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212On Rejlefttng Light-houfes.[April I,lt;xtenfive view of bis range. As -the afcent was too fatiguing for the child, lie left him on a fmail plain at the bottom, with injunlt;5lions not to ftir from it till his return. Scarcely, however, had he gained the fummit, when the horizon was foudenly darkened by one of thole impenetrable mills, which frequently de-feend fo - rapidly amidft thefe mountains as, in the (pace of a few minutes, almoft to turn day to night. The anxious father inftantly haftened back to find Ids child: but, owing to the nnufual dark-nefs and his own trepidation, he unfortunately miffed his way in thedefcent. After a fruitlefs refearch of many hours amongft the dangerous moraffes and cata-ras, with which thefe mountains abound, he was at length overtaken by night. Still wandering on without knowing whither, he at length came to the verge of the milt 5 and, by the light of the moon,fudden effect of fpme violent convul/ion of the earth. Down one of thefe rugged and aim off perpendicular defcents, the dog began, without hefitation, to raake his way, and at laft difappeared into a cave, the mouth of which was almoft upon a level with- the torrent. The fhepherd with difficulty followed; but on entering the cave, what were his emotions, when he beheld his infant eating with much fatif-faction the cake which the dog had juft brought him ; while the faithful animal flood by, eyeing his young charge with theutmoft complacence ! From the htuatioa in-which the child was found, it appears that he had wandered to the brink of the precipice, and then either fallen or fcram-bled down till he reached the cave ; which the dread of the torrent had afterwards prevented him from quitting. The dog by means of his (cent had traced him to the fpotj and afterwards prevented himeifcovered that he had reached the bottonTTfom ftarving by giving up to him his, ownof his valley, and was now within a ffiort did a nee of his cottage. To renew the fearch that night, was equally fruitlefs and dangerous. He wa§ therefore obliged to*return to his cottage, having loft both his child, and his dog who had attended him faithfully for years. Next morning by day-break, the fhepherd, accompanied by a band of his neighbours, fet out in fearch of his child ; but, after a day fpent in fruitlefs fatigue, he was at laft compelled by the approach of night to de-fcend from the mountain. On returning to his, cottage, he found that the dog, which he had loft the day before, had been home, and on receiving a piece of cake had inftantly gone off again. Forfeveral fucceffive days the fhepherd renewed the fearch for his child, and ft ill on returning home at evening difappointed to his cottage,, he found that the dog had been home,and, on receiving his ufualallowance of cake, had inftantly difappeared. Struck with this Angular circumftance, he remained at home one day 5 and when the dog as ufual departed with his piece, of cake, he refolved to follow him, and find out the caufe of his ftrange procedure. The dcg led the way to a cataraft, at fome diftan.ee from the fpot where the fhepherd had left his child. The banks of^the cataract, almoft joined at the top, yet feparated by an ahvfs of immenie depth, pretexted that appearance which fo often aftoniffies and appals the travellers that frequent the Grampian mountains 5 and indicates that thefe fiupendous chafms weie not the filent work of time, but thedaily allowance. He appears never to have quitted the child by night or day, except when it was neceffary to go fork’s food 5 and then he was always feen running at full fpeed to and from the cot-,, tage.”January 10, 1802.To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine•SIR,WHEN I wrote that paper which you did me the favour to infert in your Magazine for December laft, I little expe£ied that I fhould have occafion to trouble you again on the fame fubje£t. But as the paper figffed Nauticus, in your laft month’s Magazine, does not contain a very extenfive nor a very correct account of refleing light-houfes in England, a more perfect account may perhaps be acceptable to fome of your' philofo-phical readers, particularly to thofe who may be inclined to improve this uftful. branch of optics.Large rewards have been given for finding the longitude, and for improving in-ftruments for determinincr the latitude:- __but no premium has yet been offered for diicovering the beft method of ereing lights for the ufe of navigatois, though tiiey are of more confequence to coafting veffels, than both the latitude and longitude put together.. How mirrors came to be ufed in France for this purpofe, I am not able to give any account, but in England this invention is of recent date. The idea, how-
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Monthly Magazine
London, Middlesex, GB
Thu, Apr 01, 1802
Page 8
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