THE HIGHLAND LIGHT. 
155 
brick, and built by government. As we were going to 
spend the night in a light-house, we wished to make the 
most of so novel an experience, and therefore told our 
host that we would like to accompany him when he went 
to light up. At rather early candle-light he lighted a 
small Japan lamp, allowing it to smoke rather more than 
we like on ordinary occasions, and told us to follow him. 
He led the way first through his bedroom, which was 
placed nearest to the light-house, and then through a 
long, narrow, covered passage-way, between whitewashed 
walls like a prison entry, into the lower part of the 
light-house, where many great butts of oil were ar¬ 
ranged around; thence we ascended by a winding and 
open iron stairway, with a steadily increasing scent of 
oil and lamp-smoke, to a trap-door in an iron floor, and 
through this into the lantern. It was a neat building, 
with everything in apple-pie order, and no danger of 
anything rusting there for want of oil. The light consist¬ 
ed of fifteen argand lamps, placed within smooth concave 
reflectors twenty-one inches in diameter, and arranged 
in two horizontal circles one above the other, facing 
every way excepting directly down the Cape. These 
were surrounded, at a distance of two or three feet, by 
large plate-glass windows, which defied the storms, with 
iron sashes, on which rested the iron cap. All the iron 
work, except the floor, was painted white. And thus 
the light-house was completed. We walked slowly 
round in that narrow space as the keeper lighted each 
lamp in succession, conversing with him at the same 
moment that many a sailor on the deep witnessed the 
lighting of the Highland Light. His duty was to fill 
and trim and light his lamps, and keep bright the reflec¬ 
tors. He filled them every morning, and trimmed them 
