The Lighthouse Stevensons - Bella Bathurst [41]
But Rennie’s verdict on the feasibility of the light had shifted matters dramatically. The Commissioners, faced with a definitive second opinion, succumbed. They began preparations for a second bill, ensured it had sponsorship and then waited while it made its languid passage through the House of Commons. Objections were raised by those who thought that public money would be better spent on Britain’s defences against Napoleon. Both Rennie and Robert were sent south by the Commissioners to answer for the project, and to lobby for the maximum funds. Four months later, in July 1806, the bill authorising construction was passed and the Commissioners permitted to borrow £25,000. Finally, the ultimate sanction arrived. In the General Meeting on 3 December 1806, the Commissioners announced ‘That the building to be erected for the purpose of a light house on the Bell or Cape Rock shall be of Stone, and that the work shall be vested under the direction of John Rennie Esq, Civil Engineer, whom they hereby appoint Chief Engineer for conducting the work.’ Mr Stevenson, they added in a cursory postscript, ‘was authorised to proceed along with Mr Rennie, and to endeavour to procure a yard and the necessary accommodation at Arbroath.’
During those long months of waiting, Robert had continued to work on his plans for the light. He had been much affected by Rennie’s openness towards him, and the two had tried to be generous in their dealings with each other. Rennie was, after all, a kind-hearted man; after the untimely death of another of Robert’s children, Rennie had written to him offering support and consolation. ‘I am truly sorry for the affliction you have lately sustained in your family, an affliction as a Parent I well know…But, my good Sir, this is a world of trial, and when we consider our Situation we ought not to mourn or repine at the dispensations of Providence; we are here only in a state of probation, to prepare for another and a better world.’ But whatever rapport there was between the two in private could make no difference to Robert’s professional quarrel with Rennie. Kind words could never compensate him for the frustration of his hopes.
Though sorely wounded by the Commissioners’ indifference to his efforts, Robert took the insult quietly, preferring instead to scheme alone. He now began adapting and refining his designs even further, making allowances for the different conditions on the rock and his own sophisticated knowledge of local materials. As it became evident that the Commissioners intended using him as a kind of stage-manager for the works – ordering materials, hiring men, dealing with suppliers – Robert also discovered a new form of leverage against his chief engineer. He sent his plans to Rennie, along with an exhaustive list of questions and demands: what kind of stone to use, which quarry was it to come from, how many men would be needed, which measurements, which type of mortar. Rennie replied with corrections and further suggestions. Robert, aware that Rennie was now distracted with other matters, ignored his corrections and bombarded him with an urgent list of further questions. Rennie wrote back again, less promptly.
By 26 December – just over three weeks since the original meeting – the two were already appearing jointly in the Minutes. ‘Mr Rennie,’ the Clerk noted, ‘proposed to the meeting that Mr Stevenson should be appointed assistant engineer to execute the work under his superintendence.’ The Commissioners, making allowance for Rennie’s other projects, agreed. Seizing the advantage, Robert wrote again with a ceaseless