came panicky at seeing the boat back away. Both being powerful
swimmers, they threw themselves into the sea and the boat managed to
pick them up before the surf caught them.

"This had been enough to show that landing was not impossible. With the
evidence that two sailors had ventured, the engineer could not withdraw.
He was a bold and daring fellow himself. Two days later, although the
sea was not nearly as calm, the boat was brought up to the rock again,
and at almost the same landing-place as before, he succeeded in getting
ashore.

"One of the things that makes Tillamook so dangerous is that you can
never tell when it is suddenly going to change from its ordinary
wildness to a pitch of really savage fury. A ground swell, hardly
perceptible on the surface of the sea, will kick up no end of a smother
on the rock. The engineer lost no time in his survey. He had already
made a study of the rock from every point of the sea around it, so that
he was able to do his actual survey ashore quickly. Less than an hour
was enough. By that time he had every detail needed for his report.

"But when he was ready to go, Tillamook was less ready to loose her
capture. The waves were dashing over the landing place and the sky was
rapidly becoming beclouded. Yet, for the engineer, there was no question
of choice! To stay there meant being marooned, death from exposure and
starvation. There was nothing to do but dare. The engineer, beckoning
for the boat to come in as near the rock as possible, cast himself into
the sea. It was touch and go, but we picked him up, although he was
nearly done for when we got him. The report was duly sent into
Washington and approved.

"The next thing was to arrange about the actual building. For this a man
of skill and experience was needed. John W. Trewavas, a famous
lighthouse expert, one of the constructors of the Wolf Rock Light off
the English Coast, came to America to pit his knowledge and his
strength against the Pacific Ocean. Although it was summer weather, he
hung around Tillamook for a month before there was even a chance to make
a landing. Then, on September 18, 1879--I was steering the boat--Mr.
Trewavas thought he saw his opportunity. I took the boat right in, so
that her nose almost touched the rock. He leaped ashore, and, at the
same instant, with a tremendous back-water stroke, the oarsmen jumped
the surf-boat back out of danger. One second's--yes, half a
second's--delay, and the boat w