Otis James
The Light Keepers: A Story of the United States Light-house Service

CHAPTER VIII
THE SURPRISES

Uncle Zenas held possession of the kitchen, refusing admittance to Mr. Peters from without, and threatening Captain Eph and Sidney with severest penalties if they should attempt to descend, until the long beams of light from the lantern illumined the waters in the vicinity of Carys' Ledge, and then, flinging wide open the outer door, he summoned all hands to supper.

As a matter of course no one was greatly surprised, because, owing to the excessive precautions of the cook, the dwellers in the tower expected to see something very elaborate in the way of a supper; but they were not a little mystified as to how he had contrived to make so many different dishes with such raw material as was at his command.

It was "a reg'lar Thanksgivin' spread," as Captain Eph declared, and although the principal portion consisted of fish cooked in a variety of ways, the second assistant had found among the stores a sufficient amount of canned delicacies to relieve it of sameness.

Mr. Peters apparently forgot that he had been forced to spend considerable time on the rocks, when it was his desire to be inside the tower, and ate as if he had been deprived of food for many days.

"There's no use talkin', Uncle Zenas, you lay way over anybody I ever saw when it comes to cookin,' an' this 'ere lay-out is fit for the best king that ever lived," the first assistant said approvingly, as he applied himself industriously to getting a full share of all that had been placed before him. "It's growin' cold mighty fast, an' gives a man quite an appetite to loaf around on the ledge only about half dressed."

"Don't make any excuses because you're eatin' a good deal," Uncle Zenas said as he gave the first assistant another portion of the broiled corned-fish. "I laid myself out on this supper so's you'd take hold with a will, for it's what you might call a party that we're givin' to Sonny."

"He's the one I was thinkin' 'bout when I figgered out my surprise," Mr. Peters added, speaking indistinctly owing to the fullness of his mouth.

"When's that comin' off?" Captain Eph asked.

"I reckon it'll be time when we've finished supper, an' the sooner the better 'cordin' to my idee, for if this nor'east wind ain't blowin' up a storm I don't know anything about the signs."

"It wouldn't surprise me if we had snow," the keeper said with an air of wisdom. "It's late enough in the season for somethin' of the kind, an' this day has been what you might call a weather-breeder."

"I should think it would be snug and comfortable here in a storm," Sidney said thoughtfully, and Captain Eph replied:

"So it is, Sonny; but somehow a man can't really enjoy it because of thinkin' of the many craft which must be off the coast battlin' with it."

"Have there ever been any wrecks on this ledge?"

"Bless your heart, yes, Sonny. Many a vessel went ashore here before the tower was built, an' we've had a wreck close at hand twice since, though neither of the craft struck this ledge. If the weather is changin', as Sammy says, it ain't very pleasant to be talkin' 'bout what's likely to happen whenever the light can't be seen. Ain't it time for you to show up your surprise, Sammy?"

"I reckon it is, Cap'n Eph, an' if all hands of you will sit over by this window, I'll start the show."

"I wonder what it is he's got in his noddle?" the old keeper said curiously as Mr. Peters went hastily out of the tower to the ledge below, and Uncle Zenas declared that he "couldn't guess if he should try all day"; but Sidney cried gleefully:

"I believe he bought some kind of fireworks when we were ashore, for I noticed that the shop-keeper had to hunt around a good while before he could find what Mr. Peters wanted, and you know how careful he was to stow the packages where they wouldn't get wet."

"I declare if Sonny hasn't hit the nail right on the head!" Captain Eph cried in delight, "an' there goes the beginnin' of his show."

It was evident that the first assistant had succeeded in putting up the frame-work of boards, for by the time Captain Eph had ceased speaking half a dozen small spinning wheels were revolving in a manner which told that they were fastened to something above the level of the ledge.

The display of fireworks was not as brilliant as many Sidney had seen; but the two keepers cried out again and again in delighted surprise, thus proving that to them it was something very wonderful.

During fifteen minutes or more the exhibition was continued, and then, the last fiery serpent having wriggled its way among the rocks, Mr. Peters appeared in the doorway triumphantly happy.

"Wa'al, what do you think of it, Cap'n Eph?"

"It's jest great, Sammy, great!" the keeper replied emphatically. "I'm wonderin' how you got the hang of settin' 'em off in that style."

