A watchman was stationed at a railroad level crossing.
His duty was simple yet critical: to wave a lantern armed with a light,
warning approaching motorists or engineers about an oncoming train.
One tragic night, a fatal accident occurred despite his presence.
In court, he was asked insistently:
“Did you wave the lamp that night?”
And he replied repeatedly,
“Yes, I did wave the lamp, sir.”
He kept affirming that he had indeed swung the lamp
—yet something essential had gone wrong.
After the trial, when asked by a friend what happened, the watchman clarified:
“Yes, I waved the lamp—but I never had time to light the lamp.”
Later, his wife reassured him, reminding him,
“Honey, you did all you could. You swung the lamp.”
He responded, sadly: “I didn’t light the lamp.”