When Captain Ephraim entered the kitchen he held in his hand a sheet of paper on which were several lines of written words, and before Sidney could ask him any questions relative to the rations, as had been suggested by Uncle Zenas, the keeper cried in a tone of triumph:
"Here's what I'm reckonin' will fill the bill all right, an' if Captain Harlow don't get it in short order, the blame will be on the inspector. See what you think of it, Uncle Zenas."
Then Captain Eph read the following, pausing now and then to look over the top of his glasses that he might get some idea of how the statement impressed the cook:
"To the Inspector of Light-Houses, "District No. 1.
"Honored Sir:
"Me and my assistants believe it is our duty, though not so laid down in the rules and regulations, to make a special report because this morning a small boy came on to the ledge in a motor boat that got smashed up pretty considerable on the rocks while making a landing, said boy claiming to be the son of Captain Harlow of the five-masted schooner West Wind bound for Porto Rico, and he wishing to let his father hear that he ain't drownded. Not knowing how to send word to the said father that the boy is on this ledge safe and sound, with us feeding him out of our rations so that the Government won't come short of provisions, I hereby, being of sound mind and disposition, make report to you that the said father ought to be hunted up by your honorable and respected Board, so that he may be able to know that his son ain't yet drownded.
"Your respectfully obedient servant to command,
"Ephraim Downs, Keeper of Carys' Ledge Light, and subscribed to by his assistants, Zenas Stubbs and Sammy Peters."P.S. The said boy arove so unexpectedly jest about daylight, that I have further to report that the lantern of Carys' Ledge Light didn't get cleaned till nigh on to nine o'clock on this same morning.
"Ephraim Downs, Keeper of Carys' Ledge Light."
"That's great, Cap'n Eph, jest great!" Uncle Zenas cried as the keeper ceased reading and looked at him scrutinizingly. "There's no mistake but what you've got a big head on you, for it would have taken me more'n a week to get up a report like that, an' then I shouldn't have thought of half the things you've said."
"I reckon it's up to the Board to find the West Wind now, eh?" and Captain Eph tried unsuccessfully to hide the expression of pride which had come to his face with the words of praise from the cook.
"Of course it is, Cap'n Eph, an' I allow Sonny's father ought'er be here mighty soon. Perhaps it would be a good idee if I did a bit more cookin', for I'd be ashamed to have him find us without enough for dinner in case you invited him to stop."
"There's no need of doin' very much cookin' before the letter has been sent away," Sidney cried with a laugh, for now that the report was written, it seemed to him much as if all his troubles had vanished.
"I reckon the lad is right, Uncle Zenas," the keeper said gravely, "though it won't do any harm to have a little somethin' extra on hand, in case he should get here before we expect him. I'll run out an' see what Sammy thinks of the report, an' then we'll put our heads together for the purpose of seein' how we can rig our little shaver up agin it comes a cold spell, which we've a right to expect as soon as this fog burns off."
"May I go with you, Captain?" Sidney asked eagerly.
"Of course you can, lad, though I'm allowin' that the best place for you is in bed. Well I declare! Makin' this 'ere report has kind'er turned me forgetful, an' I didn't realize that we counted on your sleepin' till this time to-morrow. When did you come down-stairs?"
"Only a few moments ago. My eyes opened so wide that I couldn't close them again, and it seemed better to have a look around, rather than stay in bed like a baby."
"Perhaps you're right, Sonny; but 'cordin' to the way I looked at it, you was needin' a deal of sleep. Come along, an' take care you don't slip on the ladder."
Captain Eph led the way out through the door in the side of the tower, moving slowly, and looking back over his shoulder at every step, until Sidney cried cheerily:
"Don't get worried about me, Captain, I've been on the West Wind long enough to get up and down a ladder like this without falling."
When the two arrived at that depression in the rocks on which the odd-looking boat-house had been built, they found Mr. Peters so deeply engrossed in his task that not until the keeper spoke was he aware of their approach, and then he said in a tone of triumph:
"I'll have that 'ere boat in shape before the end of the month! Only two strakes of the hull have been stove badly, an' we've got jest what's needed for new ones. The others want bracin', an' then they'll be as good as ever."
"Never mind about the boat now, Sammy. I want you to hear what I'm goin' to send to the inspector, so if there's anythin' you think needs changin', it may be done. Of course we can't mail it until some craft fetches to off the ledge; but there's no knowin' how soon that may happen, an' we can't afford to miss the first chance."
"Got the report done as soon as this, Cap'n Eph?" Mr. Peters asked in surprise.
"Of course I have, Sammy, else why would I be wantin' you to read it?"
"Does the boy know what's in it?"
"He was in the kitchen when I read it to Uncle Zenas."
"Well, go ahead. I reckon there ain't any such terrible great rush on this 'ere boat, an' besides, as first assistant of the light, it's my business to know what kind of a tale the keeper is sendin' to the inspector," and Mr. Peters seated himself on the sharp edge of a rock in token that he was prepared to listen; but Captain Eph said gravely before beginning to read:
"We had better have this thing understood at the start, Sammy. When you allowed that it was your business to hear whatever the keeper sent to the inspector, it was all wrong, because if I want to make a report privately, it ain't any concern of my assistants; but in this 'ere case I have made you an' Uncle Zenas a part of the doc'ment, so to speak, an' that's why I'm explainin' matters."
"I allow there's a good chance for an argument there, Cap'n Eph; but seem's how we're kind'er pressed for time, we'll let the matter drop a spell, an' take it up when there's nothin' else on hand, I mean about your havin' the right to make a report without my knowin' what's in it. Go ahead with the readin' an' then I'll explain how I count on fixin' up Sonny's boat."
Sidney, having already heard the statement of facts, had no desire to listen to a second reading; but took advantage of the opportunity to ascertain the extent of the damage done to the boat in which he had spent so many hours of suffering.
The motor was covered by the canvas which the keeper had thrown over it, and after this was removed, the mechanism appeared to be in as good condition as on that day when he and Mr. Sawyer set out from the West Wind to have a look at the wreckage.
Opening one of the lockers, he took therefrom a handful of cotton waste, and while Captain Eph alternately read and explained to his first assistant what he had written, Sidney cleaned the motor as the engineer of the schooner had taught him.
He was still busily engaged in this task when, the report having been read, Mr. Peters exclaimed in a tone of approval:
"Now I call that way up fine! If it don't stir the inspector a bit, he ain't the man I've always took him to be. When do you allow the lad's father ought to get here?"
