Eagle River Democrat. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1893-1896, 1895-12-23
Maid of the Reef.

Maid of the Reef.
| Out in the waters of the bay half way
between the Statue of Liberty and the
| Staten island shore is a lighthouse. 1t
| is familiar sight to the 100000 of
people in and around New York. Ask
anyone of the 100000 about it and the
answer will probablye be:
THAT! Why, that's Robbins reef, the
| lighthouse, you know"
Try for any more information and the
| chances are a hundred to one that it
won't be forthcoming. The people of
| New York and all the surrounding cities
know that it is Robbins reef and that
is all. They don't even know whether
anyone lives there, whether the light is
| operated in some mysterious fashion
| from the New York shore or the Staten
| island or Jersey sides. None of the
| regular vessels or ferries of ssthe sharbor
| pass nearer than half mile to it. Craft
Of deep draught naturally keep clear Of
| it; only venturesome little catboats go
| within hailing distance, and some of
| these have suffered because of the te-
| merity of the shippers. The tide and
| eddies run with strange force near the
reef, and more than one boat has had
| it's bottom ripped off by being dashed on
the sharp-pointed ledge.
| If anyone takes the trouble and is
| skillful mariner a visit to the lighthouse
will reveal an interesting story. 1t holds
a little family, who are shut off as much
| from the millions of people circling round
| them as castaWays on a South Pacific
island. These people living in the center
of bustling activity know nothing OF
what is going on about them. If the
sasinated at the Astor house they
might not hear of it until a week or two
later. They get the pewspapers in large
bundles, and some of them are three
weeks old.
This family is small one, It is COM
ter and an old grandfather. The tower
| is fifty feet high and from a short dis
| tance away does not seem TO be much
| thicker than stout white pole, but it
| has four floors and furnishes a very
pleasant home for the Walker family,
| the lighthouse-keepers.
The little girl, Mamie Walker, is by
! far the most interesting member of the
family. She is 10 years old now and was
born on the reef. She had never been
ashore until she was years old, and
| today New York city is as much mys-
| terry to her as to the little girls living on
| the Western plains.
| Seventeen years ago her father was
appointed ighthouse-keeper on Robbins
reef and he did his work WE'LL After
| eleven years of service he died suddenly,
| and around his death the river boatmen
have woven a neat little tale. with. Mamie
Walker as the heroine. This is the way
| the story runs:
At the time of his death there was
not a soul living in the lighthouse ex-
| cepting his wife and little daughter Ma
| mic, then but years old.
Night had already come on and with 1T
| a rising tide and cloudy sky. Having
al
machinery for running the light and the
other appurtenances, Mrs. Walker was
almost distracted, for the sea had be-
come high, heavy fog had settled down
and it was impossible to seek assistance
from shore, a mile away.
In this crisis 4-year-old Mamie came
| to her aid, and with the self-possession
| that betokened a thorough knowledge,
| gained by being constantly In the com
pany of her father on his rounds through
| the buildings she started the machlneryS
going to signal to mariners by light and
| buoy.
Up in the turret with it's great globe of
curiOusly carved magnifying glasses, Ma
ME hurried, and, furnishing the lamp in
side, fastened to the basement and started
the engine, which gives the light slow,
| revolving motion. When turning to
the engine. driven by explosion of kero-
senc, which blows the whistling buoy, or
| siren. as it is technically termed, she
| started it going, and closed her rounds
| by going to the fourth story and throw
| ing on the huge ratchet, wound up the
| automatic arrangement that tolls the DELL
| buoy.
After the death of the father grown
| son gave up his work in the city and re-
| turned to the lighthouse to manage at
| fairs there. Mrs Walker and Mamie
| soon became so expert at the work, now
| ever. that he was enabled after Few
s. fHn OifU
| then the mother and daughter have at
| tended to the intricate machinery OF the
! lighthouse and at the regular otnclals In
| spections the government othcerS nave
| had nothing but praise to give for the
| way the work is done.
If ANYTHING happens to the bell buoy,
some distance away and operated Dy
automatic machinery in the lighthouse,
Mrs. Walker and Mamie make the neces-
sary repairs, or if the Shrlll siren does
not shrek out it's warning notes with &C.
customed vigor, they know just what to
| do to make it right.
They are both expert in managing the
stout Whitehall boat, which is part of
| the lighthouse equipment. The seas IN
| the bay seldom run very high, but ID
severe storms they are strong ana DIE
enough to crush a rOWbOat or small
sailboat. In winter particularly It IS no
easy task to row about in the tumDhng
waves III SIudl1 open UOdI. VIII CAC
| icy spray coming in from all quarters.
| 1t takes a stout pair of arms and no lit
| tie skill to keep the boat head on to the
waves, but Mamie Walker has both
and it is one of her few boasts that she
has never been capsized, although she
| has been out in all kinds of weather.
The average little girl would find some
| difficulty in sleeping in the little light
house. In winter time the wind roars
and shrieks like cyclone and the spray
is driven with terrific force against the
little windows. The siren adds to the
uproar and the bell buoy contributes it's
| mite. But the wild clash of sound is
| music to the little girl. She has never
been away from it and it lulls her to
sleep, the same as it did her babyhood.
Some day perhaps she may prove her
self a second Grace Darling. Men and
| boys who have ventured out during
| rough weather in small boats and have
| been capsized, have been pulled out of
danger by the inmates Of the lighthouse.
! Ten lives were saved during 1894 and
| eleven have been save SO far this year.
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