f other work to do
besides. Every part of the building is to be kept clean, and the
lightroom apparatus scrupulously so. The glass is to be washed, rubbed
with a soft dry leather, and kept perfectly free from dust and all
impurities.

But the chief thing after all is to light the lamp, and watch to see
that it does not burn dimly, or go out. In the long nights of winter
the watcher is relieved after a number of hours, but he must not leave
the room on any pretence until his comrade comes to take his place. He
must not sleep, nor even take his ease; his attention is to be fixed on
the light alone. The night experiences of such men must sometimes be
startling, and even awful. What strange noises they must occasionally
hear, when the winds and waves are fighting out their battles! What
fearful cries as, notwithstanding the friendly light, a vessel strikes
upon the rocks, and the people are tossed into the surging waters.
They have visitors too; often in the night the wild sea-birds,
fascinated by the light, as the moth is by the candle, come dashing
against the lantern with such violence as to break the glass. But
whatever happens, close to the tower, or away over the stormy waters,
the man knows his duty, and does it, by keeping the light burning
brightly until the sunrising.

Life in the lighthouse must needs be very monotonous, when the house is
built upon some rock, far out at sea. Then, for some weeks of the
worst weather, it is not possible for the keepers to receive visitors
or supplies; it is necessary therefore that an abundance of the
necessaries of life should be stowed away in the building.

The men too are provided with libraries; so that if they see few faces
of their fellows, they can at least hold communion with books; and it
was a happy thought to send all those who live in isolated positions
such companions. But these are not the only ones. Two, three, or four
men, are stationed at such places as the Eddystone, so that each may
take his turn in spending some time with his family on shore. Those
lighthouses which are situated on the mainland are comfortable homes,
with their little plot of ground to cultivate, and visitors, at least
in the summer season, to talk with. It is in the winter, and when the
house is inaccessible, that the men's powers of endurance are tried.

It will never happen again, as it did before the whole system had
reached its present state of perfection, that one man s