"Wa'al, I can't say as to that, Sammy, seein's how we haven't had a chance to send the letter ashore yet, and even if that was done, I couldn't figure to any certainty on how long it would take to carry it to Porto Rico. Of course I ought to know all about that, seein's I've fished on the Banks, man and boy, for pretty nigh half my life; but yet I don't. Somehow I'm afraid I ain't up in geography as I ought'er be. Any way, the first part of the work is done, meanin' the makin' of the report, and now it stands us in hand to keep a bright lookout for a craft that can be hailed."
"When this 'ere fog lifts, I reckon we shall see fishermen enough," Mr. Peters replied as if sending a message to the mainland was something which could be readily done, and, apparently dismissing from his mind the report and the possible consequences of making it, he called the keeper's attention once more to the boat in which Sidney had come ashore.
Then it was that he became for the first time aware of what the lad was doing, and with that odd chuckle in which he sometimes indulged when it seemed as if he was choking, Mr. Peters whispered hoarsely in the ear of his superior officer:
"Will you look at that little shaver! I declare if he ain't takin' right hold of that motor as if he had been born in her! He's no common lad, Cap'n Eph, you mark my words!"
"You're right, Sammy, you're right, an' we'd good proof of that when he come in, for it ain't many grown men who could have held the course in the fog as he did. When it shut down so thick, I said to myself, says I, 'This is the last we shall see of the boat,' when lo and behold, in he sails as if it was clear weather. Stavin' the timbers was what you might call an accident, an' didn't come about through carelessness, so I allow that he put her in here as neatly as any sailorman could. But what about fixin' her up?"
Mr. Peters explained in detail how he believed the work might be performed with the limited material at hand, and Sidney listened to the conversation intently, for there was in his mind the belief that once the boat had been repaired, he might set out to find his father without awaiting the tardy movements of the letter.
Mr. Peters was no amateur at mending a boat, as both his mates were ready to testify, and when he had come to the end of his plans, Captain Eph said approvingly:
"You're right, Sammy, you're right, an' I don't see anything to hinder you goin' ahead jest as you've begun. It ain't very likely we could turn her to much account, even if she was in good condition; but we must have her ship-shape before the lad's father arrives, so begin work on her as soon as you please, and I'll lend a hand whenever it's needed."
Having thus received the sanction of his superior officer, Mr. Peters lost no time in beginning the task, and Sidney was forced to cover the motor with the canvas, because it would be impossible for both of them to work on the craft at the same time.
"I reckon you'll be wantin' to take a look at Carys' Ledge before you leave us?" Captain Eph said when the lad was at liberty. "An' seem's how its nigh to low water, you may not have a better chance, although I'm free to admit we haven't got much to show you. If you feel like crawlin' 'round over the rocks, come with me."
Sidney was not particularly eager to make a tour of the ledge, perhaps because it was not very interesting from whatever point you might view it; but it seemed as if he was in duty bound to accept the invitation, and the two set off across the brown, jagged boulders, on which, before the tower was built, so many good vessels had foundered.
When Captain Eph and the boy were at the extreme southern point of the ledge, looking back at the tower, Sidney asked in a tone of wonderment:
"How did they build the light-house on these rocks?"
"Well, I'll allow it was a pretty tough job; but nothing to be compared with what the Board has done in other places. Now I was reading, not a great while ago, in one of the books the inspector sends us, about their building a tower on a rock off the coast of Oregon called Tillamook. Putting one up here wasn't a marker alongside the trouble they had with that, because there wasn't many days in the summer when a full crew couldn't work here."
"And was Tillamook Rock worse than this ledge, sir?" Sidney asked.
"Why bless your heart, lad, Carys' Ledge ain't to be compared with it, 'cording to what I've read. It's just one big stone, so to speak, standin' high out of fifteen fathom of water, an' a full mile from the mainland. As I remember, it's located twenty miles south of the mouth of the Columbia River. It seems, 'cordin' to the printed story, that that 'ere rock was split in two, with a wide crack running east an' west, an' the top of it was about a hundred feet above the level of the sea. Nothin' larger than fifty foot square could be built on it, an' it was a mighty ticklish job for even sailormen to get a footin' there, even in the fairest of fair weather. Why, the foreman of the first crew that went off was drownded when the natives thereabouts allowed that the sea was calm. That put a damper, so to speak, on the work; but the Board was bound to have a light there, an' when they get their minds set on a thing, it's pretty sure to be brought about.
"If I remember rightly, it was sometime in October of 1879, when the steam tender landed four men with drills, hammers, and such like, to say nothing of provisions, fuel, a stove, an' some canvas for them to make a shanty of. There those poor, wretched creeters hung to the rock like starfish, not able to do much of anything more than keep themselves from tumbling off into the water. It was three days before they got five other men an' a small derrick on to that blessed rock, an' for near to two weeks they had nothin' to shelter them from the rain and the spray but that 'ere square of canvas they had carried out."
"I wonder it didn't blow away," Sidney said thoughtfully.
"Ay, so it would, lad, if their first work hadn't been to put ring-bolts in the rock, an' lash it down to them."
"Didn't they do anything all those two weeks, except cling to the rock, sir?"
"Oh, yes, they managed to chisel out a kind of a hole at one side where they could bolt some timbers to the solid foundation, an' cover them with canvas. That was enough to give 'em a place to crawl into when the sea ran too high; but look you, lad; I ain't certain that I'm tellin' this story straight, so supposin' we go back to the watch-room, an' I'll give it to you set down in print, the same as I read it, then there won't be any mistake."
It was not pleasant to be scrambling about on the ledge while the fog was yet so dense as to be very nearly like rain, and Sidney was well pleased to accede to the proposition.
When they were come to the watch-room Captain Eph gave to the lad the book in which the remainder of the story of Tillamook Rock light could be found, and Sidney read the following, as it had been written by Mr. Johnson, chief clerk of the Light-House Board:
"After setting up the main derrick and cutting a pathway up the face of the rock, they opened a bench around it by suspending the workmen on staging supported by bolts let into the rock's crest. The bench once formed, the reduction was pushed to the center. The outer surface of the rock was easily removed with moderate charges of black powder, but the nucleus was hard and firm, and giant powder was necessary to open the mass, when large charges of black powder acted satisfactorily.
