Read Online The Light Between Oceans by M. L. Stedman - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: M. L. Stedman
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Isabel loved to play. He hesitated before adding to the list new sheets, two new pillows and an eiderdown.
When, finally, the boat arrived to take Tom back for the big day, Neville Whittnish strode onto the jetty, ready to fill in during his absence.
‘Everything in order?’
‘Hope so,’ said Tom.
After a brief inspection, Whittnish said, ‘You know how to treat a light. I’ll give you that much.’
‘Thanks,’ said Tom, genuinely touched by the compliment.
‘Ready, boy?’ asked Ralph as they were about to cast off.
‘God only knows,’ said Tom.
‘Never a truer word spoken.’ Ralph turned his eyes to the horizon. ‘Off we go, my beauty, got to get Captain Sherbourne, MC and Bar to his damsel.’
Ralph spoke to the boat in the same way Whittnish referred to the light – living creatures, close to their hearts. The things a man could love, Tom thought. He fixed his eyes on the tower. Life would have changed utterly when he saw it again. He had a sudden pang: would Isabel love Janus as much as he did? Would she understand his world?
CHAPTER 7
‘YOU SEE? BECAUSE it’s this high above sea level, the light reaches over the curve of the earth – beyond the horizon. Not the beam itself, but the
loom –
the glow of it.’ Tom was standing behind Isabel on the lighthouse gallery, arms around her, chin reaching down to rest on her shoulder. The January sun scattered flecks of gold in her dark hair. It was 1922, and their second day alone on Janus. Back from a few days’ honeymoon in Perth and straight out to the island.
‘It’s like seeing into the future,’ said Isabel. ‘You can reach ahead in time to save the ship before it knows it needs help.’
‘The higher the light, and the bigger the order of lens, the further its beam shines. This one goes just about as far as any light can.’
‘I’ve never been this high up in all my life! It’s like flying!’ she said, and broke away to circle the tower once more. ‘And what do you call the flash again – there’s that word …’
‘The
character
. Every coastal light has a different character. This one flashes four times on each twenty-second rotation. So every ship knows from the five-second flash that this is Janus, not Leeuwin or Breaksea or anywhere else.’
‘How do they know?’
‘Ships keep a list of the lights they’ll pass on their course. Time’s money if you’re a skipper. They’re always tempted to cut the corner of the Cape – want to be first to offload their cargo and pick up a new one. Fewer days at sea saves on crew’s wages, too. The light’s here to ward them off, get them to pull their head in.’
Through the glass Isabel could see the heavy black blinds of the lantern room. ‘What are they for?’ she asked.
‘Protection! The lens doesn’t care which light it magnifies. If it can turn the little flame into a million candlepower, imagine what it can do to sunlight when the lens stands still all day. It’s all very well if you’re ten miles away. Not so good to be ten inches away. So you have to protect it. And protect yourself – I’d fry if I went inside it during the day without the curtains. Come inside and I’ll show you how it works.’
The iron door clanged behind them as they went into the lantern room, and through the opening into the light itself.
‘This is a first order lens – about as bright as they come.’
Isabel watched the rainbows thrown about by the prisms. ‘It’s so
pretty
.’
‘The thick central bit of glass is the bull’s eye. This one has four, but you can have different numbers depending on the character. The light source has to line up exactly with the height of that so it gets concentrated by the lens.’
‘And all the circles of glass around the bull’s eyes?’ Separate arcs of triangular glass were arranged around the centre of the lens like the rings of a dartboard.
‘The first eight
refract
the light: they bend it so that instead of heading up to the moon
When, finally, the boat arrived to take Tom back for the big day, Neville Whittnish strode onto the jetty, ready to fill in during his absence.
‘Everything in order?’
‘Hope so,’ said Tom.
After a brief inspection, Whittnish said, ‘You know how to treat a light. I’ll give you that much.’
‘Thanks,’ said Tom, genuinely touched by the compliment.
‘Ready, boy?’ asked Ralph as they were about to cast off.
‘God only knows,’ said Tom.
‘Never a truer word spoken.’ Ralph turned his eyes to the horizon. ‘Off we go, my beauty, got to get Captain Sherbourne, MC and Bar to his damsel.’
Ralph spoke to the boat in the same way Whittnish referred to the light – living creatures, close to their hearts. The things a man could love, Tom thought. He fixed his eyes on the tower. Life would have changed utterly when he saw it again. He had a sudden pang: would Isabel love Janus as much as he did? Would she understand his world?
CHAPTER 7
‘YOU SEE? BECAUSE it’s this high above sea level, the light reaches over the curve of the earth – beyond the horizon. Not the beam itself, but the
loom –
the glow of it.’ Tom was standing behind Isabel on the lighthouse gallery, arms around her, chin reaching down to rest on her shoulder. The January sun scattered flecks of gold in her dark hair. It was 1922, and their second day alone on Janus. Back from a few days’ honeymoon in Perth and straight out to the island.
‘It’s like seeing into the future,’ said Isabel. ‘You can reach ahead in time to save the ship before it knows it needs help.’
‘The higher the light, and the bigger the order of lens, the further its beam shines. This one goes just about as far as any light can.’
‘I’ve never been this high up in all my life! It’s like flying!’ she said, and broke away to circle the tower once more. ‘And what do you call the flash again – there’s that word …’
‘The
character
. Every coastal light has a different character. This one flashes four times on each twenty-second rotation. So every ship knows from the five-second flash that this is Janus, not Leeuwin or Breaksea or anywhere else.’
‘How do they know?’
‘Ships keep a list of the lights they’ll pass on their course. Time’s money if you’re a skipper. They’re always tempted to cut the corner of the Cape – want to be first to offload their cargo and pick up a new one. Fewer days at sea saves on crew’s wages, too. The light’s here to ward them off, get them to pull their head in.’
Through the glass Isabel could see the heavy black blinds of the lantern room. ‘What are they for?’ she asked.
‘Protection! The lens doesn’t care which light it magnifies. If it can turn the little flame into a million candlepower, imagine what it can do to sunlight when the lens stands still all day. It’s all very well if you’re ten miles away. Not so good to be ten inches away. So you have to protect it. And protect yourself – I’d fry if I went inside it during the day without the curtains. Come inside and I’ll show you how it works.’
The iron door clanged behind them as they went into the lantern room, and through the opening into the light itself.
‘This is a first order lens – about as bright as they come.’
Isabel watched the rainbows thrown about by the prisms. ‘It’s so
pretty
.’
‘The thick central bit of glass is the bull’s eye. This one has four, but you can have different numbers depending on the character. The light source has to line up exactly with the height of that so it gets concentrated by the lens.’
‘And all the circles of glass around the bull’s eyes?’ Separate arcs of triangular glass were arranged around the centre of the lens like the rings of a dartboard.
‘The first eight
refract
the light: they bend it so that instead of heading up to the moon
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