The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1890-11-14
LEGEND OF WILLIAM TELL.

To trace the legend to mythical source
and to reveal its Inconsistencies is simple
enough, but to explain the historical ap-
plication which has been made Of it is quite
another matter. If William Tell
is the hero of widespread Germanic
myth. how came he to be connected
with the history of Switzerland at
all9 Why has not tradition handed
one of those active patriots who are known
to have lived and labored for Swiss freedom,
men like Stoupacher (Staufacher) Of
Schwyz, or Attinghausen, of Uri2 Here lies
the main difficulty; but an explanation
even Of this is at hand. which on the whole
satisfies the peculiar conditions of the prob
lem. Generally speaking, pure historical
is apt to be Instructive; but this question
of William Tell not only throws great
deal of light upon the extraordinary meth
ODDS of medieval writer's, but also contains
elements that may, without exaggeration.
be termed divertinR. inasmuch rs it re-
solves into sort of political hoax played
BY the venerable patriots of Uri upon their
unsuspecting contemporaries centuries ago,
and then transmitted to us to be unraveled
and exposed.
When the Song and The White Book APP
peared at the end of the fifteenth century,
the Swiss confederates stood at the very
apex OF their military glory, having just
completed a series Of great victories BY de-
featinQ in three pitched battles the richest
prince in Europe. Charles the Bold of
burgundy, who, according to the old rhyme,
lost
Pei Grandson das Gut,
Bei Murten den NUT,
81 Nancy dAs Blut"
Nri01oA 18th o,Srit ~ riok,n nva1tak;oy,
they turned to magnify their national ORR
gin, as is the wont Of all nations when they
rise to importance. But each of the three
districts which had united to form the nu-
cleus of the confederation, Uri. Schwyz
and Unterwalden, tried to secure for itself
of it, thus giving rise to a variety of yer.
sions. Schwyz supplied the story of a GER
tain genuinely historic parsonage, Stoupa-
cher; Unterwalden, that of a youth desig-
mated as living in the Melchi, near Sarnen,
and arbitrarily named Melchthal by later
writer's; and Uri attempted to turn to polit-
ical account legendary William Tell, an
old favorite amongst the people of that dis
trict. The notary of Sarnen collected these
stories, and did his best to give
each OF the three lands an equal
ss;ss in the In founding ms +. the
hero distanced his rivals in popular favor.
perhaps for the very reason that he was
mythical and his family unknown in those
parts, . sort of dark horse upon whom
the jealous claimants could unite.
As subsequent historians based their &C
counts almost exclusively upon The White
Book Of Sarnen, it ia not necessary to ex-
anime their work in detail. Suffice il
to say that they did not hesitat,
to supply the persons with names
and the events with dates wherever thes
were needed, although this was done 8
carelessly that the greatest discrepancie
arose, and dlscredit WAS cast even upo
that which was really historical. The ira
ditions found their best exponent in Gle
tERidius) Tschudi, of Glsrus. fror
whom Schiller in turn derived most of til
material for his play. But the Svia
chroniclers need not have resorted I
legends of doubtful origin in order to il
vest the rise of their confederation with til
Interest it ought always to have command
ed. In attempting this they rather OF
secured than displayed the qualities whic
make their ancestors worthy of our adm
ration. and pressed into the backgroun
those features of Swiss history which be,
deserve TO b studied.-W. D. McCrackan
November Atlantic.