The apartment which Mr. Stevenson himself occupied he has described in characteristic language.
It measured, he says, not more than four feet three inches in breadth on the floor; and though, from the oblique direction of the beams of the building, it widened towards the top, yet it did not admit of the full extension of his arms when he stood on the floor; while its length was little more than sufficient for suspending a cot-bed during the night. This was tied up to the roof during the day, leaving free room for the admission of occasional visitants. His folding-table was attached with hinges immediately under the small window of the apartment, and his boots, barometer, thermometer, portmanteau, and two or three camp-stools, formed the bulk of his movables. His diet being plain, the paraphernalia of the table were proportionately simple; though everything had the appearance of comfort, and even of neatness, the walls being covered with green cloth, formed into panels with red tape, and his bed festooned with curtains of yellow cotton-stuff. If, in speculating upon the abstract wants of man in such a seclusion, one were reduced to a single book, the Sacred Volume, whether considered for the striking diversity of its story, the morality of its doctrines, or the important truths of its gospel, would have proved by far the greatest treasure.
In the early part of July, a visit was paid to the works by Mrs. Dickson, the only daughter and surviving relative of Smeaton, the great engineer. She was conveyed to the rock on board the _Smeaton_ tender, which had been so named by Stevenson from a sense of the deep obligation he owed to the labours and abilities of his predecessor. It is unnecessary to say that she was exceedingly gratified by her visit.
Passing over the daily details of the work, we arrive at the 29th of July, as one of the epoch days of the undertaking. The _last stone_ was landed on the Bell Rock, and you may be sure such an occasion was duly celebrated. On the 30th, the _last course_ (the 90th) of the building was laid, finishing the exterior wall, and the engineer then solemnly pronounced a suitable benediction: “May the Great Architect of the Universe, under whose blessing this perilous work has prospered, preserve it as a guide to the mariner!”