The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1890-07-25
AN AMERICAN HEROINE.
Ida Lewis Home and Life at Lime
Rock Light House.

Running from the main land OF the
city of Newport. Rhode Island, into
the west side of the harbor. is a log,
staunchly built wharf, says Ellen LIE
Garde, in ehe Ladies' Home Journal.
Were'you to ind your wayeo its end
you would ere long see fropf the light
house beyond, a woman appear and
glance in your direction. Presently,
with agile step, she runs down the
narrow ladder fastened to the stone
wall, jumps nimblylnto a boat, unties
it from its mooring, takes b heavy
oars, and. with a beauty OF strokes all
her own. pulls with a long and a
strong pull tha6 sends her flying to-
ward the steps of the pier on which
Won wait. Her back is as erect as that
of a Young girl, her powerful strength
manifest Tin the great strides
tbe roMboat makes, and yet,
when she deftly turns it around
and you get a good look at her
face. it can be seen that it belongs to
q woman in middle life, but upon
whom time has left but few tell-tale
marks. She puts out a welcoming
hand with a beautiful white wrist,
adding a CHEEKY smile and word OF
erecting as she makes ready to take
vou over to Lime Rock as her guest.
You have cause for self congratula-
ton in being thus favored by the
heroine-Ida Lewis.
Life on q lighthouse, situated as is
Lime Rock light, is not the gruesome
thing generally imagined. With a
six-roomed house there Ire cares that
fill the day, and, like any other
guide wife Miss Lewis has her pots,
kettles and pans to attend to, rooms
to sweep, beds to make, papers and
magazines to read, letters to write,
and all the various etceteras to man
age which fill the time of a busy
woman. A devoted church woman,
she spends Sunday on shore whenever
her brother is at home.
As the only oma light house
keeper in our country, and the last
one that will be given a light-for
such is the verdict of the powers that
be-Miss Lewis has other duties that
are unique. Exactly at shutdown she
must light her lamp, and precisely at
another must be substitute
ed. All through the night it must be
watched, and Miss Lewis likens this
constant care to that demanded by an
infant. The wick might flare or burn
low, the chimney smoke or crack, Or
any of the hundred and accidents
happen that are ever taking place
with the use of kerosene oil. She a
but catch cat-naps, hence the near
ness of her sleeping room to the
light. At sunrise the law requires
her lamp, like the foolish virgins, to
have gone out, and from this fact she
is an early riser. The responsibility
is no small one, for the slightest neg
lect of duty or accident to her light or
lenses would bring q report from the
first seaman who suffered by it.
Lives hang on her vigilance, but to
her credit no light on all the coast is
regularly or perfectly attended to,
nor does any other gain from the gov
eminent Inspector SO high a re-
port. Miss Lewis keeps a daily ex-
pense book, noting just the amount
of wick and oil burnt, and the time to
a second of the lighting and putting
out of the lamp. In addition, q rec
ord of the weather must be entered
daily. As Lime Rock light is a first
class light, no ratlons are allowed, the
salary being $3.50, and two
tons of coal.