The Portland daily press., 1881-11-04
The Glamis Mystery.
Some Strange Stories of the supernatu-
raj in Modern Life.

The hereditary death summons of the Ogil-
vies, the beating of ghostly drum, was heard
through the corridors of Airlie castle in For
farsfrire, just before the death the other day OF
the ninth earl of Airlie, 1900 miles away in
Colorado. No less grave and intelligent per-
son than the late Dr. Norman Mcleod lends
the weight of his testimony to the occurrence
of this manifestation some 80 years ago Just be-
fore the death of the earl's father and predeces-
sor in the title. Scotland, the land of fell and
flood is full of such superstitions as this of the
drumming bogie of the Ogliyes. The ap-
preaching death of a Bruce is announced by
the specter of woman in white, which a2-
pears to the doomed scion of that ancient and
once royal house. The late earl of Elgin,
man of an minently sound and robust char
acter, undoubtedly believed himself to have
been warned in this way, and was profoundly
affected by the vision. The same thing is
stated of his brother, General Robert Bruce
who accompanied the prince of Wales on his
visit to this country in 1860. Nor are such
omens confined to Scotland. The white wom-
an of the Hohen zollerns went shrieking through
the Schloss at Berlin on the eve of the death
OF the practical and unbelieving Fred erlck the
aI,
it of the Stanleys has been seen and heard
weeping and bemoaning herself before the
death of any person of distinction belonging
to the family A like apparition hau uts the
castle of one OF the O'Neills OF Ireland IN the
shape of fair pale woman clad in the ancient
Irish dress, and with ruddy, golden, dishe veled
hair the injured ghost of q daughter of the
people of whom the ch ief who had married her
ridded himself by drowning her In his ctsstle
moat. The Benedictine nun of the Middletons;
the twin owls which perched at midnight on
battlement of Wardour castle foretelling tie
death OF an Arundel of Wardour; the white
breasted bird which fiutters about the death
beds of the Oxenhaus of Devonshire; the mys-
tic sturgeon which forces itself up the current
of the Trent to call one OF the Cliftons OF Ciif-
ton into the unknown world, and the visionary
trunk of an unreal oak which floats at dawn in
the lake of Brereton hall when Brereton IS
about to die-these are all familiar to the low
ers of the might side Of nature" That such
superstitons can grow on other soil than that
OF ancient institutions and the hereditary pride
of race we all know. The tale of the double
reflection seen by Abraham Lincoln in his
mirror, and of the ghostly warning which he
took from that phenomenon, is familiar. But
one of the strapgest and most inexplicable sto-
ries of the supernatural in modern life Is that
of the mystery of Glamis. Glamis castle,
which stands like Airlie castle, in Forfairshire
is one of the stateliest, and, at the same time.
one of the wierdest and most imposing homes
of the Scottish nobility 1t is of such vast ex-
tent that when the GrSb pret6nuer James
ILL.," went there in 1715 to join the earl of
Strathmore, who marched thence to die under
the standard of the Stuarts at SheriHmuir,
eighty bedrooms were prepared for the prince
and his retinue The castle has been SO mod
ernized in parts as to make It superb resi-,
| dence. but it retains most OF its early feudai
| features and is full of strange passage ways,
| hidden chambers, stairs that lead no one
knows whittier, aud antique tapestries alive
with grim fantastic shapes. For 500 years 1t
| has been the home of the old Scottish race OF
| the Lyons, created barons of Glamis in 1445,
earls of Kinghorne in 1906, and earls of Strath-
| more in. 1877. What the mystery of Glamis is
| no one knows or ever has known save the mas
ter of Glamis for the time being and his eldest
son and heir to whom he is bound to commus
snicate it when that son and heir attains hi
majority. The present earl of Strathmore and
Kinghorne is now in his 57th year. Five years
ago, in 1876, his son and heir, Lord Glamls
came of age. Being then lieutenant IN the
Life Guards, he promised several of bis COM
panions at dinner of the Guards CLUB, Just
before he went down to keep his birthday at
| Glamis castle, that on his return ne would
tell all about the famous mystery" he
went. and when he returned the first OF his
| friends who met him and claimed the fulfill
ment of this hasty promise was SO received
that the matter was nev ver mooted again.