"The working party, in spite of their rude, uncomfortable quarters, worked diligently through the winter with good results. But the work was much delayed by spells of weather so bad that little could be done. The coast was visited by a tornado in January, which caused the waves, reflected from the rock, to be carried by the wind over its crest, so that for many days continuously the receding floods poured over the eastern slope, making work impossible.
"On one such day this cataract carried away the supply-house, and even endangered the quarters of the working party. For more than two weeks at this time it was impossible for the steam-tender which supplied their wants to cross the bar at the mouth of the Columbia River to go to their assistance; when, after sixteen days, communication was reopened, the party was found to be safe, but much in want of fresh provisions. These were supplied by an endless line running between the mast of the supply-vessel and a ring-bolt driven into the top of the rock, in water-tight casks suspended from a traveler by slings, which was made to move along the line.
"In May the top of the rock was leveled and a foundation made about 88 feet above the sea, and, on the 31st, three masons, four derricks, a small engine, and the appliances for laying the masonry, were landed. The stone, a fine grained, compact basalt, quarried near Portland and cut to dimensions by contract, was delivered at Astoria and shipped to the rock on the tender. The first cargo was landed on June 17; on the 22nd the corner-stone was laid, and then the rest of the material was shipped to the rock as the weather permitted.
"The light is forty-eight feet above the base of the tower and 136 feet above sea-level. It was shown for the first time on February 1, 1881. If it had been finished a month earlier it would possibly have saved the English iron bark Lupata of 1,039 tons burden, which was dashed to pieces on the main shore, not a mile from the light-house, with a loss of the vessel, its freight, and every one of the twenty persons on board. The bark came so near the rock that the creaking of the blocks and the voices of the officers giving orders were distinctly heard, but the night was so dark that nothing could be seen except her lights. The superintendent of construction had a bon-fire built on the rock as soon as possible, but the vessel was probably lost before the signal could be seen. It was on this night that the working party lost their supply-house and came so near losing their quarters, if not their lives."
"Of course I have seen a good many light-houses," Sidney said as he finished reading that which has been set down; "but I never understood before how much labor must be done, and how many dangers met before the lamps can be in position to point out the way to sailors."
"There's a good deal to this business that those ashore don't give heed to," Captain Eph replied. "After the lamps are ready for lightin' there must be men hired to take care of 'em, an' if you'll look a bit further back in that book, you'll see that the Board don't pick up anybody as keeper who is loafin' around out of a job."
The old man turned the leaves until having found the matter to which he referred, and then said as if announcing some important discovery:
"Jest read that 'ere, an' then you'll know more about the kind of men who have charge of lights in this country than you ever did before," and Sidney read aloud:
"The class of men from whom keepers are selected is so good that the punishment of dismissal is infrequently inflicted. But it follows swiftly in two cases. A keeper found intoxicated is not only summarily dismissed the service, but he is instantly ejected from the station; and a keeper who allows his light to go out is dismissed without regard to his excuse or his previous good conduct.
"The Board considers it the duty of every light keeper to stand by his light as long as the light-house stands, and that for him to desert it when in danger is as cowardly as for a soldier to leave his guns on the advance of an enemy.
"His failure to keep his light burning, especially in time of danger, may cause the wreck of vessels looking for it, and result in the loss of much property and many lives.
"Keepers are trained to consider the care of the light and the light-house property their paramount duty, beyond any personal consideration; and the esprit de corps is such that instances have happened where the keepers on duty have, as in the case of the first light on Minot's Ledge, gone down with their light-house and died at their post; others, where the keeper has saved his lens, letting his family shift for themselves; and there are repeated instances where the keeper has saved his light-house property and lost his own.
"An instance of heroism is that of the keepers of Sharp's Island light-house, in Chesapeake Bay. It was lifted from its foundations, thrown over on its side, and carried away by ice early in February, 1881. The keeper and his assistant clung to the fallen house, and, although one of their boats remained uninjured, they were adrift in the bay sixteen and a half hours without fire or food, always in imminent danger, as the heavy floating ice often piled up against and threatened to swamp the house. It grounded, however, on an island shortly after midnight, at high tide, and was full of water.
"Being satisfied that it would not float off again, the two keepers went ashore in their boat, and when the tide had fallen they returned, saved and took to the shore the lens, its pedestal, the oil, and library, much damaged by water, and even the empty oilcans, and then reported the facts through their inspector to the Board.
"Meantime the keepers of another light-house, fearing the ice, had deserted their post, and gone on shore. The fact that no vessels could have needed their lights while the ice remained unbroken, and that they returned to their post when the danger had passed, did not avail them. So soon as the fact of their desertion was determined they were dismissed the service, and the two keepers who had spent those terrible hours afloat in Sharp's Island light-house, and then saved its apparatus, were highly complimented by a letter direct from the Board itself, and then were appointed to the deserters' places.
"The appointment of light-house keepers is restricted to persons between the ages of eighteen and fifty, who can read, write, and keep accounts, are able to do the requisite manual labor, to pull and sail a boat, and have enough mechanical ability to make the necessary minor repairs about the premises, and keep them painted, whitewashed, and in order. After three months of service, the appointee is examined by an inspector, who, if he finds that he has the qualities needed at that especial station, certifies that fact to the Light-House Board, when, upon its approval, the full appointment is issued by the Treasury Department.
"Although but one grade of keeper is recognized by law, usage has divided keepers into a number of grades, with different pay as well as different duties, and with promotion running through the various grades. At one light-house there may be but one keeper; at another, a principal keeper and an assistant; and there is a station where there is a principal keeper with four assistants, the fourth having the lowest grade and the lowest pay, and the others having been appointed at that grade, and promoted as merit was shown and vacancies occurred; or they may have been transferred and promoted from another station.
"Although persons are appointed to the service and assigned to a given station, they are frequently transferred from one station to another, as the interest of the service may demand, and while it is usual to consult a keeper's wishes in his assignments, there is nothing in the regulations to prevent the transfer of a man appointed in Maine to a station in Georgia; and occasionally keepers are, with their own consent, transferred from one district to another at a great distance. Young men who have seen some sea service are preferred as assistants at the larger stations; and at stations requiring but one keeper, retired sea captains or mates who have families are frequently selected.
