I can see it coming now."

"I say, what smell is that?" exclaimed Ruby, sniffing.

"Somethink burnin'," said Dumsby, also sniffing.

"Why, what can it be?" murmured Forsyth, looking round and likewise
sniffing. "Hallo! Joe, look out; you're on fire!"

Joe started, clapped his hand behind him, and grasped his
inexpressibles, which were smouldering warmly. Ruby assisted, and the
fire was soon put out, amidst much laughter.

"'Ang them reflectors!" said Joe, seating himself, and breathing hard
after his alarm and exertions; "it's the third time they've set me
ablaze."

"The reflectors, Joe?" said Ruby.

"Ay, don't ye see? They've nat'rally got a focus, an' w'en I 'appen to
be standin' on a sunny day in front of 'em, contemplatin' the face o'
natur', as it wor, through the lantern panes, if I gits into the focus
by haccident, d'ye see, it just acts like a burnin'-glass."

Ruby could scarcely believe this, but after testing the truth of the
statement by actual experiment he could no longer doubt it.

Presently a light breeze sprang up, rolling the fog before it, and then
dying away, leaving the lighthouse enshrouded.

During fog there is more danger to shipping than at any other time. In
the daytime, in ordinary weather, rocks and lighthouses can be seen. At
night, lights can be seen, but during fog nothing can be seen until
danger may be too near to be avoided. The two great fog-bells of the
lighthouse were therefore set a-going, and they rang out their slow
deep-toned peal all that day and all that night, as the bell of the
Abbot of Aberbrothoc is said to have done in days of yore.

That night Ruby was astonished, and then he was stunned! First, as to
his astonishment. While he was seated by the kitchen fire chatting with
his friend the smith, sometime between nine o'clock and midnight, Dumsby
summoned him to the lantern to "help in catching to-morrow's dinner!"

Dove laughed at the summons, and they all went up.

The first thing that caught Ruby's eye at one of the window panes was
the round visage of an owl, staring in with its two large eyes as if it
had gone mad with amazement, and holding on to the iron frame with its
claws. Presently its claws lost hold, and it fell off into outer
darkness.

"What think ye o' that for a beauty?" said Forsyth.

Ruby's eyes, being set free from the fascination of the owl's stare, now
made him aware of the fact that hundreds of birds of all kinds--crows,
magp