
 only another lighthouse, which they should have to 
 pass on their way out to sea, and then it would be 
 too late to put the vessel about and attempt to escape. 
 
 But all his calculations were useless, as it turned 
 out, for in half-an-hour the men at the bow shouted 
 that there were breakers ahead, and before the helm 
 could be put down, they struck with such force that 
 the topmasts went overboard at once, and the sails, 
 bursting their sheets and tackling, were blown to 
 ribbons. 
 
 Just then a gleam of moonlight struggled through
 
 350 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 the wrack of clouds, and revealed the dark cliffs of 
 the Forfar coast, towering high above them. The 
 vessel had struck on the rocks at the entrance to 
 one of those rugged bays with which that coast is 
 everywhere indented. 
 
 At the first glance, the steersman knew that the 
 doom of all on board was fixed, for the bay was one 
 of those which are surrounded by almost perpendi - 
 cular cliffs ; and although, during calm weather, there 
 was a small space between the cliffs and the sea, 
 which might be termed a beach, yet during a storm 
 the waves lashed with terrific fury against the rocks, 
 so that no human being might land there. 
 
 It chanced at the time that Captain Ogilvy, who 
 took great delight in visiting the cliffs in stormy 
 weather, had gone out there for a midnight walk 
 with a young friend, and when the privateer struck, 
 he was standing on the top of the cliffs. 
 
 He knew at once that the fate of the unfortunate 
 people on board was almost certain, but, with his 
 wonted energy, he did his best to prevent the cata- 
 strophe. 
 
 " Eun, lad, and fetch men, and ropes, and ladders. 
 Alarm the whole town, and use your legs well. 
 Lives depend on your speed," said the captain, in 
 great excitement 
 
 The lad required no second bidding. He turned 
 and fled like a greyhound.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 351 
 
 The lieges of Arbroath were not slow to answer 
 the summons. There were neither lifeboats nor 
 mortar-apparatus in those days, but there were the 
 same willing hearts and stout arms then as now, and 
 in a marvellously short space of time, hundreds of 
 the able-bodied men of the town, gentle and semple, 
 were assembled on these wild cliffs, with torches, 
 ropes, etc. ; in short, with all' the appliances for 
 saving life that the philanthropy of the times had 
 invented or discovered. 
 
 But, alas ! these appliances were of no avail The 
 vessel went to pieces on the outer point of rocks 
 and part of the wreck, with the crew clinging to it 
 drifted into the bay. 
 
 The horrified people on the cliffs looked down 
 into that dreadful abyss of churning water and foam, 
 into which no one could descend. Eopes were 
 thrown again and again, but without avaiL Either 
 it was too dark to see, or the wrecked men were 
 paralysed. An occasional shriek was heard above 
 the roar of the tempest, as, one after another, the 
 exhausted men fell into the water, or were wrenched 
 from their hold of the piece of wreck. 
 
 At last one man succeeded in catching hold of 
 a rope, and was carefully hauled up to the top of 
 the cliff. 
 
 It was found that this was one of the English 
 sailors. He had taken the precaution to tie the rope
 
 352 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 under his arms, poor fellow, having no strength left 
 to hold on to it ; but he was so badly bruised as to 
 be in a dying state when laid on the grass. 
 
 "Keep back and give him air," said Captain 
 Ogilvy, who had taken a prominent part in the 
 futile efforts to save the crew, and who now kneeled 
 at the sailor's side, and moistened his lips with a 
 little brandy. 
 
 The poor man gave a confused and rambling ac- 
 count of the circumstances of the wreck, but it was 
 sufficiently intelligible to make the captain acquainted 
 with the leading particulars. 
 
 "Were there many of your comrades aboard?" 
 he inquired. 
 
 The dying man looked up with a vacant expres- 
 sion. It was evident that he did not quite under- 
 stand the question, but he began again to mutter in 
 a partly incoherent manner. 
 
 " They 're all gone," said he, " every man of 'em 
 but me ! All tied together in the hold. They cast 
 as loose, though, after she struck All gone ! all 
 gone !" 
 
 After a moment he seemed to try to recollect 
 something. 
 
 "No," said he, "we weren't all together. They 
 took Ruby on deck, and I never saw him again. I 
 wonder what they did- " 
 
 Here he
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 353 
 
 " Who, did you say ?" inquired the captain with 
 deep anxiety. 
 
 " Ruby Ruby Brand," replied the man. 
 
 " What became of him, said you ?" 
 
 " Don't know." 
 
 " Was lie drowned ?" 
 
 " Don't know," repeated the man. 
 
 The captain could get no other answer fiom him, 
 so he was compelled to rest content, for the poor 
 man appeared to be sinking. 
 
 A sort of couch had been prepared for him, on 
 which he was carried into the town, but before he 
 reached it he way dead. Nothing more could be 
 done that night, bu, next day, when the tide was 
 out, men were lowered down the precipitous sides oi 
 the fatal bay, and the bodies of the unfortunate sea- 
 men were sent up to the top of the cliffs by mean? 
 of ropes. These ropes cut deep grooves in the turf, as 
 the bodies were hauled up one by one and laid upon 
 the grass, after which they were conveyed to the 
 town, and decently interred. 
 
 The spot where this melancholy wreck occurred 
 is now pointed out to the visitor as " The Seamen's 
 Grave," and the young folk of the town have, from 
 the time of the wreck, annually re-cut the grooves 
 in the turf, above referred to, in commemoration of 
 the event, so that thef grooves may be seen there 
 at the present day.
 
 354 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 It may easily be imagined that poor Captain 
 Ogilvy returned to Arbroath that night with dark 
 forebodings in his breast. 
 
 He could not, however, imagine how Euby came 
 to be among the men on board of the French prize ; 
 and tried to comfort himself with the thought that 
 the dying sailor had perhaps been a comrade of 
 Kuby's at some time or other, and was, in his 
 wandering state of mind, mixing him up with the 
 recent wreck. 
 
 As, however, he could come to no certain conclu- 
 sion on this point, he resolved not to tell what he 
 had heard either to his sister or Minnie, but to 
 confine his anxieties,, at least for the present, to his 
 own breast.
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 OLD FRIENDS IN NEW CIRCUMSTANCES. 
 
 LET us now return to Euby Brand ; and in order 
 that the reader may perfectly understand the pro- 
 ceedings of that bold youth, let us take a glance at 
 tiie Bell Kock Lighthouse in its completed condition. 
 
 We have already said that the lower part, from 
 the foundation to the height of thirty feet, WP.S 
 built of solid masonry, and that at the top of this 
 solid part stood the entrance-door of the building 
 facing towards the south. 
 
 The position of the door was fixed after the solid 
 part had been exposed to a winter's storms. The 
 effect on the building was such that the most 
 sheltered or lee side was clearly indicated; the 
 weather-side being thickly covered with limpets, 
 barnacles, and short green sea- weed, while the lee- 
 side was comparatively free from such incrustations. 
 
 The walls at the entrance-door are nearly seven 
 feet thick, and the short passage that pierces them 
 leads to the foot of a spiral staircase, which conducts
 
 356 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 to the lowest apartment in the tower, where the 
 walls decrease in thickness to three feet. This room 
 is the provision-store. Here are kept water-tanks 
 and provision of all kinds, including fresh vegetables, 
 which, with fresh water, are supplied once a fort- 
 night to the rock all the year round. The provision 
 store is the smallest apartment, for, as the walls of 
 the tower decrease in thickness as they rise, the 
 several apartments necessarily increase as they 
 ascend. 
 
 The second floor is reached by a wooden staircase 
 or ladder, leading up through a " man-hole" in the 
 ceiling. Here is the lightroom store, which contains 
 large tanks of polished metal for the oil consumed 
 by the lights. A whole year's stock of oil, or about 
 1100 gallons, is stored in these tanks. Here also 
 is a small carpenter's bench and a tool-box, besides 
 an endless variety of odds and ends, such as paint- 
 pots, brushes, flags, waste for cleaning the reflectors, 
 .etc. etc. 
 
 Another stair, similar tc the first, leads to the 
 third floor, which is the kitchen of the building. It 
 stands about sixty-six feet above the foundation. 
 We shall have occasion to describe it and the rooms 
 above presently. Meanwhile, let it suffice to say, 
 that the fourth floor contains the men's sleeping 
 berths, of which there are six, although three men 
 is the usual complement on the rock. The fifth
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 357 
 
 floor is tlie library, and above that is the lantern ; 
 the whole building, from base to summit, being 115 
 feet high. 
 
 At the time when Kuby entered the door of the 
 Bell Hock Lighthouse, as already described, there 
 were three keepers in the building, one of whom 
 was on his watch in the lantern, while the other 
 two were in the kitchen. 
 
 These men were all old friends. The man in the 
 lantern was George Forsyth, who had been appointed 
 one of the lightkeepers in consideration of his good 
 services and steadiness. He was seated reading at a 
 Bmall desk Close above him was the blazing series 
 of lights, which revolved slowly and steadily by 
 means of machinery, moved by a heavy weight. A 
 small bell was struck slowly but regularly by the 
 same machinery, in token that all was going on well 
 If that bell had ceased to sound, Forsyth would at 
 once have leaped up to ascertain what was wrong 
 with the lights. So long as it continued to ring he 
 knew that all was well, and that he might continue 
 his studies peacefully not quietly, however, for, 
 besides the rush of the wind against the thick plate 
 glass of the lantern, there was the never-ceasing 
 roar of the ventilator, in which the heated air from 
 within and the cold air from without met and kept 
 up a terrific war. Keepers get used to that sound, 
 however, and do not mind it.
 
 358 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 Each keeper's duty was to watch for three succes- 
 sive hours in the lantern. 
 
 Not less familiar were the faces of the occupants 
 of the kitchen. To this apartment Ruby ascended 
 without any one hearing him approach, for one of 
 the windows was open, and the roar of the storm 
 effectually drowned his light footfall On reaching 
 the floor immediately below the kitchen he heard 
 the tones of a violin, and when his head emerged 
 through the man-hole of the kitchen floor, he paused 
 and listened with deep interest, for the air was 
 familiar. 
 
 Peeping round the corner of the oaken partition 
 that separated the man-hole from the apartment, he 
 beheld a sight which filled his heart with gladness, 
 for there, seated on a camp-stool, with his back 
 leaning against the dresser, his face lighted up by 
 the blaze of a splendid fire, which burned, in a most 
 comfortable-looking kitchen range, and his hands 
 drawing forth most pathetic music from a violin, sat 
 his old friend Joe Dumsby, while opposite to him, 
 on a similar camp-stool, with his arm resting on a 
 small table, and a familiar black pipe in his mouth, 
 sat that worthy son of Vulcan, Jamie Dove. 
 
 The little apartment glowed with ruddy light, and 
 to Ruby, who had just escaped from a scene of such 
 drear and dismal aspect, it appeared, what it really 
 was, a place of the most luxurious comfort !
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 359 
 
 Dove was keeping time to the music with little 
 -puffs of smoke, and Joe was in the middle of a pro- 
 longed shake, when Euby passed through the door- 
 way and stood before them. 
 
 Dove's eyes opened to their widest, and his jaw 
 dropt, so did his pipe, and the music ceased abruptly, 
 while the faces of both men grew pale. 
 
 " I 'm not a ghost, boys," said Euby, with a laugh, 
 which afforded immense relief to his old comrades. 
 " Come, have ye not a welcome for an old messmate 
 who swims off to visit you on such a night as this ?" 
 
 Dove was .the first to recover. He gasped, and, 
 holding out both arms, exclaimed, " Euby Brand !" 
 
 " And no mistake !" cried Euby, advancing and 
 grasping his friend warmly by the hands. 
 
 For at least half a minute the two men shook 
 each other's hands lustily and in silence. Then they 
 burst into a loud laugh, while Joe, suddenly recover- 
 ing, went crashing into a Scotch reel with energy so 
 great that time and tune were both sacrificed. As if 
 by mutual impulse, Euby and Dove began to dance ! 
 But this was merely a spurt of feeling, more than 
 half involuntary. In the middle of a bar Joe flung 
 down the fiddle, and, springing up, seized Euby 
 round the neck and hugged him, an act which 
 made him aware of the fact that he was dripping 
 wet. 
 
 " Did ye swim hoff to the rock ?" he inquired,
 
 360 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 stepping back, and gazing at his friend with a look 
 of surprise, mingled with awe. 
 
 " Indeed I did." 
 
 " But how ? why ? what mystery are ye rolled up 
 in ?" exclaimed the smith. 
 
 " Sit down, sit down, and quiet yourselves," said 
 Ruby, drawing a stool near to the fire, and seating 
 himself. " I '11 explain, if you '11 only hold your 
 tongues, and not look so scared like." 
 
 " No, Ruby ; no, lad, you must change yer clothes 
 first," said the smith, in a tone of authority ; " why, 
 the fire makes you steam like a washin' biler. 
 Come along with me, an' I '11 rig you out." 
 
 " Ay, go hup with 'im, Ruby. Bless me, this is 
 the most amazin' hincident as ever 'appened to ma 
 Never saw nothink like it." 
 
 As Dove and Ruby ascended to che room above, 
 Joe went about the kitchen talking to himself, poking 
 the fire violently, overturning the camp-stools, knock- 
 ing about the crockery on the dresser, and otherwise 
 conducting himself like a lunatic. 
 
 Of course Ruby told Dove parts of his story by 
 fits and starts as he was changing his garments ; of 
 course he had to be taken up to the lightroom and 
 go through the same scene there with Forsyth that 
 had occurred in the kitchen ; and, of course, it was 
 not until all the men, himself included, had quite ex- 
 hausted themselves, that he was able to sit down
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 361 
 
 at the kitchen fire and give a full and connected 
 account of himself, and of his recent doings. 
 
 After he had concluded his narrative, which was 
 interrupted by frequent question and comment, and 
 after he had refreshed himself with a cup of tea, he 
 rose and said 
 
 " Now, boys, it 's not fair to be spendin' all the 
 night with you here, while my old comrade Forsyth 
 sits up yonder all alone, I '11 go up and see him foi 
 a little." 
 
 " We '11 go hup with 'ee, lad," said Dumsby. 
 
 " No ye won't," replied Euby ; " I want him all to 
 myself for a while; fair play and no favour, you 
 know, used to be our watchwo)-d on the Eock in old 
 times. Besides, his watch will be out in a little, so 
 ye can come up and fetch him down." 
 
 " Well, go along with you," said the smith. 
 " Hallo ! that must have been a big 'un." 
 
 This last remark had reference to a distinct tremor 
 in the building, caused by the falling of a great wave 
 upon it. 
 
 " Does it often get raps like that ?" inquired Euby, 
 with a look of surprise. 
 
 " Not often," said Dove, " once or twice durin' a 
 gale, mayhap, when a bigger one than usual chances 
 to fall on us at the right angle. But the lighthouse 
 shakes worst just after the gales begin to take off, 
 and when the swell rolls in heavy from the east'ard."
 
 362 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 "Ay, that's the time," quoth Joe. "W'y, I've 
 'eard all the cups and saucers on the dresser rattle 
 with the blows o' them heavy seas, but the gale 
 is gittin' to be too strong to-night to shake us 
 muck" 
 
 " Too strong !" exclaimed Ruby. 
 
 "Ay. You see w*en it blows very hard, the 
 breakers have not time to come down on us with a 
 'eavy tellin' blow, they goes tumblin' and swashin' 
 round us and over us, hammerin' away wildly every- 
 how, or nohow, or anyhow, just like a hexcited man 
 fightin' in a hurry. The after-swell, that 's wot does 
 it. That's wot comes on slow, and big, and easy, 
 but powerful, like a great prize-fighter as knowa 
 what he can do, and means to do it." 
 
 "A most uncomfortable sort of residence," said 
 Ruby, as he turned to quit the room. 
 
 "Not a bit, when ye git used to it," said the 
 smith. "At first we was rather skeered, but we 
 don't mind now. Come, Joe, give us ' Rule Britannia' 
 ' pity she don't rule the waves straighter/ as some- 
 body writes somewhere." 
 
 So saying, Dove resumed his pipe, and Dumsby 
 his fiddle, while Ruby proceeded to the staircase 
 that led to the rooms above. 
 
 Just as he was about to a,scend, a furious gust of 
 wind swept past, accompanied by a wild roar of the 
 sea ; at the same moment a mass of spray dashed
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 363 
 
 against the small window at his side. He knew 
 ,that this window was at least sixty feet above the 
 rock, and he was suddenly filled with a strong desire 
 to have a nearer view of the waves that had force to 
 mount so high. Instead, therefore, of ascending to 
 the lantern, he descended to the doorway, which was 
 open, for, as the storm blew from the eastward, the 
 door was on the lee side. 
 
 There were two doors one of metal, with thick 
 plate-glass panels at the inner end of the passage ; 
 the other, at the outer end of it, was made of thick 
 solid wood bound with metal, and hung so as to 
 open outwards. When the two leaves of this heavy 
 door were shut they were flush with the tower, so 
 that nothing was presented for the waves to act 
 upon. But this door was never closed except in 
 cases of storm from the southward. 
 
 The scene which presented itself to our hero when 
 he stood in the entrance-passage was such as neither 
 pen nor pencil can adequately depict. The tide was 
 full, or nearly so, and had the night been calm the 
 water would have stood about twelve or fourteen 
 feet on the sides of the tower, leaving a space oi 
 about the same height between its surface and the 
 spot at the top of the copper ladder where Euby 
 stood ; but such was the wild commotion of the 
 sea that this space was at one moment reduced to 
 a few feet, as the waves sprang up towards the door-
 
 364 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 way, or nearly doubled, as they sank hissing down 
 to the very rock. 
 
 Acres of white, leaping, seething foam covered 
 the spot where the terrible Bell Eock lav. Never 
 for a moment did that boiling caldron get time 
 to show one spot of dark-coloured water. Billow 
 after billow came careering on from the open sea 
 in quick succession, breaking witn indescribable 
 force and fury just a few yards to windward of 
 the foundations of the lighthouse, where the outer 
 ledges of the rock, although at the time deep down 
 in the water, were sufficiently near the surface to 
 break their first full force, and save the tower from 
 destruction, though not from many a tremendous 
 blow and overwhelming deluge of water. 
 
 When the waves hit the rock they were so near 
 that the lighthouse appeared to receive the shock. 
 Bushing round it on either side, the cleft billows 
 met again to leeward, just opposite the door, where 
 they burst upwards in a magnificent cloud of spray 
 to a height of full thirty feet. At one time, while 
 Euby held on by the man -ropes at the door and 
 looked over the edge, he could see a dark abyss 
 with the foam shimmering pale far below ; another 
 instant, and the solid building perceptibly trembled, 
 as a green sea hit it fair on the weather-side. A 
 continuous roar and hiss followed as the billow 
 swept round, filled up the dark abyss, and sent
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 365 
 
 the white water gleaming up almost into the door- 
 way. At the same moment the sprays flew by on 
 either side of the column, so high that a few drops 
 were thrown on the lantern. To Euby's eye these 
 sprays appeared to be clouds driving across the 
 sky, so high were they above his head. A feeling 
 of awe crept over him as his mind gradually began 
 to realize the world of water which, as it were, 
 overwhelmed him water and foam roaring and 
 flying everywhere the heavy seas thundering on 
 the column at his back the sprays from behind 
 arching almost over the lighthouse, and meeting 
 those that burst up in front, while an eddy of 
 wind sent a cloud swirling in at the doorway, and 
 drenched him to the skin ! It was an exhibition 
 of the might of God in the storm such as he had 
 never seen before, and a brief sudden exclamation 
 of thanksgiving burat from the youth's lips, as he 
 thought of how hopeless his case would have been 
 had the French vessel passed the lighthouse an 
 hour later than it did. 
 
 The contrast between the scene outside and that 
 inside the Bell Rock Lighthouse at that time was 
 indeed striking. Outside there was madly raging 
 conflict ; inside there were peace, comfort, security : 
 Euby, with his arms folded, standing calmly in 
 the doorway ; Jamie Dove and Joe Dumsby smok- 
 ing and fiddling in the snug kitchen ; George For-
 
 366 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 syth reading (the Pilgrim's Progress mayhap, or 
 Robinson Crusoe, for both works were in the Bell 
 Eock library) by the bright blaze of the crimson 
 and white lamps, high up in the crystal lantern. 
 
 If a magician had divided the tower in two from 
 top to bottom while some ship was staggering past 
 before the gale, he would have presented to the 
 amazed mariners the most astonishing picture of 
 " war without and peace within " that the world 
 ever saw !* 
 
 * See Frontispiece.
 
 CHAPTEE XXXI. 
 
 MIDNIGHT CHAT IN A LANTERN. 
 
 " I 'LL have to borrow another shirt and pair of 
 trousers from you, Dove," said Euby with a laugh, 
 as he returned to the kitchen. 
 
 " What ! been having another swim ?" exclaimed 
 the smith. 
 
 " Not exactly, but you see I 'm fond o' water. 
 Come along, lad." 
 
 In a few minutes the clothes were changed, and 
 Ruby was seated beside Forsyth, asking him earnestly 
 about his friends on shore. 
 