"Keepers are forbidden to engage in any business which can interfere with their presence at their stations, or with the proper and timely performance of their light-house duties; but it is no unusual thing to find a keeper working at his station as a shoemaker, tailor, or in some similar capacity, and there are light keepers who fill a neighboring pulpit, who hold commissions as justice of the peace, and there are still others who do duty as school teachers without neglecting their light-houses.
"The Board has done much to make keepers comfortable. They are furnished with quarters for themselves, and in certain cases for their families, and when so far distant from market as to make its carriage equal or exceed its cost, with fuel and rations. Suitable boats are furnished stations inaccessible by land; and at those stations on shore, distant from markets, barns are built for their cattle and horses. Something also has been done for the intellectual needs of the keepers and their families by supplying them with libraries. These are arranged in cases so constructed that they make rather a neat appearance when set upright on a table, and they need only to be closed and locked to be ready for transportation. They contain on an average about fifty volumes each. One of these libraries is left at a station for some three months, when it is exchanged and passed on to another station. This is usually done when the inspector makes his quarterly inspection; so each of the stations to which libraries are furnished sees some two hundred different books each year."
"Now you can see that we keepers must have some backbone to us, else we couldn't get the appointment, or, getting one, wouldn't hold it very long," Captain Eph said in a tone of satisfaction when Sidney ceased reading, and the lad, at a loss for reply to such a remark, asked:
"Are you all sailormen here?"
"Ay, lad, an' have all been soldiers—there's no need of tellin' you that much in Sammy's case. I've been cap'n of a fisherman nigh to ten years, an' my last cruise Uncle Zenas sailed with me as cook, while Sammy gave an imitation of bein' mate. We went inter the army together, an' have grown up amongst each other, so to speak, till we're jest like three Siamese twins. You won't ever hear any yippin' or scoldin' from us, for——"
"Ahoy there!" came in angry tones from the kitchen. "Are you goin' to let a good dinner go to waste jest because you're too lazy to come down an' eat it? I don't count on keepin' the table set a great while longer, for I want things kind'er ship-shape in case Sonny's father should tumble in on us unexpected-like!"
"That's Uncle Zenas," Captain Eph said in a whisper. "You might think, to hear him howl, that he'd lost his temper; but bless you, lad, he's as mild as a suckin' dove."
"I suppose we ought to go down as soon as we can," Sidney suggested timidly, "for even if he is mild, it sounds as if he was growing angry every minute."
Uncle Zenas was shouting to Mr. Peters, speaking more sharply than he had to the keeper, and Captain Eph said with a feeble attempt at a smile:
"I reckon we'll mosey along, lad, jest to keep him from worryin'," and the cook's superior officer made all haste to gain the kitchen, Sidney following close at his heels.
If Uncle Zenas had really lost his temper because the keeper and first assistant had not answered the summons to dinner as quickly as he thought they should have done, there was no trace of anger on his fat, placid face when Captain Eph and Sidney entered the kitchen.
Mr. Peters had moved so rapidly after the cook called, that he was already at the table, apparently ready to make a vigorous attack on the food before him; but waiting for Captain Eph to ask a blessing upon the food, as was the regular custom.
As a rule the old keeper's words were few at such a time, but on this day he prayed at considerable length that the lad who had so suddenly come among them be kept from sin and bodily harm, and that the father's mind be relieved speedily from the burden of grief which weighted it.
During the unusually long prayer Mr. Peters had been moving uneasily in his chair, and no sooner was the last word spoken than he asked abruptly:
"Have we got any gasolene among the stores, Captain Eph?"
"If Uncle Zenas hasn't wasted it there should be a couple of gallons left over from the last lot I bought with our own money. It does seem strange that the Board can't be brought around to the belief that it's cheaper to use an oil stove in the summer, than be messin' with coal, which is unhandy to get into the tower, an' bad stowin' in sich small quarters as ours. Why did you ask, Sammy?"
"I was thinkin' that if we didn't speak some kind of a craft pretty soon, an' I got the lad's boat into trim, he an' I might run over to town. The way I look at it, we're bound to get that report into the inspector's hands right away, else the West Wind may have gone to Porto Rico an' back before word can be sent to her captain."
"I ain't so certain but that might be a bit risky," Captain Eph said thoughtfully. "If we could leave Sonny behind, where there's no chance of his comin' to harm, it would be all right; but neither of us know how to run the motor."
"If we picked a fine day, it ought'er be done without risk to anybody, for I'm allowin' the craft could make the round trip in four hours, an' give us time to run up to the post-office," Mr. Peters replied eagerly, and it could readily be understood that he had already arranged the details in his own mind.
"How long will it take you to put the boat in shape, Sammy?" Uncle Zenas asked, after waiting in vain for some word from the keeper.
"If the weather holds as it is now, I can have her in prime condition day after to-morrow. Think you could run her a dozen miles or more, lad?" he asked of Sidney, and the latter replied without hesitation:
"Surely I could! The motor hasn't been hurt any, and it was working all right when I came in here."
"Then this is the way I look at the sitewation, Captain Eph," the first assistant began, waving his knife in the air as if to attract attention. "This 'ere fog mull may hang on for a week or ten days, an' since I've been on the ledge I've known the smother to last a full two weeks without liftin' enough to show a man the end of his own nose. It stands to reason we can't hail any craft that we ain't able to see."
"Are you crazy enough to drag that 'ere little shaver off in a boat while the weather is like this?" Captain Eph asked sternly. "If we had a fog-horn or even a bell, it would be a bit different; but as it is I wouldn't care to make a try at it."
"Of course I'm not quite so wild as that. Allowin' that we don't hail anything before the fog lifts, an' there ain't much chance we will. Then say there's nothin' in sight when the smother blows off? Wouldn't it be better to strike out for the post-office, instead of waitin' on the chance of sightin' a fisherman?"
"I'm bound, as a truthful man, to say you've got the right of it, Sammy," Captain Eph replied; "but I'm wonderin' whether we're warranted in sendin' the lad on sich a voyage."
"If Mr. Peters went with me, sir, it doesn't seem as if there would be any great danger," Sidney suggested, and after a long pause the keeper announced his decision.
"Keep right at work on the boat, Sammy, an' if she's in good condition when the fog lifts, we'll argue the matter a little; but I ain't willin' to agree off hand that it shall be done."
The first assistant appeared to be satisfied with this questionable promise. He at once began to explain in detail how he proposed to perform the necessary labor on the motor boat, and where it would be possible to get the needed materials.
