Leading Lights suggested.
A Beacon of any form, unprovided with a light, must always be considered an imperfect land-mark, and therefore various modes have been contemplated, for more completely pointing out the position of the Carr Rock. It has been proposed that phosphoric lights should be exhibited from the top of the Building. This object, however, would be more certainly accomplished, by the erection of leading lights, upon the Island of May and Mainland of Fife. But these, with other plans which have been under the writer’s consideration, would necessarily be attended with a great additional expence, which, in the present instance, it is not thought advisable to incur.
Expence of the Carr Rock works.
Owing to the necessarily slow progress of the operations at the Carr Rock, the works were carried on partly in connection with the new Light-house on the Isle of May, and with the assistance of the ordinary shipping of the Light-house establishment. This renders it difficult to give a distinct estimate of the expence of the Beacon; but in so far as it can be collected, it may be stated, including all charges, at about L. 5000.
Stations on the Coast of Scotland, where Light-houses have been suggested as still necessary.
Having now taken notice of the works of the Light-house Board, so far as they have been completed, up to and including part of the year 1823. We may farther advert to the Light-house on the Rhins of Ilay, founded on the 23d of August last. The Northern Light-houses accordingly amount to seventeen, erected at fourteen stations; and besides these, there are the Beacons of North Ronaldsay and the Carr Rock. The position of these establishments has not been chosen in regard to their respective distances from each other, but agreeably to the commercial importance and dangers connected with particular parts of the coast. Six of them, for instance, are on the Friths of Forth and Clyde, at not more than from 20 to 25 miles apart; while Kinnaird-Head, on the east coast, is about 72 miles from the Bell Rock, and 70 miles from the Pentland Skerries. The Light-house upon Island Glass, is about 130 miles south-west from the Pentland Skerries, and 120 miles northward from the Rhins of Ilay, being a stretch of 250 miles of coast, with only one Light-house intervening. It must therefore be obvious, that fourteen Light-house stations, which include two on the Isle of Man, are too few for the Scottish coast, rendered formidable and dangerous, by a vast number of islands and sunken rocks. The Commissioners have still, accordingly, a wide field of operations before them, which they are gradually occupying, as their funds will admit, and as the demands of navigation and commercial intercourse seem to require. In the Appendix, No. [I.] notice is taken of the most prominent points of land on the coast, which have been brought under consideration as fit Stations for additional Light-houses; and of these, one at Buchan-Ness, on the east coast, has already been fixed on by the Board.
Constitution of the Board, and System of Management.
Constitution of the Board.