"I've seen a good deal of them things, an' once I helped fire a big pile of all kinds. It's been so long since I've had a Fourth of July, that I got to hankerin' after it an' on the way over I made up my mind that if there was any fireworks ashore left from last summer, I'd spread myself, jest to show how glad we are 'cause Sonny has come to make us a visit."

Sidney tried to say something which should express his gratitude for all that had been done for him by these kind-hearted old men, but, try as he might, it was impossible, and Captain Eph, seeming to understand what was in the lad's mind, cried heartily:

"Wa'al, Sammy, both you an' Uncle Zenas have done yourself proud on this day. I don't know when there's been so much excitement on Carys' Ledge, an' it pleases me same as it does Sonny; but we mustn't forget that we're hired to look after this 'ere light, an' it's time we turned in, else we'll get the watches mixed in great shape."

Then Captain Eph ascended the stairway, the others following, and ten minutes later it was as if Carys' Ledge had never been the scene of such bewildering festivities.

Greatly to his delight, Sidney was awake when Mr. Peters called the keeper to perform his share of the night duties, and as soon thereafter as he could make his toilet, the lad went into the room directly beneath the lantern.

"How the wind howls!" he exclaimed after saying "good morning" to Captain Eph. "It really seems as if the tower was shaking."

"I reckon it does sway a bit, for we're gettin' what you might call a full-sized nor'east gale. Sammy was right when he allowed there'd be a change in the weather, an' I wasn't so far out of the way when I talked about snow."

"Is it snowing?" Sidney cried in surprise.

"Take a squint out of the window, an' you'll see the flakes comin' so thick an' fast that it's worse'n a fog."

Sidney did as he was bidden, and after gazing into the wreaths of the whirling particles which were revealed by the strong light from the room above, he cried:

"I really believe the waves are breaking over the highest part of the ledge!"

"If they are it won't be anythin' new, Sonny. Time an' time agin I've looked outer that window when it seemed as if this 'ere tower stood right in the sea, with never a rock showin' itself; but the surf ain't runnin' as high as it will be in the mornin'. Then, whether the wind dies away or not, you'll see the waves breakin' mighty near the kitchen door."

"But what about the motor boat?" and Sidney looked alarmed.

"Sammy called me after he'd been on watch a couple of hours, an' we went down to see what could be done. She's lashed fore an' aft to the boat-house, but with all that there's danger of her bein' stove, an' we can't do anything to prevent it."

"What shall I do? What shall I do?" Sidney cried in distress, for it seemed to him that if the boat belonging to the West Wind was destroyed, the last link binding him to his father would be broken.

"There's nothin' you can do, Sonny," Captain Eph said soothingly, as he took the lad in his arms. "Out here we have to take whatever comes, without a chance of fightin' agin it. If your boat is lost you must try to look pleasant, an' thank God this 'ere gale didn't spring up before you reached Carys' Ledge."

The howling of the wind and the beating of the surf against the base of the tower made such a noise that it was necessary those in the watch-room should speak loudly in order that their words might be heard above the tumult of the elements. Sidney clung tightly to Captain Eph, with both arms around the old man's neck, for the danger seemed suddenly to have increased as he realized that they were beyond reach of earthly aid in event of any accident.

Never before had he understood how entirely alone were light keepers on an isolated station, nor how ominous the howling of the wind might sound under such circumstances.

"Could the wind blow this tower over, sir?" he asked, and Captain Eph replied as he stroked the lad's hair affectionately.

"Now don't get anythin' like that inter your head, Sonny, although I allow there's reason for it. When I first came to Carys' Ledge, an' was standin' watch on a night like this, it seemed certain the tower would go by the board; but after a time I made myself understand that it was almost as firm as the solid rock. Besides, not bein' so big as to offer much resistance to the gale, I question if even a full-sized tornado could harm it."

"But light-houses are sometimes destroyed," Sidney whispered.

"Anything like that doesn't happen once in a hundred years. I reckon you're thinkin' of Minot's Ledge Light, on the Massachusetts coast, which was carried away in 1851; but in that case it was shown pretty clearly the mischief was done through the keepers' disobeying orders."

"Tell me about it, sir."