Sidney listened intently until Mr. Peters had exhausted the subject, and then he asked timidly of the keeper:
"Did you say, sir, that you hadn't any fog signal?"
"Ay, lad, them was my very words. You've been over pretty much the whole of this 'ere ledge, an' I reckon you didn't see anything that looked like one, eh?"
"No, sir; but when I came in here, before seeing the tower, I heard what I thought was a fog signal, and it has been going ever since."
"True for you, my lad, but what you heard, an' are hearin' now, is the whistlin' buoy, anchored off here a couple of miles to the east'ard, an' I reckon you're enough of a sailor to know what sich things are."
"I've heard them often; but never knew how the noise could be got out of a buoy which had no person to attend it."
"When you have the time there's nothin' to hinder your readin' what the Board says about whistlin' buoys; but I won't promise that you'll be any the wiser after doin' it, for in all these years I haven't been able to get it through my head, though I've figgered out a gen'ral idee of how she works. The top of the buoy is shaped a good deal like a pear, an' measures about twelve feet across the widest part. Inside the upper part, an' runnin' down into the sea to a depth of thirty-two feet, is an iron pipe thirty-three inches across it. Right at the very top of the pipe, an' showin' above the whole thing, is a 10-inch locomotive whistle, connected with some little tubes, which the inspector says make a piston-and cylinder movement, whatever that may be.
"Of course these 'ere buoys are anchored in deep water, an' it stands to reason that they rise an' fall on the waves, consequently the water inside the big pipe pumps up an' down, compressin' the air till it jest nat'rally has to escape through the whistle, makin' the noise. The whole thing was invented by a man named Courtenay, an' I'm bound to say he must have had a big head on his shoulders to think out sich a contrivance. It may be, lad, that you'll understand it better by readin' from the report; but I can't tackle the big words, an' don't know a piston or an apex from the Queen of Sheba, consequently it don't do me any great amount of good to puzzle over 'em.
"The Government has got eighty-eight whistling buoys in position, an' every blessed one of 'em cost nigh to eleven hundred dollars. Then there are one hundred an' thirty-nine bell-buoys which cost three hundred dollars apiece, an' five thousand one hundred an' eighty-three other buoys costin' different prices, so you see, lad, that outside the light-house part of the service, it takes a big pile of money to buy buoys an' keep 'em in position."
"An' that's only one little end of the expense," Uncle Zenas added in a tone of solemnity. "When you come to figger up the whole business it'll be easy to see how much responsibility we of Carys' Ledge carry on our shoulders, which reminds me that it's time you folks got up from the table an' let me have a chance to put the kitchen to rights."
"And I'll help you to do it!" Sidney cried gleefully, for it pleased him to have an opportunity of assisting those who had been so kind to him.
"You needn't raise a finger, lad," the cook replied quickly, and he added with a glance at his comrades, "I must say, though, that this is the first time in all the years I've served as second assistant of this 'ere light, that anybody has offered to lend a hand, no matter how much work there was to be done."
Captain Eph peered through the window much as though it was in the highest degree necessary he should gaze out upon the fog just at that moment, and Mr. Peters scuttled down the ladder to his work of boat-repairing, as if the moments had suddenly become very precious.
Despite Uncle Zenas' protests, Sidney did his full share toward putting the kitchen to rights, and when that had been done he began to realize that he needed yet more sleep.
"Gettin' sand in your eyes, eh?" Captain Eph asked with a laugh, as he noted the expression on the boy's face. "Wa'al, I kind'er allowed you'd find out before a great while that you hadn't staid in bed long enough, an' now, seem's you've put in a tolerable hearty dinner, I'd recommend that you turn in for the night."
"But it is only noon," Sidney protested feebly.
"It wouldn't make any difference if it was only sunrise, for you need a heap more sleep than you've had, an' it'll do you a world of good to snooze from now till mornin'. Stay in bed even if your eyes are wide open, an' you'll feel the better for it to-morrow."
"Ain't it about time that you made up your mind where the lad is to sleep?" Uncle Zenas asked, and Captain Eph replied as if astonished because such a question had been asked:
"He's to have my bed, of course; where else should he sleep?"
"But what are you to do?"
"There are two beds for three of us, an' one is on watch all the time, so there's no call for much figgerin'."
"A blanket on the floor will be enough for me," Sidney cried, distressed at the idea of depriving the keeper of his bed; but Captain Eph said in a tone of authority:
"You must leave me to run this 'ere light, lad, 'cordin' to my own idees, seein's how the Government put me in charge, an' I say that you're to use my room so long as you stay with us."
Then the keeper led the way up-stairs, and Sidney could do no less than follow him. Ten minutes later the visitor was sleeping soundly, and Uncle Eph was creeping softly down the iron ladder to insist that the first assistant cease work on the boat temporarily, lest he disturb the tired lad.
"I'll have to stop if you say so, Cap'n, for you're the boss here; but it does seem as if I might keep putterin' 'round so long as I don't use hammer or axe," Mr. Peters said pleadingly. "This 'ere work is mighty important if we count on gettin' word to the lad's father."
"You mustn't take any chances of wakenin' him, Sammy," the keeper said impressively. "I'm allowin' that the chief thing is to get him inter shape, an' sleep is what he needs, so put up your tools an' come inter the kitchen, where we'll have a friendly smoke."
Mr. Peters obeyed, because he did not really dare to do otherwise, knowing from past experience that the keeper was jealous of his authority, and soon the three were sitting in Uncle Zenas' quarters, conversing in whispers lest Sidney's slumbers be disturbed, as they smoked their pipes in peaceful content.
It was Uncle Zenas who first broke the silence by saying:
"I allow it'll be a couple of weeks at the best, before the lad can hear from his father, even if you should send that 'ere report to the inspector this very day."
"Yes, it'll be all of that," Captain Eph replied thoughtfully.
"An' at this season of the year we're likely to have a cold spell any time," the cook continued, and Mr. Peters cried impatiently:
"We all know that, Uncle Zenas. If there's anything you want'er say, why not come right out with it, instead of beatin' clean around the bush?"
"I was thinkin' of that little shaver up-stairs. He ain't rigged to stand very much cold weather, an' he's so terribly small that he'd get lost in one of our coats, yet he's got to have somethin' of the kind."
