清海關總營造司韓得善在1875年度海務報告留下一份西嶼塔燈的文字紀錄，筆者將原文分為三個段落，並提供參考譯文如下：
There was, however, a native light-tower on Si-sü-tao Point, the south-west extremity of Fisher Island, Pescadores, which has been demolished and replace by a regular lighthouse. The old tower was a massive construction, 43 feet high, with a solid base over 30 feet square and 8 feet 5 inches in height. The body of the tower was octagonal in shape and in five tiers, diminishing in diameter, measured across the corners of the octagon, from 24 feet 3 inches to 11 feet 9 inches. There were three floors in the tower, with open well-holes, and access to the lantern was obtained by wooden ladders. The lantern, 9 feet 2 inches in exterior diameter, was octagonal, of stone, with one window in each side glazed with plate glass, and large obstructions to light were made by its massive stone corners. The tower was built of granite, in the usual Chinese style, with long and narrow stones, pointed with shell-lime mortar, and the interior of the walls was filled in with earth and loose stones. A small Joss was placed inside the tower in a niche immediately opposite to the entrance door, which was placed on the top of the square base and reached by a flight of granite steps.
一座本地的塔燈位在澎湖群島西嶼西南端，已被拆除並以常規燈塔取代。這座古塔建築宏大，高43英呎，堅固的底座面積超過30英呎見方，高8英呎5英吋。塔身呈八角形，共五層，直徑依序減小，對角測量自24英呎3英吋到11英呎9英吋。塔內三層，有開放式井孔，可經木梯到達燈籠。燈籠外徑為9英呎2英吋，呈八角形，由石頭砌成，每側各有一扇裝有平板玻璃的窗戶，光線因邊角砌石而造成了很大的阻礙。塔身採用花崗岩建造，為典型的中國風格，石塊狹長，用貝殼石灰砂漿砌築，內牆壁面塗佈泥土和鬆散的石頭。塔內正對入口門的壁龕安放了一尊小佛像，入口門位於方形底座的頂部，通過一段花崗岩台階即可到達。
The oil-receiver of the lamp was of hammered copper, one foot in diameter and five inches in depth, on the top of which was placed a loose copper cover having in its centre a burner consisting of four short tubes equally spaced round a central one. The solid round wicks used were about half an inch in diameter and fitted moderately tightly into the wick tubes, but sometimes they slipped back into the body of the lamp from want of anything to hold them in position. These solid wicks, which were used without any chimneys, necessarily gave a dull and smoky flame. A feed-tube was provided so that the oil could be replenished during the night without displacing the burner. The lamp-stand was also of very primitive construction, being made of four uprights of Foochow pine with a couple of crosses to hold them in position, and on which were placed two small basins to hold the trimmings and trimming scissors.
燈油容器是用錘打過的銅製成，直徑一英尺，深五英寸，頂部放著一個鬆散的銅蓋，銅蓋的中心有一個燃燒器，燃燒器由四根短管組成，短管圍繞著中心等距分佈。所使用的實心圓形燈芯直徑約為半英寸，並適度緊密地安裝在燈芯管中，但有時它們會滑落，因為沒有任何東西可以將它們固定到位。這些實心燈芯沒有任何煙囪，必然會產生暗淡且冒煙的火焰。設有供油管，這樣可以在夜間補充油，而無需移動燃燒器。燈架的結構也十分原始，由四根福州松木立柱和幾個交叉桿組成，立柱上放置了兩個小盤，用來盛放修剪剪刀和修剪的殘料。
When I first saw this light there was no arrangement for ventilation in the lantern, which consequently must have been filled with smoke whenever the lamp was lighted. The lantern glass was always very dirty, from the smoke inside and the dust outside. The only way of reaching the outside of the lantern glazing was by climbing up the outside of the tower, a thing which was probably never done. The light was very feeble, and on certain bearing it was quite obscured by the massive corners of the lantern, so that it could never be depended upon. The dwellings had been much improved and enlarged since my first visit to Fisher Island in 1872, and ventilating holes had been formed in the top of the lantern at my suggestion, by merely knocking out some of the mortar employed in securing the stones forming the cupola of the lantern. It is reported that originally oyster-shells were used to glaze the lantern with, and that glass was only obtained from Amoy a few years ago.
當我第一次看到這盞燈時，燈籠裡沒有通風，因此每當燈亮時，裡面一定充滿了煙霧。燈籠玻璃總是很髒，因為裡面有煙，外面有灰塵。到達燈籠玻璃外面的唯一方法是由塔外爬上去，這件事可能從未被做過。光線非常微弱，在某些方位上，燈光被燈籠的巨大邊角完全遮擋，因此無法被依賴。自從1872年我第一次訪問以來，這裡的住所已經有了很大的改善和擴大，按照我的建議，只需敲掉一些用於固定燈籠頂部石頭的砂漿，穹頂就會形成通風孔。據悉，燈籠窗戶最初是安裝牡蠣殼，玻璃是幾年前才從廈門引進的。
ps. 貼圖取自ResearchGate。
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Note：
(*1) 清海關紀錄原文「Si-sü-tao」，漢文稱「西嶼塔」。
(*2) 清海關紀錄「light-tower」，而不是「lighthouse」，筆者譯為「塔燈」。
(*3) 所述「11英呎9英吋」應是指外觀的第四層。第五層為燈籠，燈籠可以稱為燈室，燈籠和燈室是一體兩面。
(*4) 筆者將「燈油容器」想像為「油壺（或茶壺）」，供油管想像為「油壺嘴」，「油壺蓋」有四支空心短管，管內可放置燈芯，燈芯藉由油壺吸入燈油可保燈火長明。
(*5) 以牡蠣殼磨成半透明薄片，夾以竹片，嵌於窗間，昔稱為「明瓦」。
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參考資料：
【Report on Lights, Buoys, and Beacon（1875）】
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Remark：
1. 2025/05/15初稿貼於Google Blogger。
2. 2025/05/16校正。
3. 2025/10/05新增原文紀錄，全文詳見【Report on Lights, Buoys, and Beacon（1875）】p7~8。
