I’m pretty sure "white bones shine" is correct since that is what Hammill writes at his own website (Sofa Sound). My interpretation is that it refers to the skulls of the dead sailors. It’s not that the lighthouse keeper can actually see the skulls and skeletons (or the sunken ships with their masts that "pierce the freezing dark/and parallel my isolated tower"), these are images he creates inside his head, and they’re slowly making him crazy. Happy ending, though … :-D
I’m pretty sure "white bones shine" is correct since that is what Hammill writes at his own website (Sofa Sound). My interpretation is that it refers to the skulls of the dead sailors. It’s not that the lighthouse keeper can actually see the skulls and skeletons (or the sunken ships with their masts that "pierce the freezing dark/and parallel my isolated tower"), these are images he creates inside his head, and they’re slowly making him crazy. Happy ending, though … :-D