 " Ah ! Euby," said Forsyth, " I thought it would 
 have killed your old mother when she was told of 
 your bein' caught by them sea-sharks, and taken 
 off to the wars. You must know I came to see a 
 good deal of your friends, through through hoot ! 
 what 's the name ? the fair-haired lass that lives 
 with" 
 
 "Minnie?" suggested Ruby, who could not but
 
 368 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 wonder that any man living should forget tier name 
 for a moment. 
 
 " Ay, Minnie it is. She used to come to see my 
 wife about some work they wanted her to do, and I 
 was now and again sent up with a message to the 
 cottage, and Captain Ogilvy always invited me in to 
 take a glass out of his old teapot. Your mother 
 used to ask me ever so many questions about you, 
 an' what you used U> say and do on the rock when 
 this lighthouse was buildin'. She looked so sad and 
 pale, poor thing ; T really thought it would be all 
 up with her, an' I believe it would, but for Minnie. 
 It was quite wonderful the way that girl cheered 
 your mother up, by readin' bits o' the Bible to her, 
 an' tellin' her that God would certainly send you 
 back again. She looked and spoke always so brightly 
 too." 
 
 " Did she do that ?" exclaimed Ruby, with emo- 
 tion. 
 
 Forsyth looked for a moment earnestly at his 
 friend. 
 
 " I mean," continued Ruby, in some confusion, 
 " did she look bright when she spoke of my bein' 
 away?" 
 
 " No, lad, it was when she spoke of you comin' 
 back ; but I could see that her good spirits was 
 partly put on to keep up the old woman." 
 
 For a moment or two the friends remained silent
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 369 
 
 Suddenly Forsyth laid his hand on the other's 
 , shoulder, and said impressively : " Euby Brand, it 's 
 my belief that that girl is rather fond of you." 
 
 Euby looked up with a bright smile, and said, 
 " D' you think so ? Well, d' ye know, I believe 
 she is." 
 
 " Upon my word, youngster," exclaimed the other, 
 with a look of evident disgust, " your conceit is con- 
 siderable. I had thought to be somewhat confiden- 
 tial with you in regard to this idea of mine, but you 
 seem to swallow it so easy, and to look upon it as 
 so natural a thing, that that . Do you suppose 
 you 've nothin' to do but ask the girl to marry you 
 and she'll say 'Yes' at once?" 
 
 " I do," said Euby quietly ; " nay, I am sure of it." 
 
 Forsyth's eyes opened very wide indeed at this. 
 " Young man," said he, " the sea must have washed 
 all the modesty you once had out of you " 
 
 " I hope not," interrupted the other, " but the fact 
 is that I put the question you have supposed to 
 Minnie long ago, and she did say ' Yes ' to it then, 
 so it 's not likely she 's goin' to draw back now." 
 
 " Whew ! that alters the case," cried Forsyth, seizing 
 his friend's hand, and wringing it heartily. 
 
 " Hallo ! you two seem to be on good terms, any- 
 how," observed Jamie Dove, whose head appeared at 
 that moment through the hole in the floor by which 
 the lantern communicated with the room below. 
 2 A
 
 370 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " I came to see if anything had gone wrong, for youi 
 xime of watch is up." 
 
 " So it is," exclaimed Forsyth, rising and crossing 
 :o the other side of the apartment, where he applied 
 ais lips to a small tube in the wall. 
 
 " What are you doing ?" inquired Euby. 
 
 " Whistling up Joe," said Forsyth. " This pipe 
 runs down to the sleepin'-berths, where there's a 
 whistle close to Joe's ear. He must be asleep. I '1J 
 try again." 
 
 He blew down the tube a second time and listened 
 for a reply, which came up a moment or two after 
 in a sharp whistle through a similar tube reversed ; 
 that is, with the mouthpiece below and the whistle 
 above. 
 
 Soon after, Joe Dumsby made his appearance at 
 the trap-door, looking very sleepy. 
 
 " I feels as 'eavy as a lump o' lead," said ha 
 "Wot an 'orrible thing it is to be woke out o' a 
 comf'r'able sleep." 
 
 Just as he spoke the lighthouse received a blow 
 so tremendous that all the men started and looked 
 at each other for a moment in surprise. 
 
 "I say, is it warranted to stand anything!" in- 
 quired Euby seriously. 
 
 " I hope it is," replied the smith, " else it '11 be a 
 blue look-out for us. But we don't often get such 
 a rap as that. D' ye mind the first we ever felt o
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 371 
 
 tii at sort, Forsyth ? It happened last month. I 
 , was on watch at the time, Forsyth was smokin' his 
 pipe in the kitchen, and Dumsby was in bed, when 
 a sea struck us with such force that I thought we 
 was done for. In a moment Forsyth and Joe came 
 tumblin' up the ladder Joe in his shirt. ' It must 
 have been a ship sailed right against us,' says 
 Forsyth, and with that we all jumped on the rail 
 that runs 'round the lantern there and looked out, 
 but no ship could be seen, though it was a moonlight 
 night. You see there's plenty o' water at high tide 
 to let a ship of two hundred tons, drawin' twelve 
 feet, run slap into us, and we've sometimes feared 
 this in foggy weather ; but it was just a blow of the 
 sea. We've had two or three like it since, and are 
 gettin' used to it now." 
 
 "Well, we can't get used to do without sleep," 
 said Forsyth, stepping down through the trap -door, 
 " so I '11 bid ye all good-night." 
 
 " 'Old on ! Tell Euby about Junk before ye go," 
 cried Dumsby. " Ah ! well, I '11 tell 'im myself. 
 You must know, Euby, that we 've got what they 
 calls an hoccasional lightkeeper ashore, who lams 
 the work out 'ere in case any of us reg'lar keepers 
 are took ill, so as 'e can supply our place on short 
 notice. Well, 'e was out 'ere larnin' the dooties one 
 tremendous stormy night, an' the poor feller was in 
 a mortial fright for fear the lantern would be blowed
 
 372 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 right hoff the top o' the stone column, and 'imself 
 along with it. You see, the door that covers the 
 man-hole there is usually shut when we 're on watch, 
 but Junk (we called 'im Junk 'cause 'e wos so like a 
 lump o' fat pork), 'e kep the door open all the time 
 an' sat close beside it, so as to be ready for a dive. 
 Well, it was my turn to watch, so I went up, an' 
 just as I puts my fut on the first step o' the lan- 
 tern-ladder there comes a sea like wot we had a 
 minit ago ; the wind at the same time roared in the 
 wentilators like a thousand fiends, and the spray 
 dashed agin the glass. Junk gave a yell, and dived. 
 He thought it wos all over with 'im, and wos in sich 
 a funk that he came down 'ead foremost, an' would 
 sartinly 'ave broke 'is neck if 'e 'adn't come slap 
 into my buzzum ! I tell 'e it wos no joke, for 'e 
 wos fourteen stone if 'e wos an ounce, an' 
 
 " Come along, Kuby," said Dove, interrupting ; 
 " the sooner we dive too the better, for there 's no 
 end to that story when Dmnsby gets off in full 
 swing. Good-night !'' 
 
 " Good-night, lads, an' better manners t' ye ! " said 
 Joe, as he sat down beside the little desk where tho 
 lightkeepers were wont during the lonely watch- 
 hours of the night to read, or write, or meditate.
 
 CHAPTER XXXIL 
 
 KVERTDAY LIFE ON THE BELL ROCK, AND OLD MEMORIES RECALLED. 
 
 THE sun shone brightly over the sea next morning ; 
 30 brightly and powerfully, that it seemed to break 
 up and disperse by force the great storm-clouds 
 which hung about the sky, like the fragments of an 
 army of black bullies who had done their worst and 
 been baffled. 
 
 The storm was over ; at least, the wind had mode- 
 rated down to a fresh, invigorating breeze. The 
 white crests of the billows were few and far between, 
 and the wild turmoil of waters had given place to a 
 grand procession of giant waves, that thundered on 
 the Bell Eock Lighthouse, at once with more dignity 
 and more force than the raging seas of the previous 
 night. 
 
 It was the sun that awoke Ruby, by shining in 
 at one of the small windows of the library, in which 
 he slept. Of course it did not shine in his face, 
 because of the relative positions of the library and 
 the sun, the first being just below the lantern, and
 
 374 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 the second just above the horizon, so that the rays 
 struck upwards, and shone with dazzling brilliancy 
 on the dome-shaped ceiling. This was the second 
 time of wakening for Euby that night, since he lay 
 down to rest. The first wakening was occasioned by 
 the winding up of the machinery which kept the 
 lights in motion, and the chain of which, with a 
 ponderous weight attached to it, passed through a 
 wooden pilaster close to his ear, causing such a 
 sudden and hideous din that the sleeper, not having 
 been warned of it, sprang like a Jack-in-the-box out 
 of bed into the middle of the room, where he first 
 stared vacantly around him like an unusually sur- 
 prised owl, and then, guessing the cause of the noise, 
 smiled pitifully, as though to say "Poor fellow, 
 you're easily frightened," and tumbled back into 
 bed, where he fell asleep again instantly. 
 
 On the second time of wakening Ruby rose to a 
 sitting posture, yawned, looked about him, yawned 
 again, wondered what o'clock it was, and then 
 listened. 
 
 No sound could be heard save the intermittent 
 roar of the magnificent breakers that beat on the 
 Bell Eock. TTis couch was too low to permit of his 
 seeing anything but sky out of his windows, three 
 of which, about two feet square, lighted the room. 
 He therefore jumped up, and, while pulling on his 
 garments, looked towards the east, where the sun
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 375 
 
 greeted and almost blinded him. Turning to the 
 , north window, a bright smile lit up his countenance, 
 and " A blessing rest on you " escaped audibly from 
 his lips, as he kissed his hand towards the cliffs of 
 Forfarshire, which were seen like a faint blue line 
 on the far-off horizon, with the town of Arbroath 
 just rising above the morning mists. 
 
 He gazed out at this north window, and thought 
 over all the scenes that had passed between him and 
 Minnie from the time they first met, down to the 
 day when thej last parted. One of the sweetest of 
 the mental pictures that he painted that morning 
 with unwonted facility, was that of Minnie sitting at 
 his mother's feet, comforting her with the words of 
 the Bible. 
 
 At length he turned with a sigh to resume his 
 toilette. Looking out at the southern window, he 
 observed that the rocks were beginning to be un- 
 covered, and that the " rails," or iron pathway that 
 led to the foot of the entrance-door ladder, were high 
 enough out of the water to be walked upon. He 
 therefore hastened to descend. 
 
 We know not what appearance the library pre- 
 sented at the time when Euby Brand slept in it ; 
 but we can tell, from personal experience, that, at 
 the present day, it is a most comfortable and elegant 
 apartment. The other rooms of the lighthouse, 
 although thoroughly substantial in their furniture
 
 376 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 and fittings, are quite plain and devoid of ornament, 
 but the library, or " stranger's room," as it is some- 
 times called, being the guest-chamber, is fitted up in 
 a style worthy of a lady's boudoir, with a Turkey 
 carpet, handsome chairs, and an elaborately carved 
 oak table, supported appropriately by a centre stem 
 of three twining dolphins. The dome of the ceiling 
 is painted to represent stucco panelling, and the 
 partition which cuts off the small segment of this 
 circular room that is devoted to passage and stair- 
 case, is of panelled oak. The thickness of this par- 
 tition is just sufficient to contain the bookcase ; also 
 a cleverly contrived bedstead, which can be folded 
 up during the day out of sight. There is also a 
 small cupboard of oak, which serves the double pur- 
 pose of affording shelf accommodation and concealing 
 the iron smoke-pipe which rises from the kitchen, 
 and, passing through the several storeys, projects a 
 few feet above the lantern. The centre window is 
 ornamented with marble sides and top, and above 
 it stands a marble bust of Eobert Stevenson, the 
 engineer of the building, with a marble slab below 
 bearing testimony to the skill and energy with 
 which he had planned and executed the work 
 
 If not precisely what we have described it to be 
 at the present time, the library must have been 
 aomewnat similar on that morning when our hero 
 issued from it and descended to tbe rook.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 377 
 
 The first stair landed him at the entrance to the 
 sleeping-berths. He looked into one, and observed 
 Forsyth's head and arms lying in the bed, in that 
 peculiarly negligent style that betokens deep and 
 sweet repose. Dumsby's rest was equally sound in 
 the next berth. This fact did not require proof by 
 ocular demonstration ; his nose announced it sono- 
 rously over the whole building. 
 
 Passing to the kitchen, immediately below, Euby 
 found his old messmate, Jamie Dove, busy in the 
 preparation of breakfast. 
 
 " Ha ! Euby, good mornin' ; you keep up your 
 early habits, I see. Can't shake yer paw, lad, 'cause 
 I 'm up to the elbows in grease, not to speak o' sutt 
 an' ashes." 
 
 " When did you learn to cook, Jamie ?" said Euby, 
 laughing. 
 
 " When I came here. You see we 've all got to 
 take it turn and turn about, an' it 's wonderful how 
 soon a feller gets used to it. I 'm rather fond of it, 
 d' ye know ? We haven't overmuch to work on in 
 the way o' variety, to be sure, but what we have 
 there 's lots of it, an' it gives us occasion to exercise 
 our wits to invent somethin' new. It 's wonderful 
 what can be done with fresh beef, cabbage, carrots, 
 potatoes, flour, tea, bread, mustard, sugar, pepper, 
 an' the like, if ye 've got a talent that way." 
 
 " You 've got it all off by heart, I see," said Euby.
 
 378 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " True, boy, but it 's not so easy to get it all ofl 
 yer stomach sometimes. What with confinement 
 and want of exercise we was troubled with indiges- 
 tion at first, but we 're used to it now, and I have 
 acquired quite a fancy for cookin'. No doubt you '11 
 hear Forsyth and Joe say that I've half pisoned 
 them four or five times, but that 's all envy ; besides. 
 a feller can't learn a trade without doin' a little 
 damage to somebody or something at first. Did 
 you ever taste blackbird pie ?" 
 
 "No," replied Ruby, "never." 
 
 " Then you shall taste one to-day, for we caught 
 fifty birds last week" 
 
 "Caught fifty birds?" 
 
 "Ay, but I'll tell ye about it some other time. 
 Be off just now, and get as much exercise out o' the 
 rock as ye can before breakfast." 
 
 The smith resumed his work as he said this, and 
 Ruby descended. 
 
 He found the sea still roaring over the rock, but 
 the rails were so far uncovered that he could venture 
 on them, yet he had to keep a sharp look-out, for, 
 whenever a larger breaker than usual struck the 
 rock, the gush of foaming water that flew over it 
 was so great that a spurt or two would sometimes 
 break up between the iron bars, and any onb of 
 these spurts would have sufficed to give him a 
 thorough wetting.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 379 
 
 In a short time, however, the sea wtmt back and 
 (eft the rails free. Soon after that Kuby was joined 
 by Forsyth and Dumsby, who had come down for 
 their morning promenade. 
 
 They had to walk in single file while taking exer- 
 cise, as the tramway was not wide enough for two, 
 and the rock, even when fully uncovered, did not 
 afford sufficient level space for comfortable walking, 
 although at low water (as the reader already knows) 
 it afforded fully a hundred yards of scrambling 
 ground, if not more. 
 
 They had not walked more than a few minutes 
 when they were joined by Jamie Dove, who an- 
 nounced breakfast, and proceeded to take two or 
 three turns by way of cooling himself. Thereaftei 
 the party returned to the kitchen, where they sat 
 down to as good a meal as any reasonable man could 
 desire. 
 
 There was cold boiled beef the remains of yester- 
 day's dinner and a bit of broiled cod, a native of 
 the Bell Eock, caught from the doorway at high 
 water the day before. There was tea also, and toast 
 buttered toast, hot out of the oven. 
 
 Dove was peculiarly good at what may be styled 
 toast-cooking. Indeed, all the lightkeepers were 
 equally good. The bread was cut an inch thick, 
 and butter was laid on as plasterers spread plaster 
 with a trowel. There was no scraping off a bit here
 
 380 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 to put it on there ; no digging out pieces from little 
 caverns in the bread with the point of the knife ; no 
 repetition of the work to spread it thinner, and, 
 above all, no omitting of corners or edges ; no, the 
 smallest conceivable fly could not have found the 
 minutest atom of dry footing on a Bell Rock slice of 
 toast, from its centre to its circumference. Dove 
 had a liberal heart, and he laid on the butter with a 
 liberal hand. Fair play and no favour was his motto, 
 quarter-inch thick was his gauge, railway speed his 
 practice. The consequence was that the toast floated, 
 as it were, down the throats of the men, and com- 
 pensated to some extent for the want of milk in 
 the tea. 
 
 " Now, boys, sit in," cried Dove, seizing the tea- 
 pot. 
 
 " We have not much variety," observed Dumsby 
 to Ruby, in an apologetic tone. 
 
 "Variety!" exclaimed Forsyth, "what d'ye call 
 that ? " pointing to the fish. 
 
 " Well, that is a hextra morsel, I admit," returned 
 Joe ; " but we don't get that every day ; 'owsever, 
 wot there is is good, an' there 's plenty of it, so let 's 
 fall to." 
 
 Forsyth said grace, and then they all " fell to," 
 with appetites peculiar to that isolated and breezy 
 spot, where the wind blows so fresh from the open 
 sea that tho nostrils inhale culinary odours, and
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 381 
 
 the palates seize culinary products, with unusual 
 relish. 
 
 There was something singularly unfeminine in the 
 manner in which the duties of the table were per- 
 formed by these stalwart guardians of the Eock 
 We are accustomed to see such duties performed by 
 the tender hands of woman, or, it may be, by the 
 expert fingers of trained landsmen; but in places 
 where woman may not or can not act with pro- 
 priety, as on shipboard, or in sea-girt towers, 
 men go through such feminine work in a way that 
 does credit to their versatility, also to the strength 
 of culinary materials and implements. 
 
 The way in which Jamie Dove and his comrades 
 knocked about the pans, teapots, cups and saucers, 
 etc., without smashing them, would have astonished, 
 as well as gratified, the hearts of the fraternity of 
 tinsmiths and earthenware manufacturers. 
 
 We have said that everything in the lighthouse 
 was substantial and very strong. All the wood- 
 work was oak, the floors and walls of solid stone, 
 hence, when Dove, who had no nerves or physical 
 feelings, proceeded with his cooking, the noise he 
 caused was tremendous. A man used to woman's 
 gentle ways would, on seeing him poke the fire, have 
 expected that the poker would certainly penetrate 
 not only the coals, but, the back of the grate also, 
 and perchance make its appearance at the outside of
 
 382 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 the building itself, through stones, joggles, dovetails 
 trenails, pozzolano mortar, and all the strong ma- 
 terials that have withstood the fury of winds and 
 waves for the last half-century ! 
 
 Dove treated the other furniture in like manner ; 
 not that he treated it ill, we would not have the 
 reader imagine this for a moment. He was not 
 reckless of the household goods. He was merely 
 indifferent as to the row he made in using them. 
 
 But it was when the cooking was over, and the 
 table had to be spread, that the thing culminated. 
 Under the impulse of lightheartedness, caused by the 
 feeling that his labours for the time were nearly 
 ended, and that his reward was about to be reaped, 
 he went about with irrepressible energy, like the 
 proverbial bull in a china shop, without reaching 
 that creature's destructive point. It was then that a 
 beaming smile overspread his countenance, and he 
 raged about the kitchen with Vulcan-like joviality. 
 He pulled out the table from the wall to the centre 
 of the apartment, with a swing that produced a pro- 
 longed crash. Up went its two leaves with two 
 minor crashes. Down went the four plates and the 
 cups and saucers, with such violence and rapidity 
 that they all seemed to be dancing on the board 
 together. The beef all but went over the side of its 
 dish by reason of the shock of its sudden stoppage 
 on touching the table, and the pile of toast was only
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 383 
 
 eaved from scatteration by the strength of the 
 , material, so to speak, with which its successive 
 Bayers were cemented. 
 
 When the knives, forks, and spoons came to be 
 laid down, the storm seemed to lull, because these 
 were comparatively light implements, so that this 
 period which in shore-going life is usually found 
 to be the exasperating one was actually a season 
 of relief. But it was always followed by a terrible 
 squall of scraping wooden legs and clanking human 
 feet when the camp-stools were set, and the men 
 came in and sat down to the meal 
 
 The pouring out of the tea, however, was the point 
 that would have called forth the admiration of the 
 world had the world seen it. What a contrast 
 between the miserable, sickly, slow- dribbling silver 
 and other teapots of the land, and this great teapot 
 of the sea! The Bell Eock teapot had no sham, 
 no humbug about it It was a big, bold-looking 
 dne, of true Britannia metal, with vast internal 
 capacity and a gaping mouth. 
 
 Dove seized it in his strong hand as he would 
 have grasped his biggest forehammer. Before you 
 could wink, a sluice seemed to burst open ; a torrent 
 of rich brown tea spouted at your cup, and it was 
 full the saucer too, perhaps in a moment 
 
 But why dwell on these luxurious scenes ? 
 Reader, you can never know them from experience
 
 384 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 unless you go to visit the Bell Eock ; we will there- 
 fore cease to tantalize you. 
 
 During breakfast it was discussed whether or not 
 the signal-ball should be hoisted. 
 