"I declare I'd never thought of that, Uncle Zenas, an' yet you're in the right," Captain Eph exclaimed. "But what's to be done about it?"
"I was thinkin' if you'd let me have that uniform coat of your'n which you've outgrowed, I'd cut it down to fit him," the cook replied modestly, for it was well known that, as Mr. Peters often expressed it, "he was a master hand with a needle."
"You can have anything I've got, Uncle Zenas, if it's to be used for that lad. I don't understand why it is; but the little shaver has got inter my heart mighty deep, even though he's only been here since daylight," and the keeper gazed out into the fog as if he saw there a picture of a "little shaver" who called him "father" many, many years ago, but who now, with his mother, awaited the old man on the shores of that golden river which neither pain, nor sorrow, nor sin can cross.
"S'posen you go after it. I can be rippin' the seams apart while we're smokin'."
Captain Eph went softly up the ladder, tip-toeing his way across the floor of the chamber so softly that those in the kitchen below failed to detect the slightest sound, and when he returned he held in his hand a very respectable looking uniform coat.
"But that's your second-best!" Uncle Zenas exclaimed.
"Yes, yes, don't you allow I've got sense enough to know it? The other is worn so bad it wouldn't pay to make over, an', besides, I've been thinkin' of gettin' a new one, so you'd better take this."
A certain moisture in the old keeper's eyes prevented the cook from making any comment on what seemed like the sacrifice of a good garment, as he set about ripping it apart, and once more Mr. Peters detailed his plans for repairing the motor boat, insisting every now and then that there was no reason why he should not be at work upon it, instead of idling the time away.
When it was time for him to make ready the evening meal, Uncle Zenas went to and fro softly, taking especial care that there should be no clattering of dishes, and a quarter of an hour before sunset Captain Eph and Mr. Peters crept like mice up the stairs to the lantern, without disturbing Sidney's slumbers.
It was a rule which the keeper and his assistants had themselves made, that Uncle Zenas should go on watch immediately after supper, to be relieved by Mr. Peters at eleven o'clock, with Captain Eph to do duty from three in the morning until sunrise; therefore as soon as the evening meal had been eaten and the kitchen put to rights, the cook ascended to the watch-room.
Mr. Peters went to bed immediately that he might be ready and fit for duty at the regular time; but Captain Eph remained a full half hour in his own room watching the sleeping lad, before he lay down on the cook's bed.
It was yet an hour before sunrise next morning, and Captain Eph was poring over the "rules and regulations" as he had done every night for many years, when he heard a slight rustling of garments at the head of the ladder, and, looking around in surprise, saw Sidney, who stood as if asking permission to remain.
"What are you doin' out of bed at this time in the mornin', Sonny?" Captain Eph asked in what he intended should be a sharp tone, and Sidney replied:
"I have been wide awake for an hour, sir, and thought perhaps you would be willing for me to sit here with you. I've slept since noon, and a fellow can't stay in bed all the time, no matter how tired he may have been."
"So you concluded to come on watch, eh?"
"Why couldn't I?" the lad cried excitedly. "Even though I don't know anything about the light, I've surely got sense enough to call one of the crew if anything went wrong."
"There's no question in my mind but that you could take the trick all right; but I've got so in the habit of gettin' up at three o'clock in the mornin' that I couldn't sleep after that time, no matter how hard I might try. Sit ye down, lad, an' tell me what you think of Carys' Ledge light."
"Of course I don't know anything about other light-houses, sir; but I'm certain there isn't a nicer crew anywhere on the coast, than can be found right here," and Sidney laid his hand on the old man's shoulder with something very like a caress.
Captain Eph looked toward the trap-door as if to make certain neither of his mates were astir, and then, lifting the little lad on his knee, he rocked him to and fro as one would a baby, crooning a bit of an old sea song, until Sidney almost believed the old sailor was crying.
Until day broke, dark and forbidding because of the fog which enveloped the tower until it was impossible to get even a glimpse of the ocean, Captain Eph held the lad on his knee while he spun the wildest and weirdest of sea yarns, and when the time came to extinguish the lights, Sidney detained the old keeper long enough to ask if he might be allowed to stand watch with him while he remained on Carys' Ledge.
"Indeed you may, Sonny, if so be you don't come to believe that it's more comfortable in bed, an' I'll show you how to care for the lens. Sammy shall snooze as long as he likes this mornin', an' we two will put the lantern in proper shape."
Nothing, except an opportunity to see his father, could have given Sidney more pleasure than this permission, and eagerly did he follow Captain Eph up the narrow ladder, wondering not a little why the old man took with him the book of instructions to light-keepers.
"It lacks nigh to ten minutes of sunrise," Captain Eph said as he consulted his watch after they were in the lantern, "an' if it so be you're goin' to stand watch with me, it's time you knew somethin' about the rules. Here's number 123: 'Lights must be lighted punctually at sunset, and must be kept burning at full intensity until sunrise.' Do you get it, Sonny?"
"I should be able to remember that much," Sidney replied with a laugh.
"Then here's rule 124: 'All preparations must be made early, that there may be no delay in lighting.'"
"I can keep that in mind and not half try, Captain Eph."
"Number 125 is longer; but it ain't hard to catch the general idee of it. 'When the light is extinguished in the morning the keeper must hang the lantern curtains and immediately begin to put the apparatus in order for relighting. While doing this the linen aprons provided for the keeper's use must be worn, that the lens may not suffer from contact with the wearing apparel. The illuminating apparatus must be carefully covered before the cleaning is begun.' Now here's Sammy's apron for you, an' this one is mine," Captain Eph said, as he took the articles in question from a locker, and showed Sidney how to put one on. "These 'ere are the lantern curtains which we'll hang up at sunrise."
It was quite like a game, Sidney thought, and he was in high glee by the time Captain Eph was ready to read his rule 126.
"Here she is, an' there's a good bit of meanin' to it, lad. 'The lens and the glass of the lantern must be cleaned daily and always kept in the best possible condition. Before beginning to clean the lens it must be brushed with the feather brush to remove all dust. It must then be wiped with a soft linen cloth, and finally polished with buff-skin. If there is oil or grease on any part, it must be taken off with a linen cloth, moistened with spirits of wine, and then polished with a buff-skin. Under no circumstances must a skin which has been wet or damp be used, as this will scratch the lens.'"
