sist the force of the winds and waves. He declared that
his building should be of stone, and in shape something like the trunk
of an oak. In August, 1756, the work was begun, but of course it could
not be carried on in the winter. The first stone, weighing two tons
and a quarter, was laid on the 12th of the following June; and the next
day the first course, consisting of four massive stones, which were
dovetailed into the rocks, and formed a compact mass, was completed.
The courses followed each other as rapidly as possible, and by the 11th
of August the sixth was done, which brought the erection so high as to
be out of reach of the ordinary tides. On the 30th of September the
ninth course was completed, and then the builders had to leave off work
for the winter.

It is easy to conceive of the anxiety which Smeaton suffered during the
months which were unusually stormy; but in May, when he and his workmen
were again able to reach the rock, they found, to their great joy, that
the winter's floods had rather perfected than impaired their work.
They gladly commenced operations again, and by September the
twenty-fourth course was completed. They had now got as far as the
store-room. They worked with a will, and during the next summer the
second and third floors were finished. As the building was in
progress, Smeaton had inscribed on the walls these words--"Except the
Lord build the house, they labour in vain who build it." And after it
was finished, he had the words, "Laus Deo," engraved upon the
top-stone. The erection was finished, and the lantern lighted, on the
16th of October, 1769, and has remained ever since, a monument of the
undaunted energy and perseverance of Englishmen.

Another celebrated lighthouse is that of "The Smalls," built on one of
the dangerous rocks that lie near the entrance of Milford Haven. It
was built by Mr. Phillips, who did it not for gain, but in order to
save his fellow-creatures. The architect he employed was a musical
instrument maker, named Whiteside. The work was begun in 1772, and
persevered with until it was finished. In the beginning of the year
1777, Whiteside and his companions found themselves in great straits,
and they wrote a letter and put it inside a barrel, and sent it afloat,
hoping it would reach the shore:--

"THE SMALLS, _Feb. 1, 1777_.

"SIR--Being now in a most dangerous and distressed condition upon the
Smalls, I do hereby trust Providence will bring t