“His eye was on the Inchcape float; Quoth he, ‘My men, put out the boat, And row me to the Inchcape Rock, And I’ll plague the Abbot of Aberbrothok.’ “The boat is lowered, the boatmen row, And to the Inchcape Rock they go; Sir Ralph bent over from the boat, And he cut the bell from the Inchcape float. “Down sunk the bell with a gurgling sound, The bubbles rose and burst around; Quoth Sir Ralph, ‘The next who comes to the rock Won’t bless the Abbot of Aberbrothok.’ “Sir Ralph the Rover sailed away, He scoured the seas for many a day; And now grown rich with plundered store, He steers his course for Scotland’s shore. “So thick a haze o’erspreads the sky, They cannot see the sun on high; And the wind hath blown a gale all day,— At evening it hath died away. “On the deck the Rover takes his stand, So dark it is they see no land: Quoth Sir Ralph, ‘It will be lighter soon, For there is the dawn of the rising moon.’ “‘Canst hear,’ said one, ‘the breakers roar? For methinks we should be near the shore;’ ‘Now where we are I cannot tell, But I wish I could hear the Inchcape bell!’ “They hear no sound, the swell is strong; Though the wind hath fallen they drift along, Till the vessel strikes with a shivering shock,— ‘O Christ! it is the Inchcape Rock.’ “Sir Ralph the Rover tore his hair, He curst himself in his despair; The waves rush in on every side, The ship is sinking beneath the tide. “But even in his dying fear One dreadful sound could the Rover hear,— A sound as if with the Inchcape bell The devil below was ringing his knell.” It would be difficult to name a position on the Scottish coast where a lighthouse was more a matter of necessity for the safety of ships than this long-famous rock. The beacons which, one after another, had been erected upon it, the furious waves had swept away; and a structure was needed not less solid and permanent than that of the Eddystone. To design such a structure, and to plant it solidly amid the waves, became, in 1806, the task of Mr. Robert Stevenson. As the rock was frequently under water to the depth of twelve feet, the task was scarcely less difficult than that whose successful achievement has helped to perpetuate the name and fame of Smeaton.