"Wa'al, Sonny, I allow it ain't overly cheerful talk on a night like this; but so long as it's in your mind I don't s'pose it'll make matters seem worse if we go over the story. Nobody knows jest what time, on the night of April 16th, the tower was carried away; but it's reasonable to allow it was done about high water, which was an hour after midnight. It was built on iron piles set into the rock, instead of bein' a solid tower sich as are put up nowadays. I've heard them as should know, say that keepers weren't held up to the rules an' regerlations as strict as they are now, an' them as were in charge of Minot's Ledge Light had built a platform well down below the livin' rooms, where they could stow anything which it might not be convenient to keep inside. Here's what the Government engineer, who was sent to look after the matter, said about it," and Captain Eph, opening a book which lay near him, read the following:

"'The keepers had improperly built a sort of deck or platform, upon which were placed heavy articles, such as fuel, water-barrels, etc., which should have been in the store-room, designed for their reception. The deck, in addition to the weight placed upon it, was fastened to the piles and braces, thus offering a large surface, against which the sea could strike.

"'In addition to this, the keepers had attached a five-and-a-half inch hawser to the lantern deck, and anchored the other end to a granite block, weighing, according to their account, seven tons, placed upon the bottom at a distance of some fifty fathoms from the base of the tower. The object of this was to provide means for running a box or landing-chair up and down; but it is very clear that so much surface exposed to the moving sea had the same effect upon the light-house as would have been produced by a number of men pulling at a rope attached to the highest part of the structure, with the design of pulling it down.

"'At 4 o'clock on Wednesday afternoon, the 16th, or ten hours before the light fell, the platform above mentioned came ashore at Cohasset. As this was forty-three feet above the line of low water, and twenty-eight feet above high water, spring tides, the sea had at that time reached within seven feet of the base of the store-room of the light-house. Without undertaking to speculate upon the probable shock that the structure must have received from the effect of the sea upon a platform fastened to the piles forty feet above the rock, it is enough to know that the sea had reached within seven feet of the body or solid part of the structure.

"'Still increasing, it required but a slight increase in the height of the waves, after having reached the deck, to bring it in contact with the main body of the structure. When this took place it is plain to perceive that such a sea, acting upon the surface of the building at the end of a lever fifty or sixty feet long, must be well nigh irresistible, and I doubt not that the light-house was thus destroyed.'

"So you see, Sonny, carelessness had, 'cordin' to the belief of the Government engineer, a good deal to do with the loss of the light," Captain Eph said as he came to an end of the reading.

"Was that the only light-house ever destroyed in a storm, Captain Eph?"

"Bless you, no, Sonny. There was the Eddystone, off Plymouth, England. It was a fanciful sort of a thing, an' disappeared during a hurricane in the year 1703. The tower was rebuilt, an' in 1755 was burned, because there was a good deal of woodwork inside, which you won't find in light-houses built nowadays. That makes up the list of coast lights that have been destroyed, so you see we needn't bother our heads about anything of the kind happenin' here, for Carys' Ledge Light has stood against many a worse gale than this."

"But it shakes as if it was going over," Sidney persisted, and Captain Eph replied with a laugh:

"This 'ere tremble ain't anything compared with what I have felt, an' it'll be worse as the sea gets wilder, for – "

The old keeper did not finish his remark, for at that moment Mr. Peters' head appeared through the trap door, as he said sharply:

"It strikes me that a man of your age, Cap'n Eph, could be in better business than tellin' stories about light-houses that have been carried away, to a lad who's gettin' his first taste of a storm in a place like this! I wouldn't have thanked anybody for spinnin' sich yarns the first year I came on this ledge. We didn't have a heavy sea in all that time but I expected the tower would go, an' when a nor'easter struck us, I allowed there wasn't any show of savin' our lives."

"I was only tellin' Sonny of the Eddystone an' Minot's, to prove that a light-house what's been properly built don't go under in any kind of a gale," Captain Eph replied, much as if apologizing for what he had said. "I'd like to know what you're out'er bed for, Sammy Peters. It can't be more'n half an hour since you turned in."

"I haven't been asleep anyway," Mr. Peters grumbled, "an' the reason for it is that I can't help thinkin' we might do somethin' to put the motor boat in better shape. It stands to reason there'll be a heavy sea runnin' by sunrise, in which case there won't be much chance of savin' her."

"I don't know what we can do, Sammy, unless we should turn out the dory, an' put her inter the boat-house, which couldn't be thought of for a minute because it's clean agin the rules an' regerlations."

"Of course you can't do anythin' of that kind. Cap'n Eph, no matter if Sonny's boat is worth five or six times as much as the dory; but what about haulin' her up between the boat-house an' the tower? She'd be more sheltered there."