 The signal-ball was fixed to a short staff on the 
 summit of the lighthouse, and the rule was that it 
 should be hoisted at a fixed hour every morning 
 when all was well, and kept up until an answering 
 signal should be made from a signal-tower in Ar- 
 broath where the keepers' families dwelt, and where 
 each keeper in succession spent a fortnight with his 
 family, after a spell of six weeks on the rock. It 
 was the duty of the keeper on shore to watch for 
 the hoisting of the ball (the "All's well" signal) 
 each morning on the lighthouse, and to reply tc 
 it with a similar ball on the signal-tower. 
 
 If, on any occasion, the hour for signalling should 
 pass without the ball on the lighthouse being shown, 
 then it was understood that something was wrong, 
 and the attending boat of the establishment was 
 sent off at once to ascertain the cause, and afford 
 relief if necessary. The keeping down of the ball 
 was, however, an event of rare occurrence, so that 
 when it did take place the poor wives of the men 
 on the rock were usually thrown into a state of 
 much perturbation and anxiety, each naturally sup - 
 posing that her husband must be seriously ill, or 
 have met with a bad accident
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 385 
 
 It was therefore natural that there should be some 
 hesitation about keeping down the ball merely for 
 the/ purpose of getting a boat off to send Ruby 
 ashore. 
 
 " You see," said Forsyth, " the day after to-morrow 
 the ' relief-boat ' is due, and it may be as well just 
 to wait for that, Ruby, and then you can go ashore 
 with your friend Jamie Dove, for it 's his turn this 
 time." 
 
 " Ay, lad, just make up your mind to stay another 
 day," said the smith ; " as they don't know you 're 
 here they can't be wearyin' for you, and I'll take 
 ye an' introduce you to my little wife, that I fell 
 in with on the cliffs of Arbroath not long after ye 
 was kidnapped. Besides, Ruby, it'll do ye good 
 to feed like a fighting cock out here another day. 
 Have another cup o' tea ?" 
 
 " An' a junk o' beef ?" said Forsyth. 
 
 " An' a slice o' toast ?" said Dmnsby. 
 
 Ruby accepted all these offers, and soon after- 
 wards the four friends descended to the rock, to take 
 as much exercise as they could on its limited sur- 
 face, during the brief period of low water that still 
 remained to them. 
 
 It may easily be imagined that this ramble was 
 
 an interesting one, and was prolonged until the tide 
 
 drove them into their tower of refuge. Every rock, 
 
 every hollow, called up endless reminiscences of the 
 
 "2 B
 
 386 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 busy building seasons. Kuby went over it all step 
 by step with somewhat of the feelings that influence 
 a man when he revisits the scene of his childhood. 
 
 There was the spot where the forge had stood. 
 
 " D' ye mind it, lad ? " said Dove. " There are 
 the holes where the hearth was fixed, and there's 
 the rock where you vaulted over the bellows when 
 ye took that splendid dive after the fair-haired 
 lassie into the pool yonder." 
 
 " Mind it ? Ay, I should think so !" 
 
 Then there were the holes where the great beams 
 of the beacon had been fixed, and the iron bats, most 
 of which latter were still left in the rock, and some 
 of which may be seen there at the present day. 
 There was also the pool into which poor Selkirk 
 had tumbled with the vegetables on the day of the 
 first dinner on the rock, and that other pool into 
 which Forsyth had plunged after the mermaids ; 
 and, not least interesting among the spots of note, 
 there was the ledge, now named the " Last Hope," 
 on which Mr. Stevenson and his men had stood on 
 the day when the boat had been carried away, and 
 they had expected, but were mercifully preserved 
 from, a terrible tragedy. 
 
 After they had talked much on all these things, 
 and long before they were tired of it, the sea drove 
 them to the rails ; gradually, as it rose higher, it 
 drove them into the lighthouse, and then each man
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 387 
 
 went to his work Jamie Dove to his kitchen, in 
 order to clean up and prepare dinner, and the other 
 two to the lantern, to scour and polish the reflec- 
 tors, refill and trim the lamps, and, generally, to put 
 everything in order for the coming night. 
 
 Euby divided his time between the kitchen and 
 lantern, lending a hand in each, but, we fear, inter- 
 rupting the work more than he advanced it. 
 
 That day it fell calm, and the sun shone brightly. 
 
 " We '11 have fog to-night," observed Dumsby to 
 Brand, pausing in the operation of polishing a re- 
 flector, in which his fat face was mirrored with most 
 indescribable and dreadful distortions. 
 
 "D'ye think so?" 
 
 " I 'm sure of it." 
 
 "You're right," remarked .Forsyth, looking from 
 his elevated position to the seaward horizon. " I 
 can see it coming now." 
 
 " I say, what smell is that ? " exclaimed Euby, 
 sniffing. 
 
 " Soinethink burnin'," said Dumsby, also sniffing. 
 
 " Why, what can it be ?" murmured Forsyth, look- 
 ing round and likewise sniffing. " Hallo ! Joe, look 
 out ; you 're on fire !" 
 
 Joe started, clapped his hand behind him, and 
 grasped his inexpressibles, which were smouldering 
 warmly. Kuby assisted, and the fire was soon put 
 out, amidst much laughter.
 
 388 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " 'Ang them reflectors !" said Joe, seating himself, 
 and breathing hard after his alarm and exertions ; 
 " it 's the third time they Ve set me ablaze." 
 
 " The reflectors, Joe ?" said Euby. 
 
 " Ay ; don't ye see ? They Ve nat'rally got a focus, 
 an' w'en I 'appen to be standin' on a sunny day in 
 front of 'em, contemplatin' the face o' natur', as it 
 wor, through the lantern panes, if I gits into the 
 focus by haccident, d' ye see, it just acts like a 
 burnin'-glass." 
 
 Ruby could scarcely believe this, but after testing 
 the truth of the statement by actual experiment he 
 could no longer doubt it. 
 
 Presently a light breeze sprang up, rolling the fog 
 before it, and then dying away, leaving the light- 
 house enshrouded. 
 
 During fog there is more danger to shipping than 
 at any other time. In the daytime, in ordinary 
 weather, rocks and lighthouses can be seen. At 
 night lights can be seen, but during fog nothing 
 can be seen until danger may be too near to be 
 avoided. The two great fog-bells of the lighthouse 
 were therefore set agoing, and they rang out their 
 slow deep-toned peal all that day and all that night, 
 as the bell of the Abbot of Aberbrothock is said to 
 have done in days of yore. 
 
 That night Euby was astonished, and then he 
 was stunned !
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 389 
 
 First, as to his astonishment While he was 
 seated by the kitchen fire chatting with his friend 
 the smith, sometime between nine o'clock and mid- 
 night, Dumsby summoned him to the lantern to 
 " help in catching to-morrow's dinner !" 
 
 Dove laughed at the summons, and they all 
 went up. 
 
 The first thing that caught Kuby*s eye at one of 
 the window-panes was the round visage of an owl, 
 staring in with its two large eyes as if it had gone 
 mad with amazement, and holding on to the iron 
 frame with its claws. Presently its claws lost hold, 
 &nd it fell off into outer darkness. 
 
 " What think ye o' that for a beauty ?" said For- 
 syth. 
 
 Euby*s eyes, being set free from the fascination 
 of the owl's stare, now made him aware of the fact 
 that hundreds of birds of all kinds crows, magpies, 
 sparrows, torn-tits, owls, larks, mavises, blackbirds, 
 etc. etc. were fluttering round the lantern outside, 
 apparently bent on ascertaining the nature of the 
 wonderful light within. 
 
 " Ah ! poor things," said Forsyth, in answer to 
 Ruby's look of wonder, " they often visit us in 
 foggy weather. I suppose they get out to sea in 
 the fog and can't find their way back to land, and 
 then some of them chance to cross our light and 
 take refuge on it."
 
 390 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " Now 1 11 go out and get to-morrow's dinner," 
 said Duinsby. 
 
 He went out accordingly, and, walking round the 
 balcony that encircled the base of the lantern, was 
 seen to put his hand up and quietly take down and 
 wring the necks of such birds as he deemed suit- 
 able for his purpose. It seemed a cruel act to 
 Ruby, but when he came to think of it he felt 
 that, as they were to be stewed at anyrate, the 
 more quickly they were killed the better ! 
 
 He observed that the birds kept fluttering about, 
 alighting for a few moments and flying off again, all 
 the time that Duinsby was at work, yet Duinsby 
 never failed to seize his prey. 
 
 Presently the man came in with a small basket 
 full of game. 
 
 " Now, Ruby," said he, " I '11 bet a sixpence that 
 you don't catch a bird within five minutes." 
 
 "I don't bet such large sums usually, but I'll 
 try," said Ruby, going out. 
 
 He tried and failed. Just as the five minutes 
 were expiring, however, the owl happened to alight 
 before his nose, so he " nabbed" it, and carried it in 
 triumphantly. 
 
 " That ain't a bird," said Dumsby 
 
 " It 's not a fish," retorted Ruby ; " but how is it 
 that you caught them so easily, and I found it so 
 difficult ?"
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 391 
 
 Because, lad, you must do it at the right time. 
 You watch w'en the focus of a revolvin' light ia 
 eomin' full on a bird's face. The moment it does so 
 Vs dazzled, and you grab 'im. If you grab too 
 soon or too late, Vs away. That's 'ow it is, and 
 they 're capital heatin', as you '11 find." 
 
 Thus much for Ruby's astonishment. Now for 
 his being stunned. 
 
 Late that night the fog cleared away, and the bells 
 were stopped. After a long chat with his friends, 
 Euby mounted to the library and went to bed. 
 Later still the fog returned, and the bells were again 
 set agoing. Both of them being within a few feet 
 of Ruby's head, they awakened him with a bang 
 that caused him to feel as if the room in which he 
 lay were a bell and his own head the tongue thereof. 
 
 At first the sound was solemnizing, then it was 
 saddening. After a time it became exasperating, 
 and then maddening. He tried to sleep, but he 
 only tossed. He tried to meditate, but he only 
 wandered not "in dreams," however. He tried 
 to laugh, but the laugh degenerated into a growl 
 Then he sighed, and the sigh ended in a groan. 
 Finally, he got up and walked up and down the 
 floor till his legs were cold, when he turned into 
 bed again, very tired, and fell asleep, but not to rest 
 to dream. 
 
 He dreamt that he was at the forge again, and
 
 392 THE LIGHTHOUSF. 
 
 that lie and Dove were trying to smash their anvil 
 with the sledge-hammers bang and bang about. 
 But the anvil would not break. At last he grew 
 desperate, hit the horn off, and then, with another 
 terrific blow, smashed the whole affair to atoms ! 
 
 This startled him a little, and he awoke sufficiently 
 to become aware of the fog-bells. 
 
 Again he dreamed. Minnie was his theme now, 
 but, strange to say, he felt little or no tenderness 
 towards her. She was beset by a hundred ruffians 
 in pea-jackets and sou' westers. Something stirred 
 him to madness. He rushed at the foe, and began 
 to hit out at them right and left, The hitting was 
 slow, but sure regular as clockwork. First the 
 right, then the left, and at each blow a seaman's 
 nose was driven into his head, and a seaman's body 
 lay flat on the ground. At length they were all floored 
 but one the last and the biggest. Euby threw all 
 his remaining strength into one crashing blow, drove 
 his fist right through his antagonist's body, and 
 awoke with a start to find his knuckles bleeding. 
 
 " Hang these bells !" he exclaimed, starting up and 
 gazing round him in despair. Then he fell back on 
 his pillow in despair, and went to sleep in despair. 
 
 Once more he dreamed. He was going to church 
 now, dressed in a suit of the finest broadcloth, with 
 Minnie on his arm, clothed in pure white, emble- 
 matic, it struck him, of her pure, gentle spirit
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 393 
 
 Friends were with him, all gaily attired and very 
 bappy, but unaccountably silent. Perhaps it was 
 the noise of the wedding-bells that rendered their 
 voices inaudible. He was struck by the solemnity 
 as well as the pertinacity of these wedding-bells as 
 he entered the church. He was puzzled too, being 
 a Presbyterian, why he was to be married in church, 
 but being a man of liberal mind, he made no objec- 
 tion to it. 
 
 They all assembled in front of the pulpit, intc 
 which the clergyman, a very reverend but determined 
 man, mounted, with a prayer-book in his hand. 
 Ruby was puzzled again. He had not supposed 
 that the pulpit was the proper place, but modestly 
 attributed this to his ignorance. 
 
 " Stop these bells !" said the clergyman, with 
 stern solemnity ; but they went on. 
 
 " Stop them, I say !" he roared in a voice of 
 thunder. 
 
 The sexton, pulling the ropes in the middle of 
 the church, paid no attention. 
 
 Exasperated beyond endurance, the clergyman 
 hurled the prayer-book at the sexton's head, and 
 felled him ! Still the bells went on of their own 
 accord. 
 
 " Stop ! sto-o-o-o-p ! I say," he yelled fiercely, 
 and, hitting the pulpit with hi* fist, he split it from 
 top to bottom.
 
 194 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 Minnie cried " Shame !" at this, and from that 
 moment the bells ceased. 
 
 Whether it was that the fog-bells ceased at that 
 time, or that Minnie's voice charmed Buby's thoughts 
 away, we cannot tell, but certain it is that the 
 severely tried youth became gradually oblivious of 
 everything. The marriage-party vanished with the 
 bells; Minnie, alas! faded away also; finally, the 
 roar of the sea round the Bell Eock, the rock itself, 
 its lighthouse and its inmates, and all connected 
 with it, faded from the sleeper's mind, and, 
 
 " like the baseless fabric of a Tiaioa. 
 J!ft not a wrack behind."
 
 CHAPTER XXX1JI. 
 
 CONCLUSION. 
 
 FACTS are facts ; there is no denying that. The} 
 cannot be controverted ; nothing can overturn them 
 or modify them, or set them asida There they 
 stand in naked simplicity ; mildly contemptuous 
 alike of sophists and theorists. 
 
 Immortal facts ! Bacon founded on you ; Newton 
 found you out ; Dugald Stewart and all his fraternity 
 reasoned on you, and followed in your wake. What 
 would this world be without facts ? Eest assured, 
 reader, that those who ignore facts and prefer fancies 
 are fools. We say it respectfully. We have no 
 intention of being personal, whoever you may be. 
 
 On the morning after Euby was cast on the Bell 
 Rock, our old friend Ned O'Connor (having been 
 appointed one of the lighthouse-keepers, arid having 
 gone for his fortnight ashore in the order of his 
 course) sat on the top of the signal-tower at 
 Arbroath with a telescope at his eye, directed towards 
 lighthouse, and bpcnme aware of a fact, a fact
 
 39C THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 which seemed to be contradicted by those who 
 ought to have known better. 
 
 Ned soliloquized that morning. His soliloquy 
 will explain the circumstances to which we refer; 
 we therefore record it here. " What's that ? Sure 
 there's somethin' wrong wid me eye intirely this 
 mornin'. Howld on" (he wiped it here, and apply- 
 ing it again to the telescope, proceeded) ; " wan, tshoo, 
 three, four I No mistake about it. Try agin. 
 Wan, tshoo, three, FOUR ! An' yet the ball 's up 
 there as cool as a cookumber, tellin' a big lie ; ye 
 know ye are," continued Ned, apostrophizing the 
 ball, and readjusting the glass. " There ye are, as 
 bold as brass aV ye 'r not copper tellin' me that 
 iverythin's goin' on as usual, whin I can see with 
 me two eyes (wan afther the other) that there 's four 
 men on the rock, whin there should be only three ! 
 Well, well," continued Ned, after a pause, and a care- 
 ful examination of the Bell Eock, which being twelve 
 miles out at sea could not be seen very distinctly in 
 its lower parts, even through a good glass, " the day 
 afther to-morrow '11 settle the question, Misther Ball, 
 for then the Belief goes off, an' faix, if I don't guv' ye 
 the lie direct I'm not an Irishman." 
 
 With this consolatory remark, Ned O'Connor 
 descended to the rooms below, and told his wife, 
 who immediately told all the other wives and the 
 neighbours, so that ere long the whole town of
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 Arbroatli became aware that there was a mysterious 
 stranger, a fourth party, on the Bell Eock ! 
 
 Thus it came to pass that, when the relieving- 
 boat went off, numbers of fishermen and sailors and 
 others watched it depart in the morning, and increased 
 numbers of people of all sorts, among whom were 
 many of the old hands who had wrought at the 
 building of the lighthouse, crowded the pier to watch 
 its return in the afternoon. 
 
 As soon as the boat left the rock, those who had 
 "glasses" announced that there was an "extra man 
 in her." 
 
 Speculation remained on tip-toe for nearly three 
 hours, at the end of which time the boat drew near, 
 
 " It 's a man, anyhow," observed Captain Ogilvy, 
 who was one of those near the outer end of the pier. 
 
 " I say," observed his friend the " leftenant," who 
 was looking through a telescope, " if that 's not 
 Ruby Brand I '11 eat my hat without sauce !" 
 
 " You don't mean let me see," cried the captain, 
 snatching the glass out of his friend's hand, and 
 applying it to his eye. " I do believe ! yes ! it is 
 Ruby, or his ghost !" 
 
 By this time the boat was near enough for many 
 of his old friends to recognise him, and Ruby, seeing 
 that some of the faces were familiar to him, rose in 
 the stern of the boat, took off his hat, and waved it 
 
 This was the signal for a tremendous cheer from
 
 39b iHE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 those who knew our hero ; and those who did not 
 know him, but knew that there was something pecu- 
 liar and romantic in his case, and in the manner of 
 his arrival, began to cheer from sheer sympathy; 
 while the little boys, who were numerous, and who 
 love to cheer for cheering's sake alone, yelled at the 
 full pitch of their lungs, and waved their ragged caps 
 as joyfully as if the King of England were about to 
 land upon their shores ! 
 
 The boat soon swept into the harbour, and Ruby's 
 friends, headed by Captain Ogilvy, pressed forward to 
 receive and greet him. The captain embraced him, 
 the friends surrounded him, and almost pulled him 
 to pieces ; finally, they lifted him on their shoulders, 
 and bore him in triumphal procession to his mother's 
 cottage. 
 
 And where was Minnie all this time ? She had 
 indeed heard the rumour that something had occurred 
 at the Bell Eock ; but, satisfied from what she heard 
 that it could be nothing very serious, she was con- 
 tent to remain at home and wait for the news. To 
 say truth, she was too much taken up with her own 
 sorrows and anxieties to care as much for public 
 matters as she had been wont to do. 
 
 When the uproarious procession drew near, she 
 was sitting at Widow Brand's feet, ''comforting her" 
 in her usual way. 
 
 %fore the procession turned the corner of the
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 399 
 
 street leading to his mother's cottage, Kuby made a 
 desperate effort to address the crowd, and succeeded 
 in arresting their attention. 
 
 " Friends, friends !" he cried, " it 's very good of 
 you, very kind ; but my mother is old and feeble ; 
 she might be hurt if we were to come on her in this 
 fashion. We must go in quietly." 
 
 " True, true," said those who bore him, letting him 
 down, " so, good -day, lad ; good- day. A shake o' 
 your flipper ; give us your hand ; glad you 're back, 
 Euby ; good luck to 'ee, boy !" 
 
 Such were the words, followed by three cheers, 
 with which his friends parted from him, and left 
 him alone with the captain. 
 
 " We must break it to her, nephy," said the cap- 
 tain, as they moved towards the cottage. 
 
 " ' Still so gently o'er me stealin', 
 
 Memory will bring back the feelin'.' 
 
 It won't do to go slap into her, as a British frigate 
 does into a French line-o'-battle ship. 1 11 go in an' 
 do the breakin' business, and send out Minnie to you." 
 
 Euby was quite satisfied with the captain's 
 arrangement, so, when the latter went in to perform 
 his part of this delicate business, the former re- 
 mained at the door-post, expectant 
 
 " Minnie, lass, I want to speak to my sister," said 
 the captain, " leave us a bit and there 's somebody 
 wants to see you outside."
 
 400 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 " Me, uncle !" 
 
 " Ay, you; look alive now." 
 
 Minnie went out in some surprise, and had barely 
 crossed the threshold when she found herself pinioned 
 in a strong man's arms ! A -ry escaped her as she 
 struggled, for one instant, to free herself; but a 
 glance was sufficient to tell who it was that held 
 her. Dropping her head on Euby's breast, the load 
 of sorrow fell from her heart. Euby pressed his lips 
 upon her forehead, and they both rested there. 
 
 It was one of those pre-eminently sweet resting- 
 places which are vouchsafed to some, though not to 
 all, of the pilgrims of earth, in their toilsome journey 
 through the wilderness towards that eternal rest, in 
 the blessedness of which all minor resting-places 
 shall be forgotten, whether missed or enjoyed by the 
 way. 
 
 Their rest, however, was not of long duration, for 
 in a few minutes the captain rushed out, and ex- 
 claiming " She 's swounded, lad," grasped Euby by 
 the coat and dragged him into the cottage, where 
 he found his mother lying in a state of insensibility 
 on the floor. 
 
 Seating himself by her side on the floor, he raised 
 her gently, and placing her in a half-sitting half- 
 reclining position in his lap, laid her head tenderly 
 on his breast. While in this position Minnie ad- 
 ministered restoratives, and the widow ere long
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 401 
 
 opened her eyes and looked up. She did not speak 
 at first, but, twining her arms round Ruby's neck, 
 gazed steadfastly into his face ; then, drawing him 
 closer to her heart, she fervently exclaimed " Thank 
 God !" and laid her head down again with a deep 
 sigh. 
 