"The Board seems to be mighty particular about how the work shall be done," Sidney said with a laugh, and Captain Eph replied:
"If they wasn't we shouldn't have sich lights in this country as we have got. I ain't claimin' that we're the only nation on the face of the earth who knows how to light a coast; but I will say, an' I've heard the same from masters of foreign vessels, that we do the thing up brown regardless of expense. Listen to rule 127, an' than I reckon it'll be time to turn off the light: 'To clean reflectors, first dust them and then rub with a buff-skin, lightly dusted with rouge powder, kept in a small double bag of muslin; then rub lightly with another skin, and finally with a third, which should be passed over the reflector in a light, quick manner with a circular motion. Leakage of gas from the pipe of the stove used in the watch-room should be carefully guarded against, as this gas will badly tarnish a reflector.' Now we'll turn off the light, stop the clock, an' get to work," and Captain Eph suited the motions to the words.
Sidney stood ready with the lantern curtains until the keeper should show him how they ought to be hung, for he had come to believe there was a rule for the most trifling labor, when an exclamation of surprise caused him to turn toward the door in the floor, and he saw the head and shoulders of Mr. Peters, who was surveying the scene with a comical expression on his face.
"Have I lost my job?" he cried with a laugh, and Captain Eph replied grimly:
"You've always been complainin' that you couldn't get sleep enough in this 'ere light-house, Sammy, an' I thought now was a good time to give you your fill."
"I only wish I'd knowed it, 'cause the bed was good enough for me till breakfast time," Mr. Peters said ruefully, and Sidney asked:
"Must I give up your apron, sir?"
"Bless you, no, lad, we've got spare ones in the locker, an' I'll take one of them, for I reckon Cap'n Eph will want me to do my share of the work so long as I stay on the ledge."
Then the keepers set about cleaning the apparatus in good earnest, and Sidney was able to lend a hand now and then with such effect that the morning's task was completed before Uncle Zenas' voice could be heard from below as he cried:
"Are you men never comin' down to breakfast? What's the use of slavin' my head off, if you're goin' to hang 'round up there till everything gets cold? It would try the temper of a saint to cook for a crew like you!"
"Now, now, Uncle Zenas, there's no need of wastin' so much breath, for we were all ready to come down before you spoke the first word, an' I'm afraid you'll never know what the temper of a saint may be," Captain Eph replied mildly as he led the way down the ladder, and when the three were in the kitchen the cook asked:
"How many of you are goin' to work on the boat to-day?"
"That's Sammy's job, an' I reckon we'd better not interfere with him, for he always works harder when he's alone."
"Then what's to hinder your gettin' a mess of fish for dinner? We've eaten salt meat so long that I'm afraid of drownin' myself through drinkin' so much water."
"You shall have all the fish you can cook, Uncle Zenas," Captain Eph replied, and, turning to Sidney, he asked, "Would you like to go out for a spell, Sonny? There ain't much sport to deep-sea fishin'; but it's a change after a man has hung 'round this 'ere ledge in a fog-storm."
It is hardly necessary to state that the lad accepted the invitation eagerly, and before he took his place at the table Uncle Zenas brought out his own oil-skins for the lad to wear, saying as he did so:
"This 'ere fog is about the same as rain, an' if the fish bite well Cap'n Eph is likely to stay a long spell, for it seems to me he reg'larly loses his head as soon as he gets a cod-line in his hand."
Although Sidney had been on the ledge but little more than twenty-four hours, and a goodly portion of this time had been spent in sleeping, he was already beginning to feel that sense of imprisonment which comes to those who, for the first time, are confined to any limited space, and the idea of being afloat once more was very pleasing.
"Are you going out fishing with us, Mr. Peters?" he asked when the meal was nearly at an end, and the first assistant replied promptly:
"Not a bit of it, lad. I reckon if one of this 'ere crew fools away a forenoon, it's about as much nonsense as is allowed by the rules an' regerlations. I'll keep to work on your boat, an' do my best to get her inter shape before an easterly gale puts an end to the job."
"It doesn't seem like nonsense, sir, to go after fish when you need them for food," Sidney suggested timidly, and Mr. Peters replied, with an accusing glance at Captain Eph:
"If that was all you counted on, it might look different to a hard-workin' man like me; but the keeper of this 'ere light never goes fishin' till he's hankerin' for what he calls sport, an' the food part of it is only an excuse for idlin'."
"Watch close when we get back with a good fare of cod, Sonny, an' you'll see Sammy put himself outside of four or five pounds jest as quick as if they'd been caught by right hard work that had no sport in it."
"Of course I'll eat the fish when they are caught," Mr. Peters exclaimed indignantly. "Do you suppose I'm that wasteful to let fresh cod spoil? I haven't got anything agin folks goin' fishin', only when you come to thinkin' that as soon as a storm springs up we'll be shut off from workin' on the motor boat, it seems a good deal like wastin' time, since we ain't really dyin' for need of that kind of food."
"Well, well, Sammy," Captain Eph said soothingly, "I allow that as much work will be done by you alone, as if all hands of us turned to and lent a hand, for you'd be desperately sorry if Uncle Zenas or I insisted on drivin' a single nail."
Then the keeper descended the ladder leading from the kitchen to the rocks, and Sidney would have followed immediately, but that Uncle Zenas insisted on dressing him in a suit of oil-skins before he went outside.
A comical appearance did the lad present when he was clad in oiled garments which had been made for the cook. It was necessary to turn back the sleeves of the coat until he had around his wrists huge rolls of the stiff fabric, causing Mr. Peters to remark that in case they "needed fenders for the boat it would only be necessary for Sonny to let his arms hang over the rail." The legs of the trousers were treated in the same manner as the sleeves, and when he was fully clad, the skirt of the coat dragged on the ground, while the waistband of the trousers was fastened under his arms.
"I don't know whether I could catch fish, even if I was properly dressed for it," Sidney said with a laugh as Uncle Zenas folded the coat around him, using a piece of rope as a belt; "but no matter how sharply they bite, it wouldn't be possible for me to pull one in while I am rigged up in this fashion."
"Better never catch a fish, than catch a cold," Uncle Zenas said soothingly. "This 'ere fog will wet a man through almost as soon as rain, an' you're likely to be out in the boat three or four hours, for Captain Eph always counts on goin' to the shoal near the whistlin' buoy, and that means a long pull from here."
