The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1886-10-23
OLD WORLD FOLK LORE.
Moncure D. Conway Writes About An
Gent Science and the Love OF Women.
The FOLKLORE of Germany and the Origin
of Wagners Flying Dutchman''-Tvo
Homeless Wanderers-Tradit Dear
to the Human Race.

OF wagner "Eiying Dutchman''-Two
Homeless INSTRUMENTATION Dear
to the Human Race.
From N, Miiodclphio Pr,ss
While voyaging with her Maiesty's
ship Bacchaate, Prince Albert Victor
and Prince George of Wales, sons of the
Prince of Wales, passed, as they report,
the Flying Dutchman. They 90 not ap-
pear to have seen the phantom ship them
selves. but tell what was told them.
July II, 1SS1.-At A. NJ. the Flying
Dutchman crossed our bows. \ strange
red light, as of . phantom snip al aglow,
in the midst OF which light the N ~
spars aud sails Of brig, POO yards
tant, stood ont in strong relief as
came u.,. The lookout man on the fore
castle reported her as close on the port
bow, where also the officer of the watch
from the bridge clearly saw her, as did
also the quarter deck mdshipman, who
was sent forward at once to the fore
castle, but on arriving there no vestige
nor any sign whatever of any rnateli al
ship was to be seen either near or right
away to the horizon, the night being
clear and the sea calm. Thirteen pei
sons altogether Saw her, but whether it
was Van Dieman or the Flying Ddtcl
man, or who else. must remain unknown.
The Tourmaline and Cleopatra, who
were sailing Oh our starboard bow, flashed
to ask whether we had seen the strange
red light. At 1915 \. VI. the ordinary
seaman who had this morning reported
the Flying Dutchman fell from the fore
topmast crosstrees and was smashed to
atoms"
The NEUROLOGICAL cruise of the phan-
tom ship is not couiluad to oriental wa
tiers. Many years ago met an old sailor
on Block Island who believed that he mad
seen its sails ''all aglow" off the Rhode
Island coast. And the following from
our veraciuus historian OF the Mississippi
Mark Twain, may be placed beside the
yarn" spun on the BIcchante for the
English princes.
MARK TWAIN 5 FLYING DU. GILMAN
1.-The old Raccourci cutoff reduced the
rivers length twenty eight miles. There
used to be a tradition connected with it.
1t was said that boat came along thee
in the night and went around the enur-
nous elbow the usual way, the pilots net
knowing that the cut off had been IN .tde.
1t was grisly, hideouS night, aud all
shapes were vague and distorted Tie
old bend had already begun to fill ur,
and the boat got to running away from
mysterious reefs and occasionally hittn
one. The perplexed pilots fell to swea,-
ing, and finally uttered the entirely un-
necessary wish that they might never
get out of that place. AS always hap
pens in such cases, that particular prayer
was answered and the others neglected.
SO to this day that phantom steamer is
still butting around in that deserted
river trying to find her way out. More
than one grave watchman has sworn to
me that on drizzly, dismal nights he has
river as he passed the head of the island
| and seen the faint glow of the spectre
steamers lights drifting through the dis
tant gloom ard head the mufie4 cough
OF her 'scape pipes and the plaIntive cry
Of her leadsman.'
1t Is fact not generally known that
the Flying Dutcnman was real ship
and its captain real character. In the
early Seventeenth Century, when COM
petition between the Du'ch and English
for East Indian trade ran high, Que ship,
plying between Rotterdam and Java, was
known as the Flying Dutchman. Its
captain and owner was one Bernard
Fokke, whose name deserves to be ex
humed as that OF the first man who used
iron in the construction of ship. Sheets
of iron were visible in many parts of
FOX kes ship, and the populace, knowing
we'll that iron naturally sinks, grew sus-
picious when this one, instead of sinking.
surpassed all others in swiftness.
IL seemed ''uncanny," as the Scotch
say. Wiseacres of the wharf shook their
heads as the big taciturn captain passed
to his ship which SO deted the laws of
specific gravity. With what dark power
of the air or the wave was he in league?
When from one of its voy ages the Flying
Dutchman never returned these suspi-
clous organized into the seed from which
grew the wcll-known superstition. 1t
was whispered that, in trying to round
the Cape OF Good Hope, the iron bound
ship was repeatedly driven back 10y
storms till at last the captain cried, Il
| will round that cape if it takes me till
Judgment DAY. Tnen a voice of thun.
der echoed down the sky-.'till Judume MT
Day. SO the Flying Dutchman was | e.
lieved to be doomed to try and round the
cape till Judgment Day.
wAGNER'S SPECTRE SHIP.
y favorite superstition of the Morse sail
ors was that OF the Wandering Jew. The
legend of a Jew who had struck Jesus on
his way to Calvary, ana babe him "move
on, and who was himself doomed to
move on till Judgment Day, had been
a romance in the converts, but was popu-
larizcd by the printing press, and mpcs-
tors appeared in many parts of Europe,
each protesting to Dc piouS and resigned
Wandering Jew. Tie legend OF the Jew
Was partly applied to Odin, the Wild
Huntsman-doOmed, for some insult to
Christ, to wander forever in the air. To
the Wanderer Of the Land and the Wan
deier of the Air was now added Wan
derer OF the Sea
The same Nauderdecken was given to
the captain Ill the stage play corrected
| out OF the legend about Sixty Years
ago. Ia early lite Wagner saw this spec-
tacular play in London. lie was himself
a wanderer, and the story impressed bis
Imagination. Golrg over to Paris he met
| lleine. who had written version of tie
legend N 1888 aud added to it a romantic
touch-namely, that the doom Of the
captain was that he must wander forever.
ualess he should find a woman faithful
unto death
In May, 1921, a version Of the legend of
the Flying Dutchman appeared in
BtdcI"00dS Ntga=ine. This was made
the basis of a sensational drama by Fitz-
ball, whioh enjoyed popularity in London