THE EDDYSTONE LIGHTHOUSE UNDEEMINED. 



157 



of winds and waves, and the 

 serious weakness of its own 

 foundations, which was dis- 

 covered a few years ago. 

 For the tower which lights 

 the way of the sailor into 

 Plymouth Sound is, after all, 

 not so secure a structure as 

 could be desired. Built of 

 solid masonry and with im- 

 mense skill, by the clever 

 architect from Hull who 

 designed and carried out the 

 work, it had yet to trust for 

 its foundation to the rock 

 upon which it stood. Should 

 that give way the stone-work 

 of the edifice might be strong 

 enough, and yet some day 

 fall into hopeless ruin. 

 Strange to say, this very 

 weakness has been self-re- 

 vealed. The rock upon which 

 the lighthouse stands, and 

 which, of the twenty-three 

 that comprise the group, is 

 most exposed to the action 

 of the sea, has been so vio- 

 lently attacked by what Ovid 

 calls the ' insane waters ' as 

 to have become very seriously 

 undermined. Gradually the 

 waves have cut away the 

 foundations of the stone, 

 rising now and then against 

 the lighthouse, and pressing 

 against the structure with 

 such force as to make the 

 building itself serve the turn 

 of a crowbar, and so, little 

 by little, creating fissures in 

 the foundations, and gradu- 

 ally preparing the way to 



THE TOWEK OF CORDOVAN. 



