Evening star., 1927-10-30

And reared among the shifting sane
dunes on Virginia's s Cape Henry, as
| though subscribing to the lines OF the
poet, are examples Of the most anti
| quated and most modern lighthouses
| in the United States. While one
flashes its warnings nightly to modern
shipping, the other, it's predecessor
now grown old, stands dark and silent
watch over it's ended career of nearly
a century.
The two towers are separated by d
scant 250 feet, yet the inter venlne
sands reflect 13S years Of the history
of lighthouses and light-tower equip
ment, and keepers who have tracked
| those wind-streaked wastes in the
conduct of their exacting duties.
Old Struggle Recalled.
Time was when the keepers of Cape
Henry light struggled daily to hau
the lanterns Oil up the exposed, sift
| ing sand hill on which the old house
was built. Then keepers stood storm
watch in the lantern itself, lest hur
ricane gust blow out the flame from
the oil wick Then the keepers livec
| in isolation, with the Atlantic SUR
nibbling at their feet and veritable
desert Of high-flung sands blasting
| their backs, while the nearest city
Norfolk, lay 20 miles west, at the enc
| of wretched roads.
But "times do shift
The old stone tower atop the sant
| hill, cracked and closed these 46 years
has been succeeded by a trim house
of cast iron, 1G5 feet tall, which, al
though erected on the low, wide
beach plane, rears it's flashing Lantern
above it's abandoned predecessor. Oil
as a source of light, recently gave
way to electricity, and todays keep
ers of Cape Henry Light stand the1i
storm watch from the snug power
house, or even from their own com
Portable cottages at the foot of the
tower.
Concrete roads have been cut
through the dunes within the last
year, and while the ocean and the
sand remain their natural neighbors
the tenders now are within less than
an hour Of Norfolk and few minutes
of the thriving community at Virginia
Beach, five miles down the coast
Radio, in addition to constituting the
most recent improvement in the light
houses stern duty, has put the keep
ers in instantaneous touch with every
where-even as the dwellerS in cities
Former Baltimorean on Duty.
John Mullenfeld, one of the keep
ers, who frequently stands visitors
watch" will tell you all about these
things. Some years ago he was q
painter in Baltimore, and when the
fumes of the paint threatened his
health, he took to the sea In the
United States Lighthouse Service. He
became an officer on one Of the
services ships and later came ashore
as one of the keepers OF Cape Henry
Light. So he has something of the
layman's enthusiastic appreciation OF
the service.
From Mr.. Mullenfeld, a reporter
for The Star learned that the new
lighthouse at Cape Henry operating
sifsce 1881 is one Of the comparatively
few on the coast that are electrified
The extreme Importance Of its work
of guiding shipping demanding a light
Of unquestioned reliability, light
houses in this country have used. Tor
the most part, various kinds of oil as
fuel for their beacons. Electricity
because Of its prankish nature, was
avoided for years in the lighthouse
service, but gradually, when contro
of the current became more fixed
electric lights were installed in some
Of the light towers to replace the oil
vapor burners which, in turn hao
| succeeded wick burners.
The new" Cape Henry house de
rives it's power from the cables of ar
| electric railway running between
Norfolk, Cape Henry and Virginia
Beach, and this supply is used
practically all the time. But, Mr.
Mullenfeld explained, there can bt
| no "let down" on service and a power
| house, built near the foot Of the
| tower, contains oil engines and electric
current generators to supply power
in the event the commercial source
fails. So long as current Is available
the light in the lantern burns its
code Of two short flashes and one
long flash.
The lantern itself is a thing o.
| intricate beauty and Mr.. MullenfelC
is a proud man when he draws aside
the protecting cover to give a visitor
a glimpse into it's interior. The lens
| is mounted in the very top of the
tower, protected by panes of heavy
| clear glass. Built UP of polished
rings of clear-cut prisms, mounted
in a brass frame, the lens Is perhap.
9 feet tall and 6 feet in diameter. A
small aperture cut in the shore side
of the lens admits the keeper to thu
dazzling interior where he plies hi
chamois and oil in daily labor.
Powerful Light Used.
The light is supplied by a 1000.
watt electric incandescent bulb, simi
| lar in design, but monstrous in pro
portion to the lamps in homes ant
offices.
"Now the current might keep flow
ing. but bulbs burn out. you know,
| Mr.. Mullenfeld suggested to the re
porter who peered into the lens
"And you notice there are two bulb:
here in the center. Well. they are
screwed in sockets that point ava,
from each other, SO that they lool
like one Of those exercise dumb.
bells. Now the lower one here Is tn,
one that burns when the light Is
operating, and, If for any reason
it burns out, there's a gadget herr
that changes the flow Of current art
heats a wire so that a trigger Is re.
| leased and a spring just pivots tn,
dead bulb around and swings int
| place the new one. see?" And Mr.
Mullenfeld tripped the trigger which
changed the lamps.
well, now, if that second LAM
goes dead before we get up here il
| the morning." Keeper Mullenfelt
went on, this wire here heats up
| pulls this switch and there's an elec
| trio horn, a sort of siren, on the out
side of the tower. that starts going
and then we hotfoot 1t up here to SCI
what's wrong"
Mechanism Employs Radio
Suspended from the iron railin,
around the top, outside deck of tn
tower. just below the lantern, Is 1
radio antenna, and Mullenfeld toll
the reporter that that was Cap
Henry lights radio beacon aerial.
This light Is visible for about i
miles, but fog and nasty weather
cut it's range way down." the keepe
| exnlained $50 we haVA to hAY