Wichita eagle., 1889-03-27
MYTHS AND LEGENDS.
Stories About Serpents in An
Lands and Ages.
How They Have Been Held I'm Veneration
and Esteem-Old Morse Tales and Ira
ditions-Extracts from Egyp-
tan Hieroglyphics-

tan HierogIyphics.
One Of the most quaint and charming ac-
counts of the beneficent serpents is the
story of Northburga, which you may hear
told in the Valley of the Neckar, beneath the
shadow of the castle which bears her name,
says a writer in the North American Re
sleU
Northburga, the Christian daughter of a
heather King, persistently refused 20 ac-
cept the husband Of her fathers choice, al
leging as her objection her lovers adher-
ence to the worship Of his forefathers She
fed from her enraged father and found
shelter in cavern few miles down the
river. But the King, having discovered her
retreat, Immediately followed and in vain
besought her TO return. Finding eventually
that his arguments were useless, in his an
ger he caught her arm to force her acoui-
essence. To his CONSERVATION the member
came off in his hand.
In horror he returned to the castle, leav-
ing his pious daughter to her own devices.
Hardly had he departed when a white snake
appeared, and licking Northburga's wound
o. Immediately cured the saint, enabling her
TO go forth and preach the new gospel
throughout the valley. Her tomb bears
upon it a recumbent figure with only one
arm, in memory Of the miracle.
The medicinal qualities of dragons blood
were much lauded throughout the middle
ages, and universally deemed a protection
against any weapon, however deadly. The
heroes who were fortunate enough to OBJ
tain this precious bath We're, like Siegfried,
made invulnerable.
In the early Egyptian hieroglyphics we
find representations Of snakes bodies
crowned by female heads; and, indeed, this
class of serpents seemed to have been
equally attractive to all nations an evidence
of which subtle fascination is that the le-
gends of the "snakc m2idensn still live in
the nursery tales of to-day, perennially
young and beautiful as though her birth
were not wrapped in the mysteries of a pre-
historic age OF this family came Laura,
the witsh Of Crete, whose womans heart
rendered her doubly sensitive to the degra-
dation she suffered during her incarcera-
ton swIthin her scaiy prison, nor human
form, completely lose the essence of her
serpent nature Harmonic. the wife of
Cadmus, TO be a companion in her husbands
nisfortunes, and also upon herself the
serpent's shape, but being devoid of evil
intent, never, it is said, Stunned but rather
sought mans presence. Perhaps it is but
another form of the classic Harmonic which
has become familiar TO Us under the name
OF the fairy GenGll, who, in an adder's
shape, sought refuge with Prince Leander
from the vengeance of the irate gardeners,
but at the end Of several days dropped her
scaly mantel, and, arrayed n supernatural
charms, mUni1iCenty rewarded her pro
tector. In sorie of the latter accounts
of Melusina she is cited as a member
of this sisterhood. Jean D'Arras repre-
sents her as a serpent " enamcled blue and
white;' thus also did she present herselfto
the commander Of Lusignan, a fortress
which she erected IN the early DAYS Of her
welded happiness. If there be any who
wonder that this union Of serpent and WON
an should have proved attractive to our an
cestors might not the siuuous grace and
enigmatical character of our own Elsie Ven
ner plead eloquently for the charms Of her
myth-born sisters. This is not, however,
this fascinating form that the serpent usual
ly presents itself, but rather in the fearful
guise of the storm cloud Ali, which Idra
slew, like Rcd Set, the fratriciGe; or, again,
like the winged dragon perhaps the most
terrible of all the serpent brood. In these
evil forms the snake is usually connected,
particularly is this the case in the Hellenic
pantheon and in the northern legends 1t
is not probably that, experiencing the evil
ELECTS consequent upon a residence in the
vicinity Of swampy land, and at the same
time sensible of the incalculable benefits ac-
cruing from an abundant supply of water,
the ancients may, on observing how fire.
Quently the marsh surrounded fountain,
have represented the deadly mists arising
from the former as a dragon, and personi-
fled the latter as q captive maiden or a hid
den treasure. The universal attribute Of
these mahgn monsters is the capacity they
possess to subjugate cities, and even king
doms, by their pestilential exhalatious.
FLYING by night over the country they
breathe their poison over the sleeping
world, Unfortunately blasting man and
beast.
Sometimes, as in the story of Gundel, 1
they confine their depredations 10 a particu- 1
lar castle, but usually, like the lady /
Worm of Lambeth" they lay waste whole |
districts of country, devouring the sub +
stance of the inhabitants, and eventually. T.
when their ravenous appettes are left IN
destroying the impoverished PEG /.
pie themselves.
nists begin TO rise. floating bird-hl1e on the /
night air, yet always preserving a serpen- |
tine grace, what was more likely than that /
the mind of our fore-fathers should have /
seized upon the death-bringing phenomena, /
and with the subtle alchemy OF poetic /
thought have transformed the ascending 1
mist into winged snake, whose poisonous /
breath should overcome an heroes, be they |
ever 50 brave and slalful, except only the /
glorious sun God. at the first touch of whose
golden arrow the monster must take flight.
Tie Greek mythology is full of examples
10 support this theory, probably the most
prominent Of which is the story of Python's
Heath by Apollo's hand, who thereby gave
% the world pellucid fountain which
ssued from the monsters body. 1t will be
that Python, like most Of his
Kindred, was a denizen of the marshes.