Morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven [Conn.]) 1848-1894, 1890-12-20


In crossing from the Orkneys to the
Shetland Islands, distance of perhaps
one hundred miles from Kirkwall, the cap
ital of the former, to Lerwick, the capital
Of the latter, it is possible for the traveller
to encounter the fiercest ocean tides, and
the roughest waters, known to any seas.
The perilous tideway is called the Roost
Morse, rgst, tide-race) of Sumburgh, and
the waters sweep through it with incredi-
BILE velocity. One who has known the
roughest passage from Dover to Calais,
across the English channel, will remember
that experience as gentle sail after tum-
bling about in the Sumburgh Roost, and
particularly that portion nearest the south
ern headlands of Shetland, known as the
"west shot" of Sumburgh. Your steamer
in the passage sails almost within hailing
distance of lone Fair Isle, standing mid
way between the 0rkneys and Shetland,
and it's natives invariably intercept pass
ing vessels in their curious, frail yawls,
eager for newspapers, magazines and any
scrap of knowledge of the outside world.
Fair Isle was the Fridarey OF the Orkney
inga Saga. 1t and one or two of the 0rk-
ney group still retain the name of the Fa-
roe or Sheep Islands. No spot in all these
| northern seas receives such lashings and
beatings from the Atlantic, and it's two
hundred and fifty souls are never free
from the shrieking of sea-fowl or the
howlings of the deep. The island has no
lighthouse, and has been the scene of
Gran Grifon," a war-ship of the great
Spanish Armada, commanded by Juan Go
mez de Medina, went to pieces in Sivars
| Clio, on its desolate shores. Eighty-six
souls perished. Two hundred reached
land, many of whom died of starvation.
Others were thrown from the cliffs by the
perturbed natives, who believed that the
crew of Gel Gran Grifon" had been sent
| to destroy them. Those escaping death by
sea, starvation and murder finally secured
liberation and n sort of friendship which
had curious results. The Spanish sailors
| became, until they were rescued from the
island, dependents and slaves. Seeking
the good will of their Faroese masters, the
Spaniards actually spun yarn, wove al
hand-looms and knit for the women.
That was nearly three and half centuries
ago; but the very patterns in stockings
gloves, capes and jerseys for which the
Farce Islands are to-day famous, were
then taught them by the ship-wrecked
crew of ''El Gran Grifon;" they are iden
tical with those now worn by the pesca
dores of Barcelona and Spanish southern
| ports; while it is even said that Murillo
who gave the Louvre, in Paris, its match
less Madonna, painted similar PATTERN
upon a shawl in his study of the Flowe
Girl, now seen in the Dulwich gallery
London.
If one can keep good sea-legs under hin
the approach to Shetland is interesting
and exciting. Your steamer bounds
lurches and pounds through tremendou
seas, and strange trembling of tn
= strongest vessel is always felt as the un
, seen forces of the tideway contend TO
mastery. Straight before you is tn
southernmost Shetland sea-nose, the grin
| precipice of Sumburgh Head, crowned b
= | a noble lighthouse, the first ever erecte
: in Shetland, built by Robert Stevenson
| the great Scottish engineer, in 1921
q Around to the west, its base white for a
= hundred feet high with the spume of th
g sea, and its highest peak as white wit
4 drifting mists, rises upwards of one thor
a sand feet, wild Fitful Head, the legendar
home of Scott's Norma, the Reimkenne
, as dark, forbidding and fearful spot
ever human eyes looked upon. To tt
east here and there feathery lines I
I smoke on the sea-horizon tell of the goir
- | and coming of German ocean "tramI
II steamers or traders of the Baltic flee
=. Nearer, in the foreground, like sea-fo,
! resting upon the water while sunnir
ts their uplifted wings, the sails of countle
;s Dutch and Scottish herring -busses. The
N Great Ness, Lambhoga Head and the Wa
" of Skewsburg are swiftly passed. Wh'
y alongside Mousa Island the weird Pictii
bloch or tower of Mousa is seen, grey o
re sentinel of the wraiths of ancient Nor
3, hosts, crowning the desolate moorlal
NJ landscape. In a half hour more you a
lie passing through the noble southern e
III trance to Bressay Sound, a western arm
US ls which forms the capacious harbor of Ia
u wick. There is no finer anchorage in t
In world Many time, century or so &c
10 two thousand Dutch herring-busses, wi
80 hundreds of other curious Orcadean, Il
sy landic, Morse and Baltic craft might ha
io been seen within the sound at one tin
lt Picturesque headlands reach out a
ne around from the north and sound, fro
q; the western or mainland crescent shap
io shore while on the east the splendid
land of Bressay, high and grand in plac
oh forms a circling eastern sea-wall to qua
the sound and harbor from the tempests
es the German ocean.
ny Bressay sound was the Breitheyiarsur
1T or road-island-sound, of the Morse, a
en- the Buss Hayn of the Amsterdam fie
no 1t was here that King Hakon came W
lc, his wonderful fleet of two hundred g
Use leys, when on his disastrous expediti,
no terminating in the battle of Largs. {
IN own redoubtable Paul Jones once ca
iat here to loot the capital of the Shetlan
ay But he ran away again speedily. H'
af dreds of Shetland women climbed
OIL Knab, promontory near, to get bet
ore view of the ''Yankee Pirate" They
oue wore red petticoats. The hero of the
the ger and Richard believing them to be
1ts red uniforms of a large garrison of X
mo Georges soldiers, did not stop to g
u sskipper" and eat herring with the 81
40; landers, but made away as fast as his sh
lui sails could carry him to the Solway I'm
ear where he failed in an attempt to desl
Scotland of her good Earl of Selkirk,
oft- Kirkcudbright-shire. The area of b
{, on say Island is perhaps twelve thous
pie acres. 1t has population of one Ii
lese sand souls All the acres and people
the property of a very pleasant and n
n, riageable lady, Miss Cameron Mouat,
my lives in high state and dudgeon, beci
of the modernization of Shetland and
I've Incoming of tourists, at her quaint
mansion-house of ''Gardie," which lift
vel huge chimneys and gables exactly oppC
Who the harbor and city of Lerwick.