Elmore bulletin. [volume] (Rocky Bar, Idaho) 1889-1906, 1891-09-19
SAILORS SUPERSTITION.
ODD FANclES OF THOSE WHO
LIVE ON THE OCEAN.
Warnings from the spirits Of the Depart
ed-Glooiny Forcbodings- Fate OF the
Good ship Friday -Birds OF the Sea-
Norwegian sailors

Norwegian sailors
Sailors believe that the spirits OF the
departed, as In life. possess all their own
peculiar ways of warning or communi
eating to their friends on earth such In
formation as they deem essential to their
welfare and happiness. II is not an un.
common occurrence for them 10 credit the
shades OF some friend with many Of those
triiing little changes In the flowing and
ebbing Of the sea as Indicative Of some
prospective III luck or joy
Rarely does II happen that the etymol-
ogy of their superstition contains a pre-
cursor for joy Such gloomy forebodings
as they are capable Of interpreting are In
variabry omens Of misfortune Truly
may 1t be said that superstition forms tho
alphabet of the senfaring man rs one
ignorant of Its varied branches Is gcner
ally looked upon as green. and becomes
butt of his more fortunate and enlight
ened ''chums.
Their transformation into the ethereal
-stlms of space does not in the belief of
those whom they have left behind. alter
shoir ideas one iota. and hence II Is that
the several trifing mishaps and other cir.
eumstanees incidental to a voyage are in
terpreted by the sailors into realities
which would ill volume in themselves
In justice TO them. however, be 1t said,
that such fatuitions conceptions are not
without foundation. as the loss Of the
steamship Friday many years ago will
testify TO
FATE or THE FRIDAY
This vessel was a huge ironclad, built
In Scotland regardless Of expense. and
named after the unlucky day She was
manned and commanded by capable and
experienced officers, selected for their
capabilities. and altogether thoroughly
adapted for such task as the trial voy.
age of an ocean steamer She set sail ON
Friday. and when nearing the Cape of Good
Hope few weeks afterward ON that very
same day. sank. drowning all her crew.
10 is believed that owing to this disaster
selmen have considerable fear Of putting
10 sea on Friday. and some go so far as to
say that their fears date from this sad
catastrophe. Captains Of small vessels
have always dreaded the prospect of sail
ing ON Friday, while those of larger ones
book upon that day with the greatest non.
ehalance and uncdncern
The sailor on land and on sea are two
distinct characters, each possessing his
own singular attributes. On land no
other being has more utter disregard of
premature danger or mishaps as his daily
actions and nocturnal orgies demonstrate,
so when once on sea he blossoms out
again into smiles nf excessive obsequious
ness There when danger dogs his foot.
steps At every track superstition Is his
kol. to IL he sacrifices every selfish senti.
mrnt, and In II he trusts for those happy
Prcsentlments which may afterward save
him from destruction.
| Even while partaking of their meals
sailors rarely lose an opportunity Of dis
cussing and rehearsing stories which the
average man would regard as the product
of a maniac's brain The days happen
ngs are interpreted by each aud notes ex-
changed. The most gifted romancer Is
then looked upon with feelings of rever
ence and respect. A visit 10 theiT sleeping
T quarters will reveal a miscellaneous col.
I lection of horseshoes. nails. palmlike
leaves and numerous other articles, each
of which has a history of its own When
birds are swept aboard in "A storm they are
invariably left untouched, as sailors eye
them with delight and satisfaction as the
spirits of some dear departed friend met.
amorphosed. The birds of the sea,
notably the petrel immortalized by Proc.
tor. and the sea gull. are held sacred In
consequence of the latter apparently rest.
ing ON the surface of the sea after the
manner of the Saviour on the Lake of
Genesareth
Whenever this occurs In the immediate
vicinity of ship calm is predicted and
the jolly tars lose little or no time in
notifying the captain Of their glorious
vision. In sailors eyes the porpoises are
never pleasant objects to contemplate
When they suddenly appear during a calm
the sailors look for another wind from the
same quarter as that which was blown
out, and If they skip about II means that
gale is coming
IN AWE or THE SHARK
The common barnacle which adheres I,
ships side becomes. according to thei
belief, later ON in life goose But among
all those signs nothing is so well calcu
lated to fill them with awe as the appear
ance of q shark When this monster o
the deep Is seen to follow ship fo
several days a death Is to occur on board
and while clambering up the riggin.
extra pains are adopted In making thei
Journey safe and successful one Tn,
ship is then evidently haunted. and tn
faces of her crew. but recently smiling
ne now decorated with expressions a
tnce thoughtful and lugubrious.
The common mirage fills sailors witt
fread. and betokens an early death L
some OF It's oDsefNerS. carrying a corps
on board appears TO them 70 be inviting
disaster. and cases are on record wher
the crew have become mutinous and r,
fractory until the distasteful freight wa
, lowered into the sea
Norwegian sailors are inveterate slave
10 form OF superstition exclusively thei
own. They believe Ia tho existence Of
, heck or norman, sea animal represente
as having fish body with the head of
man and the flowing ringlets OF a boy
The norman sits upon the waves PLAY
the harp. and. following the example ,
many Of the Morse fishermen, wears a ne
cap, Ii Is never seen more than once
seven years, and no matter how man
vessels appear In its sight they all mus
, inevitably perish
The crew according to their ssiief. al
then transplanted In the mermans r,
gions. where after brief stay. they Z
to swell the shual of hecks aud are the
in themselves as disastrous as the orig
nals The kraken, sea monster who's
! existence has been SO often attested b
the evidences of alleged eye witnesse
, that one is at a loss to know whether it
real or has being only In the minds Z
superstitious sailors Is constant SQUIRE
of alarm TO them
; Many assertions which have been mad
al times regarding the existence Of thi
ieviRthan, which occasions so much drea
in the minds of the Morse fishermen, hav
been rejected as mere superstition Sti
some authentic grounds for a belief In il
existence are on record The Norwegia
dffYaru frau, b{a Eprlfxh hrof bsr only 1