"We couldn't do the job without callin' all hands, an' I don't feel as if I'd be doin' right to take any chances jest to save property. The sea is breakin' over the ledge already, an' the rocks remainin' out of water must be covered with snow an' ice. Go back to bed, Sammy, for, as you know full well, we've got no right to stick our noses outside this night. After daybreak, if she's still sound, we may be able to work somethin' for her safety."

Mr. Peters disappeared without further remark, evidently realizing that the keeper was fully justified in refusing him permission to leave the tower at such a time, and Sidney said half to himself as he gazed through the window, trying to prevent the tremor of fear from being apparent:

"It must be uncomfortable in a light-ship when the storm is so severe."

"Uncomfortable, Sonny? There's where you get danger! We're snug as mice in here; but the poor fellows who keep a light-ship must have their hearts in their mouths at sich a time. In this 'ere report I found a little somethin' regardin' lights of that kind, which seemed to strike the spot. Here it is," and the keeper handed Sidney an open book, from which he read the following:

"The purpose of a light-ship is to do the work of a light-house in a place where one is necessary, but where it has not been erected because of the great difficulty, not to say expense, of such a structure. To insure permanency of position is a matter of great difficulty. When moorings have been made too heavy to drag, chains have broken; when they have held, mooring-bitts have been torn out; when they have held, the ship has foundered at her anchors, or the cable has been slipped, and the ship has sought a harbor or gone to sea for safety."

"Is there a light-ship near here, sir?" Sidney asked as he finished the reading.

"One lays off to the east'ard about twenty miles. I've never seen her, because she hasn't been on the station more'n two years. I don't claim to be anything of a coward in seafarin' matters; but I never wanted any part of a light-ship in weather like this. Let's have a look around the lantern, lad. If a body don't feel jest right in mind, it's a good idee to move about a bit, instead of stayin' in one place listenin', for the wind does contrive to make some mighty queer noises."

After assuring themselves the light was burning as it should, the two went down to the kitchen, at Captain Eph's suggestion, and there ate quite a hearty breakfast from that which remained of Uncle Zenas' feast. Then it was Sidney understood, even better than while they were in the watch-room, the danger which threatened the motor boat.

The waves were dashing entirely over the ledge, and now and then a heavy one would strike the base of the tower with a force which seemed to jar the entire structure.

"It'll soon be daylight, Sonny, an' then the storm won't seem so bad, even though it may be worse," Captain Eph said soothingly, as he noted the lad's start of alarm.

"Do you think my boat will be wrecked?"

"I'm obleeged to confess, Sonny, that the chances are agin her. It ain't likely much damage has been done yet; but it won't be high tide till eight o'clock, and then's when she'll get the worst poundin'."

The keeper and Sidney were yet sitting at the table when Uncle Zenas entered the kitchen, and Captain Eph cried in surprise:

"What sent you out so early as this?"

"There's sich a racket up-stairs that I can't sleep; I was awake when you two came through the room. What do you say to a cup of hot coffee?"

"It wouldn't go bad, Uncle Zenas, an' that's a fact, though Sonny an' me have had quite a bite already."

The cook built a fire, and the cheery glow went very far toward restoring to Sidney the courage which had oozed out of his finger ends as the tower trembled under the blows of the tempest.

"You two have been up in the watch-room till you're half frozen," Uncle Zenas said as he shoveled a generous supply of coal into the stove. "It has grown cold mighty sudden, an' I reckon Sonny will need his coat by the time I get it done."

"When will that be?" Captain Eph asked, hoping rather to turn Sidney's attention from the raging of the gale, than because he was eager for information.

"If nothing happens I'll take the last stitch in it by noon. I got on famously with the work while you were ashore."

Then Uncle Zenas, after having filled the coffee pot, brought out the partially finished garment for inspection, and before they were done critising it, Mr. Peters came down-stairs, complaining bitterly of the cold.

"It was lucky we went ashore yesterday," he said as he warmed his hands over the stove. "I reckon it'll be quite a spell before we make any more visits, or have any visitors."

Captain Eph was on the point of replying to this remark when suddenly, even amid the roar of the tempest, could be heard a dull, booming sound, so foreign to anything which the gale brought to their ears that even Sidney ran to the window in alarm.

The gray light of the coming day had dispelled the darkness in some slight degree: but the swirling downpour of snow was so great that it was impossible to make out the crests of the surges twenty feet away, yet all four remained at the window silent and motionless.

