A hole of one foot square was accordingly cut right through the middle of the central stone in the sixth course; and at equal distances in the circumference were sunk eight other depressions of one foot square and six inches deep. A strong plug of hard marble, from the rocks near Plymouth, one foot square, and _twenty-two inches_ long, was set with mortar in the central cavity, and driven firmly into it with wedges. As this course was _thirteen inches high_, it is evident that the marble plug which reached through it rose _nine inches_ above the surface. Upon this was fixed the central stone of the next course, having a similar bore in its middle, bedded with mortar, and wedged as before. By this means, no force of the sea acting horizontally upon the central stone, unless it was able to cut in two the marble plug, could move it from its position; and the more effectually to prevent the stone from being lifted, in case its bed of mortar should chance to be destroyed, it was fixed down by four trenails. The stones surrounding the central were dove-tailed to it in the same manner as before, and thus one course rose above another, with no other interruption than the occasional violence of the waves or inclemency of the weather. In every stage of the laborious and difficult work Smeaton himself was foremost. When it had proceeded so far as to present the appearance of a level platform, he could not deny himself the gratification of enjoying the limited promenade which it afforded; but making a false step, and being unable to recover himself, he fell over the brink of the work, and among the rocks on the west side. The tide having retired, he sustained no very serious injury; but he dislocated his thumb, and as no medical assistance could be procured, set it himself, and returned to his work. The incident is characteristic of the courage and tenacity of the man. * * * * * The ninth course was laid on the 30th of September, and the weather becoming boisterous, further operations were suspended for that year. The following winter was very tempestuous, and it was the 12th of May before Smeaton and his workmen again saw the Eddystone. To their delight and surprise they found the entire work in the same condition as when they left it. The cement appeared to have become as hard as the stone itself, the whole being concreted into one solid mass. Thenceforward the work made vigorous and successful progress, and, by September, the twenty-fourth course was reached and laid. This completed what is called “the Solid” part of the building, and formed the floor of the store-room; so that Smeaton had no reason to be dissatisfied with the operations of the season. But as he had long been meditating on the advantage to the public which would accrue if a light could be exhibited that very winter, he resolved on a vigorous effort to complete the store-room and erect a light above it.