By the time Sidney was ready for the voyage Captain Eph had launched the light-house boat until she rested on the foot of the ways, with her stern just touching the water, and when the lad came up the keeper tossed him gently into the boat, jumping in after him as he shoved her off into the little cove.
"Sit right here in the stern-sheets, for I allow you wouldn't cut any very great figure at handlin' such oars as we use, seein's how they are much too heavy an' too long for your short arms."
"Can't I steer, Captain Eph?"
"I don't reckon you'd do yourself very proud by tryin' anything of the kind, Sonny. In this 'ere smother it's a case of goin' by ear, an' I'll pull up to the sound of the whistle, so make yourself comfortable in the stern-sheets. The line you see there I laid out for you, an' it wouldn't be a bad idee, if you want to be at work on somethin', to overhaul it. The bait is in this 'ere can amidships."
Then Captain Eph settled down to the oars, pulling with a long, steady stroke that sent the light dory ahead at a smart rate of speed, and Sidney, who had never been in such a craft before, was surprised to find how buoyantly she rode the waves.
"Yes, a dory knocks a keel-boat all to pieces in a sea-way," Captain Eph replied when the lad spoke of their craft. "Providin' you can keep her head to the wind, she'll live through a gale that would swamp an ordinary schooner."
Then the keeper began questioning the lad regarding his past, and before they were come to the fishing grounds, Sidney had told all the story of his short life.
"I reckon we'll anchor, for we're in the shoalest part of the water," Captain Eph said, as if it had been possible for him to see distinctly, instead of being enveloped in dense fog as they were, and a moment later, when the dory had come up on the cable, he announced that they were directly over the shoal.
"I don't understand how you could find just this spot when it's impossible to see anything," Sidney said wonderingly, and Captain Eph replied in a tone of satisfaction:
"I reckon comin' out from the ledge has become what you might call second nature with me, seein's how I've been knockin' about here so long; but there ain't anything very astonishin' in findin' a shoal that stands close by a buoy, for a man's ears ought to be as good as his eyes. Howsomever, we're here, an' now it's our business to catch as many fish as we can. I'll bait your hook, Sonny, an' you're to let it down until you feel that the lead strikes bottom, then pull her up four or five feet an' wait till you get a good, strong jerk. After that it's a case of landin' your fish, or losin' it, cordin' to the amount of common sense you bring into play."
In less than five minutes Sidney had caught his first fish, and as he hauled it over the rail after considerable labor, during which Captain Eph watched him keenly, but without giving any advice, he decided that deep-sea fishing went ahead of any sport in which he had ever indulged.
"You're a born fisherman, an' no mistake, Sonny," Captain Eph said as he took the fish from the hook, and put on fresh bait. "Uncle Zenas couldn't have done any better, an' he kind'er prides himself on bein' a master hand at handlin' a hook. You've taken the first fish, an' I'm lookin' to see you come out high-line on this 'ere voyage."
After this, but little conversation was indulged in during the half hour which followed. The fish bit well, and it seemed to Sidney that they had taken all the light-house crew could eat in a month, when he saw Captain Eph raise his head suddenly as he peered into the fog.
"What is it?" he asked.
"Don't you hear anythin,' Sonny?"
"If you mean that pounding, I've been hearing it quite a while, and it sounds louder every minute."
"It's the paddle-wheel of a steamer, lad, an' what a craft of that kind is doin' 'round here beats me. She's comin' straight for us, countin' to leave the buoy to starboard, I reckon, an' if we only had my report here, what a great chance this would be to send it ashore!"
Now that he knew the cause of the thud-thud-thud which came across the waters, Sidney wondered why he had been so dull in recognizing it. He had often heard similar sounds when on the deck of his father's vessel, but then they were not so distinct or threatening as now, when he was nearer the surface of the sea.
He had been hoping it might be possible for him to catch more fish than did his companion, and he gave all his attention to the line once more, until he noted the fact that an expression of anxiety had come over the keeper's face.
"Is anything gone wrong, sir?" he asked with mild curiosity.
"I wish I knew, Sonny, an' that's a fact. I can't make out why a side-wheel steamer should be comin' so near the ledge, an' then agin, why don't she shift her course? It ain't as if they couldn't hear the whistle."
Even then Sidney failed to understand that they might be in any danger, until Captain Eph began shouting at the full strength of his lungs as he hauled up the anchor hurriedly, and again the lad asked:
"Is there any danger, sir?"
"I can't make out why the idjuts don't shift their course! Unless they take a turn at the wheel mighty soon, they'll not only run us down, but stand a precious good show of pilin' up high an' dry on Carys' Ledge! Sing out, Sonny, an' make all the noise you can!"
Sidney obeyed instantly, for now the churning noise sounded so near at hand that he almost began to believe he could distinguish the bow of the steamer amid the thick gray mist, and both he and Captain Eph screamed at the full force of their lungs, the keeper shouting now and then:
"Port! Port your hel'um, or you'll be on the ledge!"
Nearer and nearer the noise came until it seemed as if the stranger was directly upon them, and Captain Eph had thrown off his coat and boots ready for the worst, when there was an answering toot from the steam whistle.
"Port! Port, you lubbers! You're close afoul of Carys' Ledge!"
Another answer from the whistle, and the bow of the recklessly-steered craft came from out the fog not thirty feet away, while Captain Eph sprang to the oars, pulling the little dory for dear life out of the track of the steamer.
He worked with a will, and as the huge hull passed, disappearing almost immediately in the vapor, the dory was hardly more than ten yards from the mighty paddles, which would, despite the fact that the course had been shifted, have crushed the little boat into splinters, but for the old keeper's exertions.
"You lubbers!" Captain Eph screamed as he leaped to his feet and shook his fist in the direction where the steamer had disappeared. "Get a scow the next time you go out sailin', for you ain't fit to run anything that goes by steam!"
It is not probable the words were heard by those on the wildly steered craft; but the speaking of them seemed to do the old keeper a world of good, although he was very nearly thrown over-board by the violent tossing of the dory on the swell raised by the wheels.
"I've been knockin' about at sea, man an' boy, pretty much all my life, except for the spell I was in the army, an' that's the closest shave I ever had!" Captain Eph cried as he pulled in the oars to wipe the perspiration from his face. "We jest squeaked out of it, an' that's about all you can say, holdin' to the truth!"
"Did you make out what steamer it was?" Sidney asked, raising the question not so much because he was eager for information, as to hide the terror which he feared might be read on his face.