Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1885-03-06
an IRISH LEGEND.
Glory of the evan Ma Riac," or The
inc e" woman of theS Storm.

The SUI" woman of the Storm.
ctorm legends are common in all old
ntries. especially near the sea coast.
~, come of the oldest among them are
s.o,, blended in little incidents OF COM
'sat;vely recent date. For Instance,
Va. Irish legends Of the Shan Riac, or
.I1 storm-probably the line storm
..h;cb are said to be even more hair
Tit;nr than the tales of the banshee,
ls now identified with the yarns of
wan na Riac. or woman of the storm.
=. a. the dreadful things that are told of
All. strange lady have their foundation
.n's simpje and sad little story, which
IN 1 4 Shows how old and faded le-
IS',aIs may be restored by the artists in
sss 'mo,stition, who trace fantastic shad-
snls from commonplace things, skill
ovIl,. ,ouch their outlines to suit the
laH toncies of time and locality, and eX-
e e;h;, them to the best advantage In the
' 11]lo''ttful light of the PEASANTS fireside.
r Van Ma Riac was a native of the
u1nntains of Wicklow, where she was
'Iol Moll of the Storm. or Mad Moll.
I /" Gaelic title came to her from other
l l0n,ties where she had never been.
cb. was a young widow, and, of
s"n like all young widows, was
Ieau,iful. At all events, she was re-
@srEable for her flowing raven hair,
n n,iI turned white rather suddenly.
shn had one child, a little boy, whom
che idolixed. One evening in some un-
accountable the child strayed
,away from home. The mother started
"nt 10 look for him. 1t was a dreary
orarinc in the fall, and q storm was
snnroaching. The woman wandered
"aEEnnnt in the woods, calling the child.
soon the tempest burst upon her in all
=, fury, In terror she ran to the near
n>t ne;rhbors and called upon them to
aL her in her search for the child.
They did so. but no trace of the little
.nnr could be found. For three days
and three nights the wind blew, tiercely
and the rain came down in torrents.
during all this tho mother kept up the
t%ruitIess search. until at length she fell
down exhausted and was carried to the
nearest cabin, where she Was kindly
cared for, and where it was soon dis
covered that she had became insane.
4 few years rolled on. Moll was
now remarkable for her white hair.
Her insanity was of a harmless type.
In Ordinary weather she could be in
drccd TO spin or knit, but with the
first blast of an approaching storm
she would rise from her spinning
wheel, listen intently for Il moment,
and then rush off to commence once
more her mad search for the child.
She knew no fear and would climb the
stcepest hills and bound from rock to
rock in the most dangerous places,
surc-footed as a goat. And often in
the dead Of night her shrill voice, made
powerful by long practice, could he
heard in the woods and on the hills,
lever calling the lost boy. For years
her vigorous frame bore all the shocks
of the %martyrdom that had broken her
mind. until at length eel the angry
Shan Kiac took compassion on her,
and carrying her from al overhanging
rock on shc coast, dropped her into the
sea, where her long search was ended.
Some time afterward workmcn III
ploycd in removing brushwood in u
Fwampy place not far from where she
had lived came upon the skeleton of a
child, doubtless the bones of the baby
pf Mol of the Storm. But many Of
the peasants shook their heads, and
refused to believe that the little bones
were the remains sought for, since
Ploll's child had years before been car
RED away by the fairies; and in time
he report began to be circulated
hat on windy nights the ghost of
MOL travelled with the storm. There
We're few among the peasantry and
fishermen who did not know somebody
who had seen her with 1uttering gar
nents and her long white hair waving
n the wind, just as she had been seen in
me- While most of them thought that
he.y had often heard her voice.
',ilos' stories travel far and wide
WIN amazing rapiditv. 1t did. not
axe long for Moll Of the Storm to be
lreaaed in other counties far from
WICKLOW, and in due time she became
ne leading lady in the legends of the
man Mac, with the title of Van ma
vac She is not always represented as
very pad or vicious kind of ghost, but
| Is considered very unlucky either to
rear or see her. In this respect she is
IKE her sister, the banished, and is Just
/ no1t as welcome to the peasantry. In
ne moving of the wind old women can
!. car her voice, and in the moaning of
1t, sea OLD salts can hear her calls
Q !. least they have said so a thousand
[ines around the turf fire of the small
. Mlners' homes, where her story is told
ilA variations inspired by the ever
hanging embers that illustrate it. And
!. men matches are scarce and Pat dis
lures the fire in the rude operation of
~ out a coal to light his pipe be-
II HI s'artlng on a journey on a windy
Il ,snt' bad luck is sure to attend him if
Nc sandal has broken off the head or
n q loot OF anybody image of the Van
" Alac.-C0r. n. Y. SIN.
cr,i A london journal, desiring to adj
a.'se a dissecting-room story which
d - 'He striking feature of the Christ.
.r,d ISSUE hired sandwich" men to