 She too had found a resting-place by the way on 
 that day of her pilgrimage. 
 
 * * * 
 
 Now, reader, we feel bound to tell you in confi- 
 dence that there are few things more difficult than 
 drawing a story to a close ! Our tale is done, for 
 Ruby is married to Minnie, and the Bell Rock 
 Lighthouse is finished, and most of those who built 
 it are scattered beyond the possibility of re-union. 
 Yet we are loath to shake hands with them and to 
 bid you farewell. 
 
 Nevertheless, so it must be, for if we were to 
 continue the narrative of the after- careers of our 
 friends of the Bell Rock, the books that should be 
 written would certainly suffice to build a new light- 
 house. 
 
 But we cannot make our bow without a parting 
 word or two. 
 
 Ruby and Minnie, as we have said, were married 
 They lived in the cottage with their mother, and 
 managed to make it sufficiently large to hold them 
 all by banishing the captain into the scullery. 
 
 2 c
 
 402 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 Do not suppose that this was done heartlessly, 
 and without the captain's consent By no means. 
 That worthy son of Neptune assisted at his own 
 banishment. In fact, he was himself the chief cause 
 of it, for when a consultation was held after the 
 honeymoon, as to " what was to be done now," he 
 waved his hand, commanded silence, and delivered 
 himself as follows : 
 
 "Now, shipmates all, give ear to me, an' don't 
 ventur' to interrupt. It 's nat'ral an' proper, Ruby, 
 that you an' Minnie and your mother should wish 
 to live together ; as the old song says, ' Birds of a 
 feather flock together,' an' the old song 's right ; and 
 as the thing ought to be, an' you all want it to be, 
 so it shall be. There 's only one little difficulty in 
 the way, which is, that the ship's too small to hold 
 us, by reason of the after-cabin bein' occupied by 
 an old seaman of the name of Ogilvy. Now, then, 
 not bein' pigs, the question is, what 's to be done ? 
 I will answer that question : the seaman of the 
 name of Ogilvy shall change his quarters." 
 
 Observing at this point that both Ruby and his 
 bride opened their mouths to speak, the captain 
 held up a threatening finger, and sternly said, 
 " Silence ! " Then he proceeded 
 
 " I speak authoritatively on this point, havin' con- 
 versed with the seaman Ogilvy, and diskivered his 
 sentiments. That seaman intends to resign fche
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 403 
 
 cabin to the young couple, and to hoist his flag for 
 the futur' in the fogs'l" 
 
 He pointed, in explanation, to the scullery; a 
 small, dirty-looking apartment off the kitchen, 
 which was full of pots and pans and miscellaneous 
 articles of household, chiefly kitchen, furniture. 
 
 Euby and Minnie laughed at this, and the widow 
 looked perplexed, but perfectly happy and at her 
 ease, for she knew that whatever arrangement the 
 captain should make, it would be agreeable in the 
 end to all parties. 
 
 "The seaman Ogilvy and I," continued the captain, 
 " have gone over the fogsl" (meaning the forecastle) 
 " together, and we find that, by the use of mops, 
 buckets, water, and swabs, the place can be made 
 clean. By the use of paper, paint, and whitewash, 
 it can be made respectable ; and, by the use of 
 furniture, pictures, books, and baccy, it can be made 
 comfortable. Now, the question that I've got to 
 propound this day to the judge and jury is Why 
 not?" 
 
 Upon mature consideration, the judge and jury 
 could not answer "why not?" therefore the thing 
 was fixed and carried out, and the captain thereafter 
 dwelt for years in the scullery, and the inmates of 
 the cottage spent so much of their time in the scullery 
 that it became, as it were, the parlour, or boudoir, 
 or drawing-room of the place. When, in course of
 
 404 TIIE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 time, a number of small Brands came to howl and 
 tumble about the cottage, they naturally gravitated 
 towards the scullery, which then virtually became 
 the nursery, with a stout old seaman, of the name of 
 Ogilvy, usually acting the part of head nurse. His 
 duties were onerous, by reason of the strength of 
 constitution, lungs, and muscles of the young Brands, 
 whose ungovernable desire to play with that danger- 
 ous element from which heat is evolved, undoubtedly 
 qualified th^m for the honorary title of Fire-Brands. 
 With the proceeds of the jewel-case Euby bought 
 a little coasting- vessel, with which he made frequent 
 and successful voyages. " Absence makes the heart 
 grow fonder," no doubt, for Minnie grew fonder of 
 Euby every time he went away, and every time he 
 came back. Things prospered with our hero, and 
 you may be sure that he did not forget his old friends 
 of the lighthouse. On the contrary, he and his wife 
 became frequent visitors at the signai-tower, and 
 the families of the lighthouse-keepers felt almost as 
 much at home in "the cottage" as they did in 
 their own houses. And each keeper, on returning 
 from his six weeks' spell on the rock to take his 
 two weeks' spell at the signal-tower, invariably made 
 it his first business, after kissing his wife and chil- 
 dren, to go up to the Brands and smoke a pipe 
 in the scullery with that eccentric old sea- faring 
 nursery -maid of the nam* of Ogilvy.
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 405 
 
 In time Ruby found it convenient to build a top 
 flat on the cottage, and above this a small turret, 
 which overlooked the opposite houses, and com- 
 manded a view of the sea. This tower the captain 
 converted into a point of look-out, and a summer 
 smoking-room, and many a time and oft, in the years 
 that followed, did he and Ruby climb up there about 
 night-fall, to smoke the pipe of peace, with Minnie 
 beside them, and to watch the bright flashing of the 
 red and white light on the Bell Rock, as it shone 
 over the waters far and wide, like a star of the first 
 magnitude, a star of hope and safety, guiding sailors 
 to their desired haven ; perchance reminding them 
 of that star of Bethlehem which guided the shep- 
 herds to Him who is the Light of the world and the 
 Rock of Ages. 
 
 THE END. 
 
 : T. AND A. COHSTABLB, 
 TK1NTKB8 TO THE QCEKN, ANT) TO THK UNIVSUS1TV
 
 BY MR. R. M. BALLANTYNE. 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. each. 
 
 'The fathers, mothers, guardians, uncles, and aunts who wish to find an acceptable 
 birthday present for a healthy-minded boy of normal tastes, cannot possibly go wrong if 
 theybuy a book with Mr. Ballantyne's name on the title-page.' A cademy. 
 
 The Hot Swamp : A Romance of 
 
 Old Albion. 
 
 The Buffalo Runners : A Tale of 
 
 the Red River Plains. 
 
 Charlie to the Rescue : A Tale of 
 
 the Sea and the Rockies. 
 
 Blown to Bits ; or, The Lonely 
 
 Man of Rakata : A Tale of the Malay 
 Archipelago. 
 
 Blue Lights ; or, Hot Work in the 
 
 Soudan. A Tale of Soldier Life. 
 
 The Fugitives; or, The Tyrant 
 Queen of Madagascar. 
 
 Red Rooney ; or, The Last of the 
 Crew. 
 
 The Rover of the Andes : A Tale 
 
 of Adventure in South America. 
 
 The Young Trawler : A Story of 
 
 Life, Death, and Rescue in the North Sea. 
 
 Dusty Diamonds, Cut and Pol- 
 ished : A Tale of City Arab Life. 
 
 The Battery and the Boiler ; or, 
 
 Adventures of a Telegraph-Cable Layer. 
 
 The Giant of the North ; or, Pok- 
 
 ings Round the Pole. 
 
 The Lonely Island; or, The Refuge 
 
 of the Mutineers. 
 
 Post Haste : A Tale of Her Ma- 
 jesty's Mails. 
 
 In the Track of the Troops : A 
 
 Tale of Modern War. 
 
 The Settler and the Savage : A 
 
 Tale of Peace and War in South Africa. 
 
 The Lifeboat : A Tale of our Coast 
 
 Heroes. 
 
 The Golden Dream : A Tale of the 
 
 Diggings. 
 
 The Red Eric ; or, The Whaler's 
 
 Last Cruise. 
 
 Freaks on the Fells, and Why I 
 
 did not Become a Sailor. 
 
 The Wild Man of the West 
 Gascoyne, the Sandalwood 
 
 Trader : A Tale of the Pacific. 
 
 Rivers of Ice : A Tale Illustrative 
 of Alpine Adventure and Glacier Action. 
 
 The Pirate City: An Algerine Tale. 
 
 Black Ivory : A Tale of Adventure 
 among the Slavers of East Africa. 
 
 The Norsemen in the West ; or, 
 
 America before Columbus. 
 
 The Iron Horse ; or, Life on the 
 
 Line. A Railway Tale. 
 
 Erling the Bold : A Tale of the 
 
 Norse Sea Kings. 
 
 Fighting the Flames : A Tale of 
 
 the London Fire Brigade. 
 
 Deep Down : A Tale of the Cornish 
 Mines. 
 
 The Floating Light of the Good- 
 win Sands. 
 
 Shifting Winds : A Tough Yarn. 
 
 The Lighthouse : Being the Story 
 of a Great Fight between Man and the 
 Sea. 
 
 The Big Otter: A Tale of the 
 
 Far Nor' West. 
 
 Under the Waves ; or, Diving in 
 
 Deep Waters. 
 
 Extra Crown 8vo, 5s. 
 The Walrus Hunters : A Romance of the Realms of Ice.
 
 BY MR. R. M. BALLANTYNE. 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. each. 
 
 HUNTED AND HARRIED. 
 
 A COXSWAIN'S BRIDE; 
 
 Or, THB RISING TIDE. AND OTHBR TALES. 
 
 THE GARRET AND THE GARDEN; 
 
 Or, Low LIFE HIGH UP. AND JEFF BENSON; or, THB YOUNG COASTGUARDSMAN. 
 
 THE CREW OF THE WATER-WAGTAIL. 
 A STORY OF NEWFOUNDLAND. 
 
 THE MIDDY AND THE MOORS: 
 AN ALGERINE TALE. 
 
 THE PRAIRIE CHIEF. 
 
 LIFE IN THE RED BRIGADE: 
 A FIERY TALE. AND FORT DESOLATION; or, SOLITUDE IN THE WILDERNESS. 
 
 THE ISLAND QUEEN; 
 Or, DETHRONED BY FIRE AND WATER. A TALE OF THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE. 
 
 TWICE BOUGHT: 
 
 A TALE OF THE OREGON GOLD-FIELDS. 
 
 THE MADMAN AND THE PIRATE. 
 MY DOGGIE AND I. 
 
 PHILOSOPHER JACK: 
 A TALE OF THE SOUTHERN SEAS. 
 
 THE RED MAN'S REVENGE. 
 
 SIX MONTHS AT THE CAPE. 
 
 LETTERS TO PERIWINKLE FROM SOUTH AFRICA. A RECORD OF PERSONAL 
 EXPERIENCE AND ADVENTURE. 
 
 BATTLES WITH THE SEA; 
 Or, HEROES OF THE LIFEBOAT AND THE ROCKET. 
 
 Price 3s. 6d. each. 
 TALES OF ADVENTURE BY FLOOD, FIELD, AND MOUNTAIN. 
 
 TALES OF ADVENTURE; 
 Or, WILD WORK IN STRANGE PLACES. 
 
 TALES OF ADVENTURE ON THE COAST. 
 
 With numerous Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 2s. 
 
 THE KITTEN PILGRIMS; 
 Or, GREAT BATTLES AND GRAND VICTORIES. 
 
 LONDON : JAMES NISBET & CO., 21 BEKNERS STREET.
 
 WORKS BY R. M. BALLANTYNE. 
 
 " In his tales of the sea, of the forest and the flames, and in all 
 that he writes, there is a fidelity to nature and a knowledge of many 
 paths of life which are not surpassed by any author in his special 
 field of literature. " Morning Post. 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 5s. each. 
 NEW VOLUME. 
 
 THE BUFFALO RUNNERS. 
 
 A TALE OF THE RED RIVER PLAINS. 
 
 CHARLIE TO THE RESCUE. 
 
 A TALE OF THE SEA AND THE ROCKIES. 
 
 " In ' Charlie to the Rescue ' Mr. Ballantyne supplies his con- 
 stituency which is now a large and well-satisfied one with a 
 sufficiency of battles, sieges, and escapes ; the troubles of ranchmen, 
 whose lives are threatened both by white and by black scoundrels, 
 are admirably reproduced. It is a capital story." Spectator. 
 
 BLOWN TO BITS; 
 
 Or, THE LONELY MAN OF RAKATA. A TALE OF THE 
 MALAY ARCHIPELAGO. 
 
 " A capital story, written in the author's old style, and full of 
 life and action from beginning to end." Standard. 
 
 " The book abounds in matter of exceptional interest, and should 
 find its way into the hands of all young people who would properly 
 estimate the wide-spreading and far-reaching influences and the 
 extraordinary character of the Krakatoa outburst." Manchester 
 Courier. 
 
 BLUE LIGHTS; 
 
 Or, HOT WORK IN THE SOUDAN. A TALE OF SOLDIER LIFE 
 
 IN SEVERAL OF ITS PHASES. 
 
 "An exciting story, full of excellent moral lessons." School 
 Board Chronicle. 
 
 " We heartily recommend 'Blue Lights '." Guardian. 
 
 "The soldier's career is graphically depicted, and the story is 
 every way a good one." Literary Churchman.
 
 Works by R. M. Ballantyne continued. 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 5s. each. 
 
 THE FUGITIVES; 
 
 Or, THE TYRANT QUEEN OF MADAGASCAR. 
 
 " There is plenty of adventure in the shape of imprisonment and 
 combats with men and animals, and a negro and a sailor between 
 them supply a comic element of the best quality. Everything con- 
 sidered, this is one of the best stories even Mr. Ballantyne has 
 published. " Academy. 
 
 RED ROONEY; 
 
 Or, TKE LAST OF THE CREW. 
 
 THE ROVER OF THE ANDES. 
 
 A TALE OF ADVENTURE IN SOUTH AMERICA. 
 
 " We commend it to boys fond of adventure and of natural pheno- 
 mena ; a very fascinating book." British Quarterly Review. 
 "An admirable boy's story." Scotsman. 
 
 THE YOUNG TRAWLER. 
 
 A STORY OF LIFE AND DEATH AND RESCUE IN THE 
 NORTH SEA. 
 
 " Few men have laboured so steadfastly in their generation to 
 provide sound wholesome fare for ' our boys ' as Mr. Ballantyne, 
 and the ' Young Trawler ' is worthy of his reputation. It is not a 
 whit less spirited than his former tales, and conveys a large amount 
 of useful information on a highly important subject." Academy. 
 
 DUSTY DIAMONDS, CUT AND 
 POLISH ED, 
 
 A TALE OF CITY-ARAB LIFE.
 
 IVorks by R. M. Ballantyne continued. 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 5s. each. 
 
 . THE BATTERY AND THE BOILER; 
 
 Or, THE ELECTRICAL ADVENTURES OF A TELEGRAPH 
 CABLE-LAYER. 
 
 " There is not a dull page in it." Scotsman. 
 "The interest never flags." Academy. 
 
 THE GIANT OF THE NORTH; 
 
 Or, PC-KINGS ROUND THE POLE. 
 
 "Of variety of perilous adventures and peril, ingeniously sur- 
 mounted, there is no lack. " Daily New*. 
 
 THE LONELY ISLAND; 
 
 Or, THE REFUGE OF THE MUTINEERS. 
 
 "Mr. Ballantyne weaves the romantic episode of the mutiny of 
 the ' Bounty ' into a most effective narrative." Graphic. 
 
 POST HASTE. 
 
 A TALE OF HER MAJESTY'S MAILS. 
 
 "The book should find a place in every boy's library ; it is full 
 of interest." Leeds Mercury. 
 
 IN THE TRACK OF THE TROOPS. 
 
 A TALE OF MODERN WAR. 
 
 " Mr. Ballantyne has blended with the incidents of war on the 
 Danube a story of personal adventure spiritedly told." Daily News. 
 
 THE SETTLER AND THE SAVAGE. 
 
 A TALE OF PEACE AND WAR IN SOUTH AFRICA. 
 
 " A capital story of South African life. Mr. Ballantyne, through 
 the medium of a thoroughly manly and healthy tale of sport and 
 war, frolic and danger, full of stirring yet not exaggerated scenes, 
 presents a sketch of a very important period of the early history of 
 our colony at the Cape of Good Hope." Times.
 
 Works by R. M. Ballantyne continued. 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 5s. each. 
 
 UNDER THE WAVES; 
 
 Or, DIVING IN DEEP WATERS. 
 
 "Mr. Ballantyne enlarges the already gigantic debt due to him 
 by the young, by his ' Under the Waves,' a story meant to illustrate 
 the practice and peril of diving in deep water, which it does in not 
 only an interesting, but often in amusing manner." Times. 
 
 RIVERS OF ICE. 
 
 A TALE ILLUSTRATIVE OF ALPINE ADVENTURE AND GLACIER 
 ACTION. 
 
 "A tale brimful of interest and stirring adventure." Glasgow 
 Herald. 
 
 THE PIRATE CITY. 
 
 AN ALGERINE TALE. 
 
 " The story is told with Mr. Ballantyne's usual felicity, and, as- 
 it is plentifully sprinkled with horrors, no doubt it will be greatly 
 enjoyed by some boys." Athenceum. 
 
 BLACK IVORY. 
 
 A TALE OP ADVENTURE AMONG THE SLAVERS OF EAST AFRICA. 
 " A captivating story. We heartily recommend it." Record. 
 "Boys will find the book about as delightful a story of adventure 
 as any of them could possibly desire. " Scotsman. 
 
 THE NORSEMEN IN THE WEST; 
 
 Or, AMERICA BEFORE COLUMBUS. 
 
 " This thoroughly delightful book is an adaptation of the Saga of 
 Iceland, and also of Mr. Laing's ' Heimskingla ; or Chronicles of 
 the Kings of Norway,' supplemented by Mr. Ballantyne's own 
 experience and adventures in the wilderness of America. These 
 ingredients are put together with the skill and spirit of an accom- 
 plished story-teller ; and the result is a book that cannot possibly 
 be laid down till the very last word of the last line has been read." 
 Athenaeum. 
 
 THE IRON HORSE; 
 Or, LIFE ON THE LINE. A RAILWAY TALE. 
 "A captivating book for boys." Guardian. 

 
 Works by R. M. Ballantyne continued. 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 5s. each. 
 
 ERLING THE BOLD, 
 
 A TALK OF THE NOBSB SEA KINGS. 
 "A capital tale of the Norse Sea Kings." Times. 
 
 "The story is interesting and full of moving incidents by flood 
 and field, and it will therefore scarcely fail to be popular among 
 lads. " Scotsman. 
 
 "The story is clearly designed, and abounds with elements of 
 romantic interest ; and the Author's illustrations are scarcely less 
 vigorous than his text." Athenaeum. 
 
 FIGHTING THE FLAMES, 
 
 A TALE OF THE LONDON FIRE BRIGADE. 
 
 "Many a schoolboy will find keen enjoyment in the perusal of 
 'Fighting the Flames,' and assure his little sisters with suitable 
 emphasis that Mr. Ballantyne is ' a stunning good story-teller. ' " 
 Athenceum. 
 
 DEEP DOWN. 
 
 A TALE OF THE CORNISH MINES. 
 
 " Mr. Ballantyne's book will not fail to delight boys, for it is full 
 of deeds of daring and of ' hairbreadth escapes.' " Scotsman. 
 
 "By reading Mr. Ballantyne's admirable story a very large 
 amount of knowledge concerning Cornish mines may be acquired ; 
 whilst from the fact of the information being given in the form of 
 a connected narrative, it is not likely very soon to be forgotten. 
 ... A book well worthy of being extensively read." Mining 
 Journal. 
 
 THE FLOATING LIGHT OF THE 
 GOODWIN SANDS. 
 
 14 The tale will be especially interesting to adventure-loving boys. " 
 Record. 
 
 SHIFTING WINDS. 
 A TOUGH YARN. 
 
 "A hearty, vigorous, bracing story, fresh with the pure breezes, 
 and sparkling with the bright waters of the everlasting seas." 
 Athenceum.
 
 Works by E. M. Ballantyne continued. 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 5s. each. 
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 BEING THE STORY OF A GREAT FIGHT BETWEEN MAN 
 
 AND THE SEA. 
 Extract Letter from the Secretary of Northern Lighthouses. 
 
 " . . . . They (the Commissioners of Northern Lighthouses) have 
 been so much pleased with the way in which you have combined 
 the fiction of a tale with the popular but correct account of the 
 building of the Bell Rock Lighthouse, that they think it would be 
 an interesting work to transmit to their Lightkeepers, and I have 
 therefore to request that you will direct your publishers to transmit 
 me copies. (Signed) ALEXR. CUNNINGHAM." 
 
 " Thoroughly at home in subjects of adventure, the Author has 
 made this, like all his stories for boys, smart in style, thrilling in 
 interest, and abounding in incidents of every kind." Quiver. 
 
 THE LIFEBOAT. 
 
 A TALE OF OUR COAST HEROES. 
 
