Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1911-10-06

a when they were hidden by
darkness or fog ever since man
first discovered that he could travel
on water in a boat. In the long ago
great fires were kept up during the
night and If the night was fog-bound
so that the fires could not be seen
men having heavy. coarse and pene-
trating voices would stand at the wa
ter's edge and one after the other they
would lift their voices to the highest
pitch in the 'Li-li-hi-li-ho!" Mariners
hearing the voices would know in
what direction to steer their craft In
those days, however, fires were kept
burning or voices sent out over the
water when boat was expected.
which was not often. Later. the watch
tower was added to the fire and the
voice signals
The United States is generally re-
garded as leading the world in the
protection which she affords to her
own mariners and to those coming to
her shores from other countries. Like
many other OF our institutions, the de-
velopment of this service, though COM
pararively recent, has been both rapid
ana thorough, and In some respects
marvellous. Other countries, however.
have also made notable strides along
the same line with the result that the
old dangers Of travel upon the seas
Of the world have been greatly re-
duced.
More than 200 years after the dis
coyery of America only one lighthouse
had been built in this country, though
the value of such an aid to navigation
had been known since the days of the
ancients. Since they began to multi
ply, many almost unsurmountable OBJ
stacles have been overcome in estab-
fishing some of the most important
lights and not little heroisnl has
been chronicled in the work of con
struction as we'll as in the subsequent
daily tasks of the keepers. Some most
dotable feats of engineering skill have
also been chronicled.
The greatest heroism and skill has
of course, been exhibited in the cree
ton OF those lights which stand upon
the reefs or on huge boulders. Pas
sengers on passing ships watch the
waves and heavy seas dash over these
rocks on which now stand staunch
lighthouses, and marvel how they
were ever built. The history of such
houses usually includes the loss By
drowning of several OF the builders
not to speak of exposure and unusual
hardships on the part of ALL MOI
have all the obstacles been upon the
| ocean coasts. On one of the five great
lakes--Lake Huron-there stands {
lighthouse on Spectacle reef which
for nearly forty years has been with
4 standing not only the storms ant
heavy seas but also the pressure O.
! great packs OF Ice.
Other lighthouses built under mucf
less difficulty, however, are of tn,
! greatest importance. Buildings q
much less size built not upon rock,
but perhaps upon artificial cribs
mile or so from shore are to be fount
at many points, especially on tn.
great lakes. and their lights illumin,
| the paths of the immense steel shipt
which carry the ore from Lake Su
perior to the ports on Lake Erie. Som,
of those now building on these water
are said to be forerunner of man,
others of like construction which tn
government will build within a few
years. They are constructed of stee
and concrete along the lines of mod
ern Office building. One of these mod
ern buildings has just been complete,
and is known to mariners as the Whit
Shoals lighthouse Steel instead q
stone and brick means as much I
modern lighthouse building as II doe
in so many other Industrial lines
The cost of lighthouses ranges fror
sl.n00 to 100000 and there have bee