Then came that which they feared to hear – another dull report brought on the wings of the gale, and there was no longer any doubt in the minds of the keepers.

"God help 'em!" Captain Eph cried fervently as he began to pace the room nervously, and Sidney asked:

"Help who, sir?"

"The poor wretches who are firin' that 'ere gun with the idee that there may be some one near who can give 'em a hand."

"Do you mean that there is a wreck?" the lad asked, speaking in a tone so low that none save the old keeper heard him.

"Ay, Sonny. This ledge makes off to the east'ard near half a mile, an' the craft, whatever she may be, has struck there."

"How can you tell without seeing her, sir?" Sidney asked, as if hoping to convince the keeper that he had made a mistake.

"In the first place, she must be there because the wind brings to us the sound of her signal gun; she might be only half as far away on the other side, an' we couldn't hear anything, owin' to the gale."

"She must be a large craft, else she wouldn't have a gun aboard," Mr. Peters suggested, and Uncle Zenas nodded in token that he was of the same opinion.

"I can't make out why any craft should be hereabouts in an easterly blow," Captain Eph said with nervous impatience. "It seems to me that any half-careful skipper would have clawed off shore at sunset, unless he knew his way as I do this 'ere ledge!"

"Don't you count on trying to do anything?" Sidney asked as the men moved nervously about the small room.

"That's what makes it so tough, Sonny," Captain Eph said in a tearful tone. "There's nothin' we can do, but stay here an' think of the poor wretches who are facin' death."

"Couldn't you go out in one of the boats, sir?"

"Bless your dear heart, Sonny, it ain't possible! The dory is the better sea-boat of the two, an' we couldn't even launch her, to say nothin' of pullin' up into the teeth of the gale."

"My boat doesn't need any pulling."

"She wouldn't be more'n an eggshell in this sea. There's nothin' but a life-boat that could do the trick, an' the nearest station is a good fifteen miles away."

Again the wind brought to them the boom of the gun, and Sidney covered his eyes with his hands as if to shut out the picture his fears had painted.

Mr. Peters went swiftly from window to window, although knowing full well that nothing could be seen from either. Uncle Zenas walked from the door to the stove, and then back to the door as if questioning whether he should not open it, despite the fact that every now and then a wave would dash against it, while Captain Eph paced swiftly to and fro, stopping now and then to listen.

"There ought'er be a fog signal with this 'ere light!" he cried angrily, and Uncle Zenas asked helplessly:

"S'posen there was? It wouldn't help them poor fellows out any, an' I'm doubtin' if the best whistle that was ever made could have been heard a mile away to the east'ard."

"There'd be some little comfort in blowin' it to tell the poor creeters we're here an' willin' to help 'em. If she's a square-rigged vessel, as I count she is, there's a chance of her holdin' together till mornin', an' we're got to sit with our hands folded, listenin' to their calls for help!"

Uncle Zenas ground more coffee to add to that which was already on the stove, and then tried in vain to set about getting breakfast; but succeeded in doing nothing.

It was a positive relief to Sidney when the keeper finally said:

"It's gettin' well on to sunrise, an' I'll go inter the lantern. Of course there's no show of our bein' able to lend a hand out yonder; but yet it won't do any harm to be ready, so eat your breakfast as soon as it's cooked, Sammy."

"What about yours?"

"I don't want any."

"Neither do I. Do you think a man could eat while that gun is bein' fired?"

Captain Eph ascended the staircase slowly, and Sidney asked timidly if he might be allowed to go with him.

"Of course you may, Sonny. There's never any need of askin' to go with me, my boy, for I'd like to have you by my side every minute of the day or night."

Not until the two were in the lantern did Sidney speak, and then it was to cry, as he burst into tears:

"Oh, Captain Eph, wouldn't it be dreadful if the wreck was the West Wind, having come out here after me?"

"Bless your heart, Sonny, it couldn't be her no-how, for she's way down by Porto Rico by this time."

"But father might have heard where I was, and come back after me!"

"Now don't get any sich idees into your head as that, for your father don't even dream where you are, more's the pity. Why my report hasn't yet reached the inspector, consequently there ain't a single soul, outside of us four, who knows anything about the it, because he hasn't come out here about it. Did the West Wind have a gun aboard?"

"No, sir."

"Then that part of it is settled. The craft that's taken the ledge yonder is a heavier vessel than your father's, so you can count him right out of your mind, so far as this wreck is concerned."