 " ROYAL NATIONAL LIFEBOAT INSTITUTION. 
 
 "DEAR SIR, I am directed by the Committee to request your 
 acceptance of the accompanying Photograph of a Lifeboat proceed- 
 ing off to a wreck, as a small permanent acknowledgment of the 
 important service you have rendered to the Lifeboat cause by your 
 very interesting work entitled ' The Lifeboat : a Tale of our Coast 
 Heroes.' I remain, yours faithfully, 
 
 (Signed) " RICHARD LEWIS, Secretary. " 
 
 THE GOLDEN DREAM. 
 
 A TALE OF THE DIGGINGS. 
 
 THE RED ERIC; 
 
 Or, THE WHALER'S LAST CRUISE. 
 
 GASCOYNE, THE SANDALWOOD 
 TRADER. 
 
 A TALE OF THE PACIFIC. 
 
 "Full of cleverly and impressively drawn pictures of life and 
 character in the Pacific. " Caledonian Mercury.
 
 Works by R. M. Ballantyne continued. 1 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown Svo. 5s. each. 
 
 FREAKS ON THE FELLS, 
 
 AND 
 
 WHY I DID NOT BECOME A SAILOR. 
 
 THE WILD MAN OF THE WEST. 
 
 With Illustration*. Crown Svo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 BATTLES WITH THE SEA; 
 
 Or, HEROES OF THE LIFEBOAT AND THE ROCKET. 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown Svo. 2*. 
 
 THE KITTEN PILGRIMS; 
 
 Or, GREAT BATTLES AND GRAND VICTORIES. 
 
 " We have copied the title-page of this amusing and instructive 
 quarto for little folks. Nothing further is necessary. Mr. 
 Ballantyne stands at the head of all our children's story-tellers 
 facile princeps." Churchman. 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown Svo. 2s. 6d. each. 
 NEW VOLUME. 
 
 A COXSWAIN'S BRIDE; Or, THE RISING TIDE: 
 
 And other Tales. 
 
 THE GARRET AND THE GARDEN ; Or, Low 
 LIFE HIGH UP: And JEFF BENSON; Or, THE 
 
 YOUNG COASTGUARDSMAN. 
 
 THE CREW OF THE WATER-WAGTAIL. 
 
 A STORY OF NEWFOUNDLAND. 
 
 THE MIDDY AND THE MOORS. 
 
 AN ALGERIXE TALE. 
 
 THE PRAIRIE CHIEF.
 
 Works by R, M. Ballantyne continued. 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown 81-0. 2s. Qd. each. 
 
 LIFE IN THE RED BRIGADE. 
 
 A FIEEY TALE. AND FORT DESOLATION ; or, SOLITUDE IN THE 
 WILDERNESS. 
 
 THE ISLAND QUEEN; 
 
 Or, DETHRONED BY FIRE AND WATER. A TALE OF THB 
 SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE. 
 
 TWICE BOUGHT. 
 
 A TALE OF THE OREGON GOLD FIELDS. 
 
 THE MADMAN AND THE PIRATE. 
 
 PHILOSOPHER JACK. 
 
 A TALE OF THE SOUTHERN SEAS. 
 
 THE RED MAN'S REVENGE. 
 MY DOGGIE AND I. 
 
 SIX MONTHS AT THE CAPE. 
 
 LETTERS TO PERIWINKLE FROM SOUTH AFRICA. A RECORD OF 
 PERSONAL EXPERIENCE AND ADVENTURE. 
 
 Crown 8vo. Price 3s. 6d. each. 
 
 TALES OF ADVENTURE BY FLOOD, 
 FIELD, AND MOUNTAIN. 
 
 TALES OF ADVENTURE; 
 
 Or, WILD WORK IN STRANGE PLACES. 
 
 TALES OF ADVENTURE ON THE COAST. 
 
 LONDON : JAMES NISBET & Co., 21 BERNERS STREET, W.
 
 JAMES NISBET & CO.'S 
 
 SELECT LIST OF BOOKS 
 
 SUITABLE FOR 
 
 PRESENTS AND PRIZES, 
 
 BY 
 
 WELL-KNOWN AND POPULAR WRITERS. 
 
 Profusely Illustrated and handsomely Bound in Cloth. 
 
 A Complete List will be forwarded post free on 
 application to the Publis/iers.
 
 WORKS by Mrs. MARSHALL. 
 
 " Readers who value culture and refinement, but, above all, seek for truth 
 and unction, will recommend her tales, especially for young ladies." 
 Churchman. 
 
 With numerous Illustrations. 
 
 Price Five Shillings each. Extra Crown 8vo. 
 
 THE CLOSE OF ST. CHRISTOPHER'S. 
 
 NEW RELATIONS. A Story for Girls. 
 
 THOSE THREE; OB, LITTLE WINGS. 
 
 EASTWARD HO ! A Story for Girls. 
 
 LAUREL CROWNS ; OR, GRISELDA'S AIM. 
 
 HOUSES ON WHEELS. A Story for Children. 
 
 Price Three Shillings and Sixpence each. Crown 8vo. 
 
 IN THE PURPLE. 
 
 DAPHNE'S DECISION ; OR, WHICH SHALL IT BE ? 
 THE ROSES OF RINGWOOD. A Story for Children. 
 
 CASSANDRA'S CASKET. 
 
 SILVER CHIMES; OR, OLIVE. 
 
 STORIES OF THE CATHEDRAL CITIES OP ENGLAND. 
 
 POPPIES AND PANSIES. 
 
 REX AND REGINA; OR, THE SONG OF THE RIVER. 
 DEWDROPS AND DIAMONDS. 
 
 HEATHER AND HAREBELL. 
 MISTRESS MATCHETT'S MISTAKE. A very old Story. 
 
 SIR VALENTINE'S VICTORY, AND OTHER STORIES. 
 OUR OWN PICTURE BOOK. 151 Illustrations. Small 4to. 
 
 Price Two Shillings and Sixpence each. 
 
 DULCIBEL'S DAY-DREAMS ; OR, THE GRAND, SWEET 
 
 SONG. With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 
 PICTURES ILLUSTRATIVE OF THE LORD'S PRAYER 
 
 With Appropriate Stories for Children. Medium 4to. 
 THE LIFE OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST FOR VERY 
 YOUNG CHILDREN. 12 Illustrations. Medium 4io.
 
 James N'isbet & Co.'s List of 
 
 Mrs. MARSHALL'S WORKS continued. 
 Price Two Shillings each. 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 
 
 OLIVEK'S OLD PICTURES ; OR, THE MAGIC CIRCLE. 
 
 EUBY AND PEARL ; OR, THE CHILDREN AT CASTLE 
 
 AYLMER. A Story for Little Girls. 
 
 Price One Shilling and Sixpence each. 
 
 With Illustrations. Small Crown 8vo. 
 NATURE'S GENTLEMAN. 
 
 THE BRIDE'S HOME. 
 
 MY LADY BOUNTIFUL. 
 
 STELLAFONT ABBEY; OR, NOTHING NEW. 
 
 GOLDEN SILENCE. 
 
 WHEN I WAS YOUNG. 
 
 MATTHEW FROST, CARRIER ; OR, LITTLE SNOWDROP'S 
 
 MISSION. 
 
 MICHAEL'S TREASURES; OR, CHOICE SILVER. 
 
 MY GRANDMOTHER'S PICTURES. 
 
 MARJORY; OR, THE GIFT OF PEACE. 
 
 GRACE BUXTON ; OR, THE LIGHT OF HOME. 
 
 THREE LITTLE BROTHERS. 
 
 THREE LITTLE SISTERS. 
 
 THE BIRTH OF A CENTURY ; OR, EIGHTY YEARS AGO. 
 
 THE STORY OF JOHN MARBECK : A Windsor Organist 
 
 of 300 Years Ago. His Work and His Reward. 
 
 Price One Shilling each. 
 HEATHERCLIFFE ; OR, IT'S NO CONCERN OF MINE. 
 
 DAISY BRIGHT. 
 
 THE LITTLE PEAT-CUTTERS; OR, THE SONG OF LOVE. 
 PRIMROSE ; OR, THE BELLS OF OLD EFFINGHAM. 
 
 TO-DAY AND YESTERDAY: 
 
 A STORY OF SUMMER AND WINTER HOLIDAYS. 
 
 BETWEEN THE CLIFFS ; OR, HAL FORESTER'S ANCHOR. 
 
 A VIOLET IN THE SHADE. 
 
 LIGHT ON THE LILY ; OR, A FLOWER'S MESSAGE. 
 
 A ROSE WITHOUT A THORN. 
 
 A CHIP OF THE OLD BLOCK.
 
 Books for Young Headers. 
 
 By R. M. BALLANTYNE. 
 With Illustrations. Extra Crown 8vo. 5s. 
 
 " The fathers, mothers, guardians, uncles, and aunts who wish to find an 
 acceptable present for a healthy-minded boy cannot possibly go wrong if they 
 buy a book with Mr. Ballantyne's name on the title-page." Academy. 
 
 THE WALRUS HUNTERS : A Tale of Esquimaux Land. 
 
 Crown 8vo. With Illustrations. 3s. 6d. each. 
 THE HOT SWAMP : A Romance of Old Albion. 
 THE BUFFALO RUNNERS : A Tale of the Red River 
 
 Plains. 
 CHARLIE TO THE RESCUE ! A Tale of the Sea and 
 
 the Rockies. 
 BLOWN TO BITS ; or, The Lonely Man of Rakata. A 
 
 Tale of the Malay Archipelago. 
 BLUE LIGHTS ; or, Hot Work in the Soudan. 
 THE FUGITIVES ; or, The Tyrant Queen of Madagascar. 
 RED ROONEY ; or, The Last of the Crew. 
 THE ROVER OF THE ANDES : A Tale of Adventure in 
 
 South America. 
 THE YOUNG TRAWLER : A Story of Life and Death 
 
 and Rescue in the North Sea. 
 DUSTY DIAMONDS, CUT AND POLISHED : A Tale of 
 
 Arab City Life. 
 THE BATTERY AND THE BOILER ; or, Adventures in 
 
 the Laying of Submarine Electric Cables. 
 
 THE GIANT OP THE NORTH ; or, Pokings Round the Pole. 
 THE LONELY ISLAND; or, The Refuge of the Mutineers. 
 POST HASTE : A Tale of Her Majesty's Mails. 
 IN THE TRACK OF THE TROOPS : A Tale of Modern 
 
 War. 
 THE SETTLER AND THE SAVAGE : A Tale of Peace 
 
 and War in South Africa. 
 
 UNDER THE WAVES ; or, Diving in Deep Waters. 
 RIVERS OF ICE : A Tale Illustrative of Alpine Adventure 
 
 and Glacier Action. 
 
 THE PIRATE CITY : An Algerine Tale. 
 BLACK IVORY : A Tale of Adventure among the Slavers 
 
 of East Africa. 
 THE NORSEMEN IN THE WEST ; or, America before 
 
 Columbus. 
 
 THE IRON HORSE ; or, Life on the Line. 
 THE FLOATING LIGHT OF THE GOODWIN SANDS. 
 ERLING THE BOLD : A Tale of the Norse Sea- Kings.
 
 James Nisbet & Co.'s List of 
 
 Mr. B. M. BALLANTYNE'S BOOKS-continued. 
 
 THE GOLDEN DREAM : A Tale of the Diggings. 
 DEEP DOWN : A Tale of the Cornish Mines. 
 FIGHTING THE FLAMES : A Tale of the London Fire- 
 
 Brigade. 
 
 SHIFTING WINDS : A Tough Yarn. 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE; or, The Story of a Great Fight 
 
 between Man and the Sea. 
 
 THE LIFEBOAT : A Tale of our Coast Heroes. 
 GASCOYNE, THE SANDALWOOD TRADER 
 THE WILD MAN OF THE WEST : A Tale of the Rocky 
 
 Mountains. 
 
 THE RED ERIC ; or, The Whaler's Last Cruise. 
 FREAKS ON THE FELLS : and Why I did not become a 
 
 Sailor ? 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. each. 
 HUNTED AND HARRIED. 
 A COXSWAIN'S BRIDE ; or, The Rising Tide. And other 
 
 Tales. 
 THE GARRET AND THE GARDEN ; or, Low Life High 
 
 Up : and JEFF BENSON ; or, The Young Coastguardsman. 
 THE CREW OF THE WATER- WAGTAIL. 
 THE MIDDY AND THE MOORS. 
 LIFE IN THE RED BRIGADE. A Fiery Tale. 
 THE PRAIRIE CHIEF. A Tale. 
 
 THE ISLAND QUEEN ; or, Dethroned by Fire and Water. 
 THE MADMAN AND THE PIRATE. 
 TWICE BOUGHT : A Tale of the Oregon Gold Fields. 
 MY DOGGIE AND I. 
 THE RED MAN'S REVENGE. 
 
 PHILOSOPHER JACK : A Tale of the Southern Seas. 
 SIX MONTHS AT THE CAPE. 
 
 BATTLES WITH THE SEA ; or, Heroes of the Lifeboat 
 
 and the Rocket. Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 THE KITTEN PILGRIMS ; or, Great Battles and Grand 
 
 Victories. Crown 8vo. 2s. 
 
 Price 3s. 6d. each, 
 
 TALES OF ADVENTURE BY FLOOD, FIELD, AND 
 
 MOUNTAIN. 
 
 TALES OF ADVENTURE ; or, Wild Work in Strange Places. 
 TALES OF ADVENTURE ON THE COAST.
 
 Books for Young Readers. 
 
 MR. R. M. BALLANTYNE'S 
 
 -MISCELLANY of ENTERTAINING and 
 
 INSTRUCTIVE TALES. 
 
 With Illustrations. Is. each. 
 
 Also in a Handsome Cloth Case, Price 20s. 
 
 The " Athenaeum " says: "There is no more practical way of 
 communicating elementary information than that which has been 
 adopted in this series. "When we see contained in 124 small pages 
 (as in Fast in the Ice) such information as a man of fair education 
 should possess about icebergs, northern lights, Esquimaux, musk- 
 oxen, bears, walruses, &c., together with all the ordinary incidents 
 of an Arctic voyage woven into a clear connected narrative, we must 
 admit that a good work has been done, and that the author deserves 
 the gratitude of those for whom the books are especially designed, 
 and also of young people of all classes." 
 
 L 
 
 FIGHTING THE WHALES ; or, Doings and Dangers on 
 a Fishing Cruise. 
 
 IL 
 
 AWAY IN THE WILDERNESS ; or, Life among the Red 
 Indians and Fur Traders of North America. 
 
 III. 
 
 FAST IN THE ICE; or, Adventures in the Polar 
 Regions. 
 
 IV. 
 
 CHASING THE SUN ; or, Rambles in Norway. 
 
 v. 
 
 SUNK AT SEA ; or, The Adventures of Wandering Will 
 in the Pacific. 
 
 VI. 
 
 LOST IN THE FOREST ; or. Wandering Will's Adven- 
 tures iu South America.
 
 James Nisbet & Co.'s List of 
 
 MR. R. M. BALLANTYNE'S MISCELLANY continued. 
 
 VII. 
 
 OVER THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS ; or, Wandering Will 
 in the Land of the Red Skin. 
 
 vm. 
 
 SAVED BY THE LIFEBOAT ; or, A Tale of Wreck and 
 Rescue on the Coast. 
 
 IX. 
 
 THE CANNIBAL ISLANDS ; or, Captain Cook's Adven- 
 tures in the South Seas. 
 
 x. 
 HUNTING THE LIONS ; or, The Land of the Negro. 
 
 XI. 
 
 DIGGING FOR GOLD ; or, Adventures in California. 
 
 XIL 
 
 UP IN THE CLOUDS ; or, Balloon Voyages. 
 
 XIII. 
 
 THE BATTLE AND THE BREEZE ; or, The Fights and 
 Fancies of a British Tar. 
 
 XIV. 
 
 THE PIONEERS : A Tale of the Western Wilderness. 
 
 xv. 
 THE STORY OF THE ROCK. 
 
 XVL 
 
 WRECKED, BUT NOT RUINED. . 
 
 XVII. 
 
 THE THOROGOOD FAMILY. 
 
 XVIII. 
 
 THE LIVELY POLL : A Tale of the North Sea.
 
 JSooJcsfor Young Readers. 
 
 By AGNES GIBERNE. 
 
 ' " Tales that bear Miss Glberne's name are ' the best of the best.' No writer 
 excels her in this department of literature." Fireside News. 
 
 " That the story is Miss Giberne's guarantees refinement and Christian 
 principle." Churchman. 
 
 THE ANDERSONS. Illustrated. Extra crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 
 THE DALRYMPLES. With Illustrations. Third Edition. Crown 
 8vo. 8s. 6d. 
 
 "With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 
 "LEAST SAID, SOONEST MENDED." 3s. 6d. 
 
 "A simple tale, well told." Guardian. 
 
 "To say that it is by Miss Giberne is at once to recommend the story 
 highly to girls." Quiver. 
 
 " A well written and most interesting tale." Glasgow Herald. 
 
 "A well written story. The moral is conveyed in a most interesting way, 
 and as a mere tale it will well repay perusal." Church Review. 
 
 NUMBER THREE WINIFRED PLACE. 3s. 6d. 
 
 " A delightful story, and, we need hardly add being Miss Giberne's is 
 full of the highest and most profitable religious teaching." Record. 
 
 " A well constructed, thoroughly healthy tale." Aberdeen Free Press. 
 
 " Miss Giberne's book is for gentler readers. It appeals very delicately to 
 their softer sympathies, and introduces them to one young girl at least who 
 may serve as a model or ideal to them. It is written in a pleasing sympa- 
 thetic style." Scotsman. 
 
 " The plot of the story is as ingenious as the treatment is effective, and it 
 is told with great skill." Yorkshire Post. 
 
 READY, AYE READY! 2s. 6d. 
 
 " A thoroughly good and deeply interesting story." Newcastle Chronicle. 
 
 " A charming story, which displays all this well-known writer's knowledge 
 of girls and their habits of mind." Scotsman. 
 
 MISS CON ; or, All Those Girls. 5s. 
 
 " Constance Conway is a charming heroine. Her diary is an admirable 
 collection of character sketches." Athenaum. 
 
 A 9
 
 io James Nisbet & Go's List of 
 
 AGNES GIBERNE'S WORKS-continued. 
 
 ENID'S SILVER BOND. 5s. 
 
 "Enid's nature is essentially heroic. . . . The other characters are cleverly 
 sketched. " Times. 
 
 FIVE THOUSAND POUNDS. 2s. 
 
 " Youthful readers have reason to thank Miss Giberne for having written 
 this capital story." John Bull. 
 
 ST. AUSTIN'S LODGE ; or, Mr. Berkeley and his Nieces. 5s. 
 
 "A very good example of the author's well-known style. It is carefully 
 written, and is in all respects a conscientious performance." Academy. 
 
 BERYL AND PEARL. 5s. 
 
 "Characterised by unflagging vivacity and great dramatic power." 
 Christian Leader. 
 " One of Miss Giberne's most delightful tales." Record. 
 
 DECIMA'S PROMISE. 3s. 6d. 
 
 " One of the best and soundest books we have seen." Public Opinion. 
 
 " The result of a disaster, Decima's distress, and the behaviour of the 
 parents, are touchingly told, and the whole case of conscience is admirably 
 managed." Guardian. 
 
 DAISY OF OLD MEADOW. 2s. 
 
 "There are few boys or girls to whom this story will not prove interesting 
 reading." Court Circular. 
 
 KATHLEEN. 5s. 
 
 "Worthy of high praise, thoroughly good and very interesting." Cliurch 
 Bells. 
 
 " A fascinating tale." Record. 
 
 OLD UMBRELLAS ; or, Clarrie and her Mother. 2s. 
 
 " The book is bright and lively, and will be read with pleasure and profit. " 
 Christian. 
 
 MILES MURCHISON. Illustrated. Small crown 8vo. Is. 6d,
 
 Books for Young Readers. 1 1 
 
 By Dr. MACAULAY. 
 
 ^TRANCE YET TRUE. With many Illustrations. Extra crown 
 8vo. 5s. 
 
 By S. M. S. CLARKE (Mrs. Pereira). 
 
 BARON AND SQUIRE. A Story of the Thirty Years' War. From 
 the German of N. NoELDKOHEN. With Sixteen Illustrations. 
 Extra crown 8vo. 5s. 
 
 THE DUKE'S PAGE; or, "In the Days of Luther." A Story for 
 Boys. From the German. Sixteen Illustrations. Extra crown 
 8vo. 5s. 
 
 " A spirited and attractive narrative." Literary Churchman. 
 
 " A capital story for boys." Guardian. 
 
 " This is one of the most fascinating historical tales we have ever read.' 
 British Weekly. 
 
 " Throughout incident succeeds incident, and the interest never flags until 
 the end is reached. " Public Opinion. 
 
 " A very good story. . . . Of sterling value." Spectator. 
 
 THE TRIVIAL ROUND ; or, Chapters of Village Life. With Illus- 
 trations. Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 
 " A book that will interest and refresh dwellers in cities with this glimpse 
 of a life in many respects different from their own." Academy. 
 
 "These scenes from village life will be a source of pleasure to very many 
 readers. The story is ably worked out and pleasantly told." John Bull. 
 
