At this time father made a harmonium, which proved such a success that he was able to sell it, and with the proceeds he bought material to make a second. He also made a magic-lantern, and made slides of the stars and sun and moon and comets, and at Christmas time he would invite the neighbours to see the lantern, and he would give them all the information he could on the subject. He also told us about the electricity which was some day to light up our houses and town and drive our railways and carriages. He told us about photography, and how we should live to see "living pictures." Then for us he made all sorts of mechanical toys--walking dolls, wooden horses and boats. The forms which were used in the schoolroom he also made, as well as tables, chairs, our boots, and his own, a little carriage for the smaller children, and later on a perambulator. He was able to make anything he wished, but of course it all meant labour, and never a moment's idleness. And he had to put up with a great deal of enmity on account of his being so set against the drink traffic, and never going to the _Railway Hotel_ to spend his earnings.
While we were at Durston we had the pleasure of seeing Garibaldi. His train was crossed on to another line. We children were playing as usual on the bank above the station, and when Garibaldi's carriage stopped right in front of us of course we all screamed with delight, and our noise brought everybody out, and the men got so excited they crawled all over the top of the carriage and shouted for all they were worth.
In 1865 my father was removed to Taunton. His duty was at Norton Fitzwarren crossing, where there was no station, so he had only a small office to sit in, which, as he still had the night duty, he began to find very trying. House rent at Taunton was heavy, so mother applied for a schoolmistress's situation, and she kept this post for nearly two years. Meanwhile another son was born. But we were not very happy at Taunton, for father was often ill during the time we were there.
The school in which mother taught was next to our house, and was also used on Sundays as a Mission Chapel. When we first went there they used to chant the _Magnificat_ and _Nunc Dimittis_, and a hymn, to the accompaniment of an accordion. Father did not like the sound, especially when he had to sleep on Sunday before going on night duty; so he offered to lend his new harmonium if they would take care of it and could find some one to play it. The curate, the Rev. J. Jackson, was much pleased with the idea, and he persuaded a crippled lady, Miss Emma Mockeridge, to undertake the duties of organist. She used to be wheeled down on Sundays to play, and twice in the week besides she would gather the children round her in the schoolroom and teach them the hymn. So she came in all weathers from quite a long distance to do this work, and after a time she began to visit the people who attended the service, and told them that since Mr. Langdon would not accept any payment for the use of his harmonium it was their duty to provide themselves with a new one of their own. Before very long she succeeded in collecting enough money to buy one. At this time Mr. Jackson held evening classes for men and charged them a halfpenny a week. Father with some others went to him to learn Greek, and got on very well with it. He greatly enjoyed these classes, and in later life would say how grateful he was for them.