Smyrna times., 1871-07-12
.MGSce Tia 10 e o us.
Three Old Legends Of Berlin.


compare them with the vagarlrS OF the social
ed SpiritualiNts OF the present day, it seems to
me that in one respect at least, the world has
not advanced III wisdom. The village ghost,
which frightened the peasant, was at any rate
supposed to appear toran important purpose
generally for the sake Of righting wrong, Of
protecting innocence, or Of furnishing crime.
The poor Oil woman, who was laughed at by |
the iree-thhkiug Squire for believing that
some delrauded orphan recovered the prop |
erty, from which he had been dcbarred, through |
the information generous y afforded by some |
grim lady, who wore extremely ruatGmg silk |
might have scn4fed in her turn at the manifcS !
tatioue Ct departed spirit, which revealed |
himself to mortal ears merely tor the purpose
Of spelling Iii, name inliiltrently, with vast
deal Of miSspcnt trouble.
Thus spake laurence, looking amazingly
wise. To him, with an approving nod, replied
! Maxnilian Quite true. And, now we
are between four walls, DO not mind confess
ing that never entertained that thorough con
tempt for the aTpari:iOns of the old school,
which was encnuraged-nay, almost enforced
early i'll the present century Taught, as
had been, to place faith in a Providence, |
never saw how | could con>is ently reject
narrative as false, merely because it involved
the intprpO>tion of supernatural agency.
"Then," sneered Edgar. YOU would be
lieye that st Dry was true, on the strength of
the circumstance that i. incucated a good
moral? The world, in vcur opinion, must be
very happily constituted.
"You are going too far demonstrated Lqu-
renee. Macmillan did not mean anything
of the kind He merely intended to assert
that we are not 50 thoroughly acquainted with
the ceremony OF the universe that We have a
right absolutely to deny the po>Sbi ity OF GER
tain phenomena simply because they do not
harmoniZe with the results OF our general eX-
perience.
THAT is the argument of those poor, mod
ern Spiritualists on whom you look down with
such lordly scorn,' observed Edgar. Be
! consistent, at any rate
I've are perfectly consistent, ret0rted
Maximilian We refuse even to investigate
= the facts offered to uur notice 10y the magI tC
whom YOU refer, because he facts are trivial
and in our opinion not worth investigation
However let me vary this discussion with
: narrative which was long current among th'
people Of Berlin.
"A ghost story of the good old school, in
snuated Edgar.
: Well" said Naximilian, 'it does not i,
= any way refer to a ghost In the ordinary sens
of the word, but still it purports to record al
= Instance of sup Arnatural agency, deemed eX
q traOrdnary In It's time just at the close Q
the sixteenth century, when John George wa
Eector of Bran Ienburg, three brothers, who's
Christian names were Bruno, Michael an
Gotthold, lived in the apital of the presel
kingdom of Prussia. These three brother
70. were 50 deeply attached to each other that tn
emotions experienced by any one Of them Wei
"e almost equally felt by the other two:
"A leash of Corsican brothers" interpo
ell Edgar
"Tke youngest brother" proceeded Max
milan, " became desperately enamorcd OF Il
daughter of Maestro Rarros an Italian, WI
m! was the Electors chief Kapellmester. II
maestro lodged in a house belonging to an Il
Gle of the three brothers, and consequent
Gotthold had an opportunity of declaring
sh passion, oil which he was not slow to take a
vantage His avowel having been heard WI
favor by the young lady, he lost no time
communicating his good fortune to his bro'
ers, and "A consultation was forthwith held
to the best means Of obtaining the consent
the father to the union Of the lovers. /
hye Italian was very proud Of his position, a
s"' was not to be approached lightly. As Bru
the elder brother, had DISTINGUISHED hims
much by paying on the violin before
E!cctor, and hid thus gained the post ot S
ut, ond Kapellmcister, he was deemed the m
fitting ncgotiator. Unfortunately, the V
Duy' deserts of Bruno, on which Gotth0d had
81" lied, destroyed his efficiency, for Rapposi
:. in the young musician dangerous rival, a
IDS, hating him accordingly with protessic
loo hatred, met Bruno's proposal with a stern {
corC laraton that all intercourse between MAIDEN
and see Rapposi and Gotthold must immedia
ng cease.
"The sight OF public execution" cont
soon Gu 4""A '""' " ~ -..
1u 10 am speaking regarued as ulIlnS IrCi'd
that for persons OF lnduOltaDle reSpecta blllty'
with thus FAR it was but natural that the lta
maestro and the three brothers found tn
oS selves in a dense throng assembled to see
-, last sentence of the law Inflicted on an un
7,f tunate young person, guilty of infanticlde.
it happened, they all stood close together,
rU the attention Of the crowd was diverted
lE the criminal by loud shrek, followed by
VI fall of the Italian, who pointed to k
which had been plunged up to the hllt int
bosom, and immediately expired. Br
who stood nearest to the deceased, was at
arrested on suspicion and, in spite of his
testations that he had neither struck the
rom himself, nor knew in the least who was tn
saSsin he was speedily sentenced to dc
ou No sooner, however, had the sentence
passed, than each of the remaining two bl
SON. p~p orc without communicatnr together, resC
to save Bruno by an act of self sacrifice,
accordingly, both appeared before the
I'm for murderer. Bruno, to Illustrate their gene
d New intentions, belied his former prOestation
innocence, and, in his turn, took the c
. ihelI upon himself Here, then, was difficult
- Pa'- for it was clear that three persons could
have killed a man with one knife, and the
,CK. picked Judges referred the case to the Elt
- who hit upon a curious ordeal as an expe
no for ascertainng the truth lie ordered
llO, the three brothers should each carry Ii
tree to a certain churchyard and plant it
7 - +. it's head downwards, add ng that the one v
tree did not grow under these difficult cir
stances should be executed as murderer
IS at seems as though John George mei
exterminate all three, though he went to
INDS in "a roundabout fashion" growed Edgar
rs mot at all" objected Maximilian.
lde and lIiector was assured tnaI Ihe Io'iuc'
whom he appealed would supernaturally
cen put 1ere 10 prevent manlIest lnJusuce; ne
be done the simple faith OF our ancestors, who be-
sep2l that the innocent could vindicate their