 By Rev. J. REID HOW ATT. 
 THE CHILDREN'S PEW. Extra crown 8vo. 6s. 
 
 THE CHILDREN'S PULPIT. A Year's Sermons and Parables for 
 the Young. Extra crown 8vo. 6s. 
 
 " The subjects are well selected ; the style is always simple and forcible ; 
 and the lessons which the preacher desires to impress upon the mind are 
 such as every youthful reader may appreciate. The sermons have another 
 merit that of brevity." Scotsman. 
 
 " Simple, suggestive, and singularly happy in illustration and treatment." 
 Word and Work. 
 
 THE CHILDREN'S ANGEL. A Volume of Sermons to Children. 
 Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 "Fifty- three brief addresses to children. Direct, as such things should 
 be ; clear, as they must always be ; and Interesting, as, if any good is to be 
 done, they are bound to be they contain a collection of truths which chiL- 
 dren ought to be taught, and the teacher is always bright and clear, which 
 is saying a great deal." Church Bdlt. 
 
 " These sermonettes are eminently practical, while then- homely style and 
 freedom from cant are delightful "Chrittian Commonwealth.
 
 12 James Nisbet & Co.'s List of 
 
 By Lady KENNETT-BARRINGTON. 
 
 BIBLE HISTORY FOE CHILDEEN. With a Short History of 
 Christianity after the Days of the Apostles. With Illustrations. 
 Small crown 8vo. Is. 6d. 
 
 " This book is eminently adapted for children's capabilities, and has the 
 great advantage of keeping as nearly as possible to Bible language. It is an 
 excellent little book. " Christian Commonwealth. 
 
 "A little -work that will commend itself to all who have to do with the 
 religious training of the young." Church Sells. 
 
 " The work is well and carefully done, the main current of the Bible story 
 being rendered with point and brevity in the very spirit of the Scriptures." 
 School Board Chronicle. 
 
 By WILLIAM CHARLES METOALFE. 
 
 STEADY YOUR HELM ; or, Stowed Away. With Six Illustra- 
 tions. Extra crown 8vo. 5s. 
 
 ABOVEBOARD. A Tale of Adventure on the Sea. With Six 
 Illustrations. Extra crown 8vo. 5s. 
 
 "This is a delightfully exciting tale of the adventures of two sailor lads, 
 with icebergs, pirates, and similar horrors of the sea. Its chief defect is that 
 it leaves off too soon, even at the end of more than 300 pages." Pall Mall 
 Gazette. 
 
 " This story of a cruise is about as full of adventures as it can well be. 
 There is plenty of 'go' in the narrative, and the incidents succeed each other 
 with a very plausible probability." Spectator. 
 
 " It is a long tune since we have read anything racier, breezier, more 
 healthful and invigorating than Mr. Metcalfe's fine sea story." Methodist 
 Recorder. 
 
 FRANK WEATHERALL ; or, Life in the Merchant Marine. A Sea 
 Story for Youth. Illustrated. Small crown 8vo. 2s. 
 
 By Mrs. SAXBY. 
 TOM AND HIS CROWS. Illustrated. Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 VIKING BOYS. With Four Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 
 " Wholesome and manly intone, the book is thoroughly fresh and natural." 
 Morning Post. 
 
 " We prophesy that the tale of the Viking boys and their wild deeds will 
 become as popular as 'The Lads of Lunda,' and all the other stories with 
 which Mrs. Saxby has delighted us." Athenceum. 
 
 THE LADS OF LUNDA. With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 " A perfect book for boys generous, wholesome, manly in tone, and withal 
 thoroughly young, fresh, and natural. We recommend the book heartily, 
 not only to all boys, but to everybody who knows and likes brave boys." 
 Guardian. 
 
 " A capital book. The tales are full of fun and pathos." Athenceum,
 
 Books for Young Readers. 13 
 
 THE YAEL'S YACHT. With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 t "'The Yarl's Yacht' is even superior in interest to its predecessor." 
 Standard. 
 
 "Mrs. Saxby knows young people as few know them, and they will in 
 return thoroughly appreciate her. As long as she writes such genuine, 
 rcf resiling, happy family stories for them, they certainly will be most fortu- 
 nate." Spectator. 
 
 " 'The Yarl's Yacht ' is a delightful sequel to the ' Lads of Lunda,'" Times. 
 
 THE HOME OF A NATURALIST. By JESSIE M. E. SAXBT and 
 the Rev. BIOT EDMONSTON. With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 
 3s. 6d. 
 
 " We would fain linger long over the scenes which this excellent volume 
 brings up before us. The authors have put together a very refreshing set of 
 memories." Saturday Review. 
 
 By EVA TBAVEBS EVEBBD POOLE. 
 LOTTA'S LIFE MISTAKE. With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. Is. 
 
 GOLDEN LINKS IN A LIFE CHAIN. With Illustrations. 
 Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 "GOOD-NIGHT" THOUGHTS ABOUT GOD ; or, Evening Read- 
 ings for the Young. Small crown 8vo. Is. 6d. 
 
 By DARLEY DALE. 
 
 A TALE OF OUGHTS AND CROSSES ; or, Mr. Holland's Con- 
 quest. With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 3a. 6d. 
 
 SPOILT GUY. With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. Is. 6d. 
 
 " A pretty tale, and contains excellent religious teaching." Church Sunday- 
 School Magazine. 
 
 CISSY'S TROUBLES. With Illustrations. Small crown 8vo. 
 Is. 6d. 
 
 " A very charming story." Torts/tire Post. 
 
 " The book will be a favourite with young people, especially with our girls." 
 Family Churchman. 
 
 LITTLE BRICKS. With Illustrations. Small crown 8vo. Is. 6d. 
 
 " The story is fascinating from the interest which is excited and maintained 
 It is written with power and insight." Courant.
 
 14 James Nisbet & Co.'s List of 
 
 By ELLEN L. DAVIS. 
 
 HIGH AND LOWLY: A Story of Hearts and Homes. With 
 Illustrations. Crown 8vo. Is. 6d. 
 
 YOKED TOGETHER: A Tale of Three Sisters. With Illustra- 
 tions. Crown 8vo. 2s. 
 
 "A quiet domestic story of deep interest, with several striking situations, 
 described with considerable power." Leeds Mercury. 
 
 A BOY'S WILL. With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. Is. 6d. 
 
 "The book is full of life and character, and would be a fitting gift alike to 
 the Sunday-school teacher and the scholar." British Messenger. 
 
 By the Rev. GEORGE EVERARD, M.A. 
 
 YOUR SUNDAYS: Fifty-Two Short Readings. Especially in- 
 tended for Schoolboys. Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 "YOUR INNINGS:" A Book for Schoolboys. Sixth Thousand. 
 Crown 8vo. Is. 6d. 
 
 EDIE'S LETTER; or, Talks with the Little Folks. 4to. 2s. 6d. 
 
 By Miss HAVERGAL. 
 STREAMLETS OF SONG FOR THE YOUNG. Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 
 MORNING BELLS. Being Waking Thoughts for the Little Ones. 
 Royal 32mo, 9d. ; paper cover, 6d. 
 
 LITTLE PILLOWS. Being Good Night Thoughts for the Little 
 Ones. 32mo, 9d. ; paper cover, 6d. 
 
 MORNING STARS; or, Names of Christ for His Little Ones. 
 32mo. Oil. 
 
 THE FOUR HAPPY DAYS. 16mo. Is. 
 
 BEN BRIGHTBOOTS, and Other True Stories. Crown 8vo. Is. 
 
 BRUEY. A Little Worker for Christ. Crown 8vo. Is. 6d. ; paper 
 cover, Is. 
 
 MEMORIALS OF LITTLE NONY. A Biography of Nony Hey- 
 wood, who was the First Collector for the Bruey Branch of the 
 Irish Society. By her Mother. With Preface by Miss HAVEU- 
 GAL, and a Portrait. Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d.
 
 Books for Young Headers. 1 5 
 
 By the Rev. J. B. MAODUPP, D.D. 
 
 * 
 
 PARABLES OF THE LAKE; or, The Seven Stories of Jesus by 
 the Lake of Galilee. A Sunday Book for Young Readers. 
 With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 
 THE STORY OF A SHELL. A Romance of the Sea: with some 
 Sea Teachings. A Book for Boys and Girla. With Coloured 
 Frontispiece and Other Illustrations. Small 4to. 6s. Cheaper 
 Edition, paper cover, Is. ; limp cloth, 2s. 
 
 THE STORY OF BETHLEHEM. A Book for Children, With 
 Illustrations by THOMAS. Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 HOSANNAS OF THE CHILDREN. With Illustrations. Crown 
 8vo. 5s. 
 
 THE WOODCUTTER OF LEBANON. A Story Illustrative of a 
 Jewish Institution. IGmo. 2s. 
 
 TALES OF THE WARRIOR JUDGES. Fcap. 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 THE CITIES OF REFUGE ; or, The Name of Jesus. A Sunday 
 Book for the Young. 16mo. Is. 6d. 
 
 FERGUS MORTON. A Tale of a Scottish Boy. 18mo. 9d. 
 
 THE EXILES OF LUCERNA ; or, The Sufferings of the Waldenses 
 during the Persecution of 1686. Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 THE FOOTSTEPS OF ST. PAUL. Being a Life of the Apostle 
 designed for Youth. With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 5s. 
 
 BRIGHTER THAN THE SUN ; or, Christ the Light of the World. 
 A Life of Our Lord for the Young. With Illustrations by 
 A. ROWAN. Post 4to. 3s. 6d. ; in paper cover, Is. ; limp 
 cloth, 2s. 
 
 WILLOWS BY THE WATERCOURSES ; or, God's Promises to 
 the Young. 64mo. 6d. ; paper cover, 3d.
 
 1 6 James Nisbct & Go's List of 
 
 By Rev. J. JACKSON WBAY. 
 OLD CRUSTY'S NIECE. Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 
 WILL IT LIFT? A Story of a London Fog. With Illustrations. 
 Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 
 JACK HOENER THE SECOND. With Illustrations. Cr. 8vo. 2s. 
 
 SIMON HOLMES, THE CARPENTER OF ASPENDALE. With 
 Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 
 THE SECRET OF THE MERE; or, Under the Surface. Crown 
 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 GARTON ROWLEY ; or, Leaves from the Log of a Master Mariner. 
 With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 
 HONEST JOHN STALLIBRASS. With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 
 3s. 6d. 
 
 THE CHRONICLES OF CAPSTAN CABIN. Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 
 MATTHEW MELLOWDEW. With Frontispiece. Crown 8vo. 
 3s. 6d. 
 
 NESTLETON MAGNA. Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 
 PETER PENGELLY. With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. Is. 6d. 
 
 PAUL MEGGITT'S DELUSION. With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 
 3s. 6d. 
 
 A MAN EVERY INCH OF HIM. Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 THE "KNAPSACK" SERIES. 
 
 With Frontispiece. Small crown 8vo. Is. each. 
 
 1. THE MAN WITH THE KNAPSACK ; or, The Miller o Burn- 
 
 ham Lee. 
 
 2. WIDOW WINPENNY'S WATCHWORD. 
 
 3. PRIMROSE GARTH. 
 
 4. "A SONG O' SIXPENCE" FOR THE BAIRNS. 
 
 5. GEOFFREY HALLAM ; or, The Clerk of the Parish.
 
 Books for Young Readers. 17 
 
 By Mrs. BABBOUB. 
 
 'THE WAY HOME, AND HOW THE CHILDREN REACHED 
 
 IT BY A RAILWAY ACCIDENT. With Illustrations. 
 Eighteenth Thousand. 16mo. Is. 6d. limp ; 2s. 6d. boards. 
 
 THE IRISH ORPHAN IN A SCOTTISH HOME. A Sequel to 
 "The Way Home." 16mo. Is. limp; 2s. 6d. boards. 
 
 THE CHILD OF THE KINGDOM. Twenty-second Thousand. 
 With Illustrations. IGmo. Is. limp ; 2s. Gd. boards. 
 
 THE SOUL-GATHERER. Seventeenth Thousand. 16mo. Is. limp ; 
 cloth gilt, 2s. 6d. 
 
 By Mrs. HAYOBAFT. 
 
 SUNWOOD GLORY ; or, Through the Refiner's Fire. With Four 
 Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 
 By ESME STUABT. 
 
 A BRAVE FIGHT, AND OTHER STORIES. With Four Illus- 
 trations. Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 By EDITH BALPH. 
 
 STEP BY STEP THROUGH THE BIBLE. Part I. A Scripture 
 History for Little Children. With a Preface by CUNNINGHAM 
 GEIKIE, D.D., LL.D., and Twelve Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 
 2s. 6d. 
 
 Part II. From Death of Joshua to end of the Old Testament. A 
 Scripture History for Little Children. Revised and recommended 
 by CUNNINGHAM GEIKIE, D.D., LL.D. Twelve Illustrations. 
 Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d.
 
 1 8 James Nisbet & Oo.'s List of 
 
 MRS. LESTER'S GIRLS AND THEIR SERVICE. By the Author 
 of " Miss Marston's Girls and their Confirmation. " With Frontis- 
 piece. Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 " A good book for young servants, or for reading at a sewing-class attended 
 by young women. Its tone and teaching are all we could wish." Record. 
 
 " Its evident truthfulness and fidelity to nature make us think that it is 
 founded upon much experience of young girls in the working class. To such 
 it would, no doubt, be exceedingly interesting." Literary Churchman. 
 
 MISS MARSTON'S GIRLS AND THEIR CONFIRMATION. 
 "With Frontispiece. Crown 8vo. Is. 
 
 By the Rev. DAVID MaoBWAN, D.D. 
 
 THIS YEAR. Anniversary Addresses for the Young. Second 
 Edition. Square 16mo. Is. 
 
 By the Rev. JAMES WELLS, M.A. 
 
 BIBLE OBJECT-LESSONS. Addresses to Children. With Illus- 
 trations. Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 
 BIBLE ECHOES : Addresses to the Young. Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 THE PARABLES OF JESUS. With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 5s. 
 BIBLE CHILDREN. With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 BIBLE IMAGES. With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 
 " Mr. Wells has in these volumes been content to restrict himself to an 
 endeavour to win and instruct the young. He has done this with admirable 
 skill, with great transparency of meaning, vividness of treatment and nicety 
 of discrimination, combined with a befitting freedom and an impressive 
 earnestness." Literary World. 
 
 ".Mr. Wells contrives by a studied plainness of diction, by the simplicity 
 and directness of his style, by his evident earnestness and kindliness, and a 
 wealth of illustrative anecdotes, to minimise the difficulties which children 
 have to encounter in grasping new and especially abstract ideas." Scotsman.
 
 Books for Young Readers. 19 
 
 By Lady DUNBOYNE. 
 BREAKING OF THE CLOUDS. Crown 8vo. Illustrated. 2s. 
 
 CHARITY. A Tale. With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 2s. 
 
 HER LIFE'S WORK. A Tale. With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 
 3s. 6d. 
 
 "The story, which is pleasantly and touchingly told, is thoroughly suitable 
 for a gift-book for girls of the upper classes." Guardian. 
 
 By the Rev. J. H. WILSON. 
 
 THE KING'S MESSAGE. A Book for the Young. With Illus- 
 trations. Small crown Svo. 3s. Gel. 
 
 " The union of solid teaching and fervent appeal with a cheerful outlook 
 on life we have seldom, if ever, seen more happily exemplified. Dr. Wilson's 
 book is as winsome as it is wise, thoroughly human in its spirit and robust 
 in its tone and teaching." Christian Leader. 
 
 "No better book than this very thoughtful, clearly and beautifully written 
 and tastefully illustrated volume, could be put into the hands of the young." 
 Aberdeen Free Press. 
 
 THE GOSPEL AND ITS FRUITS. A Book for the Young. With 
 Illustrations. Crown Svo. 3s. 6d. 
 
 "Exceedingly plain, practical, and pointed, full of striking and ingenious 
 illustrations." Aberdeen Journal. 
 
 OUR FATHER IN HEAVEN : The Lord's Prayer Familiarly Ex- 
 plained and Illustrated for the Young. With Illustrations. 
 Crown Svo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 " Dr. Wilson graduated long since as a prophet of God who has a voice for 
 the young. His explanation of the Lord's Prayer has made him a dear friend 
 to many a parent as well as child." Presbyterian Churchman. 
 
 " Dr. Wilson's addresses arc admirable specimens of what productions of 
 the kind should be, pithy, pointed, and practical, and abounding in anec- 
 dotes and illustrations. " Congregational Review.
 
 2O James Nisbet & Co's List of 
 
 By L. T. MEADE. 
 
 A LONDON BABY : The Story of King Roy. With Illustrations. 
 
 Crown 8vo. 2s. 
 "Very touching and sad, though the end is happy." Athenaeum. 
 
 THE CHILDREN'S PILGRIMAGE. With Illustrations. Small 
 
 Crown 8vo, 2s. ; gilt edges, 2s. 6d. 
 
 "Displays vivid conception of character, and clear, graphic description. 
 The story is full of incident and adventure." Literary Churchman. 
 
 By Mrs. WINSOOM. 
 
 DEAR OLD ENGLAND. A Description of our Fatherland. Dedi- 
 cated to all English Children. Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 
 "English children will find much that is well worth knowing, and well 
 told, in this copiously illustrated volume." Christian World. 
 
 By the Rev. W. W. TTJLLOCH, B.D. 
 
 THE STORY OF THE LIFE OF THE EMPEROR WILLIAM. 
 Told for Boys and Girls all over the World. With Frontispiece. 
 Crown 8vo, 2s. 6d. ; with gilt edges, 3s. 6d. 
 
 REVISED BY THE QUEEN. 
 
 THE STORY OF THE LIFE OF THE PRINCE CONSORT. 
 Told for Boys and Girls. Crown 8vo, 2s. 6d. ; with gilt edges, 
 3s. 6d. 
 
 THE STORY OF THE LIFE OF QUEEN VICTORIA. Told for 
 Boys and Girls all over the World. With Two Portraits. Crown 
 8vo, 2s. 6d. ; with gilt edges, 3s. 6d.
 
 Books for Young Readers. 2 1 
 
 THE "CHIMES" SERIES. 
 
 
 
 Crown Svo. Numerous Illustrations. 3s. 6d. each. 
 By Mrs. MARSHALL. 
 
 1. SILVER CHIMES ; or, Olive. 
 
 2. DAPHNE'S DECISION; or, Which Shall it Be. 
 
 3. CASSANDRA'S CASKET. 
 
 4. POPPIES AND PANSIES. 
 
 5. REX AND REGINA; or, The Song of the River. 
 
 6. STORIES OF THE CATHEDRAL CITIES OF ENGLAND. 
 
 7. DEWDROPS AND DIAMONDS. 
 
 8. HEATHER AND HAREBELL. 
 
 9. THE ROSES OF RINGWOOD. A Story for Children. 
 10. IN THE PURPLE. 
 
 THE "LAUREL" SERIES. 
 
 Grown Svo. Numerous Illustrations. 2s. 6d. each. 
 
 1. TOM AND HIS CROWS. By Mrs. SAXBY, Author of "Viking 
 Boys," &c. 
 
 2. WATCH AND WATCH. By W. C. MKTOALFE, Author of 
 " Frank Weatherall. " 
 
 3. WINNING HIS LAURELS ; or, The Boys of St. Raglan's. By 
 
 F. M. HOLMES. 
 
 4. THAT AGGRAVATING SCHOOLGIRL. By GRACE STKB- 
 
 BING. 
 
 5. WHAT A MAN SOWETH. By GRACE STEBBINO. 
 
 6. DULCIBEL'S DAY DREAMS ; or, The Grand, Sweet Song. 
 
 By Mrs. MARSHALL. 
 
 7. THE LADS OF LUND A. By JESSIE M. E. SAXBY. 
 
 8. THE YARL'S YACHT. By JESSIE M. E. SAXBY. 
 
 9. A NEW EXODUS; or, The Exiles of the Zillerthal. A Story 
 
 of the Protestants of the Tyrol. By CATHERINE RAY. 
 
 10. GRACE MURRAY. A Story. By ELLA STONE. 
 
 11. MR. ORDE'S GRANDCHILDREN. By CECILIA SELBY 
 
 LOWNDES. 
 
 12. WHERE THE DEW FALLS IN LONDON. By SARAH 
 
 DOUDNET.
 
 22 James Nisbet & Co.'s List of 
 
 THE "SUNSHINE" SERIES. 
 
 Crown 8vo. Numerous Illustrations. 3s. each. 
 
 1. THE BREAKING OF THE CLOUDS. By Lady DUNBOYNE, 
 Author of " Charity," &c. &c. 
 
 2. THROUGH SHADOW TO SUNSHINE. By Mrs. HORNIBROOK. 
 
 3. A SUMMER IN THE LIFE OF TWO LITTLE CHILDREN. 
 
 By Mrs. HOWARD. 
 
 4. OLIVER'S OLD PICTURES; or, The Magic Circle. By Mrs. 
 
 MARSHALL. 
 
 5. RUBY AND PEARL ; or, The Children at Castle Aylmer. By 
 
 Mrs. MARSHALL. 
 
 6. LADY TEMPLE'S GRANDCHILDREN. By Miss EVERETT 
 
 GREEN. 
 
 7. A LONDON BABY : The Story of King Roy. By L. T. MEADE. 
 
 8. HIDDEN HOMES ; or, The Children's Discoveries. By M. A. 
 
 PAULL RIPLEY. 
 
 9. AN UNWILLING WITNESS. By Miss LTSTER. 
 
 10. OUR NEIGHBOUR, WIDOW YATES. By GRACE STEBBING. 
 
 11. BIBLE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. Containing Illustrations of 
 
 over 1000 Passages of Scripture from the Works of Travellers 
 and other Sources. By ALFRED E. KNIGHT. 
 
 THE "MARBECK" SERIES. 
 
 Crown 8vo. Numerous Illustrations. Is. 6d. each. 
 
 1. THE STORY OF JOHN MARBECK : A Windsor Organist of 
 
 300 Years Ago. By Mrs. MARSHALL. 
 
 2. MY GRANDMOTHER'S PICTURES. By Mrs. MARSHALL. 
 
 3. THE OLD VIOLIN ; or, Charity Hope's Own Story. By EDITH 
 
 C. KENTON. 
 
 4. A BOY'S WILL. By ELLEN L. DAVIS. 
 
 5. SPOILT GUY. By DARLEY DALE. 
 
 6. HIGH AND LOWLY : A Tale of Hearts and Homes. By ELLEN 
 
 L. DAVIS. 
 
 7. PETER PENGELLY. By Rev. JACKSON WRAY. 
 
 8. NELLIE GRAHAM ; or, The Story of a Commonplace Woman. 
 
 By ELLA STONE.
 
 Books for Young Headers. 23 
 
 THE "SWEETBRIAR" SERIES. 
 
 A New Series of Volumes. With Illustrations. Extra croion 8vo. 
 3s. 6d. each. 
 
 WORK, "WAIT, WIN. By ROTH LAMB. 
 
 THE ANDERSONS. By Miss GIBERNE, Author of "The 
 Dalrymples," &c. 
 
 SWEETBRIAR; or, Doings in Priorsthorpe Magna. By AGNES 
 GIBERNE. 
 
 COULYING CASTLE; or, A Knight of the Olden Days. By 
 AGNES GIBERNE. 
 
 AIMEE : A Tale of the Days of James the Second. By AGNES 
 GIBERNE. 
 
 LILLA THORNE'S VOYAGE; or, "Th;it Far Remembrancer." 
 By GRACE STEBBING. 
 
 THE "ROUNDABOUT" SERIES. 
 
 Extra crown Svo. 3s. 6d. each. 
 
 THE RIGHT ROAD. A Manual for Parents and Teachers. By 
 J. KRAMER. 
 
 THROUGH BIBLE LANDS. Notes of Travel in Egypt, the Desert, 
 and Palestine. Profusely Illustrated. By PHILIP SCHAFF, D.D., 
 and an Essay on Egyptology and the Bible, by EoouARD NAVILLE.
 
 24 James Nisbet & Co.'s List of 
 
 BIBLE HISTORY FOR THE YOUNG. 
 
 "THE WORD" SERIES. 
 
 By SUSAN and ANNA WARNEB, Authors of " The "Wide, Wide 
 World," "Queechy," &c. 
 
 With Elustrations, Plain and Coloured. Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. each. 
 
 The aim of this Series of Volumes is so to set forth the Bible inci- 
 dents and course of history, with its train of actors, as to see them in 
 the circumstances and colouring, the light and shade, of their actual 
 existence. 
 
 The volumes embody, as far as possible, all the known facts, 
 natural, social, and historical, which are required for the illustration 
 and elucidation of the Bible narrative. 
 
 1. WALKS FROM EDEN : The Scripture Story from the Creation 
 
 to the Death of Abraham. 
 
 2. THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL : The Scripture Story from the Birth 
 
 of Isaac to the Death of Jacob. 
 
 3. THE KINGDOM OF JUDAH : The Scripture Story from the 
 
 Death of Solomon to the Captivity. 
 
 4. THE BROKEN WALLS OF JERUSALEM AND THE RE- 
 
 BUILDING OF THEM. In continuation of " The House of 
 Israel" and "The Kingdom of Judah," and completing the 
 work. 
 
 5. THE STAR OUT OF JACOB : The Scripture Story Illustrating 
 
 the Earlier Portion of the Gospel Narrative. 
 
 "These five books form a most comprehensive and attractive commentary 
 on the Scriptures suited to the requirements of the young. More real know- 
 ledge in true child language, and within the understanding of children, it 
 has never been our privilege to meet with before. We are disposed to envy 
 those young friends who are fortunate enough to number them among their 
 literary possessions, for although pre-eminently children's books, they are 
 yet well able to impart instruction to children of a larger growth." Sock. 
 
 "There is a pleasant freshness and reality conveyed to the old, well-worn 
 stories, which will make children understand the details of Eastern life and 
 the manners and customs of the old pastoral times. 'The Word ' Series will 
 be a charming gift to young people." Athenaeum. 
 
 " We doubt whether any one has ever told ' the old, old story ' more 
 attractively, for children at least, than the author of ' The Wide, Wide World.' 
 Whatever fame she may have won by her works of fiction will be greatly 
 increased by her success in writing these marvellous stories." Christian 
 World,
 
 Books for Young Headers. 2 5 
 
 THE GOLDEN LADDER SERIES. 
 
 With Illustrations. Handsomely bound in cloth, gilt edyes. 
 Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. each. 
 
 " Children welcome with glee the volumes comprised in Nisbet's ' Golden 
 Ladder Series,' for they are full of interest, even though they are stories 
 with a moral, which is always a high-toned one." Liverpool Courier. 
 
 " 'The Golden Ladder Series' of story-books, so much appreciated for their 
 excellence. They can be all safely recommended to the notice of teachers as 
 being especially suitable as rewards, while no school library can be said to 
 be complete without a selection from them." Schoolmaster. 
 
 1. THE GOLDEN LADDER : Stories Illustrative of the Beati- 
 
 tudes. By SUSAN and ANNA B. WARNER. 
 
 2. THE WIDE, WIDE WORLD. By SUSAN WAUNER. 
 
 3. QUEECHY. By SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 4. MELBOURNE HOUSE. By SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 5. DAISY. By SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 6. DAISY IN THE FIELD. By SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 7. THE OLD HELMET. By SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 8. NETTIE'S MISSION : Stories Illustrative of the Lord's 
 
 Prayer. By JULIA MATHEWS. 
 
 9. GLEN LUNA; or, Dollars and Cents. By ANNA B. WARNER. 
 
 10. DRAYTON HALL. Stories Illustrative of the Beatitudes. 
 
 By JULIA MATHEWS. 
 
 11. WITHIN AND WITHOUT : A New England Story. 
 
 12. VINEGAR HILL STORIES : Illustrative of the Parable of 
 
 the Sower. By ANNA B. WARNER. 
 
 13. LITTLE SUNBEAMS. By JOANNA MATHUWS. 
 
 14. WHAT SHE COULD AND OPPORTUNITIES. By 
 
 SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 15. TRADING AND THE HOUSE IN TOWN. 
 
 16. DARE TO DO RIGHT. By JULIA MATHKWS.
 
 26 James Nisbet & Co.'s List of 
 
 THE GOLDEN LADDER SERIES-eontinued. 
 
 17. HOLDEN WITH THE CORDS. By the Author of "Within 
 
 and Without." 
 
 18. GIVING HONOUR: Containing " The Little Camp on Eagle 
 
 Hill " and ' ' Willow Brook. " By SUSAN WAKNER. 
 
 19. GIVING SERVICE : Containing " Sceptres and Crowns " 
 
 and "The Flag of Truce." By SUSAN WAKNER. 
 
 20. GIVING TRUST: Containing "Bread and Oranges" and 
 
 "The Rapids of Niagara." By SUSAN WARNER. 
 %* The Tales in the last three Volumes are Illustrative of the 
 LORD'S PRAYER. 
 
 21. WYCH HAZEL. A Tale. By SUSAN and ANNA WARNER. 
 
 22. THE GOLD OF CHICKAREE. A Sequel to " Wych 
 
 Hazel." By SUSAN and ANNA B. WARNER. 
 
 23. DIANA. By SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 24. MY DESIRE. By SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 25. THE END OF A COIL. By SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 26. THE LETTER OF CREDIT. By SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 27. NOBODY. By SUSAN WARNEB. 
 
 28. STEPHEN, M.D. By SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 29. A RED WALLFLOWER. By SUSAN WARNEB. 
 
 30. DAISY PLAINS. By SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 81. CROSS CORNERS. By ANNA B. WARNER. 
 
 32. MISTRESS MATCHETT'S MISTAKE. By EMMA MAR- 
 
 SHALL. 
 
 33. YOURS AND MINE. By ANNA B. WARNER. 
 
 34. ONE LITTLE VEIN OF DROSS. By Mrs. RUTH LAMB. 
 
 35. OAK BEND ; or, Patience and her Schooling. By ANNA 
 
 B. WARNEB. 
 
 36. A CANDLE IN THE SEA; or, Winter at Seal's Head. 
 
 A Book about Lighthouses. By Kev. E. A. RAND.
 
 Books for Young Readers. 27 
 
 THE "GOLDEN SILENCE" SERIES OF TALES. 
 
 With Illustrations. 
 Small Crown 8vo. Attractively bound in doth. Is. 6d. each. 
 
 GOLDEN SILENCE ; or, Annals of the Birkett Family of Crawford- 
 under-Wold. By Mrs. MARSHALL. 
 
 THE STORY OF OUR ENGLISH BIBLE AND WHAT IT COST. 
 By Mrs. BAYLY. 
 
 STEPPING HEAVENWARD. By Mrs. PRENTISS. 
 WHAT KATY DID. By SCSAN COOLIDGB. 
 
 MORAG : A Tale of Highland Life. By Mrs. MILNE RAB, Author of 
 "Rinaultrie," "Geordy's Tryst," &c. 
 
 AUNT JANE'S HERO; or, Sorrow and Sunshine. By Mrs. 
 PRENTISS. 
 
 MAGGIE AND BESSIE, AND THEIR WAY TO DO GOOD. 
 By JOANNA H. MATHEWS. 
 
 BESSIE AT SCHOOL. By JOANNA H. MATHKWS. 
 
 BESSIE AND HER FRIENDS. By JOANNA H. MATHKWS. 
 
 BESSIE IN THE MOUNTAINS. By JOANNA H. MATHEWS. 
 
 BESSIE AT THE SEASIDE. By JOANNA H. MATHKWS. 
 
 BESSIE ON HER TRAVELS. By JOANNA H. MATHKWS. 
 
 THE THREE LITTLE SPADES. By ANNA B. WARNER. 
 
 WHEN I WAS YOUNG. By Mrs. MARSHALL. 
 
 THE HOME AT GREYLOCK. By Mrs. PRENTISS. 
 
 MICHAEL'S TREASURES; or, Choice Silver. By Mrs. MARSHALL. 
 
 CISSY'S TROUBLES. By DABLEY DALE. 
 
 LITTLE BRICKS. By DARLEY DALK. 
 
 EFFIE'S FRIENDS ; or, Chronicles of the Woods and Shore. 
 
 MATTHEW FROST, CARRIER; or, Little Snowdrop's Mission. 
 By Mrs. MARSHALL. 
 
 MY LADY BOUNTIFUL. By Mrs. MARSHALL.
 
 28 James Nisbet & Co!s List of 
 
 THE "GOLDEN SILENCE" SERIES 
 
 A TALE OF TWO OLD SONGS. By Lady DUNBOYNE. 
 
 ESTHER'S JOURNAL. A Tale of Swiss Pension Life. By a 
 RESIDENT. 
 
 THREE PATHS IN LIFE. A Tale for Girls. 
 
 STELLAFONT ABBEY; or, "Nothing New." By EMMA MARSHALL. 
 
 A SUNBEAM'S INFLUENCE; or, Eight Years After. By Lady 
 DDNBOYNE. 
 
 SUSY'S SACRIFICE. 
 KENNETH FORBES. 
 THE CHILDREN OF BLACKBERRY HOLLOW. 
 
 THE SAFE COMPASS, AND HOW IT POINTS. By Rev. R. 
 NEWTON, D.D. 
 
 MR. RUTHERFORD'S CHILDREN. 
 
 THERESA'S JOURNAL. 
 
 GRAN. By E. A. B. D. 
 
 PAT'S INHERITANCE. By Mrs. MARSHALL. 
 
 IN THE MIST. A Tale. By ROSE PORTER. 
 
 THE OTHER HOUSE. A Tale. By MARY R. HIGHAM. 
 
 NATURE'S GENTLEMAN. By Mrs. MARSHALL. 
 
 THE BRIDE'S HOME. By Mrs. MARSHALL. 
 
 MILES MURCHISON. By Miss GIBERNE. 
 
 HOUSE IN TOWN. By the Author of "The Wide, Wide World." 
 
 TRADING. By the Author of "The Wide, Wide World." Sequel 
 to above. 
 
 Sound in Paper Covers. Is. 
 AUNT JANE'S HERO. By Mrs. PRENTISS. 
 STEPPING HEAVENWARD. By Mrs. PRENTISS. 
 WHAT KATIE DID. By SUSAN COOLIDGE. 
 MORAG. A Tale of Highland Life. By Mrs. MILNE RAE.
 
 Books for Young Headers. 2O 
 
 "DOLLY'S CHARGE" SERIES. 
 
 With Illustrations. Small Crown 8vo. Is. each. 
 
 1. DOLLY'S CHARGE. By Miss MARSHALL. 
 
 2. THE LITTLE PEAT-CUTTERS; or, The Song of Love. By 
 
 Mrs. MARSHALL. 
 
 3. PRIMROSE ; or, The Bells of Old Effingham. By Mrs. MARSHALL. 
 
 4. THE BOY GUARDIAN. By C. E. BOWBN. 
 
 5. GENTLEMAN JIM. By Mrs. PRENTISS. 
 
 6. OUR LADDIE. By Miss L. J. TOMLINSON. 
 
 7. VIOLET IN THE SHADE. By Mrs. MARSHALL. 
 
 8. LIGHT ON THE LILY. By Mrs. MARSHALL. 
 
 9. A ROSE WITHOUT A THORN. By Mrs. MARSHALL. 
 
 10. ALICE'S PUPIL. By Miss M'CLiNTOCK. 
 
 11. HEATHERCLIFFE ; or, It's no Concern of Mine. By Mrs. 
 
 MARSHALL. 
 
 12. ADVENTURES OF JOHNNY PASCOE. By G. NORWAY. 
 
 13. MISS BROWN'S BASKET. By Mrs. HENRY CHARLES. 
 
 14. LOTTA'S LIFE MISTAKE. By Mrs. EVERED POOLE. 
 
 15. THE PRINCESSES OF PENRUTH. By MARY H. DEBENHAM. 
 
 16. SEE FOR YOURSELF. By GRACE STEBBINO. 
 
 17. SUNDAY OCCUPATIONS FOR CHILDREN. By Mrs. BARCLAY. 
 
 18. PARSON'S GREEN. By G. NORWAY. 
 
 19. HELEN ; or, Temper and its Consequences. 
 
 20. THE CAPTAIN'S STORY ; or, The Disobedient Son. 
 
 21. CHINA AND ITS PEOPLE. By A MISSIONARY'S WIFE. 
 
 22. FRANK GORDON, by F. R. GOULDINQ ; and LITTLE JACK, 
 
 by ANNA WARNER. 
 
 23. TO-DAY AND YESTERDAY. A Story of Summer and Winter 
 
 Holidays. By Mrs. MARSHALL. 
 
 24. BOTH SIDES. By JESSIE W. SMITH. 
 
 25. STEPHEN GILMORE'S DREAM ; or, Coals of Fire. By JESSIE 
 
 W. SMITH. 
 
 26. JUDITH THE STRANGER. By the Hon. GERTRUDE Bos- 
 
 CAWEN. 
 
 27. THE GATE IN PARK LANE. By the Hon. GERTRUDE Bos- 
 
 CAWEN. 
 
 28. SIMPLE LESSONS FROM NATURE. By the Hon. M. C. LEIGH. 
 
 29. THE SPOILT TWINS. By EMILY DIBDIN. 
 
 30. BEN BRIGHTBOOTS, and Other True Stories. By Miss 
 
 HAVERGAL. 
 
 31. SAM'S MISSION. By BEATRICE MARSHALL, Author of " Dolly's 
 
 Charge," &c. 
 
 32. KATIE : A Daughter of the King.
 
 30 James Nisbet & Co.'s List of 
 
 NISBET'S JUVENILE LIBRARY. 
 
 With Illustrations. 16mo. Is. 6d. each. 
 
 "Capital books, well printed, tastefully bound, and containing a good deal 
 of letterpress. We do not know a cheaper series at the price." Sunday- 
 School Chronicle. 
 
 LILIES OF THE VALLEY. 
 
 HERBERT PERCY. 
 
 PASSING CLOUDS. 
 
 WARFARE AND WORK. 
 
 EVELYN GREY. 
 
 THE CHRISTMAS STOCKING. 
 
 SOWING IN TEARS AND REAPING IN JOY. 
 
 SILVER SANDS. 
 
 THE KNOTS TOM GILLIES TIED AND UNTIED. 
 
 THE SELECT SERIES OF BOOKS SUITABLE 
 FOR PRESENTS AND PRIZES. 
 
 With Illustrations. Small Crown Svo. 3s. 6d. each. 
 
 THE MOUNTAINS OF THE BIBLE : Their Scenes and their 
 Lessons. By the Rev. JOHN MACFARLANB, LL.D. 
 
 LIFE : A Series of Illustrations of the Divine Wisdom in the Forms, 
 Structures, and Instincts of Animals. By P. H. GOSSE, F.R.S. 
 
 LAND AND SEA. By P. H. GOSSE, F.R.S. 
 
 THE ROMANCE OF NATURAL HISTORY. By P. H. GOSSE, 
 F.R.S. TwoVols. 
 
 TALES FROM ALSACE ; or, Scenes and Portraits from Life in the 
 Days of the Reformation. 
 
 BYEWAYS IN PALESTINE. By JAMES FINN, M.R.A.S.
 
 Books for Young Readers. 31 
 
 THE "PILGRIM" SERIES. 
 
 POPULAR EDITIONS OF STANDARD BOOKS. 
 
 Small Crown Svo, numerous Illustrations, 2s. each ; with gilt edyes, 
 8s. 6d. each. 
 
 1. BUNYAN'S PILGRIM'S PROGRESS. 
 
 2. BUNYAN'S HOLY WAR. 
 
 3. FOXE'S BOOK OF MARTYRS. 
 
 4. THE THRONE OF DAVID: From the Consecration of the 
 
 Shepherd of Bethlehem to the Rebellion of Prince Absalom. 
 By the Rev. J. H. INGBAHAM, LL.D. 
 
 5. THE PRINCE OF THE HOUSE OF DAVID; or, Three 
 
 Years in the Holy City. By the Rev. J. H. INGRAHAM, 
 LL.D. 
 
 6. THE PILLAR OF FIRE ; or, Israel in Bondage. By the Rev. 
 
 J. H. INGKAHAM, LL.D. 
 
 7. BEN-HUR ; or, The Days of the Messiah. By LEW WALLACE. 
 
 8. THE LAMPLIGHTER. By M. CUMINS. 
 
 9. UNCLE TOM'S CABIN. By Mrs. H. STOWS. 
 
 10. ROBINSON CRUSOE. 
 
 11. MY DESIRE. By SDSAN WARNER. 
 
 12. NOBODY. By SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 13. THE FAIRCHILD FAMILY. By Mrs. SHERWOOD. 
 
 14. THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON. 
 
 15. DERRY. A Tale of the Revolution. By CHARLOTTE 
 
 ELIZABETH. 
 
 16. ROMANCE OF NATURAL HISTORY. By P. H. GOSSE. 
 
 17. GREAT MEN: A Series of Lectures. By the late Rev. 
 
 FKEDERIO MYERS, M.A. 
 
 18. TOO LATE FOR THE TIDE-MILL. By Rev. E. A, RAND. 
 
 19. LITTLE WOMEN. By L. M. ALCOTT. 
 
 20. DRAYTON HALL. By JULIA MATHEWS.
 
 32 James Nisbet & Co.'s List of Books. 
 
 THE "PILGRIM" SERIES continued. 
 
 21. THE END OF A COIL. By SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 22. GLEN LUNA. By ANNA WARNER. 
 
 23. DIANA. By SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 24. STEPHEN, M.D. By SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 25. MELBOURNE HOUSE. By SUSAN WARNKR. 
 
 26. BIBLE WARNINGS. By Rev. Dr. NEWTON. 
 
 27. THE PHYSICIAN'S DAUGHTER. 
 
 28. THE WIDE, WIDE WORLD. By SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 29. DAISY. By SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 30. DAISY IN THE FIELD. By SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 31. NOR'ARD OF THE DOGGER. By E. J. MATHER. 
 
 32. A DREAM OF THE NORTH SEA. By J. RUNCIMAN. 
 
 33. SCRIPTURE ANIMALS. By Rev. Dr. NEWTON. 
 
 34. QUEECHY. By SUSAN WARNER. 
 
 35. DARE TO DO RIGHT. By JULIA MATHEWS. 
 
 36. NETTIE'S MISSION. By JULIA MATHEWS. 
 
 37. WANDERING HOMES AND THEIR INFLUENCES. 
 
 38. FRANK WEATHERALL. By W. C. METCALFE, Author of 
 "Above Board," &c. 
 
 39. SHORT LIVES OF MEN WITH A MISSION : Charles Kingsley, 
 Lord Lawrence, Henry M. Stanley. With Portraits. 
 
 40. EXPELLED. By the Author of "Dorrincourt." 
 
 41. YOKED TOGETHER. By ELLEN DAVIS. 
 
 42. BESSIE HARRINGTON'S VENTURE. By JULIA MATHEWS. 
 
 43. OPENING OF A CHESTNUT BURR. By E. P. ROE. 
 
 44. ST. ELMO. By A. J. E. WILSON. 
 
 45. THE CHILDREN'S PILGRIMAGE. By L. T. MEAD. 
 
 46. ROMANCE OF NATURAL HISTORY. Second Series. By 
 P. H. GOSSE. 
 
 LONDON: JAMES NISBET & CO., 21 BERNERS STREET, W.
 
 SELECT LIST OF BOOKS 
 
 DEVOTIONAL AND PRACTICAL 
 
 PUBLISHED BY 
 
 JAMES NISBET & CO. 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN UNDER REVIEW. 
 
 A SERIES OP WOKKS ON PRACTICAL CHRISTIAN LIFE 
 Small crown 8vo. 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN'S INFLUENCE. By the Ven. WILLIAM 
 MACDONALD SINCLAIR, D.D., Archdeacon of London. 2s. 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN'S START. By the Very Rev. the DEAN 
 
 OF NORWICH. Is. 
 THE MORAL CULTURE OF THE CHRISTIAN. By 
 
 the Rev. JAMES McCANN, D.D. Is. 
 THE PATHWAY OF VICTORY. By the Iu.v. ROBERT B. 
 
 GIRDLESTONE, M.A., Hon. Canon of Christ Church, and late 
 
 Principal of Wycliffe Hall, Oxford. Is. 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN'S RECREATIONS. By the Rev. HENRY 
 SUTTON, M.A., Vicar of Holy Trinity, Bordesley. Is. 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN'S PROGRESS. By the Ven. G. R. 
 WYNNE, D.D., Archdeacon of Aghadoe. Is. 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN'S DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES. 
 By the Very Rev. the DEAN OF NORWICH. Is. 
 
 THE CHRISTIAN'S AIMS. By the Rev. ALFRED PEARSON, 
 
 M. A., Incumbent of St. Margaret's Church, Brighton. Is. 
 THE INTELLECTUAL CULTURE OF THE CHRISTIAN. 
 
 By the Rev. JAMES McCANN, D.D. Is. 
 THE CHRISTIAN'S PRIVILEGES. By the Rev. W. J. 
 
 DEANE, M.A. Is. 
 THE CHRISTIAN'S INHERITANCE. By the Rev. C. 
 
 A. GOODHAKT, M.A., Incumbent of St. Barnabas', Highfield, 
 
 Sheffield. Is. 
 
 " Simple aud forcible as these books are iu their teaching, and brief in 
 extent, they deserve the attention of those who direct the religious teaching 
 of the young." Scotsman. 
 
 " We dipped into these pages alike with pleasure and profit. The writers, 
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 walk of the believer." Word and Work. 
 
 " How completely they cover the field of Christian needs is sufficiently 
 indicated by their titles. They are well fitted to stimulate the piety and 
 clear the views of those holding the doctrines of the Church of England." 
 Liverpool Mercury.
 
 Works Devotional and Practical 
 
 By H. BONAR, D.D. 
 
 GOD'S WAY OF PEACE. A Book for the Anxious. 
 16mo, Is. 6d. Cheap Edition, paper cover, 6d. ; cloth, 9d. 
 Large Type Edition, crown Svo, 2s. 
 
 GOD'S WAY OF HOLINESS. 16mo, Is. 6d. Cheap 
 Edition, paper cover, 6d. ; cloth, 9d. Large Type Edition, 
 crown Svo, 2s. 
 
 By MATTHEW HENRY. 
 
 EXPOSITION OF THE OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS. 
 With Practical Remarks and Observations 
 In Nine Volumes. Imp. Svo, 2, 2s. Net. 
 In Six Volumes. Medium Svo, 1, 11s. 6d. Net. 
 
 By LADY CATHARINE LONG. 
 
 HEAVENLY THOUGHTS FOE MORNING AND 
 EVENING HOURS. Selections in Prose and Verse, with 
 Passages from Scripture. With a Short Introduction. 16mo. 
 Cloth, 2s. 6d. ; silk, 4s. 6d. each. 
 
 By HARRIET E. COLVILE. 
 
 THE WAY SHE TROD. A STUDY. Just Published. 
 Small crown Svo, 2s. 6d. 
 
 " ' The Way She Trod ' is a study of the development of religious sentiment 
 and belief in a girl's character." Scotsman. 
 
 " She is Triplice, which, being interpreted, means threefold. . . . Her 
 life-history, under these various phases, is ingeniously set forth." Glasgow 
 Herald. 
 
 nm sue niius rest anu joy 111 uou. iiie gunman. 
 "A good book for distribution among girls of the upper classes." Record. 
 
 FLOWER VOICES. With Illustrations. Demy 16mo, Is. 
 
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 flowers." The News. 
 
 "A choice little book, in which flowers are made to typify men and 
 women, and to whisper important lessons regarding life and duty." 
 Christian. 
 
 "Short stories which will both please and profit. There is life and point 
 about them, and their association with flowers is by no means strained. We 
 place this little book in the first class as to the quality of the writing." 
 Sword and Trowel. 
 
 WAFTED SEEDS. With Illustrations. Demy 16mo, Is.
 
 Published by James Nisbet $ Co. 
 
 By Miss MARSH. 
 
 THE RIFT IN THE CLOUDS. Small crown 8vo, Is. 
 CROSSING THE RIVER. Small crown 8vo, Is. 
 SHINING LIGHT. Small crown 8vo, Is. 
 
 WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN. A True Story. Crown 
 8vo, Is. 
 
 By Rev. J. REID HOWATT. 
 
 THE CHILDREN'S PEW. Sermons to Children. 
 
 AFTER HOURS ; or, The Religion of Our Leisure Time. 
 With Appendix on How to Form a Library for Twenty Shillings. 
 Small crown 8vo, Is. 
 
 THE CHILDREN'S PULPIT. A Year's Sermons and 
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 impress upon the mind are such as every youthful reader may appreciate. 
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 with a good deal of pleasure, and, it need hardly be said, with much profit." 
 Scotsman. 
 
 "The sermonettes are simple, suggestive, and singularly happy in illus- 
 tration and treatment" Word and Work. 
 
 "All these fifty-three sermons and parables are worth reading, and would 
 seem admirable either as models for addresses to children, or for reading in 
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 " Brief, fresh, and often original in thought. A preacher to children will 
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 " Fifty-three brief addresses to children. Direct, as such things should 
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 done, they are bound to be they contain a collection of truths which children 
 ought to be taught, and the teacher is always bright and clear, which is 
 saying a great deal." Church Sells. 
 
 "One of the most beautiful and helpful books we know of for ministers 
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 nexion Magazine. 
 
 By Miss NUGENT. 
 
 THE PRINCE IN THE MIDST. Jesus our Centre. 
 IGmo, Is. 
 
 By SAMUEL GILLESPIE PROUT. 
 
 NEVER SAY DIE: A Talk with Old Friends. 16mo. 
 9d. ; paper cover, 6d.
 
 Works Devotional and Practical 
 
 By the Rev. JAMES WELLS, M.A. 
 
 BIBLE OBJECT LESSONS. Addresses to Children. With 
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 BIBLE ECHOES. Addresses to the Young. Small crown 
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 THE PARABLES OF JESUS. With Illustrations. Small 
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 BIBLE CHILDREN. Studies for the Young. With Illus- 
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 BIBLE IMAGES. With Illustrations. Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. 
 
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 Part II. FROM DEATH OF JOSHUA TO END OF THE OLD TEST.X 
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 MORAL MUSCLE : AND How TO USE IT. A Brotherly 
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 FIRST BATTLES, AND HOW TO FIGHT THEM. 
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 HOW TO STUDY THE BIBLE. By Dr. CLIFFORD, M.A. ; 
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 WORKS BY R. M. BALLANTYNE. 
 
 " In his tales of the sea, of the forest and the flames, and in all 
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 With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 5s. each. 
 NEW VOLUME. 
 
 THE BUFFALO RUNNERS. 
 
 A TALE OF THE RED RIVER PLAINS. 
 
 CHARLIE TO THE RESCUE. 
 
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 are admirably reproduced. It is a capital story." Spectator. 
 
 B LOWN TO BITS; 
 
 Or, THE LONELY MAN OF RAKATA. A TALE OF THE 
 MALAY ARCHIPELAGO. 
 
 " A capital story, written in the author's old style, and full of 
 life and action from beginning to end. " Standard. 
 
 " The book abounds in matter of exceptional interest, and should 
 find its way into the hands of all young people who would properly 
 estimate the wide-spreading and far-reaching influences and the 
 extraordinary character of the Krakatoa outburst." Manchester 
 Courier. 
 
 BLUE LIGHTS; 
 
 Or, HOT WORK IN THE SOUDAN. A TALE OF SOLDIER LIFK 
 
 IN SEVERAL OF ITS PHASES. 
 
 "An exciting story, full of excellent moral lessons." School 
 Board Chronicle. 
 
 " We heartily recommend 'Blue Lights '." Guardian. 
 
 "The soldier's career is graphically depicted, and the story is 
 every way a good one." Literary Churchman.
 
 2 Works by R. M. Ballantyne continued. 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown 8uo. 5s. each. 
 
 THE FUGITIVES; 
 
 Or, THE TYRANT QUEEN OF MADAGASCAR. 
 
 " There is plenty of adventure in the shape of imprisonment and 
 combats with men and animals, and a negro and a sailor between 
 them supply a comic element of the best quality. Everything con- 
 sidered, this is one of the best stories even Mr. Ballantyne has 
 published. " Academy. 
 
 RED ROONEY; 
 
 Or, THE LAST OF THE CREW. 
 
 THE ROVER OF THE ANDES, 
 
 A TALE OF ADVENTURE IN SOUTH AMERICA. 
 
 " We commend it to boys fond of adventure and of natural pheno- 
 mena ; a very fascinating book." British Quarterly Review. 
 "An admirable boy's story." Scotsman. 
 
 THE' YOUNG TRAWLER, 
 
 A STORY OF LIFE AND DEATH AND RESCUE IN THE 
 NORTH SEA. 
 
 " Few men have laboured so steadfastly in their generation to 
 provide sound wholesome fare for 'our boys' as Mr. Ballantyiie, 
 and the ' Young Trawler ' is worthy of his reputation. It is not a 
 whit less spirited than his former tales, and conveys a large amount 
 of useful information on a highly important subject." Academy. 
 
 DUSTY DIAMONDS, CUT AND 
 POLISHED, 
 
 A TALE OF CITY-ARAB LIFS.
 
 Works "by R. M. Ballantyne continued. 3 
 
 With Illustrations. Grown Svo. 5.s. each. 
 
 THE BATTERY AND THE BOILER; 
 
 Or, THE ELECTRICAL ADVENTURES OF A TELEGRAPH 
 CABLE- LAYER. 
 
 ' ' There is not a dull page in it. " Scotsman. 
 "The interest never flags." Academy. 
 
 THE GIANT OF THE NORTH; 
 
 Or, POKINGS ROUND THE POLE. 
 
 "Of variety of perilous adventures and peril, ingeniously sur- 
 mounted, there is no lack. " Daily News. 
 
 THE LONELY ISLAND; 
 
 Or, THE REFUGE OF THE MUTINEERS. 
 
 "Mr. Ballantyne weaves the romantic episode of the mutiny of 
 the ' Bounty ' into a most effective narrative." Graphic. 
 
 POST HASTE, 
 
 A TALE OF HER MAJESTY'S MAILS. 
 
 "The book should find a place in every boy's library ; it is full 
 of interest." Leeds Mercury. 
 
 IN THE TRACK OF THE TROOPS. 
 
 A TALE OF MODERN WAR. 
 
 " Mr. Ballantyne has blended with the incidents of war on the 
 Danube a story of personal adventure spiritedly told." Daily News. 
 
 THE SETTLER AND THE SAVAGE. 
 
 A TALE OF PEACE AND WAR IN SOUTH AFRICA. 
 
 " A capital story of South African life. Mr. Ballantyne, through 
 the medium of a thoroughly manly and healthy tale of sport and 
 war, frolic and danger, full of stirring yet not exaggerated scenes, 
 presents a sketch of a very important period of the early history of 
 our colony at the Cape of Good Hope." Time.*.
 
 Works by R. M. Ballantyne continued. 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 5s. each. 
 
 UNDER THE WAVES; 
 
 Or, DIVING IK DEEP WATERS. 
 
 " Mr. Ballantyne enlarges the already gigantic debt due to him 
 by the young, by his ' Under the Waves,' a story meant to illustrate 
 the practice and peril of diving in deep water, which it does in not 
 only an interesting, but often in amusing manner." Times. 
 
 RIVERS OF ICE. 
 
 A TALK ILLUSTRATIVE OF ALPINE ADVENTURE AND GLACIER 
 ACTION. 
 
 "A tale brimful of interest and stirring adventure." Glasgow 
 Herald. 
 
 THE PIRATE CITY. 
 
 AN ALGERINE TALE. 
 
 " The story is told with Mr. Ballantyne's usual felicity, ar.d, as 
 it is plentifully sprinkled with horrors, no doubt it will be greatly 
 enjoyed by some boys." Athenceum. 
 
 BLACK IVORY. 
 
 A TALE OF ADVENTURE AMONG THE SLAVERS OF EAST AFRICA. 
 "A captivating story. We heartily recommend it." Record. 
 "Boys will find the book about as delightful a story of adventure 
 as any of them could possibly desire. " Scotsman. 
 
 THE NORSEMEN IN THE WEST; 
 
 Or, AMERICA BEFORE COLUMBUS. 
 
 " This thoroughly delightful book is an adaptation of the Saga of 
 Iceland, and also of Mr. Laing's ' Heimskingla ; or Chronicles of 
 the Kings of Norway,' supplemented by Mr. Ballantyne's own 
 experience and adventures in the wilderness of America. These 
 ingredients are put together with the skill and spirit of an accom- 
 plished story-teller ; and the result is a book that cannot possibly 
 be laid down till the very last word of the last line has been read. " 
 Athenceum. 
 
 THE IRON HORSE; 
 
 Or, LIFE ON THE LINE. A RAILWAY TALE. 
 " A captivating book for boya." Guardian.
 
 Works by R. M. Ballantyne continued. 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown Svo. 5s. each. 
 
 ERLING THE BOLD. 
 
 A TALE OF THE NORSE SEA KINGS. 
 "A capital tale of the Norse Sea Kings." Times. 
 
 "The story is interesting and full of moving incidents by flood 
 and field, and it will therefore scarcely fail to be popular among 
 lads. " Scotsman. 
 
 " The story is clearly designed, and abounds with elements of 
 romantic interest ; and the Author's illustrations are scarcely less 
 vigorous than his text." Athenaeum. 
 
 FIGHTING THE FLAMES. 
 
 A TALE OF THE LONDON FIRE BRIGADE. 
 
 "Many a schoolboy will find keen enjoyment in the perusal of 
 'Fighting the Flames,' and assure his little sisters with suitable 
 emphasis that Mr. Ballantyne is ' a stunning good story-teller.'" 
 Athenaeum. 
 
 DEEP DOWN. 
 
 A TALE OF THE CORNISH MINES. 
 
 " Mr. Ballantyne's book will not fail to delight boys, for it is full 
 of deeds of daring and of ' hairbreadth escapes.'" Scotsman. 
 
 1 ' By reading Mr. Ballantyne's admirable story a very large 
 amount of knowledge concerning Cornish mines may be acquired ; 
 whilst from the fact of the information being given in the form of 
 a connected narrative, it is not likely very soon to be forgotten. 
 ... A book well worthy of being extensively read." Mining 
 Journal. 
 
 THE FLOATING LIGHT OF THE 
 GOODWIN SANDS. 
 
 " The tale will be especially interesting to adventure-loving boys. " 
 Record. 
 
 SHIFTING WINDS. 
 A TOUGH YARN. 
 
 "A hearty, vigorous, bracing story, fresh with the pure breezes, 
 and sparkling with the bright waters of the everlasting seas." 
 Athenaeum.
 
 Works by It. M. Ballantyne continued. 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 5s. each. 
 
 THE LIGHTHOUSE. 
 
 BEING THE STORY OF A GREAT FIGHT BETWEEN MAN 
 
 AND THE SEA. 
 Extract Letter from the Secretary of Northern Lighthouses. 
 
 " . . . . They (the Commissioners of Northern Lighthouses) have 
 been so much pleased with the way in which you have combined 
 the fiction of a tale with the popular but correct account of the 
 building of the Bell Rock Lighthouse, that they think it would be 
 an interesting work to transmit to their Lightkeepers, and I have 
 therefore to request that you will direct your publishers to transmit 
 me copies. (Signed) ALEXR. CUNNINGHAM." 
 
 "Thoroughly at home in subjects of adventure, the Author has 
 made this, like all his stories for boys, smart in style, thrilling in 
 interest, and abounding in incidents of every kind." Quiver. 
 
 THE LIFEBOAT. 
 
 A TALE OF OUR COAST HEROES. 
 
 " ROYAL NATIONAL LIFEBOAT INSTITUTION. 
 
 "DEAR SIR, I am directed by the Committee to request your 
 acceptance of the accompanying Photograph of a Lifeboat proceed- 
 ing off to a wreck, as a small permanent acknowledgment of the 
 important service you have rendered to the Lifeboat cause by your 
 very interesting work entitled ' The Lifeboat : a Tale of our Coast 
 Heroes.' I remain, yours faithfully, 
 
 (Signed) "RICHARD LEWIS, Secretary. " 
 
 THE GOLDEN DREAM. 
 
 A TALE OF THE DIGGINGS. 
 
 THE RED ERIC; 
 
 Or, THE WHALER'S LAST CRUISE. 
 
 GASCOYNE, THE SANDALWOOD 
 TRADER. 
 
 A TALE OF THE PACIFIC. 
 
 " Full of cleverly and impressively drawn pictures of life and 
 character in the Pacific." Caledonian Mercury.
 
 Works by E. M, Ballantyne continued. 1 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 5s. each. 
 
 FREAKS ON THE FELLS, 
 
 AND 
 
 WHY I DID NOT BECOME A SAILOR. 
 
 THE WILD MAN OF THE WEST. 
 
 With Illustrations. * Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. 
 
 BATTLES WITH THE SEA; 
 
 Or, HEROES OF THE LIFEBOAT AND THE ROCKET. 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown Svo. 2s. 
 
 THE KITTEN PILGRIMS; 
 
 Or, GREAT BATTLES AND GRAND VICTORIES. 
 
 " We have copied the title-page of this amusing and instructive 
 quarto for little folks. Nothing further is necessary. Mr. 
 Ballantyne stands at the head of all our children's story-tellers 
 facile princeps." Churchman. 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown Svo. 2s. Qd. each. 
 NEW VOLUME. 
 
 A COXSWAIN'S BRIDE; Or, THE KISING TIDE: 
 And other Tales. 
 
 THE GARRET AND THE GARDEN ; Or, Low 
 LIFE HIGH UP: And JEFF BENSON; Or, THE 
 
 YOUNG COASTGUARDSMAN. 
 
 THE CREW OF THE W AT ER- WAGTAIL. 
 
 A STORY OF NEWFOUNDLAND. 
 
 THE MIDDY AND THE MOORS. 
 
 Ax ALGERINE TALE. 
 
 THE PRAIRIE CHIEF.
 
 Works by R. M. Ballantyne continued. 
 
 With Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 2s. 6d. each. 
 
 LIFE IN THE RED BRIGADE. 
 
 A FIERY TALE. AND FORT DESOLATION ; or, SOLITUDE IN THE 
 WILDERNESS. 
 
 THE ISLAND QUEEN; 
 
 Or, DETHRONED BY FIRE AND WATER. A TALE OF THE 
 SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE. 
 
 TWICE BOUGHT. 
 A TALE OF THE OREGON GOLD FIELDS. 
 
 THE MADMAN AND THE PIRATE. 
 
 PHILOSOPHER JACK. 
 
 A TALE OF THE SOUTHERN SEAS. 
 
 THE RED MAN'S REVENGE. 
 MY DOGGIE AND I. 
 
 SIX MONTHS AT THE CAPE. 
 
 LETTERS TO PERIWINKLE FROM SOUTH AFRICA. A RECORD OF 
 PERSONAL EXPERIENCE AND ADVENTURE. 
 
 Crown 8vo. Price 3s. Gd. each. 
 
 TALES OF ADVENTURE BY FLOOD, 
 FIELD, AND MOUNTAIN. 
 
 TALES OF ADVENTURE; 
 Or, WILD WORK IN STRANGE PLACES. 
 
 TALES OF ADVENTURE ON THE COAST. 
 
 LONDON: JAMES NISBET & Co., VI